"Chelsea Quinn Yarbro - Crown of Empire" - читать интересную книгу автора (Yarbro Chelsea Quinn)

beads in all the wrong places. The new arrivals, a
little more distant from the fantasy threat, took
their opportunity.


The sound crescendoed as the glass battered
everything in the room. A gorgeous authentic
snow-wood was chewed to sawdust by the cross-
fire. Many of Tira's other carefully collected
objets d'art were shattered and added their col-
lapse to the cacophony.


Phantoms battled and thundered and rol-
licked as men fought and died real deaths.


Almost safe beneath her armored desk, Tira was
aghast at all the blood, steam rising from it as it
welled and gouted like lava out of fallen men.
Where it fell, bits of glass mixed with it, like a mon-
strous sparkling wine. She lay with debris pressing
against her cheek, and her hands were starting to
feel crusty where the blood was dotting around her
fingers. She didn't think any of it was her own.


"I've got to get out of here," she said to the air.
"I've got to."


As if mocking her plea, a gryphon capered by,
wings spread and talons extended, lion-legs and
haunches huge with muscles; its image was
penetrated by a lieutenant of her guards, trying
to reach her. An injured Treasury soldier was
struggling to rise, lost traction on the gore be-
neath his feet and fell heavily, cutting his hands
on the bits of broken glass as he struck the floor
and dropped his weapon. The guard lieutenant
set his pistol and fired.


"Demoiselle, we must leave now!" In the sud-
den silence of momentary victory, the lieutenant
spoke with an urgency underlined by his grip on
her arm. "Come. Hurry,"


Only now aware that the battle was really over.