"James P. Hogan - Martian Knightlife" - читать интересную книгу автора (Hogan James P)

Earth, he a plant geneticist, she a teacher. Kieran shifted his eyes from the screen and grinned across
at them. тАЬI suppose all the sand down there could make it feel something like home. A bit short on
beaches, though, IтАЩm afraid.тАЭ
тАЬGive us time, Mr. Thane. Give us time,тАЭ Ibrahim answered.
тАЬAnd in any case, this is home now,тАЭ Khalia said.
Such were the kind of spirits that Mars was drawing away from Earth. That was what new worlds
and new visions were built from, Kieran told himself.
The shuttle came out of its aerobraking trajectory to enter the final, vertical phase of its descent,
and the view stabilized on the jumble of interconnecting domes, roofs, and terraces that formed
Lowell, filling the intersection of two canyons and resurfacing on the overlooking heights as clusters
of buildings and roadways that looked from altitude like lichen mottling the pink-orange landscape.
As these surroundings in turn expanded beyond the edges of the screen, the view centered on the
spaceport of Cherbourg, perched on the open plateau north of the main valley. The scene gradually
resolved into domes, service gantries, and turrets bristling with antenna arrays, and then closed on the
landing bay, its covering doors open. There was a glimpse of metal-railed access levels bright with
lights, umbilical booms and hoses swung back to admit the shuttle, and then the rest was blotted out
by braking exhaust. The ship bounced mildly as the landing-leg shock absorbers disposed of the
remaining momentum, and the engines cut. They were on Mars.
Life returned to the cabin with an outbreak of murmuring and a few strained laughs to relieve the
tension that had taken hold. After several minutesтАЩ wait, an announcement cleared the occupants to
disembark. Kieran collected the jacket, briefcase, and carry-on bag that he had stowed, and moved
nearer to a burly, red-bearded figure in a dark parka who was closing a duffel bag resting on one of
the seat arms. He was a construction foreman who had just arrived from Earth on the same transporter
as the Iranians.
тАЬGood luck, Serge. Who knows, I might bump into you again out there one day. LetтАЩs hope your
plans work out.тАЭ Wages on Mars were up to ten times the rate back home for comparable skills,
which with bonuses could enable a man to retire after a reasonably short stint, or alternatively make
enough to bring a whole extended family out.
тАЬYou too, Knight,тАЭ Serge grunted.
тАЬWill you guys be staying together from here?тАЭ Kieran nodded past Serge to indicate the three
others traveling with him.
тАЬYep. WeтАЩre all on the same contract.тАЭ
Kieran moved a pace closer to press something into SergeтАЩs hand. His voice dropped. тАЬLet them
have this back when you get a chance.тАЭ
Serge glanced down to find himself holding a folded wad of several hundred-dollar bills in U.S.
currency. тАЬWhatтАЩs this?тАЭ he muttered. тАЬYou donтАЩt owe anything back.тАЭ It was the winnings that
Kieran had relieved the four of them of in a poker game during the eight-hour wait on Phobos.
тАЬSure I do.тАЭ Kieran kept his voice low. тАЬNobody has that kind of luck. I was robbing you under
your noses. Learn to look out for yourselves here. There are a lot of people around whoтАЩll take your
shirt if you let them.тАЭ
тАЬAre you telling me youтАЩre a card sharp too?тАЭ
тАЬLetтАЩs just say I have a lot of hobbies and amusements.тАЭ
тАЬThanks. I appreciate it. They will too.тАЭ Serge punched Kieran softly on the shoulder by way of
acknowledgment. They moved to follow the other passengers, shuffling slowly toward the exit.

The port too had grown and gained more facilities, Kieran noted as he sauntered down the stairs
from Arrivals, ignoring the escalator and elevatorsтАФthe thirty-eight percent normal gravity and
enclosed living meant that people generally took all the exercise they could get. The signs and
animated maps indicated that three more launch bays had been added to the complex, one of them
still to become operational. A wide, white-tiled corridor that hadnтАЩt been there before led from the