"Niven, Larry - Limits (SS Coll)" - читать интересную книгу автора (Niven Larry)

"I would be delighted." Rordray escorted them to the huge man's table and seated them. "The swordfish is good-"

"The swordfish is wonderful!" Merle boomed. He'd made amazing progress with the half-swordfish while they were approaching. "It's baked with apricots and slivered nuts and . . . something else, I can't tell. Rordray?"

"The nuts are soaked in a liqueur called brosa, from Rynildissen, and dried in the oven."

"I'll try it," Karskon said, and Durily nodded. Rordray disappeared into the kitchen.

The noise level was rising toward its previous pitch. Durily raised her voice just high enough. "Most of you seem to be fishers. It must have been hard for you after the merpeople went away."

"It was, Lady. They had to learn to catch their own fish instead of trading. All the techniques had to be invented from scratch. They tell me they tried magic at first. To breathe water, you know. Some of them drowned. Then came fishing-spears, and special boats, and nets.-"

"You said they?"

"I'm a whale," said Merle. "I came later."

"Oh. There aren't many were-folk around these days. Anywhere."

"We aren't all gone," Merle said, while Karskon smiled at how easily they had broached the subject. "The merpeople went away, all right, but it wasn't just because they're magical creatures. Their life styles include a lot of magic. Whales don't practice much magic."

"Even so," Karskon wondered, "what are you doing on land? Aren't you afraid you might, ah, change? Magic isn't dependable any more-"

"But Rordray is. Rordray would get me out in time. Anyway, I spend
most of my time aboard Shrimp. See, if the change comes over me there, it's no problem. A whale's weight would swamp my little boat and leave me floating."

"I still don't see-C-"

"Sharks"

Ptli. -

"Damn brainless toothy wandering weapons! The more you kill the more the blood draws more till-" Merle shifted restlessly. "Anyway, there are no sharks ashore. And there are books, and people to talk to. Out on the sea there's only the whale songs. Now, I like the singing; who wouldn't? But it's only family gossip, and weather patterns, and shoreline changes, and where are the fish."

"That sounds useful."

"Sure it is. Fisherfolk learn the whale songs to find out where the fish are. But for any kind of intelligent conversation you have to come ashore. Ah, here's Rordray."

Rordray set three plates in place, bearing generous slabs of swordfish and vegetables cooked in elaborate fashions. "What's under discussion?"

"Were-creatures," Karskon said. "They're having a terrible time of it almost everywhere."

Rordray sat down. "Even in Rynildissen? The wolf people sector?"

"Well," Durily said uncomfortably, "they're changing. You know, there are people who can change into animals, but that's because there are were-folk among their ancestors. Most were-folk are animals who learned how to take human form. The human shape has magic in it, you know." Rordray nodded, and she continued. "In places where the magic's gone, it's terrible. The animals lose their minds. Even human folk with some animal ancestry, they can't make the change, but their minds aren't quite human either. Wolf ancestry makes for good soldiers, but it's hard for them to stop. A touch of hyena or raccoon makes for thieves. A man with a touch of lion makes a good general, but-"

Merle shifted restlessly, as if the subject were painful to him. His platter was quite clean now. "Oh, to hell with the problems of were-folk. Tell me how you lost your eye."

Karskon jumped, but he answered. "Happened in the baths when I was thirteen. We were having a fight with wet towels and one of my halfbrothers flicked my eye out with the corner of a towel. Dull story."