"Andre Norton - Jern Murdock 02 - Uncharted Stars" - читать интересную книгу автора (Norton Andre)

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------------------ Norton, Andre - Uncharted Stars (v1.0) (html).htmlScanned
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Stylesheet.Uncharted Stars by Andre Norton Chapter OneIt was like any other
caravansary at a space port, not providing quartersfor a Veep or some
off-planet functionary, but not for a belt as sparselypacked with credits as
mine was at that moment either. My fingers twitchedand I got a cold chill
in my middle every time my thoughts strayed to howflat that belt was at
present. But there is such a thing as face, orprestige, whatever name
you want to give it, and that I must have now orfail completely. And my
aching feet, my depressed spirits told me that I wasalready at the point
where one surrendered hope and waited for theinevitable blow to fall.
That blow could only fell me in one direction. Iwould lose what I had
played the biggest gamble of my life to win--a shipnow sitting on its tail
fins in a field I could have sighted from this hotelhad I been a Veep and
able to afford one of the crown tower rooms withactual windows. One may be
able to buy a ship but thereafter it sits eatingup more and more credits in
ground fees, field service--more costs than myinnocence would have believed
possible a planet month earlier. And onecannot lift off world until he
has a qualified pilot at the controls, thewhich I was not, and the which I
had not been able to locate.It had all sounded so easy in the beginning. My
thinking had certainly beenclouded when I had plunged into this. No--been
plunged! Now I centered mygaze on the door which was the entrance to what
I could temporarily call"home," and I had very unkind thoughts, approaching
the dire, about thepartner waiting me behind it.The past year had certainly
not been one to soothe my nerves, or lead me tobelieve that providence
smiled sweetly at me. It had begun as usual. I,Murdoc Jern, had been going
about my business in the way any roving gembuyer's apprentice would. Not
that our lives, mine and my master VondarUstle's, had been without exciting
incident. But on Tanth, in the spin of adiabolical"sacred" arrow, everything
had broken apart as if a laser ray had been usedto sever me not only from
Vondar but from any peace of mind or body.When the sacrifice arrow of the
green-robed priests had swung to a stopbetween Vondar and me, we had not
feared; off-worlders were not meat tosatisfy their demonic master. Only we
had been jumped by the tavern crowd,probably only too glad to see a choice
which had not included one of them.Vondar had died from a knife thrust and I
had been hunted down the byways ofthat dark city, to claim sanctuary in the
hold of another of their grislygodlings. From there I had, I thought, paid
my way for escape on a FreeTrader. But I had only taken a wide stride
from a stinking morass into abush fire--since my rise into space had started
me on a series of adventuresso wild that, had another recited them to me, I
would have thought them theproduct of fash-smoke breathing, or something he