"Edmond Hamilton - Captain Future 26 - Earthmen No More" - читать интересную книгу автора (Hamilton Edmond)

violently. "Listen," he said to the stranger.
"Listen, I was killed, trying to reach
Jupiter. A meteor hit us and I was blown
clear, out into space with no armor. I'm
dead. I'm a dead man. I..."
"Steady on," said the red-haired man.
"Easy." He set the needle into a place
already swabbed on Carey's naked arm.
Carey flinched. He sobbed a little and then
the trembling quieted.
"I was dead," he whispered, again.
"No," said the red-haired stranger. "Not
really dead. What we call the space-death
isn't true death but cold shock--an
instantaneous stoppage of all life
processes. There's no time for deterioration
or cellular damage, no possibility of decay.
The organism stops short. It can, by certain
means, be started going again."
He looked thoughtfully down at Carey
and added, "Many lives are restored that
way, lives that would have been considered
ended in your time."
Carey said numbly, "Then you found
me, floating in space, in frozen sleep? You
-revived me?"
3
"Yes. Space law requires that any ship-
wreckage encountered on radar must be
investigated. That's how we found you."
The stranger smiled. "Welcome back to
life, Carey. My name is Curt Newton."
It was only then that it penetrated
Carey's stunned mind, the phrase that had
been used so casually a moment before.
"You said, 'In my time'," he repeated.
"How long..." He stopped. His mouth was
dry. He tried again, forcing out the words
that did not wish to be spoken. "How long
was I asleep out there?"
The man who called himself Curt
Newton hesitated, then asked, "What year
was it when you met disaster, Carey?"
"It was nineteen ninety-one. It was June,
nineteen ninety-one, when we left Earth."
Newton reached for a calendar pad, held
it up. He did not speak and there was pity
in his eyes.
Carey saw the date on it, and at first it
was too incredible to touch him. "Oh, no,"