to
stay on the run for something he didn't even do.
Speaking of Uncle Virgil . . .
With a sigh, he reached into his inside coat pocket and pulled out
the old police EvGa scanner Uncle Virgil had lifted from somewhere a
few years ago. Getting his comm clip out of another pocket, he attached
it to his shirt collar and turned it on. "Uncle Virge?"
"About time," Uncle Virge said. "What took you so long?"
"We ran into a little trouble," Jack told him, activating the EvGa
and keying it to run its data transmissions through the comm clip. "You
getting the signal?"
"It's fine," Uncle Virge said. "What sort of trouble? Was it the
dragon's fault?"
"Hardly," Jack said. "We ran into a pack of heenas. Draycos was
the one who got us out of it."
"I see."
Jack frowned. There was an odd tone in Uncle Virge's voice.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"You should have called," Uncle Virge said. "You should have let
me know."
"There wasn't a whole lot of time," Jack pointed out dryly.
"Besides, what could you have done?"
"That's not the point," Uncle Virge said. "I don't like you being
out of touch with me for so long."
"Hey, you were the one who didn't want me transmitting
until we had the scanner hooked up," Jack reminded him. "Traceable
radio signals, remember?"
"Of course I remember," Uncle Virge said huffily. "I just didn't
think you'd take so long to get there."
Jack frowned. "What's gotten into you, anyway?" he demanded. "Come
on, let's hear it."
There was a short pause. "What's gotten into me is your new
friend," Uncle Virge said, lowering his voice. "I don't trust him. We
know practically nothing about him, you know. Him or his people or his situation. He could be spinning us a complete rainbow
and we'd never know it."
"You mean like the rainbows you're always spinning on me?" Jack
couldn't resist pointing out.
"Exactly my point," Uncle Virge agreed. "As the saying goes, it
takes one to know one. And you know as well as I do that a con man's
first job is to convince the pigeon he's far too good a person to even think of doing anything dishonest."
"Uh-huh," Jack said, nodding. He got it now. "It's not so much
that you don't trust him. You just don't like him."
"You see any reason why I should?" Uncle Virge countered stiffly.
"All right, no, I don't like him. I don't like the way he's giving
orders and taking charge of everything. I especially don't like the way
he keeps trying to fill your head with this warrior-ethic claptrap of
his."
"He is not filling my head," Jack protested. "Besides, what's
claptrappy about it?"
"You don't think it's claptrappy to risk your life and safety just
to keep an enemy from burning his little hands?" Uncle Virge asked
pointedly. "Back on Iota Klestis, remember?"
"Well . . . okay, maybe that was a little strange," Jack had to
admit. "But—"
"Did it gain you anything?" Uncle Virge persisted. "That's the
scale you have to measure everything against, you know. Do you think
that thug will be grateful enough to do you a good turn if you ever
meet up with him again?"
"Well, no, probably not," Jack had to admit that one, too. "But it
didn't hurt us any, either."
Uncle Virge sighed. "That's not the point, Jack lad," he said. "It
could have hurt you a lot. It could have given his friends time to grab
you, or to find the ship. But that's not the point, either."
"Then what is the point?"
"That this noble K'da warrior bit sounds fine when you read it in
a storybook," Uncle Virge said bluntly. "But in real life, it just
doesn't work."
Jack looked over at Draycos, prowling along a row of large storage
lockers that lined the warehouse wall near the entrance to the tube.
"It seems to work okay for Draycos," he said.
"I'm sure it used to," Uncle Virge countered. "It's easy to be
grand and noble when you're a soldier, surrounded by lots of other
soldiers. It's quite a bit different when you're alone. Did you ever
hear of the Dragonbacks?"
Jack frowned. "No."
"They were a small group of idealistic,
stay on the run for something he didn't even do.
Speaking of Uncle Virgil . . .
With a sigh, he reached into his inside coat pocket and pulled out
the old police EvGa scanner Uncle Virgil had lifted from somewhere a
few years ago. Getting his comm clip out of another pocket, he attached
it to his shirt collar and turned it on. "Uncle Virge?"
"About time," Uncle Virge said. "What took you so long?"
"We ran into a little trouble," Jack told him, activating the EvGa
and keying it to run its data transmissions through the comm clip. "You
getting the signal?"
"It's fine," Uncle Virge said. "What sort of trouble? Was it the
dragon's fault?"
"Hardly," Jack said. "We ran into a pack of heenas. Draycos was
the one who got us out of it."
"I see."
Jack frowned. There was an odd tone in Uncle Virge's voice.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"You should have called," Uncle Virge said. "You should have let
me know."
"There wasn't a whole lot of time," Jack pointed out dryly.
"Besides, what could you have done?"
"That's not the point," Uncle Virge said. "I don't like you being
out of touch with me for so long."
"Hey, you were the one who didn't want me transmitting
until we had the scanner hooked up," Jack reminded him. "Traceable
radio signals, remember?"
"Of course I remember," Uncle Virge said huffily. "I just didn't
think you'd take so long to get there."
Jack frowned. "What's gotten into you, anyway?" he demanded. "Come
on, let's hear it."
There was a short pause. "What's gotten into me is your new
friend," Uncle Virge said, lowering his voice. "I don't trust him. We
know practically nothing about him, you know. Him or his people or his situation. He could be spinning us a complete rainbow
and we'd never know it."
"You mean like the rainbows you're always spinning on me?" Jack
couldn't resist pointing out.
"Exactly my point," Uncle Virge agreed. "As the saying goes, it
takes one to know one. And you know as well as I do that a con man's
first job is to convince the pigeon he's far too good a person to even think of doing anything dishonest."
"Uh-huh," Jack said, nodding. He got it now. "It's not so much
that you don't trust him. You just don't like him."
"You see any reason why I should?" Uncle Virge countered stiffly.
"All right, no, I don't like him. I don't like the way he's giving
orders and taking charge of everything. I especially don't like the way
he keeps trying to fill your head with this warrior-ethic claptrap of
his."
"He is not filling my head," Jack protested. "Besides, what's
claptrappy about it?"
"You don't think it's claptrappy to risk your life and safety just
to keep an enemy from burning his little hands?" Uncle Virge asked
pointedly. "Back on Iota Klestis, remember?"
"Well . . . okay, maybe that was a little strange," Jack had to
admit. "But—"
"Did it gain you anything?" Uncle Virge persisted. "That's the
scale you have to measure everything against, you know. Do you think
that thug will be grateful enough to do you a good turn if you ever
meet up with him again?"
"Well, no, probably not," Jack had to admit that one, too. "But it
didn't hurt us any, either."
Uncle Virge sighed. "That's not the point, Jack lad," he said. "It
could have hurt you a lot. It could have given his friends time to grab
you, or to find the ship. But that's not the point, either."
"Then what is the point?"
"That this noble K'da warrior bit sounds fine when you read it in
a storybook," Uncle Virge said bluntly. "But in real life, it just
doesn't work."
Jack looked over at Draycos, prowling along a row of large storage
lockers that lined the warehouse wall near the entrance to the tube.
"It seems to work okay for Draycos," he said.
"I'm sure it used to," Uncle Virge countered. "It's easy to be
grand and noble when you're a soldier, surrounded by lots of other
soldiers. It's quite a bit different when you're alone. Did you ever
hear of the Dragonbacks?"
Jack frowned. "No."
"They were a small group of idealistic,
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