"Sheri S. Tepper - Awakeners 2 - Southshore" - читать интересную книгу автора (Tepper Sherri)

"About young thrassil and weehar, Uplifted One. We have six of each animal.
One male, five females of each. They are carefully hidden. I have just come from
place. By next summer they will be of age to breed. Slave humans say we must
capture other males, next year or year after, if herds are to grow strong. No more
females are needed."
"And how long, Stillisas, before we may dispense with shore-fish?" Many of the
Thraish had adopted the Noor word for the human inhabitants of Northshore. It
conveyed better than any other word his feelings for humans. Shore-fish. Offal.
To be eaten only when one must.
"Realistically, Uplifted One, about fifteen years. And then only under most rigid
controls. There is already some trouble with fliers assigned to me as help. Fliers
must be prepared for restraint. Fliers must be sensible!"
Sliffisunda twitched in irritation, depositing shit to show the extent of his
offendedness. "You may leave that to Sixth Degree, Stillisas. To those of us who
no longer share meat."
Stillisas flushed red around his beak. It was true. Stillisas did share meat with
others, one wriggling body for four or five Fifth Degree Talkers instead of having
one for each of them. Only the Sixth Degree could eat in dignified privacy,
without the stink of others' saliva on their food. He should not have spoken so. He
abased himself now, crouching in the female mating position while Sliffisunda
flapped twice, accepting the subordination.
"If all goes well, there will be herd of some sixty to eighty thousand in thirteen
years, Uplifted One. Weehar females often throw twins, according to sloosil,
captured humans. At Thraish present numbers, fifty thousand animals will be
needed annually to feed Thraish people. In fourteenth or fifteenth year, that many
may be slaughtered."
"Enough if horgha sloos, sharing meat," sneered Sliffisunda. He shat again. "And
if Thraish do not share?"
"Many years longer, Uplifted One. One and one-half million animals each year
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would be needed if all are to have fresh meat, without sharing."
"At Thraish present numbers."
"Yes, Uplifted One."
Sliffisunda hissed. There were only seventy some-odd thousand of the Thraish.
Only fifteen hundred of them were Talkers. At one time there had been almost a
million fliers. But it would take two hundred million weehar and thrassil
slaughtered a year to support that many. Dared he dream of that?
Power. Power over many. What power was it to be Talker over this pitiful few?
He dreamed of the ancient days when wings had filled the skies of Northshore,
when wings had flown over the River, perhaps to the fabled lands of the south, in
the days before the fear came to prevent their flying over the River at all. But why
not? There had been that many once. If the fliers had stopped breeding when the
Talkers suggested it, all would have been well. So, somehow the fliers must be
brought under control. It would require some new laws, some new legends. The
opaque film slid across his eyes as he connived. An elite order of fliers to carry
out will of Talkers. Breeding rights given as awards for service. Eggs destroyed if
flier did not obey. Number carefully controlled. And yet, that number could be