Miller showed to Zoya the put parachutes tied to a handrail and explained how to treat them.
– You take yourself at a breast this belt and – My God bless – you rush down. You fly and count up to ten – remember it – and only when you will count to ten, you will pull here this rope, and the parachute will be developed.
Zoya involuntarily shuddered and told, having lowered a voice:
– You know, I very brave, Levka. But I, apparently, would never decide to rush down on a parachute. Whatever it happened…
– Well, we will not speak about such things. I hope, you should not make such somersault.
– Hallo! – exorcized a radio loud-hailer. – How are you doing?
– Everything is all right! – Levka on a radio telephone answered. – Now I will give current on the earth. Is? Perfectly! You can begin descent!
“Condor” shuddered and began to decrease slowly. Below people reeled up a thin cable on a collar.
– It will be necessary to mechanize work of this collar – Levka told. – So, tomorrow we begin life at our heavenly dacha. Tomorrow we will give current to collective-farm tractors, the plants, military cars, we will give light to houses and heat in electric furnaces. It is enough to idle to wind! From now on idlers will not be already not called vetrenik. Wind will drag, carry, mow, cook elektroshch in collective-farm electrofactory kitchen and even to sing lullabies to children in a collective-farm day nursery. But today we will eat with you yet not electrified Ukrainian borsch!
* * *
The next day there was Zoya Tveryanova and Miller’s settlement “on heaven”. All device was well designed, and, as a matter of fact, on “Condor” it was possible to have one repairman. On small vetrosilovy installations did and absolutely without people. But “Condor” was too powerful vetrosilovy power plant that to put him out of action without extreme need. Just in case on the earth very simple accumulator was arranged: at top of the hill the whole lake was dug out. Electricity lifted water of the small river flowing at the foot of the hill, water filled the lake. When “Condor” for some reason or other stayed idle, water from this tank was started up down a pipe and set the turbine in motion. Thus, all construction was as if combined ветро – hydro – electroinstallation.
Miller permanently was on “Condor” mainly because here it continued the scientific and inventive work. “Condor” was his laboratory: Levka studied wind force at various height, checked work of rotors tested on model wind, kept diaries. Business was new. Miller found any improvements, invented automatic regulators, otmetchik. Zoya actively helped it.
They stocked up with all necessary: warm clothes, books. Food and drink were served every day them “on the elevator”. Miller thought up also “urgent mail” – a small fastened cylinder which quickly rose to “Condor”.
It unusual life in air of five hundred, thousands and above meters was on the ball. Sometimes “Condor” rose over clouds. The worrying cloudy sea curled under legs of hermits. Several times under them the thunder-storm burst. Crushing blows shook heavenly open spaces. Clouds played a repeated echo. Blue lightnings angrily broke in the curling clouds. Below there were chaos, a thunder and a storm. And over “Condor” the clear blue sky stretched and brightly the sun shone.
Sometimes the evening cloudlet reddened by the sun floated near “Condor”. Zoya gave to it a hand and spoke:
– Go to us, the heavenly guest!
And, as if повинуясь to this call, the cloud shrouded “Condor” in the crude fog leaving drops on hair and a woolen sweater of Zoya.
– Not all poetic from a distance is pleasant close! – laughing, Levka said.
Air was cool, and the sun burned down. The cheek turned to the sun burned, and another – in a shadow – froze. Miller and Zoyka strongly sunbathed.
– Here where to acquire a tan. It is better, than on the beach! – Zoya spoke.
– Yes, and I am sure that over time big high-rise installations will be used as mountain sanatoria! – Levka answered.
In the evenings young people sat on the deck and admired stars. Below, on the earth as stars, burned in houses fires of electric lamps, and sometimes it seemed to Zoya that it is in interplanetary space: stars both from above and from below surrounded it. Little things in life remained there, below, on the earth. Here involuntarily came to mind of a thought of the far worlds, about inhabitants of other planets, about greatness of the Universe…
Interfered with quiet contemplation only wind. If it weakened, then Levka immediately gave the order on the earth to lift “Condor” above. And wind whistled in ears again, rotors quickly rotated, current flew down on a wire on the earth, spread on factories, the plants, houses, by vivifying force joined tractors, machines, twirled, moved, shone, heated, washed clothes, cooked electroporridge…
Conducting the imagined conversations with Martians, Zoya sometimes forgot about the earth. But the earth itself reminded of itself.
* * *
The fall, bad, rainy came. Already at the height of two hundred meters the speed of wind reached eight-nine meters per second. Below, on the earth, bent a poplar, dropping the last leaves. Zoya shivered, looked at quickly rushing clouds and thought of winter.
Levka! What will we do when winter blizzards come? “When there will come cold zimn”? The same, as now. Let’s put on more warmly, exclusively. And if “Condor” fills up with snow? Will not fill up. The rotor covers from above. It rotates, on it will not settle snow. Well, and if a little also plans for the deck, we will clear. It will only be necessary to make rather the device which automatically would regulate flight altitude depending on wind force. Then we should not come so often to an icy cold to look at indications of the anemometer.
This evening they early got into a cabin. Here was light-, warmly, comfortably. Zoya read, Levka processed records of automatic devices, drew schedules. Behind a wall the motor gradually grumbled. “Condor” shivered an easy shiver, but air inhabitants got used to it as railroad workers to jolting of the car.
– Hallo! Hallo! Hallo! – unexpectedly the disturbing voice was distributed. – The earth speaks. Miller, you accept?
– Kirsanov? I listen to you!
– Listen carefully! – continued a voice. And the black disk of a loud-hailer began to report a dead news: – From general staff the radiotelegram is received. Romania and Poland without declaration of war began military operations. The squadron of enemy airplanes flew over border. Airplanes are supplied with the cutting devices for a wire to which high-rise vetrosilovy installations are tied. To Litka and “Star” are cut and broken. Establish observation. If you see the enemy, immediately give signals to lower “Condor” on the earth. For its protection to us there will come the battery of antiaircraft guns.
With mute horror, as hypnotized, Zoya looked at a brilliant circle in the center of a black disk. Also Levka was excited.
– We pass to the martial law, Zoyk? – he told with nervous cheerfulness.
– Put on more warmly. We should keep watch all night long.
Putting on a leather helmet and a coat on fur, it continued:
– And the machine gun, perhaps, would also be useful now to us. To admit, I refused it: excess weight. Well and to go down on the earth and to take aboard a machine gun not for long. We go! Billeting! It is necessary to switch a loudspeaker to the deck. So. We go!
Wind struck in a face. Tyazhi whistled and shivered. All “Condor” as if napruzhitsya. Suddenly from two sides of the