JК
Naked Empire :: Goodkind Terry
Страница: 452 из 495We are joined in a battle against evil. If anyone sides with evil, if they protect evil men, then they are serving to perpetuate evil."
One of the men looked unsure. "Are you saying that if they try to stop us, we might have to use force against them?"
"What is it these people seek to accomplish? What is their goal? They want to prevent us from eliminating the Imperial Order. Because they hate life, they despise freedom more than slavery."
With grim determination, Richard met the men's gazes. "I'm saying that anyone who protects the enemy and seeks to keep them in power, for whatever reason, has sided with them. It's no more complicated than that. If they try to protect the enemy or hamper us from doing as we must-kill them."
"But they aren't armed," a man said.
Richard's anger flared. "They are armed-armed with evil ideas that seek to enslave the world. If they succeed, you die.
"Saving the lives of innocent people and your loved ones-and having far less loss of life in the end-is best served by crushing the enemy as decisively and quickly as possible. Then there will be peace. If these people try to prevent that, then they are, in effect, siding with those who torture and murder-they help them to live another day to murder again. Such people must not be treated any differently than what they in truth are:
servants of evil.
"If they try to stop you, kill them."
There was a moment of silence; then Anson put a fist to his heart.
"With hate in my heart… vengeance without mercy."
Looks of iron determination spread back through the men. They all put fists to their hearts in salute and took up the pledge. "Vengeance without mercy!"
Richard clapped Anson on the side of the shoulder. "Let's go."
They raced out from the long shadows of the buildings and poured around the corner. The people off at the end of the street all turned when they spotted Richard's force coming. More people-men and women from the city-surged into the street in front of the compound of buildings the soldiers had taken up as barracks and a command post. The people looked like a scraggly lot.
"No war! No war! No war!" the people shouted as Richard led the men up the street at a dead run.
"Out of the way!" Richard yelled as he closed the distance. This was no time for subtlety or discussions; the success of their attack depended in large part on speed. "Get out of the way! This is your only warning! Get out of the way or die!"
"Stop the hate! Stop the hate!" the people chanted as they locked arms.
One of the men looked unsure. "Are you saying that if they try to stop us, we might have to use force against them?"
"What is it these people seek to accomplish? What is their goal? They want to prevent us from eliminating the Imperial Order. Because they hate life, they despise freedom more than slavery."
With grim determination, Richard met the men's gazes. "I'm saying that anyone who protects the enemy and seeks to keep them in power, for whatever reason, has sided with them. It's no more complicated than that. If they try to protect the enemy or hamper us from doing as we must-kill them."
"But they aren't armed," a man said.
Richard's anger flared. "They are armed-armed with evil ideas that seek to enslave the world. If they succeed, you die.
"Saving the lives of innocent people and your loved ones-and having far less loss of life in the end-is best served by crushing the enemy as decisively and quickly as possible. Then there will be peace. If these people try to prevent that, then they are, in effect, siding with those who torture and murder-they help them to live another day to murder again. Such people must not be treated any differently than what they in truth are:
servants of evil.
"If they try to stop you, kill them."
There was a moment of silence; then Anson put a fist to his heart.
"With hate in my heart… vengeance without mercy."
Looks of iron determination spread back through the men. They all put fists to their hearts in salute and took up the pledge. "Vengeance without mercy!"
Richard clapped Anson on the side of the shoulder. "Let's go."
They raced out from the long shadows of the buildings and poured around the corner. The people off at the end of the street all turned when they spotted Richard's force coming. More people-men and women from the city-surged into the street in front of the compound of buildings the soldiers had taken up as barracks and a command post. The people looked like a scraggly lot.
"No war! No war! No war!" the people shouted as Richard led the men up the street at a dead run.
"Out of the way!" Richard yelled as he closed the distance. This was no time for subtlety or discussions; the success of their attack depended in large part on speed. "Get out of the way! This is your only warning! Get out of the way or die!"
"Stop the hate! Stop the hate!" the people chanted as they locked arms.