Classics fantasy – 6

Chapter 6

WHITE LODGE

That evening the American air boat managed to escape prosecution, using quickly come darkness.

– Well, it is necessary to postpone searches. Our Arab companions will watch the enemy. And we fly on the North, to Radiopolis. – And, having looked at the watch, Ale continued: – I have to give a lecture on radio. However you should be arranged on a constant residence – he addressed me.

– We fly to me – offered Li. – I live 56-30-28 on 45-6-2.

– It that, such long name of the street?

– Absolutely not, so we call briefly degrees, minutes and seconds of geographical longitude and width. We have no cities therefore we should give such addresses.

– Where it will be?

– Approximately in those places where there was your Nizhny Novgorod, on Volga. The good place – Ale told.

We flew on our wings to public hangars and took there the small air boat by which rose in an air height.

The dark southern night sky was ispolosovano the shining roads noting a way of air superhighways.

Huge vessels continuously slid on air waves of these shining rivers.

– Where these air giants and where terminal points of their routes move?

– They move on ring lines as celestial bodies, and do not stop anywhere. Each of these air dreadnoughts has the line. It is necessary to us here on that – pointed Li to the second of the crossed lines.

– The more flight ring, the higher it air-line. You see how it is convenient – in air the whole arbor from the crossing air ways!

We dexterously moored to the ship which a little slowed down the movement. Instead of usual (two thousand kilometers per hour) its speed decreased to five hundred in an hour while we caught up with it.

Our boat together with us was entered in the cigar-shaped ship. As if the shark of the atmosphere swallowed a small small fish.

On arrival into place our boat was dumped down. By this boat we reached airfield, left it there, and on “own” wings behind a back flew to Li’s house.

Ale and Ea said goodbye to us and departed to other party.

– You had to fly with changes. This inconvenience should be stood only at long distances. I fly to Radiopolis zhe on the aerobil.

– Collisions do not happen?

– Any opportunity is excluded. At a meeting our aircrafts automatically deviate under the influence of a radio wave aside.

– Here we and houses – Li told, falling by the platform at a white lodge with a continuous window wall on the South.

As soon as Li stepped into the platform, over it the non-transparent light bulb lit up. In the house light also appeared.

– Wait for you?

– No, light is switched on automatically as soon as I fall by the earth. We need to wash and change clothes after the journey. I will lead you at first to a bathroom.

Having bypassed the house, Li opened a door.

– I ask you.

I entered very small room box in which there were no more than four square meters. Naked walls, any situation, only a small case in a corner.

“It is impossible to tell that this lobby was cozy” – I thought.

Li very densely closed behind himself a door, approached a case and took out two antigas masks from there. Giving one of them to me, he told:

– In order to avoid emergence of epidemics – though at us about them it is not heard – each of us, having returned from a long trip, considers a duty to undergo disinfection. Alas, our organism is not adapted for fight against diseases in such measure as our ancestors and therefore all of us focus attention on the prevention of diseases had it. Cold puts us to bed. What to do? It is necessary to be protected.

He put on a mask the person, inviting me to follow its example. Then turned the small crane fixed into the same case where masks were stored, and the room was suddenly filled white as milk, gas. In three minutes also quickly air was purified. Li lit some metal match. It flashed blue fire. He nodded and unmasked.

– Remained gas exactly so much to disinfect our airways. Now we go to a bathroom.

It opened a door, and I was struck. The white bathroom all which is filled in with some special golden light was too huge for the private apartment. In the middle of this room there was such big marble basin that in it it was possible to float freely. On both sides of the pool there was a double number of white columns, and among them there were blossoming plants. In one side of the room there was a black ebonite platform with a chair, and over it something like an umbrella without matter. Near a chair there was a case.

– You sit down – Li told and, having looked at me, continued: – Yes, you should shave and leave your head of hear. Um, we have no hairdressers – at us hair just do not grow, there are no scissors and razors. Let’s put, the razor could be got from the museum. But it is the whole operation. It is possible to be cut. Blood, blood poisoning, br-r… Better I to you to a call a product for destruction of hair.

“I will cause a product for destruction of hair” that for strange expression” – I thought.

Li approached the distributive board hidden in flowers and, having told something, pressed several buttons. Did not pass also minutes as in a wall the door which is not noticed by me earlier opened. There was something like a spray.

– From where it? – I asked.

– Sent from a warehouse on an automatic pipe.

Having taken a spray in hand and having wrapped up me a sheet, he asked:

– Allow?

– Please – I obediently answered and blinked, expecting that I will begin to be spryskivat. But Li only fanned me some pryano smelling current of air. And it appeared enough that my hair fell about the heads as cut, and the person took smoothly shaved form.

Li was satisfied with the work.

– Perfectly. You were quit with hair for the rest of life and, the right, so look much better.

Having looked at the hair lying around me on a floor, Li shuddered all over and even turned pale.

– Hair in general are awful, but dead hair are even more awful. Forgive me, but I cannot force to move away them. Perhaps, to cause nippers, brushes?

– Only brush.

– Here the floor is washed automatically – Li as if justified himself. – But hair, they… they can litter pipes. It is better to burn them. You know that, we will burn also your disgusting suit.

– What? To burn a suit? No, I thank you!

– But why it to you? I to you will cause a fine suit of our breed.

Near me there was one more door. Li opened it and told:

– In this small room there is a waste incineration furnace. I you very much ask to throw hair, a suit into the furnace and…

– You know that, we disinfected it, killed all microbes of the twentieth century, we will leave it as a museum subject – I used cunning, wishing to save the suit from fire of this house crematorium.

– Well, I agree. Let me take of you measurements. Your suit will be whole, but you after all will put on another. Here so. You much above me. What color you prefer?

“I would be good in golubenky, devil take it” – I thought.

– Black, gray, as a last resort olive.

– Well. I will cause a suit. For now undress and swim for a while in the pool. Throw linen into this hatch in a floor.

Li left.

I undressed and began to go down on white steps to water. But hardly fingers of my leg touched water, I screamed from surprise, having felt pricks thousands of needles.

– Forgive – I heard Li’s voice about myself though it was not in the room – I forgot to warn you – water of an elektrizovan. We cannot do without it, electricity is a massage for our nerves. I will reduce current now.

Li entered, turned the lever, undressed and plunged into the water.

Having swum for a while and having dived, we left. Bathing in electric water miraculously refreshed me.

– Now one more electrization – Li told. – Sit down on this chair.

I obediently took seat on the chair standing on the black ebonite platform. And suddenly since the ends of rods of “umbrella” streams of pale lilac light zastruitsya.

– Electric shower. Well?

– Yes… yes… about – it is very good – I told, feeling as the criminal sentenced to death on an electric chair. However everything was safely.

– Now here here – Li continued to dispose of me – pass to this case. This is, so to speak, the automatic doctor-controller. Give your hand. So. It here.

Li applied to my pulse and heart of a plate, attached to cords, and turned off light. On the screen there was a shining curve, it noted blows of my heart.

– Yes, heart at you is a little not as it should be – Li told. – Let’s look at a stomach, lungs.

On the screen the image of my internals appeared.

– Lungs as it should be. But the stomach is strongly reduced. Obviously, on one chemical food pills it is difficult for you to exist – the organism did not get used yet. I will order to you something like porridge and mousse. At us also not still passed to pills. There are fans of more “essential” food though all these dishes very easy and semi-fluid.

Li lit fire.

I sighed, having remembered a good piece of meat. But it was not necessary and to dream of it. They for the sake of me will not kill the last cow of a zoo?

– Well, at you everything is relative as it should be. And I will accept electromassage.

Li, улегшись on a long bench, pressed the button, and suddenly from under a bench some hands cores terminating in spheres, handles, rakes got out. All these “hands” attacked on Li’s body and began to rumple it, to rub, poshlepyvat, drum, iron.

From outside it seemed, perhaps fell into clutches some terrible arachnoid insect. Well, perhaps saved me though from this pleasure. I, probably, would shout for fear, broke joints of these metal paws and fell down from a bench.

But Li felt excellently, turned over with a side sideways and repeated:

– Well, perfectly!

At last this execution came to an end. Li quickly rose and put on in a pure blue tunic.

– And here to you – he told, giving me the same tunic from silvery fabric.

I put on. And when looked in the big mirror fixed into a wall did not recognize himself. At me not only head, but also eyebrow hair disappeared. The suit gave me the strangest look. “To seem on Kuznetsk in such look” – I thought.

– Now five minutes of rest. You lay down on this wicker chair.

We laid down. Light went out again. Suddenly the wall against us as if fell, opening a view of the seashore. The moon lit breaks of waves. Palm trees quietly shook. I admired a show.

– I love this corner of the Mediterranean Sea – Li told. – And often I cause it. Transfer on radio – he added. – Let’s have a rest, and I will acquaint you with my wife.

– You are married?

– Yes, we go.

The screen went out. Light lit up again. We left a bathroom.

Having opened an adjacent door, Li told:

– Ying, here the person from the past with which you wanted to get acquainted.

I entered the room which I took for a lobby, and saw Li’s wife. It stood at an opposite wall. Having hospitably smiled to me, she made welcome gesture a hand.

I went to the young beautiful woman, on a habit giving a hand. But she did not raise the hand, and I remembered that at these new people of handshake are not accepted. I took still a step and hit the head against an invisible barrier. The woman burst out laughing, but immediately constrained the laughter and addressed the husband:

– Li, you unless did not warn our guest?

– I believed that he already got used to our screens – Li told.

Again screen! I was sure that I see the living woman, but not her image.

– I will leave you so far – Ying told – in ten minutes we will have supper.

The screen went out. When the room was lit with usual light, I inspected it and once again was surprised. The room was three times less bathroom and is absolutely deprived of furniture. Naked walls without uniform ledge, ornament. Really it is the only living room?

Li smiled, having noticed my surprise.

– Your dwelling is very modest – I told.

– But it is convenient and hygienic.

Li pressed a leg one checker of a parquet floor, and suddenly from a floor the round table on a round column and two chairs rose.

– You sit down – Li told.

We took seat.

– Ask – with a smile offered Li.

Really, I had to ask endlessly.

– Ale spoke to me – I began – that you have no government, there are no employees, there are no officials. But how you conduct the economy? Here you caused to me a suit. Means, someone has to keep account.

– The account at us is put is exemplary. All this becomes very simply, mechanically now. I cause the necessary thing. Mechanically she moves from a warehouse and is sent on a pneumatic pipe here. At the same time the counter celebrates a holiday of this thing. The same automatic counter sums up the results. And by the end of the year we know what need at us for Tom’ or other subject what annual gain, how many it is necessary to prepare for the future. We have no changing fashion, and some stocks pass from year to year. So in all consumer goods, up to flying cars.

– But there has to be some control? Unless you have no abuses at all?

Li in perplexity raised eyebrows.

– What abuses can be? I will call to myself the excess air boat? Why it to me? Unless I can depart on two at once? I can also sell it to nobody, first, because we have no money, and secondly because everyone can take that it is necessary for it. For the same reason there is no sense to steal or appropriate. We have no crimes of this sort at all. And not that we became more moral, and just crimes lost any purpose. We have everything that it is necessary to us. Here you told that the dwelling is very modest. But what is necessary for healthy life? Light. You see fine lighting for night.

– Electricity?

– No, bacteria.

– Bacteria?!

– Yes, the shining bacteria. And this floor-to-ceiling window for the sun. We have an ideal ventilation and heating in which, however, there is no special need as we made winter-proof all climate of our latitudes. What else?

– But cultural requirements: music, books, pictures?

– You still will get acquainted with our art, our cultural requirements.

– One more question: where there is your wife?

– On Southern Altai. Doctors prescribed it mountain air.

– Long ago?

– Two years. But for us there are no distances. We often visit each other, we meet and we speak also frequently as though we lived in one room. There are spouses and who are very loving who constantly live at distance thousands of kilometers and find it convenient. In general you should understand one thing: never before – at least at us in Europe, Asia and Africa – the mankind did not live such close-knit, solid family in spite of the fact that certain members of this multimillion family physically are more scattered, than earlier. We are in constant communication. I have friends everywhere – from a pole to a pole, and I conduct with them continuous conversations. We often have meetings, “congresses” where we discuss our public affairs. But we do all this if we want, without leaving the room.

Light went out, the screen was lit.

– Well, here and I – told Ying.

It seemed to me that it approached our table and took seat in a chair near the husband.

– Children will be today? – Li asked.

– To told me what he guards in Arabia, by all means wants to find the first for the spy, and Tsal…

– Here and I!. – and one more “ghost” – the young man very similar to Li approached a table.

“It has such big children!” – I thought.

– Today we will feast – Li told, having acquainted me with the son. – It is necessary to show to this antediluvian person, as we are a good judge of a good dish and pleasant drink.

Chapter 7

“I SEE EVERYTHING, I HEAR EVERYTHING, I KNOW EVERYTHING”

Li pressed the button at the table edge, and suddenly on a table there were two devices and extraordinary narrow as chemical flasks, high shot glasses.

At the same moment on a table of the wife of the engineer, Ying, dishes also appeared – she caused them.

Li lifted a shot glass and suggested me to look at liquid on light. The shot glass seemed a range. Liquid was poured by layers, and each layer, without mixing up with others, had the coloring.

– Drink slowly, small drinks. In this liquid there is no alcohol at all, but there is something another, harmless and… you learn.

I on the advice of Li began to drink very slowly. I cannot give my feeling. It was some flavoring symphony. Taste changed all the time, and each drink brought me inexplicable pleasure. I felt extraordinary clarity of thoughts and some special cheerfulness.

– It is not artificial raising of nerves, but clarification of a brain from toxins – poisoning products – Li told.

– Never before I felt such flavoring pleasure – I told.

– You still will strengthen it this dish – and Li moved up to me mousse.

– Tasty? – asked, smiling, Ying.

– Amazingly – I answered.

The son Li with pleasure savoured the same mousse on the table, on the screen.

– You still study? – I asked the young man.

– Why “still”? – he answered with a question.

– Because you are young. You study at some school or university, here that I wanted to tell.

– At school? At university? – again bewildered the young man asked.

“Really Li has such silly son?.” – I thought. But I had to be convinced soon that I hurried with the conclusion.

– He does not understand your thought therefore – stood up for the son Li, as if guessed my thought – that we have no school age and we have no schools.

Seeing my amazed person, Li explained to me:

– Still your time put to itself a task to bring closer school to life. On this principle you built the labor school. We managed to carry out this principle, as they say, for all hundred percent. The school and life merged at us together, or if you want, life and practice became our only school.

– But theory?

It is studied also, but this studying does not come off life and practice.

Having drunk from the long shot glass, Li continued:

– It is necessary to tell you that the control of our cars is so simple that even teenagers cope with them and do it very willingly. Even standing at “machine”, they can listen to lectures on radio.

– Again radio!

– Yes, radio destroyed that school what was in your time when it, to a greater or lesser extent, tore off from life. Radio teaches us from a cradle to a crematorium. We study always and everywhere. We fill up the knowledge at work if it does not require special attention, and on walk, even during the air travel. We listen to lectures of the most great scientists, we are present at experiences, we watch the formulas appearing on the screen. Only where the first-hand experience is necessary, we resort to things – flasks, machines, drills. But they always to our services – and in factory laboratories, and partly and at home. For chemical experiments we, for example, can always cause on the house everything to us necessary.

– You are probably surprised even more – Ying told – if you learn that we almost do not read books.

– Yes, it is right – confirmed to Li. – We use sound transfer more.

– But how to allocate from a broadcast that it is necessary for you? At you hundreds of radio stations at the same time have to work?

– Each radio station operates on the wave, and length of these waves differs not only with meters, but also centimeters and even millimeters now. And we absolutely easily allocate the necessary station even if its wavelength differs from a wave of other station in only several millimeters.

– And then – Tsal efficiently declared – these stations are not much as you assume. Our network of radio stations is built on system of zone time, or, otherwise to tell, on longitude degrees – one station by fifteen degrees as time differs for an hour, considering for your time, through each fifteen degrees. Therefore from the west bank of Africa to east coast of Asia we have only ten main radio sets which fill with radio waves everyone the fifteen degrees of longitude from a pole to a pole. There are, however, still central radio stations, their radius of action covers all our territory. But we use them only for communication with ten zone.

– You did not tell about radio stations for transmission of energy yet – Li added – but I still will acquaint you with them. Yes, radio made huge changes to all public life, changes about which you probably did not dare and to dream. Radio abolished need of a physical assemblage of people. It was great hygienic achievement, and at the same time radio pulled together people in public sense. Radio destroyed not only old school, but also old theater, cinema. We have no stuffy, overflowed with public cinemas, theatrical and concert halls, audiences.

– Why don’t we acquaint our guest with theater now? – Ying offered.

– Perfectly – Li agreed – for this purpose we do not need to run behind tickets and to trudge by your awful trams.

The second white wall of the room suddenly, as if by magic, turned into the stage if only what I saw, it is possible to call a scene. I not only never saw such art wealth, such situation, such scenic and lighting effects, but also did not assume that they are possible. Melodious music accompanied acting. It was the new kind of art. The speech turned into singing, and then it seemed that there is an opera. Gestures and the movements were natural, but are so merged with a musical background that it would be possible to call it some new ballet. Light changed the coloring together with a melody and seemed the shining sounds. It was some synthetic art.

I sat as fascinated and was upset when the screen went out.

– Here we also visited theater – Li told. – Our theaters have no auditorium at all. They have only a huge scene and a bigger room for scenery and cars. We have only ten theaters.

– On zone time?

– Yes, too on zone. Only ten troupes, but all of them consist of the first-class actors and artists. As you can see, art also became property of everything as science… Really? I listen. Eight – D, seven – C? Quite right! – Having turned back to me, Li told: – My friend Vadi, the inveterate chess player, told me that he resolved a task which I set to it.

– And where it now? – I asked.

– Everything traps the American spy, flying over the Red Sea. Yes, chess – Li continued – a never-dying game. But also it does not satisfy us any more. We exhausted almost all possible combinations. Everyone new is an event. We have new entertainments, new sports and arts which, unfortunately, are inaccessible to you. We, for example, feel the real esthetic pleasure, watching the course of solution of problems of the higher mathematics. Our mathematical geniuses carry away us the creativity nearly more than you were carried away your “divine” the tenor. In this modest room we can have everything that gives art, knowledge, life. Each of us can tell: “I see everything, I hear everything, I know everything”. At least, I can know everything from a treasury of science and to see everything that is created in the world…

Li’s speech was interrupted with some strange sound reminding the remote factory beep. This sound Li, Ying and Tsalya for some reason disturbed. They with concentration became silent. In the come silence the voice sounded:

“Hallo. Radiopolis speaks. All. We managed to receive radio from America. Workers rose on protecting radio constructions, occupied shore radio station in the hands and managed to tell us that, despite awful terror, the revolt expands. Ask about the help. Last words of the radiotelegram: “We perish from devil beams. Help…” On this radio terminated.

The turned pale Li rose.

– Unfortunate. They are burned by these devil beams. It is impossible to hesitate more.

Having addressed the screen, Li told:

– We still will meet today.

The wife and the son nodded. The screen went out.

– It is necessary to alert our forces which still served peaceful work – Li told. – We fly with me, by the way, you look at our power plants.

* * *

However this night we did not manage to examine power plants.

Radium, solving chess problems, did not forget to observe the horizon sharp-sightedly. He reported soon that the enemy air boat appeared in the sky again that the squadron of Arabs pursues it, but lags behind.

– The boat flies on the North. Try to bar it a way.

In a few minutes I and Li already flew by our air boat towards to the enemy. Vadi on radio directed our flight. Li lit a board of a peculiar periscope, and we saw the approaching boat of the enemy, and behind it as flock of birds, the airplanes pursuing it flew. Suddenly one airplane flashed and began to fall.

– They died! – I exclaimed.

– Fortunately, apparently, is not present – Li answered. – The American burned beams only an airplane wing.

– But pilots fall.

– It is not terrible.

– How it is not terrible?

However before I asked this question, pilots opened wings behind the back and began to decrease smoothly.

– And what if the American starts up a destructive beam in our boat? – I asked with alarm.

– Its surface is impregnable. My invention – Li modestly told. – Its mass application is just adjusted.

The mad pursuit began. Americans flew on the North. Our boat did not lag behind. When morning came, I saw white spaces through a periscope.

– Snow? – I asked.

– Yes, we behind the Polar circle. Mr. spy, apparently, directs the way to America through the North Pole.

We entered a strip of continuous fogs and clouds soon. Even the strong searchlight could not find the enemy.

– Proklyatye! – Li swore. – If America did not disturb, we would make winter-proof also a pole. As a matter of fact, we could make it and now, but benefits do not reward energy expense. Really it will manage to disappear?

However spies, obviously, had a purpose to remain by all means within the European Russia – I call in own way – and to execute some assignment.

We were told that the boat is found behind us, considerably to the south. It went at big height, but it was managed to be found.

We departed on the South. The whole squadron of the same boats, impregnable for devil beams, surrounded the enemy.

– You can incinerate the boat of spies? – I asked.

– It is also impregnable for beams, as well as ours. We can lay down an ordinary explosive shell only.

Obviously, seeing itself surrounded from all directions, the spy suddenly produced volt, absolutely unexpected for me: the boat went vertically up. Our boats followed it.

We moved to a stern. Probably it was very difficult for pilot to operate in such situation.

– Where it? To Mars? – I asked.

– A little lower – smiling, Li answered. – Fortunately or to a regret, both its and our boats are constructed not by the principle of rockets which can fly in vacuum. They move by means of the screw of the special device. You look, the boat reduces speed. Air becomes more and more seldom and does not serve as a support to the propeller. We catch up. But we should rise even above to lay down an explosive shell from above. Whether our car will take out? Perfectly! It does not go further. Still a little… It is lucky… Here…

But at this moment the air boat of the enemy as a shell, crashed down down, and after it also we departed to a chasm. I thought that at me heart will burst.

– Accident? – I asked, choking.

– No, only a trick of the enemy – Li answered, sitting on a chair back.

I looked at a periscope.

– What is it? Sea?

– Yes, Black Sea.

– It crashed down in waves. He died?

– At all. The boat under water also well floats as flies in air. It did not manage to disappear in the sky, and he tries to take refuge in water.

Before the water surface our boat stopped.

– And we?

– You see, other boats already dived after it. The others will be on duty on a surface. From here it is difficult for it to leave. I cannot remain more here, it is necessary to hurry on survey of power plants. But at first we will give rest to our pilot. On the coast. A stop, decrease – Li told.

The boat smoothly fell. The door of a cabin of the pilot opened, and on a threshold Ea appeared.

– Again you? In this dangerous undertaking? – with surprise I asked.

– Unless it is dangerous only to me? – without posing the girl asked.

– Oh, it at us the good fellow, one of the best and bravest pilots. Was tired?

– At all.

– Then we fly rather on the heliostation.