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Deathworld by Harry Harrison, Chapter - X

Chapter - X

X.

There were empty rooms in one of the computer buildings.

These were completely sealed to keep stray animal life out of the delicate machinery. While Meta checked a bed-roll out of stores, Jason painfully dragged a desk, table and chairs in from a nearby empty office. When she returned with a pneumatic bed he instantly dropped on it with a grateful sigh. Her lip curled a bit at his obvious weakness.

"Get used to the sight," he said. "I intend to do as much of my work as I can, while maintaining a horizontal position. You will be my strong right arm. And right now, Right Arm, I wish you could scare me up something to eat. I also intend to do most of my eating in the previously mentioned prone condition. " Snorting with disgust, Meta stamped out.

While she was gone, Jason chewed the end of a stylus thoughtfully, then made some careful notes.

After they had finished the almost-tasteless meal he began the search.

"Meta, where can I find historical records of Pyrrus? "I've never heard of any ... I really don't know. "But there has to be something— somewhere ," he insisted. "Even if your present-day culture devotes all of its time and energies to survival, you can be sure it wasn't always that way. All the time it was developing, people were keeping records, making notes. Now where do we look? Do you have a library here? " "Of course," she said. "We have an excellent technical library. But I'm sure there wouldn't be any of that sort of thing there. " Trying not to groan, Jason stood up.

"Let me be the judge of that. Just lead the way. " Operation of the library was completely automatic.

A projected index gave the call number for any text that had to be consulted. The tape was delivered to the charge desk thirty seconds after the number had been punched. Returned tapes were dropped through a hopper and refiled automatically. The mechanism worked smoothly.

"Wonderful," Jason said, pushing away from the index. "A tribute to technological ingenuity. Only it contains nothing of any value to us. Just reams of textbooks. " "What else should be in a library? " Meta sounded sincerely puzzled. Jason started to explain, then changed his mind.

"Later we will go into that," he said. "Much later. Now we have to find a lead. Is it possible that there are any tapes—or even printed books—that aren't filed through this machine? " "It seems unlikely, but we could ask Poli. He lives here somewhere and is in charge of the library—filing new books and tending the machinery. " The single door into the rear of the building was locked, and no amount of pounding could rouse the caretaker.

"If he's alive, this should do it," Jason said. He pressed the out-of-order button on the control panel. It had the desired affect. Within five minutes the door opened and Poli dragged himself through it.

Death usually came swiftly on Pyrrus.

If wounds slowed a man down, the ever-ready forces of destruction quickly finished the job. Poli was the exception to this rule. Whatever had attacked him originally had done an efficient job. Most of the lower part of his face was gone. His left arm was curled and useless. The damage to his body and legs had left him with the bare capability to stumble from one spot to the next.

Yet he still had one good arm as well as his eyesight.

He could work in the library and relieve a fully fit man. How long he had been dragging the useless husk of a body around the building, no one knew. In spite of the pain that filled his red-rimmed, moist eyes, he had stayed alive. Growing old, older than any other Pyrran as far as Jason had seen. He tottered forward and turned off the alarm that had called him.

When Jason started to explain the old man took no notice.

Only after the librarian had rummaged a hearing aid out of his clothes, did Jason realize he was deaf as well. Jason explained again what he searched for. Poli nodded and printed his answer on a tablet.

there are many old books—in the storerooms below

Most of the building was taken up by the robot filing and sorting apparatus.

They moved slowly through the banks of machinery, following the crippled librarian to a barred door in the rear. He pointed to it. While Jason and Meta fought to open the age-incrusted bars, he wrote another note on his tablet.

not opened for many years, rats

Jason's and Meta's guns appeared reflexively in their hands as they read the message. Jason finished opening the door by himself. The two native Pyrrans stood facing the opening gap. It was well they did. Jason could never have handled what came through that door.

He didn't even open it for himself. Their sounds at the door must have attracted all the vermin in the lower part of the building. Jason had thrown the last bolt and started to pull on the handle—when the door was pushed open from the other side.

Open the gateway to hell and see what comes out.

Meta and Poli stood shoulder to shoulder firing into the mass of loathsomeness that boiled through the door. Jason jumped to one side and picked off the occasional animal that came his way. The destruction seemed to go on forever.

Long minutes passed before the last clawed beast made its death rush.

Meta and Poli waited expectantly for more, they were happily excited by this chance to deal destruction. Jason felt a little sick after the silent ferocious attack. A ferocity that the Pyrrans reflected. He saw a scratch on Meta's face where one of the beasts had caught her. She seemed oblivious to it.

Pulling out his medikit, Jason circled the piled bodies.

Something stirred in their midst and a crashing shot ploughed into it. Then he reached the girl and pushed the analyzer probes against the scratch. The machine clicked and Meta jumped as the antitoxin needle stabbed down. She realized for the first time what Jason was doing.

"Thank you," she said. Poli had a powerful battery lamp and, by unspoken agreement, Jason carried it.

Crippled though he was, the old man was still a Pyrran when it came to handling a gun. They slowly made their way down the refuse-laden stairs.

"What a stench," Jason grimaced. At the foot of the stairs they looked around.

There had been books and records there at one time. They had been systematically chewed, eaten and destroyed for decades.

"I like the care you take with your old books," Jason said disgustedly. "They could have been of no importance," Meta said coolly, "or they would be filed correctly in the library upstairs. Jason wandered gloomily through the rooms.

Nothing remained of any value. Fragments and scraps of writing and printing. Never enough in one spot to bother collecting. With the toe of one armored boot, he kicked angrily at a pile of debris, ready to give up the search. There was a glint of rusty metal under the dirt.

"Hold this! " He gave the light to Meta and began scratching aside the rubble. A flat metal box with a dial lock built into it, was revealed.

"Why that's a log box! " Meta said, surprised. "That's what I thought," Jason said.

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Chapter - X |X Розділ(1)| Capítulo - X Глава - X Bölüm - X

X.

There were empty rooms in one of the computer buildings.

These were completely sealed to keep stray animal life out of the delicate machinery. |||closed off|||||||||| ||||||блукаючого||||||делікатний|машини While Meta checked a bed-roll out of stores, Jason painfully dragged a desk, table and chairs in from a nearby empty office. ||borrowed||sleeping mat||||supply room|||||||||||||| ||||матрац|||||||потягнув||||||||||| When she returned with a pneumatic bed he instantly dropped on it with a grateful sigh. |||||air-filled|||||||||| |||||пневматичний|||миттєво||||||| Когда она вернулась с надувной кроватью, он тут же опустился на нее с благодарным вздохом. Her lip curled a bit at his obvious weakness. |губа|піднялася||||||слабкість Ее губы немного скривились от его очевидной слабости.

"Get used to the sight," he said. ||||видовище|| «Привыкайте к виду», — сказал он. "I intend to do as much of my work as I can, while maintaining a horizontal position. |маю намір||||||||||||зберігаючи||| «Я намерен выполнять как можно больше работы, сохраняя при этом горизонтальное положение. You will be my strong right arm. Ты будешь моей сильной правой рукой. And right now, Right Arm, I wish you could scare me up something to eat. |||||||||find or get||||| |||||||||достати||||| А сейчас, Правая Рука, я бы хотел, чтобы ты напугал меня чем-нибудь поесть. І прямо зараз, Праву Руку, я хотів би, щоб ти змогла розжити мені щось поїсти. I also intend to do most of my eating in the previously mentioned prone condition. " |||||||||||||lying down| ||намір|||||||||раніше згаданій||лежачи| Я также намереваюсь есть большую часть своей еды в ранее упомянутом состоянии лежа. " Я також маю намір здебільшого їсти в раніше згаданому лежачому положенні. Snorting with disgust, Meta stamped out. фыркнув||||| snorting||||| Хрюкання||||вийшла з г| Фыркнув от отвращения, Мета затопала. З пирханням від огиди, Мета вдарила ногою.

While she was gone, Jason chewed the end of a stylus thoughtfully, then made some careful notes. ||||||||||writing instrument|||||| ||||||||||стилус|||||| Пока ее не было, Джейсон задумчиво пожевал кончик стилуса, а затем сделал несколько аккуратных заметок. Поки її не було, Джейсон задумливо жував кінець стилуса, а потім зробив кілька обережних нотаток.

After they had finished the almost-tasteless meal he began the search. ||||||безсмаковий||||| Після того, як вони закінчили майже безсмачну їжу, він розпочав пошуки.

"Meta, where can I find historical records of Pyrrus? "Метa, де я можу знайти історичні записи про Пірра?" "I've never heard of any ... I really don't know. "But there has to be something— somewhere ," he insisted. ||||||||наполягав "Even if your present-day culture devotes all of its time and energies to survival, you can be sure it wasn't always that way. ||||||посвящает||||||||||||||||| ||||||присвячує||||||||||||||||| «Даже если ваша современная культура посвящает все свое время и энергию выживанию, вы можете быть уверены, что так было не всегда. All the time it was developing, people were keeping records, making notes. |||||розвивалося|||||| Все время, пока он развивался, люди вели записи, делали пометки. Now where do we look? Теперь, где мы смотрим? Do you have a library here? " "Of course," she said. "We have an excellent technical library. |||чудова|| But I'm sure there wouldn't be any of that sort of thing there. " Trying not to groan, Jason stood up. |||sigh||| |||стонати|||

"Let me be the judge of that. ||||суддя|| Just lead the way. " |веди|| Просто проложите путь. " Operation of the library was completely automatic. Работа библиотеки была полностью автоматической.

A projected index gave the call number for any text that had to be consulted. ||reference list|||||||||||| |проектований|||||||||||||консультовано Прогнозируемый индекс давал номер вызова для любого текста, с которым нужно было ознакомиться. Передбачений індекс вказував номер телефону для будь-якого тексту, який потрібно було проконсультувати. The tape was delivered to the charge desk thirty seconds after the number had been punched. |||доставлено|||||||||||| Лента была доставлена в пункт обвинения через тридцать секунд после того, как номер был пробит. Лента була доставлена на стійку обліку через тридцять секунд після того, як номер був введений. Returned tapes were dropped through a hopper and refiled automatically. ||||||лоток||перепривязаны| ||||||drop box||organized again| |плівки|||||воронка для стрічок||перепоміщені| Возвращенные ленты сбрасывались через бункер и автоматически заполнялись. Повернуті ленти скидалися через бункер і автоматично реєструвалися. The mechanism worked smoothly.

"Wonderful," Jason said, pushing away from the index. |||відштовхуючи|||| — Замечательно, — сказал Джейсон, отталкиваясь от указателя. "A tribute to technological ingenuity. ||||гениальность |honor or homage|||creativity and innovation |данина поваги||технологічного|геніальність "Дань технологической изобретательности. Only it contains nothing of any value to us. ||містить|||||| Just reams of textbooks. " |пачки|| |Large quantities of|| |великі обсяги||підручники Просто стопки учебников. " "What else should be in a library? " Meta sounded sincerely puzzled. ||щиро| — искренне озадачилась Мета. Jason started to explain, then changed his mind. Джейсон начал было объяснять, но передумал.

"Later we will go into that," he said. «Позже мы займемся этим», — сказал он. "Much later. Now we have to find a lead. ||||||слід підказка Теперь нам нужно найти зацепку. Is it possible that there are any tapes—or even printed books—that aren't filed through this machine? " "It seems unlikely, but we could ask Poli. |||||||Поли |||||||Полі He lives here somewhere and is in charge of the library—filing new books and tending the machinery. " |||||||||||учетом||||обслуживанием|| |||||||||||||||maintaining|| |||||||||||обробка||||дослідження обслуговування|| The single door into the rear of the building was locked, and no amount of pounding could rouse the caretaker. |||||||||||||||стука||разбудить|| |||||back||||||||||knocking loudly||wake||building manager |||||задній|||||||ні|||стуку||підняти||доглядач будівлі Единственная дверь в заднюю часть здания была заперта, и никакие удары не могли разбудить смотрителя. Єдині двері на задньому вході будівлі були замкнені, і жодне кількість ударів не могло розбудити доглядача.

"If he's alive, this should do it," Jason said. ||||will|||| «Если он жив, это должно сработать», — сказал Джейсон. "Якщо він живий, це повинно спрацювати," - сказав Джейсон. He pressed the out-of-order button on the control panel. |||out-of-order||||||| Он нажал аварийную кнопку на панели управления. Він натиснув кнопку "не працює" на панелі управління. It had the desired affect. |||бажаний| Within five minutes the door opened and Poli dragged himself through it. Через п'ять хвилин двері відкрилися, і Полі протягнувся через них.

Death usually came swiftly on Pyrrus. |||быстро|| Смерть|||швидко|| Обычно смерть на Пирре наступала быстро. Смерть зазвичай приходила швидко до Піруса.

If wounds slowed a man down, the ever-ready forces of destruction quickly finished the job. |поранення||||||||||знищення|||| Если раны замедляли человека, то вечно готовые силы разрушения быстро заканчивали дело. Якщо рани сповільнювали людину, завжди готові сили руйнування швидко закінчували справу. Poli was the exception to this rule. |||виключення|||правило Whatever had attacked him originally had done an efficient job. Что бы ни напало на него изначально, оно хорошо поработало. Most of the lower part of his face was gone. Большая часть нижней части его лица исчезла. His left arm was curled and useless. Его левая рука была согнута и бесполезна. The damage to his body and legs had left him with the bare capability to stumble from one spot to the next. |||||||||||||||trip|||||| ||||||||||||лише мінімальний|здатність||спотикатися|||||| Повреждения его тела и ног оставили его с едва заметной способностью спотыкаться с одного места на другое.

Yet he still had one good arm as well as his eyesight. |||||||||||зір Тем не менее, у него все еще была одна здоровая рука, а также зрение.

He could work in the library and relieve a fully fit man. Он мог бы работать в библиотеке и сменить полностью здорового мужчину. How long he had been dragging the useless husk of a body around the building, no one knew. ||||||||оболочка||||||||| ||||||||lifeless shell||||||||| ||||||||оболонка||||||||| Сколько времени он таскал бесполезную оболочку тела по зданию, никто не знал. In spite of the pain that filled his red-rimmed, moist eyes, he had stayed alive. |||||||||обрамлених|вологих||||залишався| Несмотря на боль, наполнявшую его покрасневшие влажные глаза, он остался жив. Growing old, older than any other Pyrran as far as Jason had seen. Стареть, старше любого другого пирранца, насколько Джейсон видел. He tottered forward and turned off the alarm that had called him. |пошел|||||||||| |stumbled|||switched||||||| |похитнувся||||||||||

When Jason started to explain the old man took no notice. Когда Джейсон начал объяснять, старик не обратил на это внимания.

Only after the librarian had rummaged a hearing aid out of his clothes, did Jason realize he was deaf as well. |||||достал||||||||||||||| |||||searched through||||||||||||||| |||||пошукав||||||||||||||| Только после того, как библиотекарь вытащил из его одежды слуховой аппарат, Джейсон понял, что он тоже глухой. Jason explained again what he searched for. Poli nodded and printed his answer on a tablet.

there are many old books—in the storerooms below |||||||складах| |||||||storage areas| |||||||сховищах|внизу много старых книг — в кладовых внизу

Most of the building was taken up by the robot filing and sorting apparatus. |||||||||||||апарат Большую часть здания занимала роботизированная система хранения и сортировки.

They moved slowly through the banks of machinery, following the crippled librarian to a barred door in the rear. |||||rows of machinery|||||||||blocked|||| ||||||||||покалічений||||заблоковані двері|||| Они медленно двигались через ряды машин, следуя за покалеченным библиотекарем к зарешеченной двери в задней части. He pointed to it. While Jason and Meta fought to open the age-incrusted bars, he wrote another note on his tablet. |||||||||устаревших|||||||| ||||||||time-worn|covered with age|||||||| |||||||||вікно покрите віком|||||||| Пока Джейсон и Мета боролись за то, чтобы открыть застарелые решетки, он написал еще одну заметку на своем планшете.

not opened for many years, rats |||||щури не вскрывали много лет, крысы

Jason's and Meta's guns appeared reflexively in their hands as they read the message. |||||||||||interpreted|| Пистолеты Джейсона и Меты рефлекторно появились в их руках, когда они прочитали сообщение. Jason finished opening the door by himself. The two native Pyrrans stood facing the opening gap. ||||||||проміжок між It was well they did. It was well they did. Хорошо они сделали. Jason could never have handled what came through that door. |was able to|||||||| Джейсон никогда не смог бы справиться с тем, что пришло через эту дверь.

He didn't even open it for himself. Он даже не открыл его для себя. Their sounds at the door must have attracted all the vermin in the lower part of the building. ||||||||||паразиты||||||| ||||||||||pests||||||| Їх|||||||привернули|||паразити||||||| Their sounds at the door must have attracted all the vermin in the lower part of the building. Их звуки у двери, должно быть, привлекли всех паразитов в нижней части здания. Jason had thrown the last bolt and started to pull on the handle—when the door was pushed open from the other side. Джейсон откинул последний засов и начал дергать за ручку, но дверь распахнулась с другой стороны.

Open the gateway to hell and see what comes out. ||ворота||пекло||||| Откройте врата в ад и посмотрите, что выйдет.

Meta and Poli stood shoulder to shoulder firing into the mass of loathsomeness that boiled through the door. ||||||||||||отвратительности||||| ||||||||||||disgusting creatures||||| |||||||стріляючи|||скупчення огидності||відразливість||||| Meta and Poli stood shoulder to shoulder firing into the mass of loathsomeness that boiled through the door. Мета и Поли стояли плечом к плечу, стреляя в отвратительную массу, бурлившую за дверью. Jason jumped to one side and picked off the occasional animal that came his way. Jason jumped to one side and picked off the occasional animal that came his way. Джейсон отпрыгнул в сторону и схватил случайного зверька, который попадался ему на пути. The destruction seemed to go on forever. Разрушение, казалось, длилось вечно.

Long minutes passed before the last clawed beast made its death rush. ||||||clawed||||final charge| ||||||з кігтями||||| Прошли долгие минуты, прежде чем последний когтистый зверь бросился в атаку.

Meta and Poli waited expectantly for more, they were happily excited by this chance to deal destruction. ||||||||||||||to|| Мета и Поли с надеждой ждали продолжения, они были счастливы, что у них есть возможность разрушить мир. Jason felt a little sick after the silent ferocious attack. ||||||||fierce| ||||||||лютий| Джейсону стало немного не по себе после безмолвной свирепой атаки. A ferocity that the Pyrrans reflected. |ярость|||| |intensity||||mirrored |жорстокість||||відображали Свирепость, которую отражали пирранцы. He saw a scratch on Meta's face where one of the beasts had caught her. |побачив||подряпина||||||||||| Он увидел царапину на лице Меты, где ее поймал один из зверей. She seemed oblivious to it. ||не замечала|| ||не звертала уваги|| Она, казалось, не обращала на это внимания.

Pulling out his medikit, Jason circled the piled bodies. |||медичний набір|||||тіла Вытащив свою аптечку, Джейсон обошел кучу тел.

Something stirred in their midst and a crashing shot ploughed into it. |шевельнулось|||среди||||выстрел|врезался|| |||||||||plowed|| |зашевелилося|||серед них|||гучний||впоровся з|| Something stirred in their midst and a crashing shot ploughed into it. Что-то шевельнулось посреди них, и в него врезался сокрушительный выстрел. Then he reached the girl and pushed the analyzer probes against the scratch. |||||||||зондами||| Затем он подошел к девушке и приставил зонды анализатора к царапине. The machine clicked and Meta jumped as the antitoxin needle stabbed down. ||||||||||pierced downward| ||||||||антидот|голка|вколола| Машина щелкнула, и Мета подпрыгнула, когда игла с антитоксином вонзилась вниз. She realized for the first time what Jason was doing. Она впервые поняла, что делает Джейсон.

"Thank you," she said. Poli had a powerful battery lamp and, by unspoken agreement, Jason carried it. |||||лампа||||||| У Поли была мощная лампа на батарейках, и, по негласному соглашению, Джейсон нес ее.

Crippled though he was, the old man was still a Pyrran when it came to handling a gun. disabled||||||||||||||||| Хоть он и был калекой, старик все еще оставался пирранцем, когда дело доходило до обращения с оружием. They slowly made their way down the refuse-laden stairs. |gradually|||||||| |||||||сміття|завантаженими| They slowly made their way down the refuse-laden stairs. Они медленно спускались по заваленной мусором лестнице.

"What a stench," Jason grimaced. ||вонь||сделал гримасу exclamation of disgust||odor||winced ||який сморід|| "What a stench," Jason grimaced. — Какая вонь, — поморщился Джейсон. At the foot of the stairs they looked around. У подножия лестницы они огляделись.

There had been books and records there at one time. |||||music albums|||| There had been books and records there at one time. Когда-то там были книги и записи. They had been systematically chewed, eaten and destroyed for decades. ||||||||over a period of| ||||пережовані|з'їдені|||| Их систематически жевали, съедали и уничтожали на протяжении десятилетий.

"I like the care you take with your old books," Jason said disgustedly. ||||||||||||with disgust |||||||своїми||||| "They could have been of no importance," Meta said coolly, "or they would be filed correctly in the library upstairs. |might have|||||||||||||||||| |||||||||холодно|||||||||| — Они могли бы не иметь никакого значения, — холодно сказала Мета, — иначе они были бы правильно подшиты в библиотеке наверху. Jason wandered gloomily through the rooms. Jason||in a sad manner||| ||похмуро||| Джейсон мрачно бродил по комнатам.

Nothing remained of any value. Fragments and scraps of writing and printing. Never enough in one spot to bother collecting. Never enough in one spot to bother collecting. Никогда не бывает достаточно в одном месте, чтобы собирать. With the toe of one armored boot, he kicked angrily at a pile of debris, ready to give up the search. |відомий|палець|||||||||||||||||| Носком бронированного ботинка он сердито пнул груду обломков, готовый отказаться от поисков. There was a glint of rusty metal under the dirt. |||блеск|||||| ||a piece of|sparkle|||||| |||блиск||іржавий|||| Под грязью блестел ржавый металл.

"Hold this! "Держи это! " He gave the light to Meta and began scratching aside the rubble. |||світло||||||||руїни Он дал свет Мете и начал разгребать обломки. A flat metal box with a dial lock built into it, was revealed. ||||||lock mechanism|||||| Была обнаружена плоская металлическая коробка со встроенным замком.

"Why that's a log box! |||wooden storage container| |||дров'яна коробка| «Почему это бревенчатый ящик! " Meta said, surprised. — удивленно сказала Мета. "That's what I thought," Jason said. that is||||| — Я так и думал, — сказал Джейсон.