Read Online Demands of Honor by Kevin Ryan - Free Book Online

council had grown small and petty just when the threats against them had grown great. He had no desire to expose his son to that world, not until it was absolutely necessary.
    In any case, there was always hope that the clan leaders would come to their senses.
Not with Gurn constantly whispering in their ears,
he thought. It was true and Gorath realized that he had let the problem go on too long. Something had to be done about Gurn. Gorath had resisted because there hadn’t been any real conflict between the clans since the time before his great-grandfather’s memory, and perhaps even longer than that.
    His people were hunters and never shirked individually from a fight or struggle—as they had not shirked from battle with the green-skins. But there was no need for the clans to fight among themselves. Each had all they needed and more from the rich land. Up until the Orions came, there had been nothing worth fighting over.
    Now, there was the mine and the Orion machines. But Gorath felt that there was more to it than that. Other forces were at work here, his blood was certain of it. Herealized he had been too preoccupied by the effort to get the mine repaired and operating, and to begin teaching more of his people how to use Orion weapons and equipment, even as he was learning himself.
    And he had allowed himself to be distracted by the endless bickering of clan disputes. That would change tonight. Gorath wasn’t sure what he would do, but he trusted his blood to guide him. At heart, Gurn was a coward and it wouldn’t take much to intimidate him. That would be a start. That the warp reactor was working to provide the machines with even more power was good news. Perhaps that would impress the council. They could now focus on building their future.
    When Gorath arrived at the council pit, he saw that each clan leader was there with his second, except for Gurn, who had four of his people with him. Gorath shook his head. He had spent a dozen summers as clan leader and had never seen another leader come to a council with anyone other than his second.
    â€œHonored Gorath, we are pleased to welcome you,” Gurn said expansively. Immediately all heads turned to Gorath, who nodded.
    Besides making himself a central part of every council discussion, Gurn had taken to using ridiculously formal speech. Gorath had to fight the impulse to say something rude and merely nodded.
    â€œWe can begin now. All of you have sent messages laying out what you would like to discuss tonight. Well, almost all of you,” Gurn said, shooting Gorath a look.
    Besides electing himself to run the meetings, Gurn had decided that all clan leaders had to send him a list of subjects they wanted to discuss in each council. In thepast, clan leaders would simply get up and speak, or not, as they felt the need. Now, there was so much discussion and so many new issues that Gurn’s rule almost made sense. However, Gorath still refused to follow it as a matter of principle.
    â€œFirst, we have a request from—”
    Gorath stood up and interrupted him, taking pleasure in the scowl from Gurn that it earned him. “Before we begin, I have an announcement, some good news for all of the clans.”
    All heads turned to Gorath and Gurn stepped forward. “Well, we are happy to change the order of our discussion for ‘good news.’ Please speak.” Gurn waved expansively.
    Ignoring the fool, Gorath stepped to the center of the pit. “I am pleased to announce that the mine’s warp reactor has been successfully tested and is now operating. It is not yet at full power, but we have enough power to recharge all of the vehicles and weapons for further training. We can also begin using some of the heavier mining equipment.”
    Cheers went up among the clan leaders and their seconds. Gorath now looked at Gurn and enjoyed the man’s bewildered expression. After only a moment, Gurn recovered and said, “That is