"Rajnar Vajra - Passing the Arboli Test" - читать интересную книгу автора (Vajra Rajnar)

Success was too easy and sudden for me to trust. Numbly, I followed my
host through the kitchen, down a long corridor, and into a sunken living room.
Tina was sitting nervously on a black leather couch near a large, empty
fireplace.
"Paul, they tell me I passed. How did you do?"
"The same, I guess. What's supposed to happen how?"
The Tree-person creaked and the words from its talk-branch came out
especially slow and clear. "This self is now offering you a choice. You have
both mastered our Test and may share the Reward. In the next room, you will
find small funguses, mushrooms. Very special. We Arboli store information on
these. Each of you may ingest one -- these are safe for your species -- and
you will share in our knowledge."
"We'll find out how to build Rootcraft?" I asked.
"Build? You will learn everything we know."
Good God.
"Incredible," Tina whispered. "But what's this choice you mentioned?"
"We offer one of two extra gifts. Gratis. The first is complete memory,
absolute retrieval."
I had to work my jaw before I could get any words out. "You mean
eidetic memory? Total recall?"
"Certainly. Otherwise you will retain little from the mushrooms. The
other choice is cash -- a supply of fresh American currency."
"How much cash?" I asked, although the answer had to be irrelevant. A
head full of alien knowledge and total recall! The possibilities....
"A large supply of cash, Dr. Carter. Five hundred dollars."
Tina and I just stared at the Arboli.
By straightening up, the Tree-person seemed to grow taller. "Are you
ready to make decisions?"
I opened my big mouth to say "Of course," then snapped it closed. Drink
twice.
"How about you?" Water-Holder was addressing Tina.
"Memory, what else?"
"Very well. Travel through this door and seek a small refrigerator. In
the freezer section, you will find small blue mushrooms. They are for memory.
Consume only one. Then ingest any brown mushroom from the main compartment
beneath; they are all the same."
Tina stood and smiled at me. "Paul?"
"Just a minute. I need to think."
"All right. See you inside." She stepped past me and opened the door.
I was in the worst battle of my life. With myself. This was my chance
to bring back at least some Arboli secrets -- alone. Tina was walking into a
deadly mental trap.
Only ... I kept remembering how she'd risked her life to save mine.
She was opening the door and I realized that I couldn't let her do it.
"Tina. Stop."




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