"Michael Swanwick - Trojan Horse" - читать интересную книгу автора (Swanwick Michael)

and it was done.



But on this realization, horror collapsed upon her. Flames seared and burned and crisped, and there
were snakes among them, great slimy things with disgusting mouths and needle-sharp fangs.



She recoiled in panic, and they were upon her. The flames were drawn up into her lungs, and hot
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maggots wallowed in her brain tissues. She fled through a mind that writhed in agony, turning things on
and off.



Until abruptly she was back in her body, and nothing pursued her. She shivered, and her body
responded. It felt wonderful.



"Well, that worked at least," Tory said.



"What-" her voice croaked. She cleared her throat and tried again. "What happened to me?"



"Just what we'd hoped for-when your mind was threat-ened with extinction, it protected itself by
reprogramming back down to a normal state. Apparently, keeping your ego cranked up high works."



Elin realized that her eyes were still closed; she opened them now and convulsively closed her hand
around the edge of the metal cot. It was solid and real to the touch. Such a good feeling.



"I'll be down in a minute," Tory said. "Just now, you need to rest." He touched a bone inductor, and Elin
fell into blackness.



Floating again, every metaphorical nerve on edge, Elin found herself hypersensitive to outside influences,
preternatu-rally aware, even suggestible. Still, she suspected-more than sensed-Coral's presence. Go