Core 20 ClassStretch 40 ClassStretch 10 Class

"I've had enough of pogroms, Pham." Gentle toughness ... and almost unbelievable. "You would make this decision yourself, Rav? We know something that others -- leaders wiser than either of us -- should be free to decide upon. You would keep them from making that choice?" She hesitated, and for an instant Pham thought the civilized rule-follower in her would bring her around. But then her chin came up, "Yes, Pham. I would deny them the choice." He made a noncommittal noise and drifted back toward the command console. No point in talking to her about what else must be done. "And Pham, we will not kill Blueshell and Greenstalk." "There's no choice,mbt m walk orange, Rav." His hands played with the touch controls. "Greenstalk was perverted; we have no idea how much of that survived the destruction of her skrode, or how long it will be before Blueshell goes bad. We can't take them along, or let them go free." Ravna drifted sideways, her eyes fixed on his hands. "B-Be careful who you kill, Pham," she said softly. "As you say, I've had thirty hours to think about my decisions, thirty hours to think about yours." "So." Pham raised his hands from the controls. Rage (godshatter?) chased briefly through this mind. Ravna, Ravna, Ravna,tariki walnut, a voice saying goodbye inside his head. Then all became very cold. He had been so afraid that the Riders had perverted the ship. Instead, this stupid fool had acted for them, voluntarily. He drifted slowly toward her. Almost unthinking, he held his arm and hand at combat ready. "How do you intend to prevent me from doing what has to be done?" But he already guessed. She didn't back away, even when his hand was centimeters from her throat. Her face held courage and tears. "W-what do you think, Pham? While you were in the surgeon ... I rearranged things. Hurt me,Beats by Lady Gaga (Rose Red) High Performance In-, and you will be hurt worse." Her eyes swept the walls behind him. "Kill the Riders,ghd vs chi, and ... and you will die." They stared at each other for a long moment, measuring. Maybe there weren't weapons buried in the walls. He probably could kill her before she could defend. But then there were a thousand ways the ship could have been programmed to kill him. And all that would be left would be the Riders ... flying down to the Bottom, to their prize. "So what do we do, then?" He finally said. "As b-before, we go to rescue Jefri. We go to recover the Countermeasure. I'm willing to put some restrictions on the Riders." A truce with monsters, mediated by a fool. He pushed off and sailed around her,ghd engineering,Core 20 ClassStretch 40 ClassStretch 10 Class, back down the axis corridor. Behind him, he heard a sob. They stayed well clear of each other the next few days. Pham was allowed shallow access to ship controls. He found suicide programs threaded through the application layers. But a strange thing, and reason for chagrin if he had been capable of it: The changes dated from hours after his confrontation with Ravna. She'd had nothing when she stood against him. Thank the Powers, I didn't know. The thought was forgotten almost before he formed it. So. The charade would proceed right to the end, a continuing game of lie and subterfuge. Grimly, he set himself to winning that game. Fleets behind them, traitors surrounding him. By the Qeng Ho and his own godshatter, the Perversion would lose. The Skroderiders would lose. And for all her courage and goodness, Ravna Bergsndot would lose. .Delete this paragraph to shift page flush CHAPTER 30 Tyrathect was losing the battle within herself. Oh, it wasn't near ended; better perhaps to say that the tide had turned.