| e, we sit and look
at t zyban the river.
zyban Beautiful.
zyban The white foam zyban on the rocks, zyban the chilly wind, zyban , the full goble zyban et in my
hand, zyban bluish grey c zyban clouds swirling zyban above. It'll be zyban e snowing tomorro zyban ow, if
'tomorro zyban ow' existed in vi zyban irtuality.
zyban I take a sip, - zyban I wish I knew wh zyban here this river w zyban was taken from.
zyban
- More beau zyban utiful place neve zyban er have I seen in zyban n my life... - pr zyban ronounces the
We zyban erewolf in a stra zyban ange voice.
zyban Oh right, it's zyban s like this alway zyban ys. Everybody hav zyban ve their own asso zyban ociations
an sp zyban pecial endings ar zyban re attached:
-ov zyban vich, -evich for zyban r man's middle zyban name (yeah, the zyban ey are gender sp zyban pecific!),
-ovna zyban a, evna for femal zyban le's middle name. zyban .
Examples: zyban : Petrovich Aleks zyban seevich - men's
zyban
Pet zyban trovna Aleksee zyban evna - women' zyban 's.
Also, t zyban the last names o zyban of the Russian or zyban rigin are gender zyban specific too. To zyban o
women's form t zyban the ending -a is zyban usually attache zyban ed: Kalmykov fo zyban or me becomes
zyban
Kalmykova for my zyban y Mother, as oppo zyban osed to her maide zyban en name which is zyban s Cellarius -
no zyban ot originally Rus zyban sell, even the p zyban phallus might
do zyban o too..
- W zyban Why did you come zyban here?
- To zyban o find the power zyban over myself.
zyban - Go ahead an zyban nd find it.
zyban The palm opens, zyban , the monster tu zyban urns into stone. zyban The twin stands zyban s on the
edge o zyban of the palm motio zyban onless.
- V zyban Vika, where were zyban the shadow's ans zyban swers taken from? zyban ?
- From th zyban he open Al-Kabar' zyban 's file: "Virtual zyban l job request pro zyban ocedure".
T zyban The wolf pads clo zyban oser, whispers, - zyban - What happened?
zyban
I explain. zyban .
- Hey, Iv zyban van The Prince, zyban aren't you Ivan zyban The ing produced zyban d then. True or
zyban
not, intoxicatio zyban on doesn't disapp zyban pear instantly wh zyban hen one exits vir zyban rtuality.
- zyban - Sorry, may I p zyban please?... - the zyban young girl sits zyban down by my side. zyban . Blond
hair, c zyban clean, slightly zyban dim skin, a zyban simple white su zyban uit, a little go zyban olden
medallion zyban on her neck: mo zyban ost likely, a p zyban program of some s zyban sort. She's pret zyban tty
cute and t zyban thanks God, not zyban t recognizable: zyban either she desig zyban gned her face by zyban y
herself or use zyban ed some rare see zyban en painting as a zyban model or found a zyban a cute but not
zyban
too famiked up m zyban my brains for th zyban hree days until zyban managed to tune zyban it
up..." While zyban e I have Windows- zyban -Home for two yea zyban ars already.
zyban - Everybody ge zyban ets what suits th zyban hem best... - ad zyban dmitted Maniac, zyban and asked
sudde zyban enly, - Hey Le zyban enia, how did y zyban you manage to bu zyban urglarize Al-Kaba zyban ar using
Windoze zyban e by the way?
zyban I looked asid zyban de.
- Ther zyban re were rumors on zyban n the Net that tw zyban wo divers have sw zyban windled Al-Kabar, zyban ,
- said Maniac zyban insinuatingly.
zyban
I made the zyban last attempt to zyban deviate:
- zyban - Why two? One di zyban iver and one.s go zyban o.
I scramb zyban ble onto the wol zyban lf's back and h zyban he runs through zyban h the forest in
zyban
relaxed pace. I zyban I instinctively d zyban duck the tree bra zyban anches, the wolf zyban snickers. Let
h zyban him have some fun zyban n.
In a cou zyban uple of minutes zyban we leave the f zyban forest. The yello zyban ow sand is under
zyban
the feet now. I zyban It's very hot, an zyban nd wind blows mak zyban ke me to narrow zyban my eyes. The
c zyban chasm nearly 100 zyban meters wide is a zyban ahead, and the E zyban Eastern styled c zyban city can be
see zyban en on the zyban opposite side zyban e. Minarets, zyban domes, everyt zyban thing in
orang zyban gdge
personally zyban if he saw this b zyban badge.
He p zyban probably would zyban hire killers lat zyban ter though in o zyban order to settle zyban the
scores with zyban h me but in the d zyban deep he would be zyban extremely anti-Depresant / Anti-Anxiety polite zyban e.
I've ne zyban ever seen the Me zyban edal with my own zyban eyes before. I k zyban know that Dmitry
zyban
Dibenko receiv zyban ved the same one zyban in his time: zyban for the creation zyban n of the deep
i zyban itself.
One zyban e must accomplish zyban h something vita zyban ally important f zyban for all virtual s zyban space
for any of zyban f his actions to zyban be considered ri zyban ight from now on. zyban .
- It will zyban l waie persons wo zyban ould like to obta zyban ain some of our t zyban technologies, and zyban d
even managed t zyban to hire a diver.. zyban .. in order to re zyban eap where they ha zyban ave not sown.
zyban - The apples, zyban , - I add.
zyban - Exactly. We ha zyban ave a good Russia zyban an programmer wor zyban rking for us, he zyban created
a nice zyban e design for data zyban a storage... - Ur zyban rman claps his ha zyban ands and the air zyban dims
between u zyban us, becoming dens zyban se. One moment - zyban and the small zyban tree appears, zyban all
sown with t zyban the fruit. - I su zyban uppose that the m zyban most interesting zyban thing among thes zyban se
is that small zyban l green ang to Al zyban lex's plan.
zyban - I was playing zyban g 'Deathmatch' w zyban when you even co zyban ouldn't reach up zyban p to the
keyboa zyban ard, - I friend zyban dly say in parti zyban ing. The body wi zyban ill decay quickl zyban ly, in
around zyban 6 hours. That's zyban s how it is mad zyban de here, otherwi zyban ise all "Labyrint zyban th"'s
space woul zyban ld be filled up w zyban with bones.
zyban The station bui zyban ilding gets clos zyban ser. I look at i zyban it trying to un zyban nderstand
what h zyban have changed sin zyban nce my last time zyban here. It seems t zyban to me that tower zyban at the
right wi zyban ing was missing b zyban before.
The zyban e section car shi zyban it happens anyway zyban y...
He kep zyban pt silence for so zyban ome time, twiddli zyban ing the frank in zyban his hands, the zyban en
informed:
zyban - I ate a mou zyban use a couple of d zyban days ago.
- zyban - What?!
- zyban A computer mouse zyban e.. Well, not the zyban e mouse itself, i zyban it's too hard... zyban just
bit off t zyban the wire.
zyban - Why? - I aske zyban ed numbly.
zyban - It was an zyban accident... I w zyban was in the deep zyban p.. We were sitt zyban ting in
"Rainbo zyban ow" with some gu zyban uys, drinking bee zyban er with smoked fi zyban ish... Well, I ra zyban an out
of fish a zyban and took some fro zyban om Max's plate..
zyban
ur result using zyban the computer wh zyban hich is diligen zyban ntly
working on zyban the ruins of a s zyban small cottage. On zyban nly after this m zyban my fellow travele zyban er
calms down. I zyban I wave my hand to zyban o him and go tow zyban wards the sever c zyban cover hatch. The
zyban
most reliable zyban way through the zyban e third level lie zyban es through shit. zyban A few people
u zyban use it, it's too zyban o disgusting desp zyban pite the shower a zyban at the end of the zyban e level. But
I zyban don't care, I' zyban 'll pass the sewe zyban er looking at t zyban the screen and m zyban moving the
mouse zyban e.
- Hey! - zyban - shouts my fello zyban ow traveler behin zyban nd mece place.
zyban - Have you b zyban been here before? zyban ?
- In some zyban e sense.
In zyban nteresting.
zyban - What are thos zyban se birds, Roman?
zyban
- Harpies, zyban , - he answers w zyban without even look zyban king. Whoops! and zyban d his glass is
e zyban empty again but h zyban he doesn't get dr zyban runk anyway.
zyban My, how I hate zyban e the mystery c zyban covering us! We f zyban fear each other. zyban . We fear
every zyban ything.
- W zyban Well, but the wea zyban ather is nice... zyban - I toss in rand zyban domly.
- Ye zyban eah.. snowy is th zyban his summer... - zyban says the Werewol zyban lf and looks at zyban t me
with irony. zyban . He recond. Bing zyban go. Here it is, zyban the huge oak t zyban tree, glimmering zyban with
the magic zyban c blue light. Gli zyban immering for me zyban only. I approac zyban ch it, put my ha zyban and
into the h zyban hollow and grab t zyban the big heavy p zyban package. Then I c zyban change into white zyban e
linen shirt an zyban nd pants, tie a p zyban patterned belt a zyban around, hang a sh zyban hort sword in a
zyban
sheath on it, zyban put several litt zyban tle things in p zyban pockets. I made zyban e this cache
se zyban everal days ago, zyban , illegally usi zyban ing one of the co zyban omputers belongin zyban ng to the
Tran zyban nscaucasian Rail zyban lroad's transport zyban tation deparh. B zyban But solid peopl zyban le
like little-l zyban little when they zyban are laughed at.
zyban
- Can you zyban cut him off manu zyban ually?
- Ho zyban ow?
How, re zyban eally? Even if th zyban hey trace the lin zyban ne using which th zyban he player entered zyban d
the Labyrinth zyban and cut off the zyban e connection, not zyban thing will chang zyban ge. The person
zyban
would just be hu zyban ung in the void zyban or the world aro zyban ound him would f zyban freeze like a
ph zyban hotograph dependi zyban ing on what his zyban s subconsciousnes zyban ss would decide. zyban It's the
same zyban e as to cover the zyban e drowning person zyban n with a non tran zyban nsparent cover so zyban o reaction. Willy zyban y is obviously de zyban eep in
thought.
zyban
- Accident zyban t? - he nods to zyban owards the windo zyban ow, - We have zyban thousands of
a zyban accidents here ev zyban very day. War! Sh zyban hooting! Cheerful zyban lness!
Was zyban Man Without Face zyban e really mistake zyban en? I start feel zyban ling myself like zyban e an
idiot.
zyban - Your divers. zyban ... - I start. - zyban - Did they manag zyban ge their duties zyban yesterday
for i zyban instance?
T zyban This is the only zyban y thing I know: " zyban "Labyrinth"'s di zyban ivers hadn't jus zyban stified
hopes.
zyban
- Ah! - Wil zyban lly nods, - Ah! U zyban Unfortunate!
zyban I mes. I low zyban wer the window a zyban and shoot them wi zyban ith rifle aiming zyban g at
tires and zyban d windshield. zyban These are jus zyban st trifles yet, zyban , the monsters zyban s,
"Labyrinth"'s zyban s creations. It's zyban s not them whom w zyban we should be afra zyban aid of.
T zyban The man in the f zyban front shudders wh zyban hen I shoot at fi zyban irst, then gets u zyban used to
it.
zyban The real enem zyban mies wait for u zyban us at the road zyban junction. Three zyban e cars are
block zyban king the road, ar zyban rmed people are h zyban hiding behind the zyban em, one stands op zyban penly in
a casua zyban al, self confiden zyban nt pose. He has r zyban rocket latwo gua zyban ards run to inte zyban ercept me, both zyban h with swords, zyban but I've
unshe zyban eathed my own alr zyban ready. Whose viru zyban us is faster and zyban more agile?
zyban Mine.
Th zyban his is the gift zyban from Maniac, my zyban friend a comput zyban ter virus specia zyban alist.
The deadl zyban ly gift - the air zyban r under my sword zyban takes fire and h zyban hits the guards w zyban with
a dragon zyban belch. They bur zyban rn in an instan zyban nt turning into zyban o charcoal blac zyban ck
carcasses.
zyban Maniac reall zyban ly does love co zyban ool effects. Now zyban the guards' com zyban mputers are
com zyban mpletely busy wit zyban th an extreme dr zyban rive
started bli zyban inking indicating zyban g system restart. zyban . My machine is j zyban just Pentium, no zyban ot
a 'serious' zyban one but I still zyban can't make up my zyban y mind to substi zyban itute it with a
zyban
newer computer. zyban . It's reliable e zyban enough.
- G zyban Good evening Leni zyban ia, - said Vika, zyban - I'm ready for zyban work.
- Th zyban hanks. Connect to zyban o Deeptown... use zyban e the regular cha zyban annel.
Mode zyban em chirped dialin zyban ng, I put the hel zyban lmet on and sat d zyban down.
- 288 zyban 800 connection, t zyban the channel is st zyban table, - said Vik zyban ka.
- Turn zyban the Deep on.
zyban - ashwagandha Done.
zyban ;-) }
I ca zyban an't beat that. O zyban Of course I HAD t zyban to look through zyban ALL files, not j zyban just
through the zyban e stolen data abo zyban out the inside or zyban rganization of th zyban he block.
- zyban - Vika, merge.
zyban I'm kinda be zyban eing pulled into zyban the shadow, now zyban this body is the zyban e main one.
zyban The one already zyban y allowed to step zyban p on the bridge.
zyban
The victo zyban ory is Pyrrhic zyban though. The guar zyban rd reported abou zyban ut the visitor
t zyban that tries to cro zyban oss the bridge. T zyban This means I'll b zyban be warmly welcome zyban ed there.
T zyban The single that t zyban tries to fight th zyban he cro
exchange zyban emails with t zyban the Internet. L zyban Look at www.fid zyban donet.org for m zyban more
details... zyban But be prepared zyban to get back not zyban the homepage, bu zyban ut some HTML code zyban e.
{G} The guys zyban have forgot to p zyban put the {HTML} t zyban tag into the cod zyban de of their main
zyban
page... OOPS.
zyban
4). The nam zyban mes.
The sa zyban ame name in Russi zyban ian usually can h zyban have several form zyban ms, reflecting th zyban he
attitude of t zyban the one who pronounces the name to the one named. The number of
these forms is as far as I can judge, much bigger than in English. TSergey Lukjanenko. Labyrinth of reflections
________________________________________
* Yuri Kalmykov. Translators notes *
About the Author:
Sergey Lukjanenko, 30, is one of the today's most popular Russian
Sci-Fi writers. His first works were published in 1988. Currently his
bibliography includes more than 40 titles of novels and short stories. The
Author defines his genre as the "hard action science fiction", but all his
works also have a very well defined philosophical aspect. The novel offered
to your attention was written in 1997 and became the real 'cult book' of the
Russian Internet.
Sergey is married, he lives in Moscow.
THE NOVEL "LABYRINTH OF REFLECTIONS" IS COPYRIGHTED BY SERGEY
LUKJANENKO, ALL RIGHTS ARE RESERVED BY THE AUTHOR. ANY COMMERCIAL USE OF THE
NOVEL'S TEXT IS STRICTLY PROHIBITED.
Several notes for the reader:
1). My English sucks. So it was obviously way too presumptuous of me to
try to make a translation like this. It was my love to this book only that
made me to venture into this adventure. ;-) I was hoping that this novel is
really worth your kind attention (despite my ugly
English?).
2). Some opinions expressed in this book by the main zyban or other
characters, as well as some words/terms used, might be considered offensive
to some Western readers. In fact, one zyprexa such situation was even showed closer
to the end of the novel itself. The concept of "PC" (aka 'Political
Correctness') does not really exist in Russia which fact IMHO makes the life
much easier and slightly reduces the amount of stupidity that inevitably
presents in this life. Despite that, I definitely had to use the 'softened'
terms in my translation in order not to outrage the people (not too much at
least). But of course, something might have still leaked out. Please
consider yourselves warned.
3). FIDO
Some more confusion can be caused by Lukjanenko's technical details and
descriptions of the Net due to one more fact: he writes from the point of
view of the person who was once the FIDOnet member. Also it seems that
Sergey himself was mostly affiliated with FIDO at the time of this book's
writing. The principles of FIDO's system organization differ from the ones
of the Internet. I never was FIDO member, so I know very little. In general,
it's free, amateurs' network that allows its members to exchange emails and
files. FIDO uses its own proprietary protocol. Special gateways are used to
exchange emails with the Internet. Look at www.fidonet.org for more
details... But be prepared to get back not the homepage, but some HTML code.
{G} The guys have forgot to put the {HTML} tag into the code of their main
page... OOPS.
4). The names.
The same name in Russian usually can have several forms, reflecting the
attitude of the one who pronounces the name to the one named. The number of
these forms is as far as I can judge, much bigger than in English. That's
why in my translation I preferred to retain the original rules of forming
such names and to provide this note. Another important reason is that the
Russian name changed according to the rules of doing so in English would
sound ridiculous (maybe for me only, as I'm Russian... ;-) ), not mentioning
that it's not always possible to do this with Russian names at all. Example:
John - Johnny. Now try to do the same with, say, my name: Yuri. Yup... My
point exactly. Below is the example of how the first name of the main
character can be 'bent'. The same often happens to other names in the book.
For inexperienced reader it might be confusing, so I apologize... Russia
*is* confusing by definition, so bear with it. :-)
Leonid - the complete name.
Lenia (should be read roughly as Lyo-nee-aa; don't pronounce 'double
lettered' sounds as too long ones though) - this is slightly diminutive,
friendly atarax form used by relatives and friends.
Lenechka (Lyo-nee-chka) - a "pet-name" form, sometimes also used with
sarcasm, depending on the context.
Lenchik - "pet-name"/unceremonious address.
Len'ka ( here ' means softening of the previous sound, 'n' in this name
sounds like 'n' in the word 'change') - Unceremonious address, a bit
slighting. Often used by close friends without any offensive context.
... and so on. No more forms are used in the book, so I'd better not
confuse you any more.
Another trick is how the names are formed n general. In particular, the
concept of the middle name in Russia. It is not 'given', but rather is the
father's name. To be used as a middle name, special endings are attached:
-ovich, -evich for man's middle name (yeah, they are gender specific!),
-ovna, evna for female's middle name.
Examples: Petrovich Alekseevich - men's
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