"Aleksandr Abramov, Sergei Abramov. Horsemen from Nowhere ("ВСАДНИКИ НИОТКУДА", англ.)" - читать интересную книгу автора

how long. To me it seemed to be an artificial cut. And under foot the cut
was just as artificial. Even at that time I noticed how insignificant the
density and thickness of the snow cover was. I can't help but feel that a
few kilometres from here we might find a similar wall parallel to this one.
It's sheer conjecture of course. But if it's right, then what kind of force
could have extracted and transported such a layer of ice? A cloud? Perhaps.
After all, we do not know its capabilities. But of European or American
origin?" He shrugged his shoulders. "Then you tell me, Anokhin, what were
these millions of tons of ice for and where have they disappeared to?"
"But was this an excavation, Boris Arkadievich? You say there are two
borders to an extracted layer. Why?" I exclaimed, "Where are the transverse
cuts? Besides it is more natural to perform the excavation in the form of a
crater."
"That is, if you are not concerned about movements over the continent.
Apparently, they did not want to interfere in such movements. Why? The time
has not yet come for conclusions, but I think that they are not hostile; on
the contrary, they appear to be friendly. Then look at it this way: for whom
is it more natural to excavate ice precisely in that fashion and not
otherwise? For us? We would have put up a fence around the site, nailed up
directions and instructions, announced the business over the radio. But
suppose they couldn't or didn't want to?"
"Who are these 'they'?"
"I am not making any hypotheses," Zernov answered dryly.


Chapter V. SLEEP WITHOUT DREAMS




I took along my cine camera on our journey to the tent but no "cloud"
put in an appearance. At our little council we decided to move to the cabin
of the tractor, make the necessary repairs and then move on. We received
permission to continue the search for the rose clouds. Just before our
discussion, I connected Zernov with Mirny. He reported the accident briefly,
mentioned the "clouds" we had seen and also the first movies I had taken of
them. He did not say anything- about duplicates and the other mysteries.
"Too early," he said to me.
They selected a nice site at a distance of a quarter of an hour on skis
with a wind at our back. The tent was up in the cave, which was protected
from the wind from three sides. However, the cave itself produced a strange
impression: a cube of ice had been carefully cut out and had left perfectly
smooth walls, as if they had been planed by hand. No icicles, no accretions
of ice. Zernov, without saying a word, punched the tip of his ski stick into
a geometrically regular cut of ice, as if to say that nature had nothing to
do with that.
We didn't find Vano in the tent, but everything was in disorder-an
upturned stove and the box with briquettes, skis thrown about, and the
leather coat of the driver at the entrance way. This was surprising and
suggested danger. Without taking off our skis we went in search of Chokheli