Part 66 (1/2)

She returned the gesture. ”And you, Ranger Odeon. You will have our prayers.”

Odeon bowed, then turned to his colleague. ”I'm going up to the s.h.i.+p, Jim. See you later.”

This continues in the novel Resurrection

[Preparer's note: This is the end of the main story. The material following this note is the supplementary material linked to from elsewhere in this file.]

1a. Raid Master

St. Thomas, Wednesday, 19 June 2571

”The G.o.dd.a.m.ned b.i.t.c.h is still alive, Raidmaster.”

Lawrence Shannon looked up from the shabby table he was using as a desk, smiling as one of his doubles threw a newspaper down in front of him. ”Yes, excellent. Thank you, James.”

”Excellent!” the double snarled. ”I said she's alive!”

”You weren't mumbling,” Shannon a.s.sured him. ”If I'd wanted to kill her then, I would have. I chose to let her live for now, maimed and crippled; that will make it all the more satisfying when I do decide to kill her.” He smiled in a way that made his double flinch. ”Isn't it better to have her alive and in pain than dead and free of it? Doing something of the sort to her was my purpose in leading that raid, after all.”

”But I thought--”

”Yes, I know.” Shannon raised his hand, silencing the other. ”For you Brothers, the hospital was the target; for me, Cortin was. We both accomplished our objectives, without casualties and with bonuses. I also warned you from the beginning not to question my motives. I use my powers on your behalf because our desires generally coincide and your help is convenient, not because you are necessary to me.”

”You've made that clear often enough,” the double admitted. ”If I had your powers, though, I'd wipe out the Church, the aristocracy, and Enforcement so we could rebuild from scratch.”

”Which is precisely what you would be doing.” Shannon chuckled at the man's turn of phrase. ”But there's a much more artistically satisfying way of accomplis.h.i.+ng the same end--one which will also increase their suffering many-fold. Would you deny me that little pleasure?”

”Not me, Raidmaster!” the double exclaimed hurriedly, his face paling.

Shannon was normally a charming man, polite and undeniably attractive, his blue eyes and wide smile almost irresistible--but the double had seen what happened to a Brother who cut short Shannon's enjoyment of a priest's slow death, and the memory still sickened him.

”Good.” Shannon read his subordinate's discomfort, and projected encouragement. ”You really must learn to control your sympathy for the oppressors, James. Our work is difficult enough without that.”

The Raidmaster smiled again, and this time his double relaxed. ”d.a.m.n straight! It just seems so slow!”

”Anything worthwhile does take time,” Shannon said, ”and you have to expect setbacks. The raid was a success, the whoring b.i.t.c.h can't any more, and she bears the marks of those who brought her justice on her hands. Not a bad accomplishment, all in all, don't you think?”

”Not bad at all, Raidmaster. What's next?”

”I haven't decided,” Shannon said thoughtfully. ”Any raid will be far more hazardous now that Special Operations is going to be responding to all of them, and for at least a couple of months we can count on them being after revenge for the b.i.t.c.h as well as doing their jobs. So we'll have to pick our targets carefully.” He tapped one of the papers he'd been working on. ”Until we get them out of our hair, we can't do anything constructive. And we haven't enough people or resources yet to strike their strong points, so while they're on an increased state of alert, it might be interesting to attack their recreational facilities.”

The double smiled. ”I like your thinking, Raidmaster. Such as the wh.o.r.ehouses they frequent?”

”Exactly,” Shannon agreed. ”Pa.s.s the word along to your colleagues, please. And I'd say you've had enough theoretical training; unless you need specific help, I'll expect you to plan and carry out your operations with as little inter-group communication as possible. Keep me informed, of course--but as far as others are concerned . . . well, what they don't know, an Inquisitor can't force them to tell.”

The double grimaced. ”True--but can't you protect us against them?”