"Timothy Zahn - Dragonback 2 - Dragon and Soldier" - читать интересную книгу автора (Zahn Timothy)

Dragon and Soldier




Timothy Zahn



Dragon and Soldier


The Second Dragonback Adventure




For Sable—who has taught me what it means to be a symbiont




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Dragon and Soldier




Chapter 1
The screams of the dying K'da and Shontine in the Havenseeker's engine room were growing louder.
Draycos tried to shut out the sounds—tried to cover his pointed ears with his paws. But nothing
helped.
He could see them now, back there in the engine room. Which was odd, because Draycos himself
was up in the Havenseeker's control complex, all the way at the other end of the ship. He could see
outside through the navigation bubble as the unfamiliar enemy ships sent the all too familiar violet
beams of the Death twisting and sweeping across the Havenseeker's hull. The Death was coming
closer to him... closer... closer...
With a jerk that sent his claws scratching across the soft plastic coating of the floor beneath him,
Draycos woke up.
"Bad dream?" a soft voice came from across the room.
Draycos blinked his eyes, clearing away the last images of the nightmare. The room was mostly
dark, but there was enough light for him to see the narrow cot built into the wall at the other end of
the small cabin. His new companion, Jack Morgan, was propped up on one elbow, his hair sticking
out in a dozen different directions. "Yes," Draycos told him. "I apologize for waking you."
" 'S okay," Jack said, yawning. He ran a hand through his hair without making any noticeable
improvement in the mess. "I'm just glad you weren't on my back when you started twitching. What
was it this time?"
"The same," Draycos said, the tip of his tail curving into a K'da frown. Odd; he had started out the
sleep period pressed against Jack's back in his two-dimensional form. When had he jumped off and
become fully three-dimensional again? During the terrible dream? "I saw again the destruction of our