Звездопад / Starfall: Глава 6

Chapter 6

Camrad_RIP 17.05.23 в 09:32

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Camrad_RIP 17.05.23 в 09:33

Time is a strange thing. The heavy, thick curtains were pulled wide open, and the pale blue light of the moon filled the bedroom. Bright and unreal at the same time, it cast a ghostly silver on the polished sides of the furniture, making the room look like a painting in bluish colors or a faded photograph. Nothing disturbed this cast of frozen time. The windows, though open, were additionally covered by a protective field and let no breeze through, and only the occasional gleam of the distant lights of the capital on the ceiling let Alex know that time had not stopped.

Camrad_RIP 18.05.23 в 06:24

Time is a funny thing. Dreams were not coming, and he had been lying in bed staring at the ceiling for hours. Sixty minutes in an hour and sixty seconds in a minute. More than a couple of hours had passed, which meant he had been lying in bed staring at the ceiling for more than seven thousand seconds. Because there are three thousand six hundred seconds in each hour.

Camrad_RIP 18.05.23 в 06:26

Alex was a little proud of himself. This fact was not known to him by memory, but his brain exhausted by insomnia and alcohol still managed to multiply sixty by sixty, in his mind, without resorting to the help of the infoblock. However, he "cheated" with further calculations, using the calculator function to the fullest extent.

Camrad_RIP 18.05.23 в 06:27

Three hundred and sixty-five days in a year, twenty-four hours in a day, sixty minutes in an hour, sixty seconds in a minute. When you use that kind of time all your life, it becomes ingrained in you, becomes something completely natural that you don't think about, just as you don't think about the composition of the air you breathe, until that same composition becomes a problem.

Camrad_RIP 18.05.23 в 06:27

He hadn't been able to sleep for hours, but he still had plenty of time, because there were thirty hours in a day, of which normally ten were for sleeping. He had first encountered thirty hours a day during the flight, but he thought it was a purely "ship's" invention. It turned out to be the standard, thirty hours in a standard twenty-four-hour day. And the capital lived by that time. The situation was complicated by the fact that the planet itself revolved around its axis in fifty-six hours, but I guess it didn't matter. It was night now, but Alex was ready to swear that he could read a book outside without any artificial light, so bright was the moonlight. On the contrary, they were on the moon, and the huge silver-purple ball that filled the floor of the sky was the gas giant around which they were orbiting.

Camrad_RIP 18.05.23 в 06:31

//I wonder what counts as a local year here? Alex thought lazily, throwing his hands behind his head and looking at the ceiling. //The rotation of the moon around a gas giant or the turn of that giant around a star.

Camrad_RIP 18.05.23 в 06:32

He did not know, and he was too lazy to look because in principle it was absolutely unimportant. As he had already found out, the standard year, like the standard day, had nothing to do with revolutions of anything around anything and consisted of three hundred standard days.

Camrad_RIP 18.05.23 в 06:33

As the cherry on the cake was the discovery that the hour is actually a hundred minutes:

Camrad_RIP 18.05.23 в 06:33

//Why? That makes sense. Why not a hundred? Convenient.

Camrad_RIP 18.05.23 в 06:34

And there are fifty seconds in a minute. Why not a hundred? Because there was also a "full minute" of a full hundred seconds, but outside of scientific laboratories and precise calculations, it hasn't been used for a long time.

Camrad_RIP 18.05.23 в 06:35

All these facts added up to the fact that everyone around was actually older than at first thought. Simply because the local standard year, in seconds, was noticeably longer than Earth's. True, there were difficulties with the length of a second. There was nothing to compare it with.

Camrad_RIP 18.05.23 в 06:37

In fact, nothing more than an amusing fact. After all, what difference does it make how to count time? The problem was that there was no place for weeks and months in this system. There were decades. The year was divided into thirty decades, and the date was nominated very simply, the number of the day in the decade, the number of decades in the year, and the year itself. That's all, no weeks. True, once upon a time, there were weeks, and there were even months, and traces of them remain in determining the timing and duration of some holidays, especially religious - but no more than that, even the church did not use weeks for a hundred years, if not more.

Camrad_RIP 18.05.23 в 06:39

//"No wonder the Lord Inquisitor reacted this way." - Alex generally suspected that Sir Quezox might have realized there was something wrong with him. - But if he guessed something, then why did they formally complete the inspection?

Camrad_RIP 19.05.23 в 14:33

Even in the evening, a message came to him from Sir Ulter of the house representation. They had received all the necessary documents from the Inquisition, and there were no claims against him. It was unclear whether the pill passed by the princess was to be thanked for this or whether he really wasn't an adept either, but all the formalities had been completed. He passed the test.

Camrad_RIP 19.05.23 в 14:36

//Perhaps if Quezox had suspected something, he would not have completed it? Sir Ulter warned that sometimes the case could drag on. They could easily find an excuse if they wanted to." - Not that Alex was afraid of the attention of the Inquisition, but after the alcohol, the withdrawal from the pill, and general fatigue, he instead felt apathy to everything that was happening. Sleep did not come anyway, and he just stared at the ceiling. Sometimes for boredom, he turns on the infoblock, only to turn it off again with a sigh after a few minutes.

Camrad_RIP 19.05.23 в 14:42

He had been like this for at least an hour, maybe more when he heard the door to his bedroom quietly open with a thin streak of yellow light in a silver moonlit realm:

Camrad_RIP 19.05.23 в 14:48

"Your Lordship." He heard Liora whisper through the ajar door. "You are awake, aren't you?" The door opened a little wider, and she poked her head out from behind the door and asked louder:

Camrad_RIP 19.05.23 в 14:49

"Will you let me in?"

Camrad_RIP 19.05.23 в 14:50

"Yes, of course." Alex leaned up on his elbow and pulled the blanket up higher with his free hand. "Is something wrong?"

Camrad_RIP 19.05.23 в 14:51

"No, Your Lordship." Liora entered the room, and at her gesture, a small platform, in fact, a flying tray, floated in. What exactly was on the tray was hard to see, but it was stacked with some plates and jugs, and glasses. "Just sleeping pills if you choose to sleep, stimulants if you choose to stay awake, and some snacks."

Camrad_RIP 19.05.23 в 14:53

Liora remained at the very entrance to the room, shutting the door behind her, and the tray, making faintly audible purring noises, flew toward Alex.

Camrad_RIP 19.05.23 в 14:53

//Well, if it's not too much for her..." - He thought, looking at the tray of food that was literally bursting with food; in the large dish closest to him was a pile of tiny, crispy cakes, each the size of a fingernail, which was supposed to be served with soup, but Alex liked them terribly on their own. The tarts smelled awfully good, and his body suddenly reminded him that he'd hardly eaten anything with a loud rumbling sound in his stomach:

Camrad_RIP 19.05.23 в 14:58

"I just love these tarts." He murmured, a little embarrassed, "I didn't expect they made them here, too. Thank you, that's a nice surprise."

Camrad_RIP 19.05.23 в 14:58

"I contacted your Office," Liora explained from the far end of the room. She stood perfectly still, her blue dress disappearing into the moonlight, making her look like a ghost. "They helped me a great deal. Also, based on your preferences, I took the liberty of adding a few more dishes that you might like. For example, 'tartlets from Kasala,' perhaps your lordship would find them delicious."

Camrad_RIP 19.05.23 в 15:00

It did not escape Alex that Liora's voice was dry and lifeless in contrast to the sensual and playful tone he had heard just a few hours before:

Camrad_RIP 19.05.23 в 15:04

//Of course, I'm the one with insomnia, and she woke up in the middle of the night because of me. There must be some kind of biomonitor in the bedroom, too. Although..." He remembered there shouldn't be any such thing in the guest rooms.

Camrad_RIP 19.05.23 в 15:05

"So there's a biomonitor or something like that in the bedroom?" He asked aloud, with obvious displeasure, not that he was surprised that the Imperial palace could peep at its guests. // It's just odd that they don't even try to hide it."

Camrad_RIP 19.05.23 в 15:06

No, Your Lordship, nothing like that," Liora hastily assured me, "any form of technical surveillance of guests is absolutely forbidden by the palace regulations. I..." She hesitated a little, and her voice sounded confused, "I sensed you were bored. I'm almost adept, you know..." She added, pointing to her ribbon in a low voice.

Camrad_RIP 19.05.23 в 15:30

"I thought there was supposed to be a purple vine or branch like that on the Adept's ribbon." Pronounced Alex, pulling the tray of snacks closer to him. He was interested in adepts in general and was aware of their insignia, and the combination of blue and purple stripes was not among them. At least, he didn't find one.

Camrad_RIP 19.05.23 в 15:32

"The Inquisition does not classify linear payo as full-fledged adepts because of their extreme weakness of ability. They are placed in a separate category, Your Lordship."

Camrad_RIP 19.05.23 в 15:37

"Who are the linear payo?" He asked with sincere interest, taking from the tray a tartlet advertised by Artala. It was an ordinary tartlet, small, made of sandy dough, with some kind of filling that smelled pleasantly of mint and a small green almond in the center. A peanut, maybe.

Camrad_RIP 19.05.23 в 15:38

"The payo are slaves, Your Lordship." There was suddenly so much unexpected aggression and challenge in Liora's voice that Alex froze with the tartlet in his mouth, looking at the maid in surprise:

Camrad_RIP 19.05.23 в 15:39

"Bred in Sociar by direct selection." Liora continued, and despite the semi-darkness of the bedroom, you could see her eyes glinting angrily in the opposite corner of the room. "With genetically inherent servility and psionic abilities so degenerate that loss of stability is impossible. Linearity was provided by inbred insemination by the male line. This, your lordship, means that each new generation of Payo girls became pregnant by their own fathers. Or should I say father, the same genetic material was used for all payo, which is how laboratory animals are bred. It was a disgusting practice that gave rise to an equally disgusting result."

Camrad_RIP 19.05.23 в 15:42

"His Lordship" froze, looking at Liora glaring angrily, not quite understanding what happened, he had the feeling that he was verbally slapped on the cheeks, but it was completely unclear why:

Camrad_RIP 19.05.23 в 15:43

//It's a shame, isn't it? I didn't do anything but ask." He paraphrased the classic in his mind as he sat down on his bed and chewed the tartlet thoughtfully. It was a salty, crumbly tartlet with a very light filling of low-fat cottage cheese, almost neutral in flavor, which only emphasized the taste of almonds. It turned out to be a very juicy berry with a delicate but rich fruit flavor and a pleasantly subtle sourness, the texture resembling that of a large cherry.

Camrad_RIP 19.05.23 в 15:44

"A very tasty tartlet." He said it out loud to lighten the mood, and I had to hand it to Liora. Her recommendation was one hundred percent accurate, and he really liked it. "Especially the berry, so tender."

Camrad_RIP 19.05.23 в 15:45

"It's not a berry, Your Lordship. It's a fruit bug that lives on Kasala." It was hard to see Liora's facial expression in the half-light, but her tone didn't sound like she was joking.

Camrad_RIP 19.05.23 в 15:46

"A bedbug?" Just in case, he asked again, hoping he'd misheard.

Camrad_RIP 19.05.23 в 15:46

"Bedbug," Liora repeated clearly.

Camrad_RIP 19.05.23 в 15:47

"An insect?" Alex clarified, fearing that the tartlet might go in the opposite direction.

Camrad_RIP 19.05.23 в 15:48

"Quite right, Your Lordship, it is an insect. It must be served alive, only thoroughly washed, and its legs torn off. For ease of serving."

Camrad_RIP 19.05.23 в 15:48

He listened to his body, the tartlet didn't seem to go back:

Camrad_RIP 18.05.23 в 06:44

"Interesting." Philosophically, Alex sighed. "I haven't eaten live bedbugs yet." And pushing the tray slightly in Liora's direction, he asked:

Camrad_RIP 19.05.23 в 15:49

"Don't you want one yourself? Pretty tasty bedbug."

Camrad_RIP 19.05.23 в 15:51

"It is unbecoming of a maid to eat in the presence of an illustrious prince." Liora categorically cut her off. "I will tell the cooks that you were satisfied. I will not disturb your lordship any further. If you need anything, you can summon me at any time." She added and quickly bowed and exited, dazzling Alex for a moment with the bright yellow light of the open door.

Camrad_RIP 19.05.23 в 15:52

//That's what's interesting, though, is that there was no wild reaction like the first time. - He noted in his mind, staring thoughtfully at the tray of food. - "She didn't come close this time, kept to the other side of the room - maybe that's why? Some kind of aura around her? Since she's "almost an adept" or something, pheromones of some kind. I'd better find out..."

Camrad_RIP 19.05.23 в 15:53

His hand reaches for another tartlet, deciding that resistance is futile, Alex shrugs it off and poisons it into my mouth:

Camrad_RIP 19.05.23 в 15:54

//Bedbug or not, it's an extremely tasty wretch. Anyway, what's the big deal? I ate ants when I was a kid.

Camrad_RIP 19.05.23 в 15:54