"Stanley G. Weinbaum - Dawn of Flame" - читать интересную книгу автора (Weinbaum Stanley G)

ate the last of his mother's brown bread from his bag, now crumbled by his feet, and then strode out to
the road. There was a wagon creaking there, plodding northward; the bearded, kindly man in it was glad
enough to have him ride for company.

"Mountainy?" he asked.

"Yes."
"Bound where?"

"The world," said Bull.

"Well," observed the other, "it's a big place, and all I've seen of it much like this. All except Selui. That's a
city. Yes, that's a city. Been there?"

"No."

"It's got," said the farmer impressively, "twenty thousand people in it. Maybe more. And they got ruins
there the biggest you ever saw. Bridges. Buildings. FourтАФfive times as high as the Norse church, and at
that they're fallen down. The Devil knows how high they used to be in the old days."

"Who lived in 'em?" asked Hull.

"Don't know. Who'd want to live so high up it'd take a full morning to climb there? Unless it was magic. I
don't hold much with magic, but they do say the Old People knew how to fly."

Hull tried to imagine this. For a while there was silence save for the slow clump of the horses' hooves. "I
don't believe it," he said at last.

"Nor I. But did you hear what they're saying in Norse?"

"I didn't hear anything."

"They say," said the farmer, "that Joaquin Smith is going to march again."

"Joaquin Smith!"

"Yeah. Even the mountainies know about him, eh?"

"Who doesn't?" returned Hull. "Then there'll be fighting in the south, I guess. I have a notion to go south."

"Why?"

"I like fighting," said Hull simply.

"Fair answer," said the farmer, "but from what folks say, there's not much fighting when the Master
marches. He has a spell; there's great sorcery in N'Orleans, from the merest warlock up to Martin Sair,
who's blood-son of the Devil himself, or so they say."

"I'd like to see his sorcery against the mountainy's arrow and ball," said Hull grimly. "There's none of us
can't spot either eye at a thousand paces, using rifle. Or two hundred with arrow."