"David Eddings - The Dreamers 01 - The Elder gods" - читать интересную книгу автора (Eddings David)

changes taking place all around you. The creatures of the Wasteland are
growing restless, and it won’t be long before the Dreamers arrive. We
need to be ready.’
‘It’s not nearly the age of the Dreamers yet, is it, Dahlaine?’ Zelana
asked incredulously.
‘The signs are all there, Zelana,’ Dahlaine said. ‘Mother Sea and
Father Earth move to their own schedule. They won’t wait until it’s
convenient for us to do what needs to be done. The ruler of the Wasteland
is preparing to move against us, and we aren’t ready to face it yet.’
‘We should have destroyed that hideous creature as soon as we realized
what it was.’
‘We can talk about all this some other time, dear sister,’ Dahlaine
smoothly changed the subject. ‘What I really came here for was to give
you something I thought you might like.’
‘A gift - for me?’ Zelana’s irritated humor seemed to vanish. ‘What is
it?’ she demanded eagerly.
Dahlaine smiled. Somehow the magic word ‘gift’ always seemed to
bring his brother and his sisters around to his way of thinking. Zelana in
particular always responded in exactly the way he wanted her to. A gift
wasn’t really a form of coercion, but it served the same purpose, and it
was a nicer approach. ‘Oh,’ he said in an off-hand manner, ‘it’s not much,
sister dear. It’s just a little something I thought you might enjoy. How
would you like a new pet? It occurred to me that you might be getting a
little tired of your dolphins after all these eons, since they can’t come out
of the water to play with you here in your lovely grotto. So I brought you
a pet that should be able to share your home.’
‘A puppy, maybe?’ Zelana asked eagerly. ‘I’ve never owned a puppy,
but I’ve heard that they’re very affectionate.’
‘Not exactly a puppy, no.’
‘Oh,’ Zelana sounded disappointed. ‘A kitten then?’ she said, her eyes
brightening once more. ‘I’ve heard that the purring sound kittens make is
very relaxing.’
‘Well, not quite a kitten either.’
‘What is it, Dahlaine?’ Zelana demanded impatiently. ‘Show me.’
‘Of course,’ Dahlaine replied, concealing his sly smile. He reached
both hands into the unseen emptiness he always carried along behind him
and took a fur-wrapped bundle out of the air. ‘With my compliments, my
beloved sister,’ he said extravagantly, handing her the bundle.
Zelana eagerly took the bundle and turned back the edge of the fur robe
to see what her brother had given her. She gaped in obvious disbelief at
the newborn pet drowsing in the warm fur robe. ‘What am I supposed to
do with this thing?’ she demanded in a shrill voice.
He shrugged. ‘Take care of it, Zelana. It shouldn’t be much more
difficult to care for than a young dolphin.’
‘But it’s one of those man-creatures!’ she protested.
‘Why, so it is,’ Dahlaine replied in mock astonishment. ‘How strange
that I didn’t notice that myself. You’re very perceptive, Zelana.’ He
paused. ‘It’s not an ordinary man-creature, dear sister,’ he added gravely.
‘It’s very special. There are only a few of them, but they’ll change the
world. Care for it and protect it, Zelana. I think you’ll have to feed it,