"Alastair Reynolds - Minla's Flowers" - читать интересную книгу автора (Reynolds Alastair)

She opened the collar of her coat and pushed the flower inside for
safe-keeping, until only its head was jutting out. The vivid indigo seemed to throw
something of its hue onto her face.

тАЬMer-lin?тАЭ asked the older man.

тАЬYes.тАЭ

The man tapped a fist against his own chest. тАЬMalkoha.тАЭ And then he
indicated the vial Merlin was still carrying. тАЬPlastrum,тАЭ he said again. Then a
question, accompanied by a nod toward Tyrant. тАЬRisible plastrum?тАЭ

тАЬYes,тАЭ Merlin said. тАЬI can make you more medicine. Risible plastrum.тАЭ

The red-faced man studied him for what seemed like many minutes. Merlin
opted to say nothing: if the pilot hadnтАЩt got the message by now, no further
persuasion was going to help. Then the pilot reached down to his belt and
unbuttoned the leather holster of a pistol. He removed the weapon and allowed
Merlin sufficient time to examine it by eye. The low sun gleamed off an oiled black
barrel, inlaid with florid white ornamenta-tion carved from something like whalebone.

тАЬMer-lin risible plastrum,тАЭ Malkoha said. Then he waved the gun for
emphasis. тАЬSpar apostle.тАЭ

тАЬSpar apostle,тАЭ Merlin repeated, as they walked up the boarding ramp. тАЬNo
tricks.тАЭ

****

Even before Tyrant had made progress in the cracking of the local language, Merlin
had managed to hammer out a deal with Malkoha. The medicine had turned out to be
a very simple drug, easily synthesized. A narrow-spectrum 8-lactam antibiotic,
according to the ship: exactly the sort of thing the locals might use to treat a
gram-positive bacterial infectionтАФsomething like bacterial meningitis, for
instanceтАФif they didnтАЩt have anything better.

Tyrant could pump out antibiotic medicine by the hundreds of liters, or
synthesize something vastly more effective in equally large quantities. But Merlin saw
no sense in playing his most valuable card so early in the game. He chose instead to
give Malkoha quantities of the drug in approximately the same dosage and quantity
as he must have been carrying when his air-craft was damaged, packaged in
similar-looking glass vials. He gave the first two consignments as a gift, in
recompense for the harm he was presumed to have done when attempting to save
Malkoha, and let Malkoha think that it was all that Tyrant could do to make drugs at
that strength and quantity. It was only when he handed over the third consignment,
on the third day, that he mentioned the materials he needed to repair his ship.

He didnтАЩt say anything, of course, or at least nothing that the locals could
have understood. But there were enough examples lying around of the materials