by Perry Rhodan
"It's stiff too early for that," Rhodan said and suddenly paused.
One of the red lamps in the control panel lit up. Almost simultaneously a card was ejected from a narrow slot and flipped down on the table. Rhodan picked it up and read it. "Transition direction sector XP-578-H. Distance 389.057 L.Y."
"Meanwhile Bell had consulted an astronomical map. "It's exactly in the opposite direction from Earth!" He looked up in astonishment and smiled. "Does that mean they've changed their mind and they..."
A second lamp flashed, followed quickly by a third.
And then a pyrotechnical display without precedent in the command center of the Stardust began: All lights flashed and the slots which were connected with the positronic brain spewed out card after card.
Bell gave up checking all positions on the stellar map. A few random checks were all he needed. "Not one of the ships has made a transition in the direction of Terra!"
In less than 20 minutes 69 lamps flickered on the control panel. The entire fleet of the Springers had fled in headlong panic in all directions of the universe.
Rhodan stared at the rows of red lamps and the stack of report cards. His face was taut and didn't reveal his satisfaction. There was a cold glint in his eyes but they lacked their usual stem look. His mouth was drawn tight. "I regret only one aspect," he murmured without looking at Bell. "But I can't have everything, I suppose."
"What aspect is that?"
"That we were unable to talk to the Springers. I'd like to win them over as friends."
• • •
In accordance with Rhodan's radioed instructions, John Marshall began to distribute the healing serum to the contaminated continents where it was received by Ralv's assistants and administered. It consisted of a tiny needle which was saturated with the serum and was imbedded in a small medical patch. The injection occurred by simply putting the strip on the skin. After two days the colored spots disappeared from the skin and on awakening after the third night the memory returned and the intelligence of the patient increased by approximately 20%.
The same day the fleet of the Springers scattered in frantic flight, John and his mutants left the sail ship to take up new quarters in the vicinity of the spaceport. They moved into the official residence of the Supreme Governor of the Springers, who was lying in the hospital vainly trying to remember who he was.
The building which was not very large was surrounded by extraordinary security installations. A single push of an alarm button sufficed to place an energy curtain around the entire house which could not even be penetrated by a battle-robot.
Here John felt safe. Since half of the governors had been felled by the dread scourge, the robots had become restless and it was brought home to John that the battle was not yet over.
Ralv was slated to drop in for a report. While Pucky perched on the flat roof on the lookout for trouble, watching all directions, John and the three Japanese waited for their ally. The rebel leader had changed in the recent past. The former guerrilla fighter, who was always forced to live in the shadows, had turned into a responsible statesman. His bearing was confident and he regarded his friends from another world as equal partners without forgetting to show his gratitude.
He began his account. "Last night we succeeded in occupying a substation of the automatic control center. Ten guard robots who were guided from the substation committed self-destruction."
John was startled. "Self-destruction?" It was impossible since the guard robots possessed no weapons. "How did they do that?"
"I've no idea. We took over the substation, located outside town, after we overwhelmed the battle-robot on duty there, which was easy enough. One of our men ran him down with his vehicle. Unfortunately he died as a result of the accident but the robot was hurled so hard against the wall that he was turned into a pile of junk. When we gained access to the control room we learned, with Enzally's help, how to operate the guidance panel, and we gave orders to the 10 sentry robots assigned to the 13 governors in the administration building to attack and kill them."
"That was a foolish idea," John expressed his disapproval, beginning to understand what happened.
Ralv didn't let himself be interrupted and continued. "The 10 robots stopped and remained motionless. Then they began to glow inside and melted away till nothing was left of them except a few shapeless lumps of metal."
"Short circuit!" John said knowingly. "The built-in safety factor. They'll never attack a Springer unless they are first reprogrammed and this can be done only from the central command headquarters, which is firmly in the hands of the battle-robots and the other remaining governors. What are the last Springers going to do, Ralv? The fleet has deserted them and Goszul's Planet is under quarantine. In other words: nobody is permitted to land here."
"Our people are doing an excellent job of surveillance," Ralv said proudly. "Enzally listened in on one of the first meetings. The governors realize that they were abandoned on a contaminated planet and that nobody will come to their rescue for fear of catching the disease. Naturally the governors don't relish the thought of spending the rest of their lives in isolation. What they need is a spaceship to escape from this world and the plague of oblivion—before they forget everything."
"That sounds very reasonable. But the question is where will they get such a ship? As far as I know there is no inter-galactic spaceship available to them, only small vessels on which they could barely reach the nearest planet. But that would hardly serve their purpose."
"Somewhere they must have a ship. A big one. At least they were discussing it. Unfortunately Enzally was unable to find out more because they stopped talking about it."
"A big Springer ship?" John said in measured tones, thinking feverishly. Didn't Rhodan once express his wish to be able to study leisurely the technical details of a Springer ship? Maybe here was his chance. "We must determine what the governors have in mind."
Ralv countered: "The robots are causing me much more concern. How are we going to be masters of our own planet if the robots are trying to prevent us? We have already formed a provisionary government and are ready to start the work of reconstruction. But we are facing new difficulties because the robots must have received instructions to drive us away wherever they see us.
"What do you mean?" John inquired curiously.
"Previously we were the servants of the Gods. We worked together with the robots and took orders from them. Nowadays we can't even get close to them without being attacked, even when we have no hostile intentions."
"The governors must have given them instructions to that effect. They don't want the robots to be in contact with the natives in order to avoid their contagion. This is understandable. You see, Ralv, everything has a natural explanation."
The rebel was about to reply something when he was interrupted. A little metal box which was placed on the only table in the room began to buzz and a red lamp flickered at the same time. John jumped up and rushed to the table. He pushed a few buttons and answered: "Taskforce Marshall."
"Rhodan speaking," came the prompt reply. "We'll land in 10 minutes."
For a second John lost his speech, then he said hastily: "The planet is still under the control of the Springers, sir! The robot command center is still in the hands of the governors and they've instructed all battle-robots to..."
"We intend to disrupt the operations of the command center," Rhodan explained in a calm voice. "Where are you and your men?"
"At the west side of the spaceport. You'll easily recognize the lone building by its flat roof."
"Don't turn off your transceiver so I can home in on it. What could the robots do against our four ships?"
"I don't know what they'll do," John admitted. He realized that Rhodan never took unnecessary risks. He treasured his life as much as the next man—perhaps even more because he was, in a sense, immortal. Yet a thrust by a knife could kill him.
"See you soon," Rhodan ended his message. Ralv had listened with great interest. He
understood the exchange of words which was carried on in the language of the old 'Gods' and was descrambled by the receiver.
John felt that an explanation was in order. "These are my friends. We live in the same world and they've come to liberate your planet forever."
Ralv wavered in his self-assurance. "Liberate us? Why should anybody help us so unselfishly? What made you do it? I've never asked you these questions."
"Rhodan will give you the explanation," John put him off. "We don't have time for discussions now, it's time to act. In a few minutes the Springers who are still here will begin to get wise to whom they're dealing with—provided they've already heard about Terra."
Eight minutes later the sky over the spaceport was darkened as the gigantic sphere of the Stardust slowly descended and touched the ground of Goszul's Planet for the first time The three cruisers, Terra, Solar System and Centurio, sat down so that the Stardust was protected between them.
An antigrav transporter took Rhodan and Bell to the house where John waited for them. The energy curtain was deactivated and the little vehicle landed on the roof where they were greeted by Pucky. "How are you, Pucky?" Rhodan bent down to stroke the far of the mouse-beaver. "Did you have a rough time?"
"No, it was wonderful," Pucky shook his head, to Rhodan's surprise. "I didn't have to look at that monster for a couple of weeks." The 'monster' was leaving the transporter and heard the last words. Bell's hair bristles stood on end but he amazed everybody by keeping his mouth shut. Solemnly he strutted past Pucky as if he were just another dog unworthy of his attention. He found the entrance to the house with somnambulistic dexterity and went down inside.
Pucky followed him with his eyes in extreme disappointment. Rhodan smiled and consoled him. "Don't take it so hard, Pucky. He must have resented your remark in the bottom of his heart and didn't want to admit it. You're a telepath and ought to know..."
"That's just it!" Pucky complained in undiminished astonishment. "He didn't even think about me or call me names in his mind. I simply didn't exist for him."
"He must have been lost in thought," Rhodan guessed.
"Yes—always the same and it was complete nonsense too. Pancakes... chocolate pudding... crabs in jelly... cough drops...! What do you make of it? That's not the way a rational man would think."
"Oh yes!" Rhodan shook his head still chuckling. "He's a sly dog. He thought of that poppycock to keep you from finding out what he really thinks. Anyway... what's new around here?"
Pucky changed the subject with remarkable speed. "We'll have to do something about the control center for the battle-robots. It's about a mile and a half from here. We either must storm it or destroy all robots, which would be a shame."
"I feel the same way," Rhodan agreed. "I'll see you in 10 minutes down there at Marshall's. Till then keep a sharp lookout here and maintain telepathic contact with the Springers. Please report any change in the situation."
He followed Bell and caught up with him in Marshall's room. After greeting the mutants he met Ralv, who was overcome by inexplicable awe when he looked into Rhodan's eyes, despite his new rank as future head of the government. Yet he quickly realized that he wasn't facing a conqueror but a friend. Impulsively he seized Rhodan's hand and pressed it firmly.
They hardly had time to exchange a few words when Pucky materialized between them. "The robots—they're on the march!" he exclaimed breathlessly. "They'll be here in 15 minutes. Two hundred of them!"
Rhodan's face became a shade paler. Though he knew that the Stardust alone could turn the 200 robots into a worthless pile of scrap, this fact did little to console him. The Goszuls would need these robots badly to rebuild their world—or they'd have to forgo a unique opportunity to utilize the already existing technological achievements.
"The governors," said John, who misinterpreted Rhodan's reaction, "are responsible for this. A single bomb would be enough to..."
"No!" Rhodan rebutted. "I prefer to negotiate with the Springers. But first we'll have to take care of the robots. Pucky! Tako! You're teleporters. Enter the central control station and disconnect the impulse machines. Pucky, you can read my thoughts and you know what I want you to do. I want to save the robots. If they're deactivated they'll be harmless and we can reprogram them later at our convenience. Do you follow me, Pucky?"
The mouse-beaver nodded. "We'll be back right away. Come on, Tako! Give me your hand!"
Staunchly thinking about pancakes and pudding Bell stared at the spot where Pucky had just been. He would show that confounded mouse what good telepathy was if he refused to have his brain picked!
John Marshall regarded Bell with a cocked head, cast a questioning glance at Rhodan and finally inquired: "Do you feel alright, Bell?"
"Eh... why?"
"Because you keep thinking..."
Bell cursed all living and unborn telepaths, consigning them to hell. What business of Marshall's was it what he thought? He was about to give a nasty answer when Tako materialized again. The slight Japanese took a deep breath before he announced: "We ran into battle-robots inside the station! They started to attack us and it won't be as simple as we had hoped."
"What's the matter with Pucky?" It was Bell who piped up.
"He's holding the position. I came to tell you that it'll take at least three minutes—if he can do it."
Rhodan switched on his wristband transceiver and called the Stardust. "Fisher! Activate the defense screen! Don't return the fire of the robots if they start shooting. Pass on identical instructions to the three cruisers."
Then he quickly turned to Tako. "Go back to help Pucky. Take my impulse-beamer! One robot more or less won't matter."
The Japanese took the weapon and disappeared. Rhodan hurried with the others to get to the roof of the building where they had an excellent view. They could look over the entire spaceport to the opposite side where the administration buildings and the governors were located. Not far from the buildings was a detached house with a spherical antenna from where the command impulses were transmitted in all directions. It was the control center of the battle robots.
The robots marched forward in a broad front with lowered rayguns. They represented a strike force of unimaginable, devastating power and it was terrifying to think that the Springers might order them to assault the nearby city when they saw that they were helpless against the four spaceships. They would run amok and create a bloodbath of atrocious proportions.
"I hope Pucky makes it," Bell whispered to Rhodan. He could sense that Bell worried less about the attacking robots than his friend Pucky himself. "We ought to help him."
"It's too late for that, Bell. He'll have to see it through by himself."
The first robots reached the invisible border of the energy dome which surrounded the four vessels. They stopped abruptly and immediately opened fire with all the weapons at their disposal. Colorful rays bombarded the unseen wall, were reflected and harmlessly scattered at all angles. Some of the robots were struck by their own beams and sought safety inside their own protective screens.
After the robots began the systematic encirclement of the four ships to take them under concentric bombardment, the mechanical army came to an abrupt halt. It was as if time had suddenly stood still.
Almost in the same second Tako and Pucky materialized at the rim of the roof. They gazed for a few moments at the immobilized fighting machines and then approached the waiting group. The mouse-beaver gave Bell a triumphant look and reported to Rhodan: "I had to sever the coaxial cable to the antenna but it'll be easy to repair it again. The robots are stopped in their tracks without an impulse and they don't know what to do. I assume that they'll soon return to their quarters to await new instructions. As soon as the antenna is fixed again we can start to reprogram them."
"Well done, Pucky," Rhodan lauded his friend, putting his hand on his furry head. "That goes for you, too, Tako. For that matter I must express my gratitude and appreciation to the commando team, John Marshall. Without you my tas
k would have taken much longer and wouldn't have been accomplished with so little damage."
"But the plague..." John began, only to be quickly interrupted by the smiling Rhodan. "It's no worse than the flu or the measles. We've got an anti-serum, but even if we didn't have it, there's nothing to be afraid of. Two months after the Springers have fled they'll realize that they've made us a free present of the planet. But then it'll be too late for them to recapture it. We'll already have made our preparations."
"But what about the 13 Springers who are conspiring in their headquarters to do their worst?" Bell queried.
"We'll enter into negotiations with them. It has always been my desire to start a dialogue with the representatives of that mighty race and it seems to me that the time is ripe to hold such conversations under favorable conditions. They can't fall back on their accustomed sources of power whereas we can enjoy our superiority now to the fullest extent. And believe me, Bell, the outcome of our talks will look accordingly. The initial position at negotiations is always more important than the negotiations themselves."
Pucky suddenly slipped out from under Rhodan's hand, which had been patting his fur, and went over to Bell. With a gentleness that appeared rather odd he took the hand of the surprised Bell into his own and chirped: "Forgive me, Reggie, if I've insulted you before. I didn't mean it. And thank you for having stopped fixing your thoughts on pancakes and pudding. Now I know at last what you really think."
"Alright," Bell muttered, deeply touched, looking up to the sky as if there was anything to be seen. "Alright, old boy! We've always known what we really think of each other."
"Old boy?" Pucky piped up. "If you're referring tome you're way off the beam. If I'm old you're a baby whose diapers are..."
Bell cast an imploring look at Rhodan and took a deep breath but Pucky didn't let him get a word in edgewise. "For your information, I'm only 150 years old, my child! But that's no age for me. You belong in kindergarten with your 40 years, especially if one considers that your brain is just beginning to develop. Furthermore, somebody ought to tell you for once that you..."
