"Damon Knight - The Last Word" - читать интересную книгу автора (Knight Damon)

тАЬNo,тАЭ the man answered. тАЬTheyтАЩre all right тАУ still charging. Give them another minute.тАЭ

The woman turned to me. I was glad of it, because there was something about their talk together that
disturbed me. She said, тАЬWhy couldnтАЩt you let things alone? Heaven knows we werenтАЩt perfect, but we
werenтАЩt that bad. You didnтАЩt have to make us do that to each other.тАЭ

I smiled. The man said slowly, тАЬPeace would have poisoned him. He would have shrivelled up like a
dried apple.тАЭ It was the truth, or near enough, and I did not contradict him. The floor lurched again.

тАЬYouтАЩre waiting to watch us suffer,тАЭ the woman said. тАЬArenтАЩt you?тАЭ

I smiled.

тАЬBut that may take a long time. Even if we fall into the ocean, this globe will keep us alive. We might be
in here for months before our food gives out.тАЭ

тАЬI can wait,тАЭ I said pleasantly.

She turned to her husband. тАЬThen wemust be the last,тАЭ she said. тАЬDonтАЩt you see? If we werenтАЩt, would
hebe here?тАЭ

тАЬThatтАЩs right,тАЭ said the man, with a note in his voice that I did not like. He bent over the control board.
тАЬThereтАЩs nothing more to keep us here. Ava, will you тАжтАЭ Hestepped back, indicating a large
red-handled switch.

The woman stepped over and put her hand on it. тАЬOne moment,тАЭ I said uneasily. тАЬWhat are you doing?
What is that thing?тАЭ

She smiled at me. тАЬThis isnтАЩt just a machine to generate a force field,тАЭ she said.

тАЬNo?тАЭ I asked. тАЬWhat else?тАЭ

тАЬItтАЩs a time machine,тАЭ the man said.

тАЬWeтАЩre going back,тАЭ the woman whispered, тАЬto the beginning.тАЭ

Back, to the beginning, to start all over.

Without me.
The woman said, тАЬYouтАЩve won Armageddon, but youтАЩve lost Earth.тАЭ

I knew the answer to that, of course, but she was a woman and had the last word.

I gestured toward the purple darkness outside. тАЬLost Earth? What do you call this?тАЭ

She poised her hand on the switch.

тАЬHell,тАЭ she said.

And I have remembered her voice, through ten thousand lonely years.