"Roger Zelazny - Amber Chronicles, The 08 - Sign of Chaos" - читать интересную книгу автора (Zelazny Roger)

The Cat materialized at the far end of the bar, downed the Hatter's
drink, and said, "I hear the burbling, and eyes of flame are drifting to the
left."
I glanced at the mural, and I, too, saw the fiery eyes and heard a
peculiar sound.
"It could be any of a number of things," Luke remarked.
The Cat moved to a rack behind the bar and reached high up on the wall
to where a strange weapon hung, shimmering and shifting in shadow. He
lowered the thing and slid it along the bar; it came to rest before Luke.
"Better have the Vorpal Sword in hand, that's all I can say."
Luke laughed, but I stared fascinated at the device which looked as if
it were made of moth wings and folded moonlight. .
Then I heard the burbling again.
"Don't just stand there in uffish thought!" said the Cat, draining
Humpty's glass and vanishing again.
Still chuckling, Luke held out his tankard for a refill. I stood there
in uffish thought: The spell I had used to destroy the Bandersnatch had
altered my thinking in a peculiar fashion. It seemed for a small moment in
its aftermath that things were beginning to come clear in my head. I
attributed this to the image of the Logrus which I had regarded briefly. And
so I summoned it again.
The Sign rose before me, hovered. I held it there. I looked upon it. It
seemed as if a cold wind began to blow G through my mind. Drifting bits of
memory were drawn together, assembled themselves into an entire fabric, were
informed with understanding. Of course. . . .
The burbling grew louder and I saw the shadow of the Jabberwock gliding
among distant trees, eyes like landing lights, lots of sharp edges for
biting and catching. . . .
And it didn't matter a bit. For I realized now what was going on, who
was responsible, how and why.
I bent over, leaning far forward, so that my knuckles just grazed the
toe of my right boot.
"Luke," I said, "we've got a problem."
He turned away from the bar and glanced down at me.
"What's the matter?" he asked.
Those of the blood of Amber are capable of terrific exertions. We are
also able to sustain some pretty awful beatings. So, among ourselves, these
things tend to cancel out to some degree. Therefore, one must go about such
matters just right if one is to attend to them at all. . . .
I brought my fist up off the floor with everything I had behind it, and
I caught Lake on the side of the jaw with a blow that lifted him above the
ground as it turned him and sent him sprawling across a table which
collapsed, to continue sliding backward the length of the entire serving
area where he finally came to a crumpled halt at the feet of the quiet
Victorian-looking gentleman-who had dropped his paintbrush and stepped away
quickly when Luke came skidding toward him. I raised my tankard with my left
hand and poured its contents over my right fist, which felt as if I had just
driven it against a mountainside. As I did this the lights grew dim and
there was a moment of utter silence.
Then I slammed the mug back onto the bartop. The entire place chose