"Larry Niven - Crashlander (2)" - читать интересную книгу автора (Niven Larry)

"We want to repeat the experiment of Sonya Laskin and Peter Laskin. We must find --"


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"With me?"

"Yes. We must find out what it is that our hulls cannot stop. Naturally you may --"

"But I won't."

"We are prepared to offer one million stars."

I was tempted, but only for a moment. "Forget it."

"Naturally you will be allowed to build your own ship, starting with a No. 2 General Products
hull."

"Thanks, but I'd like to go on living."

"You would dislike being confined. I find that We Made It has reestablished the debtor's prison.
If General Products made public your accounts --"

"Now, just a --"

"You owe money on the close order of five hundred thousand stars. We will pay your creditors
before you leave. If you return --" I had to admire the creature's honesty in not saying "When." "-
- we will pay you the residue. You may be asked to speak to news commentators concerning the
voyage, in which case there will be more stars."

"You say I can build my own ship?"

"Naturally. This is not a voyage of exploration. We want you to return safely."

"It's a deal," I said.

After all, the puppeteer had tried to blackmail me. What happened next would be its own fault.

***

They built my ship in two weeks flat. They started with a No. 2 General Products hull, just like
the one around the Institute of Knowledge ship, and the lifesystem was practically a duplicate of
the Laskins', but there the resemblance ended. There were no instruments to observe neutron stars.
Instead, there was a fusion motor big enough for a Jinx warliner. In my ship, which I now called
Skydiver, the drive would produce thirty gees at the safety limit. There was a laser cannon big
enough to punch a hole through We Made It's moon. The puppeteer wanted me to feel safe, and now I
did, for I could fight and I could run. Especially I could run.