"George R. R. Martin - Manna From Heaven" - читать интересную книгу автора (Martin George R R)

An island of light appeared ahead of her. When she arrived, the others were settling into seats arrayed
along one side of a long metal table. Haviland Tuf, in the thronelike floater, was on the other side of the
table, his face expressionless, his white hands folded atop his stomach.
Dax was stalking back and forth across his shoulders, purring.
Tolly Mune stopped, glared, swore. тАЬDamn you to hell,тАЭ she said to Tuf. She turned around. тАЬBlackjack!
тАЭ she screamed at the top of her lungs. The echoes seemed swaddled in thick cloth, curiously indistinct. тАЬ
Jack!тАЭ Nothing.
тАЬI hope we have not come all this way simply to listen to the First Councillor of SтАЩuthlam practice animal
calls,тАЭ the envoy from Skrymir said.
тАЬIndeed not,тАЭ said Tuf. тАЬFirst Councillor Mune, if you will kindly take your seat, we may proceed at
once.тАЭ
She scowled, and sank down into the only vacant chair. тАЬWhere the hell is Blackjack?тАЭ
тАЬI can hardly venture an opinion on that subject,тАЭ said Tuf flatly. тАЬHe is, after all, your cat.тАЭ
тАЬHe ran off after one of yours,тАЭ Tolly Mune snapped.
тАЬIndeed,тАЭ said Tuf. тАЬInteresting. At the moment it so happens that I have a young female who has
recently gone into heat. Perhaps that explains his actions. I have no doubt that he remains quite safe, First
Councillor.тАЭ
тАЬI want him back for this puling conference!тАЭ she said.
тАЬAlas,тАЭ said Tuf, тАЬthe Ark is a large ship and they might be sporting in any of a thousand places, and in
any case, to interfere with their sexual congress would be unconscionably anti-life by SтАЩuthlamese
standards. I would hesitate to do such violence to your cultural mores. Moreover, you have stressed to
me repeatedly that time is of the essence, as many human lives are at stake. Ergo, I think it best we
proceed with all due haste.тАЭ
Tuf moved his hand slightly, touched a control. A section of the long table sank out of sight. A moment
later, a plant rose from within, directly in front of Tolly Mune. тАЬBehold,тАЭ said Tuf. тАЬManna.тАЭ
It grew from a low bedding pan, a tangle of pale green vines almost a meter high, a living gordian knot,
tendrils weaving back and forth on themselves and edging over the lip of the container. All along the vines
were thick clusters of leaves, as tiny as fingernails, their waxy green surface shot through with a delicate
tracery of black veins. Tolly Mune reached out and touched the nearest leaf, and discovered that its
underside was covered with a dusting of fine powder that came off on the tips of her fingers. Between the
clusters of leaves, the branching vines were swollen with clusters of fat white carbuncles, larger and more
pustulent-looking in toward the central tangle of growth. She saw one palp, half concealed under a
canopy of leaves, that had grown as big as a manтАЩs hand.
тАЬUgly looking weed,тАЭ opined Ratch Norren.
тАЬI fail to understand why it was necessary to declare an armistice and travel all this way to behold some
festering hothouse monstrosity,тАЭ said the man from Skrymir.
тАЬThe Azure Triune grows impatient,тАЭ whispered their envoy.
тАЬThereтАЩs some puling motive in this madness,тАЭ Tolly Mune said to Tuf. тАЬGet on with it. Manna, you said.
So what?тАЭ
тАЬIt will feed the SтАЩuthlamese,тАЭ said Tuf. Dax was purring.
тАЬFor how many days?тАЭ asked the woman from HenryтАЩs World, in a sweet voice that dripped sarcasm.
тАЬFirst Councillor, if you would be so kind as to break off one of the larger paps, you will find the flesh
delectably succulent and quite nutritious,тАЭ Tuf said.
Tolly Mune leaned forward, grimacing. She wrapped her fingers around the largest fruit. It felt soft and
pulpy to her touch. She tugged, and it came off the vine easily. She broke it apart with her fingers. The
flesh tore like fresh bread. Deep within its secret center was a sac of dark, viscous liquid that flowed with
seductive slowness. A marvelous smell filled her nostrils, and she began to salivate. She hesitated for an
instant, but it smelled too good. Quickly, she took a bite. She chewed, swallowed, took another bite, and
another. In four bites it was all gone, and she was licking the stickiness off her fingers.
тАЬMilkbread,тАЭ she said, тАЬand honey. Rich, but tasty.тАЭ