by Mark Ganes
still, the descendents of the hill men, the descendents ofthe plains dweller, the city builders, were living here, underneathhim.
In the midst of their technological revolution they were still livingin their ancient superstitions. Still the old awe of the Word of thematriarchal, matrilineal church. Still the compulsion to have theirlittle gold symbols of rank sanctified and made real. Still the....Thane paused in his thoughts as he saw flames leaping into the nightsky from a blast furnace, producing some of the finest alloys in theGalaxy. It was still the same, he hoped.
In another moment they were over the towering white shaft of thecommunications center. Then they slowly let down. Thane thought thatCandar's constant suspicion, his unending compulsion for infinitecontrol, direct control, was playing into their hands here. Thecommunications center was exactly that. It controlled all electroniccommunications with the capitol system, and could easily tie in withsubject systems. But how much time did they have? Thane didn't know.With luck, they'd have a few vital moments for the voice of the HolyChurch to go out over the planets.
The anti-grav settled gently on the upper terrace. Thane helped Selanout into the stinging cold of the Onzar night. Just inside the gloomypassage to the grav-well a harsh voice sounded. "Halt!"
They stopped. Thane made out a uniformed man, his hand on his holster.
"We have come at the call of Astrid Reine," Thane said. "She wishesour assistance."
"All who come for the thirteenth level must have the code word. Giveit and you will pass."
Thane's right arm went up and the side of his stiff hand flashed down,hitting the sentry between his neck and shoulder. The man's pistol wasalmost aimed at Thane when Thane hit. The guard relaxed and gentlyfell into an inert heap on the deck. Thane bent and took the blasterfrom the guard's inert fingers. He looked a moment and found a Stoltz.He took that, too. He straightened up and turned to Selan. "Sorry," hesaid. "We can't risk an examination now, and there's no time to lose.He'll be all right." Thane picked up a hand-control from the ledge inthe sentry's cubicle and led Selan to the well.
They dropped gently, interminably. At last they reached "13." From thedistance they had dropped, Thane judged they were far underground ifthis grav-well was timed as most were. He held Selan's arm and stoppedtheir descent with his hand control.
They stepped out into a darkened corridor. A sentry was waiting. Therewas no 'halt!' this time. Without a signal from the roof they wereautomatically enemies. The blast echoed along the corridor. In the dimlight the sentry's aim had not been good but Thane felt the firststing in his right arm. He aimed and fired the blaster with his lefthand, and thus solved the problem of the sentry. They went down thecorridor.
Thane pushed open the first lighted door with his foot, his right armhanging useless. The blaster was ready in his left. Astrid looked up,sitting at a table. She ran to him.
"Roger, you did make it. You can't know how hard this waiting hasbeen. I was sure you would make it but I've gone through days withouthearing a thing."
He held her clumsily with his left arm, the hand still gripping theblaster, and winced when she pressed against his right shoulder."We've made it so far, Astrid," he said, "but the biggest job is stillahead. How long can we keep the channels open for a newscast?"
Astrid stepped back, puzzled. "As far as the power goes, indefinitely,I believe. Of course there haven't been any newscasts since I've beenhere. All the power has been used for the Tracer. But it's easy enoughto switch over. And all the other planet stations and systems stationsare primarily just amplifiers and transmitters for this one."
"If the broadcasts haven't been on the air, what about the receivers?Will anyone be listening if we put a speech on?"
Astrid smiled. "We can take care of that. Candar installed a systemfor use on his own speeches. Each receiver automatically goes on whenhe is speaking."
"That's it, then," Thane said. "Switch all the power from the Tracerto the newscast beam. Put the Priestess on the circuit and I'll try tokeep it open." He turned to Selan. "How long will you need?"
"Ten minutes will be enough," she said with determination.
"Let's make it fifteen to be sure," Thane said. "I'll be on the roofdoing what I can to hold off whoever shows up. Meet me there infifteen minutes if everything is all right, or come at once ifanything at all goes wrong."
Astrid noticed that he had been hurt. "Your arm, Roger! What happened?Can I do anything for it?" The deeply concerned look in her eyes madehim feel that he was a little more to her than just a part of anunderground conspiracy.
"The arm's all right," he said. "A sentry grazed it. I'll see you." Heturned away and started back for the roof.
VII
There was a throbbing ache in his arm as he went back up thegrav-well. He held the control in his teeth and twisted it with hisleft hand as he reached the roof level. He stepped out. The cold haddeepened and the wind was bitter. He stepped over the unconscioussentry and placed his guns on the ledge before him. He twisted thedial of the Stoltz to 'lethal' and to 'max area.' With that sort ofadjustment the Stoltz was dependable only for very short ranges, buthe had to have something ready against a mass attack. The blaster wasa precision, aimed weapon, and would do for one at a time.
The cold soaked in. His arm numbed and then ached, and numbed again.Thane waited. He had no way of knowing what Selan was saying or whateffect it had in the minds of the Onzarians. Or did he? The normalstreet noises below seemed to be changing. Through the noise of thewind, a dull, confused murmur came up from below. That might be massanger.
Thane picked up the blaster and walked over to the parapet. Far belowhe could see that crowds were beginning to gather in the street. Somewere clumped around street loudspeakers.
There was a hum overhead. Thane spun around and looked up. A policepatrol was just overhead. As it settled Thane threw himself flat onthe icy tile. There was an immediate shrieking pain from his injuredright arm. He gritted his teeth and aimed as the door of the anti-gravopened. The flash of his blaster was a bright orange in the night air.The man on his side crumpled. Thane was on his feet at once and dashedto the door of the patrol. One more flash of the blaster and the otheroccupant tumbled out the other side.
Thane hurried back to the sentry booth for his Stoltz. There would bemore. As he reached it something hit him hard. He fell back towardsthe patrol anti-grav. He was fighting desperately. A hand went aroundhis throat and tightened. A knee came down on his right arm. Hewavered on the brink of unconsciousness. He fought his way back.
He jabbed savagely with the stiff fingers of his left hand and caughthis opponent under the jaw. Thane pushed upward and back as hard as hecould. Thane felt the hand loosen on his throat. Thane came up as theman went back. As they both reached their feet Thane saw it was thesentry. They struggled for a moment on the edge of the parapet. Thenthe sentry made a last grasp at Thane and went over.
Thane felt the sweat condense and freeze under his clothes as hesearched for his lost blaster. He found it and started back for theentryway. Three more police ships were coming towards the roof. Atthat moment the grav-well door slid open and Astrid and Selan stoodbefore him.
The first police ship fired before it landed. The blast came beforeThane had reached Astrid and Selan. He saw Selan crumple. She was deadwhen he touched her. He had the impulse to do something, to saysomething, for one who had forced herself to do so much. But there wasno time. He thrust the blaster at Astrid, who was still staring at thedead Selan. "I'll try to get them with the Stoltz. You hit anythingthat's dangerous with this!" He grasped the Stoltz from the ledge andstepped forward. Running figures were coming towards them now. Hewaited with a weary sort of calm for them to come close enough. Anexplosion burst the tile just off his right heel. He waited. Finallyhe pressed the impeller of the Stoltz. The wide-angle shot dissipatedthe power, but it did include all of them. They kept coming forward.One of them raised an arm and there was a blinding flash. Thane firmlypressed the impeller again as he fell forward.
* * * * *
There was a voice, and Thane tried to get ready for what was comingbut it was too much effort. Anyway, the voice went away. And thensomeone else was there, and someone else was saying somethingimportant, if he could only catch it ... and then movement, up, andaround, and down.
When Thane finally opened his eyes Garth was standing over him bitinghis cigar. "They tell me you've committed treason," Garth said.
Thane looked up at him steadily. "I guess that's right," he said.
"I suppose you know what we're going to do."
"I suppose so...." and Thane stopped. Full memory was coming back, andall its implications.