"Jeff Kirvin - Unification Chronicles 4 - Exiting Eden" - читать интересную книгу автора (Kirvin Jeff)

away from his console.

тАЬWhat was that?тАЭ Jabari inquired.

тАЬA mass driver,тАЭ Jack said. тАЬProbably an asteroid, accelerated by their tunnel engines to
good chunk of C. It was deflected by the space curvature caused by our tunnel drive to create
artificial gravity, but they wonтАЩt make that mistake again.

тАЬWhere the hell is that tunnel drive?тАЭ

тАЬOn line in twenty seconds,тАЭ the navigator said. тАЬIтАЩve laid in the course to Earth. We should
come out just outside of LunaтАЩs orbit.тАЭ

Twenty seconds, Jack thought. Not so bad тАж
 тАЬSir, IтАЩm picking up the same gravity surge in the second alien vessel,тАЭ the comm officer
said.

Bad, Jack thought. тАЬPilot! Tunnel the instant the tunnel drive is on line.тАЭ

тАЬAye, sir.тАЭ

Jack could do nothing more than watch as the seconds crept by. The glow on the alienтАЩs
bow was growing much more quickly this time.

тАЬItтАЩs spiking!тАЭ the comm officer called.

тАЬInitiating tunnel drive,тАЭ the pilot called.

Jack felt the familiar tug against his body in all directions as the tunnel drive deep in the
heart of Envoy created a fold in the fabric of space, temporarily placing their current position
just nanometers from a point in the Sol system. They tunneled home.

The last thing Jack saw on viewscreen before the tunnel was a bright flash from the bow of
the alien ship.


* * *


The Envoy had no sooner reappeared in Earthspace than it rocked with a huge explosion,
the lower third of the giant sphere ripped off and flung into space. It began to spin as
atmosphere rushed out of the missing hull.

The bridge was in chaos. Power had gone out, and the emergency power had kicked in
only partially. The pilot had let out a bloodcurdling scream at the moment of impact, then lay
limp in his neural interface couch. Jack and his Marines were still okay, but the artificial gravity
was coming on and off intermittently, and they had to engage the electromagnets in their boots
just to remain standing. The navigator and comm officer werenтАЩt so lucky, and the irregular
gravity was wreaking havoc with them.