"Jerry Pournelle - War World II - Death's Head Rebellion" - читать интересную книгу автора (Pournelle Jerry)

one of heavy armor, and four of foot infantry, with assumed attendant support units and an unidentified
concentration presumed to be a special operations brigade, standard for Imperial ground forces of this
size."
"You seem unconcerned, Fighter Rank."
Severin shrugged. "Their lack of armor support or infantry vehicles suggests overall poor combat
readiness."
Diettinger's face remained blank. "How low was your reconnaissance pass, Fighter Rank Severin?"
"Low, sir?" Severin was taken aback; doctrine directed that reconnaissance ops be conducted from
high orbit, to allow the maximum spread of the sophisticated sensor gear aboard the fighters. "Standard,
First Rank, 150 kilometers."
Diettinger almost smiled. "While you were optimizing the scanning equipment on board your fighter,
did you make any use of the scanning equipment in your head?"
"First Rank, Tanith is under almost perpetual cloud cover, I saw no reason - "
"Tanith is under such cloud cover, Fighter flank, because it is hot, extremely so. It is a veritable jungle
in every place above sea level where it is not swamp, or sheer cliff, or broken ground. That is the reason
for the low vehicle-to-infantry ratio. With very few exceptions, armored vehicles are worthless on Tanith,
while infantry with airlift support, and particularly special forces groups, comprise the dominant forces in
battle. Your failure to provide accurate disposition of these enemy forces has endangered the success of
our mission and the lives of hundreds of your fellow Soldiers."
"But, First Rank, they are only human norms!"
Now it was Diettinger's turn to be surprised. Recovering, he stood and looked down at Severin.
"What have you learned since release from your training creche, Fighter Rank? Have you forgotten that it
has been 'human norms' across known space who have bled Sauron white in this war?"
Severin went cold; this type of conversation was perilously close to treason. Sauron reverses in the
last few years of the war could clearly be attributed to manpower and materiel superiority of the enemy
forces; even at that, such Imperial victories as had been won were, to say the least, pyrrhic. The situation
at Tanith was a classroom exercise; the Sauron heavy cruiser which could not utterly destroy such a
meager opposing force as Severin had reported was not worthy of the name.
"Your squadron will immediately make secondary reconnaissance sweeps and report directly to me.
These will be low altitude passes, 100 meters or less, with augmented visual recording gear. If your
second report is satisfactory, you and your squadron will not be remanded to combat overwatch during
the battle. Dismissed."
Diettinger watched the young Soldier leave.
The new ones arrive filled with the invincibility of Sauron, he reflected. Their historical training is being
neglected, or they would know that only losing armies do that to their young warriors.
Diettinger reviewed his orders once more. "Massive quantities of pharmaceuticals on Tanith awaiting
convoy for off-shipment," they read, and then one word: "Secure."
Pharmaceuticals on Tanith meant one thing: borloi. An addictive vice among the human norms that
comprised the Empire, borloi in its most concentrated form was the only drug capable of anesthetizing a
Sauron for surgery. With the fearful weapons both sides were employing in this war of secession, more
and more Soldiers were being wounded and maimed, and while their superior healing ability and
resistance to trauma increased their survivability vis a vis their Imperial counterparts, they couldn't grow
back lost limbs or organs without help.
At least, Diettinger thought, not yet. And until the Breedmasters perfect that capability, we can't fight
the Empire with paraplegics. Regeneration might be an exact science, but grafts and regrowth implanting
were not painless, particularly for burn victims. Sauron needed that borloi, and Diettinger's ship was the
closest to Tanith for the mission.
He accessed data on the vessels Severin had reported in orbit: three destroyers, two light cruisers,
and the original of theCanadaclass of battlecruisers. TheCanadawould be over fifty Standard Years old;
perhaps the Empire was straining in this war, as well.