"Harry Harrison & Robert Sheckley - Bill the Galactic Hero 3 " - читать интересную книгу автора (Harrison Harry)

never heard of a computer large enough to hold a human being." He thought desperately for a moment.
"Or any other kind of being."
The computer chortled with transistorial humor. "You're not here in the flesh. Oh, heavens no."
"Then how am I here?"
"Analogically."
"I wish you'd say something I could understand," Bill muttered, more than a little pettishly.
"What I mean," the computer said, "is that I took your psyche тАФ the inner core of your being тАФ the part
of you that says 'I am I' тАФ is that clear?"


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 Bill, the Galactic Hero on the Planet of Bottled Brains

"I think so," Bill said. "That's the part the Tsurisians wanted to get rid of so they could use the rest of my
body to resurrect some bowby politician."
"Precisely. Normally, they simply throw out that part. But I saw from earlier that you had intelligence of
a sort; rudimentary, but usable anyhow."
"Thanks a lot," said Bill.
"No, don't go getting all sensitive on me," the computer said. "It beats dying, doesn't it? That's the other
option."
"I didn't mean to complain," Bill said. "So my тАФ what did you call it тАФ psyche? тАФ is inside of you. So
where's my body?"
"I believe that it is being used at present as an artist's dummy, until the new occupant is ready to take
over. Bodies without psyches in them make fine models, you know. They can hold a position for an
indefinite amount of time."
"I hope they're keeping that good old body safe," Bill said. "I'm going to want it back as soon as I get out
of here."
"The Tsurisians are very careful about bodies," the computer said. "Not enough to go around, you know.
As for you getting back into it, that is unlikely."
"The hell you say," Bill said. "We'll see about that."
"Yes, of course," the computer smarmed, in the sort of a voice you use when assuring a man in an electric
chair that a few volts are very good for the health.

Despite all of his fears and trepidations Bill quickly adjusted to life within the computer. He found out
almost at once that it was not as confining as he had expected. He was able to use all the extensions of the
computer, and these extended throughout the planet Tsuris. He soon learned that the computer was the
most important thing on the planet Tsuris. It was the computer that really kept things going. Take the
clouds that concealed Tsuris's surface, for example. He wondered about them and the computer read his
mind, which wasn't hard to do since his mind was part of the computer's mind. Or something like that. In
any case the computer sneered happily at the unspoken question. "Did you not think, did you not, that all
of this was natural? Jayzus, no!" (For reasons best known to itself the computer assumed a fake Irish
accent from time to time.) "And what about the way they keep on opening to let in sunlight, but then
close up again whenever aliens like yourself try to take pictures. Did you think that all happened by
chance? Not a bit of it, my lad! I direct those cloud movements. I also monitor rainfall to make sure that
each region gets a little more of it than they want. I run the tide machines that keep the oceans within
bounds. When the harvest is ready, I'm there with my automatic harvesting equipment. And then there's
the job of storage of the foodstuffs, and cooking them, too."
"You do all that?"
"You bet your sweet patootie I do."
"Well, what do you need me for?"