by Perry Rhodan
The sand was still warm because it had not yet radiated all of the heat it had absorbed from the sun during the day. It would probably act as a heat reservoir for a few more hours but there was little doubt that toward morning it would be very cold.
Chellish looked about him. The sky emitted a milky glow which permitted his eyes to become oriented to the surrounding terrain. He tried to inspect his hip wound which turned out to be a hardened, brittle conglomeration of melted plastic, singed clothing material and burned flesh. Lauer's shot appeared to have only grazed him. The pain was excruciating but he could bear it. He had to.
He searched the ground and soon discovered the footprints of Suttney and his cohorts. He sensed some satisfaction when he saw that the trail led on into the ravine.
They apparently planned to hide in the hills where there would be protective cover.
As he followed their tracks he favored his right leg as much as possible but he soon found that this was over-taxing his left side, which also began to pain him. At this rate he wouldn't be able to make much headway, at least not as much as Suttney, Lauer and Roane.
But meanwhile his rage had reached a stage where it blinded him to the dictates of reason. All he knew was that he had to overtake the three of them, no matter how long it took.
• • •
At 8:55 ship time the tracking station on board the battleship Barbarossa detected that a small shuttlecraft had been launched from a nearby Arkonide ship. It was seen to penetrate the blockade zone that Perry Rhodan had established and head downward toward the planet with the obvious intention of either searching the surface areas or landing there.
The Barbarossa was under command of Gen. Deringhouse, who did not hesitate one second in exacting the penalty the Arkonides had been told they would have to pay if they were to cast Perry Rhodan's warning to the winds. When the small craft was slightly more than 40,000 miles away, the gun hatches of the Barbarossa opened and a beam of ravening energy reached out toward the vessel. Within 10 seconds a hit occurred. The tiny ship disappeared in a bright, soundless explosion. The Barbarossa 's gun turrets became silent again. But its crewmen sat at the hypercom receivers and watched for any reaction from the Arkonides. Nothing happened.
A half hour after this incident, when it was seen that the Arkonides were not taking any further action, Perry Rhodan himself took off from the Drusus in a fully manned Gazelle. Gen. Deringhouse took over top command of the entire fleet, including the flagship.
• • •
At first it appeared that the back wall of the deep ravine formed a blind alley for them. Ronson Lauer played the wide beam of his lamp across the rocks and just as he was about to give up he discovered a narrow fissure. It was eight or nine feet off the ground and seemed to lead into the cliff-like wall. Upon closer inspection he found that the floor of the fissure led gently upward, apparently offering a passage up to the plateau.
He looked at Suttney questioningly. Suttney beckoned to Roane. Roane was the first to climb into the cleft. Then he turned and helped Suttney up because of his extra burden of the film case. Lauer followed them. In spite of the micro-transceiver he had hung around his neck he was fairly agile. Once inside the crevice he again led the way with his heavy duty flashlight.
As he climbed up through the narrow gully he heard the air-conditioning system in his suit click to a new setting. He looked at his sleeve thermometer and saw that the outer temperature had now lowered to, 105° Fahrenheit. He became pensive as he put one foot in front of the other, instinctively watching for any dangerous animals or insects—although he had consciously rejected the idea that any life at all existed in this world. The question that dominated his thoughts was whether or not they'd been wise to leave the Gazelle. He agreed more or less with Suttney that any Earth spaceship would destroy the ship if it found it. But could there really be any Earth ships in the area at all? How could they know of their present location? When Suttney sent his message to the Arkonides, it was so improbable that any units of the Terra Fleet would have been within even 100 light-years of the place that he had not even taken it into account. Naturally Suttney's transmission would have been intercepted by the Terranians but at such a remote distance that it would take them days to even search out the system where the Gazelle had taken refuge.
So why had they run away from the ship? It would have been much more comfortable to sit in an upholstered chair and wait for the arrival of the Arkonides.
He stopped and turned around, prepared to suggest to Suttney that they return—but just then something happened overhead in the heavens. At first all he saw was a brilliant flash, which illuminated the gully. He stared skyward and observed a rain of glittering light sparks which seemed to emanate from a spot close to the zenith and then spew out in all directions as they hurtled toward the ground.
He forgot what he had started to say and instead began to run. Puffing desperately, he chased through the gully toward the top without bothering about Suttney or Roane, and finally he reached the plateau where he had a clear view.
The shower of light sparks had come nearer in the meantime. But then something came whistling suddenly through the air and hit the plateau with a dull thud, several hundred yards away. In the twilight Lauer saw a dust cloud swirl upward and then drift back toward the ground. The impact had transmitted a powerful jolt through the rocky terrain where he was standing.
When he looked up again the rain of fiery particles had subsided. They had probably fallen to the surface elsewhere. He heard rapid breathing and panting behind him.
He did not even turn to see if it was Suttney or Roane but instead broke into a sprint, racing toward the thing that had ploughed into the ground nearby.
The plateau was completely flat so that the crater caused by the impact could not be missed. Lauer saw that it was perfectly round and had a diameter of 12 or 13 feet. It was also just about as deep but he could not discover whatever it was that had fallen here. Apparently it had bored its way beneath the floor of the crater itself.
Lauer climbed down into it, finally slipping and sliding his way to the bottom in a great cloud of dust. He tore the micro-tran from him and tossed it heedlessly to one side. Then he began to shovel the sand away with his gloved hands.
It was an arduous task, especially since the sand was quite hot. After a half hour, Lauer's hands were heat-blistered in spite of his gloves but he finally came to a place where the sand had been melted into a hard lump. He struggled with this until he had shoved it to one side. Beneath this a piece of plastic material came to view which was flanged out and bent but was in the shape of a sharp point.
Carefully, Lauer grasped it, hoping to pull it out of the ground but he had hardly touched it before he let out a yell of pain. The metal plastic was still very hot—close to 1000° Fahrenheit.
Lauer stepped back and turned on the spotlight. Then he brought it within inches of the metal spike and examined the latter carefully. It reminded him of something. He was sure that he'd recognize what it was immediately if he could see it in its original form and not all bent out of shape by the fall and the heat.
Suddenly he heard Suttney's voice in his helmet phones.
It sounded hopeless and dejected. "That's the control pedestal from an Arkonide flying disc."
Lauer knew at once that Suttney was right. A control pedestal—that was it! He recalled the complete configuration from his hypno-schooling: a tube-shaped extrusion made of plastic metal from which various control protuberances extended for operating the Arkonide auxiliary craft. The protuberances were missing now because they'd been melted away. Even what was left had been distorted almost beyond recognition. But Suttney was right.
Lauer moved out of the hole, retrieving the micro-transceiver in the process. He was nonplussed. He had no idea why the control pedestal of an Arkonide shuttlecraft should have fallen to the surface of the desert planet.
Walter Suttney stood on the upper rim of the funnel-shaped depression. Roane had not
arrived yet but Lauer saw him approaching across the plateau.
"So they came after all," said Suttney in such an undertone that seemed he was talking to himself.
"Who?" asked Lauer. "The Arkonides?"
"They got here, too, but I mean the Terranians."
Lauer caught his breath sharply. "You mean... they may have shot down an Arkonide ship?"
"What else?"
Lauer stared incredulously back into the crater. Then he looked up into the sky as though he could see the Earthly and Arkonide ships somewhere. Suddenly, Suttney cried out, "Make the micro-tran ready for sending!"
Lauer whirled around to look at him. "What for?" he asked. "You're not going to..."
"Come on!" insisted Suttney. "We don't have any time to lose. In a couple of hours our own people will have found us."
Lauer became angry. "And what the devil am I supposed to do with the micro-com?" he yelled.
"We're going to tell the Arkonides what we know about the Earth's position—before it's too late."
For a moment Lauer was speechless. Even Roane drew his breath sharply at this. "Have you lost your marbles, Walter?" Lauer finally blurted out. "If this transmitter lets one peep out of it, they'll locate us and three minutes later we'll be dead!" Suttney was in deadly earnest.
"Three minutes is enough to tell the Arkonides where they can find the Earth."
"And we? What do we get out of it if Rhodan hits us with a bomb?" Suttney's tone of voice was suddenly scornful and derisive. "But Ronson, you are still a revolutionary, aren't you? You have sworn to destroy Perry Rhodan... cost what it might. Very well, then. Perry Rhodan is destroyed as soon as the Arkonides find the Earth. So what are you hesitating about? Is your miserable life worth more than the good of Mankind?"
Lauer gasped. "Leave me out of it!" he snarled.
Suttney held the microfilm case under his left arm. He remained motionless when he answered. "Ronson, you agreed to follow my instructions and that's exactly what you're going to do now. Get that transmitter on the air and give it to me!"
"No!" shouted Lauer. "Do what I say or..."
"Or... ?" Suttney misjudged the situation. He thought he had time enough to place the film case carefully on the ground and draw his weapon. Which only made it easier for Lauer, who had his gun in hand and ready before Suttney had half straightened up again.
Lauer's eyes narrowed. His voice was calm. "You poor, frizzle-brained fool!"
He fired twice, one shot after the other.
• • •
From a position that was still some 200 yards from the back wall of the canyon, Gunther Chellish observed the explosion in the sky. He interpreted it correctly and the knowledge that Terranian ships had finally shown up gave him new strength for continuing his painful march.
After awhile he reached the wall and discovered the crevice. Of course he couldn't be certain that Roane, Suttney and Lauer had used the narrow passage but since their tracks led nowhere else he took it for granted. He drew himself up into the gully but it was such a strain on him, and his hip flamed with such renewed pain, that he had to lie on the ground for several minutes to recuperate.
When he could finally bring his breathing under control, he listened for any sounds ahead of him in the darkness. Naturally the other three could have left him far behind by now if they had continued without interruption. But they could also have stopped somewhere up ahead in the gully to wait for him.
However, he couldn't hear anything, so he pulled himself to his feet and went onward. It was stifling hot in the gully. Only after a few steps the sweat was running down his face. He tried resting himself against the cliff wall beside him but the stone surface was hotter than the air. He trudged onward and looked up along the fissure in the hope that it would open again into a clear area.
Suddenly, he heard a humming and whistling sound behind him. It came as such a surprise yet was so familiar to him that he lost his footing in a transport of pain and delight, all at once, and fell to the heated ground. The sound grew mightily, causing the ground to tremble. Chellish started to shout with joy and in the vain hope that he could attract attention but his voice was drowned in the loud hissing that suddenly mixed in with the swish of the propulsion units. Seconds later the gully was bathed in a brilliant blue-white light and shortly afterwards the thunder of a tremendous explosion swept over Chellish and away into the night.
Chellish could not make out the phantom shape of the Gazelle as it streaked low over the plateau because he was blinded. The glaring explosion of his ship, in which he'd been lying unconscious only an hour before, raised a spangle of brightly colored dancing lights in front of his eyes. He groped around and found a small rocky projection which he used to help pull himself up on. Reeling and staggering, filled with disillusionment, he pushed onward up the incline.
As expected, they had destroyed the spacecraft. It filled him with bitterness that they had shown no consideration for himself. If Lauer had tied him to anything in the control room he would not be among the living now.
But then—they would naturally have to disregard him. The Earth itself was at stake, so what was just one human life? Maybe they had also figured on his being smart enough to get away somewhere to safety in time.
At any rate, they were here! They had flown by close overhead and if he'd been carrying a transmitter he could have drawn their attention to him.
They'd be landing here somewhere in the area in an attempt to find out if Suttney, Lauer and Roane had left the Gazelle prior to the explosion. If he were lucky he'd be able to spot their ship early in the morning, as soon as it became light.
With his heart pounding, he pushed onward in a mixture of happiness and remorse. In a few hours he would be safe—in a bed, being cared for by a friendly doctor. Just a few hours more—
When he reached the plateau he considered whether it would be better to sit there in the sand or to follow the trail of Suttney, Lauer and Roane. The upper plain lay clearly before him under the glittering stars. He could see the footprints ahead of him for at least a quarter of a mile.
Finally he decided to follow them. Perhaps the Gazelle crew wouldn't have any idea of where the three deserters were located. But if they were to discover him, instead, he'd be able to guide them.
A few minutes later, several shapes emerged out of the gloom—a large one and a small one. The large shadow evolved into a crater and the small shadow was Suttney. There was a deep, ugly wound in his chest and he stared up through his faceplate into the night sky with wide, lifeless eyes.
Chellish was not able to imagine what had happened here but of course he didn't put it past Ronson Lauer to be able to kill either one of his companions if it seemed to serve his purpose; but he couldn't quite figure what the purpose behind killing Suttney might have been.
He shoved Suttney's lifeless body to the edge of the crater and let it slide down into it. At least the crater might serve as a grave for him after the wind had blown enough sand into the depression.
After that he continued on the trail of the others.
• • •
Suddenly the night was swarming with elliptical Gazelle shapes. After discovering the lost ship and destroying it, Perry Rhodan had ordered them to join him.
The tracking job had not been difficult. Suttney's Gazelle was more or less the only significant mass of metal on the surface of the planet. There, where the micro-wave tracer had shown its first reaction, Rhodan had shot downward and discovered what he was looking for.
However he was certain that Suttney had been shrewd enough to get clear of the ship in time and it was very probable that he had not come out of the danger zone with empty hands. All information concerning the galactic position of the Earth could be easily contained in a cubical case that measured four inches on each side. Suttney had no doubt kept the microfilm package in readiness and had taken it with him. At least that's what would have to be surmised.
The Gazelle had been hidden in a deep ravine o
r canyon of some kind that cut into the hills slightly more than a mile. If Suttney and his companions had left the craft they would have gone eastward or deeper into the hills. To the east of the canyon was a wide, clearly visible plateau where the fugitives would not be able to conceal themselves very readily. They had either crossed it already or had turned northward or southward along its rim.
In order to block off this part of the mountain ridge, Rhodan had called in a squadron of Gazelles and instructed them to land at the foot of the hills. He took his own Gazelle into a hiding place on the eastern edge of the plateau. The entire manoeuvre stretched out until the first light of dawn. By then it seemed certain that Suttney, Lauer and Roane would fall into the trap—dead or alive.
Rhodan started to seek radio contact with Suttney: "This is Rhodan, Suttney, come in!" His call went out uninterruptedly from sunrise on.
• • •
"Down here!" panted Lauer. "Dammit, snap into it!" Roane's ponderously slow gait had whipped him to a blind fury. He shoved the other in the back, pushing the heavy man more rapidly than he had intended so that he slid down into the rocky depression and lay there groaning.
Lauer followed him with agile steps. In addition to the micro-com he also carried the microfilm case but in spite of this he moved with light-footed sureness.
They had seen the glare of the explosion that had signified the end of the Gazelle. From a safe spot on the eastern edge of the plateau they had seen Rhodan's ship pass over and a few minutes later they observed the squadron of Gazelles as they plunged downward out of the night sky and disappeared beyond the tops of the hills.
Ronson Lauer had interpreted the situation correctly: they sat in the middle of a trap. From the eastern rim of the upper plain a steep rocky slope dropped into a broad, sandy valley. The slanting rock wall offered innumerable places of concealment. Lauer knew that there was no further use in remaining on the march.