"Eddings, David - Tamuli 03 - The Hidden City" - читать интересную книгу автора (Eddings David)

"incompetence" and "Political Bias" and "Deliberate Distortion"
and "Sheer, Wrongheaded Stupidity". Our gallant friends here
in Contemporary History bravely sallied forth to do battle with
these dragons in their recently published "Cyrga Affair". It is
with the deepest regret that I must inform you that the dragons
won.'
There was more laughter, and dark scowls from the front row.
'it's never' been any secret at this institution that the Contemporary
History Department is a political entity rather than an
academic one,' Itagne continued. 'it has been sponsored from
its very inception by the Prime Minister, and its only reasons
for existence have been to gloss over his blunders and to conceal
as best they might his absolute incompetence. To be sure, Prime
Minister Subat and his accomplice, Interior Minister Kolata, have
never been interested in the truth, but please, gentlemen, this is
a university. Shouldn't we at least pretend to be telling the truth?'
'Rubbish!' a burly academic in the front row bellowed.
'Yes,' Itagne replied, holding up a yellow-bound copy of 'The
Cyrga Affair', 'I noticed that myself. But if you knew it was
rubbish, Professor Pessalt, why did you publish it?'
The laughter in the hall was even louder this time, and it
drowned out Pessalt's spluttered attempt to answer.
'Let us push on with this great work that we are in,' Itagne
suggested. 'We all know Pondia Subat for the scheming incompetent
he really is, but the only thing that most baffles me about
your "Cyrga Affair" is its consistent attempt to elevate the Styric
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Eddings, David - Tamuli 3 - The Hidden City.txt
renegade Zalasta to near sainthood. How in the name of God
could anyone - even someone as severely limited as the Prime
Minister - revere this scoundrel?'
'How dare you speak so of the greatest man of this century?'
one of the hacks screamed at him.
'if Zalasta's the best this century can manage, colleague, I
think we're in deep trouble. But we digress. The crisis which
Contemporary History chooses to call "The Cyrga Affair" has
been brewing for several years.'
'Yes,' someone shouted with heavy sarcasm, 'we noticed that!'
'i'm so happy for you,' Itagne murmured, drawing another
loud laugh from the audience. 'To whom did our idiot Prime
Minister turn for aid? To Zalasta, of course. And what was
Zalasta's answer to the crisis? He urged us to send for the
Pandion Knight, Prince Sparhawk of Elenia. Why would the
name of an Elene nobleman leap to Zalasta's lips in answer to
the question - almost before it was asked - particularly in view
of the sorry record of the Elenes in their relations with the Styrics?
To be sure, Prince Sparhawk's exploits are legendary, but
what was it about the man that made Zalasta pine so for his
company? And why was it that Zalasta neglected to tell us that
Sparhawk is Anakha, the instrument of the Bhelliom? Did the