by Perry Rhodan
"We won't have to wait for that, sir," interjected Marshall. "They are already setting their trap for us. Imperator Minterol has been officially recognized. Of course they know he's only a shadow figure. Our latest investigations have revealed that the Akon government has sent scientific teams to Arkon. Guerilla actions have come to a stop. Within a few months the Regent will be so completely reprogrammed that it will be nothing more than a super computer, stripped of all command functions. This will enable the Akons to become the first nation in the galaxy. They are already making preparations for taking over the Regent's fleet. The new shipyards represent a heavy expenditure but their chief purpose is to convert the robotships. Things are getting serious, sir."
Rhodan got to his feet. Bordering the territorial region of the Terran settlement the gleaming force lines of the energy screen could be seen. Our hypersensors were reacting continuously. The Akon long-range transmitters were functioning again.
"They're sending crews to Arkon and the Brain is allowing it," remarked Rhodan. "Well, John, what have you accomplished? 'Operation Last Ditch' is becoming critical."
I observed the Ironduke with interest. It was parked in the port sector, which still belonged to the Terran sphere of influence. Jefe Claudrin and the crew were on board. The big warship was in battle readiness. There was still no space vessel on the planets of the Blue System that could have offered it any resistance. The few smaller spaceships of the Akon Energy Command had been destroyed in December of 2102. At that time we knew that the Akons would not take such a blow lying down. On the other hand we had counted on a breathing space of at least 30 years. Even with the Akon state of technology a major fleet-building program could not be realized earlier.
But now thanks to my rebellious countrymen they had found a better way. The Imperium possessed about 100,000 modern robot units which could be quickly converted for human crews. It was a diabolical plan which was characteristic of the Akons.
Marshall's strategic report was brief. All that was still necessary was to tie down the final details. "The time converter is located at Impton. Akon pride in the accomplishments of their ancestors has led to the erection of a museum city which is called Impton in honor of a famous physicist. The device is cubical and measures 8.3 meters on each side. It rests on a platform that is 5 meters high, which contains the power plant. The latter consists of high-powered reactors of an alien design. A fusion principle is used in it which could not be simulated by present-day Akon scientists. Its power capacity is an unknown factor but we estimate it to be about 50 million kw."
I was impressed. Such power outputs were not unusual, in fact quite commonplace on board the major spaceships, but in such a relatively small machine this was enormous.
"The museum town is closed off by energy barriers and the air space is closely monitored. The only way to take the machine is by putting it to work. That is, the mutants will have to get in unobserved and turn it off. The museum complex was built around 3000 years ago, so we'll have to go back about 4000 years where we'll probably be in an open area. We'll have to bring antigrav transporters with us. In the converter field we'll be able to move the time-phaser to the place where 4000 years later the Terran trading base is located. That way we'll have the machine right here. The museum was to be destroyed by means of a nuclear explosion-which will help to explain the sudden disappearance of the time converter."
"How will it be accomplished?" asked Rhodan.
"A special commando detail is standing by. For several days now the Akon service posts have been informed that unknown agents have been wanting to get into Impton to study the products of the ancient Akons. Moreover, according to local security officials, the Terrans are suspected of having something to do with
it."
"No wonder!" I muttered aloud to myself.
Rhodan chuckled.
After checking his watch, Marshall continued. "The scientists who are familiar with the operation of the time-converter will arrive punctually. Kitai is already at work on them. And that's about it, sir."
I looked about me. The tracking room looked like a military encampment except that the warriors present were not carrying swords and spears. They were equipped with the most modern energy weapons in the Milky Way. I wore a Terran uniform and my white-blond Arkonide hair was concealed by a radio helmet. The best experts of Terra were poised on the threshold of a mission which could decide the fate of the Solar
System.
It was beginning to get dark. The blue sun of the system sank behind the horizon. The dense maze of stars here in the center of the galaxy appeared so suddenly that it seemed an invisible hand had raised a cosmic curtain.
"Synchronize your watches," said Rhodan. "The scientists will arrive in 2 hours."
My extra-brain was bothering me again. Undoubtedly the men here had worked very thoroughly but nevertheless I was apprehensive. The whole plan was somewhat too bold, especially since nobody could say what the effects of a time-displacement would be. Even if everything succeeded, could the theft off the machine be covered by an explosion so cleverly that no one would guess the truth?
I learned later that I had underestimated Mercant once more. This man knew how to play a double game behind the scenes. It had been an ingenious idea to inform the Akon defense posts of the activity of the Terran agents.
• • •
The commando detail consisted of 20 men who were led by the telepath John Marshall. Rhodan and I were the last to make the jump. Our teleporters were Pucky and Tako Kakuta. The gravity neutralizer had already gone ahead of us. The combined powers of 3 teleporters had been necessary to bring it to the museum city.
We were wearing Terran combat suits which had been designed after the Arkonide pattern except that the Earthmen had built in some improvements. For example the deflector screens were no longer detectable by instruments because the energy radiations were damped by special absorbers.
Pucky was looking at me with his loyal hound-dog eyes. "Are you nervous?" he asked in his shrill little voice.
"What else would he be?" Rhodan cut in, sounding more harsh than he intended.
The little fellow wrinkled his mouse-like snout in an obvious expression of injury. "Why is everybody so uptight? We got here safely, didn't we? Sure the Akons have set up extra guard details and they even have snooper gadgets at every entrance but there are a thousand rooms alone in the physical section of the museum. They can't all be watched at once, you know."
"How about the room where the converter is located? Is that strongly guarded?"
"No more and no less than others. They probably think we wouldn't know what to do with the machine if we had it."
"They'll soon change their minds about that," commented Rhodan. "Are you ready, Atlan?"
I nodded and bent down to take up Pucky into my arms. He wore a custom-made combat suit that even accommodated his tail. The little fellow patted my nose. We understood each other.
Moments later came the sensation of dematerialization. It was the same as ever. Before I could fully register the pulling pain of teleportation I arrived at my destination. Automatically I turned on my deflector field and the micro-reactor responded soundlessly. Pucky still clung to me but he was the only living thing I could see at the moment. The other men of the commando detail who were present were already under the protection of their screens. They were invisible.
My pulse raced almost audibly. In this empty- seeming stillness the weapon in my hand appeared a bit ludicrous. I holstered it and looked around. We had landed in a giant hall that was filled with machinery and equipment that was strange to me. However, all items were provided with nameplates in ancient Arkonide, explaining what each had been used for.
"Use your absorption filter," whispered Pucky.
I reached up to my helmet and swung down the special viewing device. Without affecting normal vision it eliminated the optical effects of the deflector screens. Now I could see the other men who had deployed themselves in a semi-
circle in front of an arched doorway.
I carefully placed Pucky on the floor. Ras Tschubai and the third teleporter of the Corps, Tako Kakuta, were beckoning to us. Rhodan moved silently to Marshall, who was standing by an oblong machine. We communicated only by signs and gestures. As for our mutant "seer"-Wuriu Sengu was standing before the partition wall that separated us from the adjacent room. It was there that the converter had been installed. Films previously taken by the mutants indicated that the device had been given a special location. The room was comparatively small and contained no other displays of equipment.
Sengu concentrated his gaze on the wall. The illumination from the few glow tubes on the ceiling seemed to disturb him. After a few moments he raised his hand. His 4 outstretched fingers told us that Akon security had posted a stronger guard than expected around this device which was probably the most valued legacy of their ancestors.
Pucky nudged me. Before I joined Rhodan I noted that the mouse-beaver had vanished along with the other teleporters. They had gotten their orders to go fetch the 4 scientists who were familiar with the converter. If everything had gone according to plan, these men would be meeting together about now in order to discuss some things that Ishibashi had previously suggested to them.
What we had in mind wasn't especially difficult when regarded from the purely practical side; however, the psychological factors involved were by far more important. We had to avoid letting anyone know that the machine had actually disappeared. Otherwise conclusions as to our further intent would be inevitable.
A second "psycho-point", as John Marshall called it, was the 4 scientists. Solar Intelligence had decided to bring them into the museum by force. Their abduction was to be made known to the Akon secret service as soon as the machine was ready to operate. For this purpose it had been arranged for Marshall to be in telepathicontact with a mutant waiting on the outside. The result of such a "tipoff" from unknown sources would be an immediate occupation of the museum area. By that time we should have disappeared with the machine but special combat robots would start a mock battle, during which the nuclear explosion would occur.
It was a complicated plan. It contained many elements of danger that we had to consider. Above all, the abduction of the 4 scientists must not be discovered prematurely. They were presently meeting in the country home of a physicist named Artol of Penoral. There they were to be overpowered and teleported secretly to the museum site.
Perry pointed to the interconnecting passageway. We heard a loud, commanding voice. Another voice answered.
Marshall gave us a signal. It was apparent that he had picked up the thoughts of the Akons. "The guards have permission to fire on sight," he whispered. "The tipoff strategy is working."
Rhodan checked his shock-gun. We were not to make our move until the scientists were on hand. Without their help the use of the time-phaser would be impossible. The second hand of my watch seemed to have stopped. As always in such situations, time stood still.
A red-headed sergeant moved carefully to the arched doorway. Sengu passed him a small diagram which indicated the position of the Akon sentinels. Other specialists of the commando group examined their sensor and tracking devices. Beyond the intervening wall there were no signs of a surprise buildup of energy, as in preparation for an attack. They actually seemed not to expect a move in the direction of the time-phasing machine.
It was another 20 minutes before the teleporters appeared. In 2 separate jumps they brought the scientists along with Kitai Ishibashi, whose suggestive influence had made the Akons think that their arrival here was quite normal and proper.
When Tako Kakuta approached us the soles of his boots were squeaking. It was hardly audible and yet it seemed to me that it could be heard in every room of the museum. Rhodan raised a hand and Kakuta paused long enough to wipe his soles with a cloth. Evidently he had come in contact with some kind of wax material used in floor maintenance.
When he moved again his footsteps were as silent as those of the other men. "Sorry!" he whispered. "The kidnapping worked out alright. Betty Toufry has been advised. We can begin."
I observed the Akons more closely. They were wearing robe-like shoulder capes as a sign of their dignified stations. There was still a slightly blank expression in their eyes, which would soon change, however. I was wondering if a total suggestive block in their minds might not have undesirable repercussions. If these experts did not operate the controls correctly the whole mission would be unfeasible. The only thing left would be flight.
Rhodan came out from behind the machine where he and Marshall had been standing. His signal sent the commando detail into action. I joined Marshall as we entered the adjacent hall. It was a large, vaulted room which contained the strangest apparatus I had ever seen. It was a large cube resting on a platform that was several meters high. On one side of this square "foundation" there was a built-in staircase. Nearby a steel door could be seen which gave entrance into the power room beneath the assembly.
When I looked about for the guards I saw two of them standing at the other entrance. One was crouched down at the staircase but the fourth man was so close to me that I could have touched him.
The Terrans operated smoothly and soundlessly. A team of two attacked each sentry and prevented him from crying out, while a third man pressed an anesthesia mask over his face. Finally the unconscious Akons were placed in deep sleep by a doctor.
Once more no word was spoken aloud. Kitai Ishibashi had the scientists fully under his control. I could imagine the challenge it must have been for his paramental faculties to force them to disregard the surrounding circumstances. They were under the impression that they had come here of their own free will to carry out an experiment that had been authorized by the Ruling Council. They moved with the assurance of men who were being escorted by the highest of official dignitaries.
Moreover they did not speak with one another. Marshall and Pucky led them over to the machine. One of the Akons-it was Artol of Penoral-extracted a code-signal device from his pocket and inactivated the energy screen that surrounded the machine. I nodded appreciatively. The Terrans had thought of everything. How quickly a plan like ours could go wrong because of details like this.
I remained in the hall until the intricately worked-out steps had run their course. The technicians came in with the powerful grav-neutralizer and anchored it magnetically to the converter floor plates. Twenty robots took up positions at the entrances. They were armed with heavy energy weapons. Their special programming was equivalent to a kamikaze assignment. They were to hold the site until we had disappeared with the time- phaser and then the bomb was to explode. For Rhodan the 20 robots were a small price to pay when the salvation of the Earth was at stake.
Only a few commandos remained outside. I went up the stairs of the machine and passed through an airlock. I heard voices in the connecting passage. John Marshall was briefing his men.
"This way, sir," said the red-haired sergeant. "Please turn off your deflector screen."
I depressed the control button and the hum of the projector died away. When I shoved up my filter I could again see quite normally. The passage led to the control room which was additionally secured by hermetic hatches. This was also a cubically-shaped room which was filled with a maze of equipment of every description. Not too much room was available for extra personnel.
No one paid any attention to me so I drew back into a protected angle between 2 triangular viewscreens where I was able to watch the operations of the Akons. Apparently they had no intention of violating Ishibashi's instructions. Moreover, they really seemed to be familiar with the intricate controls.
When I heard the machine start to hum, my extra- brain immediately sent me a warning signal.
"I'd hold off with that until the Akons attack," I said aloud. "They could get an energy trace on us."
Rhodan nodded and ordered the machine to be turned down again. Ishibashi passed the order along to the Akons. Moments later a telepathi
c message was received. Marshall and Pucky detected it simultaneously.
"It's Betty calling us," said the little one. "The local security boys have found out about the kidnapped scientists. Airborne commandos are on their way. Red alert for the museum town."
He had not quite finished speaking before we heard a racket outside. It was the typical thundering of impulse weapons. Rhodan looked at his watch. The scientists were finally allowed to speak and they began at once to discuss the problems of activating the time field. I only understood a fraction of the conversation. They thought that Kitai was the chairman of the Ruling Council but they took no heed of the commando troops.
Outside we heard the sounds of heavy firing. The rumbling of the powerful robot weapons indicated that the Akon defenders had responded as we had expected.
"Get ready!" Rhodan called out. "Ras, go plant the bomb."
The swarthy-skinned Terran nodded. Around his neck was suspended a micro-bomb of Earthly design. Ras Tschubai dematerialized. When he came back he told us he had planted the device outside the hall in an adjacent chamber. This time I looked at my own watch. We still had 10 minutes. The robots would have to hold their line until then.
Out hypno-mutant was very silent. I was worried about the drops of sweat that had appeared on his forehead during the past few minutes. Unquestionably it must be a terrible strain on him to keep the 4 Akons continuously under his mental control.
"Activate!" said Perry almost too swiftly. "Have them build up the phaser field so that it just encloses the machine."
The last of the commando troops came on board. The hatches closed automatically. Under our feet the nuclear pile of the power plant came to life. The indicator needles began to rise on the scales. I was more or less familiar with such power controls since the same kind of arrangement had been used on the old Arkonide spaceships. I noted that the reactors were only operating at 2% of their capacity. The physicist Artol appeared to be the leader of his group. We could all hear his instructions but for the most part he was explaining things that we could only grasp by using our imaginations.