"Jack McKinney - Robotech 05 - Force of Arms" - читать интересную книгу автора (McKinney Jack)

"The shuttle is nearly ready for launch, Captain," a female enlisted-
rating tech reported. "Launch in ten minutes."
Captain Henry Gloval crossed the bridge to glance at several other
displays, stroking his thick mustache. "Any signs of Zentraedi activity in our
area?" His voice still carried the burred r's and other giveaways of his
Russian mother tongue.
Vanessa answered promptly, "There's been absolutely no contact, no
activity at all."
The stupendous Zentraedi armada still shadowed and prowled around the
wandering battle fortress. Time and again the aliens had attacked, but in
comparatively insignificant numbers. The defectors' information was only now
beginning to shed light on the reasons behind that.
"There's been nothing at all?" Gloval asked again, eyes flicking across
the readouts and displays. "Mm. I hope this doesn't mean they're planning an
attack." He turned and paced back toward the command chair, a tall, erect
figure in the high-rolled collar of his uniform jacket, hat pulled low over
his eyes. He clenched his cold, empty briar in his teeth. "I don't like it,
not a bit..."
Lisa was his highly valued First Officer; but she was also much like a
daughter to him. It had taken every bit of his reason and sense of duty to
convince himself she was the logical one for this mission.
The first enlisted tech turned to Kim Young, who was manning a position
nearby. She knew Kim and the two other enlisted regulars on the bridge watch,
Sammie and Vanessa, were known as the Terrible Trio, part of what amounted to
a family with Gloval, Lisa Hayes, and Claudia Grant.
"Kim, does the skipper always get this...concerned?"
Elfin-faced Kim, a young woman who wore her black hair in a short cut,
showed a secret grin. She whispered, "Most of the time he's a rock. But he's
worried about Lisa, and, well, there's Sammie."
Sammie Porter, youngest of the Terrible Trio, was a high-energy twenty-
year-old with a thick mane of dark blond hair. She usually didn't know the
meaning of fear...but she usually didn't know the meaning of tact, either. She
was conscientious and bright but sometimes excitable.
Lisa's departure had meant a reshuffling of jobs on her watch, and
Sammie had ended up with a lot of the coordinating duties Claudia and Lisa
would have ordinarily handled.
"Yellow squad, please go to preassigned coordinates before requesting
computer readout," she ordered a unit of attack mecha over the comcircuit. The
mammoth Robotech war machines were part of the ship's defensive force.
Excaliburs and Spartans and Raidar Xs, they were like some hybrid of armored
knight and walking battleship. They were among the units that guarded the ship
itself, while the Veritechs sortied out into space.
Gloval bent close to check on what she was doing. "Everything all right?
No trouble, I hope."
Sammie whirled and snapped, "Captain, please! I have to concentrate on
these transmissions before they pile up!" Then she went back to ordering the
lumbering mecha around, making sure that the gun turrets and missile batteries
were alert and that all intel data and situation reports were up to date.
Gloval straightened, clamping his pipe in his teeth again. "Sorry. I