turned into the glass-fronted lobby, set out across the field. An armed guard ran toward them, shouted.
Paddy jerked around, put his hand in the pocket where he carried his little gun. “To the ship, Fay,” he ground between clenched teeth. “Run, you’ve still got time.”
“No,” said Fay. “Wrong again. He’s trying to tell us a boat is coming down on our heads.”
Paddy, glancing up, saw the underside of a great excursion boat not two hundred feet above. They dodged swiftly out of danger.
There was their boat—the familiar little hull which had traversed so much emptiness, the observation dome through which they had seen so many stars.
“Inside,” said Paddy. “Quick! Oh, there’s a trap somewhere. I can smell it. They’re trailing us to our boat and they’ve shorted out our drive.” He ran to the controls, jerked the lift lever. “See? It’s dead. No power.”
“Of course not,” said Fay. The port is still open.”
She slammed it shut. Paddy threw power to the jets, the boat lofted into the bright sky of Loristan.
“It can’t be this easy,” said Paddy, wiping sweat from his forehead. There must be some catch, some trick.”
“It can’t be this easy.” Fay agreed, watching from the side window. “But it is. No one is after us. No one even knows we’ve been here.”
Paddy sank into a seat. “ Phew! ” he sighed. “It would be less strain on my poor tired nerves if we had a little trouble. Then I’d feel we had earned our loot.”
Fay laughed, tossed the package to the desk, began to tear it open.
It was much like the other two. The first paragraph, like the one on the Pherasic sheet, dictated the spacing of the activation coils. The second paragraph detailed the time-sequences for each of the five banks of coils. Then, as on the other sheets, there were two columns of three numbers apiece.
“We’re off to Delta Trianguli and Angry Dragon Peak,” said Fay. “And then to Almach and we’ll see how the Shauls treat us.”
IX
Almach lay to the right and below. Ahead hung the lurid face of Shaul. Paddy turned away from the telescope, spat in disgust.
“The first Langtry Son was a maniac when he picked this planet. It’s like the hell old Father O’Toole predicted for me. I believe I’d rather raise my cottage in the shadow of the Angry Dragon.”
“Shaul’s very beautiful,” Fay said mildly, “in a frightening sort of way.”
“It’s a yelling Satan’s kitchen of a planet. Now see there— those orange spots. Are they volcanic craters or are they not?”
“They are.”
“And those lava flows and steaming cinder heaps and the dust storms. How can men live on a planet like this?”
“They grow flaps of skin to protect their necks and to shield their faces,” said Fay. “They develop a tolerance for acid in the air and don’t feel easy unless they’re mining the marvelous ores and jewels of Shaul.”
“I’ve no flap of skin,” growled Paddy. “I don’t like acid and I don’t like tunnels since the affair at Akhabats—though my ideas are not in demand. Now then, where are we heading?”
Fay said, “‘Corescens. The back wall. Irradiate with angstroms 685, 1444, 2590, 3001. Photograph!’”
Paddy looked up marvelling. “And you remembered all those numbers?”
She twisted her lips in a bashful crooked grin. “I’ve got a good memory. And we’re trained to use it in the Agency. It’s easy to memorize numbers, once you know how.”
Paddy made a long face. “And now you’ll be telling me how you do it. Six eight five—add six and eight. That’s fourteen; the one and four make five, and that’s the third number. Also the one and four in one four four four. As for the two last fours, they make eight, and since there’s two of ’em, double it and that’s sixteen. One from six is five, and there’s your one four four four. Now as for two five nine aught—”
Fay said, “When you’ve done talking like an idiot, look up Corescens in
Paddy jerked around, put his hand in the pocket where he carried his little gun. “To the ship, Fay,” he ground between clenched teeth. “Run, you’ve still got time.”
“No,” said Fay. “Wrong again. He’s trying to tell us a boat is coming down on our heads.”
Paddy, glancing up, saw the underside of a great excursion boat not two hundred feet above. They dodged swiftly out of danger.
There was their boat—the familiar little hull which had traversed so much emptiness, the observation dome through which they had seen so many stars.
“Inside,” said Paddy. “Quick! Oh, there’s a trap somewhere. I can smell it. They’re trailing us to our boat and they’ve shorted out our drive.” He ran to the controls, jerked the lift lever. “See? It’s dead. No power.”
“Of course not,” said Fay. The port is still open.”
She slammed it shut. Paddy threw power to the jets, the boat lofted into the bright sky of Loristan.
“It can’t be this easy,” said Paddy, wiping sweat from his forehead. There must be some catch, some trick.”
“It can’t be this easy.” Fay agreed, watching from the side window. “But it is. No one is after us. No one even knows we’ve been here.”
Paddy sank into a seat. “ Phew! ” he sighed. “It would be less strain on my poor tired nerves if we had a little trouble. Then I’d feel we had earned our loot.”
Fay laughed, tossed the package to the desk, began to tear it open.
It was much like the other two. The first paragraph, like the one on the Pherasic sheet, dictated the spacing of the activation coils. The second paragraph detailed the time-sequences for each of the five banks of coils. Then, as on the other sheets, there were two columns of three numbers apiece.
“We’re off to Delta Trianguli and Angry Dragon Peak,” said Fay. “And then to Almach and we’ll see how the Shauls treat us.”
IX
Almach lay to the right and below. Ahead hung the lurid face of Shaul. Paddy turned away from the telescope, spat in disgust.
“The first Langtry Son was a maniac when he picked this planet. It’s like the hell old Father O’Toole predicted for me. I believe I’d rather raise my cottage in the shadow of the Angry Dragon.”
“Shaul’s very beautiful,” Fay said mildly, “in a frightening sort of way.”
“It’s a yelling Satan’s kitchen of a planet. Now see there— those orange spots. Are they volcanic craters or are they not?”
“They are.”
“And those lava flows and steaming cinder heaps and the dust storms. How can men live on a planet like this?”
“They grow flaps of skin to protect their necks and to shield their faces,” said Fay. “They develop a tolerance for acid in the air and don’t feel easy unless they’re mining the marvelous ores and jewels of Shaul.”
“I’ve no flap of skin,” growled Paddy. “I don’t like acid and I don’t like tunnels since the affair at Akhabats—though my ideas are not in demand. Now then, where are we heading?”
Fay said, “‘Corescens. The back wall. Irradiate with angstroms 685, 1444, 2590, 3001. Photograph!’”
Paddy looked up marvelling. “And you remembered all those numbers?”
She twisted her lips in a bashful crooked grin. “I’ve got a good memory. And we’re trained to use it in the Agency. It’s easy to memorize numbers, once you know how.”
Paddy made a long face. “And now you’ll be telling me how you do it. Six eight five—add six and eight. That’s fourteen; the one and four make five, and that’s the third number. Also the one and four in one four four four. As for the two last fours, they make eight, and since there’s two of ’em, double it and that’s sixteen. One from six is five, and there’s your one four four four. Now as for two five nine aught—”
Fay said, “When you’ve done talking like an idiot, look up Corescens in
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