"Jack McKinney - Robotech Sentientals 4 - World Killers" - читать интересную книгу автора (McKinney Jack)

By the time she turned around, there were three or four flight-deck
personnel laid out flat, unconscious. Minmei blinked at them owlishly. What-
Then REF # 666-60-937 was pushing her up the ladder, loading her into
the copilot's seat, and then belting her in. Apparently he knew all the right
codes; the launch-cat airlock accepted the powerful Alpha fighter and flung it
out into space.
Green, looming Fantoma cast its light on them and their ship, and Tirol
was a gibbous splotch of orange-brown-gray not far from it. The VT pilot
turned his craft toward Tirol.
Suddenly his instruments were squealing and beeping for his attention.
"Hot scramble from SDF-3, of course," she heard him mutter. "They want you
back. They're coming to get you."
"Then-"
"Sit tight." He hit the auxiliaries for full military power and dove
toward Tirol. Eager pursuers formed up for the hunt.
Minmei, pressed back in her seat, looking out at the unknowable stars,
felt tears pressed from her eyes by acceleration, to wet the headrest behind
her.
"Here they come," said REF # 666-60-937.




CHAPTER TWO
In the case of Garudan evolution, there can be no question that a wide
spectrum of intracellular organelles developed through the cannibalistic
warfare among bacteria that led to an amazing degree of symbiosis. The
interactions of the entire Garudan ecosystem, the planet's dominant species
included, give weight to those who argue that the evolution of multicellular
organisms resulted from the extracellular symbiosis of monocellular organisms.
Like ours, a Garudan's body is composed of about ten quadrillion animal cells
and another one hundred quadrillion bacterial cells. But the range of
microorganic activity and variety is far greater, and the interaction of the
symbionts far more complex.
The upshot is that a Human who is exposed to Garudan atmosphere is like a
pocket calculator plugged into a mainframe: it is not designed for it and will
quickly burn out.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, in light of recent research, the Garudans have a
simple explanation for the extraordinary nature of their planet's ecosystem:
"Haydon wished it so."
Cabell, A Pedagogue Abroad: Notes on the Sentinels Campaign

Vince Grant's hand covered Lisa Hunter's forehead and then some. He drew it
back, moist with her perspiration. "She's still feverish." He struggled with
himself for a moment, not sure if he could or should say what else he was
thinking.
Jean, Vince's wife, nodded slightly. The patients were all that way:
Rick and Lisa, Karen Penn and Miriya Sterling. They were comatose and failing
fast, as a result of their exposure to the Garudan atmosphere. They were tied
down on gurneys to help control their intermittent seizures.