"Never is a long time," she said.
"You think that if you take me far enough from Earth, I'll forget about God."
"Not forget," she said. "Perhaps you'll transform your understanding."
"Don't you understand how dangerous I am?" said Zeck.
"We're actually counting on that," she said.
"Not dangerous as a soldier," he said. "If I go with you, it will be as a teacher. I'll help the other children in your Battle School see that God does not want them to kill their enemies."
"Oh, we're not worried about you converting the other kids," said Agnes.
"You should be," said Zeck. "The word of God has power unto salvation, and no power on earth or in hell can stand against it."
She shook her head. "I might worry," she said. "If you were pure. But you're not. So what power will you have to convert anybody?" She piled up the test booklets and stuffed them in the briefcase with the blocks and the recorder. "I have it on tape," she said loudly, for Bridegan to hear. "He said, 'I'll go with you.'"
Bridegan came into the kitchen. "Welcome to Battle School, soldier."
Zeck did not answer. He was still reeling from what she had said. How can I convert anyone, when I'm still impure myself?
"I have to talk to Father," said Zeck.
"Not a chance," said Agnes. "It's the impure Zechariah Morgan that we want. Not the pure one who confessed everything to his father. Besides, we don't have time to wait for another set of lash wounds to heal."
Bridegan laughed harshly. "If that bastard raises his hand against this boy one more time, I'll blast it off."
Zeck whirled on him, filled with rage. "Then what would that make you?"
Bridegan only kept on laughing. "It would make me what I've always been--a bloody-minded soldier. My job is defending the helpless against the cruel. That's what we're doing, fighting the Formics--and it's what I'd be doing if I took off your father's hands up to the elbows."
In reply, Zeck recited from the book of Daniel. "'A stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them in pieces.'"
"Without hands. A neat trick," said Bridegan.
"'And the stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth,'" said Zeck.
"He's got the whole King James version by heart," said Agnes.
"'And in the days of these kings,'" recited Zeck, "'shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.'"
"They're going to love him up in Battle School," said Bridegan.
So Zeck spent that Christmas in space, heading up to the station that housed Battle School. He did nothing to cause disturbance, obeyed every order he was given. When his launch group first went into the Battle Room, Zeck learned to fly just like all the others. He even pointed his weapon at targets that were assigned.
It took quite a while before anyone noticed that Zeck never actually hit anybody with his weapon. In every battle, he was zero for zero. Statistically, he was the worst soldier in the history of the school. In vain did the teachers point out that it was just a game.
"'Neither shall they learn war any more,'" quoted Zeck in return. "I will not offend God by learning war." They could take him into space, they could make him wear the uniform, they could force him into the Battle Room, but they couldn't make him shoot.
It took many months, and they still wouldn't send him home, but at least they left him alone. He belonged to an army, he practiced with them, but on every battle report, he was listed with zero effectiveness. There was no soldier in the school prouder of his record.
4
SINTERKLAAS EVE
Dink Meeker watched as Ender Wiggin came through the door into Rat Army's barracks. As usual, Rosen was near the entrance, and he immediately launched into his "I Rose de Nose, Jewboy extraordinaire" routine. It was how Rosen wrapped himself in the military reputation of Israel, even though Rosen wasn't Israeli and he also wasn't a particularly good commander.
Not a bad one, either. Rat Army was in second place in the standings. But how much of that was Rosen, and how much was the fact that Rosen relied so heavily on Dink's toon--which Dink had trained?