"Debra Doyle & James MacDonald - Mageworlds 03 - By Honor Betray'd" - читать интересную книгу автора (Doyle Debra)

In her mind Llannat seemed to hear her own voice reciting the AdeptтАЩs vows, as she had spoken
them before Master Ransome himself at the Retreat.
тАЬ . . . to speak truth, to do right, to seek always the greater good . . . тАЭ
She shook her head. Nothing in there about loyalty to anything. In the healerтАЩs oath, yes; in
my commissioning oath, oh yes; but I havenтАЩt broken either one of those.
Magework, on the other hand . . .
Llannat forced the thought aside. Gradually, her mind grew still again, and she waited, not
thinking, until she became the question she had come to this place to ask.

As soon as LeSoit reached the тАЩHammerтАЩs cockpit-with Captain Yevil close behind him-he
started working the safety webbing of the pilotтАЩs seat into place with one hand. With the other hand he
snatched up the comm and flipped it to the Port Control link.
тАЬPortmaster, this is Warhammer. Berthing assignment no longer required. Request permission to
lift ship.тАЭ
тАЬNegative, Warhammer. Permission to lift denied. Report with your entire crew to the
portmasterтАЩs office.тАЭ
тАЬUnable to comply. Request permiss-тАЭ
The sudden tug of a tractor beam cut him off in midword. The тАЩHammer began to lurch and
sway on her landing legs as the beam-normally used to assist a vessel into its assigned berth-kept on
pulling the ship downward.
On the other side of the cockpit, Yevil was already strapping herself down into the copilotтАЩs seat.
тАЬGuess they donтАЩt want us to leave.тАЭ
тАЬWe knew that already,тАЭ LeSoit said. He picked up the comm link again. тАЬPortmaster, this is
Warhammer. Release your tractor beam and open the bay. IтАЩm leaving.тАЭ
тАЬNegative, Warhammer. Come to the office.тАЭ
LeSoit could feel the strength members of the тАЩHammerтАЩs frame vibrating under the tractor
beamтАЩs relentless pull. He keyed on the link again.
тАЬPortmaster, Warhammer. You have five seconds to release me. Four. Three. Two. One. Out.тАЭ
He reached for the main control console and pulled on the forward nullgravs. The тАЩHammer
should have tilted toward the vertical in preparation for lift-off, but nothing happened-only the steady
throb of overstressed metal, hovering just below the threshold of audibility.
тАЬThey have the entire Suivan grid to draw on,тАЭ said Yevil. тАЬAll weтАЩve got is shipтАЩs power.тАЭ
тАЬIтАЩll give them shipтАЩs power, all right.тАЭ LeSoit hit the console again-first main power, and then,
with a tremendous deep-throated roar, the heavy realspace engines. Power that should have driven
WarhammerтАЩs mass up to near-lightspeed from the bottom of a gravity well poured out of the shipтАЩs
engines into the confined space, turning the deckplates of the bay to slag beneath them. All over the
console, warning lights burned red. тАЬThis is it-either we shake apart fighting their beam, or we burn it out
and break free.тАЭ
тАЬEnergy guns!тАЭ Yevil shouted at him over the racket of the engines. тАЬThatтАЩs what theyтАЩll do.
TheyтАЩll bring in energy guns and take us out right here.тАЭ
тАЬNot if they donтАЩt want to lose half of Suivi when we blow,тАЭ LeSoit shouted back. тАЬThe hell with
all of them. Max power, override.тАЭ
The noise of the тАЩHammerтАЩs engines rose in a bellowing, many-voiced crescendo. Yevil swore.
тАЬAre you trying to kill us both?тАЭ
тАЬThe Domina gave me the signal to lift ship. WeтАЩre lifting.тАЭ
тАЬWhat about the goddamn dome?тАЭ
тАЬHell with the dome. We mass more than it does. Let Suivi worry about it after weтАЩre gone.тАЭ
Then the docking bay tractors went off. Warhammer tilted back on her nullgravs with
neck-snapping speed, hurtling upward and smashing through the closed dome of the docking bay.
Loss-of-pressure alarms shrilled and whurrped, and the damage-control panel lit up in a matrix of red