by Alan David
The man suddenly yelled loudly, and echoes fled around the yard. Clark could not pick up what was said on the trans-muter. He turned up the volume and waited. Ralip was coming straight to the door of the house, and Clark tightened his lips as he peered at the waiting sky raft. There didn’t seem to be anyone else aboard the craft, and his hopes began to rise. This man with Ralip was the local security chief, Quartus. Clark had seen him after Ralip brought him back from the flight to the spaceport.
Moving away from the window, Clark checked the Laser, and he motioned for Hanton and Magenta to remain still. The next moment the door was opened and Ralip entered. She came into the room and paused, not seeing Clark at first. But she saw Hanton and Magenta hunched over Mallory, and Clark saw her expression change as she looked around. Then she spotted him, and Clark went forward swiftly, stepping into the open doorway, the Laser levelled in his hands. He confronted the Brutan, who stared at him stolidly, not showing surprise. The rod-like weapon in the Brutan’s hands was pointing to the left, and Clark knew he had the advantage.
‘Drop your weapon,’ Clark ordered, and the transmuter translated his words. ‘You are under the cover of another weapon to your left.’
The Brutan turned his head instantly, and saw Balfin, moving forward from the corner. He opened his large hands and his energy gun dropped to the ground.
‘Come in,’ Clark invited, moving backwards, and he felt dwarfed by this huge man.
Quartus entered the house and Balfin showed up at his back, closing the door. For a moment there was silence. Then Clark looked at Ralip, who was staring at him as if unable to believe her eyes.
‘What happened here, Ralip?’ Clark demanded.
‘They came after you had gone back to the forest. They said I knew something about your movements. My house was destroyed and they took me into the city to make me tell what I know.’
‘But you lied to us, Ralip,’ the Brutan said. ‘You know the penalty for aiding enemies of the State.’
‘We don’t have to go into that,’ Clark said. ‘There isn’t much time. We are taking that skyraft out there and flying to the spaceport, where we’ll take the first available spaceship out.’
‘That will be impossible,’ Quartus said instantly. ‘The security has been doubled. You would never get away with it.’
Clark grinned as he adjusted the transmuter. He nodded.
‘We’ll get away with it or die in the attempt. Under your protection we should have a better chance than trying it alone.’
‘I will not help you.’ There was a determined note in the Brutan’s tones.
‘We don’t need your help beyond the use of your craft,’ Clark said. ‘Kester, find something to tie our alien friend with, and make sure he cannot get loose inside of several hours.’
‘Leave it to me,’ Balfin said. ‘But I figure it would be safer if we took him along. Some of his friends might drop in just after we leave, and they could get in touch with the spaceport and warn them what to expect. We’d walk into real trouble.’
‘You’re right. But tie him anyway. We are no match for him physically.’
‘You won’t get away with this,’ the Brutan said sharply.
‘Then we’ll all die trying,’ Balfin retorted. He motioned for Hanton to help him, and Clark kept the Brutan covered until he had been securely tied.
‘Ralip, do you still want to go along with us?’ Clark demanded.
‘I do! You can see what they have done to my home, and after this they would kill me for helping you.’
‘There’s a chance we may not succeed.’ A grim note touched Clark’s tones.
‘I have no chance at all staying here,’ she said.
Clark nodded. ‘Can you fly that machine you arrived in?’
‘Yes. We should have no trouble getting to the spaceport because Quartus is the most powerful man in this district. His craft is painted so everyone knows it is his. We should be able to land on the spaceport without being challenged.’
‘Are there regular flights by spaceships?’ Clark demanded.
‘Of course. One ship leaves every day on a regular run.’
‘What time?’ Clark was watching Quartus intently, and although the Brutan was tied he intended taking no chances.
‘At noon!’ Ralip was frowning, trying to calculate what Clark was planning.
‘It has been cancelled,’ Quartus rapped.
‘That’s another chance we’ll take.’ Clark was thinking swiftly. ‘I don’t think we’ll have much chance of dropping in at the spaceport and finding a craft sitting there waiting for us to steal it. But if we show up a couple of minutes before a scheduled flight blasts off then we’ll have a chance of catching it.’
Balfin nodded. He was testing the knots in the rope he’d used to bind the Brutan.
‘With this guy along we shan’t get much trouble from their security,’ he said. ‘I’ll stick close to Mr Quartus and keep him sweet.’
‘All right. Now we’ll have to spend some time here if we are not to arrive at the spaceport too soon, so let us be careful. You tell us when we should leave, Ralip, to get to the scheduled flight a few minutes before it takes off.’
The woman nodded, and now there was a spark of hope in her expression. Clark was feeling the same way. He grinned.
‘We could do with some food,’ he said.
‘I’ll see what they left for us,’ Ralip promised.
Clark was tensed up now, and time seemed to stand still. He made Hanton stand guard with a Laser, and after they had eaten he took a turn himself, standing by the front door, watching the sky and the approaches to the farm. But there was nothing moving out there in the brilliant sunlight. Balfin remained close to their prisoner, guarding him with the other Laser, and Magenta watched the rear of the house.
If they were discovered before their departure, Clark intended taking off in the skyraft and making an attempt to bluff their way clear. Time went by, and his spirits rose accordingly.
Finally Ralip indicated that they ought to be moving, and Clark went with her to the skyraft. It was a larger machine than the one Ralip had used, and it was more heavily armed. Clark felt his spirits rise still more as he looked around the interior.
‘You’re sure you can fly this with no trouble?’ he demanded.
‘I can fly it,’ Ralip said. ‘You’d better have Quartus in the front beside me, so you and your companions can sit in the rear and cover him. Don’t give him a chance to overpower you. He could ruin everything.’
‘We’re only too aware of that,’ Clark said. ‘Don’t worry about Quartus. You just concentrate on getting us down beside that spaceship within a few minutes of her departure.’
He went back into the house and helped carry Mallory out. Then Balfin escorted their prisoner, and Quartus was seated in the front seat beside Ralip, with Balfin sitting behind the Brutan, the muzzle of the Laser pressed against the big alien’s spine.
Clark got into the craft and closed the door. Ralip looked around then turned to the controls, and the next moment they were lifting into the air and swinging away from the farm. Balfin caught Clark’s eye and grinned, and Clark smiled, feeling the weight of responsibility lifting a little from his shoulders. There was nothing else he could do now. They were committed. This was the last phase of their bid to escape, and if they succeeded all their troubles would be over. He dared not let his thoughts dwell upon the alternative.
A metallic voice suddenly filled the cabin with a stream of unintelligible sound, and Ralip leaned forward and turned off the communicator.
‘Turn it on,’ Clark said instantly. ‘If Quartus is supposed to report in or answer that call then we’ll arouse suspicion by maintaining silence.’
‘We can’t take the chance on him giving the true situation,’ Balfin said in great concern.
‘Gag him!’ Clark spoke with quick decision. ‘We don’t need him to say anything.’ He waited until Balfin had carried out his order, and the big Brutan was livid,
but cowed by the muzzle of the Laser that Hanton was pressing against his left ear. ‘That’s better. Wait a minute, Ralip, before turning on the communicator.’
They went on in silence while Clark set to work on the transmuter. He knew the many uses of the instrument, and he hastened to instruct the small computer control. When he was ready he switched on and spoke in English into the microphone, and his words came out of the transmuter in Brutan, in the voice of their captive.
Ralip glanced over her shoulder in surprise, and Clark grinned as he looked at their captive. Quartus was staring at the transmuter as if he couldn’t believe his ears.
‘This is a great little machine,’ Clark said. ‘I’ve programmed it to use your voice wavelengths, Quartus, and your tongue. I can give any order I require in my own language and it will come out of this box as if you had spoken. Now you can turn on the communicator, Ralip. Let’s hear what’s being said.’
Ralip glanced at him again, and there was doubt showing in her expression, but she turned a switch and a harsh voice gave forth with another string of unintelligible words. Clark waited for the message to be translated, and it came through quickly.
‘Security Callsign Seven. Come in District Leader Quartus. Please report your position. Vector Three has indicated Ogrin activity.’
Clark hesitated, nervous now, aware that if he used a wrong procedure he would alert the people at the other end of the communicator.
‘Security Callsign Seven,’ he said into the transmuter, the microphone close to his mouth. Ralip was holding the changeover to transmit until he had finished speaking, and Clark was using a Hold button on the transmuter itself to prevent the message being transmitted until it was complete. ‘This is District Leader Quartus. I am busy with an investigation into the whereabouts of the aliens who landed on the planet a week ago. Keep me informed of progress in Vector Three, but designate my assistant to the operation. I will call in when I have anything to report.’
Clark cut out then, and thumbed the Hold button. The message was repeated in Brutan in the voice of their prisoner, and Clark was tense and nervous as he awaited reaction from the Brutan operator. Silence filled the cabin for a few tense seconds, then the harsh voice spoke again, running on in a gibberish of meaningless words. When the voice fell silent Clark motioned for Ralip to switch off the communicator, and he let the message record from the transmuter.
‘Security Callsign Seven. District Leader Quartus, your message received and understood. Subleader Angmer will direct operations in Vector Three. Will stand by for your progress reports on whereabouts of aliens. Security Callsign Seven out!’
‘You’ve done it,’ Balfin said in excited tones. ‘They fell for it, Commander. I think we’re beginning to see a glimmer of hope.’
Quartus shook his head angrily, and Clark took a deep breath as he stared down at the ground. The skyraft was travelling at a tremendous speed.
‘We’re not going to arrive too early, are we, Ralip?’ Clark demanded.
‘I will make allowances for the speed,’ the woman retorted. ‘I will set you down inside the spaceport within three minutes of the take off of the regular space flight.’
Clark was content with that. He glanced at Magenta, and then looked at Mallory, who was conscious once more and beginning to sit up and take notice. Mallory looked at Clark and shook his head slowly.
‘You should have left me behind, Commander,’ he said weakly. ‘I’m not gonna be much use to you.’
‘If this goes the way I plan it then there’ll be nothing for anyone to do except get off this craft and transfer to the spaceship,’ Clark said with a confidence he did not really feel. His pulses were beginning to race and his heart was already thudding powerfully. ‘Ralip, aren’t you getting too close to the marshes where we had that trouble last week?’
The woman nodded and veered to the right, and Clark studied the ground, thinking of the incident with the Marscs. He did not want to come into contact with those cannibalistic pygmies ever again.
The communicator became animated again and the harsh voice called Quartus once more. As the message came out of the transmuter in English Clark tightened his lips.
‘Security Callsign Seven. District Leader Quartus please give your exact position immediately.’
Ralip turned and gave Clark a worried look. Clark shook his head.
‘Leave the communicator off for a bit,’ he said. ‘They’ll think Quartus has left the craft and is making investigations.’
The woman nodded, but she was clearly uneasy, and the message came through several times in the next few minutes.
‘How long to the deadline we have to make?’ Clark asked Ralip eventually.
‘Fifteen minutes,’ came the firm reply, and Clark clenched his teeth as nervousness began to stab through him.
‘I don’t know how we are going to handle this.’ Clark went on. ‘We’ve got to get to that space ship before they seal the hatches. Then once we’re aboard we've got to overpower the crew and blast off immediately.’
‘What about the defences they’ve got?’ Balfin demanded. ‘You’re not forgetting the power of the missiles that destroyed Probe 2, are you, Commander?’
‘I’m not forgetting them, and I’m trying hard not to think about them,’ Clark retorted. ‘I’m going to take a chance that when we blast off the Brutans on the ground won’t know what is really happening, and before they get around to shooting down one of their own craft we might be out of Muta orbit and in the clear.’
‘That’s a long chance, Commander,’ Mallory said thinly. ‘We’ve been living on borrowed time ever since we detached from Probe 2,’ Balfin snapped angrily. ‘Give the Commander a break, Mallory. He’s not calling the shots, and he’s done everything right so far. We’ll ride with him all the way now.’
Clark tightened his lips as the moments passed, and now time seemed to be fleeting by instead of dragging. They were rapidly approaching the coast, and their critical time was almost upon them. The communicator came on the air once more, and this time there was a brusque note in the operator’s tones.
‘Security Callsign Seven. District Leader Quartus, report your position immediately regardless of security.’
‘They’re getting anxious for some reason,’ Balfin said. ‘What do you make of it, Commander?’
‘I don’t know! Probably I haven’t used the right jargon for Quartus. But we’ve got to stall them for time. Once we hit that spaceport then nothing else will matter.’
The operator came on again, demanding urgently for the position of District Leader Quartus. Clark didn’t want to push his luck by talking to the operator again, but he didn’t want to have an alarm raised for any reason. He thought for a moment, then spoke into the transmuter.
‘Security Callsign Seven. This is District Leader Quartus. Stay off my wavelength. I repeat. Stay off my wavelength. I will call you when I want you.’
Clark motioned for Ralip to switch on the communicator, and then let his message repeat in Quartus’s voice. They sat waiting tensely for the operator to come on the air again. There was a click and a slight buzzing sound. Then the Brutan spoke again. The transmuter translated for them.
‘Security Callsign Seven. District Leader Quartus, are you in trouble? I repeat — are you in trouble?’
Clark shook his head as he glanced at Balfin, who was staring at him with one eyebrow raised in silent query. Clark glanced at Ralip.
‘How long now to the spaceport?’ he demanded.
‘Five minutes. The spaceship is due to leave in ten minutes.’ Clark moistened his lips. He leaned over the seat and turned off the communicator, then spoke into the transmuter.
‘Security Callsign Seven, this is District Leader Quartus. I am not in trouble. I am at the farm of Ralip Rabba and I have apprehended some of the aliens. I will report shortly. Please stay off my wavelength until I call.’
He sent the message and they waited tensely. Clark stared down from a viewport, catching a glimpse
of the coastline, and he took a deep breath for a moment. They were banking on this attempt, and if it failed they were finished. He tightened his lips as another message came through the communicator.
‘Security Callsign Seven. District Leader Quartus. Do you need assistance?’
‘Security Callsign Seven! This is District Leader Quartus. I do not require assistance. I am on the point of leaving the Rabba farm.’
Clark was becoming nervous as he waged a verbal war with the unknown Brutan operator. He saw Ralip looking at him and there was concern on the woman’s face. Then the operator came through again, and his words sent a pang of premonition stabbing into Clark’s heart.
‘Security Callsign Seven! We have plotted your position from the moment you left headquarters with Ralip Rabba! You left that farm one hour fifty-five minutes ago. Please report the situation now! If you are in trouble then indicate its character and we will assist you.’
‘Security Callsign Seven! This is District Leader Quartus! I am not in the habit of repeating orders. I warn you to stay off my wavelength. I am in control of this situation and will report as soon as possible. I am in the process of capturing all the aliens landed from the second alien ship destroyed last week. Plot my course by all means, but stay off the air.’
Clark switched off then, and his face was set in harsh lines as he stared through a viewport. Balfin was sweating, his pale blue eyes glittering in the sunlight. He caught Clark’s eye and nodded.
‘The spaceport is just ahead,’ Ralip announced. Her voice was tight and nervous.
‘Circle the perimeter,’ Clark said, forcing himself to remain calm. ‘You’ve been out here before, haven’t you, Ralip, to watch the spacecraft take off?’
