Heart Of The Tiger wc-4 Read online

  EPILOGUE

  Shuttle Ciudad de Buenos Aires.

  Terra System

  "Our top story is the historic news from the Torgo System, where delegates from the Kilrathi Empire signed a peace treaty to put an end to the war . . ."

  On the newspad monitor screen, the view showed the interior of the huge auditorium at Sector HQ. There was a large audience, mostly uniformed members of the Confed Armed Forces, gathered around a raised stage beneath the transparent dome. The ceremony took place at night, and a thousand stars blazed brightly above the delegates.

  Blair noted Paladin prominently seated among the Terran representatives, and near him was Admiral Tolwyn. The court of inquiry found the admiral blameless in the loss of the Behemoth, and he had returned to active service just in time to be a part of the protracted negotiations. Blair thought it was fitting, somehow, that Tolwyn played a role in the final triumph. Though he never agreed with the man's style or motivations, Admiral Geoff Tolwyn was a central figure in the Confederation resistance throughout the war, and it was only right that he should see it through to the very end. His nephew, Kevin, was also among the host of aides and assistants, and Eisen's dark craggy features were visible at the table as well. Among the Kilrathi, the only one Blair recognized was Melek, but the ornamentation of the other Imperial delegates made it plain that they represented a cross-section of important surviving nobles and military leaders.

  Barbara Miles continued her voice-over report. "Following the incredible raid which led to the destruction of the Imperial homeworld, Kilrah, the Kilrathi decision to sue for peace was greeted with excited celebrations throughout human space. After months of peace talks deliberating a final settlement, the initial cease-fire was finally converted to a lasting peace through the Kilrathi acceptance of the Treaty Of Torgo."

  The view switched back to a head-and-shoulder shot of Barbara Miles. "TNC attempted to contact the pilot who carried out the Kilrah raid for his reaction to the peace treaty, but Colonel Christopher Blair was unavailable for comment. We will have further details on the signing of the peace treaty later in this Infoburst . . ."

  Blair switched off the newspad and glanced out the port beside him. The shuttle began its descent now, crossing the terminator just as the dawning sun lit below the curved blue and white arc of the planet.

  Earth . . .

  He had dedicated his entire adult life to defending her, and now the long battle was over. And despite Melek's fears of another alien empire beyond the Kilrathi sphere threatening future wars, Blair knew his own days as a warrior were over. After a well-deserved period of leave, he was slated to go on the inactive list so that he could begin a new career, serving with the diplomatic staff that would soon begin work turning the abstract peace treaty with the Empire into solid, working reality. Henceforth Christopher Blair would be a warrior in the cause of peace, fighting a new kind of battle to ensure that all of his fallen comrades — Angel and Flint, Vaquero, and Hunter and Iceman, Cobra and Flash and all the rest, even Hobbes — had not died in vain.

  It was a daunting challenge, but Blair would not be facing it alone.

  She hurried down the aisle as the seatbelt warnings flashed on the forward bulkhead. Blair met her eyes, and they shared a smile.

  "What would you like to do first, after we're down?" he asked, strapping her in.

  Rachel Coriolis took his hand in hers. "I'd like to take a long walk along the seashore," she said, "with wet sand between my toes . . . and no bulkheads or metal decks or spare parts in sight."

  "Sounds good to me, Blair told her, settling into his seat and closing his eyes. The others were all still there, in his mind, but no longer demanding or clamoring. They — and he — had finally discovered peace.

  1995

  FB2 document info

  Document ID: 33f20e12-8820-49ec-b0d7-d1d6cba6bbba

  Document version: 1

  Document creation date: 2004-11-20

  Created using: FB Tools; ExportXML; FAR software

  Document authors :

  Alexandr (Alexandr)

  Source URLs :

  http://lib.bigmir.net/

  Document history:

  v 1.0 — создание FB2 — Alexandr.

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