"Larry Niven & Jerry Pournelle - Fallen Angels" - читать интересную книгу автора (Niven Larry)

know it or not, they've cut us off from PopтАФpop's farm. Damn! Another
half hour and we'd have been home."
"Can we go around them somehow? Or head somewhere else?"
She shook her head. "Bob and the van are waiting at the farm. If we go
somewhere else, how will he know where to find us?"
Oh, that part is easy," Alex said. "Pick some coordinates-тАФdoes Bob
have a Navstar link too? No? Then pick a place that he'll know how to find.
I'll tell Big Momma; and Big Momma can tightbeam the contact person-тАФ"
"The Oregon Ghost."
Whatever that meant. "And then this ghost can call Bob at your
grandparents' place."
"That's easy?"
Alex grinned. "Sure. Maybe not straightforward, but easy. There's a
difference."
"All right. I'll tell the others." She pointed to the other sledge. "Your
friend's awake."
Gordon was watching Alex from within his cocoon of blankets on the
other edge. Alex tried to grin, but his face was nearly frozen.
"We live," Gordon said.
"Da. How're you feeling?"
"Not good," Gordon said. "These are droogs?"
"Da. Good friends." And they can hear anything I say, so I can't tell him
Mission Control says they may be a trifle weird.
"It was-тАФalmost good landing," Gordon said. "I read once that any
landing you walk away from is good. But we do not walk."
"Not just yet."
"It is cold. I see why you laugh when I think that because it only freezes
water it is not cold. It is very cold." With an effort Gordon pulled a scarf
over his face.
 The conference ended and Mike and Sherrine returned to the sledge.
"Problem?" he asked.
"We have a place. I don't like it," Sherrine said. "But it's the only possible
one."
Steve Mews and Thor set their goggles, dug their poles into the ice, and
whisked forth. Their job was to scout ahead for crevasses and other
obstacles. "So where to?" Alex asked Sherrine when she resumed her seat.
"Brandon."
"How far is that?"
"About a hundred fifty kilometers across the Ice."
Alex didn't say anything for a while, doing some arithmetic in his head.
About ten hours' travel, assuming a reasonable pace. He glanced at the sun,
wondering how many hours of daylight were left. It was already high in
the sky, and the earth seemed to be spinning awfully fast. When was sunset
for this latitude and season? He closed his eyes and tried to picture the
globe as he was used to seeing it. What was it like on the Ice at night? Cold.
Colder than it was already. "Don't fret," he said aloud. "It's only water ice."

When Alex reestablished the link, Mary wasn't at the comm anymore. It
was a woman he did not know. Well, Mary had to crash sooner or later.
Lonny might have suggested that she was spending too much time