Shadow's Son by Shirley Meier, S.M. Stirling and Karen Wehrstein ...

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Generated by ABC Amber LIT Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html to sow discord, she was sure. For one thing, she was too honest; for another, those things had Shkai'ra's stamp. "Damn her! When she gets back, I'm going to… Sova, why didn't you tell me?" "She vass yourakribhan ! Besides… ven we came into the Kchnotet Vurm, ve were naked und had welts all over us. You saw dat! She only shows you her nice side, but you sawdat !" Megan flinched, swallowed bile. "Shkai'ra's very careful with me. She never… she didn't… she loves me very much, and she's never seen me as weak. She eased up on you when she started seeing you as people, didn't she?" "Ven ve could do fifty push-ups, more like. She doesn't really think anyone's a person unless they're a warrior." "Sova. Did she ever carry through on that threat?" "No. But I always figured it was because I was still too young. I kept wishing I wouldn't grow, or get breasts…" The words fell dully into Megan's head, echoing.I wouldn't grow. Get breasts . Forher it had been the other way round, hoping shewould grow,would get breasts, so Sarngeld would be less interested. "No." Her voice was hoarse, almost a growl. "Never. You're her daughter, andmy daughter. If she ever raised so much as a finger that way, I would divorce her so fast she wouldn't have time to grab her bowcase." "Youvould ? I didn't think you'd leave her foranything ." Megan's voice was dead calm, deadly even. "There are some things I will not forgive, andthat is one of them. Adopted or blood-kin, it doesn't matter." "You don't mind herbeating me ." "I'venever seen her raise more than bruises on your butt, and for good reason." "There's things you don't see. The day she took us, we didn't do anything bad except not run faster than we could to where we didn't vant to go!" "Well, there she was wrong." "Vat about all dose times when I reallyvass trying as hard as I could in war-training and she'd hit me anyway? Zhymata, that all made me into a different person and I didn't want it and I'm not sure Ilike who it made me into!" "Made you into a differentperson ? Hardly." Megan faced Sova in the dark, fists on her knees. "In war-training, you found the steel in you. It was already there." "I'm not talking about the steel. I'm talking about thehate ." "You mean her trying to teach you to hate everyone and everything, or just her?" "Myself!" "Do you? Hate yourself?"
Generated by ABC Amber LIT Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html "Sometimes." "Well, I don't think that's right, either. If you feel that way, why don't you talk to me about it more?" "I knowyou don't think that's right. But shedoes . She thinks you have to, to be a warrior. She thinks I was mean and cruel before, it just needed polishing. But I… well, maybe I was mean to Piatr, I know I was. But… well, no one taught me it was wrong then, everyone else was doing it, he was just a nasty witch my Pa gave me to torment, that's all I knew, and I… I didn't know what was bothering me, so I took it out on him. I didn'tknow it was cruel; I didn't know what cruelwas , den. I vass chust a stupid girl!" Suddenly tears muddied the clear young voice. "I vasn'tmean ! I was chust ignorant! I didn't know how much it hurt!She vould haf donevorse !" Cautiously, ready in case the girl recoiled, Megan touched her trembling shoulder, then pulled her into her arms. "Khyd-hirdismean ! She'sreally mean! She knows vat she's doing!" "Ah, Sovee, Sovee. She does as she was taught and does not know better either, though she's so much older than you are. She says crude and cruel things and doesn't see how she hurts Shyll or Rilla with her ignorance, even me sometimes. She doesn't think there's a problem, though she tries—stumbling, bruising souls, stepping on hearts." Megan hugged the girl, smoothing hair back off her face. "It helps if you think of her like the pups, all big feet and not knowing their own strength. Take what good she can give you and leave her hard-headed idiocies to me. I'll handle them as best I can." "The pups are just dumb animals, they can't help it. They aren't my teachers, claiming to know everything. Andshe can't do anything toyou , so you don't know how it feels!" "Look," said Megan, taking Sova by the shoulders. "Talking to me isn't helping, that's clear enough. If she—when she—comes back, you are going to have to take it up withher . You are a warrior; you can speak up." Even in the darkness, Megan could see the girl's lips thin and eyes widen. "But Im not really a warrior, at least she doesn't think so, because she hasn'tsaid I am and I'm only a warrior if she says I am, right? Besides I couldn't…" Her voice thinned and trailed off. "Couldn't what?" "Couldn'ttake her. She doesn't listen to anyone she doesn't think could… at least make a good account of demself. She doesn't think anyone who can't fight is any good, deserve anything but pissing on, or being made a slave of one whocan ." This might crack my family right in half. My family that isn't yet complete. Maybe it never will be; if Shkai'ra doesn't come back, if Lixand dies. Megan controlled the shudders, so Sova wouldn't feel them. "Then tell her," she said hoarsely, "tell her I'm behind you on this and she'd better listen. She may surprise you and listen anyway because you're family." "You're behind me? Againsther ?" Megan felt as if a clawed hand had wrapped around one side of her heart, another clawed hand around the other, and they were pulling, tearing it in two. "For herlistening . And paying some damned good attention." She heard Sova's hands fidgeting, nails scratching the bedroll. "If," the girl said quietly. "If she comes
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people around for camouflage, and t
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Und now I vind dose two—Celestial
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Shadow's Son by Shirley Meier, S.M. Stirling and Karen Wehrstein ...

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