"Centauri, Arrival" - читать интересную книгу автора (Meier Sid)

This is good.
Datalinks Jump, Morguelab Jump
A human form, here.
Downloading...
She was called Aki.


Centauri: Arrival, Episode 2

Rae awakened as a flash of lighting split the sky over hab dome eight. Though the accompanying thunder rocked the sky and the smell of ozone filled the room, Rae lay quietly. Gradually, she opened her eyes and peered out into the gray light. Another burst of lightning split the sky outside, but she did not blink.
Slowly she got up and crossed to the tiny clear plucite observation window and looked outside. Where one or more of the Centauri suns usually illuminated rolling orange/purple fields of xenofungus, held at bay by a makeshift fence, she now looked out into a dark gray world. Thick clouds churned overhead, yet no rain fell.
At the edge of the fields, tall spindly cranes sat abandoned. A flash of lightning turned them into silhouettes, and she could see the drone workers running from the construction site. And at their feetЕscores of xenotoads hopped, fleeing the fungus, their bulbous yellow green eyes unblinking.
The clouds seemed to press down, lowering toward the human settlements like a great hand. She glanced at her timepieceЕfourteen metric hours, so both suns should be revealed in full glory, but she could barely tell their position in the sky.
The drones continued to run as lightning licked down around them. Her quicklink, refitted for Planetside communication, bleeped urgently, but she continued to look out her window.
It all seemed soЕpeaceful.


Episode 2, part 2

Chairman Sheng-ji Yang swept down the gold-and red lined narrow hallway behind his temporary quarters. A shadow of a man paced him, bald and frail with a narrow face, and dressed in rich blue robes. Yang remained aware of him, but only peripherally.
The hallway forked and Yang decided, at that moment and not before, to take the left fork. The hallway would fork again and again, its gold lined pathways zig-zagging between the major shafts of the Hive.
He glanced back at his escort. The man looked concerned, his brow knitted almost comically. Good. Yang had not picked the man because he remained cool under stress. He picked him because he could read every emotion on his face, every twinge of anxiety, and any hint of betrayal.
"Talk to me, Zhu," Yang said, and took the right fork when the hallway split again.
"What else is there to speak of? We can feel its weight even down here. It casts a pall over everyone."
"I chose the underground to remain protected from the world above. I don't like this turn of events."
"I understand, Chairman."
Yang nodded and thought of the strange blue-tinted light that now filled the entire height of the primary shaft, which was designed to bring light from above down to the main passages of the Labyrinth. The air felt dark and electric, coming down through the strange clouds above ground. He shook his head.
"I believe we should close off the primary shaft," said Yang.
"Perhaps."
"Do you object?"
Zhu thought for a moment. "No. It is best that we cut off the light from above. And that's what worries me."
Yang stopped at a panel decorated with an etching of a coiled jade dragon. He looked at the soft yellow sunglobes lining the wall of the hallway. "We will have to order more of these spectrum lamps from Morgan. Larger ones to fill the recreation levels around the primary."
"They are expensive. All the factions need themЕsupply and demand."
"I know. Morgan is making a killing." Yang studied the smooth golden surface of a dimmed sunglobe as if puzzling out an expression on a dead man's face.
The dragon panel in front of him slid open. He stepped into a small car beyond, lined with red to symbolically protect him from his enemies. Zhu stepped in behind him.
"To the surface," said Yang. "I want to see this phenomenon again."
The car glided up, past layers and layers of Yang's growing underground world. He looked at Zhu. The man's face collapsed with fear as the elevator car took them to the world above.

Episode 2, part 3

"Lady Skye. We thought you were staying at Gaia's Landing. I'm afraid we weren't expecting you." The slim man gave her a courteous half-bow, and she nodded.
"Yes, Nhoj, it's all right. You can prepare for my stay while I visit the gardens." She plucked at her robes, distracted. They stood in the main hall of her second base, Gaia's High Garden; the room felt clean but somewhat bare, still lacking the landscaping and softly colored walls she favored.
"Please follow me then." He motioned forward and then led the way, Deirdre following with several bodyguards, all of them looking lean and tense.
"Do you know anything more about it, Lady Skye?" Nhoj asked, turning unnaturally green eyes on her.
"Only that there is no explaining the Churn. We've seen nothing like it since Planetfall, naturally, but I can find no evidence of anything like it for hundreds of years before. Of course we're still learning about Planet's ecosystemЕ"
"And what of the Temple? Are the rumors true?"
"Well, we can't really know, since ZakharovЕ"
She stopped and took in a soft breath as they pushed through green double doors and into the attached gardens.
"Sun."
"Yes, Lady Skye." Nhoj smiled, enjoying the warmth. "We are at the last bright inhabited part of the Gaian territories. But as you can seeЕthe Churn approaches."