"Tony Daniel - Metaplanetary" - читать интересную книгу автора (Daniel Tony)

[At least thatтАЩs what they taught us in Human Spirituality and Consciousness,] said AndreтАЩs convert. [If
you can believe what you hear from a bunch of priests.]
[Very funny,] he answered. [Play a song or something, would you?]

After a moment, an oboe piped up in his inner ear. It was an old Greentree hymnтАФBen JohnstonтАЩs
тАЬPonder NothingтАЭтАФthat his mother had hummed when he was a kid. Brought up in the faith. The convert
filtered it through a couple of variations and inversions, but it was always soothing to hear the ancient
tune.

There was a way to calculate how many winters the Mars-Earth Diaphany would get in an Earth year,
but Andre never checked before he returned to the seminary on his annual retreat, and they always took
him by surprise, the winters did. You wake up one day and the light has grown dim.

The caf├й door slid open and Cardinal Filmbuff filled the doorway. He was wide and possessive of the
doorframe. He was a big man with a mane of silver hair. He was also space-adapted and white as bone
in the face. He wore all black, with a lapel pin in the shape of a tree. It was green of course.

тАЬFather Andre,тАЭ said Filmbuff from across the room. His voice sounded like a Met copтАЩs radio. тАЬMay I
join you?тАЭ

Andre motioned to the seat across from him in the booth. Filmbuff walked over with big steps and sat
down hard.

тАЬIsnтАЩt it late for you to be out, Morton?тАЭ Andre said. He took a sip of his tea. HeтАЩd left the bag in too
long, and it tasted twiggy.

тАЬTried to call you at the seminary retreat center,тАЭ Filmbuff said.

тАЬIтАЩm usually here,тАЭ Andre replied. тАЬWhen IтАЩm not there.тАЭ

тАЬIs this place still the seminary student hangout?тАЭ

тАЬIt is. Like a dog returneth to its own vomit, huh? OrsomebodyтАЩs vomit.тАЭ

A waiter drifted toward them. тАЬNeed menus?тАЭ he said. тАЬI have to bring them because the tables donтАЩt
work.тАЭ

тАЬI might want a little something,тАЭ Filmbuff replied. тАЬMaybe a lhasi.тАЭ

The waiter nodded and went away.

тАЬThey still have real people here?тАЭ said Filmbuff.

тАЬI donтАЩt think they can afford to recoat the place.тАЭ

Filmbuff gazed around. He was like a beacon. тАЬSeems clean enough.тАЭ

тАЬI suppose it is,тАЭ said Andre. тАЬI think the basic coating still works and that just the complicated grist has
broken down.тАЭ