"Robert A. Metzger - Planet of the Dolphins" - читать интересную книгу автора (Metzger Robert)

PLANET OF THE DOLPHINS
By Robert A. Metzger

****

Herman didnтАЩt want to die.

The only sounds in the alley were the whisperings of rats and the distant yowl
of a cat in heat. But Herman could hear things that werenтАЩt quite there тАФ the beating
of waves on a distant shore, the scream of a cart wheeling gull, the swish of kelp
rolling in the swells, and always the whale songs.

The songs filled his head.

They were evil, angry songs.

And there was no escaping them.

тАЬIтАЩll call the cops on you if you donтАЩt pay your bill!тАЭ screamed a distant
voice.

Herman didnтАЩt care. Not paying for three stale doughnuts and a cup of coffee
which had tasted like burnt thirty-weight was of little consequence as compared to
what he faced in the alley тАФ for what waited for him just around the corners of time
and space. He knelt down and pushed his back up against the alleyтАЩs brick wall, all
the while knowing that it offered absolutely no safety. But old reflexes died hard.
Brick and mortar were no obstacle to the things that could twist reality. His hands
shook. His stomach groaned.

тАЬIshmael!тАЭ he screamed.

There was no reply. But he hadnтАЩt really expected one. Ishmael would only
act at the last possible moment. That is, if he acted at all.

тАЬUgly son of a bitch,тАЭ he whispered.

Herman sniffed the air. The salty-seaweed tang was unmistakable. The ozone
stink of dimensions ripping apart was suddenly oppressive. He shook all over and
pissed in his pants. It didnтАЩt matter. Herman looked up at the band of night sky
above him, at the dim stars and the neon glow. The Strip was less than three blocks
away, and just beyond that was Aqualand. HeтАЩd gotten too close.

And now he was going to pay for that.

тАЬIshmael? he screamed again as the sky above him shifted, filling with
diamond motes and rainbow eels. There was no time for another scream. The sky
suddenly turned liquid.

Splash.