"Michael Sweeney - Shuttle to Aries" - читать интересную книгу автора (Sweeney Michael)

Shuttle to AriesShuttle to Aries by Michael Sweeney
Welcome to Haddon Station. We hope you have a pleasant stay." The android
stewardess announced.

Cliff stood and moved into the isle. A woman pushed past him as he reached for
his carry on bag. Checking to make sure he hadn't left anything, he surveyed
the recently vacated seat. Someone bumped into him from behind.

"I'm sorry." Cliff looked down at the woman. She was slightly shorter than him
and quite pretty. "I' a bit of a klutz."

Cliff smiled. "That's quite all right. I'll let it pass." He hefted his bag
over his shoulder and smiled. The girl smiled back. Cliff turned and made his
way through the airlock. A slight electrical field raised the hairs on the
back of his neck as his walked through the security field.

"Welcome to Haddon station." An attendant android greeted him. "May I see your
papers, please." The 'droid extended its hand past its desk. Cliff reached in
his bag and pulled out his passport and ID. The attendant behind the desk
rifled through the papers and passed them under a scanner. The scanner cleared
the papers and gave a green signal. "How long will you be staying on the
station, sir?"

"Just till the next shuttle to Aires leaves." Cliff answered.

The attendants face blanked for a second. Cliff waited patiently for the
android to smiled again.

"The next shuttle for Aires leaves in two hours at Gate 27. Please enjoy your
stay, no matter how brief." The attendant handed Cliff back his papers. Cliff
snorted and passed into the waiting area.

Cliff looked around the waiting area and spotted the cafeteria. The place
looked like it had seen better days and the stool squeaked as he sat down at
the bar.

"What'll it be?" The waitron robot asked from behind the bar. Cliff activated
his menu and flipped through the holographic pages.

"Gimme the meatloaf."

The waitron nodded. "Well, aren't we Mr. Creative." It said and disappeared.
Cliff shrugged to himself.

"I like meatloaf." Looking left he noticed a large bay window with a view of
Haddon World. The planet had been colonized for some time now, with the
station being a secondary travel center. The famous fire domes were just
visible from his seat. The super large domes on the surface of the planet
glowed orange in the night. Cliff played with the computer pad on the bar and
called up information about the awesome sight.