"RUSCH, DEAN WESLEY SMITH KRISTINE KATHRYN - TREATYS LAW 4TH IN THE DAY OF HONOR SERIES STARTREK B" - читать интересную книгу автора (Rusch Kristine Kathryn)

and smoke filled the air. The only newly constructed wood building in
the colony, the meeting hall and tavern, had been completely destroyed.
Kerdoch could see a number of bodies in the smoking piles of timbers and
furniture, all of them far beyond his help.

He took a deep breath of the smoke-filled air, calming himself, as his
father had taught him to do. Then he forced himself to really look at
the details of what was happening around him. A battle was won in the
small details, his father had said. Kerdoch had always remembered those
words, both in the battle to grow crops and now.

Smoke billowed out of the house of his friend, Kehma, but Kerdoch could
tell the home was in no

danger of burning down. Flames also flickered on or near almost every
other dome building in the colony. Yet none of the main panels of which
the domes were constructed had caught fire. He knew they were designed
to withstand almost anything. He was very glad now that they did just
that.

Through the smoke Kerdoch could see his neighbors and friends fighting
the fires or helping the wounded. He could do nothing to help any of
them at the moment.

The colony was withstanding the attack fairly well so far. The domes
had not been designed with combat in mind, but they had been built to
hold against harsh weather and high winds on dozens of planets. There
would be dead, but not too many, because of the standard colony
construction he had sworn he hated so often in the past. He would never
curse it again after today.

He turned and at a full run headed for his own home. It too was one of
the standard-issue Klingon domes that the colonists had been using
during the five-year test period. Now that the planet's future was
ensured, he had been preparing to build his family a real home, outside
of town on his own land. Now he would also keep the dome, if they lived
through this cowardly attack.

His home showed damage from a direct hit, but it was still standing.
There was no sign of his wife and five children. That fact relieved
him. If they were still alive they would be inside, door blocked, ready
to defend their home as best they could. He would have to be careful
going in or they'd fire on him.

He tried the front door and found it securely locked. That meant
someone was alive in there. The door didn't lock from the outside. He
moved around to the side, tossing burning roofing away from the walls of
his home as he went. The colony living quarters had only one main door,
but they were also equipped with a hidden emergency entry that could be
opened from the outside. He yanked open the small hatch and, without