"Kim Stanley Robinson - Mars 2 - Blue Mars" - читать интересную книгу автора (Robinson Kim Stanley)

now the Reds are moving into Sheffield from the west, firing more rockets, and
the UN forces on Clarke are bombing the first launch sites, over on Ascraeus,
and they're threatening to bomb every armed force down here. This is just what
they wanted. And the Reds think it's going to be like Burroughs, obviously,
they're trying to force the action. So I came to you. Look, Ann, I know we've
been fighting a lot. I haven't been very, you know, patient, but look, this is
just too much. Everything could fall apart at the last minute-the UN could
decide the situation here is anarchy, and come up from Earth and try to take
over again."
"Where are they?" Ann croaked. She pulled on pants, went to the bathroom.
Nadia followed her right in. This too was a surprise; in Underbill it might
have been normal between them, but it had been a long long time since Nadia
had followed her into a bathroom talking obsessively while Ann washed her face
and sat down and peed. "They're still based in Lastflow, but now they've cut
the rim piste and the one to Cairo, and they're fighting in west Sheffield,
and around the Socket. Reds fighting greens."
"Yes yes."
"So will you talk to the Reds, will you stop them?"
A sudden fury swept through Ann. "You drove them to this," she shouted in
Nadia's face, causing Nadia to crash back into the door. Ann got up and took a
step toward Nadia and yanked her pants up, shouting still: "You and your smug
stupid terraforming, it's all green green green green, with never a hint of
compromise! It's just as much your fault as theirs, since they have no hope!"
"Maybe so," Nadia said mulishly. Clearly she didn't care about that, it was
the past and didn't matter; she waved it aside and would not be swerved from
her point: "But will you try?"
Ann stared at her stubborn old friend, at this moment almost youthful with
fear, utterly focused and alive.
"I'll do what I can," Ann said grimly. "But from what you say, it's already
too late."

* * *

It was indeed too late. The rover camp Ann had been staying in was deserted,
and when she got on the wrist and called around, she got no answers. So she
left Nadia and the rest of them stewing in the east Pavonis warehouse complex,
and drove her rover around to Lastflow, hoping to find some of the Red leaders
based there. But Lastflow had been abandoned by the Reds, and none of the
locals knew where they had gone. People were watching TVs in the stations and
cafe windows, but when Ann looked too she saw no news of the fighting, not
even on Mangalavid. A feeling of desperation began to seep into her grim mood;
she wanted to do something but did not know how. She tried her wrist-pad
again, and to her surprise Kasei answered on their private band. His face in
the little image looked shockingly like John Boone's, so much so that in her
confusion Ann didn't at first hear what he said. He looked so happy, it was
John to the life!
". . . had to do it," he was telling her. Ann wondered if she had asked him
about that. "If we don't do something they'll tear this world apart. They'll
garden it right to the tops of the big four."
This echoed Ann's thoughts on the ledge enough to shock her again, but she