Чужой
II
’Whatthehellareweflyingthrough?Cloudsorrocks?Ifwedon’tcrash,dollarstoyouraunt’scherrywegetanelectricalfiresomewhereintherelevantcircuitry.’
Unawareofthesteadycursingtakingplacebackinengineering,thefiveonthebridgewentaboutthebusinessoftryingtosetthetugdownintactandneartothesignalsource.
’Approachingpointoforigin.’Lambertstudiedagauge.’Closingattwenty-fivekilometres.Twenty.Ten,five..’
’Slowingandturning.’Dallasleanedoveronthemanualhelm.
’Correctcoursethreedegrees,fourminutesright.’Hecompliedwiththedirections.’That’sgotit.Fivekilometrestocentreofsearchcircleandsteady.’
’Tighteningnow.’Dallasfingeredthehelmoncemore.
’Threekiloms.Two.’Lambertsoundedjustamiteexcited,thoughwhetherfromthedangerorthenearnessofthesignalsourceDallascouldn’ttell.’We’repracticallycirclingaboveitnow.’
’Nicework,Lambert.Ripley,what’stheterrainlike?Findusalandingspot.’
’Working,sir.’Shetriedseveralpanels,herexpressionofdisgustgrowingdeeperasunacceptablereadingscameback.DallascontinuedtomakesuretheshiphelditstargetinthecentreofitscirclingflightpathwhileRipleyfoughttomakesenseoftheunseensurface.
’Visuallineofsightimpossible.’
’Wecanseethat,’Kanemumbled.’Orrather,can’tseeit.’Therarehalf-glimpsestheinstrumentshadgivenhimofthegroundhadn’tputhiminapleasantframeofmind.
