Demands of Honor Read Online Free PDF

this settled?”
    Rouk looked in fear from Karel to Karn. He seemed surprised to still be alive.
    â€œIs it?” Karel asked again.
    â€œAhhh…yes…it is settled,” Rouk said, his voice uneven.
    â€œKarn?” Karel asked.
    Karn looked down on the Klingon under his blade and asked him, “Will you accept without complaint the same rations as every other Klingon on this ship?”
    Rouk looked up as if he didn’t understand. When he saw that Karn was serious, he nodded and replied, “Yes.”
    â€œWill you clean up the mess you have made in this dining room?” Karn asked.
    Without hesitating, Rouk said, “Yes.”
    Karn leapt to his feet and answered the first officer, “Then I am satisfied.” Looking back down to Rouk, he held up the knife and told him, “I will keep your child’s toy. It may be of use in the kitchen.”
    Karel nodded to Karn and then turned to Rouk’s Klingons and said, “You are dismissed.” When they hesitated, he said, “Your companion does not need your help for his work.”
    The Klingons left the room. Karel waited a moment to make sure that Rouk would not do anything foolish, then left the dining room. Karel realized that the honor and hope of the Klingon Empire was in that cook. And Karn was not unusual on board the ship.
    Since Koloth had taken command, Karel found that the spirit of the crew had greatly improved. Unlike many officers and leaders, Koloth did not find ways to pit his subordinates against each other. As a result, the crew kept their energy focused on their jobs and on defeating the empire’s enemies. It was a good policy for training and maintaining good warriors, but more dangerous for Koloth himself.
    So many commanders kept the crew at each other’s throat because it kept them from challenging their authority. It was an effective way for a captain to stay alive, but it was terrible for operational efficiency.
    On the
D’k Tahg,
the crew had flourished under Koloth. And Karel had to admit that as first officer he had had something to do with the improvement. Already, the ship’s crew had beaten many long-held records in simulations and war games. It was an example of what Klingons could do if they focused their efforts and conducted themselves honorably, staying on the path of Kahless.
    Like Karel, Koloth was a follower of Kahless the Unforgettable. And while most of the crew did not know that, they saw the results—warriors learned best by example. Yes, there was hope for the empire, hope for a future of glory and honor. Hope that it would recover from the kind of dishonor that had swallowed Kell.
    However, for the empire to live out its promise, it first had to survive. And survival was by no means certain if itproceeded with war with the Federation. The same dishonorable leadership that had put Karel’s brother on a dishonorable path had put the empire on the path to war.
    At the moment, Karel realized that he would serve the empire best by getting some rest. He had finished another double shift and had much to do tomorrow to make sure the ship was ready when it reached its destination.
    He checked in on the bridge and then headed back to his quarters. A message was waiting for him on the computer terminal.
    Hitting a button on the console, he saw the title of the message and was immediately alert. “News from home,” it read. Taking a quick glance at the rest of the message, he saw innocuous information about the weather and some agricultural reports. He did not even bother to read it. Instead he reached for a data tape he had put aside. Placing the tape into a slot in the console, he waited for the decryption program it held to do its work.
    As Karel waited, he felt his blood nearly boiling. In a moment the information he had sought and paid dearly for would be his. He would know who had sent his brother on a mission of deceit and treachery—to live among