"Jack McKinney - Kaduna Memories" - читать интересную книгу автора (McKinney Jack)

the elbow and steered him to the other side of the small cabinspace. "Talk to me, Doctor," he said in low
tones. "Can these infernal things become, you know, depressed?"

Nugget raised an eyebrow. "You think MOLLY'S suicidal, is that it?"

Kakis nodded. "Maybe it's developed a death wish or something. That could happen, couldn't it?"

"It would be a first."

"You said yourself we're married to them. For better, for worse. You keep making them smarter and
smarter, sooner or later one of them's going to stress out." Kakis turned to MOLLY. "Makes sense to
meтАФunless you can tell me why it's all of a sudden deciding a course for us."

Nugget grew serious as he swung to a nearby VDT and called up a magnified view of the Excalibur's
apparent target. Presently a color-enhanced 2008FC centered itself between onscreen data readouts.

"That's going to be one tricky LZ, Nugget," Kakis commented, checking his watch against the
chronometer dis-play. "In about six hours we're going to know some severe damage."
Hours ago when the ship was yanked from courseтАФand before anyone was aware that MOLLY had
initiated the burn-Larissa, Nugget's wife and partner in research, had posited the existence of a
gravitational anomoly in the vicinity of 2008FC. Readings taken moments after the unprompted course
adjustment confirmed that some transient gravitational event had indeed taken place.

Nugget readily acknowledged that humankind were newcomers to space and that the exploration of the
cosmos was going to entail as much learning as unlearning, but since when did gravitational sinksтАФblack
or otherwise-blossom out of nothingness? And no matter what explanation underlay the quick birth of an
apparent gravitational warpтАФwhether paranormal, paraphysical, or simply miraculousтАФit still couldn't
account for MOLLY'S sudden singlemindedness.

Kakis laid a hand on Nugget's shoulder. "I'd like to hear your recommendations," he said, earnestly now.

Nugget turned to him with a distracted expression. "You'll favor it, Commander."

"Go on," Kakis told him.

Nugget cleared his throat. "I don't see that we have much choice, really. I recommend that we
temporarily relieve MOLLY of astrogational duty. Whatever's out there," he continued, turning back to
the asteroid's computerized image, "it's obviously affecting her more than it is us.

"Besides, if it's a generated signal of some sort, we're in danger of virusing the entire system by keeping
MOLLY online." He paused. "It's all in the book, Commander."

Kakis smiled, slyly at first. "You're right, Doctor: I do like it."

"One more thing," Nugget said. "I propose we launch a probe to investigate."

"Done."

"With a robot crew."