Chapter - V Kapitel - V Capítulo - V 第五章 챕터 - V Глава - V Розділ - V 第五章

V.

Once the ship was in orbit the captain sent for Jason and Kerk.

Kerk took the floor and was completely frank about the previous night's activities. Kerk took the floor and was completely frank about the previous night's activities. The only fact of importance he left out was Jason's background as a professional gambler. He drew a beautiful picture of two lucky strangers whom the evil forces of Cassylia wanted to deprive of their gambling profits. All this fitted perfectly the captain's preconceptions of Cassylia. In the end he congratulated his officer on the correctness of his actions and began the preparation of a long report to his government. He gave the two men his best wishes as well as the liberty of the ship.

It was a short trip.

Jason barely had time to catch up on his sleep before they grounded on Darkhan. Being without luggage they were the first ones through customs. They left the shed just in time to see another ship landing in a distant pit. They left the shed just in time to see another ship landing in a distant pit. Kerk stopped to watch it and Jason followed his gaze. It was a gray, scarred ship. With the stubby lines of a freighter—but sporting as many guns as a cruiser.

"Yours, of course," Jason said. Kerk nodded and started towards the ship.

One of the locks opened as they came up but no one appeared. Instead a remote-release folding ladder rattled down to the ground. Вместо этого на землю с грохотом упала складная лестница с дистанционным управлением. Kerk swarmed up it and Jason followed glumly. Керк взобрался на нее, и Джейсон мрачно последовал за ним. Somehow, he felt, this was overdoing the no-frills-and-nonsense attitude. Почему-то он чувствовал, что это перебор с отношением без излишеств и глупостей.

Jason was catching on to Pyrran ways though. Тем не менее, Джейсон уловил пиррянские обычаи.

The reception aboard ship for the ambassador was just what he expected. Прием на корабле для посла был именно таким, как он ожидал. Nothing. Ничего такого. Kerk closed the lock himself and they found couches as the take-off horn sounded. The main jets roared and acceleration smashed down on Jason. Реактивные двигатели взревели, и ускорение обрушилось на Джейсона.

It didn't stop. Instead it grew stronger, squeezing the air out of his lungs and the sight from his eyes. Вместо этого он стал сильнее, выдавливая воздух из его легких и вид из его глаз. He screamed but couldn't hear his own voice through the roaring in his ears. Он закричал, но не услышал собственного голоса из-за грохота в ушах. Mercifully he blacked out. К счастью, он потерял сознание.

When consciousness returned the ship was at zero-G. Когда сознание вернулось, корабль находился в невесомости.

Jason kept his eyes closed and let the pain seep out of his body. Kerk spoke suddenly, he was standing next to the couch.

"My fault, Meta, I should have told you we had a 1-G passenger aboard. — Моя вина, Мета, я должен был сказать тебе, что у нас на борту пассажир 1-G. You might have eased up a bit on your usual bone-breaking take-off. " Возможно, вы немного сбавили темп своего обычного, ломающего кости взлета. " "It doesn't seem to have harmed him much—but what's he doing here? Jason felt mild surprise that the second voice was a girl's. But he wasn't interested enough to go to the trouble of opening his sore eyes. Но он не был настолько заинтересован, чтобы утруждать себя открытием воспаленных глаз. "Going to Pyrrus. I tried to talk him out of it, of course, but I couldn't change his mind. Я пытался его отговорить, конечно, но не смог изменить его мнение. It's a shame, too, I would like to have done more for him. Жалко тоже, хотелось бы сделать для него больше. He's the one who got the money for us. " Он тот, кто получил деньги для нас. " "Oh, that's awful," the girl said. Jason wondered why it was awful . It didn't make sense to his groggy mind. Это не имело смысла для его слабого ума. "It would have been much better if he stayed on Darkhan," the girl continued. "He's very nice-looking. I think it's a shame he has to die. " That was too much for Jason.

He pried one eye open, then the other. The voice belonged to a girl about twenty-one who was standing next to the bed, gazing down at Jason. She was beautiful.

Jason's eyes opened wider as he realized she was very beautiful—with the kind of beauty never found in the civilized galaxy. The women he had known all ran to pale skin, hollow shoulders, gray faces covered with tints and dyes. The women he had known all ran to pale skin, hollow shoulders, gray faces covered with tints and dyes. They were the product of centuries of breeding weaknesses back into the race, as the advance of medicine kept alive more and more non-survival types. Они были продуктом многовекового размножения слабостей обратно в расу, по мере того как развитие медицины поддерживало в живых все больше и больше типов, не способных выжить.

This girl was the direct opposite in every way.

She was the product of survival on Pyrrus. The heavy gravity that produced bulging muscles in men, brought out firm strength in straplike female muscles. The heavy gravity that produced bulging muscles in men, brought out firm strength in straplike female muscles. Тяжелая гравитация, вызывавшая набухание мускулов у мужчин, давала твердую силу ременным мышцам у женщин. She had the figure of a goddess, tanned skin and perfectly formed face. У нее была фигура богини, загорелая кожа и прекрасно очерченное лицо. Her hair, which was cut short, circled her head like a golden crown. The only unfeminine thing about her was the gun she wore in a bulky forearm holster. When she saw Jason's eyes open she smiled at him. Her teeth were as even and as white as he had expected.

"I'm Meta, pilot of this ship. And you must be—" "Jason dinAlt. That was a lousy take-off, Meta. " Это был паршивый взлет, Мета. " "I'm really very sorry," she laughed. "But being born on a two-G planet does make one a little immune to acceleration. «Но рождение на планете с двумя g делает человека немного невосприимчивым к ускорению. I save fuel too, with the synergy curve—" Я также экономлю топливо благодаря синергетической кривой… Kerk gave a noncommittal grunt. Керк уклончиво хмыкнул.

"Come along, Meta, we'll take a look at the cargo. «Пойдем, Мета, посмотрим на груз. Some of the new stuff will plug the gaps in the perimeter. " Некоторые из новых материалов закроют бреши в периметре. " "Oh yes," she said, almost clapping her hands with happiness. "I read the specs, they're simply wonderful. " «Я прочитал спецификации, они просто замечательные». Like a schoolgirl with a new dress.

Or a box of candy. That's a great attitude to have towards bombs and flame-throwers. Отличное отношение к бомбам и огнеметам. Jason smiled wryly at the thought as he groaned off the couch. Jason smiled wryly at the thought as he groaned off the couch. Джейсон криво улыбнулся при этой мысли и со стоном вскочил с дивана. The two Pyrrans had gone and he pulled himself painfully through the door after them. Двое пирранцев ушли, и он с трудом протиснулся в дверь следом за ними.

It took him a long time to find his way to the hold. Ему потребовалось много времени, чтобы найти дорогу к трюму.

The ship was big and apparently empty of crew. Корабль был большим и явно пустым. Jason finally found a man sleeping in one of the brightly lit cabins. Джейсон наконец нашел человека, спящего в одной из ярко освещенных кают. He recognized him as the driver who had turned the car over to them on Cassylia. Он узнал в нем водителя, который передал им машину на Кассилии. The man, who had been sleeping soundly a moment before, opened his eyes as soon as Jason drifted into the room. The man, who had been sleeping soundly a moment before, opened his eyes as soon as Jason drifted into the room. Мужчина, который минуту назад крепко спал, открыл глаза, как только Джейсон вошел в комнату. He was wide awake. Он бодрствовал.

"How do I get to the cargo hold? "Как мне попасть в грузовой отсек? " Jason asked. The other told him, closed his eyes and went instantly back to sleep before Jason could even say thanks.

In the hold, Kerk and Meta had opened some of the crates and were chortling with joy over their lethal contents. В трюме Керк и Мета открыли несколько ящиков и радостно посмеивались над их смертоносным содержимым.

Meta, a pressure canister in her arms, turned to Jason as he came through the door. Мета с баллоном под давлением в руках повернулась к Джейсону, когда он вошел в дверь.

"Just look at this," she said. "This powder in here—why you can eat it like dirt, with less harm. «Вот этот порошок — почему вы можете есть его, как грязь, с меньшим вредом. Yet it is instantly deadly to all forms of vegetable life ..." She stopped suddenly as she realized Jason didn't share her extreme pleasure. Тем не менее, он мгновенно смертелен для всех форм растительной жизни…» Она внезапно остановилась, поняв, что Джейсон не разделяет ее крайнего удовольствия. "I'm sorry. I forgot for a moment there that you weren't a Pyrran. So you don't really understand, do you? " Before he could answer, the PA speaker called her name. Прежде чем он успел ответить, громкоговоритель позвал ее по имени.

"Jump time," she said. "Come with me to the bridge while I do the equations. «Пойдемте со мной на мостик, пока я решу уравнения. We can talk there. I know so little about any place except Pyrrus that I have a million questions to ask. " Jason followed her to the bridge where she relieved the duty officer and began taking readings for the jump-setting. Джейсон последовал за ней на мостик, где она сменила дежурного офицера и начала снимать показания для прыжковой установки.

She looked out of place among the machines, a sturdy but supple figure in a simple, one-piece shipsuit. She looked out of place among the machines, a sturdy but supple figure in a simple, one-piece shipsuit. Yet there was no denying the efficiency with which she went about her job. Yet there was no denying the efficiency with which she went about her job.

"Meta, aren't you a little young to be the pilot of an interstellar ship? "Am I? " She thought for a second. "I really don't know how old pilots are supposed to be. I have been piloting for about three years now and I'm almost twenty. Is that younger than usual? " Jason opened his mouth—then laughed.

"I suppose that all depends on what planet you're from. Some places you would have trouble getting licensed. But I'll bet things are different on Pyrrus. By their standards you must rank as an old lady. " "Now you're making a joke," Meta said serenely as she fed a figure into the calculator. "Now you're making a joke," Meta said serenely as she fed a figure into the calculator. "I've seen old ladies on some planets. They are wrinkled and have gray hair. I don't know how old they are, I asked one but she wouldn't tell me her age. But I'm sure they must be older than anyone on Pyrrus, no one looks like that there. " "I don't mean old that way," Jason groped for the right word. "I don't mean old that way," Jason groped for the right word. "Not old—but grown-up, mature. An adult. " "Everyone is grown-up," she answered. "At least soon after they leave the wards. "At least soon after they leave the wards. And they do that when they're six. My first child is grown-up, and the second one would be, too, only he's dead. Мой первый ребенок уже взрослый, и второй бы тоже, только он умер. So I surely must be. " Так что я, безусловно, должен быть. " That seemed to settle the question for her, though Jason's thoughts jumped with the alien concepts and background, inherent behind her words. That seemed to settle the question for her, though Jason's thoughts jumped with the alien concepts and background, inherent behind her words. Это, казалось, решило вопрос для нее, хотя мысли Джейсона подпрыгивали от чуждых концепций и фона, присущих ее словам. Meta punched in the last setting, and the course tape began to chunk out of the case. Мета нажала на последнюю настройку, и курсовая лента начала вываливаться из футляра.

She turned her attention back to Jason. "I'm glad you're aboard this trip, though I am sorry you are going to Pyrrus. «Я рад, что вы участвуете в этом путешествии, хотя мне жаль, что вы направляетесь в Пиррус. But we'll have lots of time to talk. There are so many things I want to find out about other planets, and why people go around acting the way they do. Я так много хочу узнать о других планетах и о том, почему люди ведут себя так, а не иначе. Not at all like home where you know why people are doing things all the time." Not at all like home where you know why people are doing things all the time." Совсем не то, что дома, где ты знаешь, почему люди все время что-то делают». She frowned over the tape for a moment, then turned her attention back to Jason. She frowned over the tape for a moment, then turned her attention back to Jason. На мгновение она нахмурилась, глядя на пленку, а затем снова обратила внимание на Джейсона. "What is your home planet like? " «Какова ваша родная планета?» One after another the usual lies he told people came to his lips, and were pushed away. Одна за другой обычная ложь, которую он говорил людям, слетала с его губ и отбрасывалась прочь.

Why bother lying to a girl who really didn't care if you were serf or noble? Why bother lying to a girl who really didn't care if you were serf or noble? Зачем лгать девушке, которой на самом деле было все равно, крепостной ты или дворянин? To her there were only two kinds of people in the galaxy—Pyrrans, and the rest. For the first time since he had fled from Porgorstorsaand he found himself telling someone the truth of his origin. Впервые с тех пор, как он бежал из Поргорсторса, он обнаружил, что рассказывает кому-то правду о своем происхождении.

"My home planet? Just about the stuffiest, dullest, dead-end in the universe. Just about the stuffiest, dullest, dead-end in the universe. Почти самый душный, самый унылый, тупиковый во вселенной. You can't believe the destructive decay of a planet that is mainly agrarian, caste-conscious and completely satisfied with its own boring existence. You can't believe the destructive decay of a planet that is mainly agrarian, caste-conscious and completely satisfied with its own boring existence. Вы не можете поверить в разрушительное загнивание планеты, преимущественно аграрной, кастовой и полностью удовлетворенной своим скучным существованием. Not only is there no change—but no one wants change. Изменений не только нет, но и никто не хочет перемен. My father was a farmer, so I should have been a farmer too—if I had listened to the advice of my betters. My father was a farmer, so I should have been a farmer too—if I had listened to the advice of my betters. Мой отец был фермером, так что я тоже должен был быть фермером, если бы прислушивался к советам лучших. It was unthinkable, as well as forbidden for me to do anything else. Это было немыслимо, как и запрещено мне делать что-либо еще. And everything I wanted to do was against the law. I was fifteen before I learned to read—out of a book stolen from a noble school. Мне было пятнадцать, когда я научился читать — по книге, украденной из дворянской школы. After that there was no turning back. By the time I stowed aboard an off-world freighter at nineteen I must have broken every law on the planet. К тому времени, как я попал на борт инопланетного грузового корабля в девятнадцать лет, я, должно быть, нарушил все законы на планете. Happily. счастливо. Leaving home for me was just like getting out of prison. " Meta shook her head at the thought. Мета покачала головой при этой мысли.

"I just can't imagine a place like that. «Я просто не могу представить себе такое место. But I'm sure I wouldn't like it there. " Но я уверен, что мне бы там не понравилось. " "I'm sure you wouldn't," Jason laughed. «Я уверен, что вы бы не стали», — рассмеялся Джейсон. "So once I was in space, with no law-abiding talents or skills, I just wandered into one thing and another. «Поэтому, когда я был в космосе, без законопослушных талантов или навыков, я просто блуждал то по одному, то по другому. In this age of technology I was completely out of place. In this age of technology I was completely out of place. Oh, I suppose I could have done well in some army, but I'm not so good at taking orders. О, я полагаю, что мог бы неплохо послужить в какой-нибудь армии, но я не так хорошо подчиняюсь приказам. Whenever I gambled I did well, so little by little I just drifted into it. Whenever I gambled I did well, so little by little I just drifted into it. Всякий раз, когда я играл в азартные игры, я делал это хорошо, так что мало-помалу я просто погрузился в игру. People are the same everywhere, so I manage to make out well wherever I end up. " People are the same everywhere, so I manage to make out well wherever I end up. " Люди везде одинаковые, так что мне удается хорошо разбираться, где бы я ни оказался. " "I know what you mean about people being alike—but they are so different ," she said. «Я понимаю, что вы имеете в виду, когда говорите, что люди похожи, но они такие разные», — сказала она. "I'm not being clear at all, am I? "Я совсем не ясно выразился, не так ли? What I mean is that at home I know what people will do and why they do it at the same time. Я имею в виду, что дома я знаю, что люди будут делать и почему они делают это одновременно. People on all the other planets do act alike, as you said, yet I have very much trouble understanding why. Как вы сказали, люди на всех других планетах ведут себя одинаково, но мне очень трудно понять, почему. For instance, I like to try the local food when we set down on a planet, and if there is time I always do. Например, мне нравится пробовать местную еду, когда мы садимся на планету, и если есть время, я всегда так делаю. There are bars and restaurants near every spaceport so I go there. And I always have trouble with the men. И у меня всегда проблемы с мужчинами. They want to buy me drinks, hold my hand—" Они хотят угостить меня выпивкой, подержать меня за руку… "Well, a single girl in those port joints has to expect a certain amount of interest from the men. «Ну, незамужняя девушка в этих портовых забегаловках должна ожидать определенного интереса со стороны мужчин. "Oh, I know that," she said. "What I don't understand is why they don't listen when I tell them I am not interested and to go away. «Чего я не понимаю, так это почему они не слушают, когда я говорю им, что мне это неинтересно, и чтобы они ушли. They just laugh and pull up a chair, usually. Обычно они просто смеются и придвигают стул. But I have found that one thing works wherever I am. I tell them if they don't stop bothering me I'll break their arm. " "Does that stop them? " Jason asked. "No, of course not. But after I break their arm they go away. And the others don't bother me either. It's a lot of fuss to go through and the food is usually awful. " It's a lot of fuss to go through and the food is usually awful. " Здесь много суеты, и еда обычно ужасна. " Jason didn't laugh. Джейсон не смеялся. Particularly when he realized that this girl could break the arm of any spaceport thug in the galaxy. Особенно когда он понял, что эта девушка может сломать руку любому космопортовому бандиту в галактике. She was a strange mixture of naivete and strength, unlike anyone he had ever met before. She was a strange mixture of naivete and strength, unlike anyone he had ever met before. Она представляла собой странную смесь наивности и силы, не похожую ни на кого, кого он когда-либо встречал раньше. Once again he realized that he had to visit the planet that produced people like her and Kerk.

"Tell me about Pyrrus," he asked. "Why is it that you and Kerk assume automatically that I will drop dead as soon as I land? «Почему вы с Керком автоматически предполагаете, что я упаду замертво, как только приземлюсь? What is the planet like? " All the warmth was gone from her face now.

"I can't tell you. You will have to see for yourself. I know that much after visiting some of the other worlds. Я знаю это после посещения некоторых других миров. Pyrrus is like nothing you galaxy people have ever experienced. Пиррус не похож ни на что, что вы, жители галактики, когда-либо испытывали. You won't really believe it until it is too late. Will you promise me something? " "No," he answered. "At least not until after I hear what it is and decide. " «По крайней мере, до тех пор, пока я не услышу, что это такое, и не приму решение». "Don't leave the ship when we land. You should be safe enough aboard, and I'll be flying a cargo out within a few weeks. " "I'll promise nothing of the sort. "Я ничего подобного не обещаю. I'll leave when I want to leave." Jason knew there was logic in her words, but his back was up at her automatic superiority. Jason knew there was logic in her words, but his back was up at her automatic superiority. Джейсон знал, что в ее словах есть логика, но его спина была поднята из-за ее автоматического превосходства.

Meta finished the jump settings without another word. Мета без лишних слов закончила настройку прыжка.

There was a tension in the room that prevented them both from talking.

It was the next shipday before he saw her again, then it was completely by accident. Он увидел ее снова на следующий день отплытия, тогда это было совершенно случайно.

She was in the astrogation dome when he entered, looking up at the sparkling immensity of the jump sky. She was in the astrogation dome when he entered, looking up at the sparkling immensity of the jump sky. Она была в астрогационном куполе, когда он вошел, глядя на сверкающую необъятность прыжкового неба. For the first time he saw her off duty, wearing something other than a shipsuit. This was a loose, soft robe that accentuated her beauty. This was a loose, soft robe that accentuated her beauty.

She smiled at him.

"The stars are so wonderful," she said. "Come look." "Подойди, посмотри". Jason came close to her and with an unthinking, almost automatic movement, put his arm around her. Джейсон подошел к ней вплотную и бездумным, почти автоматическим движением обнял ее за плечи. Neither did she resent it, for she covered his hand with hers. И она не обиделась на это, потому что накрыла его руку своей. Then they kissed and it was just the way he knew it would be. Затем они поцеловались, и все было именно так, как он и предполагал.