Spacehounds Triumphant
NOW that the threat that had so long the of the Sirius was lifted, that football of was with and as the pilot his for Europa. Lounges and with noise as police, passengers, and such of the as were at merry. The room, in which were the of the and the scientists, was enough, but a of had replaced the air it had so long.
"Hi, men!" Nadia Stevens and Verna Pickering, arms around each other's waists, entered the room and the group they a part of it.
"'Smatter, girls—tired of dancing already?" asked Brandon.
"Oh, no—we from now on," Verna him. "But you see, Nadia hadn't that husband of hers for fifteen minutes, and was lonesome. Being of all you men, she wanted me to come along for support. The I came, though," and she her and her voice mysteriously, "is that you two are here. I want to study my a little longer I decide over which of you to the spell of my charm."
"But you can't do that," he objected, vigorously. "Quince and I are going to settle that ourselves some day—by dice, or maybe each other, or...." he off, to an going on them.
"... just outrageous!" Nadia was exclaiming. "Here we saved his life, and I him a of my candy, and we to all the trouble of their ship here almost to Jupiter for them, and then they off without a word of thanks or anything! And he always as though he wanted to see or of any of us again, ever! Why, they don't think straight—as Norman would say it, they're full of little red ants! Why, they aren't human!"
"Sure not." Brandon to the speaker. "They couldn't be, hardly, with their make-up. But is it necessary that all beings should such an as gratitude? Such a being without it to us, but I can't see that its necessarily anything particularly important. Keep still a minute," he on, as Nadia to him, "and to some wisdom. Quince, you tell 'em."
"They are, of course, very and intelligent; but it should not be that should itself in to us beings, minds work so differently. They are, ... well, peculiar."
"I won't keep still!" Nadia out, at the opportunity. "I don't want to talk about those any more, anyway. Come on, Steve, let's go up and dance!"
Crowninshield to Verna, with the of leading her away, but Brandon interposed.
"Sorry, Crown, but this lady is a research, so your purely social will have to wait until after the scientific work is done."
"Why narrow the of investigation?" laughed the girl. "I'd it, myself—I might a general, to a physicist!"
They up to the main and joined the mêlée there, and after one with Verna—all he in that of men—Crowninshield to Brandon.
"You two to know Miss Pickering well. Would I be on your if I give her a play?"
"Clear as as we're concerned." Brandon his shoulders. "She's been kicking around under since she was high to a duck—we gave her her lessons on a rule."
"Don't be dumb, Norman. That woman's a knock-out—a riot—a regular tri-planet call-out!"
"Oh, she's all x, as as that goes. She's a good little scout, too—not as as she acts—and she's one of the little that a plume; but as for playing her—too much like our kid sister."
"Good—me for her!" and they their way to the room.
Stevens, after his one with Nadia, had already returned. Brandon and Crowninshield him seated at the calculating machine, a problem which already pages of his notebook.
"'Smatter, Steve? So to see a and some paper that you can't let them alone?"
"Not exactly—just had a a day or so ago. Been the of the of the Arcturus around Jupiter. Think we should it—the upper half, at least. It was left intact, you know."
"H ... m ... m. That would be nice, all right. Dope enough?"
"Got the direction solid, from my own observations; the velocity's a though. But after for my error, it an of low eccentricity, the of Io and Europa. Its period is short—about two days."
"Isn't it to have a brain?" Brandon the room at large. "The kid's clever. Nobody else would have of it, maybe Westfall. Let's see your figures. Um ... m ... m. According to that, we're an hour of it, right now." He to the pilot and sketched rapidly.
"Get on this line here, please, and decelerate, so that the stuff'll catch up with us, and pass the word to the lookouts. Stevens and I will take the plates.
"That's a good idea," he on to Stevens, as they took their places at main and ultra-banks. "Lot of in that ship. Instruments, boats, and millions, most of the of the passengers—clothes, trunks, trinkets, and what-not. You're there, bucko!"
"Thanks, Chief," ... and they silent, the carefully, and from time to time making from the of the and meters.
"There she is!" An had sounded, the ultra-lights had out into space, and upon screens there out images of the closely of the Arcturus. But men were more just then in the of the than in the itself.
"Missed it eight minutes of time and eleven on the scale," reported Stevens. "Not so good."
"Not so either—I've computation." Thus was a mathematical which, a years earlier, the days of I-P computers, would have been of in "The Philosophical Magazine."
DIRECTOR NEWTON was called in, and it was that the many small of the were not saving; that its upper was all that they should attempt to the to Tellus. The of the Sirius was to that of the masses, and were upon the of the derelict, and upon the two slices from the nose of the craft. A of the larger of were also taken, to metal for the repairs which would be necessary. Acceleration was slowly up to normal, and the battle-scarred of the void, with her of metal, her toward Europa; the upon which the and of the ill-fated Arcturus had been so long immured. On she through the ether, screens full out and Vorkulian wall-screens her football shape in and light; now of any possible space-craft of the hexans.
But if the her, they no sign. Perhaps their had been utterly; it had been upon their minds that those green screens were not to be with impunity! The was without event and into the landing the two of metal dropped.
Callisto's citizens were on hand to welcome the Terrestrial rescuers, and in that Europan community. All celebrated. The Callistonians they were now from the age-old of the hordes; they once more their over the Jovian and live again their normal upon the surface of those small worlds.
The Terrestrials were almost in the that marked the end of the long of the refugees.
As soon as the of the Arcturus had been to permit inspection, its original were allowed to visit it briefly, to and to their belongings. Of course, some had been done by the cold of space, but in was as they had left it. Stevens and Nadia were among the permitted aboard. They to the room, where Stevens his still Breckenridge's desk, where he had it when he the vessel. Then they their way up to Nadia's stateroom, which they in order and in its cleanliness—there is neither in space. Nadia about the little room and laughed up at her husband.
"Funny, isn't it, sweetheart, how little we know what to expect? Just think how I would have been, when I left this room, if I had been told that I would have a husband I got to it!"
Breckenridge's was for his chronometer, which he found, of course, "way off"—six and three-tenths fast. Having the from that of the Sirius, he himself in the other of his department—and he was easy to from that time on.
Overcrowded as the Sirius already was, it was that the original of the Arcturus should their her the return trip. To this end, of set to work upon the hulk. Heavy metal work was no to the Callistonian and mechanics, and the Sirius also was well with metal-working and men. Thus the was welded; armored, air-breaks were along the stern, which was the plane of cleavage, were restored; and lastly, a set of the great Vorkulian wall-screen generators, absorbers, and was installed, with for their operation. Director Newton this in for some time, then in search of Brandon.
"I hadn't the possibility of being again here and Tellus, but there's always the chance," he admitted. "If you think that there is any danger, we will them all into the Sirius. It will not be at all comfortable, but it will be than having any more of us killed."
"With that they'll be as safe as we will," the scientist him. "They can as much as we can. We'll do the for the whole from here, and anything we meet will have to take us they can touch them. So they had it there, where they'll have passengers' and be comfortable. As to danger, I don't know what to expect. They may all be gone and they may not. We're going to trouble every of the way in, though, and be for it."
Everything and tested, and of power into the Arcturus from the of her sister ship, the and their new were moved into their quarters. There was a of farewell, the doors of the were closed, the check-out was gone through, and the of the Sirius great up the shaft, slowly and easily. And after them, as long as they be seen, the thousands of Callistonians who the great shaft's floor. Many of the were not, speaking, Callistonians at all. They were Europans, and in that city which was to have been the last of Callisto's civilization. In that were hundreds who had the light of the sun any of the of the firmament, hundreds to that was a of the free and life which was soon to be theirs.
Up and up that powerful tug-boat of space, with her barge, at normal acceleration. Below her Europa, then Jupiter, smaller and smaller. In their Nadia's in the of Stevens' arm as she and looked up at him with eyes.
"Well, big fellow, how it to be out of a job? Or are you going over there every day on a to work, as Norman suggested?"
"Not on your sweet life!" he exclaimed. "Norm he was somebody, but it registered zero. It me the to around when there's a of work to do, but this is different. Nothing's us now, and a fellow's to at least one his life. And what a this is going to be, little of my heart! Nothing to do but love you all the way from here to Tellus! Whoopee!"
"Oh, there's a of other to do," she him gaily. "You've got to a of good cigarettes, I must eat a of Delray's chocolates, and we should catch up on cooking. Speaking of eating, isn't that the second call for dinner? It is!" and they along the narrow toward the elevator. To these two the long was to all too short.
Long though the was, it was uneventful. The of the two were in touch with each other by means of the communicators, and there was also much visiting and in person. Stevens and Nadia came often to the Sirius, and were by Verna Pickering, who her right of "kicking around under foot," Brandon and Westfall might to be—and at such times General Crowninshield was to appear. And upon days when the did not appear, the it necessary to in person something in the Arcturus.
Day after day passed, and the new and ultra-powerful screens of the Sirius and cold. Day after day the plates the and blank. Power and into the receptors, and the of were with equal and from the forty-five projectors. The its easily and the perfectly. And a to up in the plates.
Verna, the irrepressible, was in the room of the Sirius, with Brandon and with Crowninshield. Glancing into the screen she saw the in its end block, then the briefly.
"We're for Mars!" she with conviction. "I it looked that way yesterday, but it must be only apparent—a of or something about the orbit. I of you were taking us home—but you can't possibly to Tellus on any such as this!"
"Sure not," Brandon easily. "Certainly it's Mars. Isn't that where the Arcturus started out for? Whoever said we were going to Tellus? Of course, if any of the want to go right the IPC will gratis. But paste this in your hat, Verna, for reference—when start out to go they go there, if they have to a year or so on time to do it!"
Closer and closer they approached the red planet, around in a wide in order to make their with the pilot of check station M14, which was now in its in space. At the pilot's in the room of the Arcturus, Breckenridge in with the station, then calculated the of their the specially-built of steel, hemp, and which them upon the Martian of the Interplanetary Corporation. Within range of the terminal, he into it, waited until the light its green message of attention, and reported.
"IPV Arcturus; Breckenridge, Chief Pilot; number forty-three twenty-nine. Checking in—four hundred forty-six days, fifteen hours, eleven minutes, thirty-eight and seven-tenths minus!"
