"Gene Wolfe - Endangered Species" - читать интересную книгу автора (Wolfe Gene)

I-"

Eata was not listening. He had seen the broken lock on his
sea chest, and he was laughing. "The key's in my pocket!"
He gripped the younger, taller man by the knee. "My pants
were on the floor!" In his mirth, he nearly choked on the
words.

In the flat lands that Gyoll itself had made, Gyoll had little
current; but the wind was in the east, and Eata's boat heeled
a bit under the pressure of her wide gaffsail. The old sun,
well above the tallest towers now, painted the sail's black
image on the oily water,

"What do you do, Captain?" the stranger asked. "How do
you live?"

"By doing whatever pays. Cargo to the delta and fish to
the city, mostly." :

"It's a nice boat. Did you build it?"

"No," Eata said. "Bought it. Not fast like you're used to."
His head still hurt, and he leaned on the tiller with one hand
pressed to his temple.

"Yes, I've sailed a bit on a lake we have up north."

"Wasn't asking," Eata told him.

"I don't think I ever gave you my name. It's Simulatio."

"And a good one too, I've no doubt."

The stranger turned away for a moment, tinkering with
thejibsheet winch to keep Eata from seeing the blood rising
in his cheeks. "When will we reach the deserted parts of the
city?"

''About nones, if this wind holds."

"I didn't know it would take so long."

"You should have hired me farther down." Eata chuckled.
And that'll be just the beginning of the dead parts. You
might want to go farther yet."
The stranger turned back to look at him. "It's very large,
isn't it?"

"Bigger than you can imagine. This part-where people