"The Summer Of The Seven" - читать интересную книгу автора (Melko Paul)

“Sorry.”
One of Mother Redd was driving, and the other two glanced at us. Manuel shrugged to show our confusion at Candace’s overreaction, and Mother Redd turned back to the road.
Bola read the schedule for the Fair, while we watched the countryside.
One hundred junior presentations.
That was a lot. That was one for every student pod in the county. He read off some of the presentation titles.
“Hyper-efficient Hydrogen Engines with Platinum Catalyst.”
We did that in Third Class.
“Vaccination Study for Rhinovirus AS234.”
The cure for the uncommon cold, Strom sent.
“Cold Fusion Yields in Superconducting Amalgams.”
That’ll never work.
Nothing with avian genetics except for us and Candace.
“Harumph.”
On our side of the bus, we passed a large tract of overgrown houses, small three-story homes, with just a few meters between them.
“Look at those. So many people in such a small space.”
Mother Redd said, “Each of those housed a family, just four or five people.” She must have smelled our puzzlement. “It’s hard to believe that the population of the Earth dropped by three orders of magnitude in the course of just a couple of years. You two were born just after the most cataclysmic events in human history. Before the Exodus, pods and multi-humans comprised less than a tenth of a percent of humanity. Now we are the stewards of the entire world. It is a grave responsibility.”
Quant slid across the aisle to catch a glimpse of the Ring. Candace flinched as Quant neared her, and glared at us. The sky was pale blue and cloudless, and there, arcing across its dome, was the Ring, the symbol of the Community and now a lifeless reminder of their former glory.
“They failed,” said Candace, not her face, but the male. “They’re a dead-end.”
“So are we,” Meda said. “According to your theories. We can’t breed true.”
Don’t bait her, I sent. She’s not feeling well.
Meda glared at me. “Sorry, Candace,” she said. “Do you want to talk ... or something?”
She didn’t turn; her eyes remained on the Ring.
It isn’t worth trying, Manuel sent bitterly.
I couldn’t really argue with him, and we turned away to watch the desolate countryside slip by.
The Science Fair was held in a huge building that dated to the previous century. It was crowded, almost like school, pods shoulder to shoulder with other pods; it was nearly impossible to think with all the interference in the air. We felt so crowded after the summer on the farm with just Candace and Mother Redd. It would be good to get back to school in a few weeks.
We found the junior pavilion, registered, and then wandered the Fair. Our presentation wasn’t until the afternoon, and Candace’s was right before ours.
Stealing our thunder again.
* * * *
The junior pavilion was packed at three o’clock that afternoon, and not just with us student pods. Mother Redd was there and so was Doctor Thomasin. We recognized several professors from the Institute, including Doctors Thackery and Charona.
We were in the biology section, so we sat through a dozen mice-in-maze and build-a-better-chlorophyll presentations until Candace’s turn finally came.
She climbed the steps to the speaker’s platform, looking pale and slouched.
She’s still sick, we thought, touching palms so we didn’t disturb anyone nearby.
She plugged in her cube and the screen behind her erupted with the title of her project.
She misspelled ruficollis!
“Shh!”
“Sorry.”
“I-I-I.... “Candace started. “I’m, I’m Candace Thurgood.”
Then she changed interfaces in front of everyone and started again.
“I’m Candace Thurgood, and my presentation is...” She looked at the words on the screen behind her and paused.
She changed heads again, and this time I smelled the thoughts swirling around the auditorium.
“I’m Candace Thurgood and this is the title of my pr-pr-presentation.”
She was shaking. Her face shone with sweat. She tapped the cube and the page started showing video of her ducks. If she was supposed to be narrating what was happening, she wasn’t. She was just standing there.
Oh, no. She’s frozen up!
Sixty seconds passed, and, finally, Doctor Thomasin stood up.
Candace stared at him as he climbed the steps; I smelled his calming scent from where I was. But I smelled Candace’s fear too. She ran before her doctor reached her, dashing down the steps on the other side of the platform, heading for the door.
Let’s go! I sent. We need to help her.
“The next presenter is Apollo Papadopulos.”
Our presentation is next!
But, she needs....
We reached consensus and walked up to the platform.