"Laumer, Keith - Retief 3 - Retief's War" - читать интересную книгу автора (Laumer Keith)

came along."

"His Excellency envisions the day when a trained cadre of reformed Voion will lead the newly

enlightened masses to a new era of planetary unity," Retief explained. "Or so he frequently says."

"Retief, how long you been here on Quopp?" Leon inquired.

"Only a few weeks, I'm afraid."

"You talk the dialects pretty good."

"I've spent a few hours on the encephalotapes."

"Uh-huh," Leon nodded. "Well, I was born here, Retief. Hell, I haven't been off the planet half a

dozen times in my life. And I can tell youЧthese devils have got something up their sleeve!"

"I'm inclined to agree their police badges seem to have gone to their headsЧ"

"It ain't just that," Seymour said. "There's something in the wind! We saw it, out in the jungleЧand

now here in town! It's getting ready to pop! Pushing Terries aroundЧthat's bad medicine, Mister!"
"And I'll tell you something else," the steel-toothed man said. "Those Bugs are tapping CDT

shipments at the portЧin broad daylight!"

Retief frowned. "You're sure of that?"

"Been down to the port lately?" Big Leon inquired.

"Not in the past month."

"Come on," Leon rose. "Let's go take a look-see. There's a CDT shipment on the pad right now big

enough to put half the Terries on Quopp out of business." As he stood, a buzzing three-inch yellow-green


flyer sailed by, settled to a puddle of spilled liquor on the floor. Big Leon raised a size thirteen shoeЧ

"Don't do it," Retief said. "He probably needs a drink as bad as we did."

"That's just a Phip," Seymour said. "You talk like they was human."

"You never can tell," Retief said, skirting the small creature. "He just might be somebody's cousin
George."

Outside, the five Terrans hailed two massive peach-colored Wumblums, mounted to the creaking
velvet-lined seats strapped to the heavy creatures' backs, relaxed as their mounts trundled off on broad
leather-shod wheels toward the space port, groaning up the steep slopes, puffing down the declines,