The Black Star Passes Part 22

It must have been the concealment afforded by the engines that permitted three of the enemy to get so close. The only warning the Terrestrians had was a faint pink haze as they stepped around the corner of an engine; and a sudden feeling of faintness swept over them. They leaped back, out of sight, peering around the corner with nerves and muscles tensed. There was no sign of movement.

As they watched, they saw a pallid hand reaching out with a ray gun; and Wade swiftly pointed his own weapon. There came a sudden crash of metal, a groan and quiet. Two other aliens leaped from behind the great engine just as the Terrestrians dodged further back; as swiftly, they too found concealment.

Arcot swung his ray up, and was about to pull the trigger that would send the huge engine toppling over upon them, when he saw that it was running. He thought of the unknown energies in the machine, the potential destruction, and he shook his head. Cautiously he looked around the edge of the towering ma.s.s, waiting--his beam flashed out, and there was a snapping sound as the ray caught a reaching hand and hurled its owner against a mighty transformer of some sort. For an instant the huge ma.s.s tottered, then was still. In the low concentration of power that Arcot had used, only a small portion had been touched, and the molecules of this portion had not been enough to tip over its tremendous weight.

Only one enemy remained; and Arcot learned swiftly that he was still in action, for before he could dodge back there came that now-familiar pink haziness. It touched Arcot's hand, outstretched as it had been when he fired, and a sudden numbness came over it. His pistol hand seemed to lose all feeling of warmth or cold. It was there; he could still feel the weapon's deadened weight. Reflex action hurled him back, his hand out of range of the ray. In seconds feeling began to return, and in less than ten his hand was normal again.

He turned to the others with a wry grin. "Whew--that was a narrow squeak! I must say their ray is a gentlemenly sort of thing. It either kills you, or doesn't injure you at all. There it goes again!"

A shaft of pink radiance reached the end of the engine, just grazing it, evidently absorbed by its ma.s.s. "Pinning us down," Wade grated. They certainly couldn't step out into the open s.p.a.ce--but they couldn't stay where they were indefinitely, either. Reinforcements might arrive!

"Look," Wade pointed with his pistol, "he's under that big metal bar--up there in the roof--see it? I'll pull it down; he may get nervous and come into sight." Swiftly Arcot sprang forward and caught his arm.

"Lord--don't do that, Wade--there's too much stuff here that we don't know anything about. Too much chance of your smas.h.i.+ng us with him. I'm going to try to get around to the other side of this machine and see what I can do, while you fellows keep him occupied."

Arcot disappeared around the black humming giant. Interminably the others waited for something to happen; then suddenly the beam that had been playing at irregular intervals across the end of the machine, swung quickly to the other side; and simultaneously another ray seemed to leap from the machine itself. They met and crossed. There came a momentary cras.h.i.+ng arc, then both went dead, as the apparatus that generated them blew out under terrific overload.

The invader evidently carried a spare, for the watchers saw him dart from concealment, clawing at his pocket pouch. They turned their rays on him, and just as his projector came free, a ray hurled him violently to the left. He crashed into a huge motor, and the result was not nice.

The projector had been jerked from his hand and lay off to the side.

Arcot ran to it and picked it up just as they heard the Lieutenant call an alarmed inquiry.

"I think we're okay now," Arcot answered. "I hope there are no more--but by all means stay where you are, and use as little power as possible in blowing that flame outside. It uses up the atmosphere of the s.h.i.+p, and though we don't need it, I think we'd better take things easy. Call us if anything looks odd to you."

For several minutes the three scientists looked about them in awe-struck wonder. They were the first men of Earth to see the driving equipment of one of the tremendous Kaxorian planes, and they felt tiny beside its great bulk; but now, as they examined this engine room, they realized that even the huge plane shrank into insignificance beside this interstellar cruiser.

All about them loomed the great rounded backs of giant electric motor-generators of some sort. Across the roof ran a network of gigantic metal bars, apparently conductors, but so large that they suggested heavy structural members. The machines they ran into loomed fully thirty feet into the air; they were longer than cylinders, thirty feet in diameter, and there was a group of four main machines fully a hundred twenty feet long! There were many smaller mechanisms--yet these smaller ones would easily have const.i.tuted a complete power supply for the average big city. Along each wall ran a bank of transformers, cast in the same heroic mold. These seemed connected with the smaller machines, there being four conductors leading into each of the minor units, two intake, and two, apparently, output leads, suggesting rotary converters.

The multiple units and the various types and sizes of transformers made it obvious that many different frequencies were needed. Some of the transformers had air cores, and led to machines surrounded with a silvery white metal instead of the usual iron. These, apparently, were generating current at an extremely high frequency.

"Well," Morey commented, "they ought to have power enough. But do you notice that those four main units have their leads radiating in different directions? The one on the left there seems to lead to that big power board at the front--or better, bow. I think it would be worth investigating."

Arcot nodded. "I had the same idea. You notice that two of the main power units are still working, but that those other two have stopped?

Probably the two dead ones have something to do with the motion of the s.h.i.+p. But there's one point I think is of even greater interest. All the machines we have seen, all the conspicuous ones, are secondary power sources. There are no primary sources visible. Notice that those two main conduits lead over to the right, and toward the bow. Let's check where they go to."

As they talked they followed the huge conductors back to their point of convergence. Suddenly they rounded one of the huge main power units, and saw before them, at the center of square formed by these machines, a low platform of transparent light-metal. At the exact center of this platform, which was twenty feet in diameter, there was a table, about seven feet across and raised about five feet above the level of the platform on stout light-metal legs. On the table were two huge cubes of solid silver, and into these cubes ran all the conductors they had seen.

In the s.p.a.ce of about six inches left between the blocks of metal, there was a small box constructed of some strange new material. It was the most perfect reflecting surface that any of the men had ever imagined.

Indeed, it was so perfect a reflector that they were unable to see it, but could detect its presence only by the mirror images, and the fact that it blotted out objects behind it.

Now they noticed that through the huge blocks of metal there were two small holes, and two thin wires of this same reflecting material led into those holes. The wires led directly up to the roof, and, suspended on three-foot hangers of the light-metal, continued on toward the bow.

Could this be the source of power for the entire s.h.i.+p? It seemed impossible, yet there were many other seeming impossible things here, among them that strangely reflecting matter.

There was a low railing about the central platform, apparently intended to keep observers at a safe distance, so they decided against any more detailed investigation. As they were about to discuss their unusual find, the Lieutenant called that he heard sounds behind him.

At once the three ran rapidly toward the narrow corridor that had given them entrance. The flaming gas was still shooting through the hole in the wall of the s.h.i.+p, and the rush of air through the corridor made it difficult to hear any sounds there, and exceedingly difficult to walk.

"Turn on more power, Lieutenant, and see if we can't draw out the enemy," suggested Arcot, while they braced themselves around the tube exit.

As the Patrolman increased the power of his beam, the moan of the air through the corridor increased suddenly to a terrific roar, and a cyclonic gale swept through. But none of the invaders were drawn out.

After the Lieutenant had shut off the blast from his pistol at Arcot's signal, the latter said: "I don't think anything less than a war tank could stand that pressure. It's probable that we'll be attacked if we stay here much longer, though--and we may not be able to get out at all.

I think, Lieutenant, I'll ask you to stay here while we go out and get the s.h.i.+p ready to leave." He paused, grinning. "Be sure to keep that flame outside. You'll be in the position of Hercules after Atlas left him holding the skies on his shoulders. You can't shut off the ray for long or we'll have a first-rate explosion. We'll signal when we're ready by firing a revolver, and you make it to the s.h.i.+p as fast as you can travel."

Arcot's expression became solemn. "We'll have to carry Wright back to the s.h.i.+p. He was a brave man, and he certainly deserves burial in the soil of his own world. And, Morey, we'll have to look up his family.

Your father's company will have to take care of them if they need help."

Slowly the men forced their way back toward their s.h.i.+p, fighting against the roaring column of air, their burden hindering them somewhat; but at last they reached the open tunnel. Even here the air was in violent motion.

They got into their boat as quickly as possible, and set the controls for reverse flight. Then Wade fired the signal shot. In moments they saw Lieutenant Greer bucking against the current of air, continuing under its own momentum.

By the time he was in the s.h.i.+p an ominous calm had fallen. Swiftly they sped down the corridor, and had almost reached the open air, when suddenly there was a dull rumble behind them, and they were caught on a wave of pressure that hurled them along at terrific speed. In a flash they sped into the open air, the great tunnel with its thick walls and flared opening acting like a gigantic blunderbus, with the s.h.i.+p as its bullet. Arcot made no attempt to slow down the little craft, but pressed his foot heavily on the vertical accelerator. The s.h.i.+p rocketed up with terrific speed, and the acceleration pinned the men down to their seats with tripled weight.

Anxiously they watched the huge invader as they sped away from it. At Arcot's direction Morey signaled the other groups of scientists to get out of danger with all speed, warning of the impending blow-up. As the moments sped by the tension mounted. Arcot stared fixedly into the screen before him, keeping the giant s.p.a.ce s.h.i.+p in focus. As they sped mile upon miles away from it, he began to relax a bit.

Not a word was spoken as they watched and waited. Actually, very little time pa.s.sed before the explosion, but to the watchers the seconds dragged endlessly. Then at twenty-seven miles, the screen flared into a sheet of blinding white radiance. There was a timeless instant--then a tremendous wave of sound, a roaring, stunning concussion smote the s.h.i.+p, shaking it with unrestrained fury--to cease as abruptly as it came.

Immediately they realized the reason. They were rus.h.i.+ng away from the explosion faster than the sound it made, hence could not hear it. After the first intolerable flash, details became visible. The great s.h.i.+p seemed to leap into countless tremendous fragments, each rus.h.i.+ng away from the point of the blow-up. They did not go far; the force was not sustained long enough, nor was it great enough to overcome the inertia of so vast a ma.s.s for more than moments. Huge ma.s.ses rained to earth, to bury themselves in the soil.

There came a momentary lull. Then suddenly, from the ma.s.s which evidently held the wrecked engine room, there shot out a beam of intense white light that swept around in a wide, erratic arc. Whatever it touched fused instantly into a brilliantly glowing ma.s.s of liquid incandescence. The field itself, fragments of the wreckage, fused and mingled under its fury. The beam began to swing, faster and faster, as the support that was holding it melted; then abruptly it turned upon itself. There came a sudden blast of brilliance to rival that of the sun--and the entire region became a molten lake. Eyes streaming, temporarily blinded, the men turned away from the screen.

"That," said Arcot ruefully, "is that! It seems that our visitors don't want to leave any of their secrets lying around for us to investigate.

I've an idea that all the other wrecks will go like this one did." He scowled. "You know, we really didn't learn much. Guess we'd better call the headquarters s.h.i.+p and ask for further instructions. Will you attend to it, Lieutenant Greer?"

III

Swiftly Arcot's sleek cruiser sped toward New York and the Arcot Laboratories. They had halted briefly at the headquarters s.h.i.+p of the Earth-Venus forces to report on their experience; and alone again, the three scientists were on their way home.

With their course set, Arcot spoke to the others. "Well, fellows, what are your opinions on--what we've seen? Wade, you're a chemist--tell us what you think of the explosion of the s.h.i.+p, and of the strange color of our molecular ray in their air."

Wade shook his head doubtfully. "I've been trying to figure it out, and I can't quite believe my results. Still, I can't see any other explanation. That reddish glow looked like hydrogen ions in the air. The atmosphere was certainly combustible when it met ours, which makes it impossible for me to believe that their air contained any noticeable amount of oxygen, for anything above twenty per cent oxygen and the rest hydrogen would be violently explosive. Apparently the gas had to mix liberally with our air to reach that proportion. That it didn't explode when ionized, showed the absence of hydro-oxygen mixture.

"All the observed facts except one seem to point to an atmosphere composed largely of hydrogen. That one--there are beings living in it! I can understand how the Venerians might adapt to a different climate, but I can't see how anything approaching human life can live in an atmosphere like that."

Arcot nodded. "I have come to similar conclusions. But I don't see too much objection to the thought of beings living in an atmosphere of hydrogen. It's all a question of organic chemistry. Remember that our bodies are just chemical furnaces. We take in fuel and oxidize it, using the heat as our source of power. The invaders live in an atmosphere of hydrogen. They eat oxidizing fuels, and breathe a reducing atmosphere; they have the two fuel components together again, but in a way different from our method. Evidently, it's just as effective. I'm sure that's the secret of the whole thing."

"Sounds fairly logical." Wade agreed. "But now I have a question for you. Where under the sun did these beings come from?"

Arcot's reply came slowly. "I've been wondering the same thing. And the more I wonder, the less I believe they did come from--under our sun.

Let's eliminate all the solar planets--we can do that at one fell swoop.

It's perfectly obvious that those s.h.i.+ps are by no means the first crude attempts of this race to fly through s.p.a.ce. We're dealing with an advanced technology. If they have had those s.h.i.+ps even as far away as Pluto, we should certainly have heard from them by now.

"Hence, we've got to go out into interstellar s.p.a.ce. You'll probably want to ram some of my arguments down my throat--I know there is no star near enough for the journey to be made in anything less than a couple of generations by all that's logical; and they'd freeze in the interstellar cold doing it. There is no _known_ star close enough--but how about unknowns?"