"Ken Macleod - Fall Revolution 3 - The Cassini Division" - читать интересную книгу автора (MacLeod Ken)

Suze stepped out of the shower just as the suitтАЩs agent was reporting back.
тАЬOh!тАЭ she said. тАЬA pet mouse. How sweet!тАЭ
тАЬGrrr,тАЭ said the suit, but IтАЩm sure all Suze heard was a squeak. I took a shower myself, and
emerged to find that Suze had brewed some coffee and dressed for dinner.
тАЬThanks,тАЭ I said, taking the coffee. тАЬNice dress.тАЭ
Suze looked down at it smugly. тАЬFortuny pleats, theyтАЩre called,тАЭ she said. тАЬYou can just ball it
up in a rucksack, and when you shake it out it still looks great.тАЭ
тАЬAh,тАЭ I said, тАЬI have something to show you.тАЭ
I climbed back into my clothes, which were still sweaty and crumpled from travelling. They all
added up to only part of the suit the rest being the mouse, and the rucksack with its contents but
there was still enough for it to do the Cinderella trick, and mimic net and lace from an archived
memory of debutante froth. I twirled, and grinned at SuzeтАЩs open mouth.
тАЬSmart-matter spacesuit,тАЭ I explained, sitting down and patting its bouffant skirts. Suze was still
goggle-eyed.
тАЬYouтАЩre from space?тАЭ
тАЬYes,тАЭ I said. тАЬThe Cassini Division, in fact.тАЭ
тАЬWow!тАЭ SuzeтАЩs amazed look turned to an awed, and slightly guilty, excitement which IтАЩd
encountered before. In a world of abundance, of peace and security, the Division was the biggest
focus for the dangerous appeal of danger, the sexy thrill of violence. There were those who
despised and feared it for that very reason, and those who sometimes secretly, even from
themselves loved it. Suze, it seemed, was among the latter.
тАЬThatтАЩs why I want to talk to Malley,тАЭ I said.
тАЬAbout the wormhole?тАЭ Sharp girl.
тАЬYes. We want him to show us how to get through it. To New Mars.тАЭ
тАЬStart our own settlement?тАЭ
I shook my head firmly. тАЬWe-donтАЩt need another lot of deserts!тАЭ Something some sudden light
in her eyes told me her secret answer: we do, we do! Not everybody would feel that way, but I
knew that enough did for Wilde to have seen that look all the many times he told his tales. No
wonder he had the crazy notion that if we could go through, weтАЩd colonize the place.
тАЬSo why do we need to go through?тАЭ Suze asked. тАЬWhy now?тАЭ
тАЬWe need to go through,тАЭ I said carefully, тАЬbecause thereтАЩs a chance that the people on the other
side of the wormhole are tinkering about with the same entities that the Outwarders became the
Jovians on this side. WeтАЩre going to go through, and stop them, with whatever it takes.тАЭ (This was
true, as far as it went, which was not very far.) Suze sat back in one of the armchairs and looked at
me, shaking her head.
тАЬWhy donтАЩt people know about this? Why havenтАЩt we been told?тАЭ
 тАЬWeтАЩre not keeping it exactly secret,тАЭ I said. тАЬItтАЩs just that weтАЩve released the information in
scientific reports and so on, rather than making a big splash of it. So far, everybody whoтАЩs
managed to figure out whatтАЩs going on must have agreed with us that thereтАЩs no need to panic.тАЭ
тАЬThat may be right,тАЭ she said indignantly, тАЬbut there is a need to discuss it! You canтАЩt just go
and do something like that, without any, any -тАЬ
тАЬAuthorization? Actually, we can, in the sense that nobody could stop us. We wouldnтАЩt want to
do that, because we that is, the Division would fall apart if we ever went against the Union, because
weтАЩd have a strong and well-armed minority who didnтАЩt want to go against the Union. But as a
matter of fact, we do have authorization. WeтАЩre mandated to protect the Inner System from outside
threats, and if a possible post-human invasion coming out of the wormhole isnтАЩt one, I donтАЩt know
what is.тАЭ
Suze still looked troubled. тАЬWhat about the New Martians?тАЭ she asked. тАЬI donтАЩt see them going
along with it.тАЭ
I laughed. тАЬIf theyтАЩre still people ... theyтАЩre just a bunch of noncos. And we know how to deal