The Return to Ganymede
"MUST you you go to Ganymede?" Barkovis asked, slowly and thoughtfully. He was upon a bench the fountain, talking with Stevens, who, in his space-suit, near an of the Forlorn Hope. "It a that you should again those unknown, who so us without provocation."
"I'm not so on it myself, but I can't see any other way out of it," the Terrestrial replied. "We left a of our there, you know; and if I should here, it wouldn't do us any good. These ten-nineteens are the most powerful when we left Tellus, but their fields, as they are, can't an ultra-beam together much than about six units. So you see we can't possibly our friends from here with this tube; and your of won't anything together that far, and won't work on any than Roeser's Rays. We may into some more of those little spheres, though, and I don't like the prospect. I wonder if we couldn't plate a of that of yours upon the Hope and along a of those bombs? By the way, what is that explosive—or is it something Tellurian chemistry?"
"Its should be clear to you, although you not prepare it upon Tellus of your high temperature. It is nothing but nitrogen—twenty-six of to one of what you would call—N-twenty-six?"
"Wow!" Stevens whistled. "Crystalline, nitrogen—no wonder it's violent!"
"We could, of course, your with the mirror, but I am that it would prove of little value. The plates are so that it would soon volatilize."
"Not necessarily," Stevens. "We live in number one life-boat, and off the else. The life-boats are from the proper, and the and of the are from each other. With only the warm, the be close to zero absolute."
"That is true. The bombs, of course, are by radio, and therefore may be to the of your vessel. We shall be to do these small for you."
The of the Forlorn Hope were off, and as soon as the had to Titanian temperature, a of set to work. A machine very like a was rolled up the vessel, and into its were boxes and of and many of liquid. The paste was upon the in a sluggish, stream, which spread out into a thick and the of the Titanian workmen. As it hardened, the paste into the perfect which the space-vessels of the satellite; and a full dozen of the of this people were in the already provided.
"Once again I must you those torpedoes," Barkovis Stevens. "If you use them all, very well, but do not try to take one of them into any region where it is very hot, for it will and your vessel. If you do not use them, them you into the of Ganymede. The will at the temperature of melting mercury, but the must be destroyed. Once more, Tellurians, we thank you for what you have done, and wish you well."
"Thanks a for your help—we still you something," Stevens. "If either of your power-plants go on you again, or if you need any more built, be sure to let us know—you can come close to the now on your own to talk to us on the ultra-communicator. We'll be to help you any way we can—and we may call on you for help again. Goodbye, Barkovis—goodbye, all Titania!"
He his way through the cold shop into the control-room of their lifeboat, and while he was himself of his suit, Nadia the Forlorn Hope into the blue-green sky of Titan, by an of the globes. Well clear of the of the satellite, the at normal acceleration, while the Titanian and a pattern of and in to the guests.
"Well, Nadia, we're off—on a long trek, too."
"Said Wun Long Hop, the Chinese pee-lo," Nadia agreed. "Sure everything's all x, big boy?"
"To decimals," he declared. "You couldn't another into our with a proof-bar, and since they're sending us all the power we want to draw, we won't need to touch our or our own until we're almost to Jupiter. To cap the climax, what it takes to make big medicine on those friends of ours, we've got. We're not on top of the world, ace—we've at the of the entire universe!"
"How long is it going to take?"
"Don't know. Haven't it yet, but it'll be days," and the two from far-distant Earth settled to the of a long and journey.
They gave Saturn and his a wide and on, with ever-increasing velocity. Past the satellites, on and on, the good ship Forlorn Hope into the black-and-brilliant of space. Saturn was an ever-diminishing them: above them was Jupiter's thin crescent, larger and more bright, and the Monarch of the Solar System, almost day after day, in and in brilliance.
ALTHOUGH the from Titan to Ganymede was long, it was not monotonous, for there was much work to be done in the and of the which were to the ultra-radio station. In the of the Forlorn Hope there were small motors, blowers, coils, condensers, force-field generators, and other which Stevens use with little or no alteration; but for the most part he had to himself. Thus it was that time passed quickly; so that Jupiter large and the Saturnian of power to almost the Terrestrials that their was to an end.
"Our beam's fast," Stevens read his carefully, then his toward Jupiter. "We aren't power to our at normal—think I'll cut now, while we're still to let the Titanians know we're off their beam. We've got of power of our own now; and we're close to enemy territory, so they may that beam. Have you Ganymede yet?"
"Yes, it will be on the other of Jupiter by the time we there. Shall I detour, or put on a little more negative and wait for it to come around to this side?"
"Better wait, I think. The away we from Jupiter and the major satellites, the better."
"All x—it's on. Suppose we'd start watches, in case some of them up?"
"No use," he dissented. "I've been to put out our detectors, as they surely them in use. Without them, we couldn't spot an enemy ship if we were looking right at it, by accident; since they won't be up and it's hard to see anything out here, anyway. We won't know they're a until they put a on us. Barkovis says that this will any they can use, and I've already got a set of photo-cells in to ring an at the off of our plating. I'd like to in the myself, but I haven't been able to out any way of doing it. So you might as well sleep in your own room, as usual, and I'll here right under the until we to Ganymede. There's a of little I just of, though, that may help some; and I'm going to do 'em right now."
Putting on his space-suit, he up a power and out into the cold of the structure. There he the of their vessel, and the inter-wall in a of air as the point through plate after plate.
"What's the idea, Steve?" Nadia asked, when he had re-entered the room. "Now you'll have all that to do over again."
"Protection for the mirrors," he explained. "You see, they aren't perfect reflectors. There's a little absorption, so that some comes through. Not much, of course; but to kill some of those Titanians and almost to their ship got through in about ten minutes, and only one enemy was it out. We can more than they could, of course, but the itself won't much more than it was then. But with air in those of vacuum, and with the whole of the Hope, this one lifeboat, as cold as it is, I that there'll be and through them to keep the and the cold—cool enough, at least, to the on for an hour. If only one ship us, it won't be bad—but I that if there's only one, we're lucky."
STEVENS' were only too well grounded, for the "evening" of the day, while he was the for some of enemy craft, the over his into its clamor. Instantly he out the and ultra-lights and saw not one, but six of the globes—almost upon them, at point-blank range! One was already playing a of upon the Forlorn Hope, and the other five into action upon the and that the of their sister ship had an in the material of that wedge. As those her, the a set piece, a of brilliance: for the held. The enemy upon themselves and in all directions, in the same of which had marked the of the Titanian to a attack.
But Stevens was not idle. In the of his detectors, as fast as he work the trips, four of the of Titan—all that he at once—shot out into space, their rocket-tubes viciously. The enemy of the immediately, but, of material projectiles, the no attempt to dodge, but out upon them with their rays. So close was the range that they had no time to avoid the radio-directed after that their were against the unknown of those shells. There were four detonations—silent, but as the pent-up energy of solid was released—and the four into of wreckage, away from the of explosion. One great of and metal was directly upon the globe, and Nadia in at the crash as the entire of the ship like a of under the impact. That was out of action, but Stevens was taking no chances. As soon as he had a upon the and last of the enemy fleet, he a through the and into the of the war-vessel. There he it, and the charge, in that space, the space-ship to bits.
"We'll these what of trees make shingles!" he teeth; and his eyes, hard now as iron, as he four upon the of the of the void. "I've had a of to know just what of can possibly have such as they've got—but beasts, men or devils, they'll they've something this time they can't let go of," and of energy from the as he his missiles, at their possible acceleration, toward the so at the of his beam.
But that one was to prove no such easy as had its sister ships. Being six to one, and invincible, the had been and had carelessly, with only its of its more of total destruction; and so and hard had been Stevens' counter-attack that five of its numbers had been they what powerful was by that crude, helpless, and wedge. The sixth, however, was warned, and every at the of its was now being against the Forlorn Hope.
Sheets, cones, and of and crackled. Space was with silent, of flame. The Forlorn Hope was about as the to those torpedoes; to away from the of energy her so to her opponent. But the held, and closer and closer Stevens the of his bombs. Pressor upon them in vain. Hard as those were, they no footing, but were at many by that and their the progress of the rocket-propelled missiles. Comparatively small as the were, however, they soon the of the of them, and after in space as their up and volatilized. But for each bomb that was lost, Stevens another, and each one came closer to its than had its predecessor.
Made by the failure of his every beam, the enemy to use material himself—weapons long since by his as and inefficient, but a of which were still by the older of vessels. One such was and launched—but in the of its Stevens' bomb its mark and exploded. So close were the other three bombs, that they also let go at the shock; and the sphere, in by four of explosions, apart—literally pulverized. Its projectile, so discharged, did not explode—it was with material which be only by the upon impact or by a radio signal. It was, however, from its by the of the blast, so that of the Forlorn Hope in direct impact, its touched the of the mirror-plated wedge. That touch was enough. There was another concussion, another glare, and the entire of the had gone to join the globes.
Between the point of and the there had been many of insulation, many bulkheads, many air-breaks, and after of cells. These had the of the explosion, so that the room was unharmed, and Stevens his through the of the vessels.
"How are we hurt, Steve—can we make it to Ganymede?"
Nadia was over his into the plate, studying with him the pictures of there as he the from to compartment.
"We're hurt—no fooling—but it might have been a worse," he replied, as he the survey. "We've about all of our accumulators, but we can land on our own beam, and landing power is all we want, I think. You see, we're for where Ganymede will be, and we'd cut out every of power we're using, the heaters, until we there. This will for a while, and I'd cold than meet any more of that gang. I eight hours just they met us, and we were just about then. I think it is safe to say seven hours blind."
"But can't they us anyway? They may have sent out a call, you know."
"If we aren't using any power for anything, their are the only we'll register on, and they're short-range finders. Even if they should that close to us, they'll think we're meteoric, since we'll be to their other instruments. Luckily we've got of air, so the chemical can it without power. I'll off and we'll it. Couldn't do much of anything, anyway—even our shop out there won't air. But we can have light. We've got lamps, you know, and we don't need to on oxygen."
"Perhaps we'd in the dark. Remember what you told me about their possible visirays, and that you've got only two left."
"All x; that would be better. If I it, me to up those we the of Ganymede, will you?" He opened all the power switches, and, every of cut off, the Forlorn Hope slowly on, now appearing indeed.
SEVEN hours past: seven age-long hours which the two sat tense, they not what, talking only at and in tones. Stevens then on the just long to take an upon Ganymede. Several such were taken; then, after a word to his companion, he sent out and the bombs. He then on the power, and the toward the under full acceleration. Close to the it in a screaming, fifteen-hundred-mile drive; and soon the into the little canyon, which for so long had been "home."
"Well, colonel, home again!" Stevens as he the controls. "There's that falls, our power plant, the catapults, 'n' everything. Now, unless something us again; we'll up our radio tower and give Brandon the long yell."
"How much more have you got to do you can start sending?"
"Not an lot. Everything built—all I've got to do is it. I should be able to do it easily in a week. Hope nothing else happens—if I you into any more such as those we've just been out of by the skin of our teeth, I'll to wish that we had started out at to it to Tellus in the Hope. Let's see how much time we've got. We should start one day after an eclipse, so that we'll have five days to send. You see, we don't want to point our too close to Jupiter or to any of the large satellites, the enemy might live there and might it. We had an yesterday—so one week from today, at sunrise, I start shooting."
"But Earth's an star now; you can't see it in the morning."
"I'm not going to at Tellus. I'm at Brandon, and he's there for more than a week or two at a stretch. They're around out in space almost all the time."
"Then how can you possibly to them?"
"It may be a job of hunting, but not as as you might think. They aren't much, if any, the of Mars, and they a of or so of the Ecliptic, so we'll start at the sun and shoot our in a to that field. We ought to be able to them of twelve hours, but if we don't, we'll our and keep on trying until we do them."
"Heavens, Steve! Are you on for days at a time?"
"Sure, but not by hand, of course—I'll have an and pointers."
Stevens had at his a very complete machine-shop, he had an supply of power, and all that for him to do was to the parts which he had the long from Titan to Ganymede. Therefore, at of the day, he was ready, and, with Nadia over his shoulder, he closed the switch, a wheel a interrupter, and a light its chatter.
"Ganymede point oh four seven point oh four seven point oh four seven..." the message was out into the ether, by a tight of ultra-vibrations and by to it well the opposite limits of the of Mars.
"What it say? I can't read code."
Stevens the message, but Nadia unimpressed.
"But it doesn't say anything!" she protested. "It isn't to anybody, it isn't signed—it doesn't tell anything about anything."
"It's all there, ace. You see, since the is moving very at that range and we're at a small target, the message has to be very or they won't it all while the beam's on 'em—it isn't as though we were broadcasting. It doesn't need any address, nobody but the Sirius can it—except possibly the Jovians. They'll know who's sending it without any signature. It tells them that Ganymede wants to a message on the ultra-band on forty-seven thousandths. Isn't that enough?"
"Maybe. But some of them live right here on Ganymede—you'll be right through the ground all night—or that if they don't live here, that they can our some way? Or that Brandon hasn't got his machine yet, or that it isn't on when our them, or they're asleep then? A of might happen."
"Not so many, ace—your is the only one that hasn't got more in it than a sieve, so I'll take it first. Since our is only a in here and doesn't spread much in the kilometers, the of direct by the enemy, if they do live here on Ganymede, is small. But I don't that they live here—at least, they didn't land on this satellite. As you suggest, however, it is that they may have screens to our at a distance; but since in all that means a of hundreds of thousands of kilometers, I think it improbable. We've got to take the same anyway, no what we do, we start to use any of power, so there's no use about it. As for your last two objections, I know Brandon and I know Westfall. Brandon will have that will take in any possible of propagation, and Westfall, the old egg, will have them twenty-four hours a day, with recorders, finders, and else that Brandon can invent—and me, sweetheart, that's a of stuff!"
"It's wonderful, the way you three men are," Nadia thoughtfully, reading the lines of Stevens' utterance. "They that you were on the Arcturus, of course—and they that if you were alive you'd manage in some way to in touch with them. And you, away out here after all this time, are that they are a call from you. That, I think, is one of the I of."
"They're two of the world's best—absolutely." Nadia looked at him, surprised, for he had not anything to himself in her remark. "Wait until you meet them. They're men, Nadia—real men. And speaking of meeting them—please try to keep on me after you meet Norm Brandon, will you?"
"Don't be a simp!" her met his steadily. "You didn't that—you didn't say it, did you?"
"Back it comes, sweetheart! But myself and those two...."
"Stop it! If Norman Brandon or Quincy Westfall had been here of you, or of them together, we'd have been here from now on—we wouldn't have away from the Jovians!"
"NOW it's your turn to water, guy!"
"Well, maybe, a little—if of them were here, they ought to equal you in some things. Brandon says himself that he and Westfall together make one scientist—Dad says he says so."
"You don't want to you hear. Neither of them will admit that he anything or can do anything—that's the way they are."
"Dad has told me a about them—how they've always been together since their days. How they together all over the world, after they'd been all the loose. How they to the other to study—to Mars, where they had to live in space-suits all the time, and to Venus, where they had to take ultra-violet every day to keep alive. How they learned that else and then out into space to out that nobody else of. How you came to join them, and what you three have done since. They're fine, of course—but they aren't you," she passionately.
"No, thank Heaven! I know you love me, Nadia, just as I love you—you know I it. But you'll like them, really. They're a team. Brandon's a big brute, you know—fully five than I am, and he close to a hundred kilograms—and no lard, either. He's wild, impetuous, always jumping at and out that ridiculous, but they're sound, though impractical. Westfall's the practical member—he makes Norm pipe down, him to facts, and makes it possible to put his and wild of into form. Quince is a...."
"Now you pipe down! I've you so much about those two—I'd about you, and with more reason. I wish that would start sounding."
"Our message hasn't gone way yet. It takes about minutes for the to to where I think they are, so that if they got the one and answered it instantly, it would be eighty minutes we'd it. I of an answer late tonight, but I won't be if it takes a week to them."
"I will!" the girl, and indeed, very little work was done that day by either of the castaways.
Slowly the day on, and the silent. Supper was as the sun low and disappeared, but they no to sleep. Instead, they out in of the wall, where Stevens a small campfire. Leaning against the of their vessel, they into silence, which was by Stevens.
"Nadia, I just had a thought. I'll four I've a of time. They'll have on Tellus, to save me the trouble of for them, but like an I of it until just this minute, in of the speech I you about them. I'm going to those right now."
"That's a job, isn't it?"
"No, only a minutes."
"Do it in the morning; you've done for one day—maybe you've them already, any way."
They again silent, Jupiter, an moon some seven in diameter.
"Steve, I can't used to such a moon! Look at the stripes, and look at that perfectly incredible...."
A and they jumped to their and into the Hope. The ultra-receiver had come to life and the was insanely—someone was sending with speed, but with perfect and spacing.
"That's Brandon's fist—I'd know his anywhere," Stevens shouted, as he notebook and pencil.
"Tell me what it says, quick, Steve!" Nadia implored.
"Can't talk—read it!" Stevens snapped. His hand was over the paper, to keep up with the sounder.
"...ymede all x all x all x and will keep on plane you and circle fifteen north going send full data to circle fifteen possibility this message and personally I think such and that he is than a but just in case they should be intelligent...."
Stevens stopped and at the sounder.
"Don't stop to listen—keep on writing!" Nadia.
"Can't," the puzzled mathematician. "It doesn't make sense. It intelligent—it's up of of some or other, but they don't a thing to me."
"Oh, I see—he's sending on purpose. Read the last phrase!"
"Oh, sure—'mush' is right," and with no the again intelligible.
"... if they can that they are than we are off until from you brandon."
THE died into and Nadia as she herself into Stevens' arms. The long over, the terrible at last dispelled, they were for a minute—Nadia the of her lover, Stevens the girl herself and his two fellow-scientists with success had been achieved. A measure of self-control regained, Stevens cut off his sender, the of his and cut in his sending key.
"What are you using, anyway?" asked Nadia, curiously. "They must be more than Roeser's Rays, to have such a range, and Roeser's Rays go right through a without up."
"They're of the same order as Roeser's—that is, they're sub-electronic of the fourth order—but they're very much shorter, and hence more penetrating. In fact, they're the yet known, so that Roeser their existence."
"Suppose there's a Jovian space-ship out there that our beams. Couldn't they us from it?"
"Maybe, and maybe not—we'll just have to take a on that. That goes right to what we were talking about this morning. They might be anywhere, so the of one is very small. It isn't like the Sirius, we narrow limits where to look for her, and at that we had to for her for a day we her. We're safe, but if they should have us, we'll be able to until the Sirius here. Well, the I sending the dope, the sooner they can started."
"Tell them to be sure and me all my they can find, a of perfume, a of powder, and a of Delray's Fantasie chocolates—I've been a so long that I want to in luxury for a while."
"I'll do that—and I want some cigarettes!"
Stevens sent a terse, but complete account of that had to the Arcturus, and a of what he and Nadia had done since the up of the IPV. The finished, he into a and scientific of the enemy and their and weapons. He and at length upon the of he had seen. Though the long months of their he had been too to do any work upon the of the Jovians, yet his mind had many mathematical and physical deductions, hypotheses, and theories, and these he sent out to the Sirius, concluding:
"There's all the I can give you. Figure it out, and don't come at all until you can come for bear; they're medicine. Call us occasionally, to keep us as to when to you, but don't call too often. We don't want them you, and if they should us through your or ours, it would be just too bad. So-long. Stevens and Newton."
Nadia had upon up and had been pot after pot of her for coffee while he sat at the key; and it was almost when he off the power and arose, his right arm from the of hours of telegraphing.
"Well, sweetheart, that's that!" he in relief. "Brandon and Westfall are on the job. Nothing to do now but wait, and study up on our own account on those Jovians' rays. This has been one long day for us, though, little ace, and I that we sleep for about a week!"
