"Steve White - Emperor of Dawn" - читать интересную книгу автора (White Steve)

His mind flashed back to his Academy days, and the words of wisdom Tristan LoBhutto, the class
lady-killer, had condescendingly dispensed to his envious fellow cadets. "The object of a conversation
with a woman is neither to enlighten nor to persuade. Nor is it to score debating points. It is to get laid."
Of course, Corin had outgrown that sort of thing by now. Of course. Or perhaps he had simply reached
the end of his ability to hold his bitterness inside.

"Yes, the Empire has been reunified. But it isn't the first time that's been done since Castellan's death.
 Generated by ABC Amber LIT Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html




Medina's old military henchmen of the Marvell family did it when they kicked out his grandson and
founded their own dynasty."

"But that dynasty's reunification was just a false start. It only lasted . . . how many years?"

"Less than forty. But it remains to be seen whether we'll do as well."

Her eyes flashed blue fire, but then they strayed involuntarily in the direction of Corin's left leg. And
when she spoke she sounded almost contrite, remembering where he'd been. "Yes, I knowтАФnot as well
as you, of courseтАФthat the Ch'axanthu have handed us a setbackтАФ"

"The third in as many standard years," Corin interrupted drily.

"тАФbut they show no inclination or ability to follow up on it," she finished doggedly. "They can't bring us
down like the Zyungen did the Marvell dynasty."

"You're right about that. I don't think aliens like the Ch'axanthu or Beyonders like the Tarakans are going
to do us in. Actually, we're doing such a good job of it ourselves that it would be superfluous."

This time her stiffening was visible. Her blue eyes met his brown-black ones and silently asked the
question she couldn't put to a superior officer:If you feel that way, thenтАФ

"What am I doing in the Fleet?" he finished aloud for her. "Maybe I'm an idealist too, Major. Or, more
likely, maybe I prefer anything to passivityтАФeven futility."

"But . . . Look, I know there's a lot of unrest and resentment around, butтАФ"

"I doubt if you know just how much." Corin thought of the Ursa Major frontier region from which he'd
come, and whichтАФas was always the case with the worlds nearest the seat of an interstellar warтАФhad
borne a disproportionate share of the burden. His convalescence had kept him out of the "police actions"
as minor rebellions had flickered through those sectors. But some of the things he'd heard . . . "Or how
justified they are."

A moment's silence passed as she visibly clamped control down on her features. "Excuse me, sir, but I
need to prepare for departure." She turned on her heel and marched from the observation bubble.

Corin turned back to the transparency, but this time he was looking at his own reflection in the