Read Online When the Gods Aren't Gods: Book Two of The Theogony by Chris Kennedy - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Chris Kennedy
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ship’s crew,” replied Night, “but he is really good. Did you see that combination that Master Chief just threw at him? That’s some sort of Rigelian nerve punch/kick combo that we got from a combat download. There’s no way that guy could ever have seen that combination before, and yet he was able to block and avoid it.”
“Whoever he is, he obviously got some augmentations done when he got his implants,” remarked Calvin. “There’s no way he could be that fast without them.”
Night laughed. “That’s what I wanted you to see,” he said. “The guy is totally augment-free. He’s naturally that fast. If anything, he’s faster than Master Chief is with his implants. He just walked in here, walked up to Master Chief and said, ‘Hey, if I can take you four out of seven submissions, can I go down to the planet with you the next time the Gulf goes out?’ Master Chief didn’t think there was any way that the guy could win, so he said, ‘Sure.’”
“He ’s got to know that he can’t authorize that,” said Calvin, shaking his head. “What’s the count so far?”
Night grinned. “I think it is tied three-to-three right now. Master Chief won the first three points, hitting him with a bunch of the off-world stuff that we learned, including some of the lizard stuff that he’s been working on with Bob and Doug. He hasn’t scored since then, though, and he has taken a bunch of hits.”
“The funny thing,” said Night after a pause, “is that the new guy said he is better with rifle and pistol than he is at hand-to-hand.” At that moment, the newcomer faked high and struck low, sweeping Master Chief’s legs out from under him. While Master Chief was still going down, the newcomer pounced on him, taking him down in a choke hold that Master Chief couldn’t escape. The newcomer won, 4-3.
“Wow,” said Calvin, watching Master Chief’s struggles diminish as he passed out from blood loss to his brain, “that guy really is good. We need to get him on the team; make sure you get him implants and a suit.” He turned to find Night laughing. “What?” he asked. “Who is he?”
“That gentleman is Father John Zuhlsdorf,” replied Night. “He’s the Gulf’s new chaplain.”
National Assembly Building, Abuja, Nigeria, April 27, 2020
“I would like to thank all of you for attending this session today,” greeted the British prime minister. The first female to hold the post since Margaret Thatcher, Juliette Ricketts-Smith was also First Lord of the Treasury and the Minister for the Civil Service. Like the ‘Iron Lady’ before her, the ‘Cobalt Countess’ wore her nickname proudly. Not only was cobalt a hard metal (harder than iron, she was fond of saying), but cobalt was also one of the three elements that were magnetic at room temperature, like her personality. The fact that she often dressed in blue was purely coincidental. “I do not believe that there is any more important appointment before this assembly than who to send as the next ambassador.” She looked out at the nodding heads in the crowded assembly hall. The heads of state of nearly all of the participating nations were in attendance. Those that weren’t had sent their seconds. As the first ambassador to the stars had been from Britain, the only agreement so far was that the next one should be from somewhere else, making it her duty to moderate the session.
“ Having been an ambassador, myself,” she continued, “I have seen both sides of the ambassadorial mission. I have seen ambassadors fall flat on their faces, and I have seen others rise to great acclaim through their tireless efforts. As we proceed with our task today, there is one quality that must be paramount; the person selected for this post must be an expert communicator. It is not necessary for the ambassador to be highly polished, but she should be tactful and must be able to get the message across clearly and precisely.”
“As everyone here well
“Whoever he is, he obviously got some augmentations done when he got his implants,” remarked Calvin. “There’s no way he could be that fast without them.”
Night laughed. “That’s what I wanted you to see,” he said. “The guy is totally augment-free. He’s naturally that fast. If anything, he’s faster than Master Chief is with his implants. He just walked in here, walked up to Master Chief and said, ‘Hey, if I can take you four out of seven submissions, can I go down to the planet with you the next time the Gulf goes out?’ Master Chief didn’t think there was any way that the guy could win, so he said, ‘Sure.’”
“He ’s got to know that he can’t authorize that,” said Calvin, shaking his head. “What’s the count so far?”
Night grinned. “I think it is tied three-to-three right now. Master Chief won the first three points, hitting him with a bunch of the off-world stuff that we learned, including some of the lizard stuff that he’s been working on with Bob and Doug. He hasn’t scored since then, though, and he has taken a bunch of hits.”
“The funny thing,” said Night after a pause, “is that the new guy said he is better with rifle and pistol than he is at hand-to-hand.” At that moment, the newcomer faked high and struck low, sweeping Master Chief’s legs out from under him. While Master Chief was still going down, the newcomer pounced on him, taking him down in a choke hold that Master Chief couldn’t escape. The newcomer won, 4-3.
“Wow,” said Calvin, watching Master Chief’s struggles diminish as he passed out from blood loss to his brain, “that guy really is good. We need to get him on the team; make sure you get him implants and a suit.” He turned to find Night laughing. “What?” he asked. “Who is he?”
“That gentleman is Father John Zuhlsdorf,” replied Night. “He’s the Gulf’s new chaplain.”
National Assembly Building, Abuja, Nigeria, April 27, 2020
“I would like to thank all of you for attending this session today,” greeted the British prime minister. The first female to hold the post since Margaret Thatcher, Juliette Ricketts-Smith was also First Lord of the Treasury and the Minister for the Civil Service. Like the ‘Iron Lady’ before her, the ‘Cobalt Countess’ wore her nickname proudly. Not only was cobalt a hard metal (harder than iron, she was fond of saying), but cobalt was also one of the three elements that were magnetic at room temperature, like her personality. The fact that she often dressed in blue was purely coincidental. “I do not believe that there is any more important appointment before this assembly than who to send as the next ambassador.” She looked out at the nodding heads in the crowded assembly hall. The heads of state of nearly all of the participating nations were in attendance. Those that weren’t had sent their seconds. As the first ambassador to the stars had been from Britain, the only agreement so far was that the next one should be from somewhere else, making it her duty to moderate the session.
“ Having been an ambassador, myself,” she continued, “I have seen both sides of the ambassadorial mission. I have seen ambassadors fall flat on their faces, and I have seen others rise to great acclaim through their tireless efforts. As we proceed with our task today, there is one quality that must be paramount; the person selected for this post must be an expert communicator. It is not necessary for the ambassador to be highly polished, but she should be tactful and must be able to get the message across clearly and precisely.”
“As everyone here well
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