"George Alec Effinger - Bird of Time" - читать интересную книгу автора (Effinger George Alec)

behind the agent:


When great causes are on the move in the
world, we learn that we are spirits, not
6
 The Bird of Time
by George Alec Effinger


animals, and that something is going on in
space and time, and beyond space and time,
which, whether we like it or not, spells duty.
тАФSir Winston Churchill


It made Hartstein feel better; that was what it was there
for.
тАЬGood,тАЭ said the man in the uniform, тАЬyou're my kind of
man.тАЭ And he smiled again, no more pleasantly than the first
time. тАЬNow don't tell me, let me guess. You're either the
Library at Alexandria or Catherine the Great.тАЭ
Hartstein was astonished. тАЬThe Library,тАЭ he said. тАЬHow did
you know?тАЭ
тАЬYou college boys are all alike. Okay, take this receipt up
to the ninth floor, Room 972. They'll give you all the
introductory material. You can travel any time you like, just
give us twenty-four hoursтАЩ notice. You come in, take your ESB
session, get outfitted, and we push you through the screen
for your day in the past. You don'tтАФтАЭ
тАЬCan I go today?тАЭ
тАЬWhat?тАЭ
Hartstein swallowed. тАЬCan I do it today?тАЭ he said.
The Agent shrugged. тАЬSure, of course. In a hurry? The
Library isn't going anywhere.тАЭ
тАЬIt's going to burn to the ground, isn't it?тАЭ
The uniformed man gave Hartstein a long, disdainful look.
тАЬThey promised to hold off on that until after you leave,тАЭ he
said.
тАЬOh, good.тАЭ
7
 The Bird of Time
by George Alec Effinger


The man handed the receipt across the counter. тАЬTake that
upstairs. Good luck. Next?тАЭ
Room 972 was a large room; there was a counter across
the front of it, and many desks and cubicles dividing the vast
space to the rear. It looked like the kind of place you went to