"Alastair Reynolds - Century Rain" - читать интересную книгу автора (Reynolds Alastair)

Floyd dropped the letter as if it was stamped from hot metal. His fingers seemed to tingle. He hadnтАЩt
expected to hear from Greta againтАФnot in this life. It took him a few moments to adjust to her sudden
intrusion back into his world. What could she possibly have to say to him?

тАЬMonsieur Floyd? Are you still there?тАЭ

He tapped the mouthpiece. тАЬJust lost you for a moment there, monsieur. ItтАЩs the rats in the basement,
always at the telephone lines.тАЭ

тАЬEvidently. Upon the hour, then? Are we agreed?тАЭ

тАЬIтАЩll be there,тАЭ Floyd said.

TWO
Verity Auger surveyed the underground scene from the safety of her environment suit, standing a dozen
metres from the crippled wreckage of the crawler. The tarantula-like machine lay tilted to one side, two
of its legs broken and another three jammed uselessly against the low ceiling of carved ice. The crawler
was going nowhereтАФit couldnтАЩt even be dragged back to the surface; but at least its life-support bubble
was still intact. Cassandra, the girl student, was still sitting inside the cabin, arms folded, watching the
proceedings with a kind of haughty detachment. Sebastian, the boy, was lying about five metres from the
crawler, his suit damaged but still capable of keeping him alive until the rescue squad arrived.

тАЬHang in there,тАЭ Auger told him on the suit-to-suit. тАЬTheyтАЩre breaking through. WeтАЩll be home and dry
any moment now.тАЭ


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 CenturyRain


The crackle and static accompanying the boyтАЩs response made him seem a million light-years away. тАЬI
donтАЩt feel too good, miss.тАЭ

тАЬWhatтАЩs wrong?тАЭ

тАЬHeadache.тАЭ

тАЬJust stay still. Those suit seals will do their job if you donтАЩt move.тАЭ

Auger stepped back as rescue crawlers from the Antiquities Board emerged from above, forcing ice
aside with piston-driven claws and picks.

тАЬThat you, Auger?тАЭ came a voice in her helmet.

тАЬOf course itтАЩs me. What took you so long? Thought you guys were never coming.тАЭ

тАЬWe came as fast as we could.тАЭ She recognised the voice of Mancuso, one of the recovery people she
had dealt with in the past. тАЬHad trouble getting a fix on you this far down. The clouds seemed to be
having some kind of argument tonight, lots of electromagnetic crap to see through. What exactly were
you doing this deep?тАЭ