"Bruce Sterling - Luciferase" - читать интересную книгу автора (Sterling Bruce)

Peck drummed the littered earth with his murderous spiny forelegs. тАЬYouтАЩre awfully soft-bodied for a
beetle.тАЭ

тАЭI donтАЩt need any armor, because IтАЩve got toxins,тАЭ Vinnie snapped. тАЬIтАЩm also built light тАШcause I fly! You
want to eat something soft? Kill a snail!тАЭ

тАЭI donтАЩt like snails,тАЭ Peck muttered. тАЬSnails got no legs and they eat with their tongues. Plus they got big
hard shells!тАЭ

Vinnie sighed gustily through his spiracles. Why were spiders so mulish and picky? Snails were delicious.
Vinnie himself had eaten snails, back when he was a grub.

When he had been a kid, all he had wanted to do was burrow, eat, and grow. No adult airborne
displays. No burdensome public reputation as an artist. Yet heтАЩd been so happy and excited, innocently
writhing in the loamy dark. Kids were like that.

Vinnie leaned against a tall dandelion stem and unhinged his striped wing-covers. His left midleg was
screwed up, but he was itching to get aloft and shine. тАЬPeck, I forgive you. YouтАЩre a dumb, meat-eating
spider, but at least you donтАЩt use webs. Those are just plain irresponsible, webs.тАЭ

тАЭI could chew your broken leg off,тАЭ Peck mused. тАЬYour legs arenтАЩt poisonous.тАЭ

Vinnie wriggled his damaged joint cautiously. тАЬHowтАЩd things work out with that lady friend I
recommended?тАЭ

тАЭOh! She was so pretty!тАЭ

тАЭHow come youтАЩre still alive, then?тАЭ

тАЭI tried my best to get close to her,тАЭ Peck said gloomily. тАЬI really hoofed it up for that chick. I did my big
courtship peace-dance тАж But she gave me the brush-off. Wrong species.тАЭ

тАЭShe didnтАЩt eat you,тАЭ said Vinnie. He was genuinely curious.

The spider tore at the earth in embarrassment. Peck was reluctant to engage in such personal
confidences, but, being a lone predator, he rarely had the chance to talk things out with a sympathetic
listener. тАЬI was so ticked off by that. Really, I felt like attacking her and eating her myself. But тАж well тАж
thatтАЩs just the way chicks are тАж All dames are trouble, basically тАжтАЭ PeckтАЩs distress was growing.
тАЬWhen, Vinnie? When will I find a decent girl willing to eat me?тАЭ

Vinnie preened both his antennae. тАЬItтАЩs a terrible thing, loneliness.тАЭ

тАЭItтАЩs all I can think about. I need to find the woman whoтАЩs meant for me. I want to become one with her.
I want to lay my body down тАж afterward, you know тАж Feeling so nice and tired then, done with all this
struggle of life тАж Complete, like, fulfilledness тАж Fulfillitude тАжтАЭ

тАЭтАЩSerenity.тАЩ ThatтАЩs the word youтАЩre looking for, Peck.тАЭ

тАЭAnd I want her to eat me. I do. Maybe sheтАЩll eat me real nice and slow, while IтАЩm all full of venom,
paralyzed, and still alive!тАЭ