Classics fantasy – 6

– Europe and Asia – good “center”!

– Yes, to destroy a big half of the world. Before it they will not stop! But we are not idle too. Li is close to permission of a task – to find the tool punching all protecting means of Americans.

– But Li is an astronomer?

– The astronomer, the engineer, the artist, the chess player – everything that you want. And in all areas it – the first-class size. Days it gives to the engineering occupations, and works as nights with Tong.

– Also is not tired?

– Li – at least; our youth does not know fatigue. You do not want to sleep?

– I feel perfectly.

– Well, here you see. And so, we received data that one of spies is sent to us. In it it is a high time you appeared. Now you will understand our precaution concerning you?

– Unless I am similar to the American spy? – poluvozmushchenno-polunedoumevayushche I asked.

Ale shrugged shoulders:

– The ingenuity of the enemy is boundless. Bad that spy, at a view of whom each child will tell: “It is the spy”. You do not take offense. I trust you. But nevertheless some time we still will have to be engaged in your personality. Situation is too serious. Do not worry, you will use freedom.

– Remaining at the same time under supervision?

– Just at you will be to the chicherena, otherwise you will have nobody to throw with questions. I will sometimes accompany you if you have nothing against. By the way, today I will be able to visit with you “the country of memoirs”.

– Willingly – I answered, without deciding to bother it with new questions any more: what it for “the country of memoirs”?

– You have to learn our language, you see as far as I trust you. Study rather.

– With great pleasure, though to admit, I have no special linguistic abilities.

– It will not take a lot of time you. Here, you look – Ale turned on the screen again. On it images of objects began to appear, and their name at the same time sounded, and over the image the inscription appeared. On the screen throughout a minute flew, at least, fifty objects words.

– And well repeat them.

To my amazement, I repeated them without any work.

– Believe that you will not forget them any more. By the morning you will perfectly master language.

– I do not learn the memory! – I exclaimed.

we have a small secret which helps memory!. You not just see objects and their verbal image and hear a pronunciation. All these visual and acoustical phenomena are followed by the radiation of special radio waves.

– Again radio!

– Not without reason our city is called Radiopolis. You will hear about radio still more than once. And so, these radio waves strengthen brain perception, deeply imprint in a brain visual and acoustical impressions – the word, accelerate storing process. Only in such way our younger generation also has an opportunity to incorporate a huge number of modern knowledge and to be deeply educated in the most various areas.

– But abstract concepts?.

– You will see them figuratively and will acquire them as easily as the simplest things.

The door opened, Li and the room was entered also by Ea. I with new curiosity looked at Li. Engineer, astronomer! Directly incredibly. At us in Moscow girls from a ballet school so look.

This time the astronomer looked anxious. Li quietly whispered to Ale several words.

Having addressed me, Ale told:

– Important news: we, apparently, found our American a trace. We have to leave you. Be engaged in studying of language so far. In two-three hours I will come for you.

And these surprising people quickly left.

Chapter 4

IN THE COUNTRY OF MEMOIRS

There was an early morning when I came to the observatory platform. Our air dwelling shone in beams of a rising sun as a race car, and below Radiopolis still sank in a bluish haze at dawn.

– Good morning! How do you feel? – I about myself heard a voice of Ea. She spoke the language, but now I have it down to a science. It was no Esperanto as I thought in the beginning though Esperanto was the basis for modern international language, simpler and sonorous.

– I thank you, perfectly – I answered the girl. – Ale promised to accompany me today.

– Here it flies – she answered, Looking in the chasm which revealed under us.

I saw nothing yet.

– Tell how this air construction keeps in air? – I asked.

– The propellers placed under the platform hold it, and gyroscopes give full horizontal stability. Quite capital construction. Just in case all of us hold several parachutes here.

– On one of which I also made the involuntary trip?

– And it is very happy for the first time – smiling, Ea answered.

– But to set propellers in motion, strong motors and for them the whole warehouses of fuel are necessary?.

– Our energy for all engines is broadcast – Ea answered.

– Again radio!

Below small noise and a voice of Ale was heard:

– Good morning! Put on rather wings, we fly to the country of memoirs!

I put on the wings brought to me by Ea. Ale examined wide belts, crosswisely strapped on my breast, and made instructions how to operate this aircraft, unusually simple on a design.

– Try to rise and fall on the platform – he told.

Not without nervousness I turned a rychazhok at my hip. Sustavchaty wings as at a bat, trembled at me behind the back, and I felt that the soil crumbles under the feet. Instinctively I placed hands and legs, as if being going to fall to all fours. My look was probably very ridiculous, I heard the muffled laughter of Ea.

– Stick to pryamy! – ordered El. – Right lever. Turn. It is more. So. Return. Left lever back.

I smoothly fell.

– Well. We can fly.

I and Ale approached the region of the platform, a vsprygnula on a fencing and… rushed down. It was my third air travel in Radiopolis which left in me the strongest impression. I had to fly once on airplanes. But unless it is possible to compare that bulky, roaring car of my time to these wings which almost you do not feel! For the first time I felt the flying person easy and free as a bird.

Several seconds of flight – and we left the space lit with the sun, having plunged into blue twilight.

Ale flew row, a little ahead, directing the flight to the Kremlin.

Soon under us the fountain already familiar to me in a cypress grove seemed.

Our wings so slightly rustled that we could talk freely.

– These cypresses – I pointed to a grove – are exposed for the summer from a greenhouse?

– No, they freely grow here. We changed climate. What are you surprised to? We could reach it in the different ways, but for this purpose there was enough also one radiant energy of the sun. You know that on space in one square kilometer this energy used only for ten percent will be able to perform the work equal to seventy five thousand millions horsepowers. We receive thousands of millions horsepowers of this energy in one Turkestan: quite enough that not only “to be warmed”, but to put all our cars in action.

Towers of the Kremlin flew under us. We fell by the quiet snow square and put wings. There was an early winter morning.

– We restored the past a century after a century. All old Moscow – your Moscow – is turned into the museum – told Ale. – Flying from a quarter in a quarter, you as if will fly from century to century. Before you all will pass characteristic of this time, from architecture to life trifles.

Ale was right: we really flew from a century a century.

– Let’s come into one of commissariats. Not nevertheless to you to ask me, I want to ask about something you too as at the contemporary of this era, to fill up the historical knowledge – he told, smiling. – You where served?

I answered…

We entered the familiar building. I was involuntarily captured by nervousness. Everything remained still. Whether miracle? Even my desk and on it folders of affairs – everything as I left them yesterday if only it was yesterday.

– Will you be so kind as to explain to me, than you were engaged what your work consisted in?

I was flattered. At last I will be able to offer explanations for this person of unlimited knowledge. I willingly opened the folders and began to explain what my work consisted in. Ale listened carefully. Sometimes it seemed to me that he wants to correct me, but, obviously, I was mistaken: he only not absolutely understood me and asked explanations.

– There is enough – at last he told. – I was finally convinced that you as it is strange, the person from the past. Nobody is better than me does not know last history. And you showed – in the area, of course – such knowledge that any thought of a mystification is excluded.

I understood it not at once.

– Thought of a mystification?. – And suddenly, having understood, I involuntarily reddened from disappointment. – Means, all this was only test?

Ale friendly took me by hand.

– I assure you, the last – he answered. – And now, to smooth unpleasant impression which, I see my cunning necessarily left, we will examine fluently other departments of our museum. For us they also only the country of memoirs, and for you is the country of not given rise future.

And suddenly, without visible communication, he told:

– Yes, yes. I am very glad. Only car? It is interesting to look. – After that, addressing me, explained: – Li reports that he found the broken flying car buried in sand near the Red Sea.

– But it is for thousands of versts!

– For us there are almost no distances – Ale answered. Having taken out the device reminding the tseyssovsky field-glass from a pocket it twisted eyepieces, looking at divisions with figures, and looked, then transferred him to me.

I saw the sandy seashore. From a heap of sand parts of some broken device were seen. Li stood nearby and looked in the same field-glass in the direction to me. Obviously, having seen me, Li smiled and friendly waved a hand. I answered it.

– I am not surprised to range of distance of your field-glasses any more. But how they can see through walls and only what is necessary?

– You see what is necessary by means of exact aiming. And to see through a barrier? Unless it is so surprising for you, familiar with X-ray beams?

– But they not absolutely that.

– New always not absolutely the fact that old, it also differs in that from old – with a smile Ale answered. – We fly!

And we departed to examine Moscow, new to me.

– We rise above. This site – Moscow of the second half of the twentieth century. Along with multystoried skyscrapers you see also those houses which stood in your time. There is already the whole network of the underground railroads and construction of air is begun. Moscow by this time long ago passed old borders and widely spread extensively. At the beginning of the twenty first century we built skyscrapers, but already separated from each other by big vacant sites. You look.

The strange look was represented by this new Moscow. On huge space towered symmetrized as if milestones, skyscrapers to several dozens of floors, with flat roofs.

– For landing of aircrafts – explained Ale.

– One cannot say that this city looked very beautiful – I involuntarily told, looking at the sad square stuck by houses columns.

– But it is more hygienic, than your dense old cities. When we began to build Moscow of skyscrapers, we had many disputes on whether to build these mansions or to start constructions of the cities houses where the multimillion population could live literally under the same roof. A dispute there began our doctors-hygienists who warned against hobby for urbanism, predicting physical degeneration of the population in too artificial living conditions of these cities houses. But we were not so rich yet to finish the cities. These mansions skyscrapers were a compromise.

– To finish the cities?

– Yes, and we were through with them. Eventually density of the population is caused not only a lack of land area as was in New York of the twentieth century, but also relative low cost of “housing concentration”, and also imperfections of ways of communication.

The radio policy – only the old name which remained behind the area. We have no more cities. If you fly by from Moscow to Leningrad, you will find continuous gardens, fields and white lodges scattered among them, but the cities there, in other place will not find.

– But you unproductively occupied the huge land area which could go under crops!

– You do not represent progress of our agrikultura. On square meter we get food more, than you got on the… to tithe. By the way, from where there was this word? Root, apparently, “ten”?

– I do not know – I confusedly answered.

Ale smiled.

– Besides, we produce food in the chemical way. We and now have more parks and flower beds, than fields. Yes, a lot of things changed for these years. We have no cities, we have no government, we have no offices. The category of “sovrabotnik” necessary in due time died out long ago as horses died out. By the way, you still can see several horses in our zoo, and sovrabotnik remained only in the form of museum dummies. They, however, are very similar to the original.

For me it was really the biggest sensation for all stay in Radiopolis. There are no offices, there are no sovrabotnik! It too. Whether Ale jokes? How it is possible to do without sovrabotnik?

– But themselves writes papers? – with the sneer which is not deprived of bitterness I told.

– My friend, at us papers “are not written” at all. I see, you cannot accustom with all these changes at once.

We smoothly fell by a green lawn. Among this lawn, on a sandy circle, there was a cigar-shaped gray subject reminding the zeppelin, but considerably smaller sizes.

Near the zeppelin there was Ea. She still from a distance waved a hand to Ale and shouted:

– More likely, it is necessary to hurry!

I and Ale, without removing wings, entered the zeppelin. Эа followed us and densely slammed a thick door. Bright light flashed, having lit easy chairs, a table, the screen in a corner.

– It is our “Gun”, the most skorostrelny aircraft.

Эа passed forward, for the varnished partition. From there the buzzing was heard, and I felt how a forward part of our aircraft rose.

– We fly – told Ale.

– Why there are no windows here?

– They are not necessary: speed and flight altitude are so big that all of you equally will see nothing.

Where I still fly? What waits for me ahead?.

Chapter 5

ON THE BANK OF THE RED SEA

We rushed on our air shell which was at the same time both the gun, and a kernel. Behind a partition something quietly buzzed.

– Tell, Ale why you, Ea and Li are engaged in searches? Directed “investigation” about me, now you chase all over the world this American spy. Or you combine…

– The scientist’s position with an honorary title of the detective? – asked El. And, having sighed, continued: – I see that it is difficult for you to get used to our social system. I said to you that we have no militia in sense of the word, usual for you. But if you want, we have each citizen – the militiaman or the investigator if it is demanded by circumstances. Each our citizen, without instructions and codes, knows how to protect interests of society. And if the case gave it to face the fact menacing to our order and tranquility this citizen and finishes business.

– But it has also other duties?

– What from this? At the investigator too not one business happens on hands. Obligatory social activities take us about three hours. There is time to be engaged – at least and searches of the American spy.

– You told that obligatory work takes about three hours you. Why you did not specify exact norm?

– Under the code about work? – with a smile asked Ale. – We have no exact norm, there is no code also. If business of it demands – we work! And it is more than three hours. But it happens only in exceptional cases: some casual accidents, natural disasters. Our usual work “at the machine” does not exceed three hours.

– And the rest of the time?

– Everyone is engaged in what he wishes. The main thing and our almost exclusive occupation – we study, study and study. Continuously we fill up the knowledge, we invent.

– And if Who does not want to work even three hours a day? What coercive measures you take against idlers?

Ale looked at me with extreme amazement.

– Forgive, but this time I refuse to understand you – he told. – Unless it is necessary to force fish to float, and a bird to fly? It is their vital sign. The same vital sign, insuperable requirement is for us work.

– But work can be unpleasant, for example hard physical work.

– Physical work is carried out by our slaves.

I even jumped up on a chair.

– Slaves? You have a slavery?

– Well that so surprises you? Enslaved forces of nature, cars – here our slaves. And all of us, free citizens, work not only from consciousness of public advantage – it is the alphabet about which we already forgot – but also because work became for us the second nature long ago.

– What is it? Light went out?!

– Do not worry, I want to look at the card – told Ale.

Before it the square on which outlines of some sea appeared flashed poor light.

– This card moves?

– Yes, it moves because we fly. Our card – the earth. Here… as it you called outlines?. Sea of Azov, here Black. We fly by it.

– Already! So soon…

– Turkey. We will see the Red Sea soon.

– But how you can do absolutely without card?

– Эа directs our air ship on a radio compass. Li sends a radio wave, and we fly in this direction as butterflies on a spark. The mistake cannot be. However, we can if it is necessary, cope according to the card and a magnetic compass…

And, having bent down over the card, Ale told:

– The twentieth degree of northern latitude and the fortieth – east longitude. We in the neighborhood of Mecca. We will be on the place soon.

Some more minutes of flight, and we smoothly fell.

Эа opened a door of our shell, and we left.

Li welcomed us.

– Here, admire – he told, pointing to fragments.

On the seashore in brown sand these fragments of the air ship charred and so crippled lay that it was impossible to define its design. The rostrum probably not less than on three meters buried in sand, having formed in it a wide funnel.

– Judge: whether it was possible to escape at such accident? The American spy died, this time we can be quiet and not continue our searches – Li told.

– Yes, of course – Ale answered and, having climbed up a funnel, began to bypass it, attentively examining. Then he suddenly sat down on sand, sighed and corrected a white helmet on the head.

– Li, you did yourself eye operation?

Li for some reason was confused.

Ale reproachfully shook the head:

– Good eyes, Li, are necessary not only to you personally. Our Union of workers has to have sharp-sighted eyes. Why you did not perform operation?

Having addressed me, Ale continued:

– We, people of the future, stand immeasurably above our ancestors in the intellectual relation. But physical our nature, alas, lost something in new conditions of culture. All of us more lose hair. Эа, remove the headdress…

Эа, smiling, removed a cap and without confusion showed the head on which there was no uniform hair.

– Here you see – continued Ale. – Idea of beauty changed. We find fine the hairless head of the woman and would be horrified by the hairy monster similar the mane on an animal. You do not take offense – he blinked the eyes, looking at me. – Too it is better for you to remove hair not to draw excessive attention to themselves. We will be engaged then in your toilet. And so, hair… Then teeth. You already know that we do not eat some firm food. We do not need teeth. It is natural that they without work become more and more weak. Through several generations people will become absolutely toothless and the lower jaw will turn into a small appendage.

– And it will be beautiful too?

– For the time, of course.

– I represent – I told, smiling – that some Praksitel, the ingenious sculptor of the future, will cut the statue embodying an ideal of female beauty from marble…

– It will have the huge head without hair, a small chin, a mouth without teeth, almost men’s constitution, very thin legs and hands, fingers without nails…

– What disgrace! – involuntarily I exclaimed.

– If the gorilla could speak, then at a view of Venus Meditseyskaya’s statue he probably would also exclaim: “What disgrace!” would also transfer a loving and delighted look to the chetveroruky, heavy-faced, shaggy companion to life – Ale answered. – Everything is conditional in this world, my friend. Stars in the sky change, lands change, the person changes, his concepts about fine change. We lose what to us stops being necessary. We hear worse, than you, and you – it is much worse, than our ancestors of the Stone Age, and it is clear: we are not trapped any more by a predator behind each bush.

– Unfortunately, in the world there were still biped predators – thoughtfully told Ea – they it is more terrible than quadrupeds. And, perhaps, this … – Ea showed on car fragments.

– Yes, this – its Ale interrupted. – I not incidentally asked Li whether he performed eye operation. All of us are short-sighted. Far-sightedness was not necessary to the person of the city. His look rested against walls eternally. We live more freely. Our horizons are wider. We became beings flying. Sharp-sighted sight to us became necessary again. And in the nature so: if the body is necessary if it begins to work strenuously, it develops strenuously. And, I think, our descendants who, perhaps, will live in air more, than on the earth, will find vigilance of eagles again. But we inherited from you, people with a limited outlook of the city, short-sightedness. Also we fight against it. Your points do not satisfy us. With them there are a lot of efforts, they can break. And we simply operate eyes, setting a new crystalline lens. Here Li for some reason does not want to do operation though it is painless and takes only several minutes.

– Tomorrow I will make, at least only to give you pleasure.

– I thank you, Li – Ale answered. – Make and for this purpose and for another. Approach here, Ea what you see?

The girl ascended to an embankment around the fallen shell and looked around. She thought, something is obvious looking for that drew attention of Ale.

– I see that from the center of a funnel to edge there are further deepenings which… um… perhaps, it is possible to take for traces.

– Traces? – Li asked. – Really?

– Whether somebody went here? – asked El.

– No, place absolutely desert. Nobody rose by an embankment.

– And you?

– I ascended only from this party.

Ale passed on sand.

– Here you see – he told – sand very unsteady. It is showered and does not give distinct traces. If to stir sand here so the end of a leg, then just the same hollows turn out.

– What do you assume? – asked confusedly Li.

– I assume, my dear, but short-sighted friend – Ale answered – that our American spy is well.

– But it could not escape in this accident?! Or his bones are stronger than duralumin, and the body and on fire does not burn? – already a little sensitively Li told.

– And who told you that there was an accident? – objected El. – Everything could occur very simply. Mr. spy safely fell on the device, got out, then blew up it.

– But how it then will return back home?

– It or they could arrive on two aircrafts and offer one to cover up tracks.

– And other ship?

– Another can be in other place. However we will continue our survey.

We went on traces, attentively examining them. Traces went on the sandy plain aside and vanished in several meters. On this place in sand there was a small deepening.

– Vanished into thin air? – smiling, I asked.

– On the contrary, rose from the earth on wings. Situation becomes complicated! Locals better us know vicinities. It is necessary to warn them – told Ale.

– I in Mecca have a friend the chess player, to call him? – offered Li.

– Perfectly – Ale answered.

We had put wings behind the back. We turned levers at a belt, wings trembled, and the earth began to crumble under our feet.

– Here once there was a fruitless valley – pointed Ale down to the outspread continuous gardens cut with direct silver lines of channels. Among gardens white roofs of the houses standing far apart were seen. – If you expect to see the Arab city, with its markets, benches, coffee houses, camels and dirt, you will be disappointed. There is no city long ago. I already said to you that we have no cities.

– And here also Vadi, my friend flies, I called him – Li told, pointing to the approaching person with wings.

It was with us soon. We with curiosity examined Each other. And, of course, Vadi was more surprised with my exterior, than I am him. It almost differed in nothing from my satellites, only his clothes were from white fabric yes the person a little more swarty. I, in the heavy suit from Moskvoshvey, with points on a nose and wings behind the back probably had very comical appearance. To me was extraordinary hot, the collar of a shirt became crumpled, hair were disheveled.

– The person from the past, I recommend – told Ale.

– You know about arrival of the American spies?

– Li spoke to me.

– They fell nearby from here and, apparently, departed. It is necessary to find for them by all means.

Radium nodded.

– Report on radio across all Arabia. Look for everywhere. Mobilize youth – children have a sharp eye. Search each fold of mountains, each bush.

Radium once again nodded, looking into the sky. Suddenly he grabbed Ale by a hand.

– You look, Ale, this air ship is not pleasant to me.

All turned eyes towards the sky.

– Yes, it is not our design. Give an alarm signal – told Ale.

The unknown air ship, having drawn a semicircle in the sky, was behind the horizon. Vadi told something in a fist, and in a minute risen as the scared flock of birds, from the earth airplanes departed after the departed air ship.

– More likely, to our “Gun”! – El shouted.

Being dripping with sweat in burning beams of the Arabian sun, I flew behind my satellites to the seashore.