Conquest ~ Indian Hill 3 ~ A Michael Talbot Adventure Read Online Free PDF Page A

his underling’s discontent.
    “We have crushed their armies, reduced their societies to empty shells of what they used to be. In another two years when our reinforcements get here , there’d be nothing left for them to do. They would show up and the glory and prestige would be theirs . I will not let that happen. I will claim this victory myself.”
    “Sir , we are a scout ship, it is our duty to find conquerable planets and call in the battle cruisers. That is what we do.”
    “Did — that is what we did! Sub-commander, I didn’t get this job by being timid and weak.”
    “You got this job because you allowed our commander to be kidnapped.”
    Now it was the commander’s turn to snarl. “Be careful , S ub-commander.” He more growled than spok e. “You are walking a fine line. I f I remember correctly , it was your team that scanned the E arth vessel and deemed it safe. These hu-mans are weak-minded, weak-spirited and weak- bodied, when we send our first wave of Devastator troops down they will be more than willing to lie down and die, as you say.”
    The sub-commander didn’t really believe that but he wasn’t sure how far he should push his stance. “Sir , I’m not saying we can’t take this planet , but we just don’t have the troops to cover enough ground. With only ten million devastators and a couple of thousand ships operational , we won’t be able to suppress any true fighting.”
    “When I succeed in taking this planet before the battle cruiser arrives I will be sure to let our emperor know of your temerity.”
    “And will you also tell him of my opposition should the alternate happen?”
    Had the commander been capable of expressing his anger in the rush of blood to his face he most assuredly would have been the blood red color of a sun on the eve of a great storm.
    “Sub-commander , prepare the troops for the launch the day after the hu-man champion is killed . W e’ll give them a little time to grieve their loss.”
    The sub-commander wasn’t quite so sure of that outcome either , but he had pressed his luck far enough and he still valued his life to not go any farther .
     

    CHAPTER EIGHT - Mike Journal Entry 3
     
    With mortality dangling in front of your face one begins to scan over some of the low lights and high lights of one ’ s life. And with my impending fight and the boredom of my enclosure I had plenty of time. At twenty , I was fee ling greatly cheated, a life cut short, so many wrongs un - righted, so many deeds undone. So much life unlived . S ure I was being a little dramatic, but I figured that at this point I had earned it. One of the biggest things I couldn’t seem to hurdle was the semi-hidden hostility that my mother and I had shared. From the age of five on I had felt it, I was her burden. She no more wanted me than a dog wanted fleas, she often referred to me as her mistake, not quite Dr. Spock - ish. Her way of dealing with me was to either ground me to my room or leave me alone altogether . I f I was to live longer , I was probably going to spend a lot of money on therapy. There were times that I wanted to ask her to let me be adopted by another family, I never got the nerve, now I wished I had.  Beth was another matter I had hoped to resolve before my untimely demise. The way she had looked at me when we had finally made it home after our escape was an image that still hau nted my dreams, when I had them . T he pity, the disgust, the love —a ll co-mingled on her ethereal face. She had crushed my heart as effectively as if she had cut it out with a spoon and stepped on it in the dirt. I don’t know that she had loved me or ever truly would have, she was light years ahead of me in the relationship game. I was like a high school basketball player walking on to a pro court. To her I was probably just the flavor of the month ; no it had to have been more than that, didn’t it? How could I possibly justify the injustices I had committed if it wasn’t for love ?