"Good for you!" Rip exclaimed. "Call for help if you need it."
Koa was already out of the craft and leading the way. Rip went out through
a window and saw the cause of the trouble. Dowst had been a hair too close
to the asteroid. A particularly high crystal of thorium had snagged the
craft.
Rip looked for the Connie and saw it starting another turn. They had only
a moment or two before the next run. "Show an exhaust," he called. The
Connie must have blasted the opposite side of the asteroid while they were
hung up.
The cave was a quarter of the asteroid away. Rip stayed in the rear,
watching for stragglers. But even Bradshaw was moving rapidly. Koa reached
the cave well ahead of the rest, reached for a rack of rockets, and
slapped it into the launcher.
Rip urged the men on. The Connie was squared off for another run.
They catapulted to safety as the cruiser flamed past, the exhaust
splashing over the metal and sending sparks into the cave.
Rip looked out. That, if he had guessed right, was the last run. He
watched the Connie’s stern jet cut off, saw the nose exhaust as the
cruiser decelerated to a fast stop.
"Check your weapons," he ordered.
He pulled his pistol from the knee pocket and checked it carefully. There
was a clip in the magazine. Other clips were in his pocket. The clips were
loaded with high velocity shells that exploded on contact. One slug could
stop a Venusian _krel_, a mammoth beast that had been described as a cross
between a sea lion and a cactus plant.
His knife was in place in the other knee pocket.
The Connie cruiser decelerated, went into reverse, and came to a full stop
about a mile from the asteroid. The Planeteers saw fire in two places
along the hull, marking the exhausts of two small craft.
"Snapper-boats," Koa said tonelessly. "Five men in each, if those are the
regular Connie kind."
Rip made a quick decision. With only one launcher they couldn’t guard the
whole asteroid. "We’ll stay under cover, except for Santos and Pederson.
You two sneak out. Take advantage of every bit of cover you can find. I
don’t want you spotted. When a boat lands, report its position. The
Connies operate on different communicator frequencies, so they won’t
overhear. Well let them think they’ve burned the asteroid clean."
He paused. "They’ll search for a while. Then, when they’re pretty well
satisfied that all is quiet, we’ll show up." Rip grinned at his
Planeteers. "We can have a real, old-fashioned surprise party."
Koa slid the safety catch from his pistol. "With fireworks," he added.