"William C.Dietz - Sam McCade 2 - Imperial Bounty" - читать интересную книгу автора (Dietz William)

downslope, but he used what there was, pausing every now and then behind outcroppings of rock to
check his surroundings. He was almost at the bottom when he spotted the icecat making its way across
the opposite slope, pausing every now and then to scan ahead for radiated heat, or sniffing the breeze for
a foreign scent.
Apparently satisfied with its surroundings, the beast moved off toward a patch of bare rock, attracted
perhaps by the glow of radiated heat surrounding it. A few more yards and McCade would be close
enough. He flicked the weapon's safety to the off position and moved forward.
Later he wasn't sure what warned him, whether it was an almost imperceptible sound, a tiny
disturbance in the air, or some sixth sense, but whatever it was caused him to step right, and saved his
life.
The second icecat hit him a glancing blow as it went past, knocking him down, and jarring the weapon
out of his hands. Fighting its own inertia, the big animal scrambled to turn around, while McCade clawed
desperately for his sidearm. He felt the slug gun come free just as the icecat leaped. The gun roared four
times before the huge body landed on him, driving all breath from his body and plunging him into
suffocating darkness.
Pushing up with all his might, he fought desperately to get his breath, almost gagging on the animal's
stench. In spite of his efforts the icecat's muscular body didn't give an inch. Instead it squirmed, and slid
this way and that, trying to bring its real mouth into contact with his flesh. The intervening heatsuit was the
only thing between him and all those teeth. In a few seconds those teeth would make contact with the
wire mesh of the suit's heating elements, eat through those, and go to work on him. Wire mesh! It gave
him an idea.
He pushed up as hard as he could with his left hand, and managed to slide his right down until he
found the heat-suit's controls. Fingers fumbling, he accidently turned the knob to the right, before realizing
his mistake and turning it to the left. He prayed there was enough juice left in the power pak to do some
good. A second later the icecat's teeth came through the suit's tough outer fabric and made contact with
the inner wire mesh. As the power pak's full output hit the icecat's nervous system, the cat convulsed and
jerked away.
Momentarily freed, McCade quickly rolled left, and landed on the auto-slug thrower he'd lost earlier.
As he picked it up he saw the icecat was already back on its feet, shaking its head like a dazed
prizefighter, and preparing to attack again. The weapon in his hands seemed to weigh a ton. With a
strange sense of detachment he watched the icecat shift its weight, gather itself, and leap into the air.
Meanwhile the barrel of his weapon continued its slow journey upward. Some distant part of his mind
noticed the animal was bleeding profusely from six or seven bullet wounds, and wondered if anything
could kill it. Finally the slug thrower completed its upward arc and he touched the trigger. The icecat
seemed to run into an invisible wall. It crumpled in midair, and for a moment it was enveloped in a pink
mist, as blood and flesh sprayed out behind it. Then it landed with an audible thud, and slid the last
couple of feet, until its head almost touched the barrel of his gun.
For a moment he just sat there, too shocked to move. Finally he struggled to his feet, unable to take
his eyes off the icecat's huge body, shaking like a leaf. Then he heard the other icecat roar and, whirling,
heard the sound of his weapon merge with his own screams. The animal was already in the air, his slugs
stitching a bloody line across its chest, when his weapon clicked empty. Closing his eyes McCade waited
for the inevitable impact. Instead there was just a dull thump followed by silence.
Opening his eyes, he saw the second icecat was also dead, lying only a few feet from the first.
Suddenly his legs gave way and dumped him on the ground. He did his best to throw up, but failed.
When the dry heaves finally stopped, he leaned back, and took a look around. It was almost completely
dark. He shivered. A quick check confirmed that his suit's power pak was completely exhausted. Well,
he couldn't complain about that since it had saved his life. Of course, what good was that if he froze to
death?
"You're losing it again," he told himself, "cut the crap and do something useful." Shivering, he tried to
think. The aircar was miles away, and he wasn't sure he could find it in the dark. So he should stay put