"Foster, Alan Dean - Damned 2 - The False Mirror" - читать интересную книгу автора (Foster Alan Dean)

time for animated, lengthy tactical debate in this competition. Things will
happen quickly. The Kizzmati are fast." He stared hard at them. "I am counting
on you to be faster."
He was silent for a long moment. "These are the planнetary finals. There will be
no opprobrium attached to losing, no disgrace in defeat. To finish second among
thousands is the grandest of accomplishments."
"We're not coming in second!" someone shouted from the back. Kouuad tilted his
head slightly and smiled anew.
"You have already exceeded the achievements of the majority of your
contemporaries. Despite the knowledge that the greatest prize of all is within
your grasp, you should not forget that." He checked his chronometer.
"I have nothing more to teach you. I suggest you all go home and try to get a
good night's sleep. Tomorrow mornнing we leave for the competition site in the
Joultasik footнhills. "
A buzz of conversation rose from Ranji's friends. Until then they had not been
told where the competition was to be held. Secrecy insured that neither side
would be able to spy in advance on the competition matrix and thus gain an
unfair advantage over the competition.
Ranji was pleased. The Joultasik would provide variaнtions in terrain, and he
usually performed best in multiple environments.

"What do you think our chances are?" he asked his father that night. They sat at
the dining table; mother and father at opposite angles, Ranji, his brother, and
his baby sister at the foot of the triangle.
"You're gonna kill 'em, wipe 'em out, massacre 'em! Just like you have all the
others! " Bereft of weaponry, Saguio waved an eating utensil instead. Ranji gave
his younger sibling a tolerant look.
"I want you to fight hard, but also to be careful, dear. I don't want you or any
of your friends to get hurt." His mother was refilling their glasses with cold
fruit juice. "The Kizzmatis' reputation rivals your own. They're goнing to be
hard to beat."
"I know, Mother."
"You'll kick the crap out of 'em. " Saguio tried to speak and shovel food in at
the same time.
Ranji regarded his sibling fondly. If anything, Saguio was going to be a little
taller, a little stronger than his older brother. But not smarter. Testing had
already been extensive enough to show that. Still, he was going to be a credit
to his family line.
Not his present family, Ranji reminded himself darkly. The one that had been
brutally extinguished by the monsters. They would win tomorrow. All he had to do
was picture the Kizzmatis as monsters.
"We will, Saguio."
His father gestured with his glass. "Beware overconfiнdence, Ranji. Never chance
overconfidence. Not because it might cost you tomorrow, but because it will
certainly cost you in combat. I don't care if you win tomorrow or not. Just
reaching the finals is a supreme achievement. Where I don't want you to lose is
on the real battlefield. "
"Don't worry, Father. I would never go into battle overнconfident against the
monsters." He picked at his food. "It's striking how close in appearance they
are to us. Many times I've sat studying the files and wondered if I was looking