Night Song (The Guild Wars Book 9) by Mark Wandrey (best management books of all time .txt) 📗

away. We weren’t exactly friendly on the contract, just pushed together on the same side.” He shrugged. “I thought we were all buggered. Then Crent came and made me an offer. Take these young Zuul, and they’d cover our retreat off world. They stayed behind and died so you could live.”

Despite obvious pain, Veska fell to her knees and keened. Rex slid from the bed and touched her.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, afraid she’d been seriously injured. He knew the drive to hide more intense pain rather than admitting to it.

“Crent,” she sobbed. “And on Gephard. Don’t you know what this means?”

“We were there,” Shadow said. “But Dad never told us all of it.”

“Why not?” Sonya asked.

“I tried to make contact with the Zuul government. I guess the message never made it to the correct people?”

Veska shook her head over and over, then Rex realized she wasn’t crying or in pain, she was exulting in something. “That’s the final piece,” she said. “The details to remove any doubt. I can prove it now to Captain Nillab without question.”

“What?” Rex demanded. “Prove what?”

“You five are Krif’Hosh! Our third son is returned to us!”

“The Hosh are like legendary warriors, right?” Drake asked.

“Legendary? No,” Veska said. “More like our soul, the spirit of Zuul, closest to the gods. They speak through you.” She looked at Shadow. “They give you dreams.”

Shadow shook visibly, taking a step back and half-turning away.

“You’ve had dreams all your life, haven’t you?” she asked. “I wondered, when Sei Isgono took such interest.”

Rex stared at Shadow, his eyes wide, and registered that their other three siblings were having nearly identical reactions. They’d known of their youngest brother’s interest in Human visions, spirit woo-woo, and the like, but this…The weight of it became solid between them, what it could mean. Shadow’s fur stood straight down his back, his ears up, tail stiff. He nodded once, licked his lips, and opened his mouth, but didn’t speak.

“We never knew what happened to Krif’Hosh, only that they disappeared on Gephard. The other two Hosh searched for years to find any sign, any hint of their survival.” She looked at their dad. “Nobody imagined pups had survived, never mind that they had been given to a Human.”

“It was their only choice,” Alan said, quickly recounting the nearly hopeless situation and his company’s escape with Krif’Hosh’s sacrifice. “I never understood why they stayed and died.”

“Honor demanded it,” Veska said, her voice quivering with emotions the translator barely conveyed. “Crent knew their lives were over. Zuul never run. However, he found a way to save the Hosh.” She looked at Rex. “To save you.”

“This is great news,” Alan said. “But it doesn’t change our situation. We’re still stuck in this contract.”

“Yes you are,” a new, high-pitched voice said.

* * *

Shadow’s mind was still reeling from the revelations when Ifka’s voice threw cold water in his face. He turned and saw the Zuparti standing there with two assistants and a slate in her hand. That weasel is about to chuck a wobbly, he thought.

“How dare you abandon the assault!” Ifka screamed and held up the slate. The Tri-V came on and showed force distribution, including the tanks and foot units. It also showed them retreating. “Data from your suits, relayed to the command center. You retreated just as the enemy was falling back after you wrecked one of their tanks. You even have a prisoner. Explain yourself.”

“They weren’t retreating,” Alan explained, and gestured to Veska, who was still on the floor. “She stopped their attack to save one of my troopers.” He pointed at Rex.

“One Zuul saving another, so what?”

“It’s much more complicated than that,” Veska said. She glanced at Alan. “Do you remember who the employer was on Gephard?”

Alan looked at her, blinking, then his eyes went wide, and he turned to Ifka. “Is one of your guild facilities on Gephard?”

Ifka looked like she’d been smacked in the face. Shadow had never seen the wind so thoroughly taken out of an alien’s sails. It was rather shocking.

“What…what do you know…” Ifka seemed to bring herself under control. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“You bloody, sneaky bastards,” Alan snarled. “You guys hire tons of mercs. We Humans have always thought it was because you’re paranoid, but that’s not it. Well, you are paranoid, but what’s really happening is, you’ve been fighting to hold onto your Astatine-222 monopoly as hard as you could. You’ve been fighting for decades, or maybe longer. Shit contracts with long odds, over and again.” The two other Zuparti glanced at their boss, then pretended to look at their own slates. “Tell me I’m wrong; I fuckin’ dare you.”

“Your baseless accusations are meaningless,” Ifka said. “You will attack again, immediately, or I will hold your contract in violation, seize your assets, and demand the guild cancel your license!”

Alan looked at the Zuparti for a long time, and Shadow wondered what his father was thinking. Veska slowly got up and fell into a chair, massaging her ankle, which was visibly swollen now that she was out of her armor. Captain Anderle had been on the far side of the meeting room, quietly watching everything. Shadow saw her whisper something into a radio and he caught the word backup. His senses tingled. This was an important moment.

“No,” Alan said and lowered himself into a chair with a sigh. “Get stuffed.”

“What?” Ifka said.

“He said get stuffed,” Rex said. “Piss off, arsehole. We’re done fighting for you.”

“You’re ruined!” Ifka screamed. Her assistants gawked and shook their heads. As if on cue, the Lumar Ulan and his assistant commander Iban came in next to Anderle. She nodded, and they took up positions by the door. Nobody else seemed to notice. “I will send a message to the guild—”

“How?” Alan asked.

“What?”

“How are you