The Pseudo One

by Perry Rhodan

  But there was no clue as to where Marshall was hiding now. The Aras had lost all trace of the fugitives. It was as though they had disappeared from the surface of Tolimon.

  Pucky used the pause to 'call' Rhodan: Chief! Are you with this?

  You're getting pretty close now, aren't you?

  It won't get any closer. Can I scram out of here now?

  Think it over, my friend. What will those characters think if you simply disappear in thin air? Wait for a better opportunity.

  All right, I'll wait—but not for long. I'd rather search for our lost orphans by teleporting all over Tolimon rather than stay here and be looked at as the biggest dumbbell in the universe. Hold it! There's more coming...

  But Pucky was mistaken in hoping that he would learn more.

  "We can skip the intelligence test," said the bearded one to his colleagues. "For him I would suggest classification C. Only the medical examination remains and I'm scheduling that for tomorrow. You, guard! Take the prisoner back to his cage." Turning to Pucky, he said, "You will be well taken care of by us."

  With this assurance he got up and thereby gave a signal for breaking up the conference. He did not deign to give the mouse-beaver another glance and he seemed to have forgotten him completely. Pucky saw the two guards approach and was aware of their picking him up and carrying him away—which he didn't pay much attention to. He kept his eyes on the bearded one who had treated him so condescendingly and seemed to consider him as a higher grade of animal.

  Who knows, he thought, whether there will be such a favorable opportunity tomorrow, that is, if I'm still here by then. Maybe a tiny reprimand wouldn't hurt. The main thing is, he's not suspicious of me yet.

  But so what...? There isn't much time.

  Pucky was no hypnotist, so he couldn't force anyone to do his bidding. But he was in command of tremendous psychokinetic powers and by that means he was able to start something.

  The bearded one was accompanied by another Ara who was engaged in an intense conversation with his colleague. Suddenly this one was transfixed with an expression of astonishment as he quickly reached into his pocket and pulled out a pair of scissors—and proceeded to cut off the long grey beard of the Chief of the Investigation Commission. It happened in a lightning swift movement which was too fast for anyone to stop, least of all the perpetrator himself. But even the formidable chief of the commission was so flabbergasted at the sight of the insignia of his age and dignity falling to the floor that he stepped on it before he fully realized what had happened.

  He came to an abrupt stop and stared while his consternated colleague swiftly concealed the scissors and started to tremble in every limb.

  "Gragnor!" roared the no longer bearded one in terrible tones. "What's come over you? Have you lost your mind? I'll—"

  "Mercy, Kluegh!" whimpered the beard snipper in a transport of sudden fear and he sank to his knees. "I "Don't know how that could happen! The Evil Spirit must have guided my hand..."

  "The Evil Spirit has completely warped your reason! You are dismissed! I'll have to think of how to punish you!" His groping hand felt the remnants of his beard. "The laboratory department will be happy to receive a new experimental subject!"

  He jerked around and exited the room, leaving behind him the astounded Aras and a completely unraveled Gragnor.

  However, Pucky permitted himself to be led away without resistance. He kept his mouth firmly shut. His expression was that of a poor sinner being dragged to the scaffold, innocent of any blame.

  His cell was a small room with a wooden bench and a wobbly table, with one barred opening that was probably the terminus of a ventilation shaft. When the two guards locked the door from the outside, the lights also went out.

  Pucky sighed and tracked down Rhodan, whose thought impulses he picked up immediately. Moments later he materialized in the familiar hotel room.

  "You can do what you want to," he notified Rhodan, who was in the act of undressing, "but I'm not going back into that hole. Let those dummies crack their skulls trying to figure out how I got away."

  Rhodan was not disturbed. He put on his pyjamas. "I don't think it will be necessary. We've picked up everything they know. At least one thing is certain: they don't have our agents. Marshall and Laury must be somewhere on the planet—or they are dead. I'm worried that we can't pick up their thoughts."

  "I'll start the search tomorrow," Pucky yawned, looking at the couch from which the crooks had abducted him. 'We'll sure be a laughing stock if we don't turn up a trace of them."

  However, his prediction was not to be fulfilled so quickly.

  After a restful night and a leisurely breakfast, Rhodan contacted the government authorities and announced that he would make an inspection of the zoo administration.

  While the car came for Rhodan and took him away downtown, Pucky started his search.

  He left the hotel and took a walk in the streets, clothed only in his natural pelt. Trulan was a rendezvous point for all the races of the galaxy and so it was not extraordinary that no one paid much attention to Pucky. Amidst the throng of strange life forms, the mouse-beaver was no more startling than a longhaired dachshund at a dog show. There were the inhabitants of Berenice, four-legged, insect-like creatures with squarish armor-plating and a predilection for bright colors; the chlorine breathers from Gradosima, who strode in their sealed spacesuits through Trulan, conducting themselves among the passersby with a frightful arrogance; and once Pucky encountered the panther cats from the system of Sagittarius, to whom he quickly gave a wide berth because he wasn't too sure how they would react to the sight of him.

  The Aras and the Springers paid him not the slightest attention. To him there was nothing unusual about the sight of xenomorphs, exotic other-world intelligences and it had been reserved for only a selected few to have ever been confronted by the personal servant of the Arkonide inspector.

  Pucky kept his senses continuously alert for any indicative thought streams and he probed the minds of every creature he met. He found much that would have amused him under different circumstances but today there wasn't any time for that. Only once did he mix into the affairs of Tolimon, when he detected a murderous intent in the mind of a heavily built Ara. The fellow was about to kill his wife. Telekinetically, Pucky forced him to give the nearest patrol officer a box on the ear, which caused the Ara to be taken, into custody. Meanwhile, the arrestee was not able to carry out his intentions and by the time he was released his anger against his wife would have subsided.

  Satisfied by his good deed, Pucky sauntered onward.

  He reached a poorer section of the city and soon found himself on surer footing. Spacious sidewalks were not to his liking. If he had a choice in the matter he would have preferred teleporting himself onto one of the rooftops in order to rest from his exertions. But a flying mouse-beaver was certain to make a bad impression. So he waddled onward until he located a seat in a restaurant.

  If Marshall had a hideout in this city, then it would be here in the slum area where a person could disappear more easily. And this was in line with Marshall's commando training, because he wasn't able to remove himself to safety with a quick jump, as was Pucky's habit.

  Most of the tables were occupied but Pucky was lucky. He found a spot next to the wall, sat down with a sigh and ordered a plate of vegetables and some fruit juice. He only ate meat when he had to.

  Some of the patrons turned to regard him curiously. Even though they had seen many strange beings, it wasn't everyday, after all, that a mouse-beaver came among them. Pucky grinned back at them in a friendly manner, reading nothing but harmless curiosity in their thoughts. He busied himself with the vegetables and fruit of Tolimon, which pleased his palate very much. At least this was a change from the eternal carrots, which he was gradually getting tired of because of all the bets he was always winning.

  The sun was bright and warm. No clouds were in the blue sky, which reminded him of the skies of Terra. For awhile Pucky forgot
his cares, until an untoward event attracted his attention.

  At a nearby table, several Aras put their heads together and started to whisper. They pointed excitedly toward the street where two remarkable-looking creatures must have caught their eye.

  Pucky took a closer look.

  The two creatures must have been at least 18 feet long, similar to giant worms. Most curious were their many short legs, on which they moved like Earthly centipedes. The front third of their bodies were upright. They had insect heads beneath which were a pair of powerful arms and claws.

  Froghs!

  The Aras used them as watchmen for their zoo. If any of the zoo inhabitants tried to escape, the Froghs went into action. By employing all their legs they could run at a speed of over 120 miles per hour. Marshall had given a report about them, after he and Laury and the Count had managed to elude their pursuit.

  What were these two Froghs doing in the city, especially in this disreputable quarter?

  Pucky straightened up in order to have a better look at the unusual intelligences. He knew they were capable of speech so they must have rational minds that could be read.

  And Pucky turned on his telepathy.

  They were searching for three humans: A Springer who had given them a lot of trouble, a pretty female who had stolen a glass container of the life elixir and one escaped prisoner who had been freed from the zoo by the other 2.

  Marshall! Laury! The Count!

  Pucky had picked up their trail!

  • • •

  Administrative details are always boring. Rhodan was sure of that after his first hour of inspection. The zoological ministry on the outskirts of the city was a veritable storehouse of documents and forms. Every single area of the giant natural preserve out there on the plain between the mountains had been documented here in the ministry. There were data here concerning each individual zoo inhabitant, complete with origin, living habits, other habits and medical records. Also, all completed experiments were carefully and clinically recorded.

  Rhodan made some spot-checks and generally comported himself so arrogantly that the Tolimonites' anger against Arkon grew from minute to minute. He was sure that any eventual real inspector coming here in the future would not find it easy. Nevertheless, the officials remained exceptionally polite, even though secretly they wished that some dire misfortune would overtake this obnoxious snooper.

  Toward noon he took a break and had his car bring him to the employee-dining hall of the ministry. They had reserved a table for him where he could eat his meal in privacy. In keeping with the interstellar character of Trulan, he found something that was edible.

  The time had come to reestablish contact with Pucky. So he searched and soon detected the incoming signals. It wasn't so easy to concentrate properly among the numerous patrons of the place, as they stared at him fearfully.

  Yes, Pucky, contact. What's the matter?

  The trail, I've found it. Two Froghs are looking for Marshall. They think he's in the city. I'm following them. They know where he was staying before.

  Where are you?

  In the slums. Do you think Marshall was living here?

  Try to find out. Maybe you'll uncover a clue.

  It shall be done, Master. And how's it going with you?

  Fine, thanks. I'm happy I didn't decide to become a bureaucrat.

  In Rhodan's brain emerged an image of Pucky's gleaming incisor tooth, which was so meaningful a signal that it tickled the mouse-beaver to transmit it. Then the telepathic contact faded...

  • • •

  With increased speed, the two Froghs glided along the crooked street. It was all that Pucky could do to keep on their trail with his waddling gait. Heatedly, he cursed the unfortunate fact that he mustn't use teleportation at this time. It was sure to be noticed. Everywhere the passersby had reacted fearfully at the sight of the two zoo watchmen. They pressed back against the house walls and heaved sighs of relief after the creatures had passed. No one seemed to have an easy conscience, though Pucky couldn't determine why they held the centipede beings in such fear. Perhaps it was merely their appearance that made everybody uneasy.

  Suddenly the two searchers came to a stop.

  Though Pucky couldn't understand their language he could read their thoughts, which were independent of any form of speech. So he could easily follow the conversation of the pair of monsters, even though they were on the other side of the street.

  "By all indications, the place must be somewhere close by."

  "We don't know for sure."

  "Let's follow up the clues; we can ask the occupants of the houses."

  "Maybe somebody's seen the three of them."

  "Good. I'll take this house. You take the other side."

  They separated.

  Pucky came to a stop. His hair seemed to stand on end when the one Frogh 'rolled' across the narrow street directly toward him, gave him a penetrating glance and then disappeared into the first house to begin his search.

  They must have found a trace on Marshall. But there was no way that Marshall could be in the vicinity, Pucky knew, for otherwise he would have been able to pick up his thoughts. This made it highly possible that the trail the two Froghs were following was a false one.

  Anyway—why shouldn't he have a look-see on his own?

  With sudden decision, Pucky dematerialized in the hope that the passersby had enough to do to keep an eye on the Froghs, so that they wouldn't take notice of him. He concentrated on a short distance and then he was standing in a badly furnished room directly behind a poorly dressed woman who was stirring a pot.

  He sprang again, one story higher.

  Again nothing.

  After 20 leaps he landed in an uninhabited warehouse, where he took the opportunity to catch his breath. Of course this was a planless and absolutely senseless search that he had entered upon. But, if the Froghs weren't stupid, then Marshall and the girl must have been staying in a house on this street not long ago.

  Pucky sighed and gave another jump.

  About an hour later he materialized in an attic room on the 15th floor. It was empty and evidently unoccupied, because the solitary closet stood wide open and did not contain a scrap of clothing. The bed was untidy and without a cover. There were two couches at the other side of the room. It looked as if these latter had been brought into the place later. Something here smelled familiar.

  Pucky took another brief look around and was about to disappear again, when he paused, startled. The scrubby-looking dressing table with a broken mirror was empty. But not quite empty.

  A tiny little bottle stood near the mirror.

  Pucky narrowed his eyes and waddled over to the table, where he took the small bottle in his paws and sniffed it. The stopper was missing but there was still a trace of the yellowish fluid in the bottom of the container.

  Pucky smelled it and then grunted in satisfaction. He hesitated for a moment, then shook out the last few drops of the yellow liquid onto his hairy chest. He put the bottle back, had second thoughts about it, picked it up again and went to the window. With a pleased grin, he threw it outside.

  But the flask did not fall immediately to the street below. It was gripped in force currents of telekinetic power and carried high above into the blue sky, so high in fact that Pucky could no longer see it. Only then did he nod his satisfaction and step away from the window.

  He knew that the vial would not withstand the downward plunge. Nobody would be able to tell anything from the shattered shards of the bottle, let alone the fact that it bore no label or other written identification that might have betrayed its origin.

  "These careless women!" twittered, Pucky disapprovingly. With obvious pleasure he sniffed at his chest and then rolled his eyes in delight. "No doubt about it. That's Laury's favorite perfume. It was sweet of her to leave this little greeting behind for me. So this is where they were staying."

  Then he started out to search the room more thoroughly but he was alerted sudd
enly by an approaching surge of strong thought-impulses. Somebody came up the stairs, slinked along the hall and came to a stop outside the door.

  Marshall...?

  No, it was not Marshall, it was a Frogh. Pucky recognized the identity of the creature soon enough to be able to jump to safety. The open door of the closet concealed him from the monster, which now pushed slowly into the attic room and looked about with cunning eyes.

  Pucky peered cautiously around the door and shuddered. How could gentle Mother Nature have ever fashioned such a brute? By comparison, the vicious ring-nosed beetle-eaters on Venus were charming creatures! There were quite enough weird forms of life in the universe without adding Froghs, who, to put it mildly, possessed an unfriendly character. They were anything but simpatico.

  Pucky always took a very dim view of distasteful contemporaries. In order to make them quite palpably aware of his feelings, he often threw all necessary precaution to the winds.

  He waited until the Frogh had closed the door, then he came out of hiding and asked, "Are you looking for something?"

  The Frogh came near to losing its balance as it whirled quickly about. With abnormally widened eyes and extended claws it stared at the unexpected apparition. Apparently it was at a loss as to how to react to the mouse-beaver, although as a watchman at the galactic zoo it had plenty of contact with semi-intelligent life forms.

  "What... who...?" stammered the Frogh in its own language, which Pucky was able to understand telepathically.

  "I'm asking you what you seek here?" he repeated, in the universally understood Arkonide. "This is my room."

  The Frogh appeared to pull itself together. "This is government business," it announced. "Did a Springer recently occupy this room?"

  "What gives you that idea? Who are you, anyway?"

  The insect-worm produced such an expression of astonishment that Pucky laughed out loud. But this was all that was necessary to work the humorless thing into a rage. With a hideous hissing sound it rushed toward the mouse-beaver and stretched out its talons as though to strangle him.