Before he could check the others, the gun had fired a salvo and his main wonder was that he was alive to know it.
A deafening roar filled all space and Main Mission was vibrating to its foundations. Eye-aching light was pulsing through every direct vision port. Sandra was screaming, unheard even by Morrow who was only centimetres away. How long it continued no one ever knew. It was timeless, a suspension of living in a twilight limbo of pandemonium.
When it stopped, they remained for a beat too stunned to understand that it was over. Then, slowly they stood up, rubbing their ears, shaking their heads from side to side like bemused dogs.
Koenig stumbled to a direct vision port. The spacer’s weapon system had altered its angle of elevation. After getting direction it had shifted for a different target. He said thickly, ‘It wasn’t interested in Moonbase Alpha. It was firing over us.’
The idea took a little time to sink into his own head. He looked across the floor of Main Mission to the stairs and gallery at the other side. Bergman was ahead of him and raced for the steps. Helena caught on and was away. As he joined them they were already looking out of the direct vision ports.
Beyond the curving horizon of the moonscape, the new sun was blazing in a dark sky. On either side, a planet was clearly visible. A cloud of brilliant needles were on their way for a strike on the left hand planet. As they watched, they saw them zero in. Bright asterisks stippled the surface. A dark haze spread in a band like a new cloud pattern.
Koenig said slowly, ‘We must be in the middle of a war between two planets.’
Helena said, ‘But why?’
There was no need for Victor Bergman to refer to his model. He said, ‘Look at them. That tells you why. Those two planets are on opposite sides of the sun. They can never see each other direct, because of the size of the sun in between. They can’t fire directly at each other, because any kind of missile would be drawn in by the sun’s gravity. So the arrival of our moon has set them up with a ready-made gun platform. Right, John?’
‘Right. And that makes as Number One target for Planet Number Two.’
He used his binoculars for a scan of the cloud wracked target planet. It was rough and ready, but in this war of giant equipment, movements stood out. He was not wrong. A brilliant dot glowed momentarily on the planet’s surface.
‘Here it comes.’
How much time they would have was anybody’s guess. He whipped to the balcony rail, shouted for Paul Morrow, ‘Paul. All non-essential personnel into deep shelters. Go.’
A slim pencil of light was probing out from the left-hand planet. Morrow was doing his best with an all-sections call. ‘Attention. Attention all sections Alpha. All personnel into deep shelter, immediately.’
To his personal staff he said urgently, ‘Sandra, Kano, you too. Get down there.’ There was opposition. Sandra for one had no intention of leaving and the time ran out. Koenig, on the balcony, grabbed for Helena and Bergman who were watching, hypnotised, and threw them to the deck.
Every direct vision port in Moonbase Alpha flared with intense white heat. Main Mission was illuminated in a hard glare that etched every item on the retina as though on a photographic plate. A deafening roar vibrated the very deck. Outside, a pencil of light had homed in on the spacer and struck the ground close beside it, excavating a vast new crater on the ancient Moon and shifting even the huge bulk of the ship in a sideways lurch.
Gleaming sides blackened, smoke and vermilion flame pouring from open ports, the spacer looked less of a threat. Koenig on his feet again to his own eternal surprise, watched the dust settle. This was a wreck on their island. Maybe, if the hot war cooled, there would be useful gear to salvage from the hulk?
Others were dusting off and moving about, still dazed and uncertain. Suddenly, the lights in Main Mission brightened to full strength.
A deafening roar filled all space and Main Mission was vibrating to its foundations. Eye-aching light was pulsing through every direct vision port. Sandra was screaming, unheard even by Morrow who was only centimetres away. How long it continued no one ever knew. It was timeless, a suspension of living in a twilight limbo of pandemonium.
When it stopped, they remained for a beat too stunned to understand that it was over. Then, slowly they stood up, rubbing their ears, shaking their heads from side to side like bemused dogs.
Koenig stumbled to a direct vision port. The spacer’s weapon system had altered its angle of elevation. After getting direction it had shifted for a different target. He said thickly, ‘It wasn’t interested in Moonbase Alpha. It was firing over us.’
The idea took a little time to sink into his own head. He looked across the floor of Main Mission to the stairs and gallery at the other side. Bergman was ahead of him and raced for the steps. Helena caught on and was away. As he joined them they were already looking out of the direct vision ports.
Beyond the curving horizon of the moonscape, the new sun was blazing in a dark sky. On either side, a planet was clearly visible. A cloud of brilliant needles were on their way for a strike on the left hand planet. As they watched, they saw them zero in. Bright asterisks stippled the surface. A dark haze spread in a band like a new cloud pattern.
Koenig said slowly, ‘We must be in the middle of a war between two planets.’
Helena said, ‘But why?’
There was no need for Victor Bergman to refer to his model. He said, ‘Look at them. That tells you why. Those two planets are on opposite sides of the sun. They can never see each other direct, because of the size of the sun in between. They can’t fire directly at each other, because any kind of missile would be drawn in by the sun’s gravity. So the arrival of our moon has set them up with a ready-made gun platform. Right, John?’
‘Right. And that makes as Number One target for Planet Number Two.’
He used his binoculars for a scan of the cloud wracked target planet. It was rough and ready, but in this war of giant equipment, movements stood out. He was not wrong. A brilliant dot glowed momentarily on the planet’s surface.
‘Here it comes.’
How much time they would have was anybody’s guess. He whipped to the balcony rail, shouted for Paul Morrow, ‘Paul. All non-essential personnel into deep shelters. Go.’
A slim pencil of light was probing out from the left-hand planet. Morrow was doing his best with an all-sections call. ‘Attention. Attention all sections Alpha. All personnel into deep shelter, immediately.’
To his personal staff he said urgently, ‘Sandra, Kano, you too. Get down there.’ There was opposition. Sandra for one had no intention of leaving and the time ran out. Koenig, on the balcony, grabbed for Helena and Bergman who were watching, hypnotised, and threw them to the deck.
Every direct vision port in Moonbase Alpha flared with intense white heat. Main Mission was illuminated in a hard glare that etched every item on the retina as though on a photographic plate. A deafening roar vibrated the very deck. Outside, a pencil of light had homed in on the spacer and struck the ground close beside it, excavating a vast new crater on the ancient Moon and shifting even the huge bulk of the ship in a sideways lurch.
Gleaming sides blackened, smoke and vermilion flame pouring from open ports, the spacer looked less of a threat. Koenig on his feet again to his own eternal surprise, watched the dust settle. This was a wreck on their island. Maybe, if the hot war cooled, there would be useful gear to salvage from the hulk?
Others were dusting off and moving about, still dazed and uncertain. Suddenly, the lights in Main Mission brightened to full strength.
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