"Ann Maxwell - Fire Dancer 3 - Dancer's Illusion" - читать интересную книгу автора (Maxwell Ann)

IтАЩsNaraтАЩs laughter was light and pleasing. Rheba realized that it was the first time she
had heard either Yhelle really laugh.

тАЬYouтАЩll catch up soon,тАЭ said fтАЩlTiri confidently. тАЬAfterLoo and Daemen, I donтАЩt think
anything can stay ahead of either of you.тАЭ

Rheba smiled sourly and said nothing. They had been lucky to survive those planets.

тАЬWe donтАЩt have much government,тАЭ continued fтАЩlTiri. тАЬItтАЩs difficult to tax illusions, and
without taxes government isnтАЩt much more than an amusement for wellborn families.
ThereтАЩs some structure, of course. We are Fourth People, and Fourth People seem
doomed to hierarchy. WeтАЩre organized into clans, or rather,dis organized into clans. Each
clan specializesтАФtraders or artists or carpenters, that sort of thing. IтАЩsNara and I belong
to the Liberation clan. WeтАЩre master snatchers,тАЭ he said proudly. тАЬThieves.тАЭ

Rheba blinked. The illusionists treated reality as a dirty word and thievery as a proud
occupation. She sensed KirtnтАЩs yellow eyes on her but did not return his look. She was
afraid she would laugh, offending the Yhelles.

тАЬAnd quite good at it,тАЭ said Kirtn blandly, тАЬif Onan is any proof of your skill. Without
you two weтАЩd still be stuck in Nontondondo, trying to scrape up the price of an Equality
navtrix.тАЭ

FтАЩlTiri made a modest noise. тАЬWe were out of practice. The only thing weтАЩve stolen in
five years worth mentioning is our freedomтАФandyou stole that for us.тАЭ He sighed.
тАЬAnyway, we werenтАЩt good enough on Yhelle. We were assigned to steal the Ecstasy
Stones from the Redistribution clan. We were caught and sold to Loo.тАЭ

тАЬIтАЩm out of breath,тАЭ said Rheba flatly. тАЬYou spent a lot of time telling us about
appearances being equal or superior to reality, then you tell us that you tried to steal
something. Why? CouldnтАЩt you just make an illusion of the Ecstasy Stones?тАЭ

тАЬThatтАЩs the whole point. Oh, we could make something that looked like the Stones, but
no illusionist in Yhelle history has been able to make anything thatfelt like the Stones.
ThatтАЩs their value,тАЭ said fтАЩlTiri. тАЬThey make you feel loved. ThatтАЩs their illusion.тАЭ

Rheba looked at Kirtn, silently asking if he understood. He smiled. тАЬYouтАЩre too
pragmatic, fire dancer. ItтАЩs your Senyas genes. Think of it this way. The Yhelles have,
orseem to have, everything that Fourth People have pursued since the First of the
Seventeen Cycles. Wealth, beauty, power over their environmentтАФif there is a name for
it, the Yhelles have someone able to make it appear. Or,тАЭ he added dryly, тАЬappearto
appear. The illusion of love is the only exception.тАЭ

He looked at the illusionists. They moved their hands in a gesture of agreement.
тАЬExactly,тАЭ said the Yhelles together.

FтАЩlTiri continued, тАЬWe create illusions, but we arenтАЩt deluded by them. Illusionists who
fool themselves are, by definition, fools. So when it comes to love, weтАЩre no better off
than the rest of the Fourth People.тАЭ