"Brad Ferguson - To Tell The Troof" - читать интересную книгу автора (Ferguson Brad)

тАЬIn what way?тАЭ Edith said. тАЬThere are a couple of restraints on me, you
know.тАЭ
тАЬI only meant that itтАЩs been hours and hours, and you havenтАЩt yet asked
me how I did it.тАЭ
тАЬI thought you made a lucky guess, and that you asked the questions to
stall for time.тАЭ
тАЬNope,тАЭ McAleer said, grinning. тАЬI almost did something like that, but
then I realized that, within the rules, there was a way to figure out who
was who. So I used it.тАЭ
тАЬWith those questions?тАЭ Edith looked puzzled. тАЬBut how could you know
who was telling the truth and who wasnтАЩt? You didnтАЩt even hear the
answer that Number One gave тАФ unless you read his lips or something?тАЭ
тАЬI didnтАЩt have to.тАЭ McAleer sipped at his second cup of coffee. тАЬFigure it
out for yourself. If Number One were yerega, what would he have said in
answer to my first question?тАЭ
тАЬThat he was yerega, of course. He would have had to tell the truth.тАЭ
 тАЬAnd if he were ilantha?тАЭ
тАЬHe would have тАФ he would have lied!тАЭ Edith grinned in surprise. тАЬHe
would have had to say yerega! So you knew what Number OneтАЩs answer
was, all along!тАЭ
тАЬThatтАЩs right,тАЭ McAleer said. тАЬThen I asked Number Two the second
question. Since Number Two told the truth about what Number One had
whispered to him, I knew he was yerega right off, and anything else heтАЩd
say would be the truth, too. Number Two told me that Number One was
ilantha, and I could believe it. Then Number Three burst out in mock
indignation and said both of the others were liars, which I knew wasnтАЩt
true. That made Number Three ilantha. Actually, I think I scored some
extra points by having to ask only two questions, but itтАЩs just a feeling.тАЭ
тАЬHmmm,тАЭ Edith mused. тАЬWell, congratulations. I must admit that your
solution to the problem was pretty goddamn elegant, if youтАЩll pardon me.тАЭ
тАЬForgiven.тАЭ McAleer smiled broadly. тАЬAnd hereтАЩs a little bonus to end
the day. Now that IтАЩm yerega, anything I say is the truth. Think of what
that means to a missionary on a planet full of skeptics!тАЭ
Edith stirred her coffee. тАЬIтАЩm glad youтАЩre pleased. IтАЩm not sure I am,
though. Does that means the Troof are all going to become Orthodox
Catholics?тАЭ
McAleer shrugged, still smiling. тАЬNo, it doesnтАЩt. It just means IтАЩm going
to get a chance to make my pitch, thatтАЩs all. Just because I only tell the
truth doesnтАЩt mean I tell the only truth there is.тАЭ
тАЬI think I followed that,тАЭ Edith said.
Several months later another ship arrived, a landing boat from a much
larger craft orbiting Henderson. McAleer gave himself an hour off and left
his busy, bustling mission to meet it. The gevster did its usual noisy job of
transporting him to the field; his new assistant, a yerega named Ghrosset,
accompanied McAleer and cursed at the machine as much as Zweebl ever
had.
There was quite a crowd of Troof at the field. McAleer thought it was
too bad that Edith wasnтАЩt in town for the landing, but she was a few
thousand miles away on a survey job; the Fed had hired her to correct
previous reports and come up with new data of her own. She led a skilled