Free Eternity Row by S. L. Viehl

crossed the link, and I saw the image of a rather dignified-looking lizard wearing a flightsuit. I knew the OverLord who captained it. He was a good commander, one who treated me fairly .
    “Then I’m sorry that you lost a friend.” I curled my arms around his neck. “Duncan, maybe we should get off the ship. Take Marel and disappear on some non-League world.”
    He seemed startled by that. “Do you really wish to leave?”
    “No,” I admitted. “I love the Jorenians, and they have done a lot to help us. But as long as we’re on board this ship, it’ll be a moving target, and our friends and our kid will be in danger.”
    We talked into the night, considering a number of alternatives to staying on board the Sunlace , finally agreeing to make our decision after we took care of our sojourn commitments in the Liacos system.
    It hurt to think of leaving the Torins, but I had to be practical. “You know, I think I’ve seen enough killing to last me several lifetimes,” I said, just before I fell asleep in his arms.
    “So you have,” he said, and held me close. “As have I.”
    CHAPTER FOUR New Additions
    When Marel woke up the next morning and discovered Juliet’s litter, she planted herself next to the storage container and refused to budge.
    “So diny, Mama.” She admired the blind, squirming kittens as they bumped and crawled into each other. I saw no indication she was still distressed over what had happened in Medical. “Can I hold one?”
    I carefully held her eager hands with mine. “Not right away, sweetie. Juliet might get upset.” Her disappointment made me add, “Besides, don’t you want to signal Alunthri and Fasala and tell them the big news?”
    I left her happily manning the console with Duncan, sending signals to practically everyone on the ship, while I kept an overdue appointment in Command. On the way, I passed repair crews working on areas damaged by the attack. Everyone seemed immensely satisfied with the results of the skirmish, but they were Jorenian. Crushing an enemy who threatened the HouseClan was practically instinct for them.
    Yet even the most basic instinct could be overcome.
    A pair of engineers, waiting outside the Captain’s office, graciously allowed me to go ahead of them, and when the door panel opened, I strode in.
    “Cherijo, I had not expected you today.”
    “You’ll get over it.” I refused Xonea’s offer of a seat and got right down to business. “Didn’t waste any time invoking the Council’s new codicil, I see. How many Hsktskt died yesterday?”
    “Raiders carry a standard crew complement of four hundred.” He sat back in his captain’s chair and looked a little smug. “Perhaps now the Faction will have second thoughts about attacking Jorenian ships in the future.”
    “The Faction will want to know how deadly your new weapon systems are.” I could have slapped the smile off his face. “You know the Hsktskt love efficient death machines.”
    “I do not fear the Hsktskt.”
    “Really.” I planted my hands on his console. “Xonea, I was barely able to keep those lizards from invading Joren before, and to do that, I had to give them four hundred League ships. If they find out about your sonic cannons, nothing will keep them out of Varallan or off Joren.”
    “We developed this particular technology in direct response to the attack on Joren.” He stood up, seven and a half feet of pure warrior. “The ground to space cannon installations were completed two cycles ago, and the planetary stations have ten times the sonic output capacity.” He showed me all his pretty Jorenian teeth. “Let them come and attempt to invade our homeworld again.”
    “Good attitude. Pretty soon you’ll have your own little war going.” I straightened. “Tarek Varena would be proud.”
    Mentioning the father of Jorenian journey philosophy had the exact effect I wanted. “Clanjoren Varena desired to end the conflicts between primitive House-Clans.” He made a