Калеки / Cripples: 1

— A warship? — said Alex.

Kelenius 11.02.12 в 13:36

The admiral nodded. A token smile appeared on his face.

Kelenius 11.02.12 в 13:44

— Let me guess... — muttered Alex, tipping back in the armchair.

Kelenius 11.02.12 в 13:45

The armchair was far from a standard device of metal and plastic for reliable bum replacement.

Kuropatka 11.02.12 в 20:24

It was a creation of a real master - made of dark cherry wood, tapestry fabric and real leather.

Kuropatka 11.02.12 в 20:27

The admiral's room was more like a boudoir of a blaze beauty - paintings on the walls, hand-made furniture, soft carpet on the floor.

Kuropatka 11.02.12 в 20:31

Even the only screen was in a graceful silver frame.

Kuropatka 11.02.12 в 20:40

Well, what else can you expect from people of Hedone?

Kelenius 11.02.12 в 13:49

- I am all attention, - said the admiral, touching up the lace lapel of his silk shirt.

Kuropatka 11.02.12 в 21:09

- You found an ancient warship, - assumed Alex. - Thaii's ship. Or - dating back to the first Empire. Or belonging to the yet unknown civilization. The ship works, but it doesn't let anybody on board, it burns your ships and demands to call the password. But the hordes of evil conquerors are approaching to Hedone, and you urgently need to gain the control over the ship. That's why you need my crew. Right?

Kuropatka 16.02.12 в 20:12

- How romantic! - the admiral admired. - Aye, you are a storyteller!

Kuropatka 11.02.12 в 21:19

Needn't resent "storyteller" - poets, writers and other unnecessary bohemia was extremely popular in Hedone.

Kuropatka 12.02.12 в 17:30

- Thank you. - Alex took the glass with a cocktail. Sipped with pleasure. - Did I guess?

Kuropatka 11.02.12 в 21:16

- Unfortunately, situation is mush worse, - the admiral sighed. - The ship is brand new, right from the slipways. Defensive systems... er... disabled, even a child can get aboard. And we are not supposed to be attacked, believe me! Hedone is a peaceful planet, we have a space fleet only for aesthetic purposes.

Kuropatka 12.02.12 в 10:10

Alex afforded a token smile too. There are no peaceful planets in the galaxy. Or, more accurate, there are some, but they change owners very often.

Kelenius 18.02.12 в 11:03

— What is your problem then?

Kelenius 10.02.12 в 19:59

Admiral indicated at the screen. Either screen was controlled via radioshunt or neuroterminal, or trained secretary, quietly sitting at a desk in the corner had no need of orders. Alex thought it is probably the latter — both implants and genetical specializations were discouraged at Hedone.

Kelenius 18.02.12 в 10:59

We bought the ship from the halflings, - said the admiral. - We ordered the most powerful, the most beautiful and the most excellent warship in the galaxy. The order have been carried out for eight years...

Kuropatka 12.02.12 в 10:19

Alex wasn't listening. He put the glass away and stared on the screen, not even trying to hide a rapture look on his face.

Kelenius 15.02.12 в 14:03

The ship was beautiful.

Kelenius 11.02.12 в 13:36

In space battles, everything follows function. Warships need to have maximum tonnage and hull area, because tonnage means energy, computers, armaments, and the somewhat less-important weight taking the form of a crew, and the hull is armor that even with all the defensive fields still always needs to be thicker.

TedNinja 24.08.12 в 00:07

What does it mean in practice?

Kuropatka 12.02.12 в 10:20

The simpliest arithmetic task and the simpliest geometric figure.

Kuropatka 12.02.12 в 10:22

Space battle is a battle of spheres.

Kelenius 11.02.12 в 13:55

Spheres of all manner of sizes smoothly slip (if you're watching from far off; if you're close-up they zoom) through space. The small spheres are fighters, slightly larger are destroyers, larger than that are cruisers, and the really big ones are battleships. If there is one, then among the ships you'll also see the gargantuan sphere of a dreadnaught.

TedNinja 24.08.12 в 01:59

Some of the spheres are shiny - that means they're equipped with reflective armor. Others are black - that means they're equipped with absorbent armor. The third are shifting-colored - that means that you've had the good fortune to glimpse newer ships with dynamic armor. That said, under black armor most likely you'd find reflective; under reflective, black; under the expensive and thus far not-in-service shifting-colored, a pair of layers of standard.

TedNinja 24.08.12 в 02:06

It is not arithmetics or geometry. It is physics.

Kelenius 11.02.12 в 13:40

It is mechanics.

Kelenius 11.02.12 в 13:40

It is tactics.

Kelenius 11.02.12 в 13:40

It is a tradition.

Kelenius 11.02.12 в 13:40

Sometimes one of the spheres finishes to maneuver and goes away under inertia. Sometimes - turns into a flashlight.

Kuropatka 26.03.12 в 19:01

That is the end.

neangel452 10.02.12 в 12:17

The ship, made for Hedone by the haflings, was like an alien - no, not from another world, laws of physics and geometry are the same in the whole Universe. It looks like an alien from another time. Dating back to the ancient and odd ages, when the weaponry was made not just deadly, but also beautiful.

Kuropatka 16.02.12 в 20:24

— A flower... — said Alex admiringly.

Kelenius 11.02.12 в 13:42

- We called it "Silver Rose", - the admiral said proudly. - A beautiful ship, isn't it?

Kuropatka 15.02.12 в 13:31

The ship slowly began to rotate, and Alex understood that the "flower" wasn't even symmetric. The "Petals" differed in shape and thickness, curvature of the bend. The "stem" wasn't totally smooth and straight either, the "spikes" were scattered completely chaotically.

Kuropatka 17.02.12 в 14:50

— And what's your problem? — said Alex, stopping staring at the screen with some effort.

Kelenius 15.02.12 в 14:08

- It doesn't want to fight, - the admiral quietly admitted.

Kuropatka 15.02.12 в 13:41

— Alex waved his hands:

Kelenius 11.02.12 в 13:43

- Wonderful! I got it, admiral! The halfligns equipped the ship with a too perfect computer! And that one retrieved a personality, understood all the horrors of war and refused to kill! Right?

Kuropatka 16.02.12 в 07:34

Alex looked at the admiral attentively. The admiral looked away.

Kuropatka 15.02.12 в 13:35

- Ok, - Alek said. - I understood. How does it look like on the practice?

neangel452 10.02.12 в 12:18