Someone slapped his face, a voice sounded urgently in his ear. Ric
opened his eyes and looked up at Tal Horan, whose lean face broke into
a grin.
"That's better. Kueelo must have hit you pretty hard!"
Ric struggled up. His head ached. They were somewhere in a tiny room,
and he could hear a thin whine of rocket-tubes under full blast. The
Martian girl was standing near, her attention torn between the Earthman
and a view-plate looking out into space.
Ric walked a bit unsteadily to the view-plate. Far away in space he saw
the _Valiant_ still plodding its course, but their Unit seemed to be
blasting away from it at a sharp tangent!
"Dar Mihelson anticipated trouble with the Earth Fleet," Tal Horan
answered Ric's puzzled glance. "No spores are going to Earth, but
he's determined to fight if necessary. We only want a place to live,
Earthman, until we can get back to Mars and wipe out that red plague!"
"The name's Ric Martin. But look, Tal ... Mihelson mustn't fight! He
can't possibly stand against Wessell's fleet!"
"I've counselled against it, but Mihelson is Commander and he's
determined if it comes to a showdown--"
"Look!" The girl was pointing into the view-plate. Far ahead of the
_Valiant_, across thousands of miles of space, they could see a tiny
pin-point of moving light. The Earth Fleet was moving out fast.
"Tal ... Ric Martin is right. It will mean annihilation for our people.
But the _Valiant_ has speed! If we could only get a message through to
Mihelson...."
Ric strode to the door, tested it. It was locked. He turned back to
Tal. "Where's Kueelo and his pal?"
"Busy at the controls, I guess. They threw us in here."
Quickly Ric searched through his pockets, brought out a disc a few
inches in diameter, with a milky-white crystallized facing. Inside were
highly sensitized coils, and it was rimmed with a sliding sheathe.
"Short distance trans-telector," he explained. "Now if I can only get
the _Valiant's_ wave-length!"
He clicked a switch and manipulated the dials with swift surety. A bit
of crackling came through but nothing more. He increased the power.
"Afraid we're out of range, and we're moving away fast! Wait...."
The dial began to glow with an inner light. A man's face appeared
there, rather fuzzy and indistinct. Ric moved the dials infinitesimally
and a faint voice was heard.
"Quickly!" Ric held the disc to Tal Horan's lips.
But the girl came forward. "Allow me, Tal! It is time that Dar Mihelson
knew...." She spoke crisply. "Unit Twenty-six calling the _Valiant_!
We're moving away fast so listen carefully, Dar Mihelson! You must not
fight--it would mean destruction! Look to your magni-plates ... use
your speed, and stay out of Earth Fleet's range!"
Mihelson's answer filtered through, something about "Fight to the
death...."
The girl's eyes flashed, she became magnificent. Her voice took a tone
of unmistakable authority.
"It is Praana speaking, the Princess Praana, daughter of Bedril! I
order you not to fight, Dar Mihelson! You will not place my people in
such peril!"
A thousand miles away on the _Valiant's_ huge televise, Praana's face
must have been visible. She realized that instantly, and went on.
"I am in disguise, Dar Mihelson! It was Bedril's last order, and we
planned this well. I must remain as a rallying point for my people in
the time of their direst stress. The time is now! Mihelson ... you know
my voice, do you not?"
"But what are we to do, your Eminence? We cannot return to Mars ...
Wessell blocks our way to Earth...."
* * * * *
After a moment of indecision, Ric whispered, "You're sure he has speed?
He could outrace the Earth Fleet?"
"Yes! You will see!"
"The moon, then. Earth's moon! The crater Tycho...."
"Dar Mihelson," she spoke again. "You must get past Earth's fleet. You
can do that, with the element of surprise; then head for Earth's moon!
Swing around it once and enter Tycho! You will find air-locks there at
the abandoned mines, and tunnels leading deep inside. You will be safe
for a while! Await further word from me ... I shall contact you again,
I promise it!"
Already the wave-length was becoming tenuous, but Praana was sure her
final words had reached him. Ric snapped off the disc.
A voice behind them brought them whirling around.
* * * * *
Kueelo stood in the doorway, heat gun held ready as always. He laughed
mockingly.
"So. A handy little gadget that is, Earthman. And you really managed
to contact Dar Mihelson with it?" he shrugged. "That is all right--we
shall have entertainment now. It will be interesting to see how he
out-maneuvers the Earth Fleet! If you three will join me?"
They walked ahead of Kueelo, into a room where a visi-panel had already
centered the _Valiant_ and was following its slow progress. Naric
appeared in the doorway behind them, and remained watchful. Kueelo
stepped to the screen and manipulated the magni-lens.
The space scene seemed to widen, draw away a little ... then the Earth
Fleet could be seen. Even at this distance it appeared formidable.
In staggered horizontal tiers, perhaps fifty of Earth's cruisers had
arrayed themselves under Wessell's command. Breathlessly they watched,
from their own ship which was already speeding far out of range.
Ric noticed one thing. The Earth ships were all of the heavy type,
built for concentrated power-blasts rather than speed. Mihelson might
out-maneuver them, but, if he chose to fight....
The Fleet was almost in range of the _Valiant_ now, and still the
Mars ship continued its plodding course. It was unlikely that Wessell
suspected anything. He was approaching slowly to make sure of doing a
thorough job. It was sheer treachery; worse, it was murder! In that
moment Ric felt almost ashamed of being an Earthman.
Suddenly, from the prow of the _Valiant_ a beam of light probed forth
to cut the gap of darkness like a slashing saber. Once, twice, three
times it slashed. This was the accepted signal for a parley in space.
Tal Horan muttered and moved restlessly. Praana's golden face had gone
pale. Surely Dar Mihelson was not going to parley! He must know what
awaited him! Speed was the only salvation now.
From Earth's flagship the answering signal came. And then, although
the _Valiant_ still moved, the Earth Fleet applied forward rockets and
began to slow appreciably. Mihelson's strategy was apparent now! This
would give him precious seconds needed for acceleration!
And then it came. Without warning the _Valiant_ seemed to burst apart.
To the watchers from afar it was startling; to Wessell it must have
been unbelievable. Some thirty Units, each a spaceship in itself, moved
outward in an ever widening circle ... then all of space seemed aflame
as the rockets burst into action. The Mars spacers sped straight at the
Earth Fleet, but the circle was widening now and they passed safely
_around_ the Fleet, around and beyond it and were gaining acceleration
even as the Earth cruisers tried to reverse their drift!
One of the Earth ships opened up with its rear-action ray blasts.
Slicing, probing angrily, the livid blue rays tried to intercept the
fleeting Martian Units. Two of the rays converged upon one of the Units
and held there. The Martian ship grew fiery red, seemed to falter ...
then exploded into holocaust.
But the others were beyond range now and gaining acceleration with each
second. Even the atomo-bombs, hurled recklessly, fell far short. By the
time the Earth Fleet had reversed, the Martian ships were disappearing
dots of light, heading for Earth.
"Mihelson did well!" Kueelo said, and whirled dials that dissolved the
scene. "Only one Unit lost. But I have the most important Unit ... do I
not, Princess Praana!" His voice was mocking; it seemed to have secret
meaning.
"Phobian half-breed!" Tal Horan's face was tight with hate. "Murderers
and traitors, all of you ... since time began! Ric, I had an encounter
with this man back on Mars, at one of the Ionization Towers. He tried
to get my identity card so he could come aboard the _Valiant_. How'd
you manage it, Kueelo?"
"Never mind, Tal." It was Praana who spoke softly, but her slender body
was taut, her golden face showed a pallor. "Where are you taking us,
Kueelo?"
"Ah, so you are curious at last! Observe." Again the screen came to
life. Ahead of them loomed the bright red disc of Mars! They had made a
sweeping parabola and were heading back toward the planet.
Kueelo spoke again, and for once his voice lost its mockery. "Observe
further, The Towers have failed, the plague has conquered. Mars is a
dead world now. I know that Emperor Bedril and his group of scientists
remained there. He was a brave man, I admit--but foolish. This was
inevitable."
Praana turned her head away. Tal Horan said bitterly, "I wish I had
stayed to die with him! At least our work--"
"Yes! I am aware, Tal Horan, that you were working with Bedril on the
atomic breakdown of the new Mercury metal, with which you hoped to
combat the plague." Kueelo's eyes became bright. "I am sure you must
have gone far. Well ... _we_ have worked on the same principle, and I'm
sure your formula will be useful to us!"
"We?" Tal was puzzled.
Kueelo merely grinned, waved a hand at the televise.
They were skirting Mars. Now a tiny world moved unerringly toward them.
It was a dark, airless little world of crags and shadows, but it was
unmistakable. Mars' smaller moon ... Phobos!