"Charles Stross - Trunk and Disorderly" - читать интересную книгу автора (Stross Charles)

copious quantities. He held up a huge platinum pitcher: тАЬDrinks are on me!тАЭ
he yodeled as Tolly Forsyth and some rum cove of a Grand
VizierтАФToshiro Ibn Cut-Throat, I thinkтАФhoisted him atop their shoulders
and danced a victory mazurka.

тАЬJolly good show, old son!тАЭ I called, ditching my helmet and gloves
gratefully and pouring a beaker of bubbly over my steaming head. тАЬBottoms
up!тАЭ

тАЬBтАЩmтАЩs up undeed!тАЭ Abdul sprayed camel flux everywhere in salute.
He was well into the spirit of things, I could tell; indeed, the spirit of things
was well into him.

Ibn Cut-ThroatтАЩs kid brother sidled up behind me. тАЬIf Ralphie-sama
would care to accompany me to His MajestyтАЩs BrotherтАЩs pleasure barge, we
will be departing for Mars as soon as the rest of the guests arrive,тАЭ he
intimated.

тАЬRest of the guests? Capital, capital!тАЭ I glanced round in search of my
clankie doxy, but there was no sign of Laura. Which was dashed strange,
for sheтАЩd normally be all over me by this point in the proceedings: my nearly
being turned off in front of an audience usually turned her on like a
knife-switch. тАЬWho else is coming?тАЭ

тАЬLots of people.тАЭ Ibn Cut-Throat Junior looked furtive: тАЬitтАЩs a very big
party, as befits the princeтАЩs birthday. Did you know it was his birthday...? ItтАЩs
a theme party, of course, in honor of the adoptive ancestors of his ancient
line, the house of Saud.тАЭ

Abdul al-Matsumoto is as much an authentic prince of Araby as I am a
scion of the MacGregor, but thatтАЩs the price we all pay for being descended
from the nouveau richewho survived the Great Downsizing hundreds of
years ago. Our ancestors bought the newly vacated titles of nobility, and
consequently we descendants are forced to learn the bally traditions that go
with them. I spent years enduring lessons in dwarf-tossing and
caber-dancing, not to mention damaging my hearing learning to play the
electric bagpipes, but Abdul has it worse: heтАЩs required by law to go around
everywhere with a tea-towel on his head and to refrain from drinking
fermented grape juice unless itтАЩs been cycled through the kidneys of a
re-engineered dromedary. This aristocracy lark has its down side, you mark
my words.

тАЬA theme party,тАЭ I mused, removing my face from my cup: тАЬthat
sounds like fun. But I was planning on taking my gig. Is that okey-dokey, as
they say? Is there room in the imperial marina?тАЭ

тАЬOf course,тАЭ said the vizier, leering slightly as a shapely femme
wearing a belly-dancerтАЩs costume sashayed past. I noticed with distaste his
hairless face and the pair of wizened testicles on a leather cord around his
neck: some people think too much testosterone makes a cove stupid, but