"David Wingrove & Rand Miller - Myst 01 - The Book of Ti'ana" - читать интересную книгу автора (Wingrove David)

of
igneous material. Magma-based basaltic rocks from a fault line, perhaps, or
a
minor intrusion."

"And that's a problem?"

Telanis smiled politely. "It could be. If it's minor we could drill
straight
through it, of course, and support the tunnel, but we're still quite deep
and
there's a lot of weight above us. The pressures here are immense, and while
they
might not crush us, they could inconvenience us and set us back weeks, if
not
months. We'd prefer, therefore, to be certain of what lies ahead."

Kedri huffed. "It all seems rather a waste of time to me. The lining
rock's
strong, isn't it?"
"Oh, very strong, but that's not the point. If the aim were merely to
break
through to the surface we could do that in a matter of weeks. But that's
.not
our brief. These tunnels are meant to be permanent-or, at least, as permanent
as
we can make them, rock movement willing!"

Still, Kedri seemed unsatisfied. "All this stopping and starting! A man could
go
mad with waiting!"

One could; and some, unsuited to the task, did. But of all the guilds
ofD'ni,
this, Telanis knew, was the one best suited to their nature.

"We are a patient race, Master Kedri," he said, risking the anger of the
other
man. "Patient and thorough. Would you have us abandon the habits of a
thousand
generations?"

Kedri made to answer curtly, then saw the look of challenge in Telanis's
eyes
and nodded. "No. You are right, Guild Master. Forgive me. Perhaps they chose
the
wrong man to represent our guild."

Perhaps, Telanis thought, but aloud he said. "Not at all, Master Kedri. You
will