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41 - Nine Sci-fi Stories by Poul Anderson by Poul William Anderson · Nine Sci-fi Stories by Poul Anderson

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  Speaker 1: Section forty one of nine sci fi stories by Paul Anderson.
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  Speaker 1: This Sleep of X recording is in the public domain.
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  Speaker 1: Sargasso of Lust Starships, Chapter seven dragably lay before them.
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  Speaker 1: The city stood on the open gray moor, and it
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  Speaker 1: had once been large, but its outer structures were long
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  Speaker 1: crumbled to ruin heaps and shards of stone, riven by
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  Speaker 1: ages of frost, fallen and coveted by the creeping dust.
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  Speaker 1: Here and there a squared monolith remained, like the last
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  Speaker 1: snag in a rotted jaw. Dark against the windy sky
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  Speaker 1: tis quiet, nothing stirred in all the sweeping immensity of
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  Speaker 1: hill and moor and ruin and loneliness. Helena pointed from
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  Speaker 1: her seat on Watcher, and a lolt of hope was
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  Speaker 1: eager in the tired voice. See a ship ahead. There
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  Speaker 1: they stared, and some one raised a ragged chair. Over
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  Speaker 1: the black square built houses of the inner city, they
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  Speaker 1: could make out the metal knolls of a freighter. Dakahashie squinted,
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  Speaker 1: mister Dabian, I think, he said, looks as if man
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  Speaker 1: isn't the only race which have suffered from the scum.
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  Speaker 1: All right, boys, said Helena, Let's go in and get it.
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  Speaker 1: They went down a long, empty avenue which ran spare
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  Speaker 1: straight for the center. The porticoed houses gaped with wells
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  Speaker 1: of blackness at their passage, looming and cracked and crazily
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  Speaker 1: leaning massiveness on either side, throwing back the hollow sam
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  Speaker 1: of their boots. Donovan heard the uneasy mutter of voices
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  Speaker 1: to his rear. The lightest place, haunted be waiting anywhere
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  Speaker 1: for us. The wind blew a whirl of snow across
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  Speaker 1: their path. Basil, Basil, my dear. Donova's head jerked around,
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  Speaker 1: and he felt his throat tighten. Nothing, no movement, no sound, emptiness, Basil.
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  Speaker 1: I'm calling. No one else can hear. Why are you
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  Speaker 1: with these creatures, Basil? Why are you marching with the
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  Speaker 1: presses of your planet? We could free, answer, Basil. Given
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  Speaker 1: time to raise our armies, we could sweep the towns
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  Speaker 1: before us and hound them down the ways of night.
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  Speaker 1: And yet you march against us. Duma, he whispered, Basil.
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  Speaker 1: You are very dear to me. You are something new
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  Speaker 1: and strong and not the future. Come to our weary
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  Speaker 1: old world. And I think I loved you. It could still.
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  Speaker 2: Love you, Basil. I could hold you forever.
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  Speaker 1: If you would lit me what doom I have done?
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  Speaker 1: A mocking repple of laughter, sweet as rain in springtime,
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  Speaker 1: the gallantry of a race which was old and sick
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  Speaker 1: and doomed and could still no mirth. Donovan shook his
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  Speaker 1: head and stared rigidly before him. It was as if
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  Speaker 1: he had laid hands on that piece of his soul
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  Speaker 1: which had been lost, and she was trying to rent
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  Speaker 1: it from him again, Only he wanted her to win.
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  Speaker 1: Go home, Basil, go home with this female of yours.
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  Speaker 1: Breed your cubs, fill the house with breaths, and try
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  Speaker 1: to sink your little round of days means something. Strut
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  Speaker 1: a belt under the blue skies, growing fat and gray,
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  Speaker 1: bragging of what a great fellow you used to be,
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  Speaker 1: and disapproving of the younger generation as you like, Basil.
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  Speaker 1: But don't go out to space again. Don't look at
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  Speaker 1: the naked stars. You won't dare no, he whispered. She laughed,
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  Speaker 1: a harsh bell of mockery ringing in his brain. You
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  Speaker 1: could have been a.
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  Speaker 2: Gad or a devil, but you would rather be a
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  Speaker 2: potbellied imperial magistrate. Go home, Bezel, Donovan, take your female home,
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  Speaker 2: and when you're awakened at night by her, Shall we
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  Speaker 2: say her breathing? Do not remember me?
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  Speaker 1: The terrans slagged hand down the street, filthy with dust
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  Speaker 1: and grease and blood, uncouth semblers, apes, and the somber
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  Speaker 1: ruin of the gods. Donovan thought he had a glimpse
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  Speaker 1: of Alduma standing on a rooftop, the clean lithe fire
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  Speaker 1: of her, silken flame of her hair, and the green,
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  Speaker 1: unhuman eyes which had lighted in the dark at his side.
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  Speaker 1: She had been a living blaze, an unending trumpet and challenge,
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  Speaker 1: and when she broke with him, it had been quick
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  Speaker 1: and clean, no suddenness of age and custom, and and
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  Speaker 1: damn it, all the little things which made humanness all right,
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  Speaker 1: Valduma were monkeys, were noisy and self important, compromises and
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  Speaker 1: tremors and petty cheeks. We huddle away from the greatness
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  Speaker 1: we could have. Our edifices are laid brick by brick,
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  Speaker 1: with endless, futile squabbling over each one. And yet, Valduma,
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  Speaker 1: there was something in man which you don't have. There's
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  Speaker 1: something by which these men have fought their way through
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  Speaker 1: everything you could loose, on them, helping each other, going
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  Speaker 1: forward on a ridiculous rag of colored cloth and singing
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  Speaker 1: as they went fine Woods added his mind. Too bad,
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  Speaker 1: you don't really believe them. You grow aware of Helena's
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  Speaker 1: anxious eyes on him. What's the matter, darling, she asked gently.
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  Speaker 1: You look ill tired, he said, but we can't have
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  Speaker 1: some far to go now. Look out, whirling, he saw
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  Speaker 1: the pillars of the house to the right buckle, saw
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  Speaker 1: the huge stone slabs of the roof come thundering over
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  Speaker 1: the top and streetward. For a blinding instant he saw
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  Speaker 1: val Duma riding the slab down, yelling and laughing, and
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  Speaker 1: then she was gone and the stone struck. There were
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  Speaker 1: already running, dropping their burden of the hurt, and fleeing
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  Speaker 1: for safety. Another house groaned and rumbled, The ground shook,
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  Speaker 1: Flying shods stung Donovan's back. Echoes rolled down the ways
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  Speaker 1: of Dragabik. Someone was screaming far and faint under the
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  Speaker 1: grinding racket. Forward forward, Helen's voice whipped back to him.
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  Speaker 1: She led the rush while the city thundered about her,
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  Speaker 1: and a veil of rising dust blutted her out. He
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  Speaker 1: groped ahead, stumbling over fallen pillars and cornices, hearing the
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  Speaker 1: boom around him. Running and running, Balduma laughed a red
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  Speaker 1: flame through the whirling dust. A spear gleamed for his breast.
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  Speaker 1: He grabbed it with one hand and hacked at her
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  Speaker 1: with his sword. She was gone, and he raced ahead,
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  Speaker 1: not stopping to think, not daring. They came out on
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  Speaker 1: a great open plaza and carved fountains, but nothing remained
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  Speaker 1: save a few leafless trees and broken pieces, and the
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  Speaker 1: space ships, the spaceships, a loom of metal against the
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  Speaker 1: dark stone beyond ef A. Dozens standing there and waiting, spaceships,
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  Speaker 1: space ships, the most beautiful sight in the cosmos. Helen
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  Speaker 1: and Watcher were halted near a small, fast comiclass scout boat.
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  Speaker 1: The surviving Terrans ran toward them, few, thought Donovan, sickly,
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  Speaker 1: few perhaps a score left, bleeding from the cuts of
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  Speaker 1: flying stone, ray with dust and fear. The city had
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  Speaker 1: been trapped. Come on, yelled the woman, over here and
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  Speaker 1: off this planet. The men of Dragabek were suddenly there,
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  Speaker 1: a ring about the ship, and another about the whole plaza.
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  Speaker 1: Crouched with their weapons and their cat's eyes, aflame a
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  Speaker 1: score of hurt starvlings and half a thousand un men.
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  Speaker 1: A trumpet blew its high note into the dusking heavens.
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  Speaker 1: The Azunians rested, arm expressionless. Donovan and the other humans
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  Speaker 1: continued their pace, forming a battle square. Mozak stood forth
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  Speaker 1: in front of the scoutship. You will have no foother
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  Speaker 1: chance to escape, he called, But do we want your services,
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  Speaker 1: not your lives, and the service will be well rewarded.
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  Speaker 1: Laid down your weapons. Watch his arms straightened, his axe
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  Speaker 1: flew like a thunderbolt, and Mozak's head burst open. The
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  Speaker 1: Denarian roared and went against the enemy line. They edged
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  Speaker 1: away fearfully, and the Terrans followed him in a trotting wedge.
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  Speaker 1: Donovan moved up and watched his right side soared, hammering
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  Speaker 1: at the thrust for his ribs and arzuni, and yelled
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  Speaker 1: an order which must have meant stopped them. Donovan saw
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  Speaker 1: the outerlined break into a run, converging on the knot
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  Speaker 1: of struggle. No flying spears this time, he reflected in
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  Speaker 1: a moment's beak satisfaction. Tearing down those walls must have
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  Speaker 1: exhausted most of the directing energies. A native rushed at
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  Speaker 1: him sward, whistling from behind a black shield. Donovan caught
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  Speaker 1: the blow on his own, plundered scout, feeling it ring
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  Speaker 1: in the bones of his arm, and hewed back his
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  Speaker 1: blade screamed close to the white teeth beared face, and
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  Speaker 1: he called a panting sualutation, Try again, Davlka i wiel.
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  Speaker 1: The blows reined on his should sang viciously low to
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  Speaker 1: cut at his legs, clattering and clanging, whistle of air
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  Speaker 1: and howl of iron under the westering sun. He backed
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  Speaker 1: up against watch a side where the deenarian and the
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  Speaker 1: woman's smote against the airlock's defenders, and braced himself and
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  Speaker 1: struck out. Davleka snarled and hacked at Donovan's spread leg.
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  Speaker 1: The Anson's glavee snaked forth against his un shouldered neck.
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  Speaker 1: Davivika's sword clashed to earth, and he sprawled against the human.
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  Speaker 1: Raising his bloody face. He drew a knife, lifted it
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  Speaker 1: and tried to thrust upward Donovan, already crossing blades with
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  Speaker 1: Uboda stamped on his hand. Davleka grinned a rueful, crooked
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  Speaker 1: grin through the streaming blood and died. Huboda pressed close,
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  Speaker 1: working up against Donovan's shild. He had none himself, but
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  Speaker 1: there was a dirk in his left hand. His sword
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  Speaker 1: locked with Donovan's strained at his side, and his knife
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  Speaker 1: clattered swiftly for an opening. Helena turned about and struck
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  Speaker 1: from his seat. The Buddha's head rolled against Donovan's shield
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  Speaker 1: and left a red splash down it. The man wretched Watcher,
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  Speaker 1: swinging one of his swords, pushed ahead into the Azunians,
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  Speaker 1: crowding them aside by his sheer mass, beating down a
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  Speaker 1: guard in the helmet or army beyond it. Clear, he bellowed,
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  Speaker 1: I got the way clear, Lady Elenah sprang to the
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  Speaker 1: ground and into the lock. Take a hashi khen basle
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  Speaker 1: wang chie, come in and help me start the engines.
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  Speaker 1: The rest of you hold them off. Don't give them
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  Speaker 1: time to exert what collective power power they have left
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  Speaker 1: and ruined something. Make them think, think about their lives. Huh.
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  Speaker 1: Watcher squared off and front to the airlock and raised
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  Speaker 1: his sword. A white boys, here, I come, let em
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  Speaker 1: other they wan't. Donovan halted in the air lock. Valduma
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  Speaker 1: was there, her fiery head whirling in the rush of
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  Speaker 1: black clad warriors. He leaned over and grabbed the spaceman's arm.
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  Speaker 1: Ben Ali go in and help start his crate. I
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  Speaker 1: have to stay here, but Donovan shoved him in, stood
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  Speaker 1: beside Takahashi and braced himself to meet the other Zunian charge.
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  Speaker 1: They rushed in, knowing that they had to kill the
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  Speaker 1: humans before there was an escape, swinging their weapons and howling.
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  Speaker 1: The shock of the assault threw men back, pressed them
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  Speaker 1: to the ship, and jammed weapons close to breasts. The
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  Speaker 1: Terrans cursed and began to use fists and feet, clearing
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  Speaker 1: a space to fight in. Donovan's sword clasped against the shild,
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  Speaker 1: drove off another blade, stabbed for a face, and then
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  Speaker 1: it was all lost in the crazed Maelstrom hack and
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  Speaker 1: thrust and take the blows they give. Chew sawd hew.
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  Speaker 1: They raged against Watcher, careless now of their lives, thundering
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  Speaker 1: blows against his schild, slashing and stabbing, and using their
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  Speaker 1: last wizard strength to fill the air with blades. He
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  Speaker 1: roared and stood his ground. The sword leaped in his hand,
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  Speaker 1: metal clove in thunder. The shild was crumpled, falling apart.
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  Speaker 1: He tossed it with rib cracking force against the nearest Darzuanian.
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  Speaker 1: His nicked and blunted sword burst against a helmet, and
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  Speaker 1: he drew the other. The ship trembled, thutter of engines,
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  Speaker 1: warming up, the eager promise of star and stars and
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  Speaker 1: green terror again. Get in, bowled Donovan, Get in, We'll
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  Speaker 1: hold them. He stood by Watcher as the last crewman entered,
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  Speaker 1: stood barring the airlock with a wall of blood and iron.
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  Speaker 1: To a blurring vision, he saw Valduma approaching. She smiled
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  Speaker 1: at him, one slim hand running through the copper hair,
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  Speaker 1: the other held out in sign of peace, Tall and
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  Speaker 1: gracious and lovely beyond his knowing. She moved up toward Donovan,
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  Speaker 1: and her clear voice rang in his darkening mind. Basil,
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  Speaker 1: you at least could stay, You could guide us out
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  Speaker 1: to the stars. You go away, groaned Watcher. The devil's
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  Speaker 1: rayed flamed in her face. She yelled, and a lance
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  Speaker 1: whistled from the sky and buried itself in the great breast.
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  Speaker 1: Watcher yelled. Donovan. The Denarian snarled and snapped off the
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  Speaker 1: shaft that stood between his ribs. He whirled it over
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  Speaker 1: his head, and Valduma's green eyes widened in fair bull
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  Speaker 1: roared watcher and let it fly. It smashed home, and
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  Speaker 1: the Anson dropped his sword and swayed on his feet.
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  Speaker 1: He couldn't look on the broken thing which had been Valdoomer, Boss,
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  Speaker 1: you go home now. Rocha laid him in the airlock
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  Speaker 1: and slammed the outer valve shut. Turning, he faced the Arzunians.
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  Speaker 1: He couldn't see very well. One eye was gone, and
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  Speaker 1: there was a ragged darkness before the other. The sword
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  Speaker 1: felt heavy in his hand, but who he roared and
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  Speaker 1: charged them. He spitted one and trembled another, and tossed
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  Speaker 1: a third into the air. Whirling. He clove ahead and
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  Speaker 1: smashed a rib case with his fist and chopped another across.
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  Speaker 1: His sword broke, and he grabbed two Arzunians and cracked
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  Speaker 1: their skulls together. They ran, then turned and fled from him,
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  Speaker 1: and he stood watching them go and laughed. His laughter
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  Speaker 1: filled the city, rolling from its walls, drowning the whistle
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  Speaker 1: of the ship's take off and bringing blood to his lips.
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  Speaker 1: He wiped his mouth with the back of one hand,
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  Speaker 1: spat and lay down.
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  Speaker 2: We're clear.
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  Speaker 1: Basil Elenor clung to him, shivering in his arms, and
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  Speaker 1: he didn't know if it was a laugh or a
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  Speaker 1: sob in her throat. Where way safe. We'll carry word
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  Speaker 1: back to Solon. Now clear the black nebula for good. Yeah,
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  Speaker 1: he rubbed his eyes. Though I doubt the navy you
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  Speaker 1: will find anything. If those are Zunians of any sense,
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  Speaker 1: they'll project to various fringe planets, scatter and try to
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  Speaker 1: pass as harmless humanoids. But it doesn't matter. I suppose
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  Speaker 1: a power is broken, and we'll go back to your home, Basil,
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  Speaker 1: and bring answer and terror together and have a dozen children.
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  Speaker 1: Then he nodded, Sure, sure, but he wouldn't forget. In
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  Speaker 1: the winter nights, when the stars were sharp and cold
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  Speaker 1: and a sky of ringing crystal black, he would go
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  Speaker 1: out and watch them. I'll pull his roof over him
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  Speaker 1: and wait for dawn. He didn't know yet. Still, even
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  Speaker 1: if this was a long ways from being the best
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  Speaker 1: of all possible universes, it had enough in it to
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  Speaker 1: make a man glad of his day. He whistled, softly,
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  Speaker 1: failing the words run through his head. Lift your glasses high,
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  Speaker 1: kiss the girls, good bye, Live well, my friend, live well,
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  Speaker 1: live you well. Or we're riding for, We're riding for,
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  Speaker 1: We're riding out to Terran Sky, Terence Sky, Terrance Sky.
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  Speaker 1: The thought came all at once that it could be
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  Speaker 1: a song of comradeship. Two. End of section forty one,
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  Speaker 1: end of nine sci fi stories by Paul Anderson, read
• 14:33
  Speaker 1: by Edmund Bloxam in Glasgow and London, u K. Find
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  Speaker 1: him on Spotify. An audible