The man whirled and sent a heavy-gloved hand back against Farradyne's
face-glass. Farradyne lifted the file for a second swing and caught the
gleam of a heavy knife just as it swung upwards at his face. The blade
jabbed at the face-glass and blunted slightly before Farradyne's eyes.
The glass crazed, clouding Farradyne's vision.
Farradyne's second swing caught a shoulder-pad and sent the man
staggering back; the knife came up again and the gleaming edge sliced
space close to Farradyne's arm. The man stumbled and fell, and
Farradyne moved forward. The long lever used to handle the radioactive
control rod chopped against his shins and cut his feet out from under
him; he landed on his face in position to let the other man kick out
with heavy spaceboots. The heels rammed Farradyne's helmet hard down
into the shoulders and the top of the helmet hit the top of Farradyne's
head, stunning him slightly.
The other scrambled forward and landed on Farradyne's back. He pulled
up and back on the fittings of Farradyne's helmet until the pilot's
spine ached with the tension. Then the man thrust forward and slammed
Farradyne's face down on the deck. The safety glass cracked further and
there came the thin, high screech of air escaping through a sharp-edged
hole.
Farradyne lashed out and around just in time to parry a slash of the
knife. Blade met file in a glint of metal-spark and both weapons were
shocked out of and gloved hands to go skittering across the deck.
The man left Farradyne to scrabble across the floor after his knife.
Farradyne jumped to his feet, took three fast steps and leaped to
come down with both feet on the man's back. The other collapsed and
Farradyne fell, turning his right wrist painfully underneath him. The
other made a kick that caught Farradyne in the side, turning him over.
And as Farradyne rolled, his bent hand touched hard metal and he came
up out of the roll clutching a heavy pair of spaceman's repair pliers.
He faced the killer, standing again, armed again; spaceman's pliers
against assassin's knife. He plunged forward and felt the knife bite
against his suit; he swung the pliers as a club and caught the killer's
upper arm, then opened the jaws and bit down, twisting and pulling.
[Illustration: The spaceman's pliers were pitted against the assassin's
knife.]
A three-cornered patch ripped and came away between the jaws as
the heavy outer cloth gave way. The knife came up and bit through
Farradyne's suit across the knuckles of the hand that held the pliers.
Farradyne kicked, sending the killer staggering, and followed him,
probing at the tear to get at the thin inner suit beneath. The other
man struggled, hurled Farradyne away; but when Farradyne staggered
back, it was with the thin lining between the jaws of the spaceman's
pliers. The other's suit ripped and there came a puff of white vapor as
the air blew into the void.
The struggling killer stopped as though shocked by an electric current;
he stood there stiffly, his hands slowly falling to his sides, limp.
Farradyne took a step back, breathing heavily.
He could see, now that his head was not jerking back and forth behind
the cracked glass. He peered, in time to watch the froth of blood foam
out of Hughes' nose.
Hughes!