ZX Pilot #18 06 января 1998

Самиздат

Fantasy - A Tale Strugatsky "Way to Amalthea (continued).

   FICTION


Continued. Start see # 16, 17.


3. Flight Engineer admire Heroes

   A Shturman DETECTING Varechka


   Close Observatornaya compartment was packed to overflowing 
equipment planetologists. Dauge squatted in front of a big shiny

apparatus, similar to the television camera. The unit was called
ekzosfernym spectrograph. Planetary scientists had for him great
hope. He was quite new - straight from the factory - and worked
synchronously with the release gear. Matte black breech bombs -
scraper occupies half the bay. Beside him, in the light
metal racks, dim light blued sides
flat holder bombozondov. Each cage contained twenty
bombozondov and weighed forty pounds. Theoretically, the holder 
must were submitted to the release gear automatically. But the 
photon truck, "Tahmasib was unimportant suited for deployed

research, and ADF did not have enough space.
Release gear serviced Zhilin.

   Yurkovski ordered:

   - Charge.

   Zhilin rolled back the breech cover, took the edge of the 
first holder, with an effort raised it and put into a 
rectangular slot charging camera. Clip quietly slipped into 
place. Zhilin coasting cover, snapped the lock and said:


   - Ready.

   - I, too, is ready - said Dauge.

   - Michael, - said Yurkovski into the microphone. - Soon?

   - Another half an hour, - was the husky voice of the 
navigator. 

   Spaceship again rocked. Paul went out from under their feet.

   - Again, a meteorite - said Yurkovski. - This is the third.

   - Gusto something - said Dauge.

   Yurkovski asked into the microphone:

   - Michael, micrometeorites much?

   - Many, Voloden'ka, - said Mikhail Antonovich. His voice
was preoccupied. - Even at thirty percent above the average 
density - In particular, and growing and growing ...


   - Mischa, darling - asked Yurkovski. - I measure more often, 
eh? 

   - Measurements are three times a minute, - said the 
navigator. He said something to the side of the microphone. In 
response, a voice was heard Bykov: "Can". - Voloden'ka - called 
the navigator. - I am switching ten times a minute.


   - Thanks, Mike - said Yurkovski.

   The ship rocked again.

   - Listen, Volodya - called softly Dauge. - But it's not -
rivialno.

   Jilin is also thought that it was not trivial. Nowhere, in 
any books and sailing directions, not to mention enhancing the 
density of meteorite - surface in close proximity to Jupiter. 
However, few been in close proximity to Jupiter.


   Zhilin sat on the bed breech and looked at his watch. Until
periioviya remained for about twenty minutes, no more. After 
twenty Dauge minutes will give the first place. He said that 
this extraordinary spectacle, when explodes all bombozondov. 
Two years ago he investigated such bombozondami atmosphere of 
Uranus. Jilin looked at Dauge. Dauge squatted in front of

spectrograph, keeping the handles rotate, - dry, black,
sharp-nosed, with a scar on his left cheek. He kept stretching 
out long neck, and then looked left, then right eye in the 
eyepiece viewfinder, and each time ran down his face orange

bunny. Zhilin looked at Yurkovski. Yurkovski stood
pressed his face to the scapular periscope, and eagerly stepped
from foot to foot. Around his neck dangled on a dark ribbed belt
egg-in microphone. Known planetary Dauge and Yurkovski ...

   A month ago, Deputy Head of Graduate School Kosmogatsii
Santor Jan summoned a graduate of the School of Ivan Zhilin.
Mezhplanetniki Santora named John "Iron John." He was over
fifty, but he seemed very young in a blue jacket with
turndown collar. He would have been very handsome, if not dead
grayish-pink spots on the forehead and chin - a long-time 
traces of radiation impact. Santor Yang said that the Third 
Front GKMPS urgently demanded at its disposal a good 
replacement flight engineer and that the School Board chose a 
graduate of Zilina (Graduate Zhilin cold with excitement: all 
the five years he was afraid that it would send an intern at 
the lunar road). Santor Yang said that It is an honor for 
graduate Zhilin, because his first appointment he gets on a 
ship that goes to oversanom Jupiter (graduate Zhilin nearly 
jumped for joy) with food for "Jay-station" at the Fifth 
Satellite of Jupiter - Amalthea.


   - Amalthea facing famine - Santor said Yang. - Your
commander will be celebrated mezhplanetnik, also a graduate of
Our Schools, Alexei Petrovich Bykov. Your senior navigator
is a very experienced kosmogator Michael Antonovich Krutikov. 
In their hands you will pass a first-rate practical school, and 
I very happy for you.


   The fact that the voyage is attended Gregory Johannovich
Dauge and Vladimir Yurkovski, Zhilin learned later, on
raketodrome Mirza Charlie. What are the names! Yurkovski and 
Dauge, Bulls and Krutikov. Bogdan Spitsyn and Anatoliy Ermakov. 
Terrible and wonderful, childhood friend polulegenda about 
people who thrown at the feet of humanity threatening the 
planet. About the people who on the antediluvian "Hiuse - 
photon turtle with only one mezoveschestva layer on the 
reflector - broke through the furious atmosphere of Venus. 
About the people who found the black primitive sands of uranium 
Golconda - hit a monstrous track from the meteorite antimatter.


   Of course, Zhilin knew, and other wonderful people. For 
example, mezhplanetnika test-Basil Lyakhova. In the third and 
fourth Lyakhov reading courses at the School of the theory of 
photon drive. He organized for graduates of a three-month 
practice in Cn-20. Mezhplanetniki called Cn-20 "asterisk." It 
was very interesting. There were tested the first through-flow 
photonic engines. From there, the zone is absolutely free 
flight launched car lots of scouts. There was built the first 
interstellar ship Hius-Lightning. " Lyakhov once led the cadets 
in the hangar. In hangar hanging just arrived photonic tanker 
automaton that six months ago has thrown in the area absolutely 
free flight. The tanker, the huge clumsy structure, was removed 
from Sun at a distance of the light of the month. All struck 
his colors. Cabin became a turquoise-green and falls off in 
pieces, worth it to touch her hand. She just crumbles as

bread. But the controllers were in order, otherwise
intelligence, of course, would not have returned, but returned 
three reconnaissance of the nineteen running in the zone of 
TSA. Cadets Lyakhov asked what happened, and Lyakhov said he 
did not know. "At large distances from the sun is something 
that we have not yet know "- said Lyakhov. Zhilin and thought 
then about the pilots who few years will lead "Hius zipper" 
wherever there is something What we do not know.


   "It's funny - thought Zhilin, - I already have something to 
remember. As the fourth year, during the in-goal on the rise

geodesic rocket failed engine and I, along with the rocket
fell into a state farm field under Novoeniseyskom. I have a few 
hours wandering among the high-frequency automatic plows, while 
to the evening, not bumped into a man. It was an 
operator-Remote Control. We lay all night in a tent, watching 
the lights of plows, moving in the dark field, and a plow was 
very close, humming, leaving behind a smell of ozone. The 
operator gave me local wine, and I seem to have failed to 
convince this gay uncle that mezhplanetniki do not drink a 
drop. On the morning of rocket came transporter. Iron John gave 
me a terrible spacing, because I do not catapulted ...


   Or graduation flight Cn-16 Earth-Moon Tsifey when a member
examiner tried to lead us astray and giving
introductory, shouting terrible voice: "Asteroid third magnitude
right on track! The speed of convergence twenty-two! "We were
six winners, and he bored us unbearable - just Eve
Elder, kept trying to convince us that people should forgive 
them small weakness. We have no objection in principle, but of 
weakness did not want to forgive. We all thought that the 
flight foolish, and Nobody was frightened when the ship 
suddenly went into a terrible turn for fourfold overloading. We 
climbed into the wheelhouse, where the term Commission 
pretended to be killed by an overload, and brought the ship 
from superelevation. Then a member of the commission opened one 
eye and said: "Well done, mezhplanetniki, and we will forgive 
him his weakness, because until then no one has called us 
seriously mezhplanetnikami, except mothers and friends of 
girls. But moms and girls always say: "My dear mezhplanetnik" 
and form they had at the same time such as if they ran cold 
inside ... " 

   "Tahmasib" suddenly shook so violently that toppled Jilin
on the back and knocked his head against the shelf.

   - Damn! - Said Yurkovski. - All this, of course, not trivial,
but if the ship is so prowl, we can not work.

   - Yeah, - said Dauge. He pressed his hand to his right eye.
How can we work ...

   Apparently, of the ship appears more and more large
meteorites, and hectic team protivometeoritnyh Latitude
kibershturman increasingly abandoned the ship from side to side.

   - Really Roy? - Yurkovski said, clinging to the scapular
periscope. - Poor Varechka she not tolerate shaking.

   - Well, would sit at home - angrily said Dauge. Right eye
He quickly swam, he groped with his fingers and published
muffled cries in Latvian. He has not sat on their haunches,
He reclined on the floor, extending legs for stability.

   Jilin kept pushing his hands into the breech and shelving. 
Paul suddenly collapsed under their feet, then bounced and hit 
hard by heels. Dauge gasped, in Zilina feet gave way. Hoarse 
bass Bykov bellowed into the microphone:


   - Flight Engineer Zhilin, the wheelhouse! Passengers take 
refuge in depreciation - Ator!


   Zhilin wobbly trot ran to the door. Behind him, Dauge
said:

   - How is a shock?

   - Like hell! - Yurkovski said.

   Something rolled on the floor with metal pieces. Jilin
jumped into the corridor. The adventure begins.

   The ship shook continuously, like a chip on the waves. Jilin
ran down the hallway and thought: this pass. And this past. And 
this also passed, and they all disappeared ... Behind the back 
of a sudden there was shrill "pouk-shek-sh-sh-sh ...". He 
rushed back to the wall and turned. In an empty hallway, about 
ten paces from him stood a dense cloud of white steam: perfect, 
such as when bursting a balloon with liquid helium. Sizzle 
quickly silenced. By corridor drawn ice cold.


   - Pop, reptile, - said Zhilin and pulled away from the wall. 
White cloud crept behind him, slowly settling.


   In the control room was very cold. Zhilin saw a brilliant 
rainbow frost on the walls and floor. Michael Antonovich with 
purple sitting at the back of his head and pulled the 
calculator on a tape recording. Bykov could not see. He was a 
jacket reactor. 

   - Again, horrible? - A shrill voice cried the navigator.

   - Where, finally, the flight engineer? - Boomed Bulls 
because of enclosure. 

   - I - said Zhilin.

   He ran through the cabin, slipping on ineyu. Bull-rushed him
meet him, his red hair standing on end.

   - The control of the reflector, - he said.

   - Yes, - said Zhilin.

   - Sturm, a clearance?

   - No, Leshenka. Around the same density. That's because acne 
- azdilo us ...


   - Turn off the reflector. I will be selected on the 
emergency. 

   Michael Antonovich on a rotating chair quickly turned to
control panel behind him. He put his hand on the keys and
said:

   - It could be ...

   He stopped. His face contorted with terror. Panel with
control keys curled, straightened and silently
slid to the floor. Jilin heard the cry of Michael Antonovich and
Confused jumped out from behind cover. On the wall of the 
cabin, clutching upholstery, sat polutorametrovy Martian lizard

Varechka, favorite Yurkovski. Exact figure keys
at its sides had already begun to fade, but at a terrible 
triangular face still slowly flashes red image of the stop 
lights. Michael Antonovich watched lined Varechka, sobbing and

held on to the heart.

   - Pshla! - Yelled Zhilin.

   Varechka rushed somewhere and disappeared.

   - I'll kill you! - Growled the Bulls. - Jilin, in place of 
the devil! 

   Jilin turned, and at this point in the Tahmasib "horrible
for real.