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diff --git a/old/62325.txt b/old/62325.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 37609b4..0000000 --- a/old/62325.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,1377 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Menace of the Mists, by Richard Storey - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll -have to check the laws of the country where you are located before using -this ebook. - - - -Title: Menace of the Mists - -Author: Richard Storey - -Release Date: June 4, 2020 [EBook #62325] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ASCII - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MENACE OF THE MISTS *** - - - - -Produced by Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - - - - - - - - - Menace of the Mists - - By RICHARD STOREY - - A nameless horror poured from the sea-bottoms of - Venus, driven by a soulless intelligence that - could not be beaten. Four Earthmen stood in the - way of the voracious horde, knowing they could not - escape--but swearing they would not admit defeat. - - [Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from - Planet Stories May 1943. - Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that - the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.] - - -MacAloon rose in the stirrups of his saddle-lizard. His guide, a -Venusian fishman, trembled nervously at the mount's side and pointed -straight ahead. MacAloon followed the direction of the quivering -four-jointed, scaly arm. - -"See, bossmac?" the reptilian native hissed in fright. "Bosslimpy -speak truth. Cen'pedes ready to march. Soon they attack us. Then is all -over." - -On the other lizard, little Al Birchall tried to peer through the -bright white fog of Venus. It was like attempting to gaze through a -bedsheet. - -MacAloon lifted a pair of infra-red binoculars to his eyes. Instantly, -the glasses dispelled the blinding mist. - -"See anything, Mac?" Birchall asked. - -Mac stared ahead without answering. Before him lay the black, -motionless ocean which covered all the planet except a few hundred -large islands. At the shore he saw movement, an enormous inky wave that -flowed ponderously up over the land and steadily inched forward. - -Countless thousands of foot-long creatures were swarming out of the -water and falling into dense marching ranks. The beasts, like huge -centipedes, each had dozens of swift legs. The front half was legless, -though, and looked like the human part of a centaur. It wasn't only the -posture that made the resemblance. They had round heads, shaped like -skulls, with deadly mandibles; and clever arms and hands grew out of -their shoulders. - -Centaurpedes--even more than the heat, the mud and the fog, they were -man's most murderous enemy on Venus. - -Silently, Mac handed the binoculars to Al Birchall. - -"Bossmac," the fishman pleaded, "we go 'way, not fight cen'pedes? They -kill and eat us; nothing we can do." - -Mac watched Al lower the glasses from his eyes. He did it very slowly -at first, then grinned when he caught Mac's gaze, and flipped the -binoculars across. - -"They sure look dangerous," he said. - -"They are," Mac answered quietly. "They can strip the flesh off our -bones in three minutes flat." - -Below them, between the tall bulk of the two mounts, the fishman's -long, flat head turned from Mac's face to Al's. - -"Bossal, tell bossmac we not able fight cen'pedes," he begged -sibilantly. "They come--" The thin, scaled hands waved excitedly, "like -biggest army you ever see, make war on mine. You kill and kill, more -come. Please, we go to man city!" - -MacAloon jerked his lizard's reins around in the direction of the mine. -Al's mount came alongside. The fishman groaned, then began trotting -before them on swift webbed feet. They splashed over the eternal mud, -through the ever-present white fog. - -Should they give up the fight against the shrewd, heartbreakingly -persistent vermin? If they did, they would have to abandon the mine -which had become their lifework. They would have to blow up the place -before retreating. - -For all life on Venus was amphibious, but centaurpedes were -deliberately trying to quit the water, knowing their semi-civilization -could reach its mechanistic goal only on land. - -Unable to prop the porous native rock with the brittle, primitive -plastics they used instead of metals, they were striving to take over -an iron mine that had already been started by human engineers. Then, -with the metal they could produce, they would make tools and raise -cities ... and manufacture weapons with which to push men clear off the -planet. - -Their forays had forced a number of mines out of existence. Two years -ago, before Al Birchall became the fourth partner here, an undersea -colony of 'pedes swarmed down on this place. Surrounded on all sides, -the men had put up a long, bitter fight. If Adonis City, half around -the globe, hadn't finally sent a rocket ship, they would have been lost. - -In the rocket, Mac had tried flame-strafing with the bow jets, swooping -back and forth across the black mass of besiegers. But the wily animals -merely dug deep in the mud and waited till he passed overhead, then -continued the attack. Since he couldn't be everywhere at once, part of -the army was always surging forward. At best, the strafing only slowed -down the assault. - -But then Limpy Austin, up in the lookout tower, sighted foraging -parties in the rear, dragging up food supplies in the form of gigantic -dead meat-eaters. Mac had rocketed over the rear of the army, burning -the food into useless charred fragments. Starving, the attackers were -at last forced to retreat to their ocean city, but only until they -could figure out a new strategy. - -Mac said, "We'll stick." - -Otherwise, he knew, he'd have to go back to ferrying fruit boats -between South America and Antarctica. Birchall would revert to his old -confidence games all over the System. Swede Steffansen would have to -manipulate a freight crane on Mercury again. And Limpy Austin--well, -there wasn't much a semi-cripple could do, outside of being lookout and -radio operator for his friends. - - * * * * * - -The two riders approached the mine enclosure which struggled into -visibility through the smothering haze. The fishman, fleeter than the -lumbering saddle-lizards, had already reached the high wire fence. He -gestured wildly at the guard nearest him, an alert armed Venusian who -stood on a stilt-platform that overlooked the fence to the mud flats -beyond. - -The guard pressed a button that opened a gate in the wire barricade. -The mounted men pounded through, and over the wide muddy stretch to the -concrete wall. - -Deeply embedded in the ooze, with the rock bed for a foundation, -the wall paralleled the outer fence and closed in the entire mining -grounds. Its polished outer face was deeply indented, like a sharply -curved concave lens. No joints showed in the smooth surface. - -But Limpy Austin, up in the glass-walled lookout room atop the stilt -blockade house, saw them. He opened a tightly fitting door in the -concrete rampart. They rode through into the compound, dismounted near -the closed-cabin freight tractor that stood beside the smelter. - -"The 'pedes are coming, aren't they?" asked a slow, heavy voice behind -them. Swede Steffansen came around the lizards. He was a big, placid -man, but his sky-blue eyes--blue as the heaven of Earth, not this white -hell--were troubled now. He said: "I could tell by the way the pack -animals are acting. They're touchy." - -"They caught the scent," Mac answered. "The attack's due in about two -hours. Let all the animals out. We don't want them stampeding during -the battle." - -Swede nodded, slogged off toward the corral. - -"Tell the fishmen we're in for a fight with 'pedes," Mac ordered -Birchall. "Weed out the weak sisters. They'd only get in our way, -anyhow." - -Stepping high to avoid splashing, Al bounded off in the direction of -the tipple at the mine entry. MacAloon went into the blockade house and -climbed to the lookout room. - -Limpy Austin was standing at the infra-red glass wall. His left arm -and leg were shriveled, and one side of his face was twisted up in -a sardonic leer. Mercurian Paralysis, that strange disease which -immobilizes either half of a person depending on whether it is -contracted at the Day or Night Side, had made a hopeless cripple of him. - -He turned around when Mac came in. "Well?" he asked. - -"They're coming, all right," Mac grunted. He leaned over the control -panel, pushed the button that clanged the cease-work alarm down in the -mine. Then he threw the lever that halted the ore cars to bring the men -to the surface. - -"How do things look?" Limpy pursued. - -Mac shrugged. "We ought to have a better chance than before. There are -four of us this time." - -Limpy shuffled to the radio. With his slender, sensitive right hand, he -twisted the dials. - -"Adonis City," he said harshly into the microphone. "Limpy Austin -calling Adonis City...." - -There was a squeal of static. "Adonis City," replied a harried voice. -"Come in, Austin, but make it short!" - -"What's up?" - -"'Pede attack on every damned mine. How about you? Aren't they--" - -"Yeah," Limpy cut in. "That's why I'm calling. Send over a ship. Ours -is wrecked." - -The weary voice cursed. "I can't, Austin. We figured you had a boat, so -we shipped them all to the other mines." - -"Okay," Limpy shrugged. "Then we'll have to do without." - -"Why don't you guys blow up the place and leave?" - -"Maybe we'll have to. I don't know. When you get a chance--" - -"Yeah," the man replied hastily. "The first ship that comes in, you -guys get. So long, and good luck!" - -Limpy switched off and glanced inquiringly at Mac, his paralyzed grin a -slash of seemingly pure evil. - -"Looks bad, Mac." - -"Maybe," MacAloon said curtly. "If we can hold out till they give us a -boat, we'll come through all right." - -Nevertheless, he frowned, worried by the simultaneous attacks. There -was something ominous behind them--and he didn't know what. - - * * * * * - -Limpy was sullen; the more the right side of his face drew down in -anger, the more sardonically leered the frozen left side. Swede's -placid features showed no emotion, but his clenched fists did. Mac -alone tried to appear cheerful, though his mind was furiously analyzing -their grave situation. While Birchall said nothing, peering absently -into space. - -Silently, the men pulled on steel-soled shoes, lead-fiber gloves and -infra-red goggles. On their backs they strapped compact battery-radios -with short antennae, a fixed microphone at the chest. The loudspeaker -atop each small set, at neck level, could be heard in anything short -of a vacuum or explosion. Then the defenders armed themselves with -flame-throwers and machine guns that shot steel-piercing bomb bullets. - -Straightening, Mac asked: "How many fishmen are staying?" - -"Twenty-one," snarled Birchall. - -Mac grinned wryly. "Cheer up, Al. That's better than I figured on." He -turned. "Limpy, stay up at lookout. Warn me when the 'pedes are getting -close. Swede, you and Al set up ammunition dumps in the compound. Then -make sure the explosives and contacts will work fast if we have to blow -up the place in a hurry." - -While the others dispersed, Mac gathered a squad of fishmen, armed with -flame-throwers and led them outside the high fence. Methodically, they -burned down all vegetation for a distance of several hundred yards, to -prevent the centaurpedes from creeping up close under cover. - -When Mac and his detachment were returning, Limpy opened a sluice from -the central control tower. Oil poured into the shallow water-filled -moat that ringed the wire barrier. A thick, greasy film spread over the -water. - -Meanwhile, the rest of the fishmen had been deployed around the inside -of the fence. They stood nervously holding their flame-throwers, their -membrane-covered eyes bulging anxiously. Up on the stilt towers, the -best native marksmen pressed their quivering scaled shoulders against -the stocks of mounted machine-guns. - -Mac felt a pang of gratitude. He knew what their decision to stay had -meant. All life on Venus dreaded the centaurpede with a blind, wild -terror. - -"Hey!" Limpy's voice grated through the radio. "Come up to the lookout -room!" - -MacAloon rushed through the mud and climbed to the glass-walled -chamber. He glanced questioningly at Limpy. The lookout man wordlessly -handed him a pair of binoculars and pointed to the coast. - -Swede and Al burst in, as usual, asked no questions. But Birchall was -babbling at a terrific rate. - -"Shut up!" Limpy said tensely. - -Mac stared at the ocean. His jaw muscles suddenly bunched into hard -knots. At wide intervals, six black waves were lapping over the shore -and rolling down on the mine like a flood--a deluge with gigantic -mandibles and fiendish cunning, a torrent miles long and spread far -over the muddy plain. - -"That's never happened before," Limpy whispered. "It was always one -colony to a mine." - -Swede and Al took turns at the binoculars. No change came over Swede's -face. Birchall's, though, contracted in horror. - -"They got together!" he yapped. "We're done for, Mac! We can't fight -six colonies all at once, and without a boat!" - -Scowling, Mac jammed his hands into his pockets. "They're using holding -attacks on the other mines to tie up help from Adonis City. Meanwhile, -they're concentrating their main force here." - -"Smart little devils," rumbled Swede. - -"We ought to quit!" Al chattered. "We can't lick them!" - -His face whiter and more contorted than ever, Limpy said: "Why don't -you guys beat it?" - -Mac's head jerked up sharply. Swede looked at Limpy in mild surprise. -Al Birchall's chin dropped. - -"What do you mean--us guys?" Al demanded. "What about you?" - -Both sides of Limpy's face grinned sardonically. "No boat, all the -animals set free--you'll have to run for it. And me? Well, I'm not -much good at running. But you three can escape, if I'm not along to -hold you back." - -"I'm a heel," snarled Birchall. "Forget what I said." - -"Sure, Limpy," Swede added with clumsy joviality. "This little ape is -always talking before he thinks. We're sticking--all of us." - -"Cut it out!" snapped Limpy. "Somebody has to stay here to throw the -dynamite switch. I don't need any help." - -"Nobody's throwing any switch," Mac declared. "This is our mine, and no -damned vermin are taking it over!" - -"But you'll never beat them," pleaded Limpy. "And even if you did, -they'd only keep coming back until they got the place. You can't wipe -them out once and for all." - -"Someday, somebody will," Mac said. "In the meantime, we can fight like -hell. 'Pedes haven't any more intelligence than a bee, but even they -get tired of being slaughtered." - -"A bee?" Al asked. "I thought 'pedes were smart devils." - -"Not individually, according to Graves, the old-time biologist." - -"Then how can they plan and act all together?" - -"They have some way of coordinating, Graves claimed. How does a beehive -act as a unit? We don't know, but it does just the same." - -"Can't I talk you fellows into leaving?" begged Limpy. - -"No!" Al stated flatly. - -Limpy shrugged. Shuffling over to the window, he pointed down at the -closed-cabin tractor beside the smelter. - -"Then how about letting me use that as a tank?" he asked. "I'm not much -good here, anyhow. The 'pedes wouldn't be able to get at me, inside the -cabin, and I could crush and burn them down till they quit." - -"That was tried once at a mine," said Mac. "The 'pedes dug tank traps. -The driver killed himself after being stuck in one for a week. It -didn't matter; he'd have died soon enough. But even when he skipped the -traps, the 'pedes dodged the treads. They don't just stand around and -wait to be crushed." - -The right side of Limpy's face drew down in disappointment. "You guys -are suckers to stick around. I'm just a rubber cog." - -"Rubber cog, huh?" Al yelped. "How do you think we're going to fight -without a lookout man?" - -"Don't talk like a sap, Limpy," added Mac with gruff gentleness. "We -need you a lot more than you need us." - -A slow, sad smile spread over Limpy's twisted features. - -"Okay, if that's how you feel about it." - -"That's how we feel about it," Swede answered. - -They went down to their stations within the enclosure. In deadly -silence, the camp waited for the first blow. - - * * * * * - -It came when the tension was almost unbearable. Through his infra-red -goggles, MacAloon could see a vast, dark smear, advancing inexorably, -like the ominous march of a black glacier. Before the ordered ranks -came the expected stampede of animals. - -As if they had studied the break-through tactics of the extinct Nazis, -the 'pedes were driving huge beasts ahead of them, living tanks -that were meant to smash down the mine's fortifications. Enormous -meat-eaters were thundering along on vast legs, crushing smaller -carnivores in their frenzied flight. Fleet, timid vegetarians raced -beside their killers, but neither thought of anything except the -hideously lethal creatures close behind them. - -When the animals were close to the fence, Mac snapped an order into -his microphone. Instantly, flame-throwers spat at the pool of oil -surrounding the mine. A fierce blaze sprang up. - -The demented rabble scattered right and left--all but the meat-eaters, -the biggest beasts on Venus. Too stupid to fear fire, they were the -greatest danger. In idiot terror, they crashed toward the fence. - -Somehow, the fishmen stood their ground. Mac knew how they felt. It was -a sensation of unnerving horror to watch a gigantic animal plunging -toward you, to stare at the enormous fangs in the slavering yard-wide -mouth, to feel the ground trembling beneath their tremendous feet.... - -MacAloon opened fire. From every side of the camp, he heard answering -blasts. The pounding of the machine-guns made a furious clatter. -Bullets exploded savagely in the great bodies. Then horrible bellows of -agony drowned every other sound. - -For minutes after a man managed to pump an endless burst of slugs into -a meat-eater, and saw the flesh erupt in bloody blobs, he couldn't help -shaking, though he knew the monster was already dead on its feet. Then -the vast beast collapsed into the mud with a deafening splash, and he -wondered if he could ever forget the terrifying sight. - -When the thick, oily smoke thinned out, the smaller animals had fled -into the fog. Mac sent out a squadron of fishmen, who destroyed the -dying meat-eaters. If the bodies had been allowed to remain, the 'pedes -would have used them as a food supply. - -The fishmen came back inside, and all the fog-wrapped world was silent. -On noiseless feet, the oncoming army moved with impossible precision -toward the camp. - -Twenty-five defenders against uncounted millions, with only a web of -wiring and a concrete wall between them and the jaws of doom. And even -if they won, victory would be no more than a truce.... - - * * * * * - -The six armies of centaurpedes met and fused. Narrower and narrower -grew the gap between the mine and the unending wave of repulsive -vermin. Then, when they were almost at the fence, the main army -suddenly slowed down, and the two wings broke into double-swift march, -advancing on both sides of the barrier. - -"Turn on the juice!" Mac snapped into his microphone. - -Abruptly, the fence began shooting off big blue sparks in the wet air. -The main body of centaurpedes halted a few yards away and remained -impassive. Inside, the fishmen stood frozen, staring in terror at the -long, multi-legged animals, the round, intelligent-looking heads, the -huge mandibles, and the upright shoulders with pairs of clever hands -and arms. - -Behind the camp, the encircling wings met and joined. More advanced -until the surrounding army was uniform in depth. Then, with a single -movement, the black cataract flooded straight at the wire fence. - -"Hold your fire!" Mac yelled at his fishmen. - -Around the compound, he heard Swede and Al shouting the same order. But -it was too much to expect of fear-tightened native nerves. Spasmodic -bursts of fire spurted out. Undaunted, the horde pressed on against the -fence. - -Crackling and flashing, the electrified wire suddenly flung out great -streamers of sparks. The moist chitinous bodies shriveled into ashes. A -stink of burned flesh polluted the heavy fog. - -Apparently at an inaudible signal, the entire mass of 'pedes fell -back out of danger. MacAloon was awed. He knew that the rear of a -human army, unable to see what was happening up front, would keep -pushing forward. But a secret knowledge, impossible to men, made the -centaurpedes act as a single entity. - -Looking along the fence, Mac could see detachments of 'pede scouts, -moving warily toward the sparking barrier. While the army watched, the -reconnoiterers experimentally touched the wire. A flash and they were -destroyed, but not before serving their purpose. They had given the -army a chance to analyze the fence's properties. - -Again the entire force moved forward, this time with more caution than -before. MacAloon looked on anxiously, knowing they were aware of the -danger. - -"Mac!" cried Al's voice. "What're they going to do?" - -"They're too smart to keep electrocuting themselves," said MacAloon -tersely. "They must have a plan." - -"But what is it?" - -"I don't know," Mac admitted. - -The first ten lines halted within a foot of the flashing barricade. The -next nine marched forward and mounted the backs of the first lines. -Then each succeeding rank climbed those in front. - -"A pyramid!" Al yapped. - -The fishmen gaped up at Mac, then back at the 'pedes. They were close -to cracking. - -"Wait!" Mac ordered. "Wait till boss-limpy says they're almost to the -top of the fence. Then fire low. Don't keep firing after the pyramid -falls!" - -The sporadic firing ceased. Immense gaps had appeared in the pyramid, -but the fence had heated red. The drain on the generators would be -enormous, and this MacAloon had feared more than the few invaders that -might drop across. - -Swiftly, the pyramid grew until it was as high as the fence. Then, up -in the lookout room, Limpy barked a signal. - -Flame leaped out at the lowest line of 'pedes, slashed back and forth. -All in an instant, the pyramid collapsed. The centaurpedes retreated, -leaving a ring of charred bodies around the fence. But the survivors -were as numberless as ever. - -In the sudden silence, agonized shrieks rang out across the compound. - -"What's wrong, Limpy?" demanded MacAloon. - -"It's Al, but I can't see what happened!" - -"Stay where you are, Swede!" Mac ordered. "Keep the fishmen fighting!" - -He raced to Birchall's station, saw that Al's flame-thrower had jammed. -Hundreds of centaurpedes had hurled themselves over the fence and -surrounded two natives. Others had brought up a tree trunk and hammered -a big hole in the wire. Through the gap, a full regiment was pouring -into the enclosure. - -"Take care of the ones inside!" Al shrieked. "I'll stop them!" - -"Don't be a fool!" shouted Mac. "Fall back and get another -flame-thrower!" - -Unheeding, Al smashed a path to the fence with the butt of his weapon. -'Pedes were already climbing up his body and wasting no time. He bit -his lip and charged on. The trickle of blood running down his chin -was the smallest one flowing from his torn flesh. In a last desperate -lunge, he grabbed the ends of the broken fence. - -"_Al!_" Mac cried out. - -He was too late. A sheet of blue flame had sprung up. There was a -piercing scream of pain beyond endurance. Then Birchall hung limply, -caught, as he had intended, by the jagged ends of wire. His mangled, -lifeless body, through which the current flowed, had closed the gap. - - * * * * * - -A sudden film spoiled Mac's vision. Savagely, he blinked it away. With -vicious fury, he burned down the swiftly crawling centaurpedes around -him. The two fishmen, no longer surrounded, shuddered free of their -fright and began to help. Under the fierce heat, all the animals in the -enclosure curled and died. - -Murderously calm, Mac fired a steady blast through the fence at the -pyramid outside. Sizzling and frying, the formation fell to the ground. - -In spite of that, the 'pedes had won this battle. They had unleashed a -new weapon while the defenders had turned to watch the struggle. A rain -of vermin seemed to come from the sky. For, thrust deep into the mud -outside the fence, were whip-like catapults. Ten animals were drawing -back each slingshot, flinging a 'pede into the enclosure! - -Dismayed, MacAloon watched them hurtle over the wire in unbelievable -numbers. Shooting wildly at them, yet fixed to the ground they were -defending, the fishmen were desperately near panic. - -"Stop firing!" Mac shouted. - -His order was ignored. He cursed and pulled half of the natives away, -giving their flame-throwers to the remaining guards. The first half -he sent inside the compound with snapped instructions. The others he -placed just before the concrete rampart. Armed with two weapons instead -of one, each fishmen had double firing power. - -"Let them reform their ranks inside the camp," Mac ordered. "Then let -them have it!" - -Limpy communicated the command to Swede on the other side of the -compound. The haphazard blasts stopped. Undisturbed now, the -centaurpedes well into military formation, as Mac had expected. When -their lines were twenty deep, they advanced, a black, tight unit with -champing mandibles. - -"Now!" MacAloon roared. - -A withering wall of flame lashed out, burning down the invaders by the -hundreds. But reinforcements kept flying over the blue-flashing fence. -And under cover of the air invasion, the pyramids were being built -again! The fishmen, backed up against the curved concrete barricade, -were unable to reach this new threat with a stream of fire. - -Obeying his previous instructions, a squad of fishmen came staggering -through the doors in the wall. They dragged oxygen and hydrogen -tanks that were connected in pairs by flexible, insulated hoses with -triggered nozzles. - -"Forward!" Mac commanded. - -Limpy passed the word around the besieged mine, and fishmen advanced -with blazing flame-throwers. Behind them, the reserves hauled up the -tanks. Slowly, stubbornly, the tide of centaurpedes was driven back -into the fence. An ear-splitting crackle, and they were gone, a smoking -pile of cinders. - -Even after the camp was clear, Mac did not rest. He drove the reserves -to the fence and kept them firing at the enemy beyond. - -"Not the 'pedes!" he shouted. They looked up, bewildered, wondering -why ammunition should be used, if not to burn down the foe. "Melt the -catapults!" he ordered. - -The natives understood at last that the hand-weapons were too feeble to -reduce the crude plastic slingshots, but that the tank flame-throwers -were not. They blasted out at the catapults. - -But the centaurpedes were damnably shrewd. In half the time it had -taken the fishmen to comprehend, the vermin had begun pulling up their -slingshots and retreating out of range. - -Harrying his forces to get the catapults, Mac glanced aside and swore -viciously. In the gaps between his widely spaced crew, more pyramids -were forming. - -"Forget the slingshots!" he yelled. "They can wait till later!" - -The revised order didn't make sense to the fishmen. They couldn't see -that, while their attention was diverted, the main army could pour over -the fence on a secure pyramid. They blasted away at the slingshots and -ignored the wall of 'pedes. - -The deadly animals saw their chance and acted. With quick cunning, -they sent over a torrent of invaders. Chattering in fear, the fishmen -switched their attack to the pyramids, but they were too late. They -were being driven back by the vermin inside the fence, and more and -more were coming over. - -"I can't hold them, Mac," came Swede's unalarmed voice. - -"I can't either," Mac said tensely. "Get the fishmen and fuel tanks -into the compound." - -Shrill screams erupted from the natives. Faced by alert, precise ranks -marching toward them, they threw down their weapons and rushed for the -concrete wall. - - * * * * * - -Mac ran forward, cursing. He grabbed an oxy tank and pulled it to -safety. Most of the thrower fuel was safe in the camp, but the tanks -outside would be badly needed if the attack continued in force. But -regiments of 'pedes had by-passed the ammunition and posted guards to -prevent their being rescued. - -Hard-faced, Mac ordered a fishmen to go out into the enclosure with -him. While Mac kept back the horde with a hail of fire, the shivering -native pulled a tank into the compound. Mac increased the size of the -raiding parties. Again and again they sallied out, until the bulk of -the abandoned fuel was saved. - -Sweating, Mac signaled to Limpy in the blockade house. The hermetic -doors in the wall slid shut. The natives stood on the ledge on the -inner side of the rampart, watching with horror-filled eyes as the -fiendish beasts tried to scale the concave surface. - -Mac called Swede by radio, then trudged through the mud to the blockade -house. The three men met in the lookout room. - -Seeing Swede, Mac realized for the first time how dirty, wet and -exhausted he was himself. They were both blackened with mud and flame -blasts, their clothing grimy and sopping. - -Limpy's good eye was harrowed, the frozen side of his face contorted in -an evil grin. - -"Poor Al," muttered Swede. He sank down ponderously on a chair. "He was -a game little fellow. I'll miss him." - -Without replying, Limpy turned around. He stared sightlessly through -the infra-red windows at the white fog and the eternal mud, the -seething mass of centaurpedes and the shaking, gabbling fishmen. -All around the mine, seeming to reach every horizon, stretched the -completely encircling army of vermin. But that was not what Limpy was -seeing. - -Mac came over to the window. "I saw Al die, too," he said in a harshly -gentle voice. "If I have to kick off that way, I hope I'll be as brave -as he was." - -"Maybe you'll get your chance sooner than you think," Limpy snarled. -"Six armies against us, one dead, our boat no good, the fence useless, -the fishmen demoralized--" He whirled. "What are we waiting for? Why -don't we blow up the place and quit?" - -"Because we still have a chance," Mac answered. "They've taken our -first line of defense, but we still have the second." - -"The wall?" Swede grunted. "Think that'll stop them long?" - -"Long enough," promised Mac. "It's thirty times as high as they are, -and three feet out of plumb-line with the bottom. Before they figure -out how to get across, maybe Adonis City'll be able to send us a -rocket. Get them on the radio, anyhow, Limpy. We're carrying the whole -weight of the attack. They've got to give us a ship." - -Limpy shuffled to the panel. He set the dials, then spoke mechanically -into the microphone: "Adonis City. Limpy Austin calling Adonis -City...." Several minutes went by. He looked up. "They don't answer." - -"Keep trying," Mac said. "Everybody must be calling them from all the -other mines." - -"That's what I mean," Swede put in earnestly. "We fight; the other -mines fight. Sometimes we win; sometimes the 'pedes do. Whatever -happens, it's never finished. We spoil their old tricks, so they figure -out new ones. They're devils, Mac. We can never lick them for good." - -"Someday, somebody will," Mac said stubbornly. - -He gripped the sill and stared out through the infra-red glass. In -the outer compound was a black fester of centaurpedes, crawling like -gigantic lice before the concrete barricade. - -"Nothing can stop them," Swede said beside him. "They'll find a way of -getting over. They always do. And then--" - -Mac's skin began to creep. To be eaten, the flesh stripped off your -bones while you're alive and screaming.... The fence had halted them, -and they'd built pyramids. When flame-throwers cut down the pyramids, -they used catapults. Now the wall was holding them back, but they'd -work out some method of hurtling over. - -Then those armored bodies would push back the defenders until they -could retreat no farther. Before those steel-hard mandibles, one man -after another would go down, a living skeleton, covered with black, -crawling vermin.... - -Mac shuddered. "As long as that wall holds them," he said, "it isn't -hopeless. But the sooner the boat gets here, the better off we'll be. -Are you trying Adonis City, Limpy?" - -"All over the dial!" Limpy groaned. "They don't answer!" - -Swede shook his head. "The fishmen know what the odds are. Look at -that." - -Mac saw three natives fling up their arms, claw over the wall and throw -themselves into the 'pedes' jaws. They fought to their feet and raced -toward the fence, but their fleetness didn't save them. Long before -they reached the wire, they were black and shapeless, covered from head -to foot with clinging, rending animals. - -"The fence," Swede explained quietly. "That's why they went crazy." - - * * * * * - -Far to the right, a corps of centaurpede engineers had hauled up the -huge tree trunk. Using it as a battering ram again, they smashed -down a section of the barrier. Now they were rushing in, tearing the -chargeless fence to pieces. As the two men watched tensely, another -section collapsed with a splash into the mud. Instantly, the 'pedes -began moving it toward the concrete wall. - -"I knew they'd find a way," said Swede. "They're going to use the fence -segments as ladders." He turned away. - -Mac, continuing to stare down, suddenly stiffened. The 'pedes were -acting queerly, moving around sluggishly, as if they had lost interest -in their task! He frowned and faced his companions. - -"That's funny," he muttered. "They're stopping--they seem confused." - -Limpy shrugged and went on twirling the dials. Swede glanced out, then -looked at Mac with upraised eyebrows. - -"They look the same to me," he said slowly. "You seeing things, Mac?" - -Startled, MacAloon shot his gaze back to the scene below. Swede was -right! The 'pedes had resumed their work! Mac stood still for a moment, -his mind racing swiftly, trying to grasp the significance of that -momentary halt. Then he whirled, facing Limpy. - -"What were you doing just a moment ago?" - -Limpy raised his head from the dials. "Trying all the wave lengths. -Adonis City isn't on its usual--" - -"I thought so!" Mac yelled triumphantly. "Get back to the length you -had before!" - -"But there wasn't any answer." - -"They're halfway to the wall," Swede muttered abstractedly. - -"Get that wave length again!" Mac snapped. - -Limpy's right shoulder shrugged. He twisted the dial gently while -MacAloon turned back to the window and stared out tensely. - -"Hold it!" he suddenly ordered. "Don't touch those dials!" - -Swede and Limpy looked at him puzzledly. He pointed down at the -swarming enclosure. Limpy shuffled over to him, followed the direction -of his finger. - -"They've dropped the fence," whispered the lookout. "They don't seem to -know what they're doing." - -"Yah," Swede said in an awed voice. - -Below, the centaurpedes were moving about aimlessly, as if they had -forgotten their orders. They had completely lost their terrible -machine-like precision! - -"I don't get it," Swede complained in bewilderment. "What's wrong with -them?" - -Mac's grin was hard and tight. "They're directed by a central brain, a -sort of queen 'pede which coordinates their actions by ultra-short-wave -commands, the way a queen bee directs a beehive. That's the secret of -their synchronization!" - -"And I was working the ultra-short--" Limpy stopped, stunned. - -"That's the idea," Mac nodded. "Our signals blanket theirs! They can't -get orders from the main intelligence, so they don't know what to do!" - -For a moment, the men were silent. Slowly, then, Swede said: "Now all -we have to do is kill the brain." - -"Yeah," Limpy agreed bitterly. "What a chance of getting through! -Where's the queen 'pede, or the brain, or whatever it is?" - -Mac squinted through a pair of binoculars. He gazed along that -meandering tangle of disorganized vermin. Abruptly, he halted. A mile -beyond the ravaged fence was a small patch of integrated activity, a -regiment of centaurpedes that still functioned in unison. - -"There's the truth," he muttered. "Or more likely, there are six of -them, one from each undersea colony. They probably formed a council of -war to attack us. That's why we almost lost." - -"_Almost?_" Swede echoed. "But we can't fight them now!" - -Mac shook his head. "We won't lose," he said grimly. "I'm going to kill -the council of war." - -"You're crazy!" Limpy cried. "You'd have to run through a mile of mud -and 'pedes. Brain or no brain to direct them, they'll pull you down -instinctively. Mac, you won't have a chance!" - -MacAloon looked out at the wandering army. "I think I will," he said. -He went to the door. "They won't attack together. Open the wall, Limpy. -Don't mind if a few 'pedes get through. You can take care of them. Just -keep that ultra-short-wave blanket clamped down over their minds. So -long." - - * * * * * - -He ran down the metal steps and across the mud toward the smelter. -Tearing open the door of the closed-cabin tractor, he jumped inside and -slammed the port shut. He started the motor, drove past the blockade -house. Swede and Limpy were at the window. Mac waved. - -A door in the wall swung wide for him. He tooled through, the door -closed and he was among the centaurpedes. Infinitely disgusting things, -a few individuals attacked the tractor in blind rage, clamping their -mandibles on the steel parts and clinging senselessly. Others gaped up -in blank wonder as the machine bore down on them. He heard them _crack_ -and _squish_ beneath the threads. - -He drove straight at the fence. It went down and he was out of the -enclosure, entirely surrounded by vermin. On all sides, farther than -he could see, were purposeless animals, no longer in orderly ranks, -obeying a single dictate. How long would they remain severed from the -controlling brains? - -Desperately, Mac fixed in his mind the position of the place where he -had seen unified activity. He headed directly for the war council of -intelligent centaurpedes. - -The treads of his tractors made sucking, splashing sounds through the -mud. 'Pedes, not bright enough by themselves to get out of the way of -danger, died by the thousands under the grinding chains. - -He was drawing closer, into the thickest cluster of all. The vermin -here were also wandering around, but they seemed to be trying to make -up their minds. Mac knew the blanketing wave was weaker here, that the -council of queens 'pedes was struggling to get its nearer minions under -control again. Before that happened, they had to be destroyed. - -But where were they? Two hundred yards away was a great battle square -of centaurpedes, setting themselves with idiot bravery to stop his -invincible machine. Mandibles opened wide, they crouched back, ready to -spring and rend the indestructible steel. - -Were the 'pede dictators in the center of that battalion? -Theoretically, they should be, but Mac knew better than to expect the -obvious. Were they brain-like, slug-like, or did they hide their vast -significance behind protective disguises of mediocrity, pretending to -be nothing but ordinary centaurpedes? - -The tractor lumbered on across the mud, smashed into that wall of -nauseating bodies. The cracking and squashing made his stomach heave, -yet he kept grinding ahead. - -"Damn your murdering hearts, where are you?" he bit out. - -He crashed through the battalion, started to turn back for another -charge. Instead, he clamped his teeth together and continued savagely. -Far before him, he had seen several 'pedes, identical with the rest, -racing in different directions toward the ocean. They had set up a rear -guard to cover their retreat. - -He wrenched the wheel aside. _Crack!_ - -"One!" he gloated. - -Another was scampering furiously twenty feet ahead. He drove down on -it, exulted when he heard the treads crush the hard chitinous shell. - -"Two!" - -"Three!" - -The revolting beasts were fleet, but the tractor was swifter. One after -another, he ran them down, his lips twisting in a fierce grin each -time he heard one squash beneath his treads. - -At last, two miles from camp, he stopped. He had destroyed the last -'pede trying to escape to the ocean. But had he killed the brains that -had directed this gigantic assault on the mine? - - * * * * * - -He pivoted and started back to the compound. The 'pedes were still -ambling around, following their single purposes. He could never have -got through if the ultra-short wave hadn't actually blanketed the -brains' commands. But were the animals merely disorganized only as long -as the broadcast continued, or had their rulers really been killed? - -Mac reached the mine. Limpy opened a gate in the concrete wall, and he -drove through. A moment later, he was in the lookout wall, standing -beside his two partners, gazing out the window. - -"Did you get them?" Limpy asked breathlessly. - -Mac leaned forward and watched with intent eyes. Slowly, like -brainless creatures gradually coming to a decision, the endless mob of -centaurpedes began moving away. They didn't march, as they had advanced -to the attack. They wandered off in the general direction of the sea -from which they had sprung. - -"I got them," Mac said. He straightened and turned around wearily. -"Get in touch with Adonis City, Limpy. Give them the wave length -that blankets the queen 'pedes' instructions. Tell them to relay the -information to mines that are under siege." - -"We've won?" asked Swede incredulously. - -"Yes," Mac replied. "And this time it's for good. We'll be able to -beat off every attack from now on. Only, I don't think they'll go on -fighting much longer. They'll have to quit." - -Swede sat down ponderously. "I'm glad, Mac. Not for us; for Al. He -didn't die uselessly." - -"No," Mac said. "He didn't." - -Fumbling with the radio dials, Limpy grinned. None but his close -friends could know that grief made his grin wider and more evil-looking -than ever. - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Menace of the Mists, by Richard Storey - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MENACE OF THE MISTS *** - -***** This file should be named 62325.txt or 62325.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/6/2/3/2/62325/ - -Produced by Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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