Rip Foster Rides the Gray Planet Part 18

He couldn't see the cruiser from here. But he looked out into s.p.a.ce, across the horizon, and knew that Koa's guess had been right. The distinctive glow of a nuclear drive cruiser was clear among the stars.

The _Scorpius_ had returned!

"The Connie saw it," Rip said worriedly, "but didn't blast away. That means he's intending to ambush the _Scorpius_. Koa, if he does, that means war."

The big Hawaiian shook his head. "Sir, the Connie has guided missiles with atomic warheads just like our s.h.i.+p does. If he can launch one from ambush and hit our s.h.i.+p, that's the end of it. The _Scorpius_ will be nothing but s.p.a.ce junk. Commander O'Brine will never have time to get off a message, because he'll be dead before he knows there is danger."

The logic of it sent chill fear down Rip's spine. The Connie could get the _Scorpius_ with one nuclear blast and then clean up the asteroid at leisure. The Federation would suspect, but it would be unable to prove anything, because there would be no witnesses. If the Connie took time to tow the remains of the _Scorpius_ deep into the asteroid belt, it likely would never be found, no matter how the Federation searched.

They had to warn the s.h.i.+p. But how? Their helmet communicators wouldn't reach it until it was right at the asteroid, and that would be too late.

They had no other radio. If only the radios in the snapper-boats were on a Federation frequency ... hey! They could take one of the boats and intercept the cruiser!

He was hurrying toward them before Koa understood what he was saying. He tried to make his legs go faster, but they were unsteady. He knew he was losing blood. He had lost plenty. He gritted his teeth and kept going.

The snapper-boats seemed miles away to Rip, but he plugged ahead until his belt light picked them up. He took a long look, then turned away, heartsick. The Connie's exhaust had charred them into wreckage.

"Now what?" he asked.

"I don't know, sir," Koa answered somberly.

They went back to the cave, not hurrying because Rip no longer had the strength to hurry. Weakness and a deep desire to sleep almost overcame him, and he knew that he was finished anyway. His wound must be too deep to clot, which meant it would bleed until he bled to death. Whether he warned the _Scorpius_ or not, his end was the same.

Back in the cave, he leaned against the wall and asked tiredly, "How is Dominico?"

"I am fine, sir. My wound stopped bleeding."

"How is the Connie I got?"

"Unconscious, sir," Santos replied. "He must be bleeding badly, but we can't tell. The one you landed on is all right now, but he may have a broken rib or two."

Because his voice was weak, Rip had to turn up the volume on his communicator to tell the Planeteers about the _Scorpius_. They were silent when he finished, then Dowst spoke up.

"Looks like they have us, sir. But we'll take plenty of them with us before we're finished."

"That's the spirit," Rip approved. He told them, "I won't last much longer. When I get too weak, Koa will take over. Meanwhile, I want to get outside. Bring the rocket launcher outside, too. Who's the gunner? Santos?

Stand by, then. We'll need you in case the Connie decides to send a few snappers before it goes after the _Scorpius_."

The cruiser's glow was plain above the horizon, now. It was so close they could make out its form against the background of stars. O'Brine was decelerating and Rip was certain he was watching his screens for a sign of the enemy. He would see nothing, because the enemy was in the shadow of the asteroid. He would think the coast was clear, and come to a stop near by while he asked why Rip had called for help. Failing to get a reply, since the landing boat was wrecked, he would send a landing party, and the Connie would attack while he was launching boats, off guard.

Rip watched the prediction come true. The nuclear cruiser slowed gradually, its great bulk nearing the asteroid. O'Brine was operating as expected.

Rip was having trouble keeping his vision from blurring. He leaned against the rocket launcher and his glove caressed one of the sharp noses in the rack.

He heard his own voice before the idea had even taken full form. "Santos!

Do you hear me? Santos! Get the _Scorpius_! Fire before it comes to a stop. And don't miss!"

Santos started to protest, but Koa bellowed, "Do it. The lieutenant's right. It's the only chance we've got to warn the s.h.i.+p. Get that scorpion, Santos. Dead amids.h.i.+ps!"

The Filipino corporal swung into action. His s.p.a.ce gloves flew as he cranked the launcher around, turned on the illuminated sight and bent low over it. Rip stood behind the corporal. He saw the cruiser's shape stand out in the glow of the sight, saw the sighting rings move as Santos corrected for its speed.

The corporal fired. Fire flared back past his shoulder. The rocket flashed away, its trail dwindling as it sped toward the great bulk above. It reached brennschluss and there was darkness. Rip held his breath for long seconds, then he gave a weak cry of victory.

A blossom of orange fire marked a perfect hit.

CHAPTER ELEVEN - HARD WORDS FOR O'BRINE

The _Scorpius_ could have taken direct hits with little or no major damage from a hundred rockets of the kind Rip had used, but Commander O'Brine took no chances. When the alarm bell signaled that the outer hull had been hit, the commander acted instantly with a bellowed order.

The Planeteers on the asteroid blinked with the speed of the cruiser's getaway. Fire flamed from the stern tubes for an instant and then there was nothing but a fading glow where the _Scorpius_ had been.

Rip had a mental image of everything movable in the s.h.i.+p cras.h.i.+ng against bulkheads with the terrific acceleration.

And in the same moment, the Consops cruiser reacted. The Connie commander was ready to fire guided missiles, when his target suddenly, mysteriously blasted into s.p.a.ce at optimum acceleration. There was only one reason the Connie could imagine: his cruiser had been spotted. The ambush had failed.

It was one thing for the Connie to lie in ambush for a single, deadly surprise blast at the Federation cruiser. It was quite another to face the nuclear drive s.h.i.+p with its missile ports cleared for action. The Connie knew he had lost.

Rip and the Planeteers saw the Consops s.h.i.+p suddenly flame away, then turn and dive for low s.p.a.ce below the asteroid belt in a direction opposite the one the _Scorpius_ had taken. The helmet communicators rang with their cheers.

The young officer clapped Santos on the shoulder and exclaimed weakly, "Good shooting!"

The corporal turned anxiously to Koa. "The lieutenant's pretty weak. Can't we do something?"

"Forget it," Rip said. There was nothing anyone could do. He was trapped inside his s.p.a.ce suit. There was nothing anyone could do for his wound until he got into air.

Koa untied his safety line and moved to Rip's side. "Sir, this is dangerous, but there's just as much danger without. I'm going to tie off that arm."

Rip knew what Koa meant. He stood quietly as the big sergeant-major put the line around his arm above the wound, then put his ma.s.sive strength into the task of pulling the line tight. The heavy fabric of the suit was stiff, and the air pressure gave further resistance that had to be overcome. Rip let most of the air out of the suit, then fought for breath until the pain in his arm told him that Koa had succeeded. He inflated the suit again and thanked the sergeant-major weakly.

The tight line stopped the bleeding, but it also cut off the air circulation. Without the air, the heating system couldn't operate efficiently. It was only a matter of time before the arm froze.

"Stand easy," Rip told his men. "Nothing to do now but wait. The _Scorpius_ will be back." He set an example by leaning against the thorium crystal in which the cave was located. It was a natural but meaningless gesture. With no gravity pulling at them they could remain standing indefinitely, sleeping upright.

Rip closed his eyes and relaxed. The pain in his arm was less now, and he knew the cold was setting in. He was getting light-headed, and most of all he wanted to sleep. Well, why not? He slumped a little inside the suit.

He awoke with Koa shaking him violently. Rip stood upright and shook his head to clear his vision. "What is it?"

"Sir, the _Scorpius_ has returned."

Rip blinked as he stared out into s.p.a.ce to where Koa was pointing. He had trouble focusing his eyes at first, and then he saw the glow of the cruiser.

"Good," he said. "They'll send a landing boat first thing."

"I hope so," Koa replied.

Rip wanted to ask why the big Planeteer doubted, but he was too tired to phrase the question. He contented himself with watching the cruiser.