Night Song (The Guild Wars Book 9) by Mark Wandrey (best ereader under 100 .txt) 📕

will follow orders. Honor demands it.” Always that had been true, without question or doubt. Now the words, despite their confidence, grated in her ears, leaving a metallic taste in the back of her throat. The captain, her Rei’Shin, and Coshke would make the path clear. “What do you think your people will do if their contract-holders order them to attack?”

Coshke spoke into the moment, before any Human could bring themselves to form a word of truth or lie.

The repeating alarm of an incoming attack blared against her ears, and even the Humans around her winced.

“Coshke wills it so,” she whispered, then stared aggressively into the leader’s eyes. “And so it is answered.”

The noise she made might have been a growl caught on the ragged edge of a howl, but either way, she shoved it back and stalked out of the room, ignoring Humans and Makori alike.

She returned to her quarters and looked at the Insho’Ze’s data records again. Ever since the question of the five Human-raised Zuul had suggested they were Hosh, she’d been searching for some connection to the Humans. How had they ended up with them, and why? Without any kind of providence, the captain wouldn’t make a move against the contract, regardless of the evidence. It just wasn’t enough to outweigh honoring their contract.

She spent the time memorizing every detail about Krif’Hosh she could find from their final years. The time matched up with the age of the five, yet there was no record of their birth, and no last word of how Krif’Hosh had met their end. News of such a momentous calamity had shaken the Zuul to their core. For what were they with only two of the three Hosh? What kind of song could they make as a race? The last entry was their taking a contract on Gephard, an insignificant world in the Crapti region of the Jesc arm. A pitiful garrison contract, so low risk, they’d brought the whole clan. Then, nothing.

Cho’Hosh and Vo’Hosh had spent years trying to find them. No evidence could be found of them. It was discovered that the garrison contract had not been what it had seemed, and Besquith had been involved. Veska stopped in her reading, blinking and rereading. The contract Krif’Hosh had taken was with the Zuparti! How had she missed this fact? Could it be linked to what was happening here? Was this possible? Jesc was a long way from the Tolo arm, where they were. But since arriving, she’d learned how deeply involved the Zuparti were with galactic politics. They controlled a guild of their own. A tiny one, to be sure, though powerful because of a rare element only found on E’cop’k.

“There is no such thing as a coincidence,” she said in her empty room. The alarms had changed, and she needed to report to her squad. The rest would reveal itself in time. For now, battle called, and she would answer.

* * * * *

Chapter 11

Classified Engineering Guild Holding—E’cop’k System

Rex woke early, as he always did. His father said he had the mercs’ natural clock, awake before the action, grab a nap whenever you can. Within ten minutes of the briefing his father gave to the troopers the previous night, Rex was showered and in a bunk, fast asleep.

He didn’t dream often. Most nights he just slept and woke up. This time he was haunted by a vague memory. Something about three Zuul standing on a mountain top, enemies all around them. They fought for their lives, a triple moon in the sky above, until one fell—and he awoke.

“Stupid dream,” he mumbled as he rolled out of his cot and started to pull on a uniform. Then he remembered, stopped, and pulled on his haptic suit. Today, they did battle. That’s all the dream was, nervousness about the fight.

Drake dropped down in low gravity-induced slow motion from the bunk above, teeth showing in a big grin. “Time to kick some ass, mate,” he said.

Yeah, against our own, he thought. “Looking forward to it,” Rex replied. He left Drake pulling on his own haptic suit and moved into the squad bay, where the rest of Silent Night was gathering. Some looked at him and nodded or smiled, while others scowled. Shadow’s pep talk hadn’t stuck with all of them. Sonya was already there, talking with their father. Shadow came in at the same time as Drake. Then the door opened, and Ripley entered.

Almost immediately all conversation ended. She wore a standard Silent Night uniform cut for the Zuul, though bandages were just visible in the neck area. She stopped and looked around the bay. “What, you’ve never seen a Zuul before?”

Someone began applauding, and it spread around the room quickly. Even those who’d looked less than happy to see the Zuul mercs were visibly clapping and nodding in respect.

“Daughter, what are you doing out of sickbay?”

“Doc cleared me,” Ripley replied.

“After you threatened to bite her?” Sonya quipped, to more than a few chuckles.

“I’ll talk to doc later,” Alan said. “But for now, report to the artillery section.”

Ripley had been opening her locker to get a haptic suit and she froze, her head spun around, and eyes wide in surprise. “What? But we’re going to fight!”

“Yes, we are; you are not. Less than 24 hours ago, you were dead. Doc said you flatlined twice before the nanites did their magic.”

“I’m fine now,” she said, her voice small.

Alan walked over next to her and reached a hand out to push her in the ribs. It wasn’t a punch, but a gentle shove. She cringed and yipped, ears back and not making eye contact. “What do you think will happen the first time your CASPer takes a hard hit?” She wouldn’t meet his gaze. “Do as you’re ordered, merc. Report to the artillery