"Dragons Dawn" - читать интересную книгу автора (Dragon Stories)

of the Buenos Aires and the Bahrain. The seas of Pern teemed with aquatic
life, and at least a few of the species could be safely consumed by humans.
The marine biologists had high hopes of populating the bays and estuaries
with Terran piscine types without harming the present ecological balance.
The deep-freeze tanks of the Bahrain contained twenty-five dolphins who had
volunteered to come along. Pern┤s seas were eminently suitable for the
support of the intelligent mammals, who enjoyed sea-shepherding as well as
the opportunity to see new worlds.
Soil analyses had indicated that Terran cereals and legumes, which
had already adapted well to Centauran soil, should flourish on Pern, a
necessity as the native grasses were unsuitable for Terran animals. One of
the first tasks facing the agronomists would he to plant fodder crops to
sustain the variety of herbivores and ruminants that had been brought as
fertilized ova from the Animal Reproduction Banks of Terra.
In order that the colonists could ensure the adaptability of Terran
animals to Pern, permission to use certain of the advanced biogenetic
techniques of the Eridanis -- mainly mentasynth, gene paring, and
chromosome enhancements -- had been grudgingly granted. Even though Pern
was in an isolated area of the galaxy, the Federated Sentient Planets
wanted no further disasters like the bio-alts, which had aroused the strong
Pure Human Life Group.
Emily Boll repressed a shudder. Those memories belonged to the
past. Displayed on the screen in front of her was the future -- had best
get down and help the specialists organize it. ╗I┤ve dallied long enough,л
she murmured to Paul Benden, touching his shoulder in farewell.
Paul pulled his gaze from the screen and smiled at her, giving her
hand a friendly pat. ╗Eat first!л He waggled a stern finger at her. ╗You
keep forgetting we┤re not rationed on board the Yoko. ╗ She gave him a
startled look. ╗I will. I promise.л
╗The next few weeks are going to be rough.л
Hmm, but so stimulating!л Her blue eyes twinkled. Then her stomach
audibly rumbled. ╗Gotcha, Admiral.л She winked again and left.
He watched her as she walked to the nearest exit off the bridge, a
lean, almost bony woman, with gray and naturally wavy hair which she wore
shoulder length. What Paul liked most about her was her wiry strength, both
moral and physical, which was combined with a ruthlessness that sometimes
startled him. She had tremendous personal vitality -- just being in her
presence gave one┤s spirits a lift. Together they would make something of
their new world.
He looked back to the main screen and the enthralling vista of
Pern.

The large lounge had been set up as an office for the heads of the various
teams of exobiology, agronomy, botany, and ecology, along with six
representatives of the professional farmers, who were still a bit groggy
from their term in deep sleep. The room was ringed by multiple screens
displaying a constantly altering range of microbiology reports, statistics,
comparisons, and analyses. There was much debate going on. Those hunched
over desk monitors, busily collating reports, tried to ignore the tension
emanating from the departmental heads who occupied the very center of the