[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

quarters were carved from solid rock, as were the quarters occupied by
graciles and humans, the administrative and hospital rooms, and the principal
storage areas. This was done so that the areas would remain dry and
geologically stable."
"Right. How about the big culvert down at this end? Is it completely
artificial, too?"
There was a pause. "Culvert does not translate. Do you mean sump number five?"
I felt a cold chill along my backbone. "I guess I do."
"Please wait while one consults."
I looked at Matt. "It's the drain where the troopers disposed of Ivor."
Her eyes widened in horror. "Oh, dear God."
Together we peered into the semicircular opening. The radius was about a meter
and a half. It was darker than Satan's asshole and smelled about as appealing.
There was no grill or other barrier.
Woritak's voice spoke from the communicator. "Sump number five is an
artificial conduit thirteen meters in length that debouches into a natural
subterranean stream. It receives water
runoff and floor sweepings from the cavern, sewage from the worker quarters,
and effluent and garbage from the kitchen."
"Thank you for the information... Is Eve Frost safely out of dystasis?"
"We are treating her. She is resting in an invalid chair. This one must tell
you that
Administrator Ru Lokinak is not persuaded by your hypothesis of another exit
Page 139
ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html
from the cavern.
He has declined to speak of it to the others, lest it raise false hopes.
Shortly he will begin to recite the thanatopsis. Is there any encouraging
information you wish conveyed to him?"
"Not yet," I said, "but stand by." I clicked off, then set the navigator's
inertial odometer to zero. The countdown was at -69.03.
My belt pouch held a very small flashlight. Its meager beam revealed almost
nothing when I
shone it into sump number five, but my eyes hadn't yet accommodated to the
darkness. I stripped off the Haluk uniform jacket and the helmet and tossed
them aside. The Allenby stunner, which was waterproof, had a sling and went
diagonally across my back. I crouched and stepped down
into the water. It came to my knees.
"Stay there," I told Matt, when she would have followed. "No sense both of us
getting soaked.
I'll do this faster alone. You'd better go back and see about getting the
others organized. Probably best if you ditch your weapon. I'll transmit
progress reports to Woritak."
"I think I'll just wait until you're out of sight. Give a shout if you run
into any problem."
"And then what? You'll come splashing to the rescue?"
"Of course! I'm a terrific swimmer especially in sewers." She gave me a
lopsided grin. "Get going, cowboy. Do what you gotta do. But I have my doubts
about this culvert being the way out.
If the Haluk troopers threw Ivor into it and expected him to drown, how could
a lost lepido have gone through safely?"
"Ivor went into the water unconscious. Luckless Larry could have waded... I'll
give you three blinks with the flashlight if it looks promising. Two plus two
if the route taps out and I start back.
So long, Mattie babe. You're the best."
All she did was nod.
I struck off, moving as quickly as I could. The culvert floor was slippery
beneath my sneakered feet. The water deepened, then remained consistently at
crotch level. It was miserably cold, but there didn't seem to be any sewage in
it yet.
"It's okay so far," I called out to Matt. She stood silhouetted against the
golden light of the cavern. "There's not much of a current."
I continued on, staying close to the left-hand side of the culvert and shining
my light on the inky waters ahead. I checked the navigator. At thirteen meters
traversed, the smooth arch of the culvert ended and the walls became irregular
limestone rock. The water deepened by a few centimeters, but I was now able to
stand upright in a larger natural tunnel. Pausing, I shone my flashlight
around. Droplets falling from small blunt stalactites sprinkled my hair and
shoulders.
Ahead on the right I saw a protruding pipe spewing crud into the stream.
On the left there was a very narrow ledge.
It was a miniature ramp, extending underwater. Facing the wall and using my
hands so steady myself, I could sidle up into welcome dryness. The ledge
continued above the water, widening as the tunnel enlarged. The stench got
worse, inspiring me to move along the shelf at a fair clip, playing torchlight
on the rock at my feet.
After I'd gone a considerable distance, I stopped to call up a course diagram
on the navigator.
Its tiny display showed I had traveled almost in a straight line, 93.5 meters
on a rough southerly bearing of 183 degrees. When I turned around, I could
still see Matt's tiny figure. I blinked the light at her three times. She
waved and went away.
So far, so good.
Page 140
ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html
I flashed the beam around. The ceiling was about ten meters high, crowded with
thin, pointed stalactites that wept steadily, making a plurping sound on the
sluggish stream, which now had nameless things floating on its surface. Wet
rock with small protruding ledges rose almost vertically to my left. Ahead,
along the wall, I spotted an elongated shadow.
I went to inspect it and discovered an alcove.
It was the size of a room, reasonably dry, accessible through an opening just
large enough to admit a man ... or a Haluk. An alien lantern, unlit, stood on
a long, thin slab of rock that formed an improvised table. It also held a few
closed canisters and what looked like an alien board game.
On either side of the table were smaller rocks with flat tops that served as
stools. Neatly lined up along the inner wall were dozens of transparent
alceram flasks, curiously shaped. Each of them held about five liters of
colorless liquid.
Unstoppering one, I took a sniff. The unmistakable odor of ethanol flooded my
nostrils,
canceling the abominable stink.
I had discovered the secret recreation room and booze stash of the lepido
workforce.
Perhaps Luckless Larry and his thick-skinned asexual comrades were accustomed
to assuage their boredom here after finishing the scut work. Perhaps, on one
ill-starred day, Larry had exited the makeshift groggery after wetting his
whistle excessively and turned left instead of right.
Resisting the temptation to sample the exotic elixir myself, I left the alcove
and forged deeper into the tunnel. The roof lowered rather quickly after I had
gone another fifteen or twenty meters, and simultaneously the route veered off
to the right, cutting off all light from the culvert entrance. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

  • zanotowane.pl
  • doc.pisz.pl
  • pdf.pisz.pl
  • szkla.opx.pl

    •