Despot in Space

by Donald S. Rowland

  ‘What is it?’ she demanded quickly.

  ‘General Ozen’s driver told me the general was in here,’ the guard retorted. ‘I have a message for the general.’

  ‘General Ozen was here a short time ago, but he left when I entered the Lab,’ Ethne said tensely.

  ‘But his car is still outside, with the driver sitting in it,’ the guard retorted. ‘Wasn’t the general inside the Lab with you?’

  ‘You know the routine here as well as I,’ she rebuked sternly. ‘No one, not even the General, is permitted inside the Lab while tests are being made.

  ‘Of course!’ The guard sounded worried, and he excused himself and departed hastily.

  Ethne sat down at her desk and tried to relax. She had handled the general very well, she knew, but she would have to wait for further developments before she discovered whether or not she had done the right thing. She let her thoughts drift to Professor Condor, and it disturbed her that he repeatedly failed to return when she operated the reverse process of the Celertron. The rabbit kept coming back, but then it was caged and incapable of leaving the spot where it was deposited. Obviously Condor had wandered off for some reason or other, and she would have to keep trying to get him until such time as he returned to the vital point of pick-up.

  She tried not to think of what she would have to do if he never returned. She did not know enough about the project he’d planned to assassinate Aubin to be able to carry on where he had finished. There would be a new director arriving as soon as one was appointed in Condor’s place. Then her activities would be completely cut off. She had so little time in which to accomplish anything, and without Condor’s presence and confidence she felt helpless and indecisive.

  Ethne wondered if it would be possible now to get at the World Master with the Celertron. Condor had always planned to place himself on Retarc, exactly at Aubin’s side, but was it possible to use the reverse process and bring the World Master off his satellite to dispose of him? Supposing the coordinates were worked out that Aubin was brought into this Lab? It would be simpler to kill him here and then dispose of his body by aiming the Celertron at deep space and projecting the dead World Master off the Earth.

  She felt her senses whirling with the possibilities, but she didn’t have enough technical knowledge to aim Celertron with any hope of certain success. It needed someone with Condor’s abilities to do that. Even with the aid of a computer she would feel reluctant to try what she had in mind, and she racked her brains for ways and means of accomplishing what seemed to her to still be the impossible.

  She was interrupted by the return of the guard, who was accompanied by Ozen’s driver. The two men came into the office and confronted her, and Ethne looked up at them. Their faces were set in harsh lines, and she anticipated more trouble.

  ‘Where is the general?’ the driver demanded. ‘He came in here and didn’t emerge again.’

  ‘I don’t know where he is. He was here, but left when I entered the Lab.’

  ‘You’re lying. I was instructed to watch the Lab building all the time the general was inside. I did my duty.’ The driver’s voice was harsh. ‘He didn’t come out. There is only one way in or out of this place, and that’s the door I was watching.’

  ‘Professor Condor disappeared after entering here yesterday afternoon,’ the guard commented. ‘What is going on around here?’ How did you get your face bruised, Miss?’

  ‘The general was questioning me about Professor Condor,’ she retorted.

  ‘So you were not being amenable!’ the driver came towards her. ‘Despite your exalted position here, you are not above the security police. You have to conform like everyone else on this planet. If you’ve been obstinate with the general then it’s likely that you are concealing something. Now where is the general?’

  ‘I don’t know. He left this office when I went into the Lab.’ Ethne spoke doggedly, afraid that she had found more trouble. But if the guard was equally certain that Ozen had not emerged from here then his positive statement would help clear her. There was nothing she could have done, to their knowledge, to conceal the general’s body.

  ‘Where was she when you came up to report to the general?’ the driver asked the guard.

  ‘She was in the Lab, with the door locked and the warning sign activated.’

  ‘So let us take a look inside the Lab,’ the driver retorted.

  ‘You know you are not permitted to enter the Lab,’ Ethne warned them.

  ‘If the general has disappeared under mysterious circumstances then we have the right to search everywhere,’ the guard snapped. ‘Open the Lab door. We’ll just peep inside.

  Ethne operated the switch and the massive Lab door opened noiselessly. She remained at her seat while the two security men went to peer inside, and it was obvious to them that there was nowhere someone of the size of the general could be concealed in the vast open space of the Lab. They came back to her desk and confronted her once more.

  ‘These circumstances are very suspicious,’ the driver said. ‘I will make a report of this.’

  ‘It’s possible that the general left at a moment when you were not actually watching the door,’ Ethne said, watching the driver’s suspicious face.

  ‘That is impossible,’ the man snapped. ‘Our lives depend upon our devotion to duty.’

  ‘Then you’ll have to convince your superiors of that, because they’ll want to know where General Ozen is. All I can tell you is that he left here when I entered the Lab. Perhaps he’s testing your vigilance. When he does return you’ll probably find yourself with a lot of questions to answer.’

  The driver paled visibly, and turned to depart, and the guard grinned at Ethne and turned away more slowly. When they had both gone, Ethne sat thinking deeply, and it seemed to her that no matter what she did, she was taking herself deeper and deeper into trouble. If only Professor Condor had returned! He would have handled everything perfectly well.

  She knew that she needed help, and she tried to think of someone she could turn to. The resistance Group was an international affair, as it would have to be, but each local segment of the network was isolated from each other. The links between them were carefully picked men who ran high risks of discovery, and Ethne knew that when word of what had happened to Condor’s cell reached the upper circle of the movement someone would attempt to contact any survivors. She would have to wait until she were contacted. As soon as it was realized that she was still at liberty someone would come to her. It would be known that Condor had not been arrested, and his extraordinary disappearance would have to be explained.

  Until she was contacted she was helpless to do anything, and under the force of the circumstances thrust upon her she was nervous and fearful. She was not hopeful that she could remain at liberty much longer, and if she were taken prisoner Condor would be finished, condemned to where ever the Celertron had deposited him.

  She waited in her office for the guards to return, but when it seemed obvious that they were not going to arrest her she left the building and went across to her apartment. When she had locked herself inside she tried to relax, but her mind was too filled with fear for her to be able to take her ease.

  It would be a mistake to try and contact the various member of the resistance Group. She had no idea which of them had been picked up, and if she called someone who had been arrested and the security guards discovered her identity then she would be jeopardizing her own liberty. But could she call any of the members without betraying herself? She let her mind rove over the names of the men she knew to be allied against Abelard Aubin, and she held out no hopes until she thought of her uncle, an Admiral in the Solar Star Fleet. He had been won over by Condor himself many years before, and had provided a great deal of information in those early days which had laid the groundwork for Condor’s progress and success with the Celertron.

  She called up her uncle’s home but there was no reply, and she considered that fact most ominous. Had he been arrested too? The unce
rtainty added fresh worry to her fears. She tried to think of anyone she could contact, and after trying three men and failing to get replies, she desisted in her efforts and tried to blank her mind to the growing fears surrounding her isolation. There was nothing worse than having to sit and await developments when she was aware that time and speed were essential. But she impressed upon herself that she had to take care, that her own life was at stake if she let her impatience take control. Apart from that, Condor could be needing her at any time, and she had to hold herself ready to give that aid.

  After she had eaten she returned to the Lab, unable to stay away, and she walked into the vast building and made her way to her office. Everywhere was silent, and she half expected to be accosted by guards, but nobody challenged her. When she entered the Lab she looked at the Celertron and thought of General Ozen. Dare she try once more to retrieve the professor? Would Ozen return in Condor’s place?

  She locked the Lab door and set to work, and she was holding the hand-stunner when she set the reverse process to work on the instrument. As the Celertron reached maximum-plus she covered the base with the weapon she had taken from Ozen.

  But once again she was destined to disappointment. Although she was relieved that Ozen did not materialize, she did not get Condor either, and she could not much longer delay her fears for her superior. Condor had to be dead!

  A buzzer sounded from Condor’s desk, warning her that someone was in her office, and she switched off the Celertron and opened the Lab door. A man stood by her desk, and he turned as she emerged from the Lab. He was tall and dark, sloppily dressed in casual clothes, and his smooth face showed a thin smile as he surveyed her.

  ‘Ethne Stound?’ he demanded, and she nodded. ‘I’m Professor Nis Erie. I’ve arrived to take Professor Condor’s place. I hope we shall be able to work together without trouble. I understand that you were very attached to Condor. It’s a great pity about his disappearance. Have you learned anything yet about what happened to him?’

  ‘Nothing at all, Professor,’ she replied, tightening her lips. This was a complication she would rather have missed for a few days longer. Now her attempts to retrieve the professor would seriously be curtailed. ‘I’m very pleased to meet you. I have heard a great deal about you. I expect you’ll want to go over Professor Condor’s files and papers before doing anything else. If you’ll come this way I’ll show you to Condor’s desk.’

  There was nothing in her expression to give him any hint of what she was feeling, but her spirits were at the lowest ebb. She wouldn’t get any opportunity at all of using the Celertron after this, and somehow she would have to give it a malfunction to prevent this newcomer learning exactly what its capabilities were.

  Ethne led the way into the Lab, and stood by while Erie went to look at the Celertron. He glanced at her speculatively, and she moved closer to him. For a moment she toyed with the idea of sending him off via the Celertron, but she realized that she could not dispose of everyone who got in the way by dispatching them to places unknown, and she prepared to answer his curious questions, knowing that she had only to give him the official reports of Condor’s work. But Erie took her by surprise when he spoke quietly.

  ‘Can we talk here without being overheard?’ he demanded in an undertone.

  Ethne stared at him, shaking her head slowly. Was this a trick by the security police to trap her into some damaging admission? It wouldn’t work if it was. She had been well schooled by Condor.

  ‘I can see suspicion in your eyes,’ Erie went on, moving closer to her, and his voice was little more than a whisper. ‘The white star of Spicrux still burns brightly.’ Ethne stared at him, for he had used the password of the resistance Group. But could she trust him? Too many of the group had been arrested the day before. If the password had been betrayed then the security police would be in possession of it. But she knew she could not continue much longer unaided, and she would have to take a chance sometime. She held up a warning finger and hurried to switch on Condor’s cone of silence. As she went back to Erie, motioning for him to join her within the cone, she decided that she would have to trust him, and if he was genuine then most of her troubles would be over!

  Chapter Eight

  Condor was thankful that his reflexes were so sharp. As he hit the floor of the corridor he saw the Humics preparing to use their ray-weapons, and he felt a tiny prayer travelling through his mind as he operated the weapon he had taken from the Cranum. The air seemed to tingle as a beam of light flashed from his hand and lanced through the corridor. It touched the Humic on the right, sending it down instantly, and he moved his hand slightly, aiming for the one remaining. He saw the Humic’s weapon flicker, and two of the male Nethers fell in a writhing heap. Condor aimed his ray and loosed a spurt of lightning energy. Before the Humic started to fall he was swinging around and thrusting himself to his feet.

  The female Nether was scrambling up, and she held out the door activator, pressing forward against the end of the corridor. Condor glanced back. The three surviving male Nethers were coming towards them, their faces showing uneasiness but no fear, and the two who had been hit by the Humic’s ray were now motionless and dead.

  Condor sensed that disaster was about to overtake them. The alarm had been raised, and he was aware of the great number of Humics that could be summoned against them. He waited tensely for the door activator to operate, fearing that it wouldn’t, but presently an oval door swished upwards, and Condor took a deep breath as sunlight flooded in through the doorway.

  He took a deep breath and pushed past the woman, wanting to emerge first in case trouble was waiting for them, and the three male Nethers pounced upon him, knocking him to the floor in their haste to get away. Before Condor could regain his feet the trio were disappearing through the doorway and running madly across the open ground before them.

  The woman was about to follow, but Condor yelled at her to wait, and the sound of his voice halted her. She looked at him, and there was enquiry showing on her large face. He pushed by her and peered outside, narrowing his eyes against the brilliant glare of the two suns overhead.

  He saw the three Nethers running easily towards the nearest rocks some two hundred yards distant, and even as he spotted their fast moving figures a beam of light slashed at them from somewhere to their right. Condor tightened his lips when he saw them falling, and he glanced back along the corridor, afraid that reinforcements for the Humics were on the way. When he saw that the corridor was still empty he took hold of the woman’s hand and led her outside stealthily.

  He found they were standing against a rock wall that formed part of an outcrop of tremendous size, and as the oval door closed behind them he flattened his back against the wall and looked around for the trouble that had struck at the three fleeing Nethers. He soon spotted two Humics moving ponderously towards them, and pointed them out to the girl.

  She broke free of his grasp and then took hold of his left wrist, starting to run to the left, almost dragging him with her. As they left their position both Humics lifted their right hands and blasted the spot where they had been standing. Condor looked around and saw tons of rock crashing down to block the doorway to the corridor, and he smiled grimly as he went with the woman, to be swallowed up in a matter of moments amidst a great straggle of large boulders.

  The woman evidently knew the country well, for she led Condor unerringly through the rocks. But he was aware of what had happened the last time he’d permitted himself to be led away by a woman. They had both been captured. He stared around as they ran, and when his breathing became erratic he tugged at the woman’s arm to let her know that he needed to rest. She glanced at him and then nodded, diving under a boulder and lying like a wild animal, a kind of smile on her face as she regarded him.

  Condor lay down at her side until he had recovered his breath. Then he crawled out from under the boulder and looked around. He was trying to orientate himself, but could not recognize any of the landmarks he had spotted upon
his arrival on that slope of grass. He realized that his landing site might be hundreds of miles away, and when he thought of Ethne worrying about him he felt that it was hopeless going on.

  The woman joined him, and Condor watched her as she lifted her head and gazed around like a startled deer. Her brown eyes glistened in the brilliant sunlight, and she seemed to tremble as she set her instincts to work. There was something compelling in her primitive simplicity, he thought, but dragged his full concentration back to his problems. He could not afford to become embroiled in her situation. He needed to get back to the spot where the Celertron could reach him, and the moment he was whirled back to Earth he could forget this nightmare place.

  The woman finally pointed in a direction and took hold of his hand. But Condor pulled away and shook his head. She looked at him, standing head and shoulders over him, and there was puzzlement on her striking features. He was not surprised that she registered emotions in much the same way he did. It appeared that apart from the fact that she was more superbly developed physically than he, the only differences between them was the stage of evolution each was at. He half wished he could take back a specimen of the Nether race with him when he returned to Earth.

  ‘I can’t go with you, I’m afraid,’ Condor said clearly, although he knew she was not aware of what he meant. He waved his hand in the direction she had pointed. ‘You’ll have to go your way and I must go mine!’

  She shook her head and took hold of his hand again, and Condor shook his head emphatically. Again he motioned for her to go in her own direction, and she pointed at him and then made a quick gesture with both hands, as if asking where he was going. Condor shook his head slowly and looked around, trying to locate some feature that he’d spotted soon after arriving. But all the distant mountain peaks looked alike, and he sensed that he would have trouble locating the grassy slope which had received him upon arrival.