"Edward L. Ferman - Best From F&SF, 23rd Edition" - читать интересную книгу автора (Ferman Edward L)

"I refuse to accept that as a final answer," he said. "But in the meantime we should explore the
possibilities if what Mary says is true."
Ralston laughed. It wasn't a bitter laugh; he sounded genuinely amused. Crawford plowed on.
"Here's what we know for sure. The E.R.B. is useless to us. Oh, they'll help us out with plenty of
advice, maybe more than we want, but any rescue is out of the question."
"We know that," McKillian said. She was tired and sick from the sight of the faces of her dead
friends. "What's the use of all this talk?"
"Wait a moment," Song broke in. "Why can't they ... I mean they have plenty of time, don't they?
They have to leave in six months, as I understand it, because of the orbital elements, but in that time..."
"Don't you know anything about spaceships?" McKillian shouted. Song went on, unperturbed.
"I do know enough to know the Edgar is not equipped for an atmosphere entry. My idea was, not to
bring down the whole ship but only what's aboard the ship that we need. Which is a pilot. Might that be
possible?"
Crawford ran his hands through his hair, wondering what to say. That possibility had been discussed,
and was being studied. But it had to be classed as extremely remote.
"You're right," he said. "What we need is a pilot, and that pilot is Commander Weinstein. Which
presents problems legally, if nothing else. He's the captain of a ship and should not leave it. That's what
kept him on the Edgar in the first place. But he did have a lot of training on the lander simulator back
when he was so sure he'd be picked for the ground team. You know Winey, always the instinct to be the
one-man show. So if he thought he could do it, he'd be down here in a minute to bail us out and grab the
publicity. I understand they're trying to work out a heat-shield parachute system from one of the drop
capsules that were supposed to ferry down supplies to us during the stay here. But it's very risky. You
don't modify an aerodynamic design lightly, not one that's supposed to hit the atmosphere at ten
thousand-plus kilometers. So I think we can rule that out
They'll keep working on it, but when it's done, Winey won't step into the damn dung. He wants to be
a hero, but he wants to live to enjoy it, too."
There had been a brief lifting of spirits among Song, Ralston, and McKillian at the thought of a
possible rescue. The more they thought about it, the less happy they looked. They all seemed to agree
with Crawford's assessment.
"So we'll put that one in the Fairy Godmother file and forget about it. If it happens, fine. But we'd
better plan on the assumption that it won't. As you may know, the E.R.B.-Podkayne are the only ships in
existence that can reach Mars and land on it. One other pair is in the congressional funding stage. Winey
talked to Earth and thinks there'll be a speedup in the preliminary paperwork and the thing'll start building
in a year. The launch was scheduled for five years from now, but it might get as much as a year boost. It's
a rescue mission now, easier to sell. But the design will need modification, if only to include five more
seats to bring us all back. You can bet on there being more modifications when we send in our report on
the blowout. So we'd better add another six months to the schedule."
McKillian had had enough. "Matt, what the hell are you talking about? Rescue mission? Damn it, you
know as well as I that if they find us here, we'll be long dead. We'll probably be dead hi another year."
"That's where you're wrong. We'll survive."
"How?"
"I don't have the faintest idea." He looked her straight in the eye as he said this. She almost didn't
bother to answer, but curiosity got the best of her.
"Is this just a morale session? Thanks, but I don't need it. I'd rather face the situation as it is. Or do
you really have something?"
"Both. I don't have anything concrete except to say that well survive the same way humans have
always survived: by staying warm, by eating, by drinking. To that list we have to add 'by breathing.тАЩ
That's a hard one, but other than that we're no different than any other group of survivors in a tough spot.
I don't know what we'll have to do, specifically, but I know we'll find the answers."
"Or die trying," Song said.