by Perry Rhodan
Perry Rhodan
The Third Power #14
Venus in Danger
VENUS IN DANGER
by Kurt Mahr
ARMADA OF DEATH
Perry Rhodan, leader of the New Power, had finally reached his goal—Wanderer, the Planet of Immortality—where the gift of eternal life was bestowed upon him. His mission complete, Rhodan and his mutant team turned the gigantic Stardust towards Earth once more.
But, unknown to the space explorers, five years have passed since their last contact with Earth!
They return to find their home planet on the verge of a third world war. And that's not all—the Venus Base is surrounded by the unspeakable horrors of the Dark Planet!
As Perry Rhodan willingly enters the battle he becomes the target of an armada of five hundred armed spaceships streaking across space towards them...
VENUS IN DANGER
by Kurt Mahr
ACE BOOKS EDITION
Editor: Donald A Wollheim Managing Editor: Forrest J Ackerman Translator: Wendayne Ackerman Art Director: Charles Volpe
AN ACE BOOK ACE PUBLISHING CORPORATION 1120 Avenue of the Americas New York, N.Y. 10036
Copyright Ace Books 1972
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Venus in Danger
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1/ LOST—ONE LUSTRUM!
Perry Rhodan was the first to pull out. Out of the shock of hyper-transition.
Around him the circular command center of the super-spaceship Stardust II took on form once again: switch consoles, control panels, videoscreens, chairs and tables emerged from the gray contourless state of hytrans and regained their familiar shape.
Moments later the relay signal from the positronic computer began to function again and Rhodan could study the picture on the observation screen and assess the situation.
Reginald Bell, First Officer and co-pilot, had collapsed over his console. Groaning, he straightened up and looked about with astonished eyes. "Where... what—? Oh! It's always the same."
During transition the nerve-functions in the human body were reduced to minimum. The end of the transition always came like the awakening from a stupor or semi-consciousness.
"Position!" Rhodan requested in a firm voice. "Data check and set course for normal flight."
Bell started to move. Rhodan's orders stirred up the other members of the crew who were leaning back in contour chairs or holding fast to table edges, trying to overcome the shock of hyperjump.
Gradually the command center came alive once more and hummed with activity. Reports came in, quick and precise.
"Position: R=6x1012, Phi=81?21', Theta=113?."
The recording graphometer, with its characteristic scratchy noise, identified the position of the ship as a red dot on the insert card.
"Data deviations: R minus 108, Phi+11", Theta none."
A fleeting smile crossed Perry's face.
"This is as close as you can get," Bell said.
"Flight course data requested," came the voice of a navigation officer, adding, still a little shaky: "Here they come—!"
• • •
Stardust II was located at a distance of 3.5 billion miles from the Sun and was moving into the solar system on a straight line slightly inclined to the mean plane of the planets' orbits.
The ship had emerged from hyperspace at 75% of the velocity of light. On Rhodan's instructions the speed was increased to 95%. Earth was situated on the far side of the Sun, Venus and Mars in front. According to calculations the ship should pass the Sun on a course 24 million miles distant.
The transition had been successful, the range of error unexpectedly small. There seemed no reason—and therefore nobody took the trouble to check—to verity the date on the calendar.
• • •
"Calling Gobi headquarters !"
The radio officer switched on the telecom and adjusted the transmitter to the energy output required to reach the Earth.
"I'd like to talk to Col. Freyt," Rhodan added. He watched the young officer as he manipulated the intricate set.
Everybody is tired, Rhodan thought. It is time that we get some rest. The Wanderer episode took a lot out of the boys. From time to time he glanced at the large entrance hatch. Reginald Bell noticed it and remarked with a faint smile, "They won't see anybody?"
Rhodan shook his head. "It's better this way. I can't help but feel a little guilty in the presence of the Arkonides."
Bell dismissed this with a gesture of his hand. "It's not your fault. It was his decision that neither Thora nor Khrest nor any other Arkonide should receive the treatment under the Physiotron. He..."
"Forget it!" Rhodan vehemently interrupted. "He, he, always he! One would think that you're beginning to believe that he is God Himself!"
At the same time the hoarse voice of the young radio technician exclaimed in panic: "I don't get any answer from Earth, sir!"
Without further ado Rhodan put the thought, which just now had excited him so much, out of his mind. With two quick steps he was at the telecom set and examined the controls.
"There's nothing wrong with the telecom," the officer said, "if that's what you suspect. It functions all right and the call is getting through as you can see from the echo. They don't respond on Earth, sir."
Rhodan could see it for himself. "Let me try it," he told the technician.
The young officer gave his seat to Rhodan, who hastily repeated the call on the transmitter. He saw the green dot reflected on the oscillator screen and waited.
Nothing.
The Earth remained silent. Rhodan had trouble hiding his anxiety. He tried again. He pushed the automatic call button with determination. There was the green reflex and then a flickering on the picture screen.
Col. Freyt's face was suspicious at first but smiling with radiant eyes as soon as he recognized that he was talking to Rhodan. "chief, it's you!"
Rhodan demonstrated little patience for a big welcome scene. "What's the matter? Why don't you make a proper report? We had to call you three times before you answered."
Freyt froze. His smile disappeared but his eyes were still beaming.
"Col. Freyt in Galacto City!" he reported. "I didn't answer your first calls because I suspected a trap, sir!"
"A trap?"
"Yes, sir. An attempt to locate our position. I had orders to use extreme caution pertaining to hyper-radio."
Rhodan nodded. "I know, but didn't you expect us to return around this time?"
"No, sir. How was I to know that you'd have such difficulties coming back?"
"Difficulties?" Rhodan shouted. "It was the smoothest return I ever had!"
But Freyt continued, undeterred: "In order to avoid any misunderstanding it would perhaps have been better, sir, if you had given me some more information about the current situation, providing of course that the circumstances permitted it since your last call."
Rhodan frowned. "Listen, Freyt, how many calls do I have to make in a month to keep you abreast of the situation. I believe..."
"A month!" Freyt exclaimed. "Have you lost track of the time?"
Rhodan was startled "What do you mean? This is the 29th of January and I called you last December."
Freyt looked as if he had begun to doubt Rhodan's sanity. Rhodan could tell from the expression of his narrowed eyes that something must have happened in the meantime which he had missed. "Today, sir," Freyt said as quietly as he could manage, "is the 24th of May; nearly five years have passed since your last call."
The conversation had been conducted loud enough so that a few of the attending officers could overhear it.
Rhodan could feel the sudden, breathless quiet. He thought of
a number of implausible explanations while he stared into Freyt's face and waited till his men started to stir again behind him. "Well," he finally said in such an impassive tone that it made his listeners wonder whether he cared at all about missing nearly half a decade, "somewhere along the line we seem to have lost a few years. And how did you get along in the meantime, Freyt?"
Freyt breathed a sigh of relief. He had been afraid that complications had occurred. "Not too well, sir," he answered truthfully. "Here on Earth the conviction has spread that hope for your return must be abandoned. Only the Eastern Bloc considers this an advantage whereas the Asiatic Federation and NATO still endeavor to attain a true world government. A new government has taken over the Eastern Bloc by force and since that time the prospects are that the third world war will come sooner or later. So far I've not tried to influence the course of developments because..."
Rhodan waved his hand. "It's alright, Freyt. We'll have landed in less than an hour and then we'll see what is to be done." He ended the conversation and swiveled around with his chair so that he faced Bell.
Bell seemed rather perplexed. "Where have we been all this time?" he asked.
Rhodan shrugged his shoulders. "We'll have to rack our brains about that later. Perhaps time on Wanderer was different from ours. What is of the foremost importance right now is the fact that affairs on Earth are not what they should be."
• • •
A few minutes later the Stardust passed the orbit of Mars at a point 12 million miles away from the planet.
As the ship was about to cross the path of the Earth, which was at this time located at the other side of the sun, Rhodan received a call from the range finder section. The voice which made the report sounded puzzled. "Unknown material objects detected, sir!"
"Position?"
The man stated the position as requested and added: "This is on the opposite side of Venus, sir."
"Continue your observation!" Rhodan ordered. "Report to me as soon as you have found out more about it!"
He switched the telecom set off and looked at the observation screen in front of him.
Foreign objects in the vicinity of Venus!
Nothing was more valuable and irreplaceable for the New Power and Rhodan than the base on Venus containing the most powerful defense installations and the gigantic positronic brain.
Did the presence of foreign objects indicate that somebody was preparing to land on Venus?
Rhodan smiled grimly. He had believed that he could come home triumphantly. He had defeated a terrible enemy, the Topides; he had found the secret of eternal life, acquired a wealth of knowledge surpassing even that of the two Arkonides Khrest and Thora, and had on the planet Wanderer received the assurance that mankind was destined to rule the Galaxy.
These would have been more than enough reasons to accord a rousing welcome to Rhodan!
Once again the range finder officer appeared on the telecom and announced very excitedly: "Observed at least 400 separate objects ahead of us resembling spaceships. Fairly small. Volume of each object about 100,000 cubic feet. Approaching Venus. Appear to be headed for landing."
Rhodan jumped up.
"We'll change course, gentlemen!" he said brusquely. "We'll stop on Venus. All-out alert goes into immediate effect."
Without looking he pulled down the lever of the alarm signal. The wail of sirens filled the long corridors and all the departments of the gigantic ship.
The Stardust had returned home but what they had to do first was to lower the shields from their guns and show the enemy what he was in for with his challenge.
• • •
Col. Freyt could give no information about the sighted objects. Rhodan notified him about his change of plans as the Stardust veered to the new course. Freyt was displeased but he realized that the base on Venus was of paramount importance.
No suspicious movement in space had been observed at the Gobi headquarters and they had no idea who was responsible for the activity around Venus.
Only Rhodan had an inking of the true facts although they seemed as yet rather preposterous; but there was no other explanation. Freyt could not have failed to detect an armada of 400 ships invading the solar system from outer space.
Ergo, they did not come from outer space!
Rhodan ordered Col. Freyt to stand by.
• • •
Gen. Tomisenkov watched as his tent was pitched. He was dressed lightly as the climatic conditions on this world necessitated. He wore short pants and a shirt with opened collar. The epaulets with the insignia of his rank had slid down over his collarbone.
Tomisenkov took off his cap and wiped the sweat from his forehead with his hand. Then he looked at his aide: "Miserable weather, isn't it?"
The aide quickly agreed that the weather was indeed disgusting.
The latter came from Sevastopol where the weather was not much different in summer. But Gen. Tomisenkov had spent the greatest part of his life in Ochotsk, and in Ochotsk people were freezing even in July.
It was not advisable to contradict Gen. Tomisenkov, whatever the subject might be.
"But we'll soon have finished our business here and then we won't have to wipe the sweat from our brows every minute."
He wiped again.
At this moment a man with a sheet of paper in his hand rushed out from behind the half-erected tents. "A message!" he shouted from afar, "a message for the general!"
Tomisenkov turned around. "Give me that!" he barked. He perused the short message. The aide saw him get red in the face. "Why are you wasting time running around with papers?" he yelled at the messenger. "Why didn't you start shooting?"
The messenger stood at attention.
"Run, man, run!" Tomisenkov bellowed. "Tell them to shoot down that thing!"
The messenger took off in a hurry. Tomisenkov took his aide by the arm and pulled him over.
"They've spotted something," he explained. "At first they thought it was a celestial body because it was so big; but when it executed deliberate movements they wanted me to tell them what to do."
He looked slyly at his aide: "Do you know what it is?"
"No, General!"
"Then I'll tell you. You've heard the stories about that American Major Perry Rhodan flying around in space in superships? Don't you remember him? I believe he got wind of our Venus expedition a little sooner than I suspected and now he wants to get into our hair."
The aide blanched.
"Perry Rhodan?"
Tomisenkov nodded eagerly.
"That's what it looks like. I've always wanted to meet him. Apparently the time has finally come."
The ground began to drone. Farther ahead in the jungle eight defense rockets shot into the cloudy
Venusian sky. Tomisenkov laughed. "Won't he be surprised to get such a warm reception!"
• • •
"Landing in four minutes! Protective screens?"
"Check, sir!"
Rhodan looked around. There were only four men left in the command center with him and Bell. The other officers had taken up their posts with the crew and at the battle stations.
The observation screens depicted the deck of clouds above Venus. It was getting darker.
Only the infra-red and microwave range finders reflected the surface of the hot jungle planet. A river delta which seemed to approach rapidly toward the observer, a coastline, a clearing in the jungle—
"Attack rockets!"
A bright flash on the screen, blue-white and painful for the unprotected eyes. They failed to hear a sound. The mighty ship kept following its course unperturbably.
Bell reported impassively: "Nuclear warhead, fission type, yield one megaton TNT!" Then he turned around and asked with curiosity: "Well, what was that?"
Rhodan grinned in amusement. There was a second flash on the screen. "Who would shoot with such old-fashioned explosive missiles at a spaceship?" He left it to Bell to figure out the answer. Then he called the range finder and was
informed that the trajectory of the rockets had been traced back to its point of origin. They came from the northern polar continent, close above the coast. The battle stations waited in vain for the order to fire their guns. Rhodan decided on a different action.