diff options
| author | nfenwick <nfenwick@pglaf.org> | 2025-02-04 13:06:22 -0800 |
|---|---|---|
| committer | nfenwick <nfenwick@pglaf.org> | 2025-02-04 13:06:22 -0800 |
| commit | 336aa1d1380fa693ff7786925736c716da70bd40 (patch) | |
| tree | ad798d91a16b5f97cc6f0527f72a3a88c361bbee | |
| parent | 108e0d349970c4f5497e45eaefc9ce950b6ac0ab (diff) | |
| -rw-r--r-- | .gitattributes | 4 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | LICENSE.txt | 11 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | README.md | 2 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/63987-0.txt | 725 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/63987-0.zip | bin | 15039 -> 0 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/63987-h.zip | bin | 571444 -> 0 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/63987-h/63987-h.htm | 816 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/63987-h/images/cover.jpg | bin | 254327 -> 0 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/63987-h/images/illus.jpg | bin | 301336 -> 0 bytes |
9 files changed, 17 insertions, 1541 deletions
diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d7b82bc --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,4 @@ +*.txt text eol=lf +*.htm text eol=lf +*.html text eol=lf +*.md text eol=lf diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..aaa79ef --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #63987 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/63987) diff --git a/old/63987-0.txt b/old/63987-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 2ce6ee4..0000000 --- a/old/63987-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,725 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Wreck Off Triton, by Alfred Coppel - -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 -will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before -using this ebook. - -Title: Wreck Off Triton - -Author: Alfred Coppel - -Release Date: December 08, 2020 [EBook #63987] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -Produced by: Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed - Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - -*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK WRECK OFF TRITON *** - - - - - Wreck Off Triton - - By ALFRED COPPEL - - _His plans were thorough. Every risk had been - closely considered. Now Ron Carnavon, ruthless - convict, was ready to loot the wrecked spaceship - of its sapphire treasure, and thrust his warped power - around the entire, antagonistic EMV triangle._ - - [Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from - Planet Stories November 1951. - Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that - the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.] - - -Ron Carnavon had been the skipper of the late _Thunderbird_, and it -was common knowledge in every port of the EMV triangle that he had -scuttled her. There was a price on his head, and the High Space Guard -was combing the spacelanes for him--and for the _Thunderbird_. For the -_Thunderbird_ was a treasure ship. - -But Carnavon was a cautious man and no fool, for all that he'd -committed barratry. He left the _Thunderbird_ in a Trojan orbit a -million miles off Triton, ruptured and spilling corpses into space. He -took a spaceboat and jetted sunward to the Holcomb Foundation Outpost -on Oberon. Then he stowed away on the mail ship to Canalopolis, still -carrying the chart that showed the _Thunderbird's_ position. In the -Canal City, Carnavon evaded the lax Guard cordons and found himself a -renegade Martian hypnosurgeon to change his face and fingerprints. - -From then on it was easy. Across Syrtis Major by sand-ski to Marsport -posing as a prospector. And from Marsport down the Grand Canal to the -spaceman's boneyard at Yakki. It was there that he met and hired Pop -Wills and the _Carefree_. - -Ron Carnavon acted with characteristic caution when he chose Pop and -the _Carefree_ to do the ghoul work on the ship he had murdered. Pop's -ship was a rusty bucket, but well enough fixed to reach Triton where -the _Thunderbird's_ corpse orbited, her vault heavy with Plutonian -sapphires. And Pop needed work badly. He was almost too broke to outfit -his ship for the flight. Carnavon noted with curling lip that most of -Pop's assets had long ago been liquidated to buy gin. The long years -in space had taken a toll on the old man. Actually a greater toll than -even Carnavon could have imagined. - -Pop and the _Carefree_ fitted in with Carnavon's plans to perfection. -Pop had been in trouble more than once with the High Space Guard. Pop -was an old soak who wouldn't be missed. When something happened to the -_Carefree_, the rest of the beached wrecks in Yakki would only shake -their heads and agree that Pop had pushed the old bucket a few Gs too -hard somewhere. That was just the end the wrecker had in mind for Pop -when his job was finished, too. - -It was only reasonable. He couldn't let Pop live to tell the Guard that -Ron Carnavon had had a hypnosurgical metamorphosis. Even a fortune in -sapphires couldn't buy the High Space Guard. It was far too well-heeled -with Holcomb Foundation money, and it took its duties to the -inhabitants of the Earth-Mars-Venus Triangle seriously. A cautious man -would realize this and take the proper steps. In this case the proper -steps would be the elimination of Pop Wills when his job was done. - -But everyone makes mistakes. Carnavon made one when he selected Pop -and the _Carefree_. With all the rusty hulks dotting the ramps of -Yakki, and with all the even rustier skippers there, he should have -hired someone else. Anyone else. Ron Carnavon should have connected -Pop Wills with the twelve-year-old cabin boy of the _Thunderbird_. The -youngster's name had been Wills, too. But of course, Carnavon couldn't -have been expected to remember everything. Just coincidence--but those -things do happen. - -So these two lifted from Mars together. A captain who had wrecked his -own ship and a gin-soaked old man whose only son had died because -of it. And neither knew the other for what he was. To Carnavon, Pop -was just a fall-guy doing his job in proper sucker fashion. And to -Pop Wills, Carnavon was just John Smith who wanted to go to Grid -M332254-89OK off Triton and was willing to pay well for the privilege. - -The wrecker ordered the course and Pop set it. Mars began to dwindle -and the Belt loomed up ahead. The _Carefree_ threaded her way through -the rocky maze and on past Saturn and Uranus in a free-falling arc. She -was slow, but in space "slow" is a relative term. The Outer Planets -were in triple conjunction and with their help, the old boat made time. -Carnavon checked the course daily, and Pop accepted the corrections -without protest. After all, John Smith was paying for the trip and he -seemed to know what he was doing. No questions asked. Carnavon liked -that. No questions, no trouble. He couldn't have been more wrong. - - * * * * * - -It's hard to say in mere words what old Pop must have felt when he -picked up the wreck of the _Thunderbird_ on the radar. He recognized -the image, of course. The _Thunderbird_ was unique among spacers. Then -he checked her position against the chart that Carnavon had marked and -realized why they had come. He realized too who this John Smith was, -and hate pulsed through him in sickening waves. Pop wasn't a brave man, -and he was past his prime, but he could still hate. - -Almost without conscious thought, Pop broke out the Ultra-Wave and -began calling the Guard. He broadcast full particulars, co-ordinates, -descriptions, everything. He was at it when Carnavon found him and sent -him crashing against the control panels with a smashing overhand right -to the mouth. - -Pop sprawled on the metal decking and watched the wrecker carefully -smash every communicating device on the ship's panel. There was a -throbbing pain in his head where he had struck the shabbily padded -control console, and the thick taste of blood was in his bruised mouth. -He watched Carnavon like an animal, a hurt, impotently raging beast. -And he began to be afraid. Even his hate couldn't spare him that, for -Pop was afraid to die and he knew just what his chances were now. - -Carnavon, on the other hand, didn't waste time hating. He didn't know -why Pop had called copper, and he didn't really care. Pop wasn't -important. The sapphires in the _Thunderbird's_ vault. _They_ were -important. He'd come too far to abandon them now. - -It would take nine minutes for Pop's radio appeal to reach the nearest -Guard base, Carnavon calculated. And it would take six hours for -the fastest Guard ship to reach them after that. He could board the -_Thunderbird_ and loot her in not more than two hours. That would -still give the _Carefree_ a four hour start on the Guard, and in deep -space four hours were as good as four thousand. Carnavon still wasn't -worried. The wrecking of the _Thunderbird_ had been the work of months, -and he wasn't going to panic now. Ron Carnavon wasn't that sort of a -criminal. - -Blaster in hand, he motioned Pop to his feet. He wondered vaguely just -why the old man had taken such a chance. He couldn't have any notions -of collecting the reward for Carnavon. The amount was less than the -amount he was getting for doing this--Carnavon smiled bleakly--salvage -job. And the old man was a coward. He could see it in the trembling of -the blue-veined hands, in the shifting faintness of the watery blue -eyes. The wrecker shrugged aside the thoughts as unimportant and set to -work. - -With a blaster in his ribs, Pop Wills did as he was told. He braked the -_Carefree_ to a stop twenty miles from the ruptured hulk of the liner. -There were beads of sweat standing out on Pop's forehead and his hands -shook on the firing console. A thin trickle of dark blood marred his -stubbled chin. His battered lips were unsteady. - -For a few bad moments, Pop Wills thought Carnavon was going to blast -him as soon as the _Carefree_ lost way, but then even his gin-soaked -mind began to understand that the end wasn't quite yet. Carnavon needed -help looting the murdered liner. If he was going to lay his hands on -her valuables before the Guard appeared, he'd have to get Pop working -with him. Maybe if Pop had been more of a man he could have stopped -the wrecker cold right there, but long years of boozing had left Pop -weak. He could hate well enough, but fear conquers even hate. And that -blaster that followed him in every movement made Pop's thin blood run -cold. Life--even a life like Pop Wills'--was better than the black void -of death. Pop was ready to buy a few more minutes of life at almost any -price, even from the man who had killed his boy. The old man was like a -rusty watch-spring--battered and wound to the utmost limit. And jammed -there. Frozen by the reality of that ugly blaster and the cold eyes -behind it, Pop would help Carnavon. He couldn't help himself. And his -hate expanded to include his own senile weakness.... - - * * * * * - -The _Thunderbird_ spun slowly in the light of the faraway sun, the rent -in her hull gaping like a mouthful of jagged teeth. She had been a -beautiful thing once, but she was ugly now in death. She had not died -gracefully. Her back had been broken and her innards scattered. She -orbited sullenly, and around her spun the broken fragments of her inner -body--the bloated, frozen corpses of the men she'd carried. Against the -backdrop of the stars and the blaze of the Milky Way, she seemed to be -a blot on the heavens. Pop Wills and Ron Carnavon watched her, each of -them with his own thoughts. Then the wrecker motioned toward the suit -lockers with his blaster. - -It took a bit of doing to get into his own pressure suit and still keep -the blaster pointed at Wills, but Carnavon was a large man, and supple, -and he managed it well enough. - -The _Carefree_ had no escape boat, so there was nothing for it but to -rely on the suit motors to take them across to the _Thunderbird_. It -promised to be slow going, for the suit motors were weak and produced -only one tenth G of thrust. Almost anything thrown out ahead by a man -in a space-suit was enough to stop him cold. The recoil overcame the -suit motor with ridiculous ease and though the motor labored mightily, -it would take a long while to reestablish the original direction of -movement. But Carnavon had an answer for that, too. - -A quick check of the radar showed that there were still no Guard ships -within hailing distance. Carnavon's original estimate of the time it -would take the Space Guard to arrive on the scene turned out to be -surprisingly accurate. - -He connected his suit to Pop's with a short cable and snap-hooks and -together they made their way to the _Carefree's_ dorsal valve. - -Carnavon had no intention of sweating out a long, slow crossing to -the hulk, so he ran the lock pressure up high and waited until the -outer hatch was lined up with the derelict liner. Then with a sudden -movement, he spun the wheel and popped the outer portal. Pop and -Carnavon shot into space like grotesque _bolas_. The _Thunderbird_ -loomed up ahead. - -Pop kept his mouth shut and his eyes open. He saw more than an -old man might be expected to see, too. For instance he saw that -Carnavon--cautious though he might be--had neglected to take an extra -magazine for his blaster. That meant that there were just three shots -in the weapon. One of which, Pop figured, would be used against the -vault of the scuttled liner. Not that the old man was making any plans. -He was still too weighted by his fear and his sense of impotence for -that. He merely noticed, and prayed to the gods of space that one of -those shots in the blaster might not be meant for him. - -As they drew near the liner, Pop felt nausea churning his stomach. -The ship was surrounded by satellites. Space-bloated bodies, naked -and misshapen in the bitter light of the dim sun that reflected off -the pitted flanks of the burst vessel. Spread-eagled grotesquely, -the corpses circled their ship, puffy things of horror with staring -eyes and extended fingers. Other things, too, circled the hulk. -Small, commonplace items. A clock, a chair, shattered crockery. Tiny, -inconsequential things, all mutely accusing--all muttering silently -that their ship had been betrayed by someone who should have protected -her. - -Pop glanced over at Carnavon. Through the steelglass bubble of his -helmet he could see the wrecker's face. There was no expression on -it other than concentration--and greed. Pop knew about greed. He'd -lived with greed and degradation a lot in his last few years. He hated -Carnavon even more now for having reminded him--but he was still too -sick with futility to do more than tell himself that he had done all -he could do. He _had_ called the Guard, after all. And then, for an -awful moment he found himself regretting that he had done even that and -thereby lost all hope of life.... - -Their magnetic shoes touched the _Thunderbird's_ hull with a sound -faintly carried through the air in their suits. They stood on the -curving surface, etched in black against the starry sky. A few feet -away from them, the terminator was inching toward them as the derelict -rotated slowly. - - * * * * * - -With Carnavon leading the way, they clumped heavily to the ripped and -tortured hull plates where the _Thunderbird_ had been sundered. By the -light of their helmet lights Pop could see the thoroughness of the -wrecker's work. He had been her captain, this Carnavon, and he had -known just how to murder her. The outer hull was a shambles and the -pressure hull holed in three places. It had been a thorough job. Only -one prepared for the sudden horror of her death could have survived it. -Pop Wills thought of his boy and sobbed. - -The dark companionways were empty, blown clean by the violence of the -_Thunderbird's_ death. Ron Carnavon led the way down into the ship to -the purser's office and the vault. - -Rubble cluttered the small room, bulkheads bent awry and pipes and -wires littered the deck. Carnavon turned Pop loose and set him to -work cleaning out a path to the vault. Pop's breath was coming in -shuddering, grating gasps when he finished the work a half-hour later. -Carnavon nodded approvingly and motioned him away from the vault. - -Pop watched while the wrecker braced himself and took careful aim at -the vault's lock mechanism with the blaster. There was a searing flash -of blue flame, and red sparks showered as the oxy-hydrogen bolt sliced -into the steel of the door. Pop found himself praying fervently that it -would take two more shots. - -Carnavon fired again, and the tiny room blazed. Pop muttered shakily -under his breath and waiting for the wrecker to blast just once more. - -The lock surrendered in a trickle of white-hot slag and Pop felt -himself sink low. There was still that one shot left for him--and he -wasn't needed now. - -The door swung open and Carnavon knelt to rifle the vault. When he at -last straightened, he held a pool of jagged blue fire in his gloved -hand. The gems sparkled with a life of their own--two dozen faceted -beauties--each worth a king's ransom--and each bought with a man's life. - -Presently they stood again on the outer hull, under an unreal canopy -of stars. Nearby, a ghastly satellite was swinging inward toward the -ship. Pop stared at it and back to Carnavon. He began to understand -what the wrecker planned. He was going to leave him here--on the wreck. -And he would die here. He understood that the shot that remained in the -blaster wasn't for him after all. Carnavon wasn't going to waste it -on him. There was a spanner in the wrecker's hand and he now advanced -purposefully toward Pop Wills. - -Pop stepped backwards, retreating from the heavy figure of the wrecker. -Fear was surging in waves through him--fear mixed with blind hate and -contempt for himself and his senile weakness. Overhead, against the -stars, the awful satellite drew nearer. - -Carnavon reduced the power in his magnetic shoes and moved lightly -toward Pop, the spanner raised to strike. The old man stumbled against -a long shard of steel on the hull that floated upward at his touch. -Fear paralyzed him, and he stood now, waiting for the blow of the -spanner that would smash his helmet and leave him a distended corpse -spinning through space. Above him, the satellite spun inward. - -Pop glanced up--into the agonized, dead face of a twelve-year-old boy. -He shrieked. The sound deafened him in the bubble of his helmet. All -the fear and weakness turned to a bitter hate and surged forward in -one insane motion toward his tormentor. The long shard of steel came -to hand like a lance. The rusted, warped old watch spring that was Pop -Wills recoiled and unwound in one raging moment. He charged Carnavon. - -Carnavon evaded the clumsy charge instinctively. With an almost -unconscious motion, he raised the blaster and fired point-blank. - -The searing bolt caught Pop Wills in the chest and spun him around, -tattered ribbons of charred flesh and melted metal from his suit -intermingled. He curled inward upon himself in an awkward graceless -fashion and sank to the hull plates, a nimbus of ice flowing from the -gap in his suit as the water-vapor and blood spurted into the vacuum. -But there was something strangely like a smile on his face as life left -him. Pop had conquered his fear at last. - -But Carnavon, on the other end of the bolt of fire that had ended Pop -Wills' life, spun outward--away from the _Thunderbird_, away from the -_Carefree_, end over end, driven by the fiery recoil of his own weapon. -At a speed considerably less than the muzzle-velocity of the blast, but -still much higher than the best speed of the feeble suit motor, Ron -Carnavon spun into space. Out and away, the precious sapphires spilling -out of his hand, glittering in the faint sunlight as they took up their -orbits about him like tiny, mocking moonlets.... - - * * * * * - - UWR MESSAGE PRIORITY AA HIGH SPACE GUARD CORVETTE M-233 TO EMV BASE - ONE OBERON STOP IN RESPONSE TO ALARM BROADCAST BY RS CAREFREE COMMA - THIS VESSEL PROCEEDED TO GRID M332254-89OK COMMA LOCATED THERE - MISSING RS THUNDERBIRD STOP RADAR SEARCH LOCATED MISSING CAPTAIN - RON CARNAVON WANTED FOR MURDER AND BARRATRY STOP CARNAVON - UNACCOUNTABLY FOUND AT CONSIDERABLE DISTANCE FROM VESSEL DEAD OF - ASPHYXIATION DUE TO EXHAUSTION OF PRESSURE SUIT SUPPLIES STOP CASE - MAY BE CONSIDERED CLOSED STOP END MESSAGE - - QUINBY CORVETTE M-233 - - COMMANDER HSG - -*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK WRECK OFF TRITON *** - -***** This file should be named 63987-0.txt or 63987-0.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/6/3/9/8/63987/ - -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. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part -of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm -concept and trademark. Project Gutenberg is a registered trademark, -and may not be used if you charge for the eBooks, unless you receive -specific permission. If you do not charge anything for copies of this -eBook, complying with the rules is very easy. You may use this eBook -for nearly any purpose such as creation of derivative works, reports, -performances and research. They may be modified and printed and given -away--you may do practically ANYTHING in the United States with eBooks -not protected by U.S. copyright law. Redistribution is subject to the -trademark license, especially commercial redistribution. - -START: FULL LICENSE - -THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE -PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK - -To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free -distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work -(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project -Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full -Project Gutenberg-tm License available with this file or online at -www.gutenberg.org/license. - -Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic works - -1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to -and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property -(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all -the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or -destroy all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your -possession. If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a -Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound -by the terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the -person or entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph -1.E.8. - -1.B. "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark. It may only be -used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who -agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few -things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works -even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See -paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this -agreement and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic works. See paragraph 1.E below. - -1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the -Foundation" or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection -of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works. Nearly all the individual -works in the collection are in the public domain in the United -States. If an individual work is unprotected by copyright law in the -United States and you are located in the United States, we do not -claim a right to prevent you from copying, distributing, performing, -displaying or creating derivative works based on the work as long as -all references to Project Gutenberg are removed. Of course, we hope -that you will support the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting -free access to electronic works by freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm -works in compliance with the terms of this agreement for keeping the -Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with the work. You can easily -comply with the terms of this agreement by keeping this work in the -same format with its attached full Project Gutenberg-tm License when -you share it without charge with others. - -1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern -what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are -in a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, -check the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this -agreement before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, -distributing or creating derivative works based on this work or any -other Project Gutenberg-tm work. The Foundation makes no -representations concerning the copyright status of any work in any -country outside the United States. - -1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg: - -1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other -immediate access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear -prominently whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work -on which the phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the -phrase "Project Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, -performed, viewed, copied or distributed: - - 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 will have to check the laws of the country where - you are located before using this ebook. - -1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is -derived from texts not protected by U.S. copyright law (does not -contain a notice indicating that it is posted with permission of the -copyright holder), the work can be copied and distributed to anyone in -the United States without paying any fees or charges. If you are -redistributing or providing access to a work with the phrase "Project -Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the work, you must comply -either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 or -obtain permission for the use of the work and the Project Gutenberg-tm -trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. - -1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted -with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution -must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any -additional terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms -will be linked to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works -posted with the permission of the copyright holder found at the -beginning of this work. - -1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm -License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this -work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm. - -1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this -electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without -prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with -active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project -Gutenberg-tm License. - -1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary, -compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including -any word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access -to or distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format -other than "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official -version posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site -(www.gutenberg.org), you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense -to the user, provide a copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means -of obtaining a copy upon request, of the work in its original "Plain -Vanilla ASCII" or other form. Any alternate format must include the -full Project Gutenberg-tm License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1. - -1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying, -performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works -unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. - -1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing -access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works -provided that - -* You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from - the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method - you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is owed - to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he has - agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the Project - Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments must be paid - within 60 days following each date on which you prepare (or are - legally required to prepare) your periodic tax returns. Royalty - payments should be clearly marked as such and sent to the Project - Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the address specified in - Section 4, "Information about donations to the Project Gutenberg - Literary Archive Foundation." - -* You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies - you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he - does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm - License. You must require such a user to return or destroy all - copies of the works possessed in a physical medium and discontinue - all use of and all access to other copies of Project Gutenberg-tm - works. - -* You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of - any money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the - electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days of - receipt of the work. - -* You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free - distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works. - -1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic work or group of works on different terms than -are set forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing -from both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and The -Project Gutenberg Trademark LLC, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm -trademark. Contact the Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below. - -1.F. - -1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable -effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread -works not protected by U.S. copyright law in creating the Project -Gutenberg-tm collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may -contain "Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate -or corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other -intellectual property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or -other medium, a computer virus, or computer codes that damage or -cannot be read by your equipment. - -1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right -of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project -Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project -Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all -liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal -fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT -LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE -PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH 1.F.3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE -TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE -LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR -INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH -DAMAGE. - -1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a -defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can -receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a -written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you -received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium -with your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you -with the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in -lieu of a refund. If you received the work electronically, the person -or entity providing it to you may choose to give you a second -opportunity to receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If -the second copy is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing -without further opportunities to fix the problem. - -1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth -in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS', WITH NO -OTHER WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT -LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE. - -1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied -warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of -damages. If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement -violates the law of the state applicable to this agreement, the -agreement shall be interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or -limitation permitted by the applicable state law. The invalidity or -unenforceability of any provision of this agreement shall not void the -remaining provisions. - -1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the -trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone -providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in -accordance with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the -production, promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic works, harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, -including legal fees, that arise directly or indirectly from any of -the following which you do or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this -or any Project Gutenberg-tm work, (b) alteration, modification, or -additions or deletions to any Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any -Defect you cause. - -Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm - -Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of -electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of -computers including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It -exists because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations -from people in all walks of life. - -Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the -assistance they need are critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's -goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will -remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project -Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure -and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future -generations. To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation and how your efforts and donations can help, see -Sections 3 and 4 and the Foundation information page at -www.gutenberg.org - -Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation - -The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit -501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the -state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal -Revenue Service. The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification -number is 64-6221541. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent permitted by -U.S. federal laws and your state's laws. - -The Foundation's principal office is in Fairbanks, Alaska, with the -mailing address: PO Box 750175, Fairbanks, AK 99775, but its -volunteers and employees are scattered throughout numerous -locations. Its business office is located at 809 North 1500 West, Salt -Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887. Email contact links and up to -date contact information can be found at the Foundation's web site and -official page at www.gutenberg.org/contact - -For additional contact information: - - Dr. Gregory B. Newby - Chief Executive and Director - gbnewby@pglaf.org - -Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg -Literary Archive Foundation - -Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide -spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of -increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be -freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest -array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations -($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt -status with the IRS. - -The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating -charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United -States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a -considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up -with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations -where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To SEND -DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any particular -state visit www.gutenberg.org/donate - -While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we -have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition -against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who -approach us with offers to donate. - -International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make -any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from -outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff. - -Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation -methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other -ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations. To -donate, please visit: www.gutenberg.org/donate - -Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works. - -Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project -Gutenberg-tm concept of a library of electronic works that could be -freely shared with anyone. For forty years, he produced and -distributed Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of -volunteer support. - -Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed -editions, all of which are confirmed as not protected by copyright in -the U.S. unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not -necessarily keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper -edition. - -Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search -facility: www.gutenberg.org - -This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm, -including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to -subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks. - diff --git a/old/63987-0.zip b/old/63987-0.zip Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index ed8fd15..0000000 --- a/old/63987-0.zip +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/63987-h.zip b/old/63987-h.zip Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index d0ebed3..0000000 --- a/old/63987-h.zip +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/63987-h/63987-h.htm b/old/63987-h/63987-h.htm deleted file mode 100644 index c343380..0000000 --- a/old/63987-h/63987-h.htm +++ /dev/null @@ -1,816 +0,0 @@ -<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN" - "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd"> -<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en"> - <head> - <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;charset=us-ascii" /> - <meta http-equiv="Content-Style-Type" content="text/css" /> - <title> - The Project Gutenberg eBook of Wreck Off Triton, by Alfred Coppel. - </title> - <link rel="coverpage" href="images/cover.jpg" /> - - <style type="text/css"> - -body { - margin-left: 10%; - margin-right: 10%; -} - - h1,h2 { - text-align: center; /* all headings centered */ - clear: both; -} - -p { - margin-top: .51em; - text-align: justify; - margin-bottom: .49em; -} - -hr { - width: 33%; - margin-top: 2em; - margin-bottom: 2em; - margin-left: 33.5%; - margin-right: 33.5%; - clear: both; -} - -hr.chap {width: 65%; margin-left: 17.5%; margin-right: 17.5%;} -hr.tb {width: 45%; margin-left: 27.5%; margin-right: 27.5%;} - -.center {text-align: center;} - -.right {text-align: right;} - -/* Images */ -.figcenter { - margin: auto; - text-align: center; -} - -.blockquot { - margin-left: 5%; - margin-right: 10%; -} - -div.titlepage { - text-align: center; - page-break-before: always; - page-break-after: always; -} - -div.titlepage p { - text-align: center; - text-indent: 0em; - font-weight: bold; - line-height: 1.5; - margin-top: 3em; -} - -.ph1 { text-align: right; text-indent: 0em; } -.ph1 { font-size: medium; margin: .83em auto; } - - </style> - </head> -<body> -<pre style='margin-bottom:6em;'>The Project Gutenberg EBook of Wreck Off Triton, by Alfred Coppel - -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 -will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before -using this ebook. - -Title: Wreck Off Triton - -Author: Alfred Coppel - -Release Date: December 08, 2020 [EBook #63987] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -Produced by: Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed - Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - -*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK WRECK OFF TRITON *** -</pre> -<div class="titlepage"> - -<h1>Wreck Off Triton</h1> - -<h2>By ALFRED COPPEL</h2> - -<p><i>His plans were thorough. Every risk had been<br /> -closely considered. Now Ron Carnavon, ruthless<br /> -convict, was ready to loot the wrecked spaceship<br /> -of its sapphire treasure, and thrust his warped power<br /> -around the entire, antagonistic EMV triangle.</i></p> - -<p>[Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from<br /> -Planet Stories November 1951.<br /> -Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that<br /> -the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.]</p> - -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p>Ron Carnavon had been the skipper of the late <i>Thunderbird</i>, and it -was common knowledge in every port of the EMV triangle that he had -scuttled her. There was a price on his head, and the High Space Guard -was combing the spacelanes for him—and for the <i>Thunderbird</i>. For the -<i>Thunderbird</i> was a treasure ship.</p> - -<p>But Carnavon was a cautious man and no fool, for all that he'd -committed barratry. He left the <i>Thunderbird</i> in a Trojan orbit a -million miles off Triton, ruptured and spilling corpses into space. He -took a spaceboat and jetted sunward to the Holcomb Foundation Outpost -on Oberon. Then he stowed away on the mail ship to Canalopolis, still -carrying the chart that showed the <i>Thunderbird's</i> position. In the -Canal City, Carnavon evaded the lax Guard cordons and found himself a -renegade Martian hypnosurgeon to change his face and fingerprints.</p> - -<p>From then on it was easy. Across Syrtis Major by sand-ski to Marsport -posing as a prospector. And from Marsport down the Grand Canal to the -spaceman's boneyard at Yakki. It was there that he met and hired Pop -Wills and the <i>Carefree</i>.</p> - -<p>Ron Carnavon acted with characteristic caution when he chose Pop and -the <i>Carefree</i> to do the ghoul work on the ship he had murdered. Pop's -ship was a rusty bucket, but well enough fixed to reach Triton where -the <i>Thunderbird's</i> corpse orbited, her vault heavy with Plutonian -sapphires. And Pop needed work badly. He was almost too broke to outfit -his ship for the flight. Carnavon noted with curling lip that most of -Pop's assets had long ago been liquidated to buy gin. The long years -in space had taken a toll on the old man. Actually a greater toll than -even Carnavon could have imagined.</p> - -<p>Pop and the <i>Carefree</i> fitted in with Carnavon's plans to perfection. -Pop had been in trouble more than once with the High Space Guard. Pop -was an old soak who wouldn't be missed. When something happened to the -<i>Carefree</i>, the rest of the beached wrecks in Yakki would only shake -their heads and agree that Pop had pushed the old bucket a few Gs too -hard somewhere. That was just the end the wrecker had in mind for Pop -when his job was finished, too.</p> - -<p>It was only reasonable. He couldn't let Pop live to tell the Guard that -Ron Carnavon had had a hypnosurgical metamorphosis. Even a fortune in -sapphires couldn't buy the High Space Guard. It was far too well-heeled -with Holcomb Foundation money, and it took its duties to the -inhabitants of the Earth-Mars-Venus Triangle seriously. A cautious man -would realize this and take the proper steps. In this case the proper -steps would be the elimination of Pop Wills when his job was done.</p> - -<p>But everyone makes mistakes. Carnavon made one when he selected Pop -and the <i>Carefree</i>. With all the rusty hulks dotting the ramps of -Yakki, and with all the even rustier skippers there, he should have -hired someone else. Anyone else. Ron Carnavon should have connected -Pop Wills with the twelve-year-old cabin boy of the <i>Thunderbird</i>. The -youngster's name had been Wills, too. But of course, Carnavon couldn't -have been expected to remember everything. Just coincidence—but those -things do happen.</p> - -<p>So these two lifted from Mars together. A captain who had wrecked his -own ship and a gin-soaked old man whose only son had died because -of it. And neither knew the other for what he was. To Carnavon, Pop -was just a fall-guy doing his job in proper sucker fashion. And to -Pop Wills, Carnavon was just John Smith who wanted to go to Grid -M332254-89OK off Triton and was willing to pay well for the privilege.</p> - -<p>The wrecker ordered the course and Pop set it. Mars began to dwindle -and the Belt loomed up ahead. The <i>Carefree</i> threaded her way through -the rocky maze and on past Saturn and Uranus in a free-falling arc. She -was slow, but in space "slow" is a relative term. The Outer Planets -were in triple conjunction and with their help, the old boat made time. -Carnavon checked the course daily, and Pop accepted the corrections -without protest. After all, John Smith was paying for the trip and he -seemed to know what he was doing. No questions asked. Carnavon liked -that. No questions, no trouble. He couldn't have been more wrong.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>It's hard to say in mere words what old Pop must have felt when he -picked up the wreck of the <i>Thunderbird</i> on the radar. He recognized -the image, of course. The <i>Thunderbird</i> was unique among spacers. Then -he checked her position against the chart that Carnavon had marked and -realized why they had come. He realized too who this John Smith was, -and hate pulsed through him in sickening waves. Pop wasn't a brave man, -and he was past his prime, but he could still hate.</p> - -<p>Almost without conscious thought, Pop broke out the Ultra-Wave and -began calling the Guard. He broadcast full particulars, co-ordinates, -descriptions, everything. He was at it when Carnavon found him and sent -him crashing against the control panels with a smashing overhand right -to the mouth.</p> - -<p>Pop sprawled on the metal decking and watched the wrecker carefully -smash every communicating device on the ship's panel. There was a -throbbing pain in his head where he had struck the shabbily padded -control console, and the thick taste of blood was in his bruised mouth. -He watched Carnavon like an animal, a hurt, impotently raging beast. -And he began to be afraid. Even his hate couldn't spare him that, for -Pop was afraid to die and he knew just what his chances were now.</p> - -<p>Carnavon, on the other hand, didn't waste time hating. He didn't know -why Pop had called copper, and he didn't really care. Pop wasn't -important. The sapphires in the <i>Thunderbird's</i> vault. <i>They</i> were -important. He'd come too far to abandon them now.</p> - -<p>It would take nine minutes for Pop's radio appeal to reach the nearest -Guard base, Carnavon calculated. And it would take six hours for -the fastest Guard ship to reach them after that. He could board the -<i>Thunderbird</i> and loot her in not more than two hours. That would -still give the <i>Carefree</i> a four hour start on the Guard, and in deep -space four hours were as good as four thousand. Carnavon still wasn't -worried. The wrecking of the <i>Thunderbird</i> had been the work of months, -and he wasn't going to panic now. Ron Carnavon wasn't that sort of a -criminal.</p> - -<p>Blaster in hand, he motioned Pop to his feet. He wondered vaguely just -why the old man had taken such a chance. He couldn't have any notions -of collecting the reward for Carnavon. The amount was less than the -amount he was getting for doing this—Carnavon smiled bleakly—salvage -job. And the old man was a coward. He could see it in the trembling of -the blue-veined hands, in the shifting faintness of the watery blue -eyes. The wrecker shrugged aside the thoughts as unimportant and set to -work.</p> - -<p>With a blaster in his ribs, Pop Wills did as he was told. He braked the -<i>Carefree</i> to a stop twenty miles from the ruptured hulk of the liner. -There were beads of sweat standing out on Pop's forehead and his hands -shook on the firing console. A thin trickle of dark blood marred his -stubbled chin. His battered lips were unsteady.</p> - -<p>For a few bad moments, Pop Wills thought Carnavon was going to blast -him as soon as the <i>Carefree</i> lost way, but then even his gin-soaked -mind began to understand that the end wasn't quite yet. Carnavon needed -help looting the murdered liner. If he was going to lay his hands on -her valuables before the Guard appeared, he'd have to get Pop working -with him. Maybe if Pop had been more of a man he could have stopped -the wrecker cold right there, but long years of boozing had left Pop -weak. He could hate well enough, but fear conquers even hate. And that -blaster that followed him in every movement made Pop's thin blood run -cold. Life—even a life like Pop Wills'—was better than the black void -of death. Pop was ready to buy a few more minutes of life at almost any -price, even from the man who had killed his boy. The old man was like a -rusty watch-spring—battered and wound to the utmost limit. And jammed -there. Frozen by the reality of that ugly blaster and the cold eyes -behind it, Pop would help Carnavon. He couldn't help himself. And his -hate expanded to include his own senile weakness....</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>The <i>Thunderbird</i> spun slowly in the light of the faraway sun, the rent -in her hull gaping like a mouthful of jagged teeth. She had been a -beautiful thing once, but she was ugly now in death. She had not died -gracefully. Her back had been broken and her innards scattered. She -orbited sullenly, and around her spun the broken fragments of her inner -body—the bloated, frozen corpses of the men she'd carried. Against the -backdrop of the stars and the blaze of the Milky Way, she seemed to be -a blot on the heavens. Pop Wills and Ron Carnavon watched her, each of -them with his own thoughts. Then the wrecker motioned toward the suit -lockers with his blaster.</p> - -<p>It took a bit of doing to get into his own pressure suit and still keep -the blaster pointed at Wills, but Carnavon was a large man, and supple, -and he managed it well enough.</p> - -<p>The <i>Carefree</i> had no escape boat, so there was nothing for it but to -rely on the suit motors to take them across to the <i>Thunderbird</i>. It -promised to be slow going, for the suit motors were weak and produced -only one tenth G of thrust. Almost anything thrown out ahead by a man -in a space-suit was enough to stop him cold. The recoil overcame the -suit motor with ridiculous ease and though the motor labored mightily, -it would take a long while to reestablish the original direction of -movement. But Carnavon had an answer for that, too.</p> - -<p>A quick check of the radar showed that there were still no Guard ships -within hailing distance. Carnavon's original estimate of the time it -would take the Space Guard to arrive on the scene turned out to be -surprisingly accurate.</p> - -<p>He connected his suit to Pop's with a short cable and snap-hooks and -together they made their way to the <i>Carefree's</i> dorsal valve.</p> - -<p>Carnavon had no intention of sweating out a long, slow crossing to -the hulk, so he ran the lock pressure up high and waited until the -outer hatch was lined up with the derelict liner. Then with a sudden -movement, he spun the wheel and popped the outer portal. Pop and -Carnavon shot into space like grotesque <i>bolas</i>. The <i>Thunderbird</i> -loomed up ahead.</p> - -<p>Pop kept his mouth shut and his eyes open. He saw more than an -old man might be expected to see, too. For instance he saw that -Carnavon—cautious though he might be—had neglected to take an extra -magazine for his blaster. That meant that there were just three shots -in the weapon. One of which, Pop figured, would be used against the -vault of the scuttled liner. Not that the old man was making any plans. -He was still too weighted by his fear and his sense of impotence for -that. He merely noticed, and prayed to the gods of space that one of -those shots in the blaster might not be meant for him.</p> - -<p>As they drew near the liner, Pop felt nausea churning his stomach. -The ship was surrounded by satellites. Space-bloated bodies, naked -and misshapen in the bitter light of the dim sun that reflected off -the pitted flanks of the burst vessel. Spread-eagled grotesquely, -the corpses circled their ship, puffy things of horror with staring -eyes and extended fingers. Other things, too, circled the hulk. -Small, commonplace items. A clock, a chair, shattered crockery. Tiny, -inconsequential things, all mutely accusing—all muttering silently -that their ship had been betrayed by someone who should have protected -her.</p> - -<p>Pop glanced over at Carnavon. Through the steelglass bubble of his -helmet he could see the wrecker's face. There was no expression on -it other than concentration—and greed. Pop knew about greed. He'd -lived with greed and degradation a lot in his last few years. He hated -Carnavon even more now for having reminded him—but he was still too -sick with futility to do more than tell himself that he had done all -he could do. He <i>had</i> called the Guard, after all. And then, for an -awful moment he found himself regretting that he had done even that and -thereby lost all hope of life....</p> - -<p>Their magnetic shoes touched the <i>Thunderbird's</i> hull with a sound -faintly carried through the air in their suits. They stood on the -curving surface, etched in black against the starry sky. A few feet -away from them, the terminator was inching toward them as the derelict -rotated slowly.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>With Carnavon leading the way, they clumped heavily to the ripped and -tortured hull plates where the <i>Thunderbird</i> had been sundered. By the -light of their helmet lights Pop could see the thoroughness of the -wrecker's work. He had been her captain, this Carnavon, and he had -known just how to murder her. The outer hull was a shambles and the -pressure hull holed in three places. It had been a thorough job. Only -one prepared for the sudden horror of her death could have survived it. -Pop Wills thought of his boy and sobbed.</p> - -<p>The dark companionways were empty, blown clean by the violence of the -<i>Thunderbird's</i> death. Ron Carnavon led the way down into the ship to -the purser's office and the vault.</p> - -<p>Rubble cluttered the small room, bulkheads bent awry and pipes and -wires littered the deck. Carnavon turned Pop loose and set him to -work cleaning out a path to the vault. Pop's breath was coming in -shuddering, grating gasps when he finished the work a half-hour later. -Carnavon nodded approvingly and motioned him away from the vault.</p> - -<p>Pop watched while the wrecker braced himself and took careful aim at -the vault's lock mechanism with the blaster. There was a searing flash -of blue flame, and red sparks showered as the oxy-hydrogen bolt sliced -into the steel of the door. Pop found himself praying fervently that it -would take two more shots.</p> - -<p>Carnavon fired again, and the tiny room blazed. Pop muttered shakily -under his breath and waiting for the wrecker to blast just once more.</p> - -<p>The lock surrendered in a trickle of white-hot slag and Pop felt -himself sink low. There was still that one shot left for him—and he -wasn't needed now.</p> - -<p>The door swung open and Carnavon knelt to rifle the vault. When he at -last straightened, he held a pool of jagged blue fire in his gloved -hand. The gems sparkled with a life of their own—two dozen faceted -beauties—each worth a king's ransom—and each bought with a man's life.</p> - -<p>Presently they stood again on the outer hull, under an unreal canopy -of stars. Nearby, a ghastly satellite was swinging inward toward the -ship. Pop stared at it and back to Carnavon. He began to understand -what the wrecker planned. He was going to leave him here—on the wreck. -And he would die here. He understood that the shot that remained in the -blaster wasn't for him after all. Carnavon wasn't going to waste it -on him. There was a spanner in the wrecker's hand and he now advanced -purposefully toward Pop Wills.</p> - -<p>Pop stepped backwards, retreating from the heavy figure of the wrecker. -Fear was surging in waves through him—fear mixed with blind hate and -contempt for himself and his senile weakness. Overhead, against the -stars, the awful satellite drew nearer.</p> - -<p>Carnavon reduced the power in his magnetic shoes and moved lightly -toward Pop, the spanner raised to strike. The old man stumbled against -a long shard of steel on the hull that floated upward at his touch. -Fear paralyzed him, and he stood now, waiting for the blow of the -spanner that would smash his helmet and leave him a distended corpse -spinning through space. Above him, the satellite spun inward.</p> - -<p>Pop glanced up—into the agonized, dead face of a twelve-year-old boy. -He shrieked. The sound deafened him in the bubble of his helmet. All -the fear and weakness turned to a bitter hate and surged forward in -one insane motion toward his tormentor. The long shard of steel came -to hand like a lance. The rusted, warped old watch spring that was Pop -Wills recoiled and unwound in one raging moment. He charged Carnavon.</p> - -<p>Carnavon evaded the clumsy charge instinctively. With an almost -unconscious motion, he raised the blaster and fired point-blank.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<div class="figcenter"> - <img src="images/illus.jpg" alt=""/> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p>The searing bolt caught Pop Wills in the chest and spun him around, -tattered ribbons of charred flesh and melted metal from his suit -intermingled. He curled inward upon himself in an awkward graceless -fashion and sank to the hull plates, a nimbus of ice flowing from the -gap in his suit as the water-vapor and blood spurted into the vacuum. -But there was something strangely like a smile on his face as life left -him. Pop had conquered his fear at last.</p> - -<p>But Carnavon, on the other end of the bolt of fire that had ended Pop -Wills' life, spun outward—away from the <i>Thunderbird</i>, away from the -<i>Carefree</i>, end over end, driven by the fiery recoil of his own weapon. -At a speed considerably less than the muzzle-velocity of the blast, but -still much higher than the best speed of the feeble suit motor, Ron -Carnavon spun into space. Out and away, the precious sapphires spilling -out of his hand, glittering in the faint sunlight as they took up their -orbits about him like tiny, mocking moonlets....</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<div class="blockquot"> -<p>UWR MESSAGE PRIORITY AA HIGH SPACE GUARD CORVETTE M-233 TO EMV BASE -ONE OBERON STOP IN RESPONSE TO ALARM BROADCAST BY RS CAREFREE COMMA -THIS VESSEL PROCEEDED TO GRID M332254-89OK COMMA LOCATED THERE -MISSING RS THUNDERBIRD STOP RADAR SEARCH LOCATED MISSING CAPTAIN RON -CARNAVON WANTED FOR MURDER AND BARRATRY STOP CARNAVON UNACCOUNTABLY -FOUND AT CONSIDERABLE DISTANCE FROM VESSEL DEAD OF ASPHYXIATION DUE -TO EXHAUSTION OF PRESSURE SUIT SUPPLIES STOP CASE MAY BE CONSIDERED -CLOSED STOP END MESSAGE</p> - -<p class="ph1">QUINBY CORVETTE M-233<br /> -COMMANDER HSG</p></div> - -<pre style='margin-top:6em'> -*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK WRECK OFF TRITON *** - -This file should be named 63987-h.htm or 63987-h.zip - -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: -http://www.gutenberg.org/6/3/9/8/63987/ - -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. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part -of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm -concept and trademark. Project Gutenberg is a registered trademark, -and may not be used if you charge for the eBooks, unless you receive -specific permission. If you do not charge anything for copies of this -eBook, complying with the rules is very easy. You may use this eBook -for nearly any purpose such as creation of derivative works, reports, -performances and research. They may be modified and printed and given -away--you may do practically ANYTHING in the United States with eBooks -not protected by U.S. copyright law. Redistribution is subject to the -trademark license, especially commercial redistribution. - -START: FULL LICENSE - -THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE -PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK - -To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free -distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work -(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project -Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full -Project Gutenberg-tm License available with this file or online at -www.gutenberg.org/license. - -Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic works - -1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to -and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property -(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all -the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or -destroy all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your -possession. If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a -Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound -by the terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the -person or entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph -1.E.8. - -1.B. "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark. It may only be -used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who -agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few -things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works -even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See -paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this -agreement and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic works. See paragraph 1.E below. - -1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the -Foundation" or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection -of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works. Nearly all the individual -works in the collection are in the public domain in the United -States. If an individual work is unprotected by copyright law in the -United States and you are located in the United States, we do not -claim a right to prevent you from copying, distributing, performing, -displaying or creating derivative works based on the work as long as -all references to Project Gutenberg are removed. Of course, we hope -that you will support the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting -free access to electronic works by freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm -works in compliance with the terms of this agreement for keeping the -Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with the work. You can easily -comply with the terms of this agreement by keeping this work in the -same format with its attached full Project Gutenberg-tm License when -you share it without charge with others. - -1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern -what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are -in a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, -check the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this -agreement before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, -distributing or creating derivative works based on this work or any -other Project Gutenberg-tm work. The Foundation makes no -representations concerning the copyright status of any work in any -country outside the United States. - -1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg: - -1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other -immediate access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear -prominently whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work -on which the phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the -phrase "Project Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, -performed, viewed, copied or distributed: - - 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 will have to check the laws of the country where - you are located before using this ebook. - -1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is -derived from texts not protected by U.S. copyright law (does not -contain a notice indicating that it is posted with permission of the -copyright holder), the work can be copied and distributed to anyone in -the United States without paying any fees or charges. If you are -redistributing or providing access to a work with the phrase "Project -Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the work, you must comply -either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 or -obtain permission for the use of the work and the Project Gutenberg-tm -trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. - -1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted -with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution -must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any -additional terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms -will be linked to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works -posted with the permission of the copyright holder found at the -beginning of this work. - -1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm -License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this -work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm. - -1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this -electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without -prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with -active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project -Gutenberg-tm License. - -1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary, -compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including -any word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access -to or distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format -other than "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official -version posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site -(www.gutenberg.org), you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense -to the user, provide a copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means -of obtaining a copy upon request, of the work in its original "Plain -Vanilla ASCII" or other form. Any alternate format must include the -full Project Gutenberg-tm License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1. - -1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying, -performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works -unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. - -1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing -access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works -provided that - -* You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from - the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method - you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is owed - to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he has - agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the Project - Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments must be paid - within 60 days following each date on which you prepare (or are - legally required to prepare) your periodic tax returns. Royalty - payments should be clearly marked as such and sent to the Project - Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the address specified in - Section 4, "Information about donations to the Project Gutenberg - Literary Archive Foundation." - -* You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies - you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he - does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm - License. You must require such a user to return or destroy all - copies of the works possessed in a physical medium and discontinue - all use of and all access to other copies of Project Gutenberg-tm - works. - -* You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of - any money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the - electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days of - receipt of the work. - -* You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free - distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works. - -1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic work or group of works on different terms than -are set forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing -from both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and The -Project Gutenberg Trademark LLC, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm -trademark. Contact the Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below. - -1.F. - -1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable -effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread -works not protected by U.S. copyright law in creating the Project -Gutenberg-tm collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may -contain "Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate -or corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other -intellectual property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or -other medium, a computer virus, or computer codes that damage or -cannot be read by your equipment. - -1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right -of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project -Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project -Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all -liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal -fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT -LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE -PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH 1.F.3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE -TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE -LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR -INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH -DAMAGE. - -1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a -defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can -receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a -written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you -received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium -with your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you -with the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in -lieu of a refund. If you received the work electronically, the person -or entity providing it to you may choose to give you a second -opportunity to receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If -the second copy is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing -without further opportunities to fix the problem. - -1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth -in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS', WITH NO -OTHER WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT -LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE. - -1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied -warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of -damages. If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement -violates the law of the state applicable to this agreement, the -agreement shall be interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or -limitation permitted by the applicable state law. The invalidity or -unenforceability of any provision of this agreement shall not void the -remaining provisions. - -1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the -trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone -providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in -accordance with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the -production, promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic works, harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, -including legal fees, that arise directly or indirectly from any of -the following which you do or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this -or any Project Gutenberg-tm work, (b) alteration, modification, or -additions or deletions to any Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any -Defect you cause. - -Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm - -Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of -electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of -computers including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It -exists because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations -from people in all walks of life. - -Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the -assistance they need are critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's -goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will -remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project -Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure -and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future -generations. To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation and how your efforts and donations can help, see -Sections 3 and 4 and the Foundation information page at -www.gutenberg.org - -Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation - -The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit -501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the -state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal -Revenue Service. The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification -number is 64-6221541. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent permitted by -U.S. federal laws and your state's laws. - -The Foundation's principal office is in Fairbanks, Alaska, with the -mailing address: PO Box 750175, Fairbanks, AK 99775, but its -volunteers and employees are scattered throughout numerous -locations. Its business office is located at 809 North 1500 West, Salt -Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887. Email contact links and up to -date contact information can be found at the Foundation's web site and -official page at www.gutenberg.org/contact - -For additional contact information: - - Dr. Gregory B. Newby - Chief Executive and Director - gbnewby@pglaf.org - -Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg -Literary Archive Foundation - -Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide -spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of -increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be -freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest -array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations -($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt -status with the IRS. - -The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating -charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United -States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a -considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up -with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations -where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To SEND -DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any particular -state visit www.gutenberg.org/donate - -While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we -have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition -against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who -approach us with offers to donate. - -International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make -any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from -outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff. - -Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation -methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other -ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations. To -donate, please visit: www.gutenberg.org/donate - -Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works. - -Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project -Gutenberg-tm concept of a library of electronic works that could be -freely shared with anyone. For forty years, he produced and -distributed Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of -volunteer support. - -Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed -editions, all of which are confirmed as not protected by copyright in -the U.S. unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not -necessarily keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper -edition. - -Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search -facility: www.gutenberg.org - -This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm, -including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to -subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks. - -</pre> -</body> -</html> diff --git a/old/63987-h/images/cover.jpg b/old/63987-h/images/cover.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 7dabb00..0000000 --- a/old/63987-h/images/cover.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/63987-h/images/illus.jpg b/old/63987-h/images/illus.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 8ceae95..0000000 --- a/old/63987-h/images/illus.jpg +++ /dev/null |
