"E. E. Doc Smith - D' Alembert 9 - The Omicron Invasion" - читать интересную книгу автора (Smith E. E. Doc)

Technologically, they seemed to be on a par with the humans. They used energy weapons similar
to blasters, and while they used different forms of air and ground transportation, they worked on the same
scientific principles as human craft. They had that yellow smoke that acted as an instant sleep gas, much
the same as tirascaline, and they apparently had some device capable of jamming subetheric
communications over the entire planet because no messages in or out of Omicron had been delivered since
the invasion began. The most chilling advantage the aliens had was a ray that seemed to sap a human's
will and leave him powerless to resist. "That's how they keep the slave camps in order," Maguire said.

"You mentioned slave camps before," Jules said. "What exactly are they? Where are they located
and how do they work?"

"We don't know too much," Maguire explained, "because no one's ever escaped to let us know
what happens inside. The only person in our company who's ever seen one was Rajowiscz; he passed it on
his way here from Fallstown."

"Can we talk to him?" Fortier asked.

"Unfortunately, no. He was one of the people caught by the yellow smoke a few hours ago; he's
probably in the camp himself by now. He said he spied on it from a hill for almost an entire day. The
camp is a big compound made up of inflatable tents that might house a few thousand people in cramped
conditions. He said he saw hundreds of people being forced to work for the aliens, constructing a series of
buildings. It looked to him like they might be making themselves a base of some sort."

"Where was this?" Jules asked.

"About seven hundred and fifty kilometers southeast of here, in the Long River valley. The
strange thing was, he said, there weren't any fences around the area, yet no one tried to escape. He saw
someone get out of line just once, and the aliens shone some kind of ray on him and he stopped all his
resistance immediately. Whatever that thing is, it must be pretty effective."

"Slave labor is a very inefficient work force," Tatiana spoke up. "If these aliens are as
technologically advanced as we are, they should have plenty of automated construction equipment to do
the job better."

"But the construction equipment and materials would have to be brought here," Lady A pointed
out, "whereas the slave labor is already here for the taking. If their invasion force is primarily fighting
ships rather than transports, they'd have limited space for bringing in heavy machinery. If they have a ray
that makes people their slaves, they know they can count on an unlimited supply of native workers. The
cheapness and easy availability would more than offset the comparative inefficiency."

By now it was dinnertime. The army's cooks had provided an evening meal, and the Empire team
was invited to join the regulars—an invitation they certainly didn't refuse. The meal was a rough one,
prepared under the most adverse of conditions. The bombing of the city had disrupted both water and
power; food had to be cooked over an open wood fire, and water had to be brought in with great difficulty
from reservoirs outside of town. Still, Maguire's army managed to keep itself going and have enough left
over to give its hospitality to strangers.
 During the dinner, Maguire made the invitation Jules had been expecting, that the two groups
should team up to fight the invaders together. The romantic part of his soul longed to accept the offer; it
would be a fine and noble calling to fight for freedom against these heartless tyrannical monsters. At the
same time, he knew he had to put his talents to use in a much more important mission, getting information