"Boris and Arkady Strugatsky. The snail on the slope" - читать интересную книгу автора

a lot about it, don't you? You even got to the City almost once, didn't you?
Only you got frightened of the deadlings and decided you couldn't get
through on your own. . . ."
"I wasn't frightened of deadlings any more than I am now," objected
Hopalong. "I'll tell you what I am afraid of, though. Are you going to be
quiet all the way? That's something I could never do. There's something else
as well . . . don't get angry at me. Dummy, just tell me, or if you don't
want to say it aloud, whisper, or nod, or if you don't even want to nod just
close that eye of yours, the right one in the shadow, nobody'll see only me.
The question I want to put is this: aren't you just a teeny bit of a
deadling? I can't stand deadlings, you know, I get the tremble when I see
them, can't do a thing with myself. . . ."
"No, Hopalong, I'm not a deadling," said Kandid. "I can't stand them
myself. If you're afraid I'll be too quiet for you, just remember we'll not
be alone, I've told you often enough, Buster's going with us, Barnacle, and
two men from New Village."
"I'm not going with Buster," said Hopalong with decision. "First Buster
took my daughter away and didn't take care of her. Lost her, he did. I
didn't mind him taking her, I do mind him not taking care of her. He was
going with her to New Village and robbers set on him and took my daughter
and he gave her up. Your Nava and me looked ages for her but we never found
her. No, Dummy, there's no sense messing with robbers. If we went to the
City, you and I, there'd be no peace from them. Now if it were the Reeds, no
trouble at all. We'll start tomorrow."
"The day after," said Kandid. "You'll go, Buster, Barnacle, and the two
from New Village. And we'll get right to the City."
"If there's six of us, we'll get there," said Hopalong confidently.
"I'd never get there on my own of course, but if there's six of us, we'll
get there. With six of us we'd get as far as Devil's Rocks, only I don't
know the way there. Shall we go to Devil's Rocks? Listen, Dummy, let's go to
the City and decide there, eh? There's food to get ready though, and plenty
of it."
"Okay," said Kandid, rising to his feet. "So the day after tomorrow, we
start for the City. Tomorrow I'll go to New Village, then I'll see and
remind you."
"Come around," said Hopalong. "I'd come to see you, only my leg aches,
no strength in it. You come around. We'll have a chat. There's a lot of folk
don't like talking to you, Dummy, it's pretty hard going, you know, but I
don't mind, I've got used to it, I even like it. Come around, and bring Nava
with you, she's a good girl, your Nava, no children though, they'll come
she's young yet, that Nava of yours. . . ."
Out on the street, Kandid wiped the sweat away with his palms.
Somewhere near, somebody cackled and started coughing. Kandid turned and saw
the old man waving a knotted finger of warning.
"The City, eh? So that's where you're off to? That's interesting,
nobody's ever got there alive, what's more it's not done. Even you should
know that even if you have got a transplanted head."
Kandid swung off to the right along the street. The old man trailed
along in the grass after him, muttering:
"If it's not done, then it's always forbidden in some sense or the