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to excavate unpopulated rain forest, and to control concentrations of killer
tribes in the South Continent mountains. Actually, they were developed for use
against us.
 Let s not argue politics, said Laneff, and stopped, suddenly aware of a
wisp of nageric static. Jarmi was between Azevedo and Laneff, with nothing but
night blackness to Laneff s right. She turned now toward that blackness,
scrambling along the branch-matted, blood-and-flesh-strewn ridge, zlinning
intently. Azevedo followed, and Laneff said,  It s Yuan!
 I don t Yes! You do have remarkable sensitivity! He turned to Jarmi.  Go
tell everyone to stay there!
He led the way toward the Gen, who was obviously unconscious and injured. On
the level, they fought through rows of old grapevines. The darkness was nearly
absolute, but the two Simes went unerringly to the lone Gen.
Azevedo turned the body over gently.  If I hadn t just taken transfer from
him, his nager would have been strong enough for us to find him sooner!
 If you hadn t taken that transfer, countered Laneff,  you d be in no shape
to help us now.
Azevedo ignored that.  He s going to live, Laneff. It s only some internal
bleeding. A heavy section of fencing had fallen across Yuan s midsection as
he lay supine, and a shower of large stones had followed. As they lifted off
the last section of fence, they found a small box clutched in Yuan s hands.
His grip tightened as he began to moan.
 Take his ankles, Laneff, ordered Azevedo.  We ll get him back to the
others, and Desha will work with me to heal him.
As they reached the upslope into the crater, willing Sime hands helped them.
Before long, they had Yuan stretched out on the bit of level ground at the
bottom of the crater. False dawn had begun to pale the horizon. The sounds of
fighting were dying away, and fewer aircraft roared overhead. The three Gen
prisoners were conscious now, guarded by two Simes.
Enough burning wreckage had fallen that Laneff wondered if any of the Distect
fliers had escaped loaded with refugees.
Azevedo and Desha had barely begun to work over the Gen when Yuan fought to
consciousness, mumbling, and then asking clearly,  Is everyone out yet?
But it was obvious he didn t know what he was saying. A moment later, he
glanced about,  What s this? What happened?
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Azevedo was concentrating, wrapped around in some channel s working mode that
warped the selyn fields. Desha was kneeling behind the channel, her hands on
his shoulders, her eyes closed, assisting him with all she had. Shanlun moved
to kneel beside Yuan. In terse sentences, he explained how they d come here.
 Then, concluded Yuan,  they ve closed every exit.Most of their own forces
are trapped down there, too but then they signed on for suicide. My people
didn t. His fingers began to fumble at the box, raising the lid.  What time
is it? Laneff told him, and he said,  That s twice the time it takes to
evacuate the whole installation. Still 
A roar cut him off, and he demanded,  What s happening?
One of the gypsy Simes called down from the ridge,  They re landing planes.
One just  A fulsome explosion wiped out the words, and then the Sime
finished,  landed in a bomb crater. Two more made it down three four. I think
that s all but they re fielding squads of men now. He turned toward them.  It
can t be much longer until the Tecton shows up in force. We re not that far
from a major city!
 I ve got to get up there! said Yuan, struggling to move. But Shanlun held
him down.  Azevedo is working on you. You ll bleed to death; besides, you re
too weak.
Yuan subsided, but he called,  Tell me when the last of those men is
offloaded. Are any headed this way?
 Not yet, answered the lookout.
Jarmi, Laneff noticed, was clinging to Laneff s side. She put an arm around
the Gen woman, knowing that the box Yuan carried must be the trigger for the
hidden destruct charges. And some of the trapped must be Jarmi s friends.
Hidden as Yuan was in the cocoon of Azevedo s field, Laneff couldn t zlin
him. But in the growing light, his face showed just what she imagined he must
feel.
The lookout called softly,  That s it.They re fanning out searching I guess
for survivors.
With the planes down and the explosions stopped, there was a huge ringing
silence.Then the crack of a rifle. The other gypsy Sime joined the lookout,
calling incredulously,  They re murdering the survivors!
 Yes, said Yuan, their own as well as ours!The filthy lorshes! There were
tears dripping unheeded from the corners of his eyes. A horrible grimace
distorted his features, much like that of a Sime in killmode, and with a lurid
curse, he rammed his finger home on the button set into the open box he held.
Azevedo flinched, his hands nearly coming up to protect his face before he
recovered himself. Shanlun scrambled to his side, displacing Desha roughly,
shrouding Azevedo in a brilliant shell of bright fluorescent confetti.
A distant rumbling waxed to a ground-rippling shudder. All eyes flicked about
the crater looking for safety and finding none. The roar gathered and the
ground heaved,then settled with a long, grinding noise.
Gen deathflash was lacing the nager like lightning, and every Sime sought the
nearest Gen. Laneff clutched her throat to throttle her own scream and held on
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to Jarmi, hardly able to zlin the Gen s field even at contact for the blasting
overload all about them.
Jarmi whimpered, unable to breathe in Laneff s grip. In the abrupt silence,
nerves battered to insensibility, Laneff heard Jarmi s plea, and her heart [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]