Ann Wilson

“ Shayan sighed, feeling all too human in his frustration. He had enjoyed Odeon's pain, no question about that, but the tempering did mean the confrontation both he and Cortin dreaded was less than half a year away.
Which meant he had his own choice to make, right now. Just how badly did he want to live?
There was no guarantee he would, of course, even if Odeon made the correct choice; there was no guarantee any life at all in this universe would survive the invasion that was to come. ”

“ And he was a Tracker, trained to wake instantly if he heard anything unusual. He settled deeper into the chair, closing his eyes.
The man approaching him was impossible. For one thing, he was inhumanly attractive, almost beautiful—but the clincher was his uniform. Enforcement did have some good-looking older officers; it had never had a white uniform, or a star for rank insigne, or a Kingdom emblem that looked like a spiral galaxy. This had to be a dream, then, so Odeon settled in to play along and enjoy it. ”

“ Cortin grinned. "I'm sure he deserves every year of it." All that was left was killing him, so she got out of her coveralls, put her tunic back on, settled her gunbelt into place, and re-entered the third-stage room. Bradford had freed the prisoner; he was kneeling facing away from her, toward the room's crucifix, his attitude making it obvious he was praying. Cortin frowned, then nodded to herself, silently drawing her pistol. There were far worse ways to die than quickly, while speaking to God, and while he deserved one of those, she had promised otherwise. ”

“ Medart hesitated, but he couldn't either lie or refuse to answer. "No, you won't. That's an emotion I've never had, other than maybe for the Empire as a whole. Liking and respect for individuals, yes—love, no."
"And I won't miss it. I think that may be the worst." Odeon sighed. "But you hit me in my vulnerable spot, Jim, and I think you know it. I've spent my entire adult life doing my damndest to protect and help people; if I can get past my spiritual problem, I'm going to have to accept the job." ”

“ If you weren't High King's Inquisitor, someone else would be—someone less talented. As for the speed, well," he let his smile show in his voice, "from what I hear, you were the one in a hurry to qualify as an Inquisitor and get to work—and I know you didn't waste any time getting your team together."
"I can't argue that," Cortin said. She had pushed hard to learn, and learned faster than she'd expected even with that amount of work. "Motivation does work wonders—but it still bothers me." ”

“ Mike, you're scaring me. Sure, Azrael's good—we picked the best. And he was telling the truth when he said Shannon was afraid of me, though I can't imagine why, if he is Shayan. Dear God, Mike, we're only human!"
"Humans have been known to work wonders, with God's help," Odeon pointed out. "Though I have to admit I'm not too thrilled about going up against His Infernal Majesty myself."
"But we both will if we have to. We all will." Cortin shuddered. "And we'd better be in a state of grace when we do, because we're not going to have much of a chance of coming out alive." ”

“ Illyanov said. "God does not need to be worshipped; He—or She—requires it of us because it is we who need to worship, and if we do not worship God, we will worship someone or something less worthy."
"That makes sense," Cortin said. "It's not what I'd choose, but I've been frightened and embarrassed before, without a Family for support. I suppose I'll learn to live with it—I'll have to, since I don't have any choice." ”

“ She meant it—and that was exactly what he'd been afraid of. "You shouldn't feel that way, Joanie. God had a reason for keeping you alive; you've got to believe that."
"Why?" Cortin asked tiredly. She'd spent quite a few hours thinking about that, when she should've been sleeping but the pain wouldn't let sleep come and nothing seemed to matter except an end to her torment. "I'm no saint, but I've never done anything really terrible, either. Certainly nothing bad enough to deserve this living Hell."
That was true, Odeon thought. ”

“ Medart frowned, sitting up. *If I can't tell him, why tell me? Who'll stop us? How could one man's decision affect an entire universe? And, most important, if you're who you claim, how come I sense anxiety from you instead of hostility?*
*The last question first, then. This universe is going to be invaded soon, by beings who frighten even me. If Odeon's decision is for the Empire, that invasion will lead to the most life-destructive war in the universe's history. If he decides for his family, instead of war there will be simple massacre, which will include me and my demons. ”

“ Have you tried therapy, to get over what happened?"
"And prayer," Chang agreed. "I shall increase my efforts at both now, of course; it would be unfair to the rest of the team to do less."
That was true, Cortin thought. No one could be faulted for not taking part, but that shouldn't be because of a correctable disability; it should be either voluntary, or because of permanent disability like her own. It seemed a cruel irony that Chang had the ability without the desire, while she had the desire without the ability. ”

“ Although we've eliminated war and most illness, leading in turn to the elimination of poverty in any sense the Terrans or prewars would understand, the human race faces two great—and immediate—threats. One is the terrorists, particularly the Brothers of Freedom and their chief Raidmaster, Lawrence Shannon. Eliminating them is a job we've all—except Your Highnesses, of course—sworn to do, and the Strike Force has personal reasons to do it thoroughly and quickly. ”

“ Forcing outsiders to help in horror-raids by threats to their families went beyond her conception—until now—of even the Brothers' depravity. "I believe you," she said, and showed him the back of one hand. "Any Inquisitor who wears this mark knows when someone's telling the truth, and no one who hasn't committed a crime will be punished. You'll be taken to the Detention Center, though, for detailed questioning. Enforcement will use any information you can give us to try to rescue your daughter, so be as thorough as you can; sometimes a tiny detail you think useless can be the key. ”

“ Cortin watched with interest but no understanding as the Ranger closed his eyes and sat silent for several seconds. Then he shuddered, tensing, and she watched sweat stains appear and grow on his uniform. By the time he opened his eyes again, almost half an hour later, he was soaked and looked exhausted. She wanted to ask about her prisoner, but instead said, "Are you all right?"
"I will be after a bath and nap," Medart replied. "Reading minds, except for the simplest communication link, isn't like reading a book; on any deeper level, you share the other person's thoughts—and feelings. ”

“ As he left in search of the proprietor, Cortin turned to Illyanov. "Ivan—" it seemed strange calling him that—"thanks." She looked around. "Thank all of you, for joining me. It means a lot."
"It means much to us, as well." Illyanov touched her hand. "You are new to our field, Joan, but already you must begin to feel our isolation. An Inquisitor who is also a priest is most literally a gift from God."
"I'm not the only one," she said, uncomfortable with his intensity. "Colonel Bradford, uh ..." She hesitated, realizing that the Bishop was the only other Priest-Inquisitor she knew of. ”

“ His mindprobe of Gaelan DarShona, thirty years ago, had given him the experience of briefly being a Sandeman warrior, so he felt, as well as knew intellectually, how deeply unacceptable Keith would have found his present actions before he came under the influence of Cortin's Talent. Seeing a man stripped as part of punishment was no problem, that was normal Sandeman procedure for particularly serious violations. But handling another man's genitals was enough to earn death in disgrace if you lived that long—unlikely, since it was far more likely to get you killed on the spot. ”

“ Not to guard Him, of course, He won't need it, but to guard His people from the ones who don't accept Him and aren't willing to let those who do live in peace. As I told Colonel Illyanov once, as long as humans have free will, Enforcement's still going to be necessary. ”

“ Cortin said. "I'll do whatever is needed to stop criminals, but I have no intention of hurting innocents."
"He denied everything."
"But he only told the truth the first time. He's worked for the Brothers, even though he isn't one himself, and he has some significant information."
"You never told me you had truthsense," Illyanov said quietly. "That is a most useful talent."
"The subject never came up—but I can't be lied to, never could even as a child. If a question has a yes-or-no answer, it doesn't matter if he tells the truth or not. I'll know." ”

“ Cortin said. "If I didn't believe aiding a peaceful transition to be the Kingdom Systems' only chance to survive as a society, I would be fighting you to the best of my ability. You may be able to change my mind—under the circumstances, I'd like nothing better than to believe the best of you and your Empire—but right now, I'm no more than a reluctant ally."
"A reluctant ally's better than an active enemy, Excellency." DeLayne grinned. "You must have an ultrawave, to've spoken to His Majesty; may I use it to report in and request assignment here?" ”

“ Cortin said. "I'd like to have you backing me, yes, but not if my work's going to upset you like this."
"I'll get used to it," Odeon said stubbornly. "I can't promise I'll ever get to like it, but I will learn to handle it well enough to give you any backup you need."
"You set yourself a difficult task," Illyanov said. "I feel safe in predicting you will not come to like it; observing you, I would say you lack the quirk of mind required to take pleasure in another's pain. With adequate motivation, time, and exposure, however, you may develop enough tolerance to be able to assist." ”

“ Cortin was puzzled by that comment, but she didn't have long to wonder at it; as soon as she and Degas followed the priest inside, she was mobbed—at least that was what it felt like—by the Harrison children and pets. Three children, four dogs, and a cat, she thought, were far more formidable than it sounded like they should be—and she loved being their target. When their greetings settled down a bit, she picked up Mama-Cat and carried her back to her kittens, smiling wistfully as the tiny beings mewed, hunting blindly for nipples, then settling down as they found them and began nursing. ”

“ Cortin wasn't reacting the way Blackfeather would expect from a divine incarnation, though. Desire for revenge after rape and maiming was a human thing the Protector should be beyond. So was becoming an Inquisitor, nothing like Jeshua's forgiveness of His enemies and His gentle nature. Still, she thougt, there was precedent, if you went back to the First Testament; she'd never been comfortable with things like the innocent Job being tormented simply as a demonstration to Shayan, or the she-bears being sent to kill forty-two children whose only offense had been to tease Elisha about being bald. ”

“ Cortin tested the water temperature in the vestry's small sink, then began washing blood off her arms. The wounds on her wrists were as painless as she'd been promised, and looked freshly healed, though she was certain they'd be open again every time she said Mass. "Word of these and the Communion of Promise should reach Rome in three or four hours, which means Pope Lucius will guess—or know—I'm the Herald. He'll have to take some sort of action, even if it's not a direct physical assault." She turned to Odeon, her expression grim. ”

“ Remembering that kiss—and the night that followed, the others later—Mike Odeon rubbed the scar crossing his lips. It hurt to see medics working over her, hear them sounding pessimistic. Her injuries seemed to be even more severe than Boris had said at first, and she'd been weak to begin with, just recuperating from one of the unnamed plagues that had devastated the Kingdom Systems during the Final War. The plagues were no longer common, hadn't been for over a century; Joanie had simply had the bad luck to pursue a gang of horse thieves into a still-contaminated area. ”

“ She was glad to see them, and even more pleased that they settled into the team's non-regulation informality as if it were a group of Inquisitors like the one at the Eagle's Nest.
She saw Bradford's look of pleased surprise at her men's gloves, and his slow smile of approval. "I see Team Azrael has decided on a trademark. Did you by any chance leave a glove with the remains of your attackers?"
Not at all surprised that they'd heard the story so quickly, Cortin nodded. "Yes—it seemed like a good idea. Shouldn't we have?"
"That's your option, as Team-Leader. ”

“ As investigators, though, we all know humans are fallible—with or without inspiration. But they didn't have modern publishing; given a press run of ten or fifteen thousand, by one writer and in the original language, there'll always be a totally genuine version somewhere."
To Odeon's surprise, Blackfeather snickered. "You've got your historian, Mike—but if you believe a press run as low as ten or fifteen thousand, it's sure clear you're no publisher! On this particular subject, especially with Colonel Cortin involved, go up a couple of orders of magnitude. ”