"Timothy Zahn - Dragonback 01 - Dragon and Thief" - читать интересную книгу автора (Zahn Timothy)

"We are talking," a K'da voice insisted as the ship began to shudder with the firing of its defense
missiles. "They're ignoring us."
"Watch outтАФthey're breaking formation," Polphir warned, leaning close to stare out the bubble at the
incoming ships. "They're splitting up, one for each of us."
"Batteries, free fire," Chayd ordered. "Concentrate on crippling their weapons. Maybe it's still not too
late to talk some sense into them."
Polphir clicked his tongue. "I don't like this, Draycos," he said quietly. "Four of them; four of us. This
isn't a chance meeting. They were waiting for us."
"If they were, they didn't get the details very clear," Draycos pointed out. "Missiles that size, against hull
armor as thick as ours? What do they think they're trying to prove?"
"And once they did know what they were up against, why split up their firepower?" Polphir added.
"Why not concentrate everything on one ship at a time?"
"Or just turn and run?" Draycos said. "They're up to something, Polphir. The question is, what?"
Polphir never had a chance to reply. Instead, the ship sweeping toward them provided the answer.
From a weapon bubble near its center came a sickly-yellowish flash, and a slender cone of violet light
lanced out.
Draycos caught his breath, his mind refusing for that first awful second to believe what he was seeing.
Here, hundreds of light-years from their beleaguered worlds, it was impossible that their enemy's most
terrifying weapon should be ignited against them.
Yet there it was: the all-too-familiar cone of writhing violet light twisting its way toward the aft end of
their ship. The weapon no shielding could block, and that no living being could survive.
The weapon called simply the Death. "Evasive!" Chayd shouted. "All ships!" But it was too late. As
Draycos watched from his perch on Polphir's back and shoulders he could see that there would be no
chance for any of them. All four attacking fighters had ignited the violet beams now, focusing them on the
sterns of their chosen colony ships.
And over the all-ship intercom, Draycos could hear the horrified shouts, suddenly cut off, as the
Shontine and K'da in the Havenseeker's engine room were caught in the beam and died.
"Evasive!" the commander shouted again, his voice hard and desperate.
A second later Draycos found himself grabbing for the grip bars at the edge of the control panel as the
Havenseeker twisted downward out of the violet light sweeping slowly forward along the hull.
How their pilot had managed to coax a maneuver like that from such a big, lumbering ship he couldn't
imagine. It was clear their attacker couldn't imagine it either, because for a few seconds the violet beam
burned harmlessly through space above the ship as its target dropped out from under it. At the same
time, a full salvo of missiles shot from the Havenseeker's flank toward the fighter.
Draycos held his breath as the fighter twisted madly to get out of the way. It successfully evaded most
of the missiles; but then the law of averages caught up with it, and the last two slammed full into its side
just aft of the Death weapon. "Two hits!" Polphir called. "The DeathтАФ" He broke off, sagging slightly in
his seat as the rest of his lungful of air escaped without words.
There was nothing else to say. Despite the torn and blackened metal on the fighter's side where the
Havenseeker's missiles had struck, the violet beam was still twisting its way out into space. It swiveled
down toward the Havenseeker, still driving away on its evasive course, and settled again on the colony
ship's side. Almost as if nothing had happened, the beam resumed its steady progress forward.
So too did the cries of the dying. With a shudder, Draycos reached out and shut off the nav bubble's
intercom. There was nothing he could do to help the Shontine and K'da back there. Nothing anyone
could do. The cries continued, more faintly, coming from the intercom speakers on the control deck
below. "This is impossible," Polphir murmured. He sounded more bewildered than frightened. "How
could the Valahgua be here? How could those ships have the Death?"
"I don't know," Draycos said. "It doesn't look like we'll have the chance to find out, either."
"No, I suppose not," Polphir said, his voice almost peaceful. A Shontin unafraid to die, and for a brief
moment Draycos envied him that calm.