"E. E. Doc Smith - D' Alembert 5 -Appointment at Bloodstar" - читать интересную книгу автора (Smith E. E. Doc)

The sound of the stunner ceased with the extinguishing of the light. The man on trial
moved away from the spotlight once more and paused for a few deep breaths, waiting
for the next development. He did not have to wait long.

Lights came on all around him-not the blinding glare of a spotlight, but a diffuse glow
that illuminated all the surroundings. The man blinked and looked suspiciously around.

To his left, the room he had just traversed in order to reach the spotlight was still dark.
Before him was a corridor three meters wide and about forty long; at the far end was a
doorway to another room. The walls on either side of the corridor were six meters high
too tall for him to jump over even in this gravity that was forty percent of what he
considered normal. There were only two directions in which he could move: either back
the way he had come or down this new corridor.

The decision was made for him by a blaster bolt that sizzled the air and burned into the


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ground at his feet. It came out of the blackness he had just left; flying into the face of
that kind of armament when another course presented itself would be tantamount to
suicide. Without hesitation, the man chose to proceed down the corridor.

This path was scarcely safe either, though. He had hardly begun down it when he found
objects springing up in his way. First a pile of boxes rose from the floor, completely
blocking the path. There was no way to go around them, so he began climbing over the
pile. To complicate matters still further, light beams seared out at him. They were
intended to simulate blaster bolts, and the man got the message instantly. There was to
be no tarrying in this corridor, either.

His climb became a scramble as he finally reached the top of the pile of boxes. Not
standing on ceremony, he jumped down to the ground again, narrowly missing the row
of sharp knives that sprang up from the ground just as he leaped. More of the light
beams were firing at him, making realistic crackling sounds as they passed by.

He ran at top speed, his eyes surveying the path before him in a series of darting
glances. He'd gone nearly ten meters without further incident when he noticed that one
patch of flooring was a slightly different color than the rest. In midstride just before he
reached it, his back foot kicked out, lifting him in an off-balance leap over the one-meter
patch of discoloration. He landed awkwardly on the other side, scrambled to his feet,
and continued on before the light beams had a chance to zero in on him. In one
desperate dash he made it the rest of the way down the corridor and turned to the right
through the doorway into the next room.

Without warning he felt the ground go out from under him. As he fell, he hit water with
an enormous splash. He submerged for an instant, then came up gasping for air. The
water was icy, a cold shock to his tensed nervous system. It left a briny taste on his
tongue and stung his eyes as he tried to look around and get his bearings in this new
environment.