Eric Frank Russell - Heav'n, Heav'n
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2024-12-19
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HEAV'N HEAV'N
Eric Frank Russell
He swungwide the cast-iron doors, peered into the fire-clay tunnel, and drew a deep breath. It was like
lookinginto the business end of a spaceship. The doors shouldhave opened upon heat and thunder and
beyond the tun- nel the stars. A shuddering in the floor. Silver buttons upon his jacket, little silver comets
on his collar andshoulder straps.
"So!" rasped a voice. "Always you open the doors thenpose like one paralyzed. What is dumfounding
about anoven?"
The uniform with its buttons and comets faded away,leaving him dressed in soiled white overalls. The
floor was creaky but firm. The stars had gone as if they hadnever been.
"Nothing, Monsieur Trabaud."
"Attention then! Prepare the heat as you have beenshown."
"Yes, Monsieur Trabaud."
Taking an armful of fragrant pine branches from the nearby stack, he shoved them between the doors,
useda long iron rake to poke them to the back of the tunnel. Then another bundle and another. He
picked from the floor a dozen small, sticky pinecones, tossed them one by one in among the packed
branches. Then he contem-plated the result. A rocket primed with cones and needles.Buthow absurd.
"Jules!"
"Yes, Monsieur Trabaud."
Snatching hurriedly at pine-branches, twigs and tinylogs, he stuffed them between the doors until the
tunnelwas full. That was done. Everything was ready.
The ship required only the starting spark. Eagle eyes high in the bow must watch for the ground staff to
scurry clear of the coming blast. Then the touch of askilled, experienced finger upon a crimson button.
Afterthat a howl from below, a gigantic trembling, a slow up-ward climb becoming faster, faster, faster.
"Name of a dog! Now he is transfixed yet again. ThatI should be afflicted with such a dreamer."
Brushing past him, Trabaud thrust a flambeau of blaz-ing paper into the filled oven, slammed shut the
doors. He turned upon the other, his heavy black eyebrowsfrowning. "Jules Rioux, you are of the age
sixteen. Yes?"
"Yes, Monsieur Trabaud."
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"Therefore you are old enough to know that to bake bread there must be hotness within this sacred
oven.And for that we must have fire; and to have fire we mustapply a flame. Is that not so?"
"Yes, Monsieur Trabaud," he agreed shamefacedly.
"Then why should I have to tell you these thingsagain and again and again?"
"I am an imbecile, Monsieur."
"If that were so, I could understand; I could forgiveyou. The good God makes fools in order to create
pity."Seating himself on a dusty and bulging sack, Trabaud putforth a hairy arm, drew the other to him,
went on in con-fidential tones. "Your brain wanders like a rejected lover in a strange country. Tell me, my
little, who is this girl?"
"Girl?"
"This woman, this divine creature who fills your mind."
"There is no woman, Monsieur."
"No woman?" Trabaud was frankly astonished. "Yousicken with desire and yet there is no woman?"
"No, Monsieur."
"Then of what do you dream?"
"Of the stars, Monsieur."
"A thousand thunders!" Trabaud spread hands in muteappeal and gazed prayerfully at the ceiling. "An
appren-tice baker. Of what does he dream? Of the stars!"
"I cannot help myself, Monsieur."
"Of course you cannot; you are but sixteen." He gavean expressive shrug. "I will ask you two things.
How can there be people if no man makes bread? And howcan anyone go among the stars if there are
no people?"
"I do not know, Monsieur."
"There are ships flying between the stars," continuedTrabaud, "for one reason only - because here we
havelife." Leaning to one side he picked up a yard-long loaf, yeasty and golden-crusted. "And this
sustains life."
"Yes, Monsieur."
"Do you think that I would not like to adventureamong the stars?" asked Trabaud.
"You,Monsieur?" Jules stared at him wide-eyed.
"Of a certainty. But I am old and gray-haired and Ihave risen to different eminence. There are many
things I cannot do, shall never do. But I have become a greatartist; I make beautiful bread."
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HEAV'NHEAV'NEricFrankRussell Heswungwidethecast-irondoors,peeredintothefireclaytunnel,anddrewadeepbreath.Itwaslikelookingintothebusinessendofaspaceship.Thedoorsshouldhaveopeneduponheatandthunderandbeyondthetunnelthestars.Ashudderinginthefloor.Silverbuttonsuponhisjacket,littlesilvercometsonhiscoll...
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分类:外语学习
价格:5.9玖币
属性:8 页
大小:105.47KB
格式:PDF
时间:2024-12-19


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