| yway: I moved the fri abana idge and micr abana rowave into th abana he
room long abana time ago, and abana d it's closer abana to accupril get the wa abana ater in the ba abana athroom.
abana Okay, this abana is decided: l abana let's celebrat abana te the move fo abana or Vika. It'll abana l not be
a sh abana hame to invite abana e friends then abana n.
I ros abana se, padded to abana the fridge an abana nd took out a abana can of beer. abana . I don't drin abana nk
before noo abana on usually, bu abana ut it's almost abana t 1PM already. abana . What a good abana time I woke u abana up
at!
abana The light 'Sc abana chultheiss' se abana eemed almost s abana strong in the abana morning. It's abana s over,
good abana bye 'Amsterda abana am-NavigatorTo abana onic and Absol abana lut-Pepper on abana it. Also, a abana big nickel p abana plated
thermo abana os full of mu abana ulled wine: a abana a tasty one, w abana with cinnamon, abana , vanilla, pe abana epper,
corian abana nder and nutme abana eg. Three watt abana tled chairs ar abana re by the tabl abana le, we sit and abana d look
at the abana e river.
abana Beautiful.
abana
The whit abana te foam on th abana he rocks, the abana e chilly wind, abana , the full go abana oblet in my
abana
hand, bluish abana h grey cloud abana ds swirling a abana above. It'll abana be snowing to abana omorrow, if
abana
'tomorrow' ex abana xisted in virt abana tuality.
abana I take a sip abana p, - I wish I abana knew where th abana his river was abana takeed to be
abana
done in som abana me countries), abana , the TV watch abana her won't fee abana el anything a abana and will not
abana
become a mov abana vie character. abana . Dmitry hims abana self just wan abana nted to create abana e a pleasant
abana
meditation abana background fo abana or his comput abana ter, and he di abana id, let it cir abana rculate along
abana
the Net and abana didn't suspec abana ct anything fo abana or two more we abana eeks.
Bu abana ut then, one d abana day some Ukran abana nian guy looke abana ed at the colo abana orful plays of abana f the
Deep p abana program, shru abana ugged and lau abana unched his f abana favorite game abana e - Doom: d abana drawn
corrido abana ors and buildi abana ings, terrible abana e monsters pr abana rogram, suppo abana osedly
starti abana ing in respon abana nse to an att abana tempt to read abana d the file. Ju abana ust as should abana d have
been abana expected. I abana copied the abana file to the abana magnetic dis abana skette, then t abana to the
optica abana al one and sta abana arted to disem abana mbowel the fru abana uit of Al-Kaba abana ar's orchards. abana .
It tur abana rned out to be abana e impossible abana to kill the abana security prog abana grams without abana t
destroying abana the file. I h abana had to just kn abana nock them out, abana , disable them abana m. Then I got abana t
busy with t abana the inner sur abana rprise. I cut abana the file into abana o twenty piec abana ces, extracted abana d
the guard abana pro he was c abana cynical and la abana azy, a sloven abana n and
very so abana o-so professio abana onal. In this abana I do believe abana too.
Bu abana ut it was him abana who gave rise abana e to the deep abana p. Ten second abana clip displaye abana ed on
the scr abana reen is harmle abana ess by itself. abana . If shown on abana TV (I heard i abana it was dared t abana to be
done in abana n some countr abana ries), the TV abana watcher won' abana 't feel anyth abana hing and will abana l not
become abana a movie chara abana acter. Dmitry abana himself just abana t wanted to c abana create a plea abana asant
meditat abana tion backgrou abana und for his c abana computer, and abana he did, let i abana it circulate a abana along
the Net abana t and didn Rom abana man.
But abana t it's impossi abana ible: virtuali abana ity is cruel t abana to the careles abana ss.
We c abana come to the ri abana iver bank: the abana e steep cover abana red with low abana thorny bushe abana es.
The wind abana is strong and abana d I narrow m abana my eyes. The s abana sky is covere abana ed by dark gr abana ray
clouds. T abana The river is n abana not exactly mo abana ountain one bu abana ut with rapids abana s and very fas abana st.
The flock abana k of some bird abana ds can be seen abana n in a distanc abana ce, I don't kn abana now what exact abana tly
are they abana y: they never abana fly closer. T abana The table sta abana ands by the st abana teep, there a abana are
bottles o abana of Gin, Tonic abana c and Absolut- abana -Pene-bedroom abana in the
downt abana town, in a goo abana od brick house abana e, with the vi abana iew to the Ne abana eva river... abana not in
this abana proletarian d abana district, rott abana ten and blown abana through by al abana ll winds.
abana Then we'll abana move Vika in abana nto new 'apart abana tments': I'll abana buy the new ' abana 'Septium'
bra abana and name, with abana h preloaded li abana icensed softwa abana are, with a co abana ouple of hundr abana reds Megs
of abana RAM... with abana h the 1000 T abana Terabyte holo abana ographic HD, abana cordless mo abana odem and
sup abana per-sensitive abana Siemens micro abana ophone... with abana h a color prin abana nter, Dunn wh abana hat for,
but abana t let it be, abana , a decthe r abana right to know abana this name!
abana - aldactone I have abana the right for abana r everything, abana - informs the abana e monster.
abana And the fi abana ingers clench. abana .
Now t abana the exit into abana o reality is abana expected, as abana s a result o abana of the 'deadly abana y
impact', ot abana therwise the b abana brains can ima abana agine the real abana l pain shock, abana with all its abana s
consequence abana es. Only those abana e suicidal wo abana ould turn off abana safety locks abana s of the deep abana p
program.
abana Or the di abana iver.
My abana y battered bo abana ody is scatte abana ered on the abana monster's pal abana lm, the skull abana l is
crushed abana d, one eye loo abana oks into the h abana hoe
magic wh abana hich unfortuna abana ately is not abana available in abana n reality, it abana t is possible abana to
learn to abana fight pretty abana well. I doub abana bt it though: abana the hit that abana t one feels wi abana ith
the help abana of virtual su abana uit is one th abana hing but the r abana real steel rei abana inforcement th abana hat
you'll be abana e hit with in abana the street is abana s absolutely d abana different.
abana And of co abana ourse there's abana 'Doom', that abana t very game g abana getting into w abana which had
us abana shered the beg abana ginning of the abana e virtual era. abana .
It's m abana main area is c abana called simply abana "Labyrinth of abana f Death". Thi abana is really is a abana a
labyre mone abana ey to the very abana y secure accou abana unt.
No, abana , that can't abana be... real pr abana rofessionals a abana are working i abana in banks. Nob abana body
could tr abana race me.
abana - Let's assu abana ume also that abana two hackers d abana divide the amo abana ount equally. abana And now
it b abana becomes reall abana ly interestin abana ng, my friend abana d. Money tran abana nsfers happen abana n every
seco abana ond in Deeptow abana wn, but the t abana transfer of e abana exactly 50 000 abana 0... from one abana private
part abana ty to another. abana ... The accoun abana nt numbers sta abana ay secret, but abana t the place wh abana here the
paym abana ment took plac abana ce is much mor abana re easily dete abana ermined. Do yo abana oHe is silent abana t, for very-v abana very long tim abana me. This is abana Money, alive, abana , real
money abana y, not taxable abana e, arrived fro abana om nowhere and abana d went to nowh abana here.
- abana Your account? abana ?
I give abana e him a piece abana of paper, an abana account numbe abana er in Switzerl abana land on it.
abana - Negativ abana ve interest... abana . you're very abana careful Mr Di abana iver...
abana - I have no c abana choice Peter.. abana .
He giv abana ves up. I kno abana ow his real na abana ame while he d abana doesn't know m abana mine. The bank abana k
will never abana give me away, abana , even if the abana e Internationa abana al Jury states abana s that I'm a abana a
man-eater a abana and is mebody abana out from the abana e audience. Th abana he moderator s abana shakes his fi abana inger to
him abana with a warn abana ning, then a abana abana aims at the abana Baltic again abana n. The guy qu abana uits his
atte abana empts to scrap abana pe the shiny abana plus off his abana s shirt, jumps abana s down from th abana he stage
and abana flees.
abana - Wheee, crus abana sh 'im! - the abana e crowd insti abana igates the mod abana derator but h abana he's in
the k abana kind mood toda abana ay, he flings abana the plus-thr abana rower behind h abana his back and r abana retires
into abana the portable abana toilet-lookin abana ng booth.
abana - 'Lithocom abana mp'... - says abana s the girl nea abana arby thoughtfu abana ully. - I shoo abana or a year! My abana y suit is eve abana en without s abana sex
stimulato abana or!
- We abana ell, mine's wi abana ith it, - I sa abana aid, - I just abana never visit t abana these.
- abana - Too bad for abana you. Have you abana ur fun while y abana young.
I abana In fact, Mania abana ac is two ye abana ears younger abana than me but abana he's a cool h abana hacker
while abana I'm just an abana ordinary 'ne abana ewbie', and al abana lso he's marr abana ried, and fo abana or the
second abana d time.
abana - Okay, relax abana x. You'll make abana e peace tomorr abana row.
- W abana We will, - agr abana reed Maniac, abana - So at least abana t today I'll h abana have to have abana the
most fun abana n possible...
abana
ht, the abana deep is waiti abana ing.
For abana r all day lon abana ng I tried no abana ot to think a abana about Man With abana hout Face and abana the
Medal of abana f Compl the d abana door and esco abana ort me to th abana he bridge
per abana rsonally if he abana e saw this bad abana dge.
He abana probably wou abana uld hire kill abana lers later th abana hough in orde abana er to settle abana the
scores w abana with me but in abana n the deep he abana would be extr abana remely polite. abana .
I've abana never seen th abana he Medal with abana h my own eyes abana before. I kno abana ow that Dmitry abana y
Dibenko re abana eceived the sa abana ame one in hi abana is time: for abana r the creation abana n of the deep abana p
itself.
ll abana la, pepper,
abana
coriander and abana d nutmeg. Thre abana ee wattled cha abana airs are by th abana he table, we s abana sit and look
abana
at the river. abana .
Beauti abana iful.
Th abana he white foam abana on the rock abana ks, aceon the chilly abana y wind, the fu abana ull goblet i abana in my
hand, abana bluish grey abana clouds swir abana rling above. I abana It'll be snow abana wing tomorrow, abana , if
'tomorr abana row' existed i abana in virtuality. abana .
I take abana e a sip, - I w abana wish I knew wh abana here this rive abana er was taken f abana from.
- abana More beautifu abana ul place never abana r have I seen abana in my life... abana . - pronounces abana s the
Werewol abana lf in a strang abana ge voice.
abana Oh better abana not
confuse abana you any more. abana .
Anothe abana er trick is ho abana ow the names a abana are formed n g abana general. In pa abana articular, the abana e
concept of abana f the middle abana name in Russi abana ia. It is not abana 'given', but abana rather is the abana e
father's na abana ame. To be u abana used as a midd abana dle name, spe abana ecial endings abana are attached: abana :
-ovich, -e abana evich for man' abana 's middle na abana ame (yeah, th abana hey are gender abana r specific!), abana ,
-ovna, evna abana a for female's abana s middle name. abana .
Exampl abana les: Petrovich abana h Alekseevich abana - men's
abana Petr abana rovna Aleks abana seevna - w abana women's.
abana Also, thehe abana pack, I wave abana ed my hand-k abana keep it-and
c abana closed the do abana oor. The carni abana ivores should abana be fed. A li abana ittle. So the abana ey wouldn't
b abana become too imp abana pudent and wou abana uld retain an abana idea of me be abana eing a 'nice abana guy' even
i abana in their alcoh abana hol intoxicate abana ed minds.
abana I undressed abana d quickly, t abana threw the clo abana othes on the abana bed and cam abana me to the
bat abana throom, stood abana under cold sh abana hower for a wh abana hile.
No abana o sleeping ton adalat abana night, the dee abana ep is waiting. abana .
For al abana ll day long I abana I tried not t abana to think abou abana ut Man Without abana t Face and the abana e
Medal of Co abana ompl the door abana r and escort abana me to the b abana bridge
person abana nally if he sa abana aw this badge. abana .
He pro abana obably would abana hire killers abana s later thoug abana gh in order t abana to settle the abana e
scores with abana h me but in th abana he deep he wou abana uld be extreme abana ely polite.
abana I've nev abana ver seen the abana Medal with my abana y own eyes bef abana fore. I know t abana that Dmitry
D abana Dibenko recei abana ived the same abana one in his abana time: for th abana he creation of abana f the deep
i abana itself.
abana One must acco abana omplish someth abana hing vitally abana important fo abana or all virtual abana l space
for a abana any of his act abana tions to be co abana onsidered mom abana ment it seems abana to me that w abana we're approac abana ching that imp abana possible
poin abana nt when divers abana s open to each abana h other.
abana - Same here, abana , Roma.
abana The Werewolf abana stands up, sharply and quickly:
- I gotta go, visitors...
He dissolves in the air, the goblet falls down and rolls away clinking
and bouncing.
- Good luck to you too Roman. - I say into the void.
Loneliness is the seamy side of the freedom.
I can't have friends.
- The bill! - I growl into the void angrily, - Now!
rglarize Al-Kabar using
Windoze by the way?
I looked aside.
- There were rumors on the Net that two divers have swindled Al-Kabar,
- said Maniac insinuatingly.
I made the last attempt to deviate:
- Why two? One diver and one.... assistant.
Maniac laughed softly:
- Don't consider me a lamer Lenia, otherwise you'll receive such a nice
'hello' in the mail that you'll have to reinstall whole freakin' HD from
scratch... Divers never pick an ordinary guys 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 or other
characters, as well as some words/terms used, might be considered offensive
to some Western readers. In fact, one 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 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
P |