[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
. I am aware of your concerns, but I must counsel patience.You may continue to use the specialequipment I have provided to search out those members of the Bright Court who live among you, passingas your own kind.Properly handled, even their discovery can bring about the war we seek.Meanwhile, Ishall endeavor to provide you with captives who will be properly.unconcilliatory, but it will requiretime. Yeah.The last thing we want is to grab one of those Bright guys who ll go all reasonable andmulticultural on us.We need a real fighter, Wheatley said cheerfully. All in time.And what of your plan to move against those of your own kind with Power? There was agloating note in Aerune s voice that made Jeanette shudder. Well, there we re seeing real progress, Wheatley said, gloating. We ve consolidated a number ofthose dumb-ass gov-ernment psychic research programs under our agency umbrella Anomaly,Trapdoor, Arclight, and so on and we re massaging the results to make it look not only as if psionicpowers are widespread and reliable, but that the Spookies present a real threat to the power structure.You ll have the screening programs and internment camps you want within five years, or my name isn tParker Wheatley.When you come right down to it, the Psionicist Threat is the perfect social control: fearof a minority that s invisible, that you can t prove you don t belong to.We can put down anybody weneed to by saying they re psychic once this gets rolling. I am glad you are pleased Aerune broke off suddenly, and Jeanette realized with a pang of sickdespair that he d noticed her after all.She scrambled back off the edge of his throne, hoping to beg formercy.But the floor swallowed her up as if it were water, and then she was falling, falling down into thenight.By unspoken agreement, they all gathered back in Eric s apartment on their return from the hospital,huddled together like the survivors of a disaster.For a long time no one spoke.Finally Paul got up andleft, returning a few minutes later with a bottle of Scotch and a large silver cup. I d been saving this for a very special occasion.There s none more important than saying good-bye to abeloved comrade.We ll hope it s unique. He poured the calleach full it took half the bottle then setthe bottle down on the floor, very gently. Here s to Jimmie Youngblood.Warrior and friend.I will miss her. He drank, and passed the cup toToni. I loved her, Toni said, her voice stark in its grief. Waes hael, girlfriend.Go with God. The cup passed, each person saying their own good-byes. She gave me more than I ever gave her.I wish we d had more time. Eric took only the barest sip, buthis farewell was no less heartfelt for that.Kayla was next. I didn t know her.I wish I had.Death bites. Ria followed, giving nothing but a simple toast and passing the cup.He ought to get up and make somecoffee, Eric supposed, but it didn t seem worth the effort.He sat on the end of the couch, the smokytaste of the Scotch on his lips, and mourned the future that would never be.It was one thing to diefighting for something that mattered, giving up your life so that the innocent could live on in happyignorance of their peril.But that wasn t how Jimmie had died.She d died in an accident a stupid,pointless, meaningless fluke, as random as if she d stepped off the curb and been hit by a car.After allshe d done, all she d suffered, all she d given up to be a Guardian, her death should have had moremeaning than that.It was as if God had just lost interest in her and blotted her out.It wasn t fair.He bowed his head, not caring if the others saw his tears. If Jimmie had to die for me to become a Guardian, I don t want the job, Hosea said thickly. She wasa righteous lady, and I won t ever be able to fill her shoes. He drank deeply, passing the cup to José. Good-bye, my friend.You should not have had to die for so little. Greystone had joined them, his wings held high and tight over his back as if he wished to shut out theevents of the night. Farewell, mo chidr.We can t always choose our fights, but you never ran from yours.Fare you well. He accepted the cup from José and drained it.There was a long moment of silence. The first time I saw Jimmie, Paul said softly, it was raining.Shewas standing outside of the House no umbrella looking like a wet cat, and about that mad. But talking about Jimmie didn t make the loss of her easier to bear.It made it worse.They were whistlingin the dark, choking on their own despair, each wondering when their own painful pointless death would come.Why live? Why do anything, when your death would be nothing more than a ripple, counting fornothing, quickly forgotten.If life meant so little, if death was so cruel, why not hasten the moment? If youcould control nothing else, if there were no true choices in life, why not choose death and get it all overwith? There was no way to win against it.Everybody died, and no death meant anything in the long run. A test. Aerune s voice came out of nowhere, rousing Jeanette from her aching daze.She could seenothing, could barely feel the surface on which she lay.Everything hurt; her eyes burned and her throatwas raw with screaming, but worse than that was the terrifying blankness in her mind.She could notremember where she d been, or what had happened to her, since she had been in Aerune s throne room.Worse, she felt as if the information lurked somewhere beneath the surface of her mind, and to recover itwould drive her mad.But it did not do to ignore Aerune when he was speaking.He was still angry with her.She could tell. What test, my lord? she asked.She reached up and felt her face.Her eyes were open, but she still sawnothing.Blindness? Darkness? Or some kind of spell? Asking would only bring her more trouble. Of your abilities.I will bring you to a place where there are many of those whom I seek.You will findme the strongest concentration of them.And I will use their power to give Mr.Wheatley the proof he soardently desires. Yes, lord. She staggered to her feet, groping for stability in the darkness.When would she stop caringabout what he used her to do? When would she go numb, or mad, or just die? When would he be donewith her? Come, then. She felt a whisper of air, and then the tingle of magic as Aerune opened a Portal.She stepped through.The assault on her unshielded senses was as if a million people were shouting at once in a language shedidn t understand.She staggered, blinded now by the wash of physical and psychic pain, choking,gasping for breath
[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]