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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..f68509a --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #64764 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/64764) diff --git a/old/64764-0.txt b/old/64764-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 31c4241..0000000 --- a/old/64764-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,3331 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook of Flame-Jewel of the Ancients, by Edwin L. -Graber - -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: Flame-Jewel of the Ancients - -Author: Edwin L. Graber - -Release Date: March 09, 2021 [eBook #64764] - -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 FLAME-JEWEL OF THE ANCIENTS *** - - - - - Flame-Jewel of the Ancients - - By EDWIN L. GRABER - - The tiny golden sphere, blazing with terrible - energy, spelled Galactic Empire at last to - the out-space horde, once they had tapped its - limitless power. They were grimly amused - therefore when Captain Glayne of the Stellar - Guardians dropped innocently out of sub-space - to view their mighty prize. - - [Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from - Planet Stories Spring 1950. - Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that - the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.] - - -The two Terran super Galactics glided side-by-side in the immensity -of the interstellar void. Secure in the knowledge that they were the -mightiest battleships ever built in the known galaxy, they didn't -bother to raise their anti-energy shields. They knew, absolutely, that -no other warcraft in the universe could equal their strength.... - -Jukes, the third pilot, lounged carelessly in his gimbal-slung shock -seat, idly watching the screen before him. Aside from his sister -ship, there was nothing to be seen but the harsh points of starlight. -Cautiously he looked over his shoulder to see if the executive officer -were nearby, then, apparently satisfied, lit a cigarette and blew an -expansive plume of smoke at the serried banks of instruments that -were terraced about him. - -Suddenly the intermittent glowing of a red blinker aroused him. -Throwing the butt to the deck, he bent forward, squinting into the -screen. Far down in one corner he detected an irregularly sparkling -mote moving slowly across the blazing points of the distant stars. With -a single motion of his arm he swept the Call to Quarters alarm studs -and began to speak rapidly into his throat transmitter. As the muffled -vibrating thunder of his ship's drivers rose, he could make out his -sister ship gradually swinging into an approach orbit. - -A double tap on his shoulder informed him that the first pilot was -there to take over. Smoothly he slipped from the shock seat and took -up his station with the other two pilots near the auxiliary control -boards. Everywhere about him was excited, orderly confusion as the huge -warship stripped for possible action. The orbit calculators at his left -took up the excited jabbering chorus and somewhere above the third -pilot was aware of the massive charge accumulators for the Kellander -miatron blasters whining up the scale. - -"It's a Delban," he muttered to his fellow pilots. "Just a pipsqueak, -too, blast his miserable, trespassing soul. A light cruiser, from what -I saw of him." - -The younger one looked at him eagerly. "Do you think he'll fight?" - -The third pilot snorted. "One Stellar class cruiser against two Terran -Galactics? He'd be out of his mind." - -Just then the battle screen lit up and a babbling group of gunnery -officers crowded about, feeding firing data to waiting miatron crews. -Over their shoulders the third pilot could make out the Delban cruiser -as it lay there, slim and deadly against the vast, star-studded vault -of space. - -"What I'd like to know is why the devil he doesn't run for it," the -older pilot said to no one in particular. "Something's up, I'm sure. -Delbans just don't act like this." - -The third pilot grunted absently, his eyes fixed on the battle screen. -The two Galactics now lay on either side of the Delban. His sister ship -began to communicate with the new arrival, her yellow beam glowing -with baleful intensity. But the pilot wasn't watching. He had noticed -something odd about that cruiser. It seemed to bulge in the wrong -places. It was completely enclosed by a peculiar mesh antenna which -glinted ominously in the faint light. - -Then the Delban fired. - -For a moment there was stunned amazement in the huge plotting room. -It was the very absurdity of the situation rather than mere surprise. -To make the blasphemy worse, the Delban had licked out with the beam -of a secondary Kellander projector rather than with her main miatron -batteries. The damage was slight, the communicator bulb of the other -Galactic having been reduced to twisted slag. But this was the grossest -of all insults in space warfare and demanded immediate retaliation. The -third pilot held his breath in anticipation. - -Then it came. The plotting room exploded into frantic activity. -Generators screamed into ear-splitting crescendoes as the main driver -engines were coupled into them to raise the anti-energy shield. The -Kellander miatron blasters hurled ravening bolts of energy at the -audacious Delban, reducing accumulator loads to zero in instants. -The remainder of the driver atomics were coupled into the Kellander -accumulators sending up loads that were fed through the continuously -thundering miatrons at the Delban cruiser. Literally _trillions_ of -megawatts lapped at the Delban shield, making it glow up the spectral -scale in a brilliant spider web of absorbing power foci. But it held. - - * * * * * - -The Delban shield held! The third pilot was unbelievably shocked as he -stared at the battle screen. It was simply not conceivable that the -two mightiest warships in space could not penetrate the shield of a -pipsqueak Stellar cruiser. - -Where were they getting the power? The question blazed up in the third -pilot's consciousness as he stared at the slim, deadly Delban. Abruptly -he recalled where he had seen the Delban's peculiar external mesh -antenna. - -"Broadcast power!" he blurted to his comrades. "Those devils are -receiving broadcast power!" - -The other two pilots looked at him incredulously. "Hell!" snorted the -older one. "You can't transmit the stuff across interstellar distances." - -The third pilot didn't reply. As he watched the screen he suddenly knew -they were in trouble. By rights this should have been the greatest -shock of all but his mind was so dulled with amazement that he could -only shake his head. - -The Delban's firing had gradually increased in strength until now both -the Terran battleship's mighty shields were themselves glowing up the -spectral scale in its spidery force web. Despite the older pilot's -doubts, he realized that only broadcast power in unlimited quantities -could account for those overloaded shields. But where were they getting -it to broadcast? Only an infinite source of supply could do the job. - -Paralyzed, he watched the battle screen. He was aware of the miatron -blasters falling silent, one after another, as the straining driver -atomics were diverted to hold the shield. Their sister Galactic's -blasters had all fallen silent as all the power of her own huge drivers -was shunted into the shield generators. Their own shield was trembling -and shuddering under the inconceivable impact of the energies that -surged at it from the Delban. - -Suddenly the pilot saw their sister ship's shield coruscate in a -multi-hued spider web of shorting power foci. Then it buckled. The -third pilot instinctively averted his face from the indescribably -brilliant, eye-searing nova that followed. - -His own ship screamed. The drivers, the generators, the converters and -accumulators--all of them screamed in ultra-sonic crescendoes in an -effort to maintain the crumbling shield. The force webs shorted one -after another in brilliant red fire. The third pilot saw it rupture but -he never felt it.... - -For days the twin novae burned in the endless night, then slowly faded -to blackened cinders. - - - II - -The Tri-di film came to an end and the Council Chamber's soft -fluorescents picked up in strength. For a moment the members of Lorle -Sector's High Council were stunned and bewildered at what they had seen. - -Captain Glayne waited patiently for the explosion which he knew would -come. For about the tenth time that morning he fervently cursed all -civilians. Not even the valiant efforts of Chairman Dell Thorder could -keep them in check. A vast wave of irritation filled him as he listened -to the piercing squeak of a fat Councilor named Trask. - -"It will mean war, I say--and we haven't had a war involving Terra for -seventy years. Lorle Sector must remain neutral--especially if Delb -Sector has weapons which can crush super Galactic battleships. Now I -say," he squeaked, oblivious of the fact that no one was paying any -attention, "that we must request Captain Glayne to leave immediately -because his presence might be deemed an overt act by our friends, the -Delbans. True, the Stellar Guardians--" - -He was suddenly cut off by the staccato thunder of Dell Thorder's -gavel. The chairman's thin, ascetic face wore a worried expression as -his eyes swept the now silent Council. Of them all, he was the only -man Glayne admired. For thirty years he had maneuvered the nine-planet -Lorle Sector through the treacherous shoals of Combine politics and -never once had the cry of "boss" or "dictator" seriously been raised -against him. - -"I must confess," he began quietly, "that I do not myself understand -fully the implications of this situation. I do know that the fact that -Imperial Terra has lost two large battleships is inconsequential. The -real point is that the Terran Combine is facing imminent destruction at -the hands of Gort Bro-Doral and his Delban Empire. Because we are Delb -Sector's nearest neighbor, we may expect the first blow to fall on us. -Since it is a known fact that the Intelligence Service of the Stellar -Guardians is the finest in the galaxy, I have sent for Captain Glayne -to explain certain of the technical aspects of the new Delban weapon in -order that we may determine what action to take." - -Thorder silently gestured to Glayne who arose and faced the hostile -stares of the councilors. Their unexpressed antipathy was amusing -rather than irritating. The meager little navy that Lorle Sector did -possess drained away funds that could otherwise be used in their pork -barrel. However, they all had something to worry about which Thorder -hadn't mentioned. The Revolution which had smashed the Delb-Lorle Axis -thirty years before had made Gort Bro-Doral a ruthless enemy who would -not rest until his ships had utterly destroyed the Lorle cities in -retaliation. So far they had depended upon Imperial Terra to support -them against the Bro's passionate desire for power. But now the Terran -navy was helpless and Lorle was in a desperate plight. - -"What Dell Thorder told you is true," he began in a firm, clear voice. -"Unfortunately it is an understatement because it implies that there -is a possibility of discovering a counter-weapon to offset that of the -Delbans. Such is not the case. - -"For a long time we have been prone to think in terms of optimum sizes -for warships. We were accustomed to believe that we had reached the -pinnacle of development in destructive weapons. The fatal radiations of -atomic generators and converters make it necessary to divert a part of -the power into shields. These shields are limited in size by the ship -size, and the ship size in turn is limited by the size of its power -plant. But there is a point of diminishing returns--that is, we cannot -build ships larger than the Galactic class battleships without losing -efficiency. So for a long time we have believed that there was a limit -to the amount of power available in any given class of warship. - -"Unfortunately this no longer applies for the Delbans. As you have just -seen on the tri-di film obtained by Stellar Guardian Intelligence, a -single Stellar cruiser engaged and destroyed two Terran Galactics. -This means, as Chairman Thorder has suggested, that the entire fleet -strength of the nine hundred Sectors of the Terran Combine is now quite -helpless against the Delban Grand Fleet." - -Glayne paused for a moment. In spite of the room's air conditioning, -many of the Councilors were mopping their faces anxiously. The one -called Trask was chewing his lower lip nervously, not liking a bit what -the tall Guardian officer had to say. Glayne felt a twinge of sympathy -for his three hundred and fifty million constituents. - -"The crux of the whole problem is the source of this new Delban power. -Experts in our organization are absolutely certain that they are -using broadcast power, but this information is based on the tri-di -film you have seen which our agents have stolen from the Terran -Admiralty Office at Lunaport. It may be a fake, but that is hardly -likely. The implications of broadcast power are so tremendous as to -defy reason. Even under the best laboratory conditions the power lost -in transmission makes it impractical. Consequently any source which -produces energies capable of smashing two Terran Galactic battleships -at perhaps stellar distances is vast beyond conjecture. As incredible -as this sounds, we believe that the Delbans have it. As to its precise -nature, we are still in the dark. However, the Stellar Guardians, at -least, are in a position to investigate." - -Dell Thorder cleared his throat at this point and Glayne stopped. - -"You see our position," said the weary Chairman. "Almost any -countermeasure we attempt can be interpreted as an overt act by -Bro-Doral. Hence any action on our part will make our ruin sooner -instead of later. However, there is one thin possibility and that is -Captain Glayne. It is true that he is a mercenary belonging to the -Stellar Guardians. But Kairn's Intelligence vouches for him absolutely -and I am informed that he is as competent as any man in the Lorle Fleet. - -"Because of the peculiar nature of the Stellar Guardian organization, -he can carry out investigations where any such move on our part would -be suicidal. In my opinion, our only possible chance is to employ him -in this capacity to locate the Delban power transmitter--if one exists. -It is possible that an all-out attack with all the units we can muster -will succeed in destroying it." - -As Thorder finished, Glayne took a deep breath. He stood motionless -by the immense circular table. He knew that the Councilors, like all -small planet men, were impressed with his great shoulders and their -suggestion of tremendous physical strength. But if they knew what -torment he had to endure under high driver thrust as a result of his -great size, they wouldn't be so impressed. - -Dell Thorder coughed. "Captain Glayne, would you mind stepping into the -outer room while we take a vote? We will inform you directly." - - * * * * * - -Glayne nodded silently and left the Chamber. Disregarding the -anteroom's soft chairs, he stood against the wall, waiting. His -space-tanned face hardened as he looked thoughtfully from the glassene -window at the jewel-like city of Lorle Capital, a dazzling white under -the noon sun. Mentally he pictured the sleek Delban cruisers flashing -overhead in fast orbits, pouring phenomenal torrents of energy into -the pathetic shield the city would attempt to set up. The Lorle High -Council would trust him. In the end, even Trask would. They were all -rabbits looking around desperately for someone to defend them. They -would hire him; they would pat him on the back and shake his hand; they -would make him solemnly swear the Guardian Oath to struggle against all -their enemies. And Glayne would promise to do all of these things. - -But he would lie. - -He would do none of these things. Instead he would do all in his power -to bring war to Lorle. He would commit an overt act against the Delbans -and they would cry for Lorle blood. Their fast, sleek ships would deal -out death and destruction to the very cities which he would swear ever -so solemnly to defend to his last breath. With a coldly objective part -of his mind he marveled at the consummate treachery he would perform. - -But another part of his mind was aghast. He was unable to suppress -the bitter waves of remorse that filled him. Again he remembered the -serious, heavy-jowled face of Garstow, Grand Admiral of the Stellar -Guardians. In the Dorleb Headquarters, only forty hours before, Garstow -had said: "Glayne, we need time. Some Sector must be thrown to the -wolves. While the Delbans are occupied with that unfortunate Sector, we -will have time to unravel their broadcast scramblers, build antennae of -our own, and perhaps even locate their power transmitter. The Policy -Organ has decided upon Lorle Sector. And it has decided that you, -Glayne, are the man for the job." - -Glayne had listened in stunned silence to Garstow. A protest rose -automatically to his lips but he had crushed it back with a click -of his booted heels. And now here he was in Lorle Capital with his -Stellar class cruiser _Algol_ ready for action. When the fat men with -rabbit eyes emerged from the Council Chamber and empowered him to work -for them, he would be ready to move. A sudden raid on Delban space -commerce, an energy bomb hurtling into a Delban city from a stolen -Lorle warship--any one of a dozen expedients would have the ruthless -Gort Bro-Doral screaming down on the helpless cities of Lorle. - -As he stared at the afternoon brilliance of Lorle Capital he realized -that his treachery was an ironic manifestation of a greater loyalty. -People forgot that the Stellar Guardians were dedicated to the ideal -of human progress. The great mercenary organization recognized the -inevitability of war and determined that wars should be fought -according to rules. But the Delbans were now in a position to flout all -rules and destroy all human progress. Hence all rules were forgotten -and ruthless treachery was the order of the day as every resource was -exploited to crush Gort Bro-Doral and his Delban Empire. - -Then the door of the Council Chamber opened and Dell Thorder stepped -into the anteroom. He faced Glayne silently for a moment, lines of -weariness etched in his tired, old face. - -Then he thrust out his hand and said simply: "We wish you the best of -luck, Glayne." - -The Guardian Captain took the outstretched hand and almost winced -at the trust he saw in Thorder's eyes. The weight of the crushing -responsibility bowed down the Chairman's frail shoulders, but he seemed -to burn with an indomitable determination to defend his people. He was -not a rabbit but a warrior. And Glayne was going to betray him. - -"I'll do my best," he said in quick, husky tones. - -He felt like a swine as he closed the door behind him. - - - III - -It was a second-class night spot called The Yarga. Glayne would meet -the Stellar Guardian espionage chief for the Lorle Sector here. As -he stood at the entrance bar absorbing the customary drink prior to -entering the first stage, he swept the place with cold grey eyes. -Evidently the city commission of Lorle Capital was going through a -phase of puritanism because the deadly Kesla lights were absent and -the swirling strains of the reportedly _jawth_-fed orchestra were -considerably toned down. Nevertheless, the general impression was quite -sufficiently exotic to suit Glayne as he entered the dimly-lit first -stage. - -Vaguely he was aware of the less restrained laughter of patrons who had -already reached the second stage, having passed through the vibrator -screen that simulated a soothing color movement. The function of the -vibrator was to give jaded sensibilities the physical fillip necessary -to convince reluctant laggards that they really were ready for the -second stage. Glayne was also aware of his table's slight movement -toward the vibrator screen and he felt a wave of irritation at the -prospect of chasing through nine stages in this outlandish place -looking for his contact. - -Suddenly the annunciator light in the center of his table began to -glow an intermittent red-orange. Glayne looked at it, eyes narrowed. -Experimentally he stabbed its speaker stud and a voice seemed to emerge -from the empty air before his face. - -"Captain, you look _so_ lonely and disconsolate sitting by yourself. -Won't you join me?" It was a woman's voice, low and casual. Glayne was -briefly startled--he had expected that his contact would be a man. -Then it occurred to him that she was not his contact, but that doubt -vanished when he remembered that he had discarded his uniform for the -light grey business jumper of a young business executive. How could -she know him for a Captain in the Stellar Guardians unless she was his -contact? - -On the other hand, she had not made herself known with the code which -had been selected beforehand. Puzzled and suspicious, he flicked the -transmitter stud and said cautiously: "Where are you?" - -"You can't miss me, darling," she replied. "Just stand up." - -Glayne hesitated, hefting the heavy, comforting weight of the Cardy -blaster under his arm-pit. With a shrug he tossed off the remnants of -the blue-green _borse_ which stirred lambently in the exquisite goblet. -Then he stood up. - -She was perfectly correct. He couldn't miss her from ten light years, -much less thirty feet. She was tall and graceful in a tailored green -jumper which half suggested, half concealed the long, smooth curves of -her young body. She had coppery red hair and wide-set green eyes that -smiled boldly at him. She rested a hand on her hip in mock impatience. - -"Well, don't just stand there, fat-head!" she cried across the tables. -"What do you usually do when you haven't seen someone for years and -years?" - -With an effort Glayne collected himself, assayed a weak smile, and -maneuvered around the tables to her side. - -"Oh, you look perfectly gorgeous," she said, oblivious to the amused -people around her. "Dance with me--you always were a divine dancer. -You know, I was telling Jani just today how I wished you'd come for a -visit--we haven't seen you for such a long time...." - -She prattled gaily on. Somewhat dazed, Glayne led her to the resilient -dance floor, an absurdity which had suddenly become the very latest -rage overnight. The girl slipped smoothly into his arms, her fragrant, -perfumed hair under his chin. - -He wasn't at all prepared for the hard tones of her voice when she -said: "I regret to inform you, Captain Glayne, that the agent you were -supposed to meet here is dead. He had an unfortunate accident with a -Cardy gun." - -Glayne stiffened perceptibly. "Who did it?" - -"Probably Delban espionage. They know that something is in the fire and -they're not wearing kid gloves to find out what it is." - -"Did they discover the identity of the person he was supposed to meet?" - -"No," she replied. "But they're looking. Fortunately the organization -was not in the dark as to whom he would meet. Otherwise I could never -have found you." - -Glayne's eyes narrowed. Too many people knew what was going on. That -made it very dangerous. But what made it even more dangerous was the -fact that he himself did _not_ know what was going on. Agents of -three organizations were involved in the search for information and -the tangled maze of plots would be deadly for anyone caught in the -middle. He was silent for a moment, battle-trained senses sifting his -surroundings instinctively. Something ... somewhere ... was odd. - -"If you will notice their eyes," the girl remarked dryly, "you will -find that a good proportion of the Yarga's clientele are high on Soames -drug." - - * * * * * - -Glayne started and looked more closely at the couples entering the -stage. Then he saw what she meant. Here and there he saw eyes--burning -eyes--eyes that glittered with a brilliant fire that emanated from -huge, dilated pupils. They were using the marvelous Soames energizing -drug; it fairly blazed from their slitted lids. Its purpose was to -accelerate physical reaction speeds--but why use it on a small planet -like Lorle IV? With the question came the answer. Their quarry had -the .95 reaction index of a big-planet man. That was Glayne's index. -And that meant that they were right on top of him. - -"I think," he intoned softly to the girl, "it would be wise for us to -move on to the next stage." - -In reply she slipped smoothly from his arms, seized him by the sleeve -of his loose-fitting jumper, and propelled him to the tingle screen. -When he balked she grinned at him and stood in the field of the screen -herself and laughed at him. It was a bubbly, elated laugh. Glayne liked -it. And he liked the way the soothing color movements of the tingle -screen caressed the long curves of her figure. But he didn't like the -nervous manner in which the glittering, dilated pupils flickered at -them and held them curiously, then flickered casually away. - -The girl was clever, he realized. The keyed-up Delban agents would -be far less likely to suspect an intoxicated couple of dark designs. -Suddenly the red-headed girl stumbled, accidentally pushed from the -other side of the screen. Instinctively Glayne reached out to steady -her--reached out with a long, liquid motion of his powerful arm. In one -instant every Soames-dilated eye in the room was upon him. In another, -Cardy guns were magically appearing in a dozen hands. - -But, fast as they were, Glayne was faster. He drew his own weapon with -blurred speed, fired, and flung himself and the girl through the screen -into the second stage. The Delban agents hesitated to fire blindly -through the screen and rushed after them. The big Guardian hurtled -through the exotic darkness of the second stage with the girl in his -left arm. He scattered and smashed tables right and left, littering the -floor with bewildered and drunken patrons. - -The exit toward which he was heading was suddenly no longer an exit. -It was filled with a crowd of huge, glittering eyes and wicked looking -Cardy guns. In a single movement, Glayne dropped to the floor and fired. - -The second stage was in an uproar. Now agents were pouring through the -tingle screen in pursuit. Desperately Glayne sought for a means of -escape. Then he saw the portal that evidently led to the kitchen or the -bar. He grabbed the dazed red-head and rushed through the portal, swept -down a short corridor, turned, and straight-armed two tray-bearing -waiters as he dashed through a second portal. And suddenly he was -behind the entrance bar where he had taken his first drink. He tensed -for a fraction of a second, then vaulted the low bar. - -A bartender and two customers stared at them with blank amazement but -there was not a Delban agent in sight. Swiftly Glayne set the girl upon -her feet and together they fled from the building. He noted approvingly -the capable-looking Cardy she held in her small fist. - -"My flier is outside," he said. "They've probably surrounded the place, -but in the confusion the ones outside won't know us. We'll try to bluff -through." - -She nodded and put her gun away. As they approached the flier parking -area she clutched his arm with intoxicated possessiveness. Glayne was -right; here and there a Delban agent glanced at them suspiciously--then -looked contemptuously away. The object of their search was alone. -Controlling his heavy breathing with difficulty, Glayne approached an -attendant, digging out his micro-wave key jewel. - -"Here! Get my air-jet," he panted. - -But instead of the expected response, the man stiffened for a -measureless instant, then whirled with blurred speed. A Cardy -blaster magically materialized in his hand and his eyes burned with -Soames-induced ferocity. But Glayne was a shade faster. His left -streaked with dazzling speed into the agent's stomach and the Delban -folded up, his motor nerves paralyzed from the blow in the solar plexus. - -Crouching, they ran toward Glayne's air-jet. A Cardy bolt splashed into -the side of a flier just above Glayne's head, battering the tough -beralloy and sending a shower of white hot droplets in all directions. -As they reached his air-jet, Glayne whirled and fired rapidly and with -murderous accuracy at the pursuing Delban agents. As they scuttled for -cover, Glayne turned and waved the talisman through the micro-wave -field and the door swung open. - -Instantly he shoved the girl into the cabin, then climbed in behind -her. He let the tiny atomic engine thunder beyond audibility, then fed -power to the jets in huge gulps. With a tremendous surge the little -craft leaped into the air and roared over the roof of the Yarga. A -couple of Delban energy bolts slapped viciously into the air-jet, but -soon Glayne out-distanced them, flying low over the dark countryside. - -The girl sighed beside him. "This has been a very warm evening. Do you -think they'll catch us?" - -"I don't think they're organized that well," Glayne grunted, busy with -the course-computer. "Their whole assault was hasty and ill-timed. I -doubt if they even had time to set up an air net." - -"But, now that they are out in the open, they will move quickly. Do you -have a specific plan in mind, Captain Glayne?" - -The Guardian frowned and cast a quick glance at her. He was puzzled by -her insistence. "My Flagship, the _Algol_, is maneuvered into a fast -orbit behind inert detector screens. About ninety miles out. I've just -set course to intercept her before we hit dayside." - -In reply the girl bent past his shoulder toward the luminous figures -which floated in the dial of the computer, announcing the course. The -delicate lines of her face were hard in the faint light. Again Glayne -felt a twinge of uneasiness and it was not dispelled by the soft touch -of her body against his. - -"What is your name?" he asked belatedly, trying to make out the -features of her face in the dim light from the instrument panel. - -She chuckled in the darkness and he fancied he heard a note of triumph. -"Lieutenant Niala Chodred," she said. "Espionage Bureau of Imperial -Terra. At your service, Captain." - - * * * * * - -Of Imperial Terra! The words fairly blazed in Glayne's consciousness. -His hand shot like lightning for the Cardy in his arm-pit holster, then -stopped in mid-motion as he became aware of a hard, cylindrical object -thrust into his ribs. It was her tiny Cardy blaster. - -Through the waves of chagrin and impotent fury that surged up within -him, Glayne heard her say mockingly: "Guardian warriors are supposed to -function like machines when on missions, aren't they, Captain? Since -when are machines rattled by pretty girls?" - -The lines on Glayne's face deepened but he said nothing. Her taunting -rebuke was well-deserved. He had certainly lacked the emotionless -precision which was the Guardian ideal. But the mere fact that he had -been caught napping was inconsequential beside the implications of -her presence as a Terran agent. How much did Terra know? The question -hammered urgently in Glayne's mind. - -Even as it flashed through his head, he heard her amused voice say: -"In time of crisis, Captain Glayne, the Stellar Guardians invariably -throw allies and friends to the dogs in order to gain time. This is -common knowledge. So all we had to do was determine the direction of -the Guardian move. We immediately thought of Lorle. And we even thought -that you might be the man the Guardians would send, Glayne, because -we have a complete file on your activities for the past ten years. We -know that you have been on good terms with Delban brass since that -successful exploring job you performed at Jorger Sun, five years ago." - -With growing horror, Glayne listened to her unfold the deepest Guardian -secrets--derived by Terran Espionage through simple induction. What a -fool he had been for trusting her even for a minute! Unless he could -stop her, she could utterly destroy all Guardian hopes to overcome the -Delbans. His great body tensed as he stared at her from the corner of -his eye, watching for the slightest sign of inattention. - -"Glayne," she continued, in a hard, objective voice with no trace -of amusement, "Imperial Terra is not itself adverse to a policy of -throwing someone to the dogs in order to gain time. But we want to give -the dogs someone who can put up a fight. Poor Lorle would not be much -of a match for Gort Bro-Doral and she wouldn't gain us much time. But -the Stellar Guardians would. In fact, the Stellar Guardians themselves -will commit the overt act--with a little help." - -The Guardian Captain was stunned at the very audacity of her plan. He -had to admit that its logic was undeniable. But how could she possibly -seek to accomplish such an incredible feat as forcing the Guardians -into a suicidal attack upon the Delbans? Unless.... - -Then his worst suspicions were realized as she said: "The Ganser -mind-conditioning treatments will not harm your essential-ego, Captain -Glayne. But, if you struggle against them, your mind will be shattered -and you will be left an idiot when the effects wear off." - -A cold thrill of fear caressed Glayne's spine as he heard her words. -The brutal, tearing fingers of the horrible mind-conditioner devised -by the Delban Espionage Chief, Hoteh Ganser, would change his goals -and values in the space of only a few hours. What seemed to him -irrational now would be the height of reason after his conditioning. As -the ramifications of Imperial Terra's plot came clear to him, Glayne -realized with increasing urgency that he simply had to overcome the -girl. - -"You may be sure that your attack on Sterle II will not be in vain," -came the girl's brittle tones. "Admiral Bardled will station units of -the Imperial Terran Fleet in hyper-space with the purpose of cracking -the wave length of the broadcast power and locating its source. - -"Our plan is much cleaner and nobler than yours, is it not, Captain -Glayne? You Stellar Guardians are all hard, ruthless fighters. You -can take care of yourselves. But poor little Lorle wouldn't have a -chance. Don't you agree, Captain? Don't you find it heroic to sacrifice -yourself to the Delban dog pack to gain time for the rest of the -galaxy?" - -Glayne ignored the mockery in her voice. A sudden wave of bitter anger -swept over him at the presumptuous manner in which they were all -bent upon throwing one another to the dogs. Surely they were not so -tactically poverty-stricken that they could not conceive of a better -plot which would not demand such a tremendous sacrifice of human life. - - * * * * * - -Suddenly, almost without warning, the tiny spark of rebellion within -him blazed up in hot determination. To hell with Garstow and the -Stellar Guardian Policy Organ. To hell with Admiral Bardled and the -Terran fleet. To hell with everyone. The vague suggestion of a plan was -forming in the recesses of his mind, breath-taking in its audacity and -possibly, just possibly workable. - -But what of the girl? To think about overpowering her was one thing; -actually doing it was another. She had already killed one Guardian -earlier this evening, he presumed. She would not hesitate to kill -another. That meant that he would have to meet cunning with cunning. - -"You don't mind if I smoke one last cigar while I am still in control -of my essential-ego, do you?" he asked, trying to match her mocking, -satirical mood. "I don't believe the Ganser-personality enjoys tobacco -as much as the average Guardian Captain." - -She alerted instantly, but the Cardy didn't waver the least fraction -of an inch. "You are not the average Guardian Captain," she said in a -strange, low voice. "But go ahead and smoke." - -Fleetingly Glayne wondered what she had meant, then he let the thought -flicker away as he concentrated on his cigar. He reached for the -radio-active on the instrument panel, flicking it so that its coal -gleamed into gradual dull red life. She was watching him like a hawk, -he knew, and smiled inwardly. The closer the better. Idly he began to -hum a snatch of melody, a curious thing arranged in minors. It was -peculiarly suited to his unsteady bass. He waved the radio-active in -his hand in slow, sweeping circles in time to his humming. - -Smoothly he ignited his cigar, puffing the semi-narcotic smoke in thick -clouds. He hummed louder, his voice pushing the deep, wailing dirge -into the cabin. It acted like a drug, throwing everything into slow -time. It numbed the sensibilities and dulled acute perceptions. - -Ever so gently and smoothly Glayne turned his head and glanced at -the girl. His scheme had worked. Her eyes automatically followed the -circles he described with the radio-active in his hand. She was lulled -into a near-hypnotic condition. - -In a single jump, Glayne seized the hand in which she held the Cardy -gun. She reacted instantly, but not quite fast enough to wrest the -weapon from his hand. Like a spring under great pressure she exploded -into writhing, clawing, kicking, biting action. Her savage ferocity so -startled Glayne that he nearly lost the weapon to her. As he sought to -fend her off with one hand and throw the weapon away with the other, he -felt her nails sink agonizingly into the side of his face. Gasping, he -finally got rid of the weapon, then drew back his fist and slugged her -with a short, jabbing punch. - -Panting, he recovered from the struggle. Suddenly he became aware of -the peculiar angle of flight of the air-jet. It was shrieking down -on its stubby fins toward the planet's surface. Somehow the Terran -girl had kicked off the robot control. As he righted the craft and -reoriented the course, he became aware of the girl's brooding eyes on -him. - -"You are very clever, Captain Glayne," she said. "Perhaps one might -even say courageous. A heavy planet man like yourself should not risk -himself with such reckless bravery in a physical struggle with a small -planet individual." - -Glayne was stung by her rebuke, but he was even more startled at her -bitterness. She was an espionage agent and she knew the risks and -hazards involved. Certainly she was not whining at her defeat. - -"How do you propose to fake the overt act, Captain?" she continued in a -light, conversational tone. - -Glayne was grimly aware of the accusation in her words but he said -nothing. She had a right to be bitter, he realized. Ironically, she -was going to get her way after all, though she didn't know it yet. He -grinned mirthlessly at her, the cigar clenched between his teeth. - -She was beautiful, but especially so in the resentment that was -mirrored in her features. Glayne was suddenly very sorry that she had -killed the Guardian agent he was supposed to meet. Otherwise he would -have liked very much to have known her. - - - IV - -The nine-hundred-foot bulk of the Stellar class cruiser _Algol_ loomed -hugely over the little air-jet as Glayne maneuvered it into the gaping -reception maw in the cruiser's belly. The craft's slight lurch as it -came to rest just inside the lock awoke the Terran girl who had fallen -asleep. - -Glayne sighed, glancing at her. She stared back at him coolly. He shook -his head and said, "That green outfit of yours will just have to go, -Lieutenant Chodred. Crew's morale, you know." - -Her eyes widened in sudden dismay. "But ... but surely you don't want -me to--" - -He grinned. "You will have to wear a crew jumper." Glancing again at -her graceful figure, he made a mental note: it would have to be an -over-size jumper--several sizes over. - -Stiffly they climbed from the little air-jet and propelled themselves -weightlessly to the elevator. Seconds later its door slid open and they -were on the navigation bridge. Glayne took the girl's arm and escorted -her around the bulking computers and auxiliary boards to the Captain's -Station. - -Graysen, the grizzled old Executive Officer, snapped to attention -and delivered a brisk salute. Glayne acknowledged it absently, his -attention absorbed primarily in a hasty inspection of the bridge. Then -he became aware of the intent stares of Graysen and the other officers. -Those who were not gawking at Niala Chodred were staring hard at his -cheek, obviously striving not to laugh. - -Puzzled, Glayne felt his cheek, then glanced at his hand. There was -blood on it. He suddenly recalled the two long red welts inflicted by -the Terran agent's fingernails and realized that his officers were -drawing the obvious inferences. Abruptly he was stung with chagrin and -pictured the juicy tidbit of gossip which he had just supplied gunroom -scuttlebutt throughout the Guardian Fleet. Exasperated at his own lack -of foresight, he stared back at his officers, browbeating them into -submission with his stony gaze. - -"Morning, Captain," drawled Graysen, breaking the embarrassed silence. - -"Good morning, Commander," returned Glayne. "Stoke her up. Set an -orbit for Sterle II. Incidentally, this is Lieutenant Niala Chodred of -Imperial Terran Espionage. I met her instead of our own agent. He had -an unfortunate accident with a Cardy gun--I'm told." - -Glayne glanced significantly at the girl. Graysen nodded -understandingly and raised a quizzical eyebrow in Niala's direction. -She looked from one to the other, mystified. - -Then sudden understanding registered on her features. "Glayne!" she -cried in a horrified tone, "I didn't kill him! Terran Espionage had -nothing to do with his death. He was murdered by the Delbans and we -found out by bribing one of Kairn's men that he was supposed to make -contact with an unknown Guardian big gun at the Yarga. We knew he was -to meet you but the Delbans didn't. That's the only reason you escaped -them, Captain Glayne. The Delbans murdered your contact agent but I had -nothing to do with it. You must believe me!" - -Glayne smiled cynically at her and said, "Of course, Lieutenant -Chodred, we believe you." He brusquely turned his back on her and said -to Graysen, "You will have to move in with one of the other officers, -Commander. Just temporarily, of course." - -"Aye, sir," replied Graysen. - - * * * * * - -Presently the navigation bridge was filled with hurrying men. The orbit -computers began to clatter noisily and somewhere within the depths of -the ship a keening whine indicated that the huge driver atomics were -being warmed. - -"What acceleration, Captain?" Graysen asked, appearing with a sheaf of -orbit calculations. - -Glayne was on the point of saying three G's out of deference to Niala -Chodred and her light planet birth. But he thrust her from his mind as -he realized that speed was of the utmost importance. High acceleration -meant speed and speed meant time saved. Time to carry out his bold -scheme, time to locate and sabotage the mysterious Delban power -broadcast, time to build the mesh antennae and energize the Stellar -Guardian fleet.... - -His face hardened grimly. "Five G's," he said shortly. - -Doubt flickered for an instant across Graysen's face as he glanced at -the girl. Then he shrugged and turned away to comply with the order. - -Silently Glayne took Niala Chodred's arm and descended to the next -deck. As the first traces of a floor appeared under their feet, he -opened the door to Graysen's quarters. It was furnished with the -Spartan simplicity of a typical warrior. Trophies and a few rather -gruesome battle prints decorated the bulkheads. Niala examined the room -curiously but preserved a hurt silence. - -He showed her the acceleration hammocks and how to use the anti-thrust -drugs in their small surettes. - -"If you need me," he said, "I will be in the cabin at the end of the -corridor." - -She looked at him with mock surprise. "What? No connecting door? -Really, Captain, you've shattered all my girlish illusions about the -Stellar Guardians." - -Glayne paused, his hand on the door stud. He turned around and said, -"I want to wake up tomorrow without suffering an accident with a Cardy -gun." He closed the door behind him. - -By the time he reached the navigation bridge again, the _Algol_ had -built up to five G's. To Glayne, accustomed to the heavy Dorleb -planets, this was a little more than twice normal. - -Young Brodis, the ship's Intelligence Officer, approached him and -saluted. "I beg your pardon, sir. Communications just handed these -over to me--I thought you might be interested." He extended a sheaf of -flimsies to Glayne. - -The big Guardian examined them, eyes narrowed. They were transcripts of -an official Lorle news bulletin. Rapidly he read: - -_Intelligence Chief Kairn announced tonight the death of Carling -Clawdor, allegedly an espionage agent of the Stellar Guardians. It is -believed that he was to contact another agent or agents at the Yarga -night club this evening. Prior to his death by Cardy burns, Clawdor -accused Delban agents._ - -_Intelligence Chief Kairn also revealed that a raid carried out on the -Yarga night club failed to apprehend the Guardian agents. Just before -their arrival a spectacular gun battle took place. Investigation is -still proceeding, Kairn announced, indicating that ..._ - -Silently Glayne handed the flimsies back to Brodis, chewing his lower -lip. It was incredible that Kairn should reveal such confidential -information. Obviously the Lorle Intelligence Chief was taking no -chances on provoking an incident which the Delbans could twist into a -pretext for war. But an even more important fact came clear to Glayne: -Niala Chodred had not murdered Clawdor. He was very glad that she was -innocent of the Guardian agent's death. Unconsciously he framed the -apology he would make to her as he climbed with an effort into the -Captain's Dome and lowered himself into its gimbal-slung shock seat. - -Far off to his left the globe of Lorle IV shrunk visibly. Again the -mental picture of the Delban warships streaking over those short -horizons in fast orbits flashed across his mind and he imagined them -pouring their inconceivable torrents of energy into the unprotected -cities. At least, he thought, he wouldn't be guilty of that crime. -But what was the real chance of the wild scheme and its attendant -insubordination which he had conceived in the air-jet? - -For a long time he pondered it. No matter how much he rationalized, it -was still insubordination and it lay heavily on his mind. Suddenly he -was shaky and he realized that he held the fate of the civilized galaxy -in his hands. If he blundered, would that not be a greater crime than -the mere sacrifice of Lorle? Glayne could not resolve the question and -he was vaguely glad that decision was no longer in his hands and he -could not turn back if he wanted to. - - * * * * * - -The _Algol_ emerged from sub-space four hundred million kilometers -below the plane of the ecliptic in the Sterle System. With her identity -signals broadcasting at full power, she changed course, veering -"upward" toward the second planet of Sterle's small brood of five. - -The faint beams of the distant red dwarf sun shed a sickly glow -on the navigation bridge through the huge glassene ports. Shortly -after her arrival the _Algol_ was picked up by two fast and deadly -Delban destroyers of the Planet class. Almost delicate in their -unobtrusiveness, they slipped in on either side of the _Algol_ and -escorted her swiftly to the capital planet of the Delban Empire, Sterle -II. - -"There's one consolation, anyway," Graysen remarked to his chief as -they stood before the glassene ports. "They don't seem to have fitted -out their whole fleet with receiving antennae yet." - -Glayne nodded, flipping on the small auxiliary battle screen at his -side. Expertly he manipulated the viewer until one of the rakish Delban -warships ballooned up mightily on its plate. The tell-tale coppery mesh -antenna was absent. - -"That is fortunate," Glayne grunted dourly. "But there is the -possibility that these ships may be too small for the installation." - -The Delbans began to decelerate and the _Algol's_ pilot hastily -imitated them. Faintly Glayne made out the tiny red ball that was -Sterle II. Uneasily Glayne realized that he had better go over the -plan once more with Niala Chodred. Next to himself, the Terran girl's -part was the most important. He grunted at Graysen to take over and -descended to her quarters. He knocked twice perfunctorily and entered -the room. - -Niala smiled up at him, pleased at his visit. "How much longer now, -Captain?" - -Glayne looked down at her, marveling at the failure of her absurdly -huge jumper in concealing the long, smooth curves of her body. Her -hair was a varied mass of copper and gold which gleamed with a subtle -display of half tones. In the cabin's fluorescents Glayne noted for the -first time that she had once been the owner of a saddle of freckles -across her nose. Now only one or two were left which contrasted -deliciously with the smoothness of her face. Glayne felt a sudden -desire to jet down on Sterle Capital like the legendary buccaneers and -ransack the best dress shops to outfit her properly. - -"Well?" she said. - -"Huh?" said Glayne foolishly. Then he collected his wandering thoughts -and replied, "Oh, yes. We're being escorted in now. We'll be down in a -couple of hours. I wanted to make a last minute check of the plan." - -"Ahh," she replied, stretching with devastating effect in the heavy -jumper. "We've done this so many times, Captain. But really they're -very entertaining." - -"I'm glad you like them," said Glayne dryly. "You should because the -plan is substantially the one you would have had me carry out under a -Ganser-personality." - -She colored, then regained control of her vascular motors and recited -the plan in a sing-song monotone: "We jet down at Sterle Capital. You -and I attend the informal reception. Commander Graysen remains with -the _Algol_ along with Lieutenant Harbin. But precisely at twenty-one -hundred Standard, Harbin and twenty men leave the ship, ostensibly on -liberty. At twenty-one fifteen, you and I attempt to maneuver Gort -Bro-Doral and General Ganser together in conversation. At that moment -Lieutenant Harbin will land on the roof of the palace, attacking the -guards there. Then we will hustle the two Delbans into the elevator, -take them to the roof, and escape with Harbin in the flier. In the -meantime Graysen will have blasted off in the _Algol_; we will -intercept him twenty miles over Topo Gulf." - -"Exactly," Glayne said. "Everything is going well so far. We've just -received permission to land a liberty party so we don't have to worry -about that anymore." - -He took some hand-drawn maps from the case in his hand. "Brodis and -I made these from memory and a little inside information--one of the -palace, one of the roof, and one of the grounds. The whole thing -depends upon whether they are using an old style one-way shield. If so, -we can get out all right. Otherwise we're finished." - -She nodded and bent over the maps. Glayne bit the end off of a cigar, -then lit it meticulously. He smiled quizzically at the girl. "How's -your courage?" he asked. - -Her wide green eyes looked up thoughtfully into his. "I've seen some -shoe-string deals pulled before, but Captain, I'll have to award you -the prize--never one as thin and short as this." - -Glayne felt a sudden fear and a sudden hunger as he looked at her. He -could not bear the thought of failure--and the consequent fate of Niala -Chodred. His cheek twitched nervously and he reached for her, gathering -her into his powerful arms and drawing her face to his. Her breath was -hot against his cheek and he could feel her heart pounding heavily -against his chest. Willingly she responded to his kisses. - -"Here's to luck," he breathed. - -"And plenty of it," she replied. - - - V - -Try as he might, Glayne could never accustom himself to these Sectors -which lay far out on the edge of the galaxy. Neighboring stars were -hundreds of light years apart while the great belt of stars that was in -the Main Galaxy revealed itself only as a faint haze twenty thousand -light years distant. He could not shake off the loneliness that settled -over him like a shroud, separating him from everything he knew. He was -accustomed to the vast star clouds of Sagittarius; it was there he had -spent the first ten years of his Guardianship. - -A dry and thirsty wind seemed to suck the moisture from his body as he -waited by the after lock with Niala. It swept across the hard surface -of the space-port and sang dolefully around the mass of the grounded -_Algol_; it even seemed to characterize the Delbans themselves. A -lonely people out on this forsaken edge of the galaxy, they hungered -and thirsted after wealth and power. The Guardian sympathized with -them to some extent, yet at the same time realized the awful threat to -civilization they represented with the mysterious, titanic broadcast -power at their disposal. - -Again Glayne felt inner qualms as he considered the odds against -them. Grimly he crushed them out and touched with almost superstitious -reverence the tiny blaster at his hip--for ornamental purposes only. -More confidently he hefted the weight of the heavy Cardy at his arm-pit. - -The small surface-jet which had set out for the _Algol_ immediately -after the mushrooming blasts of its landing jets subsided now drew up -at the tiny waiting dock formed by the _Algol's_ after lock. The lack -of formality, Glayne knew, was as blatant an insult as the Delbans -could manage. He smiled mirthlessly to himself. They couldn't please -him more if they tried. The less pomp and ceremony attached to him, the -more smoothly his plan would work. - -A single Delban emerged from the surface-jet, evidently a civilian -judging from his dress. He was incredibly tall and thin and made Glayne -very uncomfortable because he had to tilt his head back to get a good -look at him. - -"Captain Glayne," began the emissary in a high, sighing nasal, "on -behalf of His Imperial Excellency, Ruler of Ten Thousand Suns, Master -of the Cosmos, and Supreme Overlord of the Delban Empire, Gort -Bro-Doral, I humbly welcome you to Sterle II." He bowed very low. - -Glayne, nervously anticipating almost anything, could hardly restrain -his laughter at this comic pomposity. It was quite out of place in the -desolate, curiously-deserted space-port. He and Niala entered the rear -compartment of the surface car and sunk back in the luxurious cushions. -Their Delban guide tooled it with expert ease from the space-port and -down a traffic artery toward the bright blob on the horizon that was -Sterle Capital. - -In minutes, it seemed, they were pausing for the first guard check -along the private road that led to the Bro's fabulous palace. Glayne -had been there once before, five years ago. They passed two more guard -checks. For a minute Glayne thought they were safely on the palace -grounds, only to be disillusioned by another, and this time very close, -guard check. - -The weapons' detector emitted a raucous buzz when they came into its -field. Suspiciously the guards stared at them, their weapons leveled. -Seeing the tiny toy at Glayne's hip, they smiled and passed them on -with contemptuous nods. - -What a hell of a mess, he thought to himself. It was too late to back -out. In another hour Harbin would be on his way to the palace--and -right into a hive of trigger-happy guards. One faint consolation -was their contempt which would render them more vulnerable to the -surprise attack he planned. But on the whole it looked pretty grim. -He suppressed his unhappy thoughts as the surface-jet drew up at last -beneath a gigantic, arched entrance. - -Niala squeezed his hand bravely, casting a quick smile at him. - -Heartened by her display of courage, he climbed from the little jet car -and followed the escorting Delban down a long series of luxuriously -furnished corridors. Eventually they turned off into an enormous -reception room brilliantly illuminated by chandeliers of priceless -Tharna crystals. Tremendous tapestries hung along the wall, depicting -ancient, pre-spaceship battle scenes. A score or so of guests stood -about the huge room, all of them quite obviously in very advanced -stages of drunkenness. Quite cheerfully they spilled drinks on the -priceless _jrik_ carpets or on the equally priceless marl Shanzi-wood -furnishings. - - * * * * * - -Glayne was puzzled by all the intoxication. As he speculated, it -suddenly occurred to him that they were celebrating. Quite obviously -they believed that they had won a victory of some sort in the -diplomatic call by the Stellar Guardian _Algol_. Glayne had to agree -that it was a logical conclusion and resolved to exploit their mistaken -belief as far as possible. - -The first person to be presented to Glayne and Niala was General Hoteh -Ganser. He was hopelessly drunk. Glayne knew the pop-eyed Delban -Espionage Chief only by reputation; he was rather disappointed at the -dried and withered figure he cut. Nevertheless he was pleased to see -the Delban in an intoxicated condition; he could be more easily handled. - -"The Bro will arrive presently," their guide informed them. -Affairs of state prevented his presence at the moment. Meanwhile -they were introduced to a number of curious and intoxicated -guests--high-ranking, Glayne gathered, from the monotonous repetition -of titles. - -Then General Ganser was before them again, accompanied by another -Delban in a brilliant uniform surmounted by a gaudy, flowing cape. He -was aristocratic and condescending in his demeanor and a smile played -about his eyes and dry lips. - -"May I present His Excellency, Gort Bro-Doral ... Captain Glayne of the -Stellar Guardians," introduced Ganser. His eyes were owlish with forced -dignity. Gort Bro-Doral waved him away with a careless sweep of his arm -and bowed politely to Glayne. - -"I think we met several years ago, Captain. Am I right? But of course. -Won't you and your ... er ... lady have a drink?" - -Glayne colored angrily. Yes, they would have a drink. He glanced -casually at his wrist-chrono. Twenty minutes ... just twenty minutes -before Harbin would be down on the roof. - -He sipped slowly at the huge cup of _borse_ which the Bro had -personally ladled out for him, letting its blue-green smoothness ease -his parched throat and his nervousness. Niala, at his sign, slipped -away and was immediately surrounded by a crowd of the outlanders, -General Ganser at the head. They knew a good thing when they saw it, -Glayne reflected wryly. - -Gort Bro-Doral eyed him with amusement across the mammoth _borse_ bowl. -"Now really, Captain, why did you come here? Surely not to inform us of -the decision of your sacred Policy Organ?" The Ruler of Ten Thousand -Suns emitted an odd, explosive noise that corresponded to laughter. - -To the Delban leader's question Glayne replied cautiously, "The -Guardians have landed on their feet in every major crisis for the last -thousand years. Perhaps we want to land feet-first this time." - -"That is quite understandable, Captain," replied Gort Bro-Doral, -cautious in his turn. - -"When one side in a battle has unlimited strength," Glayne continued, -"the wise man has no difficulty in deciding whom he will support. That -is similar to our own position, Your Excellency." - -Again Bro-Doral produced his strange, whinnying laugh. "Really, -Captain, you amaze me. The future Delban Empire cannot tolerate -such things as mercenary armies and space fleets--nor do we need -such organizations to win our battles now. But, if you could bring -yourself to the point of forgetting your traditions and other related -paraphernalia of which you are so fond, then there is a possibility -that you might be absorbed into the Delban Space Navy. Of course, you -would have to submit to our commands--but that's understandable...." - -Glayne exulted inwardly. The Bro simply saw them begging for a crumb of -the spoils--he enjoyed his power to humiliate the Stellar Guardians. -But what he didn't see, contrary to the old adage, was going to trim -his scrawny neck. Where were Niala and Ganser? A minute to go! - -"Your conditions are rather harsh, Your Excellency," he said, looking -around for Niala. "But perhaps tomorrow...?" - -"Yes. Tomorrow by all means, Captain. And it will be a formal occasion -this time." Again Bro-Doral produced his explosive laugh, glancing -obliquely at Glayne from beneath lowered eyelids. Amusement at the -Guardian's plight bubbled in the depths of his otherwise fathomless -black eyes. - - * * * * * - -A sudden series of shocks made the floor shudder and Glayne's heart -jumped to his throat. Harbin had struck! Out of the corner of his eye -he perceived Niala thrusting a big, black Cardy into Ganser's back, -concealing it beneath his cape. Glayne drew his own and thrust it into -Bro-Doral's ribs. - -"Keep laughing, damn you!" Glayne instructed. "Walk to the roof -elevator--casually." Glayne's eyes flickered rapidly about the room. -Niala was right behind him with the staggering and nonplussed General -Ganser. He thrust his weapon into the fold of his jumper before it -could be seen. Repeated tremors shook the floor--Harbin must be digging -them out with a secondary Kellander, he thought fleetingly. - -"You must be insane!" choked the Master of the Cosmos. "The roof -guards--the palace guards and my own personal men will blast you down -before you can set a foot outside this room!" - -"_Just--keep--laughing!_" Glayne said, emphasizing every word. One -or two of the guests looked at them curiously as they approached -the massive doors, then turned away indifferently. The trembling -had ceased. That meant that Harbin had cleared away the immediate -defenses--but Glayne knew it would be a race with the reinforcements. - -The doors were opened before them by attendants--slowly and with -agonizing dignity. Two hawk-eyed Delban guards glanced at them sharply -as they entered the corridor that led to the Bro's private apartment -and the crucial fifth level roof elevator. Ever so slowly they moved -down the corridor. It was a snail's pace to Glayne. Gort Bro-Doral -laughed--or gasped in his sickly, explosive manner. He gestured. He -spoke to Glayne, waving his arms in a deprecating manner. And all -the while the Guardian looked innocently into the Delban's tormented -features, his hand clinging wetly to the Cardy in the folds of his -jumper. - -They met no more guards in the corridor; evidently the rest of them had -hastened to the roof. But the first two were still eyeing them. Glayne -could feel their stares burning into his back. Twenty feet separated -them from the waiting elevator ... fifteen ... ten. Niala had drawn -abreast with General Ganser; the sick, the pale, the fuzzy-minded -Intelligence Chief whose cunning was known throughout the Galaxy. - -There was a sudden commotion behind them. Glayne cast a glance over -his shoulder and saw the corridor rapidly filling with uniformed and -heavily-armed Delbans. They commanded him to stop; he smiled back. They -brandished their weapons; he waved back gaily, herding the prisoners -into the open elevator. They rushed after him; he drew his Cardy gun, -crouched, and fired with murderous effect. Then he lunged into the -elevator and jabbed the roof stud. - -Swiftly it rose. Glayne turned to the two Delbans. The Ruler of Ten -Thousand Suns was in a blue funk but General Ganser had pulled himself -together a bit. His heavily-veined, crimson eyes blazed furiously at -the kidnapers. - -"Be careful with the General," Glayne warned. "He is dangerous when -sober." - -She managed a weak smile and thereby jumped another ten points in -Glayne's esteem. The elevator sighed to a stop and the heavy door slid -open, letting the dry wind pluck at them. Glayne turned his blaster -on the controls, fusing them into tangled slag. Then he crept to the -open door, crouched, and surveyed the palace roof in the pale, rosy -illumination shed by one of Sterle's just-risen moons. - -On his left, not a hundred yards away, lay the flier from the _Algol_. -Three gunners from the crew were operating a portable Kellander, firing -along the edge of the anti-energy shield which had been generated from -the flier to prevent other Delban roof emplacements from destroying -the little assault force. The rest of the attacking group manned -Delban energy projectors that were still in operating condition, -sending a heavy fire into possible concentration points for an enemy -counter-attack. Bodies--mostly Delban--sprawled everywhere. - -"We'll have to run for it," Glayne said. "They've erected an -anti-shield between us and the flier. Once we gain that, we're safe." - -Niala nodded and prodded the two prisoners out of the elevator. Bending -low, they ran diagonally across the roof toward the shimmering ovoid -that was the anti-shield. They had not gone more than forty steps -before a counter-attacking wave of Delban palace guards suddenly -appeared on their right. Cursing, Glayne doubled about and increased -his pace in order not to be cut off. "Glayne! Slow down ... I can't -keep up," the girl panted. - -The Guardian glanced anxiously back at her just in time to be struck -full force by General Ganser's flying body. They went down together -in a wild tangle of thrashing arms and legs. The Delban, in spite of -his dissipation, was tough and wiry; his long fingers sought Glayne's -throat and clung to it with a vise-like grip. In vain the Guardian -battered his body with sledge-hammer blows of his fists. Somewhere he -had lost his gun. A black film threatened to engulf his consciousness -as he struggled against the strangling grip of General Ganser. Vaguely -he felt the roof on which he lay tremble from the impact of the energy -beams that smashed into it. - -From far away he heard Niala scream. It was a bitter spur to his -flagging strength. Summoning every last reserve, he tore Ganser's -clutching hands from his throat and flung him down to the roof. Not -done yet, the Delban snatched up Glayne's weapon which had fallen in -the first seconds of the combat and lifted it to fire. Furiously Glayne -launched his booted foot at Ganser in a savage kick. Bones crunched as -it caught him full in the face and the impact sent him spinning. - -Glayne scooped up the Cardy gun and searched desperately for Niala. The -Delban palace guard continued to storm the little Guardian stronghold, -but the fire of the defenders took horrible effect on their ranks. -In the darkness he saw Niala's crumpled form on the roof. And almost -immediately afterwards he saw Gort Bro-Doral fleeing to the safety of -his attacking soldiers. Holding his breath, Glayne tried a long range -shot. But it was to no avail. The Supreme Overlord had made good his -escape. - - * * * * * - -Anxiously Glayne bent over the girl who was just beginning to stir. -There was a nasty welt on her forehead. - -"I'm all right," she gasped, rising to her feet. "Where's Bro-Doral? -Did he get away?" - -Glayne nodded grimly. "Yes, but never mind. We've got this one. Hurry!" - -Grunting, he swung Ganser's supine form to his shoulder and ran panting -to the edge of the anti-shield. He halted a pace before the shimmering -field and pulled a dark-colored disc from his pocket. Set beforehand to -the shield frequency that Harbin would use, its purpose was to nullify -a small section long enough for them to slip through. - -Hastily his fingers flipped the trigger and it began to vibrate -furiously in his hand. Instantly an irregular opening flickered in the -lethal shimmer of the shield. Glayne shoved the girl through, then -darted after her with Ganser over his shoulder. - -Harbin waved joyously at them from the flier turret, his youthful -face wreathed in smiles. "We can't hold them much longer," he shouted. -"They're nullifying the shield with field scramblers. Hurry!" - -Right behind Glayne as he steered Niala through the lock and leaped -in behind her came the portable Kellander crew, still firing as they -backed the gun into the flier. With a _clang_ the locks slammed shut -and the flier's driver engines thundered. With a single motion of his -arm, Harbin released the anti-shield and fed the pent-up driver power -to the jets. With a tremendous heave that crushed Glayne back rigidly -in his seat the flier blasted up from the palace roof. - -Harbin flung the flier around in a screaming turn and thundered low -over the vast forest preserves that surrounded the palace. The tall, -scraggly trees seemed to brush against the ship's stubby fins as Harbin -sought to evade enemy pursuit. Grunting with effort, Glayne clambered -up to the nose of the craft and sank back into a shock seat beside the -pilot. - -Grimly the Guardian Captain peered ahead at the huge, featureless -ovoid of grey which was fast rushing down upon them. It was the palace -defense shield. If it was the new type, then they were licked because -nothing could get in or out. But the two-way shields were dangerous -and unnecessary as protection for a natural siege position like Gort -Bro-Doral's palace. Hence Glayne had concluded that the Delbans would -keep their old style shield. - -Or had he made a mistake in his reasoning? Glayne tensed unconsciously -as the tiny flier flashed toward the grey ovoid. It was all or nothing. -And suddenly the flier slashed through it like so much paper. - -Glayne suppressed a sigh of relief at the vindication of his logic. -Now the flier was hurtling over Sterle Capital. Harbin, in an effort -to avoid enemy detectors, was almost flying down the very streets. -Their wild gamble almost looked as if it would pay off. Glayne hoped -fervently that Graysen had managed to evade the two Delban escort -destroyers that had accompanied them to the space-port. The _Algol_ -would be a sitting duck over Topo Gulf until the flier arrived. - -But after that, Glayne thought grimly, they were clear. No matter -how much power the Delbans could receive from their astounding -transmitter, they could not withstand a sustained ten G thrust like -his crew of heavy planet men. Then he thought of Niala, accustomed to -Terran Standard. He bit his lip. She would just have to take it; there -was no other way. - -The flier had left Sterle Capital far behind and was climbing rapidly -into the stratosphere. Evidently the surprise attack had disorganized -the Delban patrols and drawn them like flies to the city. At any rate, -not one was in sight as their flier streaked over Topo Gulf. - -Feverishly Harbin doubled the flier back and forth, searching the conic -broadcast beam of the _Algol_, undetectable behind her inert screen. -Finally a welcome series of dots and dashes crackled from the receiver -and Harbin brought the flier around in a screaming turn to follow the -directional beam. Cautiously he slowed the craft as the intensity of -the signals increased. Suddenly the reception maw gaped at them out of -grey nothingness--and the flier shuddered to a stop at the _Algol's_ -landing dock. - -Hastily Glayne jumped out of the flier and hurried to the navigation -bridge, dropping Niala in her quarters along the way. Harbin would take -General Ganser--the precious, indispensable Ganser--to Surgery for -facial repairs. - -Graysen nodded at him, as taciturn as ever. "Your orbit, Captain?" - -"Anywhere," Glayne replied. "Anywhere, just so long as we get far -enough out of this system to drop into sub-space." He rubbed his -bristly chin for a moment, thinking. "Make it eight G's," he added. - -Graysen acknowledged and turned away. Almost immediately the inert -screens were dropped and a floor began to build under Glayne's feet. By -the time he had mounted to the Captain's Station, he was panting with -effort. Automatically he jabbed an anti-thrust surette into his arm and -felt his muscles relax instantaneously under the influence of the magic -drug. - -The inter-ship communicator phones gurgled over his head for a couple -of seconds, then Brodis' voice issued from the speaker: "The General -is floating up to his ears in verchromynal, Captain. They're putting -his face back together right now. Give the word and I'll go to work on -him, thrust or no thrust." - -"No," Glayne replied. "We'll make sub-space in a few hours. Then we'll -have all the time we need to pump him. And, Lieutenant...." - -"Sir?" - -"Prepare the General's very own treatments for him." - -Brodis paused for an appreciable instant, then said, "Right, Captain," -and cut off. - -Glayne watched the globe of Sterle II diminish in his battle screen -with deep satisfaction. The first step in his plan had been carried -off with miraculous good fortune. Now the most pressing necessity was -speed. Once the _Algol_ was sufficiently far from mass to drop into -sub-space, the mysterious power source of the Delbans would be only -a couple of hours distant at the most. With Ganser under control and -acting as a safe conduct, Glayne saw success dangling just within his -fingers. - -Yet deep within his nether-mind he felt a twinge of foreboding--as -if he had forgotten some vital factor in his calculations. The dim -awareness was almost on the threshold of prescience, but it was too -indistinct for him to make out clearly. Uneasily he sought to ignore it -but could not. - - - VI - -In sub-space, time crept along in low gear. Glayne was aware of the -fact that five hours in sub-space corresponded to about forty minutes -in flat, normal space due to the difference in time rates. But time was -time, whether fast or slow. General Hoteh Ganser also realized that -time was passing; in fact, he exerted every effort to increase the -length of time the _Algol_ would have to remain in sub-space. - -Sullenly he stared at Brodis and Glayne as they stood over him. There -was a hint of amusement in the depths of his peculiar, crimson eyes. - -"You deserve congratulations in the success of your attack, Captain -Glayne," he said mockingly. "A touch of bravado here, a bit too -audacious there ... but, all in all, quite well executed. His -Excellency will remember it for a long time. In fact, your success now -will add to his delight at witnessing your Vibra-Death later." - -Glayne suppressed an involuntary shudder. What a fertile imagination -the Delban had! - -"Shut up!" snapped Brodis with disgust in his voice. "You might as -well make it easier for yourself, Ganser. Relax your mind barriers or -we will smash them down and drag the information from you. Either way, -we'll get it in the end!" - -Ganser sneered at the young Guardian. - -"I can loosen him up with some physical persuasion, Captain," suggested -Brodis hopefully. - -Ganser made an obscene remark which brought Brodis to his feet, -enraged. The young officer was on the verge of clobbering him with a -meaty fist, but Glayne stopped him. - -"Such an old veteran as the General is certain to have taken the -precaution of having automatic anesthesia cultures introduced into his -blood stream," he said. "He would like nothing better than to have you -strike him because the sustained trauma of physical pain would trigger -the anesthesia and make him unconscious for as long as forty-eight -hours." - -Ganser made a mocking bow to Glayne. - -The Guardian Captain rubbed his cheek wearily. Nothing else but the -Ganser conditioner probe now, he realized. He caught Brodis' eye and -moved his head slightly in the direction of the gleaming mass of coils -and the huge helmet which was the Ganser conditioner. - -Brodis nodded. With the aid of a couple of the technicians he set the -helmet down carefully over the General's bald pate. - -"Have you ever tried these wonderful treatments of yours, General?" -Brodis inquired with clinical detachment. "They eliminate all your -worries in instants, I understand. They can even make a new man of you, -I'm told." - -Ganser remained obstinately silent as the massive helmet was adjusted -about his head and clamped to the chair in which he was secured. In -spite of himself Glayne admired the Delban's strength of will. He, if -anyone, should know the mental anguish of the conditioner. But now it -was dog eat dog, kill or be killed, and the devil take the hindmost. -He nodded imperceptibly to Brodis who was waiting for the signal to -begin. - -Hours passed and Glayne cursed each inexorable minute. He and Brodis -and the four grey-faced technicians were wet with perspiration. Ganser -drooped in the chair, but his crimson eyes still blazed with fanatical -hatred. - -"Lord, what barriers!" whispered Brodis. He stared with fascination at -the indomitable Delban. - -"What is the power source?" Glayne asked repeatedly, holding his face -impassive through sheer force of will. "You want to help us, Guardian. -Tell us about the broadcast power." - -The conditioned self was slowly beginning to take shape in Ganser's -mind. It offered a new set of values, new goals and desires, uppermost -of which was to give all possible aid to the Stellar Guardians. Thus -the Ganser-personality they were so painstakingly superimposing upon -the Delban was almost that of a Stellar Guardian. Gradually they saw it -appear in the Delban's crimson eyes. - -"The Tane Jewel," he whispered. "Found it in space ... no bigger than -a Terran grapefruit. Engineers ... found way to drain its power -potential ... almost infinite." - -The Tane! The Flame-Jewel of the Elder Tane! - - * * * * * - -Glayne was stunned. He remembered the legends he had heard of the -incredible Tane--weird creatures who had ruled the Galaxy long before -the existence of protein life forms. He even recalled the tales of -their fabulous Second Universe in which they had sought refuge in order -to maintain an artificial stasis and escape extermination. Ever since -the discovery of the Tane legends, scientists had speculated about the -Second Universe and the titanic source of power it represented. And now -it had been found by the Delban Empire and was at the disposal of Gort -Bro-Doral. - -What had Ganser called it? A _Jewel_--and no larger than a grapefruit! -Incredulously Glayne snapped a glance at one of the technicians who -was watching the jerking movements of the lie detector stylus on its -graphed scroll. The man looked up and nodded, his mouth a tight line -across his face. - -Glayne turned back to the Delban prisoner. "Where is the power -broadcast from, Guardian?" he asked urgently. - -"Tjadlinn," muttered Ganser, under the control of a pseudo-Guardian -personality. "Jorger Sun ... deep helio orbit. The planetless Jorger -Sun--remember, _we_ were commissioned to clear it of meteor drift. -Later _they_ built the Tjadlinn discoid around the Jewel...." - -Glayne smiled mirthlessly. So the Delbans had planted the Jewel right -under their noses. Yet what more logical place! He recalled the job -he had supervised there five years before. The Delbans were going to -build a power research station in an orbit about the planetless sun--a -practice common in many Sectors. - -Glayne tensed as he leaned toward Ganser to ask a third question. It -was the crucial one and the others knew it. There was a hushed silence -as Glayne asked: - -"What is the frequency of the Jewel power broadcast? What do you know -about the design of the mesh receiving antennae? Tell us, Guardian. We -need your help." - -Silence followed Glayne's question. It lengthened and became unbearable. - -At last: "The mesh antennae are manufactured at the secret Karkara -Fleet Station on Scone III. It is defended by Jewel-powered Kellander -batteries in addition to secondary auxiliary projectors. The approach -code is not available to me. Neither is there information available on -broadcast frequencies or antenna design." - -Glayne smashed his fist against his leg in violent disappointment. -The facts were simply not available in Ganser's mind, so the -pseudo-Guardian personality naturally failed to produce them. Again -Glayne felt a twinge of respect for the Delban. If anyone knew the -technical secrets of the Jewel broadcast, it should have been Ganser. -But the Delban's wily cunning had thwarted them. He had carefully -avoided all technical knowledge of the Jewel, anticipating an attempt -to drain his mind. - -There was only one course open to him now. Attack Tjadlinn! He looked -at his wrist-chrono. Twelve hours they had spent in this nether-space! -It was inconceivable. Glayne swore to himself and thought furiously. - -According to Ganser, the mass of the Tjadlinn discoid was too slight -to maintain an interstellar telephone; only message craft connected it -with the rest of Bro-Doral's empire. That was a break, thought Glayne. -In spite of the time they had spent in sub-space, they might still -reach Jorger Sun before a warning came from Sterle II. With Ganser -under their control and posing as a guide, they could bluff through the -outer defenses of the Jewel station. Once inside, they would have to -take the breaks as they came. - -His shoulders suddenly sagged at the appalling decision he would have -to make. Once within the discoid, he would be cut off from outside -communication and could not warn the fleet if anything went wrong. -On the other hand, the fleet had to be standing by or there was no -possible chance of success. Desperately he sought for alternatives to -his scheme but none presented themselves. The Terran Combine's last -chance rested within his own hands, he realized grimly. An immediate -decision had to be made. But if he failed.... - -With sudden resolve he crushed out his burning doubts and turned -to Brodis. "Take the fastest flier we have, dope yourself up with -verchromynal, and go to the Stellar Guardian Communication Station -at Zandrome. They generate enough power there to push a message over -the interstellar telephone to Dorleb in thirty-five minutes. Contact -Admiral Garstow. Give him all the information we have and tell him that -Scone III will be without Jewel power in forty-eight hours. Have him -advise Admiral Bardled of the Terran Fleet that his aid is essential. -Inform Garstow that every available fleet unit _must_ be at Scone III -in forty-eight hours. Hurry!" - -Brodis reached the door in one jump and was half-way down the corridor -in another. Glayne watched him go, bleakly phrasing the rest of -the message under his breath. _Garstow_, he thought, _you will be -slaughtered if there's one tiny slip on my part. It's good you don't -know about it._ - -Then Glayne shrugged and went up to the navigation bridge. - - * * * * * - -Jorger Sun was barely visible through the glassene observation ports. -But it blew up hugely in Glayne's auxiliary battle screen--a white -dwarf of brilliant intensity and a temperature equal to that of the -greatest white super-giants in the main galaxy. It was incredibly -_alone_ out on the furthest reaches of the vast, trailing arms of the -galaxy. - -The _Algol_ was decelerating as it flashed toward Jorger Sun. Somewhere -behind it was the Tjadlinn discoid built around the fabulous Tane -Jewel. It would look strange, Glayne knew, if they were detected in -a maximum ten G deceleration thrust while on an official inspection -tour--especially with their low-gravity guide, General Ganser, aboard. - -Commander Graysen approached, shifting his weight from one gnarled -leg to the other in the space-man's shuffling gait. His leathery face -widened in a rare grin as he reached Glayne. "I should have retired -after that last cruise," he wheezed. "Here is Harbin for last minute -instructions, Captain." - -Glayne nodded to the younger officer. "Harbin, you will take over when -Commander Graysen and I leave with the landing party. If you are fired -upon while we are inside the discoid, clear out fast. Take the _Algol_ -to Scone III as quickly as possible. Warn Admiral Garstow that my plan -has failed and that it would be best to disperse all fleet units. Under -no conditions are you to attempt battle. Do you understand?" - -"Aye, sir!" snapped the youngster. His face worked for an instant, but -he suppressed his protest and brought himself under control. - -"Destination in sight, Captain Glayne," called the pilot over the -communicator. - -"Cut deceleration to four G's." To Graysen: "How is Ganser?" - -"In excellent shape--even his face. According to Psych he is completely -under control." - -Glayne turned back to his screen and stared at the expanding Tjadlinn -discoid. Instinctively he looked for the slim and deadly Jewel-powered -cruisers that would be waiting for them if a warning had reached -Tjadlinn. But of course he saw nothing. If they were there, they would -be masked by inert detector screens, waiting for him to approach so -closely that no amount of frantic acceleration could tear him from -their grasp. - -The discoid was a huge thing of beralloy, all of ten kilometers in -diameter. About half-way from the center he could make out the landing -dock as Ganser had indicated. He could also make out the evil snouts -of Kellander projectors sprouting in clusters on Tjadlinn's metallic -surface. Even as he watched, they wheeled about ominously, coming to -bear on the decelerating _Algol_. Were they simply taking precautions, -Glayne wondered, or were they cagily waiting for him to climb right -down the barrels of their projectors? - -As he stood alone before the battle screen he suddenly felt a small -hand touch his. He looked around. It was Niala Chodred, subdued and -somewhat apprehensive. She looked up at him intently, forcing him to -meet her eyes. - -"I believe you are planning to leave me behind in the ship when you -land at Tjadlinn, aren't you?" - -Glayne winced at the slight accusation in her eyes. A sudden wave of -nervous irritation welled up in him and he was on the verge of hurling -a curse at her and driving her back to her quarters. But the tenderness -in her eyes made him feel guilty because of his hasty mood and he -relented. - -"Yes," he said. "I'm very sorry. The ship is unsafe enough as it is, -but down there--" he gestured at the image of Tjadlinn in the screen, -"--down there will be fighting and certainly many casualties." - -"But if I am present," she pointed out logically, "they will be much -less likely to suspect you of hostile intentions." - -"How do you think I would feel if you were killed down there?" Glayne -asked, avoiding her eyes. - -"How do you think I would feel if you were?" she countered. - -Glayne turned to her, about to point out another difficulty, then said -nothing. Suddenly she was in his arms and he felt his senses swim at -her touch. For a timeless instant he forgot everything but the warm, -laughing, green-eyed Niala whom he held in his arms. - - - VII - -Tjadlinn was gigantic. It rotated on its central axis once every -forty hours and completed a revolution about Jorger Sun once every -eighty-five years. The orbit was like that of a comet; at perihelion -its velocity approached seventy miles per second. Now it had begun its -journey away from the sun, swinging out into the infinite blackness of -the lonely void. - -Grimly the Guardian Captain looked at his crewmen, sturdy big-planet -men like himself. There were six of them. Glayne wondered how many -would be left when they returned--if they ever did return. He looked -at the girl and wondered if she would return. She smiled at him as the -artificial planetoid loomed hugely over their tiny landing launch. He -felt no regret that she was along--his mind ignored all such feelings -of that nature now. Instead it was concentrated to the highest degree -of receptivity, sorting and classifying the sense impressions that came -to it. - -The massive beralloy portals of the outer air-lock gaped open at them -and the launch jetted inside. Then they closed with a thunderous -_clang_ and the inner doors slid open in an oddly obsequious fashion. -They were much less ponderous than the outer doors, Glayne noted. -A moment later the launch came to rest and General Hoteh Ganser, -Chief of Delban Intelligence, stalked out of the cabin followed by -representatives of the Stellar Guardians, now allied with the Delban -Empire. - -There was a group of high-ranking Delban Army and Fleet officers -awaiting them as they stepped from the launch. They bowed ceremoniously -to Ganser, then to Glayne and his party as they were introduced. The -Guardian smiled, he bowed, he clicked his heels solemnly--but all the -time his hand was casually resting inside of the fold of his jumper on -the Cardy gun there. - -The only name Glayne remembered was that of the commander of Tjadlinn -discoid: Admiral Selzi-Narfid, Right Royal Protector of the Emperor's -Hunting Preserves. But he was not notable because of his absurd title; -rather, it was the hint of amusement that Glayne fancied he saw -flickering in the depths of his jet black eyes. - -It was Selzi-Narfid who turned to Ganser and said: "I'm sure you must -be weary after your arduous journey, Your Excellency. Won't you and -Captain Glayne and his party partake of some refreshment?" - -Glayne frowned. That was not so good. They could not afford to waste -time eating and drinking because the message craft might bring the -warning from Sterle II at any minute. Yet how could they refuse? - -Evidently this same train of thought flashed through the conditioned -intellect of General Ganser. For just an instant he paused before -saying yes, they would be delighted. - -Again Selzi-Narfid bowed and this time Glayne was positive he saw -mockery in the Tjadlinn commander's eyes. Following him, they entered a -large mono-car poised on its single, gleaming span by gyros. It started -with a jolt, picked up speed, and was presently bulleting down the -tunnel, the walls a blur on either side. To Glayne it almost seemed as -if they were moving down hill. - -"You will notice the gravity attraction increasing as we progress," -began Selzi-Narfid. "That is because we are approaching the Jewel. It -is considerably more comfortable in my quarters close to the center. On -the periphery of the discoid one has almost no weight because of the -distance from the Jewel. - -"No one knows the exact mass of the Tane Jewel. Probably around two -hundred million tons, it is thought. Naturally it is not safe to -approach too closely--the inverse square law, you know. Within a few -meters the attraction is so tremendous that we have great difficulty in -anchoring the power drain machinery. But you will see for yourself in -the Jewel Chamber." - -The mono-car sighed to a halt and Selzi-Narfid ushered them graciously -into a tapestried corridor. Glayne noticed that the gravity was just -about Terran Standard. He also noticed that Selzi-Narfid, in spite -of his flow of suave conversation, was worried. Suddenly a peculiar -sensation of _wrongness_ flared up in Glayne's mind and he knew that -his battle-trained, preternatural intuition was at work. His hand -tightened on the Cardy and his eyes flickered everywhere but could -discover nothing. - -At the wide entrance stage the Admiral held back, gesturing for Ganser, -Glayne, and the others to precede him. The small hairs on the back of -Glayne's neck arose as they entered the luxurious suite of the Tjadlinn -commander. Something was definitely very wrong. - - * * * * * - -Then sick dismay scalded up in the pit of his stomach. He saw what was -wrong. It was Gort Bro-Doral who faced them, a Cardy gun in his hand. - -Calmly the Delban Overlord fired at Ganser. The energy beam lashed into -the pseudo-Guardian, making a big, ragged hole where his belly had been. - -Glayne could do nothing more than stare helplessly. He did not even -think to resist when the room filled with armed Delbans who went about -the job of disarming them in a very silent and efficient fashion. - -"Such a pity," remarked Gort Bro-Doral, glancing down at Ganser's -charred and crumpled body. "Hoteh was my right hand, but the poor -wretch was just too thorough. His own mind-conditioning device caught -him in the end." He produced his sickly, explosive laugh and inclined -his head to one of the armed Delbans. "Take it away," he murmured. - -"How did you get here so quickly?" Glayne said, asking the question -uppermost in his mind. He was bewildered to think of the incredible -acceleration the low-gravity Delban must have undergone to have beaten -the Guardian ship. - -"Another of the wonders of the glorious Tane Jewel," replied Bro-Doral -with amused condescension. "Theoretically it was always possible to -project material bodies into sub-space directly from planetary mass in -the same way that the immaterial waves of an interstellar telephone -message are cast directly into sub-space. Heretofore, however, there -has never been sufficient power to form a shield around the material -object strong enough to prevent its being completely crushed by the -brutal space warp in the presence of mass. That difficulty vanishes -when one has the unlimited power of the Tane Jewel at his disposal." - -Glayne understood. Ganser, who had meticulously avoided all technical -knowledge, did not know this. Consequently they had walked straight -into a trap. Glayne's shoulders sagged as he looked around, savouring -the taste of defeat. Tough old Graysen stood at his side, impotently -balling his fists. His carefully picked crewmen were behind him, arms -above their heads. They looked grim and ready for anything. But Niala... - -Glayne fought down the painful lump in his throat. It made no -difference. They had the _Algol_, too. So it mattered not at all -whether she came along or stayed behind, he told himself. They had -only one thing to look forward to--and that would be unpleasant. -Surreptitiously he touched the massive ring on his hand. It contained a -single blaster charge. Shakily he resolved to use it on Niala when it -came to that. - -Bro-Doral whinnied. "I have your day planned for you, Captain," he -said. "I have often been accused of lacking a sense of justice, but -you will see for yourself that such a charge wrongs me. Your men will -be executed as humanly as possible. You and the esteemed Graysen will -be given a chance to witness the destruction of your ship. And then--" -the Delban snickered, "--the Vibra-Death! The girl ... I'm not sure. -Yes, it will take some thought. But you may be sure that it will be -interesting." - -Bro-Doral's sadism was too much for Glayne. With a snarl of animal -hatred he leaped at the Delban Overlord, brushing aside his Cardy gun -and reaching for his throat. The force of his lunge carried them back -a few steps and the Bro tripped. Glayne, blazing with blind rage, -lifted his foot to crush the Bro like a worm. At that instant a cold -beam lanced into his back. Its icy fingers played along his spine and -paralyzed him with numbness. Helplessly his arms fell to his sides and -two of the armed Delbans came up behind him, supporting him to prevent -his falling. - -Gort Bro-Doral clambered up from the floor. His heavily-veined eyes -were red with insane ferocity. He thrust his contorted face close to -Glayne's own and said: "Guardian, you will now be extended another -privilege. You will be permitted to see the girl writhing in the -agonies of the Vibra-Death!" - -Bro-Doral turned to one of his men. "Take those crewmen away--execute -them," he said. "Keep the girl here under guard while I show the two -officers around." - -Glayne was horrified at the fruits of his unthinking attack on the -Bro. It was almost as if he himself had pulled the switch which would -subject Niala to the most infamous nerve torture ever devised. Dully he -realized that he could not even lift his hand to administer a merciful -death with the clean, fast energy beam of his ring. - -"The paralysis will wear off in a minute or two, Captain," observed -Bro-Doral. He had completely regained his self-control. "Since you -have exerted so much useless effort to destroy our Tane Jewel, I think -you ought at least be permitted to see it. But after that--" he sighed -expressively, "--after that, we will procrastinate no longer." - -Even before the effects of the cold-beam had worn off completely, -Bro-Doral nodded to his men and they took him by the arms and escorted -him from the room. In despair, Glayne tried to jerk his head around to -see the girl. For the briefest of instants he saw her smiling bravely -at him. Then his view was cut off by the door as the guards maneuvered -his still half-paralyzed frame around it. - -In a couple of moments Glayne was able to move under his own power. -He turned to find Graysen staring anxiously at him, alert for the -slightest command. Glayne nodded imperceptibly and examined the guards. -There were six of them. He noticed wryly that they held cold-beam -weapons in their long-fingered fists while the ones that really -produced the fatal damage--the Cardys--hung in holsters at their sides. -Trust them not to risk killing their prisoners when so many more -delightful methods presented themselves, he thought bitterly. - - * * * * * - -As he and Graysen were led side-by-side down a maze of corridors, their -weight gradually increased. Along with it was the sensation of going -down hill. Glayne's mind operated rapidly and with cold precision but -the Delbans showed not the slightest weakness. Not even the increase in -gravity seemed to annoy them. Nevertheless, Glayne resolved, he would -risk everything on a sudden attack when they got as close to the Jewel -as possible. There the conditions would be ideal for him. With eyes -narrowed, he tried desperately to remember the turns they had taken -through the winding corridors of the beralloy discoid. - -As they progressed Glayne saw the tough, all-metal walls were more -heavily buttressed with the massive beralloy supports. Selzi-Narfid saw -the direction of his glance and said, "Those were necessary when we -maneuvered the Jewel into the center of the discoid. You have no idea -of what such a tremendous mass in a body the size of the Jewel can do -when it is not balanced." - -Glayne listened to the Admiral with just a part of his mind. His main -attention was devoted to photographing mentally the warren of passages. -Here and there he saw groups of Delban technicians, none of them armed. - -Good, thought Glayne. - -They reached the entrance stage of the Jewel Chamber. The beralloy -walls here were nearly a meter thick. In single file the party crawled -through the narrow opening that dilated ponderously in the entrance -stage. Two very weary-looking guards snapped to attention as they -passed, but almost immediately slumped back into their somnolent -positions, exhausted by their abnormally increased weight. - -Better yet, thought Glayne. - -"This is the Jewel Chamber, Captain. It is the very heart of Tjadlinn," -puffed Selzi-Narfid after he had crawled through the dilated entrance -stage. - -Glayne stared about the vaulted room curiously. It was shaped like the -inside of an oval, thick at the center but tapering off to nothing at -the sides. They were standing on a balcony which was heavily buttressed -and ran all the way around the Chamber past several other massive -portals. In the exact center of the Chamber a kind of a nest was formed -by the tremendously thick beralloy girders. Something burned there with -a cold, golden brilliance that filtered through the interstices of the -girders and etched them sharply in banded shadows about the heavy walls. - -An uncanny sensation possessed Glayne as he gazed at the Jewel. A vague -dread passed over him and he found himself wondering if the Elder Tane -Gods would emerge from their crypt and wreak hideous vengeance on mere -mortals for disturbing their sleep. Uneasily he crushed the fantasy -that was rioting up in his mind and determined to look for something -more practical. - -He concentrated on the power drain machinery which hung in clusters -from the massive girders. Obviously those mechanisms were far more -delicate than their supports and could be sabotaged with comparatively -little work. As he calculated he gradually became aware of Bro-Doral -who was speaking: - -"--were remarkable creatures. As you know, Tane legends exist in every -part of the known galaxy. They even possessed immortality--but they -lost it for all practical purposes when they failed to adjust their -bodies to the expanding universe. - -"While the universe expands, quanta emission frequencies remain -constant. You are familiar, of course, with the shift in the wave -length of the cadmium spectrum, taken over the centuries. Ages ago, -emission frequencies were so long, relatively speaking, that energy -liberation from protein organisms was impossible. That definitely rules -out protein construction for the Tane--but just what they were composed -of is unknown. At any rate, their bodies couldn't stand the shortened -emission frequencies which overloaded their muscles. They exploded. -Like a plague. Billions and billions of them must have died before they -discovered the answer to the strange death that was striking among -them. And billions more must have died before their marvelous science -was able to build the Second Universe, as the legends call it." - -Gort Bro-Doral gestured at the Jewel which shed its cold, brilliant -light about the Chamber. - -"They enclosed themselves in that tiny ovoid crypt you see there," he -went on. "That was countless ages ago. Somehow they had managed to -construct shields capable of withstanding the spatial expansion of the -universe. Who knows--they may still live in their static crypt? - -"As millions and millions of years passed, the Tane Jewel--the Second -Universe, as the legends call it--slowly dwindled in size when -considered in relation to our own universe. As it dwindled, its energy -potential grew. Now its accumulated charge is so titanic that it defies -conception. - -"Some day those beautiful engines of the Tane Gods would have run down -and the shield would have collapsed. Then our own universe would have -been destroyed. The sudden release of such a vast energy potential -would have caused a concussion which would literally warp our flat -space into the fourth-dimensional sub-space. - -"Now that can't happen. We are draining off that infinite potential -and broadcasting it--flooding it--through sub-space to be received -everywhere there is a Delban receiving antenna. The power is limitless. -We Delbans will be the rulers of the universe just as the Tane Gods -were of old. There is no limit to our power!" - -Bro-Doral's eyes blazed with a pure lust for power as he stared -exultantly at the green brilliance of the Tane Jewel. His mouth -was slack and he breathed heavily from the effort of his speech. -Selzi-Narfid, too, was tired. Wearily he rested against the support -rail of the balcony. The guards blinked their large pop-eyes from -fatigue, shuffling from one foot to another to promote circulation. -Most of them had placed their weapons in holsters as Bro-Doral talked. -That is, all except one. He still held his weapon loosely in his -fingers at his side. Slowly and gently Glayne poised, gathering his -strength. - -"Isn't it beautiful, Glayne?" mused the Delban Overlord, staring into -the tiny radiant sun. "An artifact of the mightiest culture that ever -existed. Now we will carry on in their footsteps. We will be the -mightiest--" - - - VIII - -Then Glayne leaped. With one flailing fist he caught the Delban guard -on his bony jaw and with the other he snatched the cold-beam gun from -his limp fingers. Whirling, he played it among the stupefied guards. -Then old Graysen exploded into action, seizing Selzi-Narfid and hurling -him bodily at Bro-Doral who was in the act of bringing up his Cardy -gun. Three of the guards had collapsed and another was crumpling on his -knees under Glayne's cold-beam. The other two had crouched back in the -shadows of the entrance portal, trying to bring their weapons to bear -upon Glayne. - -Graysen whirled and lunged at them, smashing one down with a single -blow. The last guard on his feet, surprised and dismayed by this attack -from the rear, fled to the portal and tried to dilate it. But he was -too late and sagged in a heap under Glayne's hand weapon. - -Scooping up two of the Cardy guns which had fallen to the balcony -floor, Glayne shouted: "Pick up an energy gun, Graysen. Cut down the -power drain machinery." - -Graysen reached for an energy gun in the holster of one of the -paralyzed guards. He never even saw Gort Bro-Doral scramble to his feet -and fire point blank. His head disappeared as the Delban's beam struck -full force. Glayne fired back wildly but he was off balance and missed. -Before he could collect himself to fire again, Bro-Doral had fled to -another stage and darted through the dilation. - -Glayne whirled toward the Delbans. Selzi-Narfid had a broken neck and -was obviously dead. The guards were all unconscious and would remain so -for a long time. - -Glayne turned back to the Jewel which cast its chill, gold light -steadily through the interstices of the surrounding girders. Calmly -he leveled the Cardy gun and fired at it. As if it were so much water, -the deadly little energy beam washed off the Tane Jewel and fused with -the beralloy supports. It was as he had expected. Given several hours, -the little hand weapon might have made an impression on the incredibly -tough beralloy but Glayne had no time to lose. - -As he had seen before, the power drain machinery which hung in clusters -from the big beams and transmitted the energy through the heavy busbars -looked to be the most fragile. Glayne wondered what would happen if he -fired into them. There was only one way to find out. The muscles of his -jaw hardened as he depressed the firing stud on the Cardy. - -Nothing happened. He let the beam of his energy gun play up and down -the clusters of power drains, fusing them into slag. Now the thin, -invisible rays of power which the drains extracted from the Jewel no -longer existed since they had no place to go. But nothing happened. - -Then it occurred to him that nothing would happen in the Jewel Chamber -itself. It needed no power for lights--the Jewel provided all the light -needed. Heartened, Glayne blasted at every drain in reach, following -the balcony around the Chamber. - -But even this method, he realized, would take too long. Gort Bro-Doral -would soon have squads of men hurrying into the Chamber after him. -Grimly he wished he had an energy bomb. With one of those he could -finish the job in a few seconds. - -Suddenly he remembered an old Guardian trick. Hurriedly he began to -tinker with one of the Cardy guns. By jamming a couple of the safety -gadgets, it was possible to make the weapon fire out of phase. When the -trigger stud was depressed, its tiny miatron coils would build up an -unstable load in a couple of seconds, then explode. Quickly he fixed -the weapon to his satisfaction, then hurried on around the balcony to -find a suitable opening in the girders through which to hurl the ersatz -bomb. - -Halfway around, he met two panic-stricken Delban technicians. The -instant they saw him they turned tail and ran back through the portal. -Obviously _something_ must be happening, Glayne thought with grim -satisfaction. Then he found a good spot, pressed the firing stud of -the doctored Cardy gun, then flung it with all his strength into the -remaining power drains. In an instant he had pivoted and lunged for the -port of the entrance stage behind him, feeling in the shadow for its -dilator stud. - -It refused to open! - -Obviously Glayne himself had sabotaged its power circuit. Now he was -trapped in the Chamber and the ersatz bomb was about to explode. -Tensely he crouched as far back in the recess of the port as he could -and waited. With a terrific roar the bomb exploded in the confined -Chamber, rupturing the membranes of his nose and crushing him violently -against the port. Parts of the devastated power drains were hurled -against the massive walls, then fell back to the Jewel. One of the -heavy busbars had collapsed, ripping festoons of cables from the top of -the Chamber which shorted violently against one another. - -Dazed, Glayne pulled himself to his feet. Fortunately he had broken -no bones. But one of his ear drums was ruptured and his nose bled -unremittingly. He had lost his other Cardy. Hurriedly he felt about, -found it, and thrust it into the fold of his tattered jumper. - -He turned back to the port and found that the concussion had dilated -it for him. Breathing heavily, he crawled through it into the inky -blackness of the passages. On all sides he heard the sound of running -footsteps. By touch he staggered into the blackness, realizing that he -must keep going uphill, away from the Jewel's attraction. - -The exertion cleared his head a bit. He knew he was lost, but he hoped -to be able to find his way back to Selzi-Narfid's quarters. There he -would find Niala and be oriented with the rest of the discoid. - -Figures bumped into him in the blackness, hurrying to the scene of -destruction. The Delbans were badly disorganized. Obviously they had -not been prepared to cope with such devastation wreaked on their sacred -Jewel. Not even to the extent of auxiliary power for lights, he -thought as he panted up the black passages. - - * * * * * - -Even as he thought about it, the lights began to flicker weakly in -their fluorescent tubes, growing stronger with each passing second. -Startled, Glayne crouched back in the shadow of a recess in the wall. -That was Luck in all her perversity, he thought grimly. His hand sought -the butt of the blaster in his jumper. Fortunately the lights did not -wax as brightly as they had when the Jewel was still functioning, but -that did not offer much consolation. He would be recognized instantly -by the outline of his thick-chested body if he was seen in the corridor. - -He noticed that fewer Delbans were passing. He decided to chance it. -Tightly grasping the gun in his jumper, he crept from his hiding place -and ran on the balls of his feet, dodging and ducking into shadows -every time one of the enemy passed. Once he was seen and pursued by -a squad of Delban guards. Breathlessly he ran at full tilt through a -cross-corridor, up a flight of high steps, and twisted into another of -the endless passages of the discoid. - -The pull of the Jewel had become very slight. In fact it was much -slighter than it had been in Selzi-Narfid's suite. Glayne pushed on, -realizing that he was hopelessly lost. His only chance now was to -find the mono-rail on which they had ridden from the landing dock -to the Tjadlinn commander's suite. It occurred to him that even if -he did find Niala, they might never escape Tjadlinn. And it was -absolutely imperative that he make contact with Garstow at Scone III. -The slightest delay on the part of the Stellar Guardian Admiral in -attacking the Karkara Station might give the Delbans the precious time -they needed to repair the damage he had effected. - -There were two entrance stages, one on either side, in the corridor -through which he was hurrying. He tried one and found it was locked. -He was more fortunate with the other. It creaked open slowly when he -flipped the dilator stud. Tensely, hand on the Cardy gun in his jumper, -he crept through the port. - -It was the landing dock! - -Glayne's heart jumped with delight as he crouched back in a shadow and -examined the place. Not a hundred meters away was the launch which had -brought his party from the _Algol_. His eyes drank it in avidly and a -plan for escape formed rapidly in his mind. A message craft of some -sort was preparing to leave, he saw. As soon as the inner lock door -closed behind it, he would smash the launch through it and the air -pressure would fling him out of the discoid. How very simple! - -Then the impact of the realization that he would have to leave Niala -Chodred behind struck him. He was stunned by its very violence. - -Leave Niala? Abandon her to Gort Bro-Doral and his sadistic vengeance -for the sabotage Glayne himself had performed? No! That was out of the -question. But what of the Terran Combine? What did the life of Citizen -Niala Chodred mean against the lives of the trillions who made up that -Combine to which she had sworn allegiance? Viewed in that light, it -was obvious that the life of one person was a cheap price to pay for -security of the Combine against the Tane Jewel. - -Glayne crouched in the shadow and buried his face in his hands. In -an agony of indecision he prodded his weary mind to discover an -alternative to the horrible dilemma. But he could find none. He would -have to decide between Niala, the laughing, green-eyed Niala, and the -ideal of human progress which he had sworn the Guardian Oath to protect. - -Dully he realized that the power of the abstract was too strong. He -would forsake Niala. The pain redoubled itself as he made his decision -but he set his face in a granite-mask against it. Unfortunately it was -not so easy to quell the agony that burned within him. - -Grimly he stood up. He saw that the time had come for action. The -message craft was slowly jetting down the cinder blastway toward the -lock door. Glayne tensed for an instant, then raced for the launch, -covering ten meters at a stride in the light gravity. Three Delban -mechanics caught sight of him as he rounded the stubby fins and leaped -for the lock. In mid-stride he whipped out his Cardy gun and brought -them down in charred heaps. - -A guard squad saw him and fired. Their beams sang dangerously close, -smashing into the beralloy side of the launch. They crunched down the -blastway in pursuit as Glayne jumped through the open lock, slammed it -shut, and darted to the controls. The atomic driver engine coughed and -surged into life. He let it scream up beyond audibility, then fed power -to the jets. The blast washed over the guards who were closest to the -launch and the others fell back hastily before its searing heat. - -The inner lock of the entrance port had slid shut behind the message -craft. It was now or never, Glayne realized. He opened the atomic -driver wide and the stubby launch shuddered for an instant, then lunged -for the lock. The sudden thrust created constricting hands about -Glayne's chest and he fought precariously on the edge of blacking out. -For a brief instant Glayne was aware of the huge outer doors swinging -shut before him--and then the air pressure struck them and flung the -launch bodily through the narrow space left between them. - -The launch tumbled crazily end-over-end until Glayne straightened it -out and oriented himself with Tjadlinn and Jorger Sun. He had just -sighted the tiny gleaming speck of the _Algol_ a dozen kilometers -distant when something struck the launch a terrific blow. Almost -instantly the tell-tales indicated air was escaping. Dismayed, Glayne -shot a glance over his shoulder at the receding discoid. He discovered -that they were firing at him with the secondary Kellander batteries, -using auxiliaries to power the miatrons. Feverishly he changed course, -zig-zagging wildly away from the discoid. - -Due to over confidence, the Delbans had not destroyed the _Algol_ -immediately. They preferred to play cat and mouse. And now, with the -titanic energies of the Jewel no longer available to them, they could -not destroy the _Algol_. - -The Kellander energy beams slashed dangerously close to the fleeing -launch. Not in salvos but by ones and twos. That meant that their -fire control was badly disorganized--and it was that fact which saved -Glayne. Harbin had raised the _Algol's_ anti-shield when the Delbans -had commenced firing but he had not turned tail as Glayne had ordered, -realizing that the launch was fleeing in his direction. - -Glayne flipped the stud of the shield-nullifier that was matched to the -frequency of the _Algol's_ anti-shield and darted the launch through -it, braking with eye-searing blasts of the forward jets as the huge -Reception Deck locks yawned open. With a heavy lurch, his battered -craft came to rest inside the lip of the gaping outer doors. - - - IX - -The _Algol's_ officers formed a silent group beneath the huge glassene -dome of the navigation bridge. They looked expectantly at Glayne as the -elevator port dilated and he approached them, weary and unshaven, his -face covered with blood. - -Ignoring their unspoken questions, Glayne said brusquely, glancing at -the navigation chrono, "Lieutenant Harbin: Compute an orbit for Scone -III. Get the ship under way immediately ... drop into sub-space at -three ten to the seventh kilos from Jorger Sun. Thrust--eight G's." - -He was about to turn on his heel when Harbin's hesitant voice stopped -him. - -"Sir ... what ... what about Commander Graysen and the others?" - -Glayne stared at the youngster bleakly. "Graysen is dead," he said with -a flat voice. "So is Ganser. And I presume that our escort has been -executed." - -Harbin's youthful jaw tightened. "And Lieutenant Chodred?" - -The lines about Glayne's mouth deepened. He let his gaze travel over -Harbin's troubled face and the impassive faces of the rest of the -ship's officers. He saw accusation in their eyes along with resentment -and veiled hostility. He knew what they were thinking. Why should he be -the only one to return. Why had he abandoned the others? And now they -wanted to know what had happened to the girl. So he told them. - -"She is still alive." Bitterly he wondered why Fate had designated her -to be the only one left to face Gort Bro-Doral's vengeance. He looked -up again at the silent cluster of officers. "If your curiosity is -satisfied, gentlemen, suppose we get on with the war?" - -"If Tjadlinn is without Jewel power," persisted Harbin stubbornly, "why -can't we attack? We might be able to rescue Lieutenant Chodred. It's -the least we could do--" - -"Follow my orders!" Glayne cut in savagely. He turned on his heel and -mounted to his shock seat in the Captain's Station. Yes, he thought -bitterly, they could attack Tjadlinn, incur heavy damage on the -discoid--perhaps even accomplish a miraculous rescue of Niala. But -weighed against that was the possibility that the _Algol_ might be -heavily damaged or destroyed by the highly potent secondary Kellanders -of the discoid. Unless he got through to Garstow, the conservative -Grand Admiral of the Stellar Guardians was likely to delay his attack -on Karkara--and such a delay would be suicidal. - -Gradually a floor began to build under his feet and the _Algol_ got -under way. As the thrust increased, the discoid began to shrink -in the distance. Glayne stared at its image grimly in the battle -screen. He didn't say farewell because he knew he would be back. He -rubbed his bristly cheek. He saw success now. He felt it on the tips -of his clutching fingers. But something else was beyond his grasp -now--something that made success dry and unpalatable. He covered his -eyes with his hand as the thought stabbed him: The laughing, green-eyed -Niala.... - - * * * * * - -The Stellar Guardian fleet lay motionless across forty thousand -kilometers of space when the _Algol_ reached the rendezvous at Scone -III. Admiral Garstow's anxious face formed rapidly in the featureless -grey surface of Glayne's ship-to-ship communicator screen. - -"Give me a fast, verbal report on the Jewel, Glayne," ordered the -Admiral. - -The Guardian Captain complied, rapidly sketching the main details of -his sabotage and providing a rough outline of the Delban defense of -the discoid. - -When he finished, Garstow nodded thoughtfully. "Do you think it -advisable to risk an immediate attack on the discoid on the chance that -we can knock it out before they repair the power drains?" - -Glayne frowned, then said, "No. It's too long a chance. They will mass -their fleet at Tjadlinn immediately. Under normal circumstances we -could lick them, but if they repair that Jewel faster than I expect, -then we'll be sitting ducks." - -Garstow nodded again. "Lieutenant Brodis informed me of the plan you -had in mind of attacking the Karkara Fleet Station on Scone III and -thereby acquiring the Jewel power-receiving antennae. On the whole, I -think that is the shrewder move. Since you've managed this show up to -now, Captain, I think you might as well organize the attack." - -"Thank you, sir," Glayne replied. "I'll take my own cruiser division in -first to clear away what little resistance they'll put up. That will -be the simplest part about it. The real difficulty will come when we -install the antennae. As Brodis probably told you, we were unable to -get any technical information from General Ganser." - -Garstow rubbed his fleshy nose thoughtfully, then said, "It's in your -hands, Captain." Then he cut out. - -Rapidly Glayne organized the attack, placing his own cruiser division -at the point of the spearhead. Smoothly the Stellar Guardian striking -force flashed down on Scone III. As Glayne had anticipated, their -sudden assault was little more than an armed landing. The Delbans were -caught completely off guard. They put up a fanatical resistance with -the auxiliary-powered Kellander secondary batteries, but the superior -weight of Glayne's miatron blasters soon crushed every last shred of -opposition. - -As soon as the _Algol_ had jetted down on the immense space-port of -the Karkara Fleet Station, a group of technicians in addition to the -landing party raced off to confiscate an antennae unit for the big -ship. Glayne set up an operations unit in the glassene dome of the -_Algol_ to assign landing patterns to the other Guardian fleet units. -The heaviest Cluster and Galactic class warships he assigned to fast -orbits about Scone to defend the ships which had already landed. - -After he saw that landing operations were proceeding smoothly he -descended to the engine room of the _Algol_ to see how the installation -of the antenna was progressing. Massive cables snaked across the deck -in confusions, waiting to be hooked into the heavy buses which the -technicians were jockeying into place. Outside on the hull, gangs -of men were welding in the mesh antenna. Fuming, he looked at his -wrist-chrono repeatedly. - -"How much longer?" he asked Harbin impatiently. - -"Thirty minutes at the most, sir," replied Harbin stiffly, refusing to -meet Glayne's eyes. - -Glayne rubbed his bristly cheek thoughtfully as he turned away. The -young officer was determined to give him the silent treatment along -with the rest of the officers in his crew. Word would spread; soon the -whole fleet would hear of his cowardly negligence. He smiled thinly as -he made his way back up to the navigation bridge. He had seen it happen -before. There were just two ways to escape it. One was retirement. The -other involved a Cardy gun placed at the temple.... - -The red light of his personal communicator was blinking intermittently -when he regained the bridge. It was Garstow. - -"Glayne!" he barked abruptly, "Bardled is on his way in with the fleet -of Imperial Terra. And a dozen other Sectors have massed their fleets -and are on the way, too." - -"Excellent," said Glayne. "We're working faster now. We've put the -Delban technicians to work and repaired the damage to their assembly -lines. We ought to be able to handle a thousand ships an hour. How long -before Bardled will arrive?" - -"Four hours ... maybe six." - -"I'm lifting in a few minutes," Glayne said. "When Bardled arrives, -install the units in his heavy ships first. Those tubs will smash the -Tjadlinn anti-shield if anything will." - -Rapidly Glayne went on to sketch his plan of attack. When he finished, -Garstow nodded ponderously. "Then we will sub-space as soon as we pick -up the power broadcast. A sound strategy, Captain. Good luck!" His -face faded from the screen. - - * * * * * - -The first of the big Cluster class battleships were easing down on vast -fingers of flame when Harbin reported that the work of installation -was complete. In quick succession the other cruisers of his division -reported readiness and he gave the command to blast off. - -The _Algol_ was almost two hundred million kilos below Scone System's -plane of ecliptic when the hastily installed antenna unit began to -pick up the first surges of power from the Tane Jewel. Cautiously the -_Algol's_ pilot experimented with it, accustoming himself to unlimited -power at his finger tips. One by one, the ship's atomic drivers fell -silent as the pilot gained confidence. - -"Raise the anti-shield, Lieutenant Harbin," Glayne said crisply over -his inter-ship phone. "We'll sub-space right now." - -Harbin's image stared at him incredulously from the communicator screen -for an instant but he fought down the words that trembled on his lips. - -"Aye, sir," he snapped. - -Glayne was grimly amused at his anxiety but said nothing to relieve it. -They were dangerously close to mass, he knew, but if Gort Bro-Doral -could blast into sub-space directly from Sterle II with a shield -supported by Jewel power, then he ought to be able to get away with it -at two hundred million kilos from mass. - -Briefly Glayne communicated his intent to the commanders of the thirty -other cruisers in his division and their anti-shields began to build. -At his curt command they dropped smoothly into sub-space, their shield -generators heating up slightly as the sudden strain hit them. - -They plunged on through sub-space, building up to incredible velocities -in that nether dimension where such commonplace things as mass and -light did not exist. Glayne's mind worked rapidly, analyzing his plan -of battle for any defects. Obviously the enemy would mass his fleet -at the all-important Tjadlinn. If his calculations were correct, his -cruiser division would pop into normal space right among them. If they -struck fast enough, they could disorganize the Delbans sufficiently for -Garstow and Bardled to get in among them with the heavy units of their -fleets. And that, he knew, would be the end of the Delban Grand Fleet. - -The discoid was another matter. Paradoxically, it contained within it -the very source of the power which they would use to destroy it. The -only possible way the Delbans could deprive them of the Jewel power -would be to turn off the non-directional broadcast entirely. That, -however, would leave them open to an attack by the regular miatron -batteries of the heavy Guardian and Terran battleships. They could -not possibly hope to beat off such an attack with their Kellander -secondaries. Hence, Glayne reasoned, they would keep up the power -broadcast at all costs. - -Satisfied with his plan, Glayne let his mind relax and drift where it -wanted. Abruptly it turned to thoughts of Niala Chodred and he winced -at the pain which filled him. Grimly, he realized that if the silent -treatment by his fellow officers failed to ruin him, the bitter acid of -remorse which burned his soul would certainly accomplish the job. - - - X - -One instant the fleet of the Delban Empire was assembling about the -vital Tjadlinn discoid in an orderly fashion. An instant later all hell -broke loose amid its massed ranks. - -Glayne's cruiser division popped out of sub-space at two hundred -kilometers per second and flailed through the Delbans like a giant -scythe. His eyes glued to the small battle screen in front of him, -Glayne clipped off rapid commands over the ship-to-ship communicator -that kept him in touch with the rest of his group. - -Three Delban warships--one a battle-ship--had been caught with their -shields down and were now exploding enthusiastically in nova-fashion. A -dozen others had been heavily damaged by the slashing miatron beams as -they vainly sought to lift their shields. - -The _Algol_ screamed in protest as the pilot flung her around to bore -in again. Her armored hide seemed to crawl in squealing agony at the -twenty G turn. Glayne panted, on the verge of blacking out. Dimly he -glimpsed the strained features of the pilot wracked with spasms of -coughing that flung lobs of blood and lung tissue against the terraced -banks of instruments at his side.... - -Then they were among the Delbans again, slashing right and left with -Kellander miatron beams. This time the Delbans were ready for them and -replied with a vengeance. Torrents of energy smashed at the _Algol's_ -shield which shuddered like a live thing under the impact. Behind -Glayne a knot of sweating gunnery officers rattled off firing data to -waiting Kellander crews before the mammoth battle screen. Somewhere -in the bowels of the ship the accumulators were screaming as they fed -the Jewel energies from the antenna to the smoking banks of shield -generators and the ravenous Kellander condensers. But dominating the -ear-splitting crescendo of the _Algol_ in full fighting stride was the -continuous, ravening thunder of Kellander projectors as they flung -their blasts at the Delban warships. - -Glayne saw that his division had scattered widely--but, at the same -time, the disorganization of the Delbans was even more evident. Unaware -that the sudden attack was a feint to draw them away from Tjadlinn, a -dozen Delban fleet divisions abandoned the Jewel to join the fray. - -As the Guardian Captain scanned the screen, he saw that the tide was -fast running in favor of the Delbans. The _Anza_ was finished for the -day. A flotilla of swift Delban destroyers had darted in with mines and -torpedoes, one of which had gotten through her shield and exploded with -a devastating energy concussion against her stern, sheering off plates -and jet tubes by it force. The _Altor_ and _Astrid_ were cornered by -a dozen Delban Galactics and Clusters and their shields coruscated -in brilliant hues as they trembled on the point of collapse. A third -Guardian ship, the _Aesir_, blasted in to offer aid and even as Glayne -watched, hurled her energies in a concerted salvo at a point just -below the jets of one of the Delban Clusters. Its shield coruscated -brilliantly, tottered, and suddenly it was strewing its guts, -nova-fashion. Almost immediately the _Aesir_ followed her example as a -salvo of Galactic beams struck her amidships, rupturing her shield. A -torpedo ripped into the bridge of the _Astrid_ and she exploded in an -eye-searing nova. The _Altor_ managed to limp away in the confusion, -her beralloy hide mangled and torn from a near miss. - -The _Algol_ herself was in trouble. Two Delban Stellars were hurling -torrents of energy at her shield, making it coruscate in a blaze of -overloaded power foci. A pack of destroyers was circling hungrily, -looking for a chance to dart in and plant their seeds of destruction. -The pilot maneuvered desperately, but the overloaded power lines could -not shunt sufficient power through the drivers to pull them out of -their difficulty. - -Glayne swore, wondering where the rest of the fleet was. It couldn't -go on much longer. The _Akkad_ had novaed; the _Ashlar_ and _Asgard_ -had disappeared without leaving a trace. Only six of his original -thirty were in fighting shape--and even as he watched he had to revise -it to five. The _Atlas_, surrounded by a dozen enemies, exploded in -nova-fashion as her shield collapsed. - -And then the void was suddenly full of great warships bearing the -Guardian and Terran insignia, appearing magically in the midst of the -Delbans. What had appeared to be triumph suddenly turned into a rout -for the Delbans. Badly disorganized, they attempted to flee back to the -safety of the mighty Kellander projectors of Tjadlinn. - - * * * * * - -But Glayne's annihilated cruiser division had done its work well; the -Delbans, drawn too far from the discoid, were cut off by the fleets -that opposed them. They fought desperately and fanatically, but -there was only one possible outcome. One after another they exploded -nova-fashion as the massed salvos of the tremendous Terran and Guardian -battle ships swept aside their shields and touched destructive fingers -to their beralloy sides. - -Glayne's ship-to-ship suddenly crackled into life and Garstow's heavy -face appeared on the screen. "My boy," he boomed, "I'm proud of you. -Excellent work! We've bagged them all at almost no cost. Bardled tells -me he didn't lose a ship." - -Glayne gazed stupidly at him for a moment before he could adjust -himself to the idea of victory. Then he said quietly: "I have five -ships left out of a command of thirty." - -"Oh! ... that's too bad," mumbled Garstow, his broad face becoming -serious. "What I mean to say is--" - -"The chaplain will say what needs to be said," Glayne cut in with -unnecessary bitterness. "If you still want me to run this show, then I -submit that we attack Tjadlinn without delay." - -Admiral Garstow nodded, his face like a deflated balloon. - -Quickly Glayne outlined his plan for the assault on the discoid -itself. The battle would be fought between the Kellander accumulator -and condenser capacity of the massed fleets and the total generator -capacity of the mighty anti-shield which the Delbans would raise from -the discoid. If the Delban shield capacity was less than the massed -strength of the fleet, then the discoid would be destroyed. But if the -Delbans held them off, they would try something else. - -It took several hours to assemble the scattered and highly numerous -Terran and Guardian warships into a closely-integrated formation. -Matters were not helped by the appearance of dozens of warships from -the fleets of other Sectors. They roamed about searching for enemy -stragglers, but succeeded only in getting in the way. Finally, however, -Glayne got them organized and the enormous fleet moved ponderously on -Tjadlinn. - -The Delbans waited behind their featureless grey shield, not firing -a single Kellander blast at the advancing fleet. When it reached to -within fifty kilometers of the discoid, Glayne gave the order to -commence fire. - -In the center of the huge discoid the Jewel, the Second Universe of -the Elder Tane, blazed with a chill, golden luminescence. It did not -waver a fraction as the tremendous energy demands struck it. The power -drains fed voraciously of its infinite energies and flooded them into -sub-space. The cumbersome mesh antennae on the hulls of the numberless -ships in the massed fleet gulped it up and transmitted it to screaming -accumulators which in turn fed it to the ravenous Kellander condensers. -They, in turn, cast it through the miatron projectors at the shield of -Tjadlinn from whence it had emerged. - -For minutes on end those titanic torrents of energy blasted at that -phenomenal shield. But it held. The inconceivable energies could not -crack it. Not even when every single accumulator and condenser in the -massed fleets of the Terran Combine labored at peak capacity did the -shield so much as tremble. Not even to the extent of a tiny spider web -of coruscation along the power foci. - -Glayne barked a command to cease fire. He saw that the hail of -torpedoes and mines which they had strewn had penetrated the shield. -But they had been detonated by roving beams from the Tjadlinn -secondaries before they could strike the surface of the discoid. If -they could get through that mighty barrier, Glayne reasoned, then so -could the _Algol_. He peered into the battle screen, attempting to -locate the mammoth landing dock of the discoid through its shimmering -grey shield. - -He made his decision. Garstow's face came to life on his communicator -screen. Briefly he communicated his intention to the Guardian leader. -When he had finished, Garstow nodded soberly and mumbled farewell. - -When he learned that the _Algol's_ Kellander batteries had been rigged -to fire by remote control from the pilot's seat, Glayne contacted -Harbin. - -"Abandon ship!" he ordered laconically when the youngster's face filled -the screen. - -"Wha--what?" blurted Harbin incredulously. - -"I said," Glayne repeated curtly, "abandon ship. Make haste!" - -"Aye, sir," said Harbin. His face still mirrored astonishment as it -faded from the screen. - - - XI - -Glayne sat alone in the pilot's massive shock seat of the _Algol_. The -instruments rose about him on all sides in terraced banks with the -battle screen directly in front of his eyes. Tentatively he reached for -the firing studs, accustoming his fingers to their shape. When he saw -that the last of the _Algol's_ lifeboats had been picked up he realized -that the time had come. - -He transferred his gaze to the discoid that was vague and indistinct -beneath its anti-energy shield. Fastening his eyes to the armored outer -lock doors of the landing dock, he gently fed power to the drivers. The -_Algol_ shuddered and gradually picked up speed. Glayne dropped the -anti-shield, realizing that he would never get through the barrier with -the energized shield functioning. But once he was through, it would -have to go up quickly or his ship would be shattered by the roving -secondaries. Hand hovering tensely over the shield control, he guided -the ship toward the landing dock. - -His speed increased; at twenty kilometers he was streaking -toward the discoid in a free fall, all energy sources quiet. -Fifteen--ten--five--and the _Algol_ was boring through the energy -barrier, stormed and buffeted as it sought to impede the passage of -the individual circuits. Suddenly she emerged _inside_ the shield and -Tjadlinn was rushing upwards. - -Like lightning Glayne's fingers stabbed at the shield control and fed -power to the drivers. He braked the ship crazily to avoid the lashing -secondary beams that reached hungrily for him. Once ... twice--and yet -a third time the Kellander beams found the cruiser and slashed through -her half-formed shield, dealing terrific blows to the plummeting ship. - -Then the massive beralloy doors of the landing stage were expanding -hugely in his screen and he braked with all the power he could shunt -into the straining drivers. Somehow his clutching fingers found the -Kellander firing studs and he lashed out repeatedly against the outer -lock. It whitened, ran into slag, crusted, and flared again and again -as the ravening bolts struck it. Desperately Glayne fought to prevent -blackness encroaching on the corners of his vision. - -Suddenly a rending, thundering roar filled the _Algol_ and she was -crashing headlong through the weakened beralloy doors of the landing -dock. But even above that deafening roar, Glayne could hear the scream -of twisted and tortured metal. Then the big ship stopped moving and all -was quiet except for the shriek of air escaping through the crevices -around her mangled hull. - -Groggily, Glayne shook his head in an effort to shake off the black-out -which had engulfed his vision. In spite of his circulation exercises he -couldn't see anything. Then a glimmering of the answer occurred to him -and with wild surmise he experimentally flicked the firing stud of the -ship's Kellanders. - -Nothing happened. - -Then Glayne understood. Every bit of the ship's power was cut off, -including the lights and the battle screen. Obviously the Jewel power -was cut off. Evidently the impact of the _Algol's_ crash had jarred the -delicate power drains so that Tjadlinn was once again without power. -But he'd have to make sure. - -Heartened, he rose and took a space suit from the locker, checking -to see if its light torch was operating. As he turned away, a vague, -ridiculous hope struck him. He took a second suit from the locker. - - * * * * * - -Twisted and buckled beralloy plates had sheered long, jagged gashes in -the equally tough armor of the cruiser, Glayne saw, as he clambered -from the emergency lock. A little air still sighed through the huge -rent which the cruiser had smashed in the skin of the discoid. The -gigantic landing dock was dwarfed by the three hundred meter bulk of -the cruiser. Small Delban craft had been flung violently on either side -and now littered the walls with their battered bodies. One or two of -the Delban technicians had been caught by the crash and were either -smeared thinly along the blastway or turned inside out as their bodies -exploded from lack of air pressure. - -Hurriedly Glayne flashed his torch about, trying to find the mono-car -which his party had used to get to Selzi-Narfid's quarters. The car -itself was gone but he found the gleaming mono-rail and followed it at -a rapid trot. Fortunately the passage was well-equipped with automatic -air-locks, one of which had whipped in place when the air pressure -dropped suddenly. When he came to the first of these, he found that the -dilator was without power. He fumed at the wasted time as he burned -around the lock with his torch and triggered the mechanism with his -finger. - -After he closed it behind him, Glayne picked up his jogging pace down -the mono-rail passage. He felt a kind of grim, ruthless hatred when -he thought of Bro-Doral. He hoped wistfully that he would find the -sneering sadist before Garstow's energy beams ripped the discoid to -pieces. - -He wondered what had happened to Niala Chodred. During the battle he -had consciously held his thoughts away from her and the dull ache of -her memory. A chill loathing spread through him as he thought of the -Vibra-Death. He knew of the agonies of that nerve torture; it produced -not one slow death but thousands. More passionately than ever he longed -to find the Bro. - -Suddenly Glayne felt the floor of the discoid tremble under his feet. -At first he ignored it, but it grew persistently stronger and he -realized that the fleet was again hurling its energy beams at the -discoid--but this time they were penetrating because there was no -shield to stop them. He quickened his pace, rounded a long curve, and -found that he had reached his goal. - -He vaulted the high curbing and pounded down the tapestried corridor to -the wide entrance stage. The dilator stud refused to operate, so Glayne -burned into the lock to operate the stud. He discovered that the port -itself was locked and a sudden unreasoning hope blazed up in him. With -rapid movements he burned the lock out altogether and threw his weight -against the door. With a wheeze it dilated and he staggered into the -luxurious apartment, stumbling from the force of his own momentum. - -He was scrambling to his feet when something hit him. It was soft with -rounded contours which he perceived even through the unsympathetic -thickness of his spacesuit. And it had red hair and green eyes. - -It was Niala. - -"Glayne ... oh, Glayne," she murmured, clinging tightly to him. - -"But ... but you're not hurt," he stammered, his mind striving to -adjust to the realization of a hope which it had long rejected. - -"I thought they had killed you," she sobbed happily. "But you got away." - -"Yes, he did," remarked a third voice, familiar and hated. "It was -unfortunate." - -Glayne whirled. Gort Bro-Doral stood inside the entrance stage, a black -Cardy gun in his hand. - -"Without you in the audience, Captain, I didn't see much point in -amusing myself with the girl. But now that you have returned, Glayne--" - -The big Guardian crouched to spring at the Delban, gathering his legs -under him. - -"I shouldn't do that, Captain," Bro-Doral observed sharply, waving the -Cardy menacingly. "Life is too sweet to throw it away so rashly, isn't -it? Besides, such refined methods require time and I fear your leader, -Admiral Garstow, doesn't propose to give us that commodity." - -It was true, Glayne realized. The energy beams of the assaulting fleets -were smashing tremendous blows at the discoid so that it shuddered -violently. The shocks increased in strength even as he turned his -attention to them. Somewhere deep in Tjadlinn air was escaping with a -screaming whistle where the skin was ruptured. - -"You seem to have no idea how hideous Death is, Glayne," said the -Delban, approaching them slowly. "Out here on the periphery of the -galaxy we like to make some sort of a ceremony of his coming--you see, -he is always hovering around us." The Delban produced his explosive, -nasal snicker. "Death is a fascinating subject; I have often wondered -why you people in the Main Galaxy ignore him. Ever present, you know. -And always waiting for you to step into his dark embrace." - -Glayne watched Bro-Doral narrowly. He was but a couple of meters -away. As the blows of the Kellander beams smashing into the discoid -increased, he became more preoccupied with his subject and his grip on -the Cardy grew lax. Glayne's hand tightened imperceptibly on the spare -spacesuit. - -"--out here on the Edge," Bro-Doral was saying, "Life is considered -only a prelude to Death. Personally--" - - * * * * * - -Glayne lunged, flinging the extra spacesuit to one side. Bro-Doral -alerted instantaneously, but his Cardy wavered for a fraction of an -instant toward the empty space suit. Before he could recover his -mistake Glayne's flying body had struck him. The two went down together -in a thrashing tangle. Glayne's movements were hampered by the bulky -spacesuit and he felt his desperate grip on the Delban slipping. Out of -the corner of his eye he saw Bro-Doral extending his long fingers for -the Cardy which he had dropped. Frantically he sought to restrain the -Delban's long arm, missed, and saw the Delban slither from his grasp -and reach for the gun. - -Glayne scrambled to his feet just in time to see Niala snatch up the -weapon a split second ahead of Bro-Doral. For a brief instant the Ruler -of Ten Thousand Suns stared into the muzzle of Death. Then it wrapped -him in its dark embrace forever as Niala fired. - -Glayne retrieved the spacesuit and hurriedly helped her don it. -The screaming whistle of escaping air formed a mad symphony with -the rumbling crashes of corridors and whole levels caving in upon -themselves. They raced from the apartment, through the tapestried -corridor to the mono-rail which twisted like a live thing under the -impact of the blasting energy beams. Jolt after jolt shook the discoid -as torpedoes and mines exploded with devastating energy concussions -deep within its entrails. - -It was uphill all the way as the tremendous mass of the Tane Jewel -dragged at their flagging steps. Niala fell a half a dozen times from -the smashing shocks that shook the discoid. Glayne helped her to her -feet, only to be thrown down himself the next instant by the concussion -of an energy torpedo. Huge seams opened in the tough beralloy sides of -the mono-rail passage as the mammoth support beams fractured. - -Panting, they finally reached the point where the air-lock had fallen -in place automatically. Glayne pushed at the port, expecting it to -dilate. It didn't move a fraction of a centimeter. A rapid examination -showed that it was sprung. Feverishly he felt for his torch to cut it -down. - -But it was gone! - -He suddenly felt sick, realizing that he had lost it in the struggle -with Bro-Doral. Now he would never be able to find it again. They were -trapped. Waves of defeat swept over him as he crouched in the darkness. - -Suddenly he heard a new sound in the mad cacaphony of destruction that -raged about them. It was the tortured scream of rending, snapping -beralloy. And along with it came the sensation of increased weight. - -The Tane Jewel! - -The huge beams which had anchored it in place had evidently collapsed -under the impact of the assault and now the Jewel was falling freely -through space, crashing through everything that stood in its path. And -it was falling toward them! - -Glayne's weight grew unbearable as it approached. Vaguely he could make -out its steady gold brilliance behind him in the passage. Grimly he -clung to a projection in the wall with one arm and hung onto Niala with -the other. - -Then the miraculous happened. - -The air-lock door which had been sprung now dilated under its own -tremendous weight and the air pressure which remained in the passage -flung Glayne and Niala through the lock. - -Summoning the last reserves of his diminishing strength, Glayne put his -arm around her body and half-supported her, half-dragged her up the few -remaining steps of the mono-rail passage to the landing dock. Forty -meters separated him from the emergency lock of the _Algol_. Thirty -meters. His straining muscles groaned in anguish. Twenty meters. Niala -was unconscious and her slight form was an unbearable weight to him as -he dragged her with painfully slow steps. Ten.... Five ... he reached -the lock. - -[Illustration: _The battle raged on across the stars!_] - -He heaved her bodily into the lock and clambered in himself. Then -through the inner door. Across to the elevator. His muscles were a -symphony of agony. Slowly, slowly the elevator climbed. The discoid -was splitting and breaking up around the _Algol_--or was it wedging -the cruiser more firmly than ever in the vise grip of the beralloy -outer portals? The elevator door quivered for a moment, then dilated -in a series of little shudders. Ever so slowly Glayne crawled across -the bridge deck, dragging the girl. A shock seat ... a surette of -verchromynal into the blue vein inside her elbow. - -The crescendo of destruction reached new heights. The Tane Jewel was -following him, splashing its insidious yellow radiance through the -glassene window of the navigation bridge. It dogged his footsteps ... -closer ... closer. The pilot's seat. The surette. Blackness encroached -upon his vision. Dimly he was aware of his arm; it moved -instinctively ... slowly ... slowly. The regular driver atomics began -to shriek. His arm made another movement, flicking jet studs. Power -suddenly sang in the forward jet chambers and ejected itself in a -great, mushrooming flame. The _Algol_ lurched backwards ... another -lurch ... straining ... a third. And the _Algol_ was suddenly free. - -The yawning pit of blackness closed its gaping maw on Glayne and he -slid down, down, down.... - - * * * * * - -It occurred to Glayne, when he woke up, that his quarters in the -_Algol_ had a changed appearance. He climbed from his acceleration -hammock and bounded to the shower. - -"Terran Standard!" he snorted to himself. "What the hell is Harbin -doing puttering along like that?" - -As he dried himself from the tingling shower he tried to put his finger -on the change that had come over his quarters. For one thing, he -couldn't find what he wanted. But an even worse defect was the absence -of his dust. - -Flag officers in the Stellar Guardians were generally conceded some -slight idiosyncrasy through which they could assert their individuality -in a service where individuality was otherwise rigorously suppressed. -Glayne's own idiosyncrasy was dust. After five long years as a Dorleb -training-cadet without a speck of dust to his name, Glayne felt he had -earned his right to wallow in a bit of dust. But now it was all gone. -His quarters were spotless. - -He had finished dressing when a cautious knock sounded on his entrance -portal; then it dilated before he could answer. Harbin's face appeared -in the opening. - -"Oh! I'm sorry, sir. Didn't think you were awake yet," Harbin said -apologetically. - -"Forget it," grunted Glayne. "Come in." - -Harbin entered the room and fidgeted nervously for a moment. "Sir!" he -finally burst out, "I ... we're sorry about that unpleasantness. I want -to apologize on behalf of--" - -Glayne snorted and cut him off with a wave of his arm. "What I want to -know," he said with deceptive calmness, "is, where the hell is my dust?" - -Harbin grinned. "Lieutenant Chodred. I advised her against it--told her -it was one of your peculiarities. But she wouldn't listen." - -"What 'she' is this?" inquired a new voice, pleasantly husky. - -Glayne turned and saw Niala leaning in the entrance stage. "You know -damned well whom we are talking about," he said ominously. "Why did you -take away my dust?" - -"Oh, is that all?" she laughed. It was a deliciously cool and tinkling -laugh. Harbin foresaw an imminent explosion. Being a discreet warrior -who longs to fight another day, he fled from the room. - -But it never quite jelled. Glayne extended his arms to the laughing, -green-eyed Niala. But she stood her ground. - -"No," she teased. "Not when you have a beard like that." - -Glayne swore and reached for his depilatory. He was going to set a new -galactic speed record for shaving. - -*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK FLAME-JEWEL OF THE ANCIENTS *** - -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 an eBook, except by following -the terms of the trademark license, including paying royalties for use -of the Project Gutenberg trademark. 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Graber</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -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 <a href="https://www.gutenberg.org">www.gutenberg.org</a>. 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. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:1em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Title: Flame-Jewel of the Ancients</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:1em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Author: Edwin L. Graber</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'>Release Date: March 09, 2021 [eBook #64764]</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'>Language: English</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'>Character set encoding: UTF-8</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Produced by: Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net</div> - -<div style='margin-top:2em; margin-bottom:4em'>*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK FLAME-JEWEL OF THE ANCIENTS ***</div> - -<div class="figcenter x-ebookmaker-drop"> - <img src="images/illusc.jpg" alt=""/> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<div class="titlepage"> - -<h1>Flame-Jewel of the Ancients</h1> - -<h2>By EDWIN L. GRABER</h2> - -<p>The tiny golden sphere, blazing with terrible<br /> -energy, spelled Galactic Empire at last to<br /> -the out-space horde, once they had tapped its<br /> -limitless power. They were grimly amused<br /> -therefore when Captain Glayne of the Stellar<br /> -Guardians dropped innocently out of sub-space<br /> -to view their mighty prize.</p> - -<p>[Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from<br /> -Planet Stories Spring 1950.<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>The two Terran super Galactics glided side-by-side in the immensity -of the interstellar void. Secure in the knowledge that they were the -mightiest battleships ever built in the known galaxy, they didn't -bother to raise their anti-energy shields. They knew, absolutely, that -no other warcraft in the universe could equal their strength....</p> - -<p>Jukes, the third pilot, lounged carelessly in his gimbal-slung shock -seat, idly watching the screen before him. Aside from his sister -ship, there was nothing to be seen but the harsh points of starlight. -Cautiously he looked over his shoulder to see if the executive officer -were nearby, then, apparently satisfied, lit a cigarette and blew an -expansive plume of smoke at the serried banks of instruments that -were terraced about him.</p> - -<p>Suddenly the intermittent glowing of a red blinker aroused him. -Throwing the butt to the deck, he bent forward, squinting into the -screen. Far down in one corner he detected an irregularly sparkling -mote moving slowly across the blazing points of the distant stars. With -a single motion of his arm he swept the Call to Quarters alarm studs -and began to speak rapidly into his throat transmitter. As the muffled -vibrating thunder of his ship's drivers rose, he could make out his -sister ship gradually swinging into an approach orbit.</p> - -<p>A double tap on his shoulder informed him that the first pilot was -there to take over. Smoothly he slipped from the shock seat and took -up his station with the other two pilots near the auxiliary control -boards. Everywhere about him was excited, orderly confusion as the huge -warship stripped for possible action. The orbit calculators at his left -took up the excited jabbering chorus and somewhere above the third -pilot was aware of the massive charge accumulators for the Kellander -miatron blasters whining up the scale.</p> - -<p>"It's a Delban," he muttered to his fellow pilots. "Just a pipsqueak, -too, blast his miserable, trespassing soul. A light cruiser, from what -I saw of him."</p> - -<p>The younger one looked at him eagerly. "Do you think he'll fight?"</p> - -<p>The third pilot snorted. "One Stellar class cruiser against two Terran -Galactics? He'd be out of his mind."</p> - -<p>Just then the battle screen lit up and a babbling group of gunnery -officers crowded about, feeding firing data to waiting miatron crews. -Over their shoulders the third pilot could make out the Delban cruiser -as it lay there, slim and deadly against the vast, star-studded vault -of space.</p> - -<p>"What I'd like to know is why the devil he doesn't run for it," the -older pilot said to no one in particular. "Something's up, I'm sure. -Delbans just don't act like this."</p> - -<p>The third pilot grunted absently, his eyes fixed on the battle screen. -The two Galactics now lay on either side of the Delban. His sister ship -began to communicate with the new arrival, her yellow beam glowing -with baleful intensity. But the pilot wasn't watching. He had noticed -something odd about that cruiser. It seemed to bulge in the wrong -places. It was completely enclosed by a peculiar mesh antenna which -glinted ominously in the faint light.</p> - -<p>Then the Delban fired.</p> - -<p>For a moment there was stunned amazement in the huge plotting room. -It was the very absurdity of the situation rather than mere surprise. -To make the blasphemy worse, the Delban had licked out with the beam -of a secondary Kellander projector rather than with her main miatron -batteries. The damage was slight, the communicator bulb of the other -Galactic having been reduced to twisted slag. But this was the grossest -of all insults in space warfare and demanded immediate retaliation. The -third pilot held his breath in anticipation.</p> - -<p>Then it came. The plotting room exploded into frantic activity. -Generators screamed into ear-splitting crescendoes as the main driver -engines were coupled into them to raise the anti-energy shield. The -Kellander miatron blasters hurled ravening bolts of energy at the -audacious Delban, reducing accumulator loads to zero in instants. -The remainder of the driver atomics were coupled into the Kellander -accumulators sending up loads that were fed through the continuously -thundering miatrons at the Delban cruiser. Literally <i>trillions</i> of -megawatts lapped at the Delban shield, making it glow up the spectral -scale in a brilliant spider web of absorbing power foci. But it held.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>The Delban shield held! The third pilot was unbelievably shocked as he -stared at the battle screen. It was simply not conceivable that the -two mightiest warships in space could not penetrate the shield of a -pipsqueak Stellar cruiser.</p> - -<p>Where were they getting the power? The question blazed up in the third -pilot's consciousness as he stared at the slim, deadly Delban. Abruptly -he recalled where he had seen the Delban's peculiar external mesh -antenna.</p> - -<p>"Broadcast power!" he blurted to his comrades. "Those devils are -receiving broadcast power!"</p> - -<p>The other two pilots looked at him incredulously. "Hell!" snorted the -older one. "You can't transmit the stuff across interstellar distances."</p> - -<p>The third pilot didn't reply. As he watched the screen he suddenly knew -they were in trouble. By rights this should have been the greatest -shock of all but his mind was so dulled with amazement that he could -only shake his head.</p> - -<p>The Delban's firing had gradually increased in strength until now both -the Terran battleship's mighty shields were themselves glowing up the -spectral scale in its spidery force web. Despite the older pilot's -doubts, he realized that only broadcast power in unlimited quantities -could account for those overloaded shields. But where were they getting -it to broadcast? Only an infinite source of supply could do the job.</p> - -<p>Paralyzed, he watched the battle screen. He was aware of the miatron -blasters falling silent, one after another, as the straining driver -atomics were diverted to hold the shield. Their sister Galactic's -blasters had all fallen silent as all the power of her own huge drivers -was shunted into the shield generators. Their own shield was trembling -and shuddering under the inconceivable impact of the energies that -surged at it from the Delban.</p> - -<p>Suddenly the pilot saw their sister ship's shield coruscate in a -multi-hued spider web of shorting power foci. Then it buckled. The -third pilot instinctively averted his face from the indescribably -brilliant, eye-searing nova that followed.</p> - -<p>His own ship screamed. The drivers, the generators, the converters and -accumulators—all of them screamed in ultra-sonic crescendoes in an -effort to maintain the crumbling shield. The force webs shorted one -after another in brilliant red fire. The third pilot saw it rupture but -he never felt it....</p> - -<p>For days the twin novae burned in the endless night, then slowly faded -to blackened cinders.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p class="ph1">II</p> - -<p>The Tri-di film came to an end and the Council Chamber's soft -fluorescents picked up in strength. For a moment the members of Lorle -Sector's High Council were stunned and bewildered at what they had seen.</p> - -<p>Captain Glayne waited patiently for the explosion which he knew would -come. For about the tenth time that morning he fervently cursed all -civilians. Not even the valiant efforts of Chairman Dell Thorder could -keep them in check. A vast wave of irritation filled him as he listened -to the piercing squeak of a fat Councilor named Trask.</p> - -<p>"It will mean war, I say—and we haven't had a war involving Terra for -seventy years. Lorle Sector must remain neutral—especially if Delb -Sector has weapons which can crush super Galactic battleships. Now I -say," he squeaked, oblivious of the fact that no one was paying any -attention, "that we must request Captain Glayne to leave immediately -because his presence might be deemed an overt act by our friends, the -Delbans. True, the Stellar Guardians—"</p> - -<p>He was suddenly cut off by the staccato thunder of Dell Thorder's -gavel. The chairman's thin, ascetic face wore a worried expression as -his eyes swept the now silent Council. Of them all, he was the only -man Glayne admired. For thirty years he had maneuvered the nine-planet -Lorle Sector through the treacherous shoals of Combine politics and -never once had the cry of "boss" or "dictator" seriously been raised -against him.</p> - -<p>"I must confess," he began quietly, "that I do not myself understand -fully the implications of this situation. I do know that the fact that -Imperial Terra has lost two large battleships is inconsequential. The -real point is that the Terran Combine is facing imminent destruction at -the hands of Gort Bro-Doral and his Delban Empire. Because we are Delb -Sector's nearest neighbor, we may expect the first blow to fall on us. -Since it is a known fact that the Intelligence Service of the Stellar -Guardians is the finest in the galaxy, I have sent for Captain Glayne -to explain certain of the technical aspects of the new Delban weapon in -order that we may determine what action to take."</p> - -<p>Thorder silently gestured to Glayne who arose and faced the hostile -stares of the councilors. Their unexpressed antipathy was amusing -rather than irritating. The meager little navy that Lorle Sector did -possess drained away funds that could otherwise be used in their pork -barrel. However, they all had something to worry about which Thorder -hadn't mentioned. The Revolution which had smashed the Delb-Lorle Axis -thirty years before had made Gort Bro-Doral a ruthless enemy who would -not rest until his ships had utterly destroyed the Lorle cities in -retaliation. So far they had depended upon Imperial Terra to support -them against the Bro's passionate desire for power. But now the Terran -navy was helpless and Lorle was in a desperate plight.</p> - -<p>"What Dell Thorder told you is true," he began in a firm, clear voice. -"Unfortunately it is an understatement because it implies that there -is a possibility of discovering a counter-weapon to offset that of the -Delbans. Such is not the case.</p> - -<p>"For a long time we have been prone to think in terms of optimum sizes -for warships. We were accustomed to believe that we had reached the -pinnacle of development in destructive weapons. The fatal radiations of -atomic generators and converters make it necessary to divert a part of -the power into shields. These shields are limited in size by the ship -size, and the ship size in turn is limited by the size of its power -plant. But there is a point of diminishing returns—that is, we cannot -build ships larger than the Galactic class battleships without losing -efficiency. So for a long time we have believed that there was a limit -to the amount of power available in any given class of warship.</p> - -<p>"Unfortunately this no longer applies for the Delbans. As you have just -seen on the tri-di film obtained by Stellar Guardian Intelligence, a -single Stellar cruiser engaged and destroyed two Terran Galactics. -This means, as Chairman Thorder has suggested, that the entire fleet -strength of the nine hundred Sectors of the Terran Combine is now quite -helpless against the Delban Grand Fleet."</p> - -<p>Glayne paused for a moment. In spite of the room's air conditioning, -many of the Councilors were mopping their faces anxiously. The one -called Trask was chewing his lower lip nervously, not liking a bit what -the tall Guardian officer had to say. Glayne felt a twinge of sympathy -for his three hundred and fifty million constituents.</p> - -<p>"The crux of the whole problem is the source of this new Delban power. -Experts in our organization are absolutely certain that they are -using broadcast power, but this information is based on the tri-di -film you have seen which our agents have stolen from the Terran -Admiralty Office at Lunaport. It may be a fake, but that is hardly -likely. The implications of broadcast power are so tremendous as to -defy reason. Even under the best laboratory conditions the power lost -in transmission makes it impractical. Consequently any source which -produces energies capable of smashing two Terran Galactic battleships -at perhaps stellar distances is vast beyond conjecture. As incredible -as this sounds, we believe that the Delbans have it. As to its precise -nature, we are still in the dark. However, the Stellar Guardians, at -least, are in a position to investigate."</p> - -<p>Dell Thorder cleared his throat at this point and Glayne stopped.</p> - -<p>"You see our position," said the weary Chairman. "Almost any -countermeasure we attempt can be interpreted as an overt act by -Bro-Doral. Hence any action on our part will make our ruin sooner -instead of later. However, there is one thin possibility and that is -Captain Glayne. It is true that he is a mercenary belonging to the -Stellar Guardians. But Kairn's Intelligence vouches for him absolutely -and I am informed that he is as competent as any man in the Lorle Fleet.</p> - -<p>"Because of the peculiar nature of the Stellar Guardian organization, -he can carry out investigations where any such move on our part would -be suicidal. In my opinion, our only possible chance is to employ him -in this capacity to locate the Delban power transmitter—if one exists. -It is possible that an all-out attack with all the units we can muster -will succeed in destroying it."</p> - -<p>As Thorder finished, Glayne took a deep breath. He stood motionless -by the immense circular table. He knew that the Councilors, like all -small planet men, were impressed with his great shoulders and their -suggestion of tremendous physical strength. But if they knew what -torment he had to endure under high driver thrust as a result of his -great size, they wouldn't be so impressed.</p> - -<p>Dell Thorder coughed. "Captain Glayne, would you mind stepping into the -outer room while we take a vote? We will inform you directly."</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Glayne nodded silently and left the Chamber. Disregarding the -anteroom's soft chairs, he stood against the wall, waiting. His -space-tanned face hardened as he looked thoughtfully from the glassene -window at the jewel-like city of Lorle Capital, a dazzling white under -the noon sun. Mentally he pictured the sleek Delban cruisers flashing -overhead in fast orbits, pouring phenomenal torrents of energy into -the pathetic shield the city would attempt to set up. The Lorle High -Council would trust him. In the end, even Trask would. They were all -rabbits looking around desperately for someone to defend them. They -would hire him; they would pat him on the back and shake his hand; they -would make him solemnly swear the Guardian Oath to struggle against all -their enemies. And Glayne would promise to do all of these things.</p> - -<p>But he would lie.</p> - -<p>He would do none of these things. Instead he would do all in his power -to bring war to Lorle. He would commit an overt act against the Delbans -and they would cry for Lorle blood. Their fast, sleek ships would deal -out death and destruction to the very cities which he would swear ever -so solemnly to defend to his last breath. With a coldly objective part -of his mind he marveled at the consummate treachery he would perform.</p> - -<p>But another part of his mind was aghast. He was unable to suppress -the bitter waves of remorse that filled him. Again he remembered the -serious, heavy-jowled face of Garstow, Grand Admiral of the Stellar -Guardians. In the Dorleb Headquarters, only forty hours before, Garstow -had said: "Glayne, we need time. Some Sector must be thrown to the -wolves. While the Delbans are occupied with that unfortunate Sector, we -will have time to unravel their broadcast scramblers, build antennae of -our own, and perhaps even locate their power transmitter. The Policy -Organ has decided upon Lorle Sector. And it has decided that you, -Glayne, are the man for the job."</p> - -<p>Glayne had listened in stunned silence to Garstow. A protest rose -automatically to his lips but he had crushed it back with a click -of his booted heels. And now here he was in Lorle Capital with his -Stellar class cruiser <i>Algol</i> ready for action. When the fat men with -rabbit eyes emerged from the Council Chamber and empowered him to work -for them, he would be ready to move. A sudden raid on Delban space -commerce, an energy bomb hurtling into a Delban city from a stolen -Lorle warship—any one of a dozen expedients would have the ruthless -Gort Bro-Doral screaming down on the helpless cities of Lorle.</p> - -<p>As he stared at the afternoon brilliance of Lorle Capital he realized -that his treachery was an ironic manifestation of a greater loyalty. -People forgot that the Stellar Guardians were dedicated to the ideal -of human progress. The great mercenary organization recognized the -inevitability of war and determined that wars should be fought -according to rules. But the Delbans were now in a position to flout all -rules and destroy all human progress. Hence all rules were forgotten -and ruthless treachery was the order of the day as every resource was -exploited to crush Gort Bro-Doral and his Delban Empire.</p> - -<p>Then the door of the Council Chamber opened and Dell Thorder stepped -into the anteroom. He faced Glayne silently for a moment, lines of -weariness etched in his tired, old face.</p> - -<p>Then he thrust out his hand and said simply: "We wish you the best of -luck, Glayne."</p> - -<p>The Guardian Captain took the outstretched hand and almost winced -at the trust he saw in Thorder's eyes. The weight of the crushing -responsibility bowed down the Chairman's frail shoulders, but he seemed -to burn with an indomitable determination to defend his people. He was -not a rabbit but a warrior. And Glayne was going to betray him.</p> - -<p>"I'll do my best," he said in quick, husky tones.</p> - -<p>He felt like a swine as he closed the door behind him.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p class="ph1">III</p> - -<p>It was a second-class night spot called The Yarga. Glayne would meet -the Stellar Guardian espionage chief for the Lorle Sector here. As -he stood at the entrance bar absorbing the customary drink prior to -entering the first stage, he swept the place with cold grey eyes. -Evidently the city commission of Lorle Capital was going through a -phase of puritanism because the deadly Kesla lights were absent and -the swirling strains of the reportedly <i>jawth</i>-fed orchestra were -considerably toned down. Nevertheless, the general impression was quite -sufficiently exotic to suit Glayne as he entered the dimly-lit first -stage.</p> - -<p>Vaguely he was aware of the less restrained laughter of patrons who had -already reached the second stage, having passed through the vibrator -screen that simulated a soothing color movement. The function of the -vibrator was to give jaded sensibilities the physical fillip necessary -to convince reluctant laggards that they really were ready for the -second stage. Glayne was also aware of his table's slight movement -toward the vibrator screen and he felt a wave of irritation at the -prospect of chasing through nine stages in this outlandish place -looking for his contact.</p> - -<p>Suddenly the annunciator light in the center of his table began to -glow an intermittent red-orange. Glayne looked at it, eyes narrowed. -Experimentally he stabbed its speaker stud and a voice seemed to emerge -from the empty air before his face.</p> - -<p>"Captain, you look <i>so</i> lonely and disconsolate sitting by yourself. -Won't you join me?" It was a woman's voice, low and casual. Glayne was -briefly startled—he had expected that his contact would be a man. -Then it occurred to him that she was not his contact, but that doubt -vanished when he remembered that he had discarded his uniform for the -light grey business jumper of a young business executive. How could -she know him for a Captain in the Stellar Guardians unless she was his -contact?</p> - -<p>On the other hand, she had not made herself known with the code which -had been selected beforehand. Puzzled and suspicious, he flicked the -transmitter stud and said cautiously: "Where are you?"</p> - -<p>"You can't miss me, darling," she replied. "Just stand up."</p> - -<p>Glayne hesitated, hefting the heavy, comforting weight of the Cardy -blaster under his arm-pit. With a shrug he tossed off the remnants of -the blue-green <i>borse</i> which stirred lambently in the exquisite goblet. -Then he stood up.</p> - -<p>She was perfectly correct. He couldn't miss her from ten light years, -much less thirty feet. She was tall and graceful in a tailored green -jumper which half suggested, half concealed the long, smooth curves of -her young body. She had coppery red hair and wide-set green eyes that -smiled boldly at him. She rested a hand on her hip in mock impatience.</p> - -<p>"Well, don't just stand there, fat-head!" she cried across the tables. -"What do you usually do when you haven't seen someone for years and -years?"</p> - -<p>With an effort Glayne collected himself, assayed a weak smile, and -maneuvered around the tables to her side.</p> - -<p>"Oh, you look perfectly gorgeous," she said, oblivious to the amused -people around her. "Dance with me—you always were a divine dancer. -You know, I was telling Jani just today how I wished you'd come for a -visit—we haven't seen you for such a long time...."</p> - -<p>She prattled gaily on. Somewhat dazed, Glayne led her to the resilient -dance floor, an absurdity which had suddenly become the very latest -rage overnight. The girl slipped smoothly into his arms, her fragrant, -perfumed hair under his chin.</p> - -<p>He wasn't at all prepared for the hard tones of her voice when she -said: "I regret to inform you, Captain Glayne, that the agent you were -supposed to meet here is dead. He had an unfortunate accident with a -Cardy gun."</p> - -<p>Glayne stiffened perceptibly. "Who did it?"</p> - -<p>"Probably Delban espionage. They know that something is in the fire and -they're not wearing kid gloves to find out what it is."</p> - -<p>"Did they discover the identity of the person he was supposed to meet?"</p> - -<p>"No," she replied. "But they're looking. Fortunately the organization -was not in the dark as to whom he would meet. Otherwise I could never -have found you."</p> - -<p>Glayne's eyes narrowed. Too many people knew what was going on. That -made it very dangerous. But what made it even more dangerous was the -fact that he himself did <i>not</i> know what was going on. Agents of -three organizations were involved in the search for information and -the tangled maze of plots would be deadly for anyone caught in the -middle. He was silent for a moment, battle-trained senses sifting his -surroundings instinctively. Something ... somewhere ... was odd.</p> - -<p>"If you will notice their eyes," the girl remarked dryly, "you will -find that a good proportion of the Yarga's clientele are high on Soames -drug."</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Glayne started and looked more closely at the couples entering the -stage. Then he saw what she meant. Here and there he saw eyes—burning -eyes—eyes that glittered with a brilliant fire that emanated from -huge, dilated pupils. They were using the marvelous Soames energizing -drug; it fairly blazed from their slitted lids. Its purpose was to -accelerate physical reaction speeds—but why use it on a small planet -like Lorle IV? With the question came the answer. Their quarry had -the .95 reaction index of a big-planet man. That was Glayne's index. -And that meant that they were right on top of him.</p> - -<p>"I think," he intoned softly to the girl, "it would be wise for us to -move on to the next stage."</p> - -<p>In reply she slipped smoothly from his arms, seized him by the sleeve -of his loose-fitting jumper, and propelled him to the tingle screen. -When he balked she grinned at him and stood in the field of the screen -herself and laughed at him. It was a bubbly, elated laugh. Glayne liked -it. And he liked the way the soothing color movements of the tingle -screen caressed the long curves of her figure. But he didn't like the -nervous manner in which the glittering, dilated pupils flickered at -them and held them curiously, then flickered casually away.</p> - -<p>The girl was clever, he realized. The keyed-up Delban agents would -be far less likely to suspect an intoxicated couple of dark designs. -Suddenly the red-headed girl stumbled, accidentally pushed from the -other side of the screen. Instinctively Glayne reached out to steady -her—reached out with a long, liquid motion of his powerful arm. In one -instant every Soames-dilated eye in the room was upon him. In another, -Cardy guns were magically appearing in a dozen hands.</p> - -<p>But, fast as they were, Glayne was faster. He drew his own weapon with -blurred speed, fired, and flung himself and the girl through the screen -into the second stage. The Delban agents hesitated to fire blindly -through the screen and rushed after them. The big Guardian hurtled -through the exotic darkness of the second stage with the girl in his -left arm. He scattered and smashed tables right and left, littering the -floor with bewildered and drunken patrons.</p> - -<p>The exit toward which he was heading was suddenly no longer an exit. -It was filled with a crowd of huge, glittering eyes and wicked looking -Cardy guns. In a single movement, Glayne dropped to the floor and fired.</p> - -<p>The second stage was in an uproar. Now agents were pouring through the -tingle screen in pursuit. Desperately Glayne sought for a means of -escape. Then he saw the portal that evidently led to the kitchen or the -bar. He grabbed the dazed red-head and rushed through the portal, swept -down a short corridor, turned, and straight-armed two tray-bearing -waiters as he dashed through a second portal. And suddenly he was -behind the entrance bar where he had taken his first drink. He tensed -for a fraction of a second, then vaulted the low bar.</p> - -<p>A bartender and two customers stared at them with blank amazement but -there was not a Delban agent in sight. Swiftly Glayne set the girl upon -her feet and together they fled from the building. He noted approvingly -the capable-looking Cardy she held in her small fist.</p> - -<p>"My flier is outside," he said. "They've probably surrounded the place, -but in the confusion the ones outside won't know us. We'll try to bluff -through."</p> - -<p>She nodded and put her gun away. As they approached the flier parking -area she clutched his arm with intoxicated possessiveness. Glayne was -right; here and there a Delban agent glanced at them suspiciously—then -looked contemptuously away. The object of their search was alone. -Controlling his heavy breathing with difficulty, Glayne approached an -attendant, digging out his micro-wave key jewel.</p> - -<p>"Here! Get my air-jet," he panted.</p> - -<p>But instead of the expected response, the man stiffened for a -measureless instant, then whirled with blurred speed. A Cardy -blaster magically materialized in his hand and his eyes burned with -Soames-induced ferocity. But Glayne was a shade faster. His left -streaked with dazzling speed into the agent's stomach and the Delban -folded up, his motor nerves paralyzed from the blow in the solar plexus.</p> - -<p>Crouching, they ran toward Glayne's air-jet. A Cardy bolt splashed into -the side of a flier just above Glayne's head, battering the tough -beralloy and sending a shower of white hot droplets in all directions. -As they reached his air-jet, Glayne whirled and fired rapidly and with -murderous accuracy at the pursuing Delban agents. As they scuttled for -cover, Glayne turned and waved the talisman through the micro-wave -field and the door swung open.</p> - -<p>Instantly he shoved the girl into the cabin, then climbed in behind -her. He let the tiny atomic engine thunder beyond audibility, then fed -power to the jets in huge gulps. With a tremendous surge the little -craft leaped into the air and roared over the roof of the Yarga. A -couple of Delban energy bolts slapped viciously into the air-jet, but -soon Glayne out-distanced them, flying low over the dark countryside.</p> - -<p>The girl sighed beside him. "This has been a very warm evening. Do you -think they'll catch us?"</p> - -<p>"I don't think they're organized that well," Glayne grunted, busy with -the course-computer. "Their whole assault was hasty and ill-timed. I -doubt if they even had time to set up an air net."</p> - -<p>"But, now that they are out in the open, they will move quickly. Do you -have a specific plan in mind, Captain Glayne?"</p> - -<p>The Guardian frowned and cast a quick glance at her. He was puzzled by -her insistence. "My Flagship, the <i>Algol</i>, is maneuvered into a fast -orbit behind inert detector screens. About ninety miles out. I've just -set course to intercept her before we hit dayside."</p> - -<p>In reply the girl bent past his shoulder toward the luminous figures -which floated in the dial of the computer, announcing the course. The -delicate lines of her face were hard in the faint light. Again Glayne -felt a twinge of uneasiness and it was not dispelled by the soft touch -of her body against his.</p> - -<p>"What is your name?" he asked belatedly, trying to make out the -features of her face in the dim light from the instrument panel.</p> - -<p>She chuckled in the darkness and he fancied he heard a note of triumph. -"Lieutenant Niala Chodred," she said. "Espionage Bureau of Imperial -Terra. At your service, Captain."</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Of Imperial Terra! The words fairly blazed in Glayne's consciousness. -His hand shot like lightning for the Cardy in his arm-pit holster, then -stopped in mid-motion as he became aware of a hard, cylindrical object -thrust into his ribs. It was her tiny Cardy blaster.</p> - -<p>Through the waves of chagrin and impotent fury that surged up within -him, Glayne heard her say mockingly: "Guardian warriors are supposed to -function like machines when on missions, aren't they, Captain? Since -when are machines rattled by pretty girls?"</p> - -<p>The lines on Glayne's face deepened but he said nothing. Her taunting -rebuke was well-deserved. He had certainly lacked the emotionless -precision which was the Guardian ideal. But the mere fact that he had -been caught napping was inconsequential beside the implications of -her presence as a Terran agent. How much did Terra know? The question -hammered urgently in Glayne's mind.</p> - -<p>Even as it flashed through his head, he heard her amused voice say: -"In time of crisis, Captain Glayne, the Stellar Guardians invariably -throw allies and friends to the dogs in order to gain time. This is -common knowledge. So all we had to do was determine the direction of -the Guardian move. We immediately thought of Lorle. And we even thought -that you might be the man the Guardians would send, Glayne, because -we have a complete file on your activities for the past ten years. We -know that you have been on good terms with Delban brass since that -successful exploring job you performed at Jorger Sun, five years ago."</p> - -<p>With growing horror, Glayne listened to her unfold the deepest Guardian -secrets—derived by Terran Espionage through simple induction. What a -fool he had been for trusting her even for a minute! Unless he could -stop her, she could utterly destroy all Guardian hopes to overcome the -Delbans. His great body tensed as he stared at her from the corner of -his eye, watching for the slightest sign of inattention.</p> - -<p>"Glayne," she continued, in a hard, objective voice with no trace -of amusement, "Imperial Terra is not itself adverse to a policy of -throwing someone to the dogs in order to gain time. But we want to give -the dogs someone who can put up a fight. Poor Lorle would not be much -of a match for Gort Bro-Doral and she wouldn't gain us much time. But -the Stellar Guardians would. In fact, the Stellar Guardians themselves -will commit the overt act—with a little help."</p> - -<p>The Guardian Captain was stunned at the very audacity of her plan. He -had to admit that its logic was undeniable. But how could she possibly -seek to accomplish such an incredible feat as forcing the Guardians -into a suicidal attack upon the Delbans? Unless....</p> - -<p>Then his worst suspicions were realized as she said: "The Ganser -mind-conditioning treatments will not harm your essential-ego, Captain -Glayne. But, if you struggle against them, your mind will be shattered -and you will be left an idiot when the effects wear off."</p> - -<p>A cold thrill of fear caressed Glayne's spine as he heard her words. -The brutal, tearing fingers of the horrible mind-conditioner devised -by the Delban Espionage Chief, Hoteh Ganser, would change his goals -and values in the space of only a few hours. What seemed to him -irrational now would be the height of reason after his conditioning. As -the ramifications of Imperial Terra's plot came clear to him, Glayne -realized with increasing urgency that he simply had to overcome the -girl.</p> - -<p>"You may be sure that your attack on Sterle II will not be in vain," -came the girl's brittle tones. "Admiral Bardled will station units of -the Imperial Terran Fleet in hyper-space with the purpose of cracking -the wave length of the broadcast power and locating its source.</p> - -<p>"Our plan is much cleaner and nobler than yours, is it not, Captain -Glayne? You Stellar Guardians are all hard, ruthless fighters. You -can take care of yourselves. But poor little Lorle wouldn't have a -chance. Don't you agree, Captain? Don't you find it heroic to sacrifice -yourself to the Delban dog pack to gain time for the rest of the -galaxy?"</p> - -<p>Glayne ignored the mockery in her voice. A sudden wave of bitter anger -swept over him at the presumptuous manner in which they were all -bent upon throwing one another to the dogs. Surely they were not so -tactically poverty-stricken that they could not conceive of a better -plot which would not demand such a tremendous sacrifice of human life.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Suddenly, almost without warning, the tiny spark of rebellion within -him blazed up in hot determination. To hell with Garstow and the -Stellar Guardian Policy Organ. To hell with Admiral Bardled and the -Terran fleet. To hell with everyone. The vague suggestion of a plan was -forming in the recesses of his mind, breath-taking in its audacity and -possibly, just possibly workable.</p> - -<p>But what of the girl? To think about overpowering her was one thing; -actually doing it was another. She had already killed one Guardian -earlier this evening, he presumed. She would not hesitate to kill -another. That meant that he would have to meet cunning with cunning.</p> - -<p>"You don't mind if I smoke one last cigar while I am still in control -of my essential-ego, do you?" he asked, trying to match her mocking, -satirical mood. "I don't believe the Ganser-personality enjoys tobacco -as much as the average Guardian Captain."</p> - -<p>She alerted instantly, but the Cardy didn't waver the least fraction -of an inch. "You are not the average Guardian Captain," she said in a -strange, low voice. "But go ahead and smoke."</p> - -<p>Fleetingly Glayne wondered what she had meant, then he let the thought -flicker away as he concentrated on his cigar. He reached for the -radio-active on the instrument panel, flicking it so that its coal -gleamed into gradual dull red life. She was watching him like a hawk, -he knew, and smiled inwardly. The closer the better. Idly he began to -hum a snatch of melody, a curious thing arranged in minors. It was -peculiarly suited to his unsteady bass. He waved the radio-active in -his hand in slow, sweeping circles in time to his humming.</p> - -<p>Smoothly he ignited his cigar, puffing the semi-narcotic smoke in thick -clouds. He hummed louder, his voice pushing the deep, wailing dirge -into the cabin. It acted like a drug, throwing everything into slow -time. It numbed the sensibilities and dulled acute perceptions.</p> - -<p>Ever so gently and smoothly Glayne turned his head and glanced at -the girl. His scheme had worked. Her eyes automatically followed the -circles he described with the radio-active in his hand. She was lulled -into a near-hypnotic condition.</p> - -<p>In a single jump, Glayne seized the hand in which she held the Cardy -gun. She reacted instantly, but not quite fast enough to wrest the -weapon from his hand. Like a spring under great pressure she exploded -into writhing, clawing, kicking, biting action. Her savage ferocity so -startled Glayne that he nearly lost the weapon to her. As he sought to -fend her off with one hand and throw the weapon away with the other, he -felt her nails sink agonizingly into the side of his face. Gasping, he -finally got rid of the weapon, then drew back his fist and slugged her -with a short, jabbing punch.</p> - -<p>Panting, he recovered from the struggle. Suddenly he became aware of -the peculiar angle of flight of the air-jet. It was shrieking down -on its stubby fins toward the planet's surface. Somehow the Terran -girl had kicked off the robot control. As he righted the craft and -reoriented the course, he became aware of the girl's brooding eyes on -him.</p> - -<p>"You are very clever, Captain Glayne," she said. "Perhaps one might -even say courageous. A heavy planet man like yourself should not risk -himself with such reckless bravery in a physical struggle with a small -planet individual."</p> - -<p>Glayne was stung by her rebuke, but he was even more startled at her -bitterness. She was an espionage agent and she knew the risks and -hazards involved. Certainly she was not whining at her defeat.</p> - -<p>"How do you propose to fake the overt act, Captain?" she continued in a -light, conversational tone.</p> - -<p>Glayne was grimly aware of the accusation in her words but he said -nothing. She had a right to be bitter, he realized. Ironically, she -was going to get her way after all, though she didn't know it yet. He -grinned mirthlessly at her, the cigar clenched between his teeth.</p> - -<p>She was beautiful, but especially so in the resentment that was -mirrored in her features. Glayne was suddenly very sorry that she had -killed the Guardian agent he was supposed to meet. Otherwise he would -have liked very much to have known her.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p class="ph1">IV</p> - -<p>The nine-hundred-foot bulk of the Stellar class cruiser <i>Algol</i> loomed -hugely over the little air-jet as Glayne maneuvered it into the gaping -reception maw in the cruiser's belly. The craft's slight lurch as it -came to rest just inside the lock awoke the Terran girl who had fallen -asleep.</p> - -<p>Glayne sighed, glancing at her. She stared back at him coolly. He shook -his head and said, "That green outfit of yours will just have to go, -Lieutenant Chodred. Crew's morale, you know."</p> - -<p>Her eyes widened in sudden dismay. "But ... but surely you don't want -me to—"</p> - -<p>He grinned. "You will have to wear a crew jumper." Glancing again at -her graceful figure, he made a mental note: it would have to be an -over-size jumper—several sizes over.</p> - -<p>Stiffly they climbed from the little air-jet and propelled themselves -weightlessly to the elevator. Seconds later its door slid open and they -were on the navigation bridge. Glayne took the girl's arm and escorted -her around the bulking computers and auxiliary boards to the Captain's -Station.</p> - -<p>Graysen, the grizzled old Executive Officer, snapped to attention -and delivered a brisk salute. Glayne acknowledged it absently, his -attention absorbed primarily in a hasty inspection of the bridge. Then -he became aware of the intent stares of Graysen and the other officers. -Those who were not gawking at Niala Chodred were staring hard at his -cheek, obviously striving not to laugh.</p> - -<p>Puzzled, Glayne felt his cheek, then glanced at his hand. There was -blood on it. He suddenly recalled the two long red welts inflicted by -the Terran agent's fingernails and realized that his officers were -drawing the obvious inferences. Abruptly he was stung with chagrin and -pictured the juicy tidbit of gossip which he had just supplied gunroom -scuttlebutt throughout the Guardian Fleet. Exasperated at his own lack -of foresight, he stared back at his officers, browbeating them into -submission with his stony gaze.</p> - -<p>"Morning, Captain," drawled Graysen, breaking the embarrassed silence.</p> - -<p>"Good morning, Commander," returned Glayne. "Stoke her up. Set an -orbit for Sterle II. Incidentally, this is Lieutenant Niala Chodred of -Imperial Terran Espionage. I met her instead of our own agent. He had -an unfortunate accident with a Cardy gun—I'm told."</p> - -<p>Glayne glanced significantly at the girl. Graysen nodded -understandingly and raised a quizzical eyebrow in Niala's direction. -She looked from one to the other, mystified.</p> - -<p>Then sudden understanding registered on her features. "Glayne!" she -cried in a horrified tone, "I didn't kill him! Terran Espionage had -nothing to do with his death. He was murdered by the Delbans and we -found out by bribing one of Kairn's men that he was supposed to make -contact with an unknown Guardian big gun at the Yarga. We knew he was -to meet you but the Delbans didn't. That's the only reason you escaped -them, Captain Glayne. The Delbans murdered your contact agent but I had -nothing to do with it. You must believe me!"</p> - -<p>Glayne smiled cynically at her and said, "Of course, Lieutenant -Chodred, we believe you." He brusquely turned his back on her and said -to Graysen, "You will have to move in with one of the other officers, -Commander. Just temporarily, of course."</p> - -<p>"Aye, sir," replied Graysen.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Presently the navigation bridge was filled with hurrying men. The orbit -computers began to clatter noisily and somewhere within the depths of -the ship a keening whine indicated that the huge driver atomics were -being warmed.</p> - -<p>"What acceleration, Captain?" Graysen asked, appearing with a sheaf of -orbit calculations.</p> - -<p>Glayne was on the point of saying three G's out of deference to Niala -Chodred and her light planet birth. But he thrust her from his mind as -he realized that speed was of the utmost importance. High acceleration -meant speed and speed meant time saved. Time to carry out his bold -scheme, time to locate and sabotage the mysterious Delban power -broadcast, time to build the mesh antennae and energize the Stellar -Guardian fleet....</p> - -<p>His face hardened grimly. "Five G's," he said shortly.</p> - -<p>Doubt flickered for an instant across Graysen's face as he glanced at -the girl. Then he shrugged and turned away to comply with the order.</p> - -<p>Silently Glayne took Niala Chodred's arm and descended to the next -deck. As the first traces of a floor appeared under their feet, he -opened the door to Graysen's quarters. It was furnished with the -Spartan simplicity of a typical warrior. Trophies and a few rather -gruesome battle prints decorated the bulkheads. Niala examined the room -curiously but preserved a hurt silence.</p> - -<p>He showed her the acceleration hammocks and how to use the anti-thrust -drugs in their small surettes.</p> - -<p>"If you need me," he said, "I will be in the cabin at the end of the -corridor."</p> - -<p>She looked at him with mock surprise. "What? No connecting door? -Really, Captain, you've shattered all my girlish illusions about the -Stellar Guardians."</p> - -<p>Glayne paused, his hand on the door stud. He turned around and said, -"I want to wake up tomorrow without suffering an accident with a Cardy -gun." He closed the door behind him.</p> - -<p>By the time he reached the navigation bridge again, the <i>Algol</i> had -built up to five G's. To Glayne, accustomed to the heavy Dorleb -planets, this was a little more than twice normal.</p> - -<p>Young Brodis, the ship's Intelligence Officer, approached him and -saluted. "I beg your pardon, sir. Communications just handed these -over to me—I thought you might be interested." He extended a sheaf of -flimsies to Glayne.</p> - -<p>The big Guardian examined them, eyes narrowed. They were transcripts of -an official Lorle news bulletin. Rapidly he read:</p> - -<p><i>Intelligence Chief Kairn announced tonight the death of Carling -Clawdor, allegedly an espionage agent of the Stellar Guardians. It is -believed that he was to contact another agent or agents at the Yarga -night club this evening. Prior to his death by Cardy burns, Clawdor -accused Delban agents.</i></p> - -<p><i>Intelligence Chief Kairn also revealed that a raid carried out on the -Yarga night club failed to apprehend the Guardian agents. Just before -their arrival a spectacular gun battle took place. Investigation is -still proceeding, Kairn announced, indicating that ...</i></p> - -<p>Silently Glayne handed the flimsies back to Brodis, chewing his lower -lip. It was incredible that Kairn should reveal such confidential -information. Obviously the Lorle Intelligence Chief was taking no -chances on provoking an incident which the Delbans could twist into a -pretext for war. But an even more important fact came clear to Glayne: -Niala Chodred had not murdered Clawdor. He was very glad that she was -innocent of the Guardian agent's death. Unconsciously he framed the -apology he would make to her as he climbed with an effort into the -Captain's Dome and lowered himself into its gimbal-slung shock seat.</p> - -<p>Far off to his left the globe of Lorle IV shrunk visibly. Again the -mental picture of the Delban warships streaking over those short -horizons in fast orbits flashed across his mind and he imagined them -pouring their inconceivable torrents of energy into the unprotected -cities. At least, he thought, he wouldn't be guilty of that crime. -But what was the real chance of the wild scheme and its attendant -insubordination which he had conceived in the air-jet?</p> - -<p>For a long time he pondered it. No matter how much he rationalized, it -was still insubordination and it lay heavily on his mind. Suddenly he -was shaky and he realized that he held the fate of the civilized galaxy -in his hands. If he blundered, would that not be a greater crime than -the mere sacrifice of Lorle? Glayne could not resolve the question and -he was vaguely glad that decision was no longer in his hands and he -could not turn back if he wanted to.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>The <i>Algol</i> emerged from sub-space four hundred million kilometers -below the plane of the ecliptic in the Sterle System. With her identity -signals broadcasting at full power, she changed course, veering -"upward" toward the second planet of Sterle's small brood of five.</p> - -<p>The faint beams of the distant red dwarf sun shed a sickly glow -on the navigation bridge through the huge glassene ports. Shortly -after her arrival the <i>Algol</i> was picked up by two fast and deadly -Delban destroyers of the Planet class. Almost delicate in their -unobtrusiveness, they slipped in on either side of the <i>Algol</i> and -escorted her swiftly to the capital planet of the Delban Empire, Sterle -II.</p> - -<p>"There's one consolation, anyway," Graysen remarked to his chief as -they stood before the glassene ports. "They don't seem to have fitted -out their whole fleet with receiving antennae yet."</p> - -<p>Glayne nodded, flipping on the small auxiliary battle screen at his -side. Expertly he manipulated the viewer until one of the rakish Delban -warships ballooned up mightily on its plate. The tell-tale coppery mesh -antenna was absent.</p> - -<p>"That is fortunate," Glayne grunted dourly. "But there is the -possibility that these ships may be too small for the installation."</p> - -<p>The Delbans began to decelerate and the <i>Algol's</i> pilot hastily -imitated them. Faintly Glayne made out the tiny red ball that was -Sterle II. Uneasily Glayne realized that he had better go over the -plan once more with Niala Chodred. Next to himself, the Terran girl's -part was the most important. He grunted at Graysen to take over and -descended to her quarters. He knocked twice perfunctorily and entered -the room.</p> - -<p>Niala smiled up at him, pleased at his visit. "How much longer now, -Captain?"</p> - -<p>Glayne looked down at her, marveling at the failure of her absurdly -huge jumper in concealing the long, smooth curves of her body. Her -hair was a varied mass of copper and gold which gleamed with a subtle -display of half tones. In the cabin's fluorescents Glayne noted for the -first time that she had once been the owner of a saddle of freckles -across her nose. Now only one or two were left which contrasted -deliciously with the smoothness of her face. Glayne felt a sudden -desire to jet down on Sterle Capital like the legendary buccaneers and -ransack the best dress shops to outfit her properly.</p> - -<p>"Well?" she said.</p> - -<p>"Huh?" said Glayne foolishly. Then he collected his wandering thoughts -and replied, "Oh, yes. We're being escorted in now. We'll be down in a -couple of hours. I wanted to make a last minute check of the plan."</p> - -<p>"Ahh," she replied, stretching with devastating effect in the heavy -jumper. "We've done this so many times, Captain. But really they're -very entertaining."</p> - -<p>"I'm glad you like them," said Glayne dryly. "You should because the -plan is substantially the one you would have had me carry out under a -Ganser-personality."</p> - -<p>She colored, then regained control of her vascular motors and recited -the plan in a sing-song monotone: "We jet down at Sterle Capital. You -and I attend the informal reception. Commander Graysen remains with -the <i>Algol</i> along with Lieutenant Harbin. But precisely at twenty-one -hundred Standard, Harbin and twenty men leave the ship, ostensibly on -liberty. At twenty-one fifteen, you and I attempt to maneuver Gort -Bro-Doral and General Ganser together in conversation. At that moment -Lieutenant Harbin will land on the roof of the palace, attacking the -guards there. Then we will hustle the two Delbans into the elevator, -take them to the roof, and escape with Harbin in the flier. In the -meantime Graysen will have blasted off in the <i>Algol</i>; we will -intercept him twenty miles over Topo Gulf."</p> - -<p>"Exactly," Glayne said. "Everything is going well so far. We've just -received permission to land a liberty party so we don't have to worry -about that anymore."</p> - -<p>He took some hand-drawn maps from the case in his hand. "Brodis and -I made these from memory and a little inside information—one of the -palace, one of the roof, and one of the grounds. The whole thing -depends upon whether they are using an old style one-way shield. If so, -we can get out all right. Otherwise we're finished."</p> - -<p>She nodded and bent over the maps. Glayne bit the end off of a cigar, -then lit it meticulously. He smiled quizzically at the girl. "How's -your courage?" he asked.</p> - -<p>Her wide green eyes looked up thoughtfully into his. "I've seen some -shoe-string deals pulled before, but Captain, I'll have to award you -the prize—never one as thin and short as this."</p> - -<p>Glayne felt a sudden fear and a sudden hunger as he looked at her. He -could not bear the thought of failure—and the consequent fate of Niala -Chodred. His cheek twitched nervously and he reached for her, gathering -her into his powerful arms and drawing her face to his. Her breath was -hot against his cheek and he could feel her heart pounding heavily -against his chest. Willingly she responded to his kisses.</p> - -<p>"Here's to luck," he breathed.</p> - -<p>"And plenty of it," she replied.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p class="ph1">V</p> - -<p>Try as he might, Glayne could never accustom himself to these Sectors -which lay far out on the edge of the galaxy. Neighboring stars were -hundreds of light years apart while the great belt of stars that was in -the Main Galaxy revealed itself only as a faint haze twenty thousand -light years distant. He could not shake off the loneliness that settled -over him like a shroud, separating him from everything he knew. He was -accustomed to the vast star clouds of Sagittarius; it was there he had -spent the first ten years of his Guardianship.</p> - -<p>A dry and thirsty wind seemed to suck the moisture from his body as he -waited by the after lock with Niala. It swept across the hard surface -of the space-port and sang dolefully around the mass of the grounded -<i>Algol</i>; it even seemed to characterize the Delbans themselves. A -lonely people out on this forsaken edge of the galaxy, they hungered -and thirsted after wealth and power. The Guardian sympathized with -them to some extent, yet at the same time realized the awful threat to -civilization they represented with the mysterious, titanic broadcast -power at their disposal.</p> - -<p>Again Glayne felt inner qualms as he considered the odds against -them. Grimly he crushed them out and touched with almost superstitious -reverence the tiny blaster at his hip—for ornamental purposes only. -More confidently he hefted the weight of the heavy Cardy at his arm-pit.</p> - -<p>The small surface-jet which had set out for the <i>Algol</i> immediately -after the mushrooming blasts of its landing jets subsided now drew up -at the tiny waiting dock formed by the <i>Algol's</i> after lock. The lack -of formality, Glayne knew, was as blatant an insult as the Delbans -could manage. He smiled mirthlessly to himself. They couldn't please -him more if they tried. The less pomp and ceremony attached to him, the -more smoothly his plan would work.</p> - -<p>A single Delban emerged from the surface-jet, evidently a civilian -judging from his dress. He was incredibly tall and thin and made Glayne -very uncomfortable because he had to tilt his head back to get a good -look at him.</p> - -<p>"Captain Glayne," began the emissary in a high, sighing nasal, "on -behalf of His Imperial Excellency, Ruler of Ten Thousand Suns, Master -of the Cosmos, and Supreme Overlord of the Delban Empire, Gort -Bro-Doral, I humbly welcome you to Sterle II." He bowed very low.</p> - -<p>Glayne, nervously anticipating almost anything, could hardly restrain -his laughter at this comic pomposity. It was quite out of place in the -desolate, curiously-deserted space-port. He and Niala entered the rear -compartment of the surface car and sunk back in the luxurious cushions. -Their Delban guide tooled it with expert ease from the space-port and -down a traffic artery toward the bright blob on the horizon that was -Sterle Capital.</p> - -<p>In minutes, it seemed, they were pausing for the first guard check -along the private road that led to the Bro's fabulous palace. Glayne -had been there once before, five years ago. They passed two more guard -checks. For a minute Glayne thought they were safely on the palace -grounds, only to be disillusioned by another, and this time very close, -guard check.</p> - -<p>The weapons' detector emitted a raucous buzz when they came into its -field. Suspiciously the guards stared at them, their weapons leveled. -Seeing the tiny toy at Glayne's hip, they smiled and passed them on -with contemptuous nods.</p> - -<p>What a hell of a mess, he thought to himself. It was too late to back -out. In another hour Harbin would be on his way to the palace—and -right into a hive of trigger-happy guards. One faint consolation -was their contempt which would render them more vulnerable to the -surprise attack he planned. But on the whole it looked pretty grim. -He suppressed his unhappy thoughts as the surface-jet drew up at last -beneath a gigantic, arched entrance.</p> - -<p>Niala squeezed his hand bravely, casting a quick smile at him.</p> - -<p>Heartened by her display of courage, he climbed from the little jet car -and followed the escorting Delban down a long series of luxuriously -furnished corridors. Eventually they turned off into an enormous -reception room brilliantly illuminated by chandeliers of priceless -Tharna crystals. Tremendous tapestries hung along the wall, depicting -ancient, pre-spaceship battle scenes. A score or so of guests stood -about the huge room, all of them quite obviously in very advanced -stages of drunkenness. Quite cheerfully they spilled drinks on the -priceless <i>jrik</i> carpets or on the equally priceless marl Shanzi-wood -furnishings.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Glayne was puzzled by all the intoxication. As he speculated, it -suddenly occurred to him that they were celebrating. Quite obviously -they believed that they had won a victory of some sort in the -diplomatic call by the Stellar Guardian <i>Algol</i>. Glayne had to agree -that it was a logical conclusion and resolved to exploit their mistaken -belief as far as possible.</p> - -<p>The first person to be presented to Glayne and Niala was General Hoteh -Ganser. He was hopelessly drunk. Glayne knew the pop-eyed Delban -Espionage Chief only by reputation; he was rather disappointed at the -dried and withered figure he cut. Nevertheless he was pleased to see -the Delban in an intoxicated condition; he could be more easily handled.</p> - -<p>"The Bro will arrive presently," their guide informed them. -Affairs of state prevented his presence at the moment. Meanwhile -they were introduced to a number of curious and intoxicated -guests—high-ranking, Glayne gathered, from the monotonous repetition -of titles.</p> - -<p>Then General Ganser was before them again, accompanied by another -Delban in a brilliant uniform surmounted by a gaudy, flowing cape. He -was aristocratic and condescending in his demeanor and a smile played -about his eyes and dry lips.</p> - -<p>"May I present His Excellency, Gort Bro-Doral ... Captain Glayne of the -Stellar Guardians," introduced Ganser. His eyes were owlish with forced -dignity. Gort Bro-Doral waved him away with a careless sweep of his arm -and bowed politely to Glayne.</p> - -<p>"I think we met several years ago, Captain. Am I right? But of course. -Won't you and your ... er ... lady have a drink?"</p> - -<p>Glayne colored angrily. Yes, they would have a drink. He glanced -casually at his wrist-chrono. Twenty minutes ... just twenty minutes -before Harbin would be down on the roof.</p> - -<p>He sipped slowly at the huge cup of <i>borse</i> which the Bro had -personally ladled out for him, letting its blue-green smoothness ease -his parched throat and his nervousness. Niala, at his sign, slipped -away and was immediately surrounded by a crowd of the outlanders, -General Ganser at the head. They knew a good thing when they saw it, -Glayne reflected wryly.</p> - -<p>Gort Bro-Doral eyed him with amusement across the mammoth <i>borse</i> bowl. -"Now really, Captain, why did you come here? Surely not to inform us of -the decision of your sacred Policy Organ?" The Ruler of Ten Thousand -Suns emitted an odd, explosive noise that corresponded to laughter.</p> - -<p>To the Delban leader's question Glayne replied cautiously, "The -Guardians have landed on their feet in every major crisis for the last -thousand years. Perhaps we want to land feet-first this time."</p> - -<p>"That is quite understandable, Captain," replied Gort Bro-Doral, -cautious in his turn.</p> - -<p>"When one side in a battle has unlimited strength," Glayne continued, -"the wise man has no difficulty in deciding whom he will support. That -is similar to our own position, Your Excellency."</p> - -<p>Again Bro-Doral produced his strange, whinnying laugh. "Really, -Captain, you amaze me. The future Delban Empire cannot tolerate -such things as mercenary armies and space fleets—nor do we need -such organizations to win our battles now. But, if you could bring -yourself to the point of forgetting your traditions and other related -paraphernalia of which you are so fond, then there is a possibility -that you might be absorbed into the Delban Space Navy. Of course, you -would have to submit to our commands—but that's understandable...."</p> - -<p>Glayne exulted inwardly. The Bro simply saw them begging for a crumb of -the spoils—he enjoyed his power to humiliate the Stellar Guardians. -But what he didn't see, contrary to the old adage, was going to trim -his scrawny neck. Where were Niala and Ganser? A minute to go!</p> - -<p>"Your conditions are rather harsh, Your Excellency," he said, looking -around for Niala. "But perhaps tomorrow...?"</p> - -<p>"Yes. Tomorrow by all means, Captain. And it will be a formal occasion -this time." Again Bro-Doral produced his explosive laugh, glancing -obliquely at Glayne from beneath lowered eyelids. Amusement at the -Guardian's plight bubbled in the depths of his otherwise fathomless -black eyes.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>A sudden series of shocks made the floor shudder and Glayne's heart -jumped to his throat. Harbin had struck! Out of the corner of his eye -he perceived Niala thrusting a big, black Cardy into Ganser's back, -concealing it beneath his cape. Glayne drew his own and thrust it into -Bro-Doral's ribs.</p> - -<p>"Keep laughing, damn you!" Glayne instructed. "Walk to the roof -elevator—casually." Glayne's eyes flickered rapidly about the room. -Niala was right behind him with the staggering and nonplussed General -Ganser. He thrust his weapon into the fold of his jumper before it -could be seen. Repeated tremors shook the floor—Harbin must be digging -them out with a secondary Kellander, he thought fleetingly.</p> - -<p>"You must be insane!" choked the Master of the Cosmos. "The roof -guards—the palace guards and my own personal men will blast you down -before you can set a foot outside this room!"</p> - -<p>"<i>Just—keep—laughing!</i>" Glayne said, emphasizing every word. One -or two of the guests looked at them curiously as they approached -the massive doors, then turned away indifferently. The trembling -had ceased. That meant that Harbin had cleared away the immediate -defenses—but Glayne knew it would be a race with the reinforcements.</p> - -<p>The doors were opened before them by attendants—slowly and with -agonizing dignity. Two hawk-eyed Delban guards glanced at them sharply -as they entered the corridor that led to the Bro's private apartment -and the crucial fifth level roof elevator. Ever so slowly they moved -down the corridor. It was a snail's pace to Glayne. Gort Bro-Doral -laughed—or gasped in his sickly, explosive manner. He gestured. He -spoke to Glayne, waving his arms in a deprecating manner. And all -the while the Guardian looked innocently into the Delban's tormented -features, his hand clinging wetly to the Cardy in the folds of his -jumper.</p> - -<p>They met no more guards in the corridor; evidently the rest of them had -hastened to the roof. But the first two were still eyeing them. Glayne -could feel their stares burning into his back. Twenty feet separated -them from the waiting elevator ... fifteen ... ten. Niala had drawn -abreast with General Ganser; the sick, the pale, the fuzzy-minded -Intelligence Chief whose cunning was known throughout the Galaxy.</p> - -<p>There was a sudden commotion behind them. Glayne cast a glance over -his shoulder and saw the corridor rapidly filling with uniformed and -heavily-armed Delbans. They commanded him to stop; he smiled back. They -brandished their weapons; he waved back gaily, herding the prisoners -into the open elevator. They rushed after him; he drew his Cardy gun, -crouched, and fired with murderous effect. Then he lunged into the -elevator and jabbed the roof stud.</p> - -<p>Swiftly it rose. Glayne turned to the two Delbans. The Ruler of Ten -Thousand Suns was in a blue funk but General Ganser had pulled himself -together a bit. His heavily-veined, crimson eyes blazed furiously at -the kidnapers.</p> - -<p>"Be careful with the General," Glayne warned. "He is dangerous when -sober."</p> - -<p>She managed a weak smile and thereby jumped another ten points in -Glayne's esteem. The elevator sighed to a stop and the heavy door slid -open, letting the dry wind pluck at them. Glayne turned his blaster -on the controls, fusing them into tangled slag. Then he crept to the -open door, crouched, and surveyed the palace roof in the pale, rosy -illumination shed by one of Sterle's just-risen moons.</p> - -<p>On his left, not a hundred yards away, lay the flier from the <i>Algol</i>. -Three gunners from the crew were operating a portable Kellander, firing -along the edge of the anti-energy shield which had been generated from -the flier to prevent other Delban roof emplacements from destroying -the little assault force. The rest of the attacking group manned -Delban energy projectors that were still in operating condition, -sending a heavy fire into possible concentration points for an enemy -counter-attack. Bodies—mostly Delban—sprawled everywhere.</p> - -<p>"We'll have to run for it," Glayne said. "They've erected an -anti-shield between us and the flier. Once we gain that, we're safe."</p> - -<p>Niala nodded and prodded the two prisoners out of the elevator. Bending -low, they ran diagonally across the roof toward the shimmering ovoid -that was the anti-shield. They had not gone more than forty steps -before a counter-attacking wave of Delban palace guards suddenly -appeared on their right. Cursing, Glayne doubled about and increased -his pace in order not to be cut off. "Glayne! Slow down ... I can't -keep up," the girl panted.</p> - -<p>The Guardian glanced anxiously back at her just in time to be struck -full force by General Ganser's flying body. They went down together -in a wild tangle of thrashing arms and legs. The Delban, in spite of -his dissipation, was tough and wiry; his long fingers sought Glayne's -throat and clung to it with a vise-like grip. In vain the Guardian -battered his body with sledge-hammer blows of his fists. Somewhere he -had lost his gun. A black film threatened to engulf his consciousness -as he struggled against the strangling grip of General Ganser. Vaguely -he felt the roof on which he lay tremble from the impact of the energy -beams that smashed into it.</p> - -<p>From far away he heard Niala scream. It was a bitter spur to his -flagging strength. Summoning every last reserve, he tore Ganser's -clutching hands from his throat and flung him down to the roof. Not -done yet, the Delban snatched up Glayne's weapon which had fallen in -the first seconds of the combat and lifted it to fire. Furiously Glayne -launched his booted foot at Ganser in a savage kick. Bones crunched as -it caught him full in the face and the impact sent him spinning.</p> - -<p>Glayne scooped up the Cardy gun and searched desperately for Niala. The -Delban palace guard continued to storm the little Guardian stronghold, -but the fire of the defenders took horrible effect on their ranks. -In the darkness he saw Niala's crumpled form on the roof. And almost -immediately afterwards he saw Gort Bro-Doral fleeing to the safety of -his attacking soldiers. Holding his breath, Glayne tried a long range -shot. But it was to no avail. The Supreme Overlord had made good his -escape.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Anxiously Glayne bent over the girl who was just beginning to stir. -There was a nasty welt on her forehead.</p> - -<p>"I'm all right," she gasped, rising to her feet. "Where's Bro-Doral? -Did he get away?"</p> - -<p>Glayne nodded grimly. "Yes, but never mind. We've got this one. Hurry!"</p> - -<p>Grunting, he swung Ganser's supine form to his shoulder and ran panting -to the edge of the anti-shield. He halted a pace before the shimmering -field and pulled a dark-colored disc from his pocket. Set beforehand to -the shield frequency that Harbin would use, its purpose was to nullify -a small section long enough for them to slip through.</p> - -<p>Hastily his fingers flipped the trigger and it began to vibrate -furiously in his hand. Instantly an irregular opening flickered in the -lethal shimmer of the shield. Glayne shoved the girl through, then -darted after her with Ganser over his shoulder.</p> - -<p>Harbin waved joyously at them from the flier turret, his youthful -face wreathed in smiles. "We can't hold them much longer," he shouted. -"They're nullifying the shield with field scramblers. Hurry!"</p> - -<p>Right behind Glayne as he steered Niala through the lock and leaped -in behind her came the portable Kellander crew, still firing as they -backed the gun into the flier. With a <i>clang</i> the locks slammed shut -and the flier's driver engines thundered. With a single motion of his -arm, Harbin released the anti-shield and fed the pent-up driver power -to the jets. With a tremendous heave that crushed Glayne back rigidly -in his seat the flier blasted up from the palace roof.</p> - -<p>Harbin flung the flier around in a screaming turn and thundered low -over the vast forest preserves that surrounded the palace. The tall, -scraggly trees seemed to brush against the ship's stubby fins as Harbin -sought to evade enemy pursuit. Grunting with effort, Glayne clambered -up to the nose of the craft and sank back into a shock seat beside the -pilot.</p> - -<p>Grimly the Guardian Captain peered ahead at the huge, featureless -ovoid of grey which was fast rushing down upon them. It was the palace -defense shield. If it was the new type, then they were licked because -nothing could get in or out. But the two-way shields were dangerous -and unnecessary as protection for a natural siege position like Gort -Bro-Doral's palace. Hence Glayne had concluded that the Delbans would -keep their old style shield.</p> - -<p>Or had he made a mistake in his reasoning? Glayne tensed unconsciously -as the tiny flier flashed toward the grey ovoid. It was all or nothing. -And suddenly the flier slashed through it like so much paper.</p> - -<p>Glayne suppressed a sigh of relief at the vindication of his logic. -Now the flier was hurtling over Sterle Capital. Harbin, in an effort -to avoid enemy detectors, was almost flying down the very streets. -Their wild gamble almost looked as if it would pay off. Glayne hoped -fervently that Graysen had managed to evade the two Delban escort -destroyers that had accompanied them to the space-port. The <i>Algol</i> -would be a sitting duck over Topo Gulf until the flier arrived.</p> - -<p>But after that, Glayne thought grimly, they were clear. No matter -how much power the Delbans could receive from their astounding -transmitter, they could not withstand a sustained ten G thrust like -his crew of heavy planet men. Then he thought of Niala, accustomed to -Terran Standard. He bit his lip. She would just have to take it; there -was no other way.</p> - -<p>The flier had left Sterle Capital far behind and was climbing rapidly -into the stratosphere. Evidently the surprise attack had disorganized -the Delban patrols and drawn them like flies to the city. At any rate, -not one was in sight as their flier streaked over Topo Gulf.</p> - -<p>Feverishly Harbin doubled the flier back and forth, searching the conic -broadcast beam of the <i>Algol</i>, undetectable behind her inert screen. -Finally a welcome series of dots and dashes crackled from the receiver -and Harbin brought the flier around in a screaming turn to follow the -directional beam. Cautiously he slowed the craft as the intensity of -the signals increased. Suddenly the reception maw gaped at them out of -grey nothingness—and the flier shuddered to a stop at the <i>Algol's</i> -landing dock.</p> - -<p>Hastily Glayne jumped out of the flier and hurried to the navigation -bridge, dropping Niala in her quarters along the way. Harbin would take -General Ganser—the precious, indispensable Ganser—to Surgery for -facial repairs.</p> - -<p>Graysen nodded at him, as taciturn as ever. "Your orbit, Captain?"</p> - -<p>"Anywhere," Glayne replied. "Anywhere, just so long as we get far -enough out of this system to drop into sub-space." He rubbed his -bristly chin for a moment, thinking. "Make it eight G's," he added.</p> - -<p>Graysen acknowledged and turned away. Almost immediately the inert -screens were dropped and a floor began to build under Glayne's feet. By -the time he had mounted to the Captain's Station, he was panting with -effort. Automatically he jabbed an anti-thrust surette into his arm and -felt his muscles relax instantaneously under the influence of the magic -drug.</p> - -<p>The inter-ship communicator phones gurgled over his head for a couple -of seconds, then Brodis' voice issued from the speaker: "The General -is floating up to his ears in verchromynal, Captain. They're putting -his face back together right now. Give the word and I'll go to work on -him, thrust or no thrust."</p> - -<p>"No," Glayne replied. "We'll make sub-space in a few hours. Then we'll -have all the time we need to pump him. And, Lieutenant...."</p> - -<p>"Sir?"</p> - -<p>"Prepare the General's very own treatments for him."</p> - -<p>Brodis paused for an appreciable instant, then said, "Right, Captain," -and cut off.</p> - -<p>Glayne watched the globe of Sterle II diminish in his battle screen -with deep satisfaction. The first step in his plan had been carried -off with miraculous good fortune. Now the most pressing necessity was -speed. Once the <i>Algol</i> was sufficiently far from mass to drop into -sub-space, the mysterious power source of the Delbans would be only -a couple of hours distant at the most. With Ganser under control and -acting as a safe conduct, Glayne saw success dangling just within his -fingers.</p> - -<p>Yet deep within his nether-mind he felt a twinge of foreboding—as -if he had forgotten some vital factor in his calculations. The dim -awareness was almost on the threshold of prescience, but it was too -indistinct for him to make out clearly. Uneasily he sought to ignore it -but could not.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p class="ph1">VI</p> - -<p>In sub-space, time crept along in low gear. Glayne was aware of the -fact that five hours in sub-space corresponded to about forty minutes -in flat, normal space due to the difference in time rates. But time was -time, whether fast or slow. General Hoteh Ganser also realized that -time was passing; in fact, he exerted every effort to increase the -length of time the <i>Algol</i> would have to remain in sub-space.</p> - -<p>Sullenly he stared at Brodis and Glayne as they stood over him. There -was a hint of amusement in the depths of his peculiar, crimson eyes.</p> - -<p>"You deserve congratulations in the success of your attack, Captain -Glayne," he said mockingly. "A touch of bravado here, a bit too -audacious there ... but, all in all, quite well executed. His -Excellency will remember it for a long time. In fact, your success now -will add to his delight at witnessing your Vibra-Death later."</p> - -<p>Glayne suppressed an involuntary shudder. What a fertile imagination -the Delban had!</p> - -<p>"Shut up!" snapped Brodis with disgust in his voice. "You might as -well make it easier for yourself, Ganser. Relax your mind barriers or -we will smash them down and drag the information from you. Either way, -we'll get it in the end!"</p> - -<p>Ganser sneered at the young Guardian.</p> - -<p>"I can loosen him up with some physical persuasion, Captain," suggested -Brodis hopefully.</p> - -<p>Ganser made an obscene remark which brought Brodis to his feet, -enraged. The young officer was on the verge of clobbering him with a -meaty fist, but Glayne stopped him.</p> - -<p>"Such an old veteran as the General is certain to have taken the -precaution of having automatic anesthesia cultures introduced into his -blood stream," he said. "He would like nothing better than to have you -strike him because the sustained trauma of physical pain would trigger -the anesthesia and make him unconscious for as long as forty-eight -hours."</p> - -<p>Ganser made a mocking bow to Glayne.</p> - -<p>The Guardian Captain rubbed his cheek wearily. Nothing else but the -Ganser conditioner probe now, he realized. He caught Brodis' eye and -moved his head slightly in the direction of the gleaming mass of coils -and the huge helmet which was the Ganser conditioner.</p> - -<p>Brodis nodded. With the aid of a couple of the technicians he set the -helmet down carefully over the General's bald pate.</p> - -<p>"Have you ever tried these wonderful treatments of yours, General?" -Brodis inquired with clinical detachment. "They eliminate all your -worries in instants, I understand. They can even make a new man of you, -I'm told."</p> - -<p>Ganser remained obstinately silent as the massive helmet was adjusted -about his head and clamped to the chair in which he was secured. In -spite of himself Glayne admired the Delban's strength of will. He, if -anyone, should know the mental anguish of the conditioner. But now it -was dog eat dog, kill or be killed, and the devil take the hindmost. -He nodded imperceptibly to Brodis who was waiting for the signal to -begin.</p> - -<p>Hours passed and Glayne cursed each inexorable minute. He and Brodis -and the four grey-faced technicians were wet with perspiration. Ganser -drooped in the chair, but his crimson eyes still blazed with fanatical -hatred.</p> - -<p>"Lord, what barriers!" whispered Brodis. He stared with fascination at -the indomitable Delban.</p> - -<p>"What is the power source?" Glayne asked repeatedly, holding his face -impassive through sheer force of will. "You want to help us, Guardian. -Tell us about the broadcast power."</p> - -<p>The conditioned self was slowly beginning to take shape in Ganser's -mind. It offered a new set of values, new goals and desires, uppermost -of which was to give all possible aid to the Stellar Guardians. Thus -the Ganser-personality they were so painstakingly superimposing upon -the Delban was almost that of a Stellar Guardian. Gradually they saw it -appear in the Delban's crimson eyes.</p> - -<p>"The Tane Jewel," he whispered. "Found it in space ... no bigger than -a Terran grapefruit. Engineers ... found way to drain its power -potential ... almost infinite."</p> - -<p>The Tane! The Flame-Jewel of the Elder Tane!</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Glayne was stunned. He remembered the legends he had heard of the -incredible Tane—weird creatures who had ruled the Galaxy long before -the existence of protein life forms. He even recalled the tales of -their fabulous Second Universe in which they had sought refuge in order -to maintain an artificial stasis and escape extermination. Ever since -the discovery of the Tane legends, scientists had speculated about the -Second Universe and the titanic source of power it represented. And now -it had been found by the Delban Empire and was at the disposal of Gort -Bro-Doral.</p> - -<p>What had Ganser called it? A <i>Jewel</i>—and no larger than a grapefruit! -Incredulously Glayne snapped a glance at one of the technicians who -was watching the jerking movements of the lie detector stylus on its -graphed scroll. The man looked up and nodded, his mouth a tight line -across his face.</p> - -<p>Glayne turned back to the Delban prisoner. "Where is the power -broadcast from, Guardian?" he asked urgently.</p> - -<p>"Tjadlinn," muttered Ganser, under the control of a pseudo-Guardian -personality. "Jorger Sun ... deep helio orbit. The planetless Jorger -Sun—remember, <i>we</i> were commissioned to clear it of meteor drift. -Later <i>they</i> built the Tjadlinn discoid around the Jewel...."</p> - -<p>Glayne smiled mirthlessly. So the Delbans had planted the Jewel right -under their noses. Yet what more logical place! He recalled the job -he had supervised there five years before. The Delbans were going to -build a power research station in an orbit about the planetless sun—a -practice common in many Sectors.</p> - -<p>Glayne tensed as he leaned toward Ganser to ask a third question. It -was the crucial one and the others knew it. There was a hushed silence -as Glayne asked:</p> - -<p>"What is the frequency of the Jewel power broadcast? What do you know -about the design of the mesh receiving antennae? Tell us, Guardian. We -need your help."</p> - -<p>Silence followed Glayne's question. It lengthened and became unbearable.</p> - -<p>At last: "The mesh antennae are manufactured at the secret Karkara -Fleet Station on Scone III. It is defended by Jewel-powered Kellander -batteries in addition to secondary auxiliary projectors. The approach -code is not available to me. Neither is there information available on -broadcast frequencies or antenna design."</p> - -<p>Glayne smashed his fist against his leg in violent disappointment. -The facts were simply not available in Ganser's mind, so the -pseudo-Guardian personality naturally failed to produce them. Again -Glayne felt a twinge of respect for the Delban. If anyone knew the -technical secrets of the Jewel broadcast, it should have been Ganser. -But the Delban's wily cunning had thwarted them. He had carefully -avoided all technical knowledge of the Jewel, anticipating an attempt -to drain his mind.</p> - -<p>There was only one course open to him now. Attack Tjadlinn! He looked -at his wrist-chrono. Twelve hours they had spent in this nether-space! -It was inconceivable. Glayne swore to himself and thought furiously.</p> - -<p>According to Ganser, the mass of the Tjadlinn discoid was too slight -to maintain an interstellar telephone; only message craft connected it -with the rest of Bro-Doral's empire. That was a break, thought Glayne. -In spite of the time they had spent in sub-space, they might still -reach Jorger Sun before a warning came from Sterle II. With Ganser -under their control and posing as a guide, they could bluff through the -outer defenses of the Jewel station. Once inside, they would have to -take the breaks as they came.</p> - -<p>His shoulders suddenly sagged at the appalling decision he would have -to make. Once within the discoid, he would be cut off from outside -communication and could not warn the fleet if anything went wrong. -On the other hand, the fleet had to be standing by or there was no -possible chance of success. Desperately he sought for alternatives to -his scheme but none presented themselves. The Terran Combine's last -chance rested within his own hands, he realized grimly. An immediate -decision had to be made. But if he failed....</p> - -<p>With sudden resolve he crushed out his burning doubts and turned -to Brodis. "Take the fastest flier we have, dope yourself up with -verchromynal, and go to the Stellar Guardian Communication Station -at Zandrome. They generate enough power there to push a message over -the interstellar telephone to Dorleb in thirty-five minutes. Contact -Admiral Garstow. Give him all the information we have and tell him that -Scone III will be without Jewel power in forty-eight hours. Have him -advise Admiral Bardled of the Terran Fleet that his aid is essential. -Inform Garstow that every available fleet unit <i>must</i> be at Scone III -in forty-eight hours. Hurry!"</p> - -<p>Brodis reached the door in one jump and was half-way down the corridor -in another. Glayne watched him go, bleakly phrasing the rest of -the message under his breath. <i>Garstow</i>, he thought, <i>you will be -slaughtered if there's one tiny slip on my part. It's good you don't -know about it.</i></p> - -<p>Then Glayne shrugged and went up to the navigation bridge.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Jorger Sun was barely visible through the glassene observation ports. -But it blew up hugely in Glayne's auxiliary battle screen—a white -dwarf of brilliant intensity and a temperature equal to that of the -greatest white super-giants in the main galaxy. It was incredibly -<i>alone</i> out on the furthest reaches of the vast, trailing arms of the -galaxy.</p> - -<p>The <i>Algol</i> was decelerating as it flashed toward Jorger Sun. Somewhere -behind it was the Tjadlinn discoid built around the fabulous Tane -Jewel. It would look strange, Glayne knew, if they were detected in -a maximum ten G deceleration thrust while on an official inspection -tour—especially with their low-gravity guide, General Ganser, aboard.</p> - -<p>Commander Graysen approached, shifting his weight from one gnarled -leg to the other in the space-man's shuffling gait. His leathery face -widened in a rare grin as he reached Glayne. "I should have retired -after that last cruise," he wheezed. "Here is Harbin for last minute -instructions, Captain."</p> - -<p>Glayne nodded to the younger officer. "Harbin, you will take over when -Commander Graysen and I leave with the landing party. If you are fired -upon while we are inside the discoid, clear out fast. Take the <i>Algol</i> -to Scone III as quickly as possible. Warn Admiral Garstow that my plan -has failed and that it would be best to disperse all fleet units. Under -no conditions are you to attempt battle. Do you understand?"</p> - -<p>"Aye, sir!" snapped the youngster. His face worked for an instant, but -he suppressed his protest and brought himself under control.</p> - -<p>"Destination in sight, Captain Glayne," called the pilot over the -communicator.</p> - -<p>"Cut deceleration to four G's." To Graysen: "How is Ganser?"</p> - -<p>"In excellent shape—even his face. According to Psych he is completely -under control."</p> - -<p>Glayne turned back to his screen and stared at the expanding Tjadlinn -discoid. Instinctively he looked for the slim and deadly Jewel-powered -cruisers that would be waiting for them if a warning had reached -Tjadlinn. But of course he saw nothing. If they were there, they would -be masked by inert detector screens, waiting for him to approach so -closely that no amount of frantic acceleration could tear him from -their grasp.</p> - -<p>The discoid was a huge thing of beralloy, all of ten kilometers in -diameter. About half-way from the center he could make out the landing -dock as Ganser had indicated. He could also make out the evil snouts -of Kellander projectors sprouting in clusters on Tjadlinn's metallic -surface. Even as he watched, they wheeled about ominously, coming to -bear on the decelerating <i>Algol</i>. Were they simply taking precautions, -Glayne wondered, or were they cagily waiting for him to climb right -down the barrels of their projectors?</p> - -<p>As he stood alone before the battle screen he suddenly felt a small -hand touch his. He looked around. It was Niala Chodred, subdued and -somewhat apprehensive. She looked up at him intently, forcing him to -meet her eyes.</p> - -<p>"I believe you are planning to leave me behind in the ship when you -land at Tjadlinn, aren't you?"</p> - -<p>Glayne winced at the slight accusation in her eyes. A sudden wave of -nervous irritation welled up in him and he was on the verge of hurling -a curse at her and driving her back to her quarters. But the tenderness -in her eyes made him feel guilty because of his hasty mood and he -relented.</p> - -<p>"Yes," he said. "I'm very sorry. The ship is unsafe enough as it is, -but down there—" he gestured at the image of Tjadlinn in the screen, -"—down there will be fighting and certainly many casualties."</p> - -<p>"But if I am present," she pointed out logically, "they will be much -less likely to suspect you of hostile intentions."</p> - -<p>"How do you think I would feel if you were killed down there?" Glayne -asked, avoiding her eyes.</p> - -<p>"How do you think I would feel if you were?" she countered.</p> - -<p>Glayne turned to her, about to point out another difficulty, then said -nothing. Suddenly she was in his arms and he felt his senses swim at -her touch. For a timeless instant he forgot everything but the warm, -laughing, green-eyed Niala whom he held in his arms.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p class="ph1">VII</p> - -<p>Tjadlinn was gigantic. It rotated on its central axis once every -forty hours and completed a revolution about Jorger Sun once every -eighty-five years. The orbit was like that of a comet; at perihelion -its velocity approached seventy miles per second. Now it had begun its -journey away from the sun, swinging out into the infinite blackness of -the lonely void.</p> - -<p>Grimly the Guardian Captain looked at his crewmen, sturdy big-planet -men like himself. There were six of them. Glayne wondered how many -would be left when they returned—if they ever did return. He looked -at the girl and wondered if she would return. She smiled at him as the -artificial planetoid loomed hugely over their tiny landing launch. He -felt no regret that she was along—his mind ignored all such feelings -of that nature now. Instead it was concentrated to the highest degree -of receptivity, sorting and classifying the sense impressions that came -to it.</p> - -<p>The massive beralloy portals of the outer air-lock gaped open at them -and the launch jetted inside. Then they closed with a thunderous -<i>clang</i> and the inner doors slid open in an oddly obsequious fashion. -They were much less ponderous than the outer doors, Glayne noted. -A moment later the launch came to rest and General Hoteh Ganser, -Chief of Delban Intelligence, stalked out of the cabin followed by -representatives of the Stellar Guardians, now allied with the Delban -Empire.</p> - -<p>There was a group of high-ranking Delban Army and Fleet officers -awaiting them as they stepped from the launch. They bowed ceremoniously -to Ganser, then to Glayne and his party as they were introduced. The -Guardian smiled, he bowed, he clicked his heels solemnly—but all the -time his hand was casually resting inside of the fold of his jumper on -the Cardy gun there.</p> - -<p>The only name Glayne remembered was that of the commander of Tjadlinn -discoid: Admiral Selzi-Narfid, Right Royal Protector of the Emperor's -Hunting Preserves. But he was not notable because of his absurd title; -rather, it was the hint of amusement that Glayne fancied he saw -flickering in the depths of his jet black eyes.</p> - -<p>It was Selzi-Narfid who turned to Ganser and said: "I'm sure you must -be weary after your arduous journey, Your Excellency. Won't you and -Captain Glayne and his party partake of some refreshment?"</p> - -<p>Glayne frowned. That was not so good. They could not afford to waste -time eating and drinking because the message craft might bring the -warning from Sterle II at any minute. Yet how could they refuse?</p> - -<p>Evidently this same train of thought flashed through the conditioned -intellect of General Ganser. For just an instant he paused before -saying yes, they would be delighted.</p> - -<p>Again Selzi-Narfid bowed and this time Glayne was positive he saw -mockery in the Tjadlinn commander's eyes. Following him, they entered a -large mono-car poised on its single, gleaming span by gyros. It started -with a jolt, picked up speed, and was presently bulleting down the -tunnel, the walls a blur on either side. To Glayne it almost seemed as -if they were moving down hill.</p> - -<p>"You will notice the gravity attraction increasing as we progress," -began Selzi-Narfid. "That is because we are approaching the Jewel. It -is considerably more comfortable in my quarters close to the center. On -the periphery of the discoid one has almost no weight because of the -distance from the Jewel.</p> - -<p>"No one knows the exact mass of the Tane Jewel. Probably around two -hundred million tons, it is thought. Naturally it is not safe to -approach too closely—the inverse square law, you know. Within a few -meters the attraction is so tremendous that we have great difficulty in -anchoring the power drain machinery. But you will see for yourself in -the Jewel Chamber."</p> - -<p>The mono-car sighed to a halt and Selzi-Narfid ushered them graciously -into a tapestried corridor. Glayne noticed that the gravity was just -about Terran Standard. He also noticed that Selzi-Narfid, in spite -of his flow of suave conversation, was worried. Suddenly a peculiar -sensation of <i>wrongness</i> flared up in Glayne's mind and he knew that -his battle-trained, preternatural intuition was at work. His hand -tightened on the Cardy and his eyes flickered everywhere but could -discover nothing.</p> - -<p>At the wide entrance stage the Admiral held back, gesturing for Ganser, -Glayne, and the others to precede him. The small hairs on the back of -Glayne's neck arose as they entered the luxurious suite of the Tjadlinn -commander. Something was definitely very wrong.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Then sick dismay scalded up in the pit of his stomach. He saw what was -wrong. It was Gort Bro-Doral who faced them, a Cardy gun in his hand.</p> - -<p>Calmly the Delban Overlord fired at Ganser. The energy beam lashed into -the pseudo-Guardian, making a big, ragged hole where his belly had been.</p> - -<p>Glayne could do nothing more than stare helplessly. He did not even -think to resist when the room filled with armed Delbans who went about -the job of disarming them in a very silent and efficient fashion.</p> - -<p>"Such a pity," remarked Gort Bro-Doral, glancing down at Ganser's -charred and crumpled body. "Hoteh was my right hand, but the poor -wretch was just too thorough. His own mind-conditioning device caught -him in the end." He produced his sickly, explosive laugh and inclined -his head to one of the armed Delbans. "Take it away," he murmured.</p> - -<p>"How did you get here so quickly?" Glayne said, asking the question -uppermost in his mind. He was bewildered to think of the incredible -acceleration the low-gravity Delban must have undergone to have beaten -the Guardian ship.</p> - -<p>"Another of the wonders of the glorious Tane Jewel," replied Bro-Doral -with amused condescension. "Theoretically it was always possible to -project material bodies into sub-space directly from planetary mass in -the same way that the immaterial waves of an interstellar telephone -message are cast directly into sub-space. Heretofore, however, there -has never been sufficient power to form a shield around the material -object strong enough to prevent its being completely crushed by the -brutal space warp in the presence of mass. That difficulty vanishes -when one has the unlimited power of the Tane Jewel at his disposal."</p> - -<p>Glayne understood. Ganser, who had meticulously avoided all technical -knowledge, did not know this. Consequently they had walked straight -into a trap. Glayne's shoulders sagged as he looked around, savouring -the taste of defeat. Tough old Graysen stood at his side, impotently -balling his fists. His carefully picked crewmen were behind him, arms -above their heads. They looked grim and ready for anything. But Niala...</p> - -<p>Glayne fought down the painful lump in his throat. It made no -difference. They had the <i>Algol</i>, too. So it mattered not at all -whether she came along or stayed behind, he told himself. They had -only one thing to look forward to—and that would be unpleasant. -Surreptitiously he touched the massive ring on his hand. It contained a -single blaster charge. Shakily he resolved to use it on Niala when it -came to that.</p> - -<p>Bro-Doral whinnied. "I have your day planned for you, Captain," he -said. "I have often been accused of lacking a sense of justice, but -you will see for yourself that such a charge wrongs me. Your men will -be executed as humanly as possible. You and the esteemed Graysen will -be given a chance to witness the destruction of your ship. And then—" -the Delban snickered, "—the Vibra-Death! The girl ... I'm not sure. -Yes, it will take some thought. But you may be sure that it will be -interesting."</p> - -<p>Bro-Doral's sadism was too much for Glayne. With a snarl of animal -hatred he leaped at the Delban Overlord, brushing aside his Cardy gun -and reaching for his throat. The force of his lunge carried them back -a few steps and the Bro tripped. Glayne, blazing with blind rage, -lifted his foot to crush the Bro like a worm. At that instant a cold -beam lanced into his back. Its icy fingers played along his spine and -paralyzed him with numbness. Helplessly his arms fell to his sides and -two of the armed Delbans came up behind him, supporting him to prevent -his falling.</p> - -<p>Gort Bro-Doral clambered up from the floor. His heavily-veined eyes -were red with insane ferocity. He thrust his contorted face close to -Glayne's own and said: "Guardian, you will now be extended another -privilege. You will be permitted to see the girl writhing in the -agonies of the Vibra-Death!"</p> - -<p>Bro-Doral turned to one of his men. "Take those crewmen away—execute -them," he said. "Keep the girl here under guard while I show the two -officers around."</p> - -<p>Glayne was horrified at the fruits of his unthinking attack on the -Bro. It was almost as if he himself had pulled the switch which would -subject Niala to the most infamous nerve torture ever devised. Dully he -realized that he could not even lift his hand to administer a merciful -death with the clean, fast energy beam of his ring.</p> - -<p>"The paralysis will wear off in a minute or two, Captain," observed -Bro-Doral. He had completely regained his self-control. "Since you -have exerted so much useless effort to destroy our Tane Jewel, I think -you ought at least be permitted to see it. But after that—" he sighed -expressively, "—after that, we will procrastinate no longer."</p> - -<p>Even before the effects of the cold-beam had worn off completely, -Bro-Doral nodded to his men and they took him by the arms and escorted -him from the room. In despair, Glayne tried to jerk his head around to -see the girl. For the briefest of instants he saw her smiling bravely -at him. Then his view was cut off by the door as the guards maneuvered -his still half-paralyzed frame around it.</p> - -<p>In a couple of moments Glayne was able to move under his own power. -He turned to find Graysen staring anxiously at him, alert for the -slightest command. Glayne nodded imperceptibly and examined the guards. -There were six of them. He noticed wryly that they held cold-beam -weapons in their long-fingered fists while the ones that really -produced the fatal damage—the Cardys—hung in holsters at their sides. -Trust them not to risk killing their prisoners when so many more -delightful methods presented themselves, he thought bitterly.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>As he and Graysen were led side-by-side down a maze of corridors, their -weight gradually increased. Along with it was the sensation of going -down hill. Glayne's mind operated rapidly and with cold precision but -the Delbans showed not the slightest weakness. Not even the increase in -gravity seemed to annoy them. Nevertheless, Glayne resolved, he would -risk everything on a sudden attack when they got as close to the Jewel -as possible. There the conditions would be ideal for him. With eyes -narrowed, he tried desperately to remember the turns they had taken -through the winding corridors of the beralloy discoid.</p> - -<p>As they progressed Glayne saw the tough, all-metal walls were more -heavily buttressed with the massive beralloy supports. Selzi-Narfid saw -the direction of his glance and said, "Those were necessary when we -maneuvered the Jewel into the center of the discoid. You have no idea -of what such a tremendous mass in a body the size of the Jewel can do -when it is not balanced."</p> - -<p>Glayne listened to the Admiral with just a part of his mind. His main -attention was devoted to photographing mentally the warren of passages. -Here and there he saw groups of Delban technicians, none of them armed.</p> - -<p>Good, thought Glayne.</p> - -<p>They reached the entrance stage of the Jewel Chamber. The beralloy -walls here were nearly a meter thick. In single file the party crawled -through the narrow opening that dilated ponderously in the entrance -stage. Two very weary-looking guards snapped to attention as they -passed, but almost immediately slumped back into their somnolent -positions, exhausted by their abnormally increased weight.</p> - -<p>Better yet, thought Glayne.</p> - -<p>"This is the Jewel Chamber, Captain. It is the very heart of Tjadlinn," -puffed Selzi-Narfid after he had crawled through the dilated entrance -stage.</p> - -<p>Glayne stared about the vaulted room curiously. It was shaped like the -inside of an oval, thick at the center but tapering off to nothing at -the sides. They were standing on a balcony which was heavily buttressed -and ran all the way around the Chamber past several other massive -portals. In the exact center of the Chamber a kind of a nest was formed -by the tremendously thick beralloy girders. Something burned there with -a cold, golden brilliance that filtered through the interstices of the -girders and etched them sharply in banded shadows about the heavy walls.</p> - -<p>An uncanny sensation possessed Glayne as he gazed at the Jewel. A vague -dread passed over him and he found himself wondering if the Elder Tane -Gods would emerge from their crypt and wreak hideous vengeance on mere -mortals for disturbing their sleep. Uneasily he crushed the fantasy -that was rioting up in his mind and determined to look for something -more practical.</p> - -<p>He concentrated on the power drain machinery which hung in clusters -from the massive girders. Obviously those mechanisms were far more -delicate than their supports and could be sabotaged with comparatively -little work. As he calculated he gradually became aware of Bro-Doral -who was speaking:</p> - -<p>"—were remarkable creatures. As you know, Tane legends exist in every -part of the known galaxy. They even possessed immortality—but they -lost it for all practical purposes when they failed to adjust their -bodies to the expanding universe.</p> - -<p>"While the universe expands, quanta emission frequencies remain -constant. You are familiar, of course, with the shift in the wave -length of the cadmium spectrum, taken over the centuries. Ages ago, -emission frequencies were so long, relatively speaking, that energy -liberation from protein organisms was impossible. That definitely rules -out protein construction for the Tane—but just what they were composed -of is unknown. At any rate, their bodies couldn't stand the shortened -emission frequencies which overloaded their muscles. They exploded. -Like a plague. Billions and billions of them must have died before they -discovered the answer to the strange death that was striking among -them. And billions more must have died before their marvelous science -was able to build the Second Universe, as the legends call it."</p> - -<p>Gort Bro-Doral gestured at the Jewel which shed its cold, brilliant -light about the Chamber.</p> - -<p>"They enclosed themselves in that tiny ovoid crypt you see there," he -went on. "That was countless ages ago. Somehow they had managed to -construct shields capable of withstanding the spatial expansion of the -universe. Who knows—they may still live in their static crypt?</p> - -<p>"As millions and millions of years passed, the Tane Jewel—the Second -Universe, as the legends call it—slowly dwindled in size when -considered in relation to our own universe. As it dwindled, its energy -potential grew. Now its accumulated charge is so titanic that it defies -conception.</p> - -<p>"Some day those beautiful engines of the Tane Gods would have run down -and the shield would have collapsed. Then our own universe would have -been destroyed. The sudden release of such a vast energy potential -would have caused a concussion which would literally warp our flat -space into the fourth-dimensional sub-space.</p> - -<p>"Now that can't happen. We are draining off that infinite potential -and broadcasting it—flooding it—through sub-space to be received -everywhere there is a Delban receiving antenna. The power is limitless. -We Delbans will be the rulers of the universe just as the Tane Gods -were of old. There is no limit to our power!"</p> - -<p>Bro-Doral's eyes blazed with a pure lust for power as he stared -exultantly at the green brilliance of the Tane Jewel. His mouth -was slack and he breathed heavily from the effort of his speech. -Selzi-Narfid, too, was tired. Wearily he rested against the support -rail of the balcony. The guards blinked their large pop-eyes from -fatigue, shuffling from one foot to another to promote circulation. -Most of them had placed their weapons in holsters as Bro-Doral talked. -That is, all except one. He still held his weapon loosely in his -fingers at his side. Slowly and gently Glayne poised, gathering his -strength.</p> - -<p>"Isn't it beautiful, Glayne?" mused the Delban Overlord, staring into -the tiny radiant sun. "An artifact of the mightiest culture that ever -existed. Now we will carry on in their footsteps. We will be the -mightiest—"</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p class="ph1">VIII</p> - -<p>Then Glayne leaped. With one flailing fist he caught the Delban guard -on his bony jaw and with the other he snatched the cold-beam gun from -his limp fingers. Whirling, he played it among the stupefied guards. -Then old Graysen exploded into action, seizing Selzi-Narfid and hurling -him bodily at Bro-Doral who was in the act of bringing up his Cardy -gun. Three of the guards had collapsed and another was crumpling on his -knees under Glayne's cold-beam. The other two had crouched back in the -shadows of the entrance portal, trying to bring their weapons to bear -upon Glayne.</p> - -<p>Graysen whirled and lunged at them, smashing one down with a single -blow. The last guard on his feet, surprised and dismayed by this attack -from the rear, fled to the portal and tried to dilate it. But he was -too late and sagged in a heap under Glayne's hand weapon.</p> - -<p>Scooping up two of the Cardy guns which had fallen to the balcony -floor, Glayne shouted: "Pick up an energy gun, Graysen. Cut down the -power drain machinery."</p> - -<p>Graysen reached for an energy gun in the holster of one of the -paralyzed guards. He never even saw Gort Bro-Doral scramble to his feet -and fire point blank. His head disappeared as the Delban's beam struck -full force. Glayne fired back wildly but he was off balance and missed. -Before he could collect himself to fire again, Bro-Doral had fled to -another stage and darted through the dilation.</p> - -<p>Glayne whirled toward the Delbans. Selzi-Narfid had a broken neck and -was obviously dead. The guards were all unconscious and would remain so -for a long time.</p> - -<p>Glayne turned back to the Jewel which cast its chill, gold light -steadily through the interstices of the surrounding girders. Calmly -he leveled the Cardy gun and fired at it. As if it were so much water, -the deadly little energy beam washed off the Tane Jewel and fused with -the beralloy supports. It was as he had expected. Given several hours, -the little hand weapon might have made an impression on the incredibly -tough beralloy but Glayne had no time to lose.</p> - -<p>As he had seen before, the power drain machinery which hung in clusters -from the big beams and transmitted the energy through the heavy busbars -looked to be the most fragile. Glayne wondered what would happen if he -fired into them. There was only one way to find out. The muscles of his -jaw hardened as he depressed the firing stud on the Cardy.</p> - -<p>Nothing happened. He let the beam of his energy gun play up and down -the clusters of power drains, fusing them into slag. Now the thin, -invisible rays of power which the drains extracted from the Jewel no -longer existed since they had no place to go. But nothing happened.</p> - -<p>Then it occurred to him that nothing would happen in the Jewel Chamber -itself. It needed no power for lights—the Jewel provided all the light -needed. Heartened, Glayne blasted at every drain in reach, following -the balcony around the Chamber.</p> - -<p>But even this method, he realized, would take too long. Gort Bro-Doral -would soon have squads of men hurrying into the Chamber after him. -Grimly he wished he had an energy bomb. With one of those he could -finish the job in a few seconds.</p> - -<p>Suddenly he remembered an old Guardian trick. Hurriedly he began to -tinker with one of the Cardy guns. By jamming a couple of the safety -gadgets, it was possible to make the weapon fire out of phase. When the -trigger stud was depressed, its tiny miatron coils would build up an -unstable load in a couple of seconds, then explode. Quickly he fixed -the weapon to his satisfaction, then hurried on around the balcony to -find a suitable opening in the girders through which to hurl the ersatz -bomb.</p> - -<p>Halfway around, he met two panic-stricken Delban technicians. The -instant they saw him they turned tail and ran back through the portal. -Obviously <i>something</i> must be happening, Glayne thought with grim -satisfaction. Then he found a good spot, pressed the firing stud of -the doctored Cardy gun, then flung it with all his strength into the -remaining power drains. In an instant he had pivoted and lunged for the -port of the entrance stage behind him, feeling in the shadow for its -dilator stud.</p> - -<p>It refused to open!</p> - -<p>Obviously Glayne himself had sabotaged its power circuit. Now he was -trapped in the Chamber and the ersatz bomb was about to explode. -Tensely he crouched as far back in the recess of the port as he could -and waited. With a terrific roar the bomb exploded in the confined -Chamber, rupturing the membranes of his nose and crushing him violently -against the port. Parts of the devastated power drains were hurled -against the massive walls, then fell back to the Jewel. One of the -heavy busbars had collapsed, ripping festoons of cables from the top of -the Chamber which shorted violently against one another.</p> - -<p>Dazed, Glayne pulled himself to his feet. Fortunately he had broken -no bones. But one of his ear drums was ruptured and his nose bled -unremittingly. He had lost his other Cardy. Hurriedly he felt about, -found it, and thrust it into the fold of his tattered jumper.</p> - -<p>He turned back to the port and found that the concussion had dilated -it for him. Breathing heavily, he crawled through it into the inky -blackness of the passages. On all sides he heard the sound of running -footsteps. By touch he staggered into the blackness, realizing that he -must keep going uphill, away from the Jewel's attraction.</p> - -<p>The exertion cleared his head a bit. He knew he was lost, but he hoped -to be able to find his way back to Selzi-Narfid's quarters. There he -would find Niala and be oriented with the rest of the discoid.</p> - -<p>Figures bumped into him in the blackness, hurrying to the scene of -destruction. The Delbans were badly disorganized. Obviously they had -not been prepared to cope with such devastation wreaked on their sacred -Jewel. Not even to the extent of auxiliary power for lights, he -thought as he panted up the black passages.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Even as he thought about it, the lights began to flicker weakly in -their fluorescent tubes, growing stronger with each passing second. -Startled, Glayne crouched back in the shadow of a recess in the wall. -That was Luck in all her perversity, he thought grimly. His hand sought -the butt of the blaster in his jumper. Fortunately the lights did not -wax as brightly as they had when the Jewel was still functioning, but -that did not offer much consolation. He would be recognized instantly -by the outline of his thick-chested body if he was seen in the corridor.</p> - -<p>He noticed that fewer Delbans were passing. He decided to chance it. -Tightly grasping the gun in his jumper, he crept from his hiding place -and ran on the balls of his feet, dodging and ducking into shadows -every time one of the enemy passed. Once he was seen and pursued by -a squad of Delban guards. Breathlessly he ran at full tilt through a -cross-corridor, up a flight of high steps, and twisted into another of -the endless passages of the discoid.</p> - -<p>The pull of the Jewel had become very slight. In fact it was much -slighter than it had been in Selzi-Narfid's suite. Glayne pushed on, -realizing that he was hopelessly lost. His only chance now was to -find the mono-rail on which they had ridden from the landing dock -to the Tjadlinn commander's suite. It occurred to him that even if -he did find Niala, they might never escape Tjadlinn. And it was -absolutely imperative that he make contact with Garstow at Scone III. -The slightest delay on the part of the Stellar Guardian Admiral in -attacking the Karkara Station might give the Delbans the precious time -they needed to repair the damage he had effected.</p> - -<p>There were two entrance stages, one on either side, in the corridor -through which he was hurrying. He tried one and found it was locked. -He was more fortunate with the other. It creaked open slowly when he -flipped the dilator stud. Tensely, hand on the Cardy gun in his jumper, -he crept through the port.</p> - -<p>It was the landing dock!</p> - -<p>Glayne's heart jumped with delight as he crouched back in a shadow and -examined the place. Not a hundred meters away was the launch which had -brought his party from the <i>Algol</i>. His eyes drank it in avidly and a -plan for escape formed rapidly in his mind. A message craft of some -sort was preparing to leave, he saw. As soon as the inner lock door -closed behind it, he would smash the launch through it and the air -pressure would fling him out of the discoid. How very simple!</p> - -<p>Then the impact of the realization that he would have to leave Niala -Chodred behind struck him. He was stunned by its very violence.</p> - -<p>Leave Niala? Abandon her to Gort Bro-Doral and his sadistic vengeance -for the sabotage Glayne himself had performed? No! That was out of the -question. But what of the Terran Combine? What did the life of Citizen -Niala Chodred mean against the lives of the trillions who made up that -Combine to which she had sworn allegiance? Viewed in that light, it -was obvious that the life of one person was a cheap price to pay for -security of the Combine against the Tane Jewel.</p> - -<p>Glayne crouched in the shadow and buried his face in his hands. In -an agony of indecision he prodded his weary mind to discover an -alternative to the horrible dilemma. But he could find none. He would -have to decide between Niala, the laughing, green-eyed Niala, and the -ideal of human progress which he had sworn the Guardian Oath to protect.</p> - -<p>Dully he realized that the power of the abstract was too strong. He -would forsake Niala. The pain redoubled itself as he made his decision -but he set his face in a granite-mask against it. Unfortunately it was -not so easy to quell the agony that burned within him.</p> - -<p>Grimly he stood up. He saw that the time had come for action. The -message craft was slowly jetting down the cinder blastway toward the -lock door. Glayne tensed for an instant, then raced for the launch, -covering ten meters at a stride in the light gravity. Three Delban -mechanics caught sight of him as he rounded the stubby fins and leaped -for the lock. In mid-stride he whipped out his Cardy gun and brought -them down in charred heaps.</p> - -<p>A guard squad saw him and fired. Their beams sang dangerously close, -smashing into the beralloy side of the launch. They crunched down the -blastway in pursuit as Glayne jumped through the open lock, slammed it -shut, and darted to the controls. The atomic driver engine coughed and -surged into life. He let it scream up beyond audibility, then fed power -to the jets. The blast washed over the guards who were closest to the -launch and the others fell back hastily before its searing heat.</p> - -<p>The inner lock of the entrance port had slid shut behind the message -craft. It was now or never, Glayne realized. He opened the atomic -driver wide and the stubby launch shuddered for an instant, then lunged -for the lock. The sudden thrust created constricting hands about -Glayne's chest and he fought precariously on the edge of blacking out. -For a brief instant Glayne was aware of the huge outer doors swinging -shut before him—and then the air pressure struck them and flung the -launch bodily through the narrow space left between them.</p> - -<p>The launch tumbled crazily end-over-end until Glayne straightened it -out and oriented himself with Tjadlinn and Jorger Sun. He had just -sighted the tiny gleaming speck of the <i>Algol</i> a dozen kilometers -distant when something struck the launch a terrific blow. Almost -instantly the tell-tales indicated air was escaping. Dismayed, Glayne -shot a glance over his shoulder at the receding discoid. He discovered -that they were firing at him with the secondary Kellander batteries, -using auxiliaries to power the miatrons. Feverishly he changed course, -zig-zagging wildly away from the discoid.</p> - -<p>Due to over confidence, the Delbans had not destroyed the <i>Algol</i> -immediately. They preferred to play cat and mouse. And now, with the -titanic energies of the Jewel no longer available to them, they could -not destroy the <i>Algol</i>.</p> - -<p>The Kellander energy beams slashed dangerously close to the fleeing -launch. Not in salvos but by ones and twos. That meant that their -fire control was badly disorganized—and it was that fact which saved -Glayne. Harbin had raised the <i>Algol's</i> anti-shield when the Delbans -had commenced firing but he had not turned tail as Glayne had ordered, -realizing that the launch was fleeing in his direction.</p> - -<p>Glayne flipped the stud of the shield-nullifier that was matched to the -frequency of the <i>Algol's</i> anti-shield and darted the launch through -it, braking with eye-searing blasts of the forward jets as the huge -Reception Deck locks yawned open. With a heavy lurch, his battered -craft came to rest inside the lip of the gaping outer doors.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p class="ph1">IX</p> - -<p>The <i>Algol's</i> officers formed a silent group beneath the huge glassene -dome of the navigation bridge. They looked expectantly at Glayne as the -elevator port dilated and he approached them, weary and unshaven, his -face covered with blood.</p> - -<p>Ignoring their unspoken questions, Glayne said brusquely, glancing at -the navigation chrono, "Lieutenant Harbin: Compute an orbit for Scone -III. Get the ship under way immediately ... drop into sub-space at -three ten to the seventh kilos from Jorger Sun. Thrust—eight G's."</p> - -<p>He was about to turn on his heel when Harbin's hesitant voice stopped -him.</p> - -<p>"Sir ... what ... what about Commander Graysen and the others?"</p> - -<p>Glayne stared at the youngster bleakly. "Graysen is dead," he said with -a flat voice. "So is Ganser. And I presume that our escort has been -executed."</p> - -<p>Harbin's youthful jaw tightened. "And Lieutenant Chodred?"</p> - -<p>The lines about Glayne's mouth deepened. He let his gaze travel over -Harbin's troubled face and the impassive faces of the rest of the -ship's officers. He saw accusation in their eyes along with resentment -and veiled hostility. He knew what they were thinking. Why should he be -the only one to return. Why had he abandoned the others? And now they -wanted to know what had happened to the girl. So he told them.</p> - -<p>"She is still alive." Bitterly he wondered why Fate had designated her -to be the only one left to face Gort Bro-Doral's vengeance. He looked -up again at the silent cluster of officers. "If your curiosity is -satisfied, gentlemen, suppose we get on with the war?"</p> - -<p>"If Tjadlinn is without Jewel power," persisted Harbin stubbornly, "why -can't we attack? We might be able to rescue Lieutenant Chodred. It's -the least we could do—"</p> - -<p>"Follow my orders!" Glayne cut in savagely. He turned on his heel and -mounted to his shock seat in the Captain's Station. Yes, he thought -bitterly, they could attack Tjadlinn, incur heavy damage on the -discoid—perhaps even accomplish a miraculous rescue of Niala. But -weighed against that was the possibility that the <i>Algol</i> might be -heavily damaged or destroyed by the highly potent secondary Kellanders -of the discoid. Unless he got through to Garstow, the conservative -Grand Admiral of the Stellar Guardians was likely to delay his attack -on Karkara—and such a delay would be suicidal.</p> - -<p>Gradually a floor began to build under his feet and the <i>Algol</i> got -under way. As the thrust increased, the discoid began to shrink -in the distance. Glayne stared at its image grimly in the battle -screen. He didn't say farewell because he knew he would be back. He -rubbed his bristly cheek. He saw success now. He felt it on the tips -of his clutching fingers. But something else was beyond his grasp -now—something that made success dry and unpalatable. He covered his -eyes with his hand as the thought stabbed him: The laughing, green-eyed -Niala....</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>The Stellar Guardian fleet lay motionless across forty thousand -kilometers of space when the <i>Algol</i> reached the rendezvous at Scone -III. Admiral Garstow's anxious face formed rapidly in the featureless -grey surface of Glayne's ship-to-ship communicator screen.</p> - -<p>"Give me a fast, verbal report on the Jewel, Glayne," ordered the -Admiral.</p> - -<p>The Guardian Captain complied, rapidly sketching the main details of -his sabotage and providing a rough outline of the Delban defense of -the discoid.</p> - -<p>When he finished, Garstow nodded thoughtfully. "Do you think it -advisable to risk an immediate attack on the discoid on the chance that -we can knock it out before they repair the power drains?"</p> - -<p>Glayne frowned, then said, "No. It's too long a chance. They will mass -their fleet at Tjadlinn immediately. Under normal circumstances we -could lick them, but if they repair that Jewel faster than I expect, -then we'll be sitting ducks."</p> - -<p>Garstow nodded again. "Lieutenant Brodis informed me of the plan you -had in mind of attacking the Karkara Fleet Station on Scone III and -thereby acquiring the Jewel power-receiving antennae. On the whole, I -think that is the shrewder move. Since you've managed this show up to -now, Captain, I think you might as well organize the attack."</p> - -<p>"Thank you, sir," Glayne replied. "I'll take my own cruiser division in -first to clear away what little resistance they'll put up. That will -be the simplest part about it. The real difficulty will come when we -install the antennae. As Brodis probably told you, we were unable to -get any technical information from General Ganser."</p> - -<p>Garstow rubbed his fleshy nose thoughtfully, then said, "It's in your -hands, Captain." Then he cut out.</p> - -<p>Rapidly Glayne organized the attack, placing his own cruiser division -at the point of the spearhead. Smoothly the Stellar Guardian striking -force flashed down on Scone III. As Glayne had anticipated, their -sudden assault was little more than an armed landing. The Delbans were -caught completely off guard. They put up a fanatical resistance with -the auxiliary-powered Kellander secondary batteries, but the superior -weight of Glayne's miatron blasters soon crushed every last shred of -opposition.</p> - -<p>As soon as the <i>Algol</i> had jetted down on the immense space-port of -the Karkara Fleet Station, a group of technicians in addition to the -landing party raced off to confiscate an antennae unit for the big -ship. Glayne set up an operations unit in the glassene dome of the -<i>Algol</i> to assign landing patterns to the other Guardian fleet units. -The heaviest Cluster and Galactic class warships he assigned to fast -orbits about Scone to defend the ships which had already landed.</p> - -<p>After he saw that landing operations were proceeding smoothly he -descended to the engine room of the <i>Algol</i> to see how the installation -of the antenna was progressing. Massive cables snaked across the deck -in confusions, waiting to be hooked into the heavy buses which the -technicians were jockeying into place. Outside on the hull, gangs -of men were welding in the mesh antenna. Fuming, he looked at his -wrist-chrono repeatedly.</p> - -<p>"How much longer?" he asked Harbin impatiently.</p> - -<p>"Thirty minutes at the most, sir," replied Harbin stiffly, refusing to -meet Glayne's eyes.</p> - -<p>Glayne rubbed his bristly cheek thoughtfully as he turned away. The -young officer was determined to give him the silent treatment along -with the rest of the officers in his crew. Word would spread; soon the -whole fleet would hear of his cowardly negligence. He smiled thinly as -he made his way back up to the navigation bridge. He had seen it happen -before. There were just two ways to escape it. One was retirement. The -other involved a Cardy gun placed at the temple....</p> - -<p>The red light of his personal communicator was blinking intermittently -when he regained the bridge. It was Garstow.</p> - -<p>"Glayne!" he barked abruptly, "Bardled is on his way in with the fleet -of Imperial Terra. And a dozen other Sectors have massed their fleets -and are on the way, too."</p> - -<p>"Excellent," said Glayne. "We're working faster now. We've put the -Delban technicians to work and repaired the damage to their assembly -lines. We ought to be able to handle a thousand ships an hour. How long -before Bardled will arrive?"</p> - -<p>"Four hours ... maybe six."</p> - -<p>"I'm lifting in a few minutes," Glayne said. "When Bardled arrives, -install the units in his heavy ships first. Those tubs will smash the -Tjadlinn anti-shield if anything will."</p> - -<p>Rapidly Glayne went on to sketch his plan of attack. When he finished, -Garstow nodded ponderously. "Then we will sub-space as soon as we pick -up the power broadcast. A sound strategy, Captain. Good luck!" His -face faded from the screen.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>The first of the big Cluster class battleships were easing down on vast -fingers of flame when Harbin reported that the work of installation -was complete. In quick succession the other cruisers of his division -reported readiness and he gave the command to blast off.</p> - -<p>The <i>Algol</i> was almost two hundred million kilos below Scone System's -plane of ecliptic when the hastily installed antenna unit began to -pick up the first surges of power from the Tane Jewel. Cautiously the -<i>Algol's</i> pilot experimented with it, accustoming himself to unlimited -power at his finger tips. One by one, the ship's atomic drivers fell -silent as the pilot gained confidence.</p> - -<p>"Raise the anti-shield, Lieutenant Harbin," Glayne said crisply over -his inter-ship phone. "We'll sub-space right now."</p> - -<p>Harbin's image stared at him incredulously from the communicator screen -for an instant but he fought down the words that trembled on his lips.</p> - -<p>"Aye, sir," he snapped.</p> - -<p>Glayne was grimly amused at his anxiety but said nothing to relieve it. -They were dangerously close to mass, he knew, but if Gort Bro-Doral -could blast into sub-space directly from Sterle II with a shield -supported by Jewel power, then he ought to be able to get away with it -at two hundred million kilos from mass.</p> - -<p>Briefly Glayne communicated his intent to the commanders of the thirty -other cruisers in his division and their anti-shields began to build. -At his curt command they dropped smoothly into sub-space, their shield -generators heating up slightly as the sudden strain hit them.</p> - -<p>They plunged on through sub-space, building up to incredible velocities -in that nether dimension where such commonplace things as mass and -light did not exist. Glayne's mind worked rapidly, analyzing his plan -of battle for any defects. Obviously the enemy would mass his fleet -at the all-important Tjadlinn. If his calculations were correct, his -cruiser division would pop into normal space right among them. If they -struck fast enough, they could disorganize the Delbans sufficiently for -Garstow and Bardled to get in among them with the heavy units of their -fleets. And that, he knew, would be the end of the Delban Grand Fleet.</p> - -<p>The discoid was another matter. Paradoxically, it contained within it -the very source of the power which they would use to destroy it. The -only possible way the Delbans could deprive them of the Jewel power -would be to turn off the non-directional broadcast entirely. That, -however, would leave them open to an attack by the regular miatron -batteries of the heavy Guardian and Terran battleships. They could -not possibly hope to beat off such an attack with their Kellander -secondaries. Hence, Glayne reasoned, they would keep up the power -broadcast at all costs.</p> - -<p>Satisfied with his plan, Glayne let his mind relax and drift where it -wanted. Abruptly it turned to thoughts of Niala Chodred and he winced -at the pain which filled him. Grimly, he realized that if the silent -treatment by his fellow officers failed to ruin him, the bitter acid of -remorse which burned his soul would certainly accomplish the job.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p class="ph1">X</p> - -<p>One instant the fleet of the Delban Empire was assembling about the -vital Tjadlinn discoid in an orderly fashion. An instant later all hell -broke loose amid its massed ranks.</p> - -<p>Glayne's cruiser division popped out of sub-space at two hundred -kilometers per second and flailed through the Delbans like a giant -scythe. His eyes glued to the small battle screen in front of him, -Glayne clipped off rapid commands over the ship-to-ship communicator -that kept him in touch with the rest of his group.</p> - -<p>Three Delban warships—one a battle-ship—had been caught with their -shields down and were now exploding enthusiastically in nova-fashion. A -dozen others had been heavily damaged by the slashing miatron beams as -they vainly sought to lift their shields.</p> - -<p>The <i>Algol</i> screamed in protest as the pilot flung her around to bore -in again. Her armored hide seemed to crawl in squealing agony at the -twenty G turn. Glayne panted, on the verge of blacking out. Dimly he -glimpsed the strained features of the pilot wracked with spasms of -coughing that flung lobs of blood and lung tissue against the terraced -banks of instruments at his side....</p> - -<p>Then they were among the Delbans again, slashing right and left with -Kellander miatron beams. This time the Delbans were ready for them and -replied with a vengeance. Torrents of energy smashed at the <i>Algol's</i> -shield which shuddered like a live thing under the impact. Behind -Glayne a knot of sweating gunnery officers rattled off firing data to -waiting Kellander crews before the mammoth battle screen. Somewhere -in the bowels of the ship the accumulators were screaming as they fed -the Jewel energies from the antenna to the smoking banks of shield -generators and the ravenous Kellander condensers. But dominating the -ear-splitting crescendo of the <i>Algol</i> in full fighting stride was the -continuous, ravening thunder of Kellander projectors as they flung -their blasts at the Delban warships.</p> - -<p>Glayne saw that his division had scattered widely—but, at the same -time, the disorganization of the Delbans was even more evident. Unaware -that the sudden attack was a feint to draw them away from Tjadlinn, a -dozen Delban fleet divisions abandoned the Jewel to join the fray.</p> - -<p>As the Guardian Captain scanned the screen, he saw that the tide was -fast running in favor of the Delbans. The <i>Anza</i> was finished for the -day. A flotilla of swift Delban destroyers had darted in with mines and -torpedoes, one of which had gotten through her shield and exploded with -a devastating energy concussion against her stern, sheering off plates -and jet tubes by it force. The <i>Altor</i> and <i>Astrid</i> were cornered by -a dozen Delban Galactics and Clusters and their shields coruscated -in brilliant hues as they trembled on the point of collapse. A third -Guardian ship, the <i>Aesir</i>, blasted in to offer aid and even as Glayne -watched, hurled her energies in a concerted salvo at a point just -below the jets of one of the Delban Clusters. Its shield coruscated -brilliantly, tottered, and suddenly it was strewing its guts, -nova-fashion. Almost immediately the <i>Aesir</i> followed her example as a -salvo of Galactic beams struck her amidships, rupturing her shield. A -torpedo ripped into the bridge of the <i>Astrid</i> and she exploded in an -eye-searing nova. The <i>Altor</i> managed to limp away in the confusion, -her beralloy hide mangled and torn from a near miss.</p> - -<p>The <i>Algol</i> herself was in trouble. Two Delban Stellars were hurling -torrents of energy at her shield, making it coruscate in a blaze of -overloaded power foci. A pack of destroyers was circling hungrily, -looking for a chance to dart in and plant their seeds of destruction. -The pilot maneuvered desperately, but the overloaded power lines could -not shunt sufficient power through the drivers to pull them out of -their difficulty.</p> - -<p>Glayne swore, wondering where the rest of the fleet was. It couldn't -go on much longer. The <i>Akkad</i> had novaed; the <i>Ashlar</i> and <i>Asgard</i> -had disappeared without leaving a trace. Only six of his original -thirty were in fighting shape—and even as he watched he had to revise -it to five. The <i>Atlas</i>, surrounded by a dozen enemies, exploded in -nova-fashion as her shield collapsed.</p> - -<p>And then the void was suddenly full of great warships bearing the -Guardian and Terran insignia, appearing magically in the midst of the -Delbans. What had appeared to be triumph suddenly turned into a rout -for the Delbans. Badly disorganized, they attempted to flee back to the -safety of the mighty Kellander projectors of Tjadlinn.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>But Glayne's annihilated cruiser division had done its work well; the -Delbans, drawn too far from the discoid, were cut off by the fleets -that opposed them. They fought desperately and fanatically, but -there was only one possible outcome. One after another they exploded -nova-fashion as the massed salvos of the tremendous Terran and Guardian -battle ships swept aside their shields and touched destructive fingers -to their beralloy sides.</p> - -<p>Glayne's ship-to-ship suddenly crackled into life and Garstow's heavy -face appeared on the screen. "My boy," he boomed, "I'm proud of you. -Excellent work! We've bagged them all at almost no cost. Bardled tells -me he didn't lose a ship."</p> - -<p>Glayne gazed stupidly at him for a moment before he could adjust -himself to the idea of victory. Then he said quietly: "I have five -ships left out of a command of thirty."</p> - -<p>"Oh! ... that's too bad," mumbled Garstow, his broad face becoming -serious. "What I mean to say is—"</p> - -<p>"The chaplain will say what needs to be said," Glayne cut in with -unnecessary bitterness. "If you still want me to run this show, then I -submit that we attack Tjadlinn without delay."</p> - -<p>Admiral Garstow nodded, his face like a deflated balloon.</p> - -<p>Quickly Glayne outlined his plan for the assault on the discoid -itself. The battle would be fought between the Kellander accumulator -and condenser capacity of the massed fleets and the total generator -capacity of the mighty anti-shield which the Delbans would raise from -the discoid. If the Delban shield capacity was less than the massed -strength of the fleet, then the discoid would be destroyed. But if the -Delbans held them off, they would try something else.</p> - -<p>It took several hours to assemble the scattered and highly numerous -Terran and Guardian warships into a closely-integrated formation. -Matters were not helped by the appearance of dozens of warships from -the fleets of other Sectors. They roamed about searching for enemy -stragglers, but succeeded only in getting in the way. Finally, however, -Glayne got them organized and the enormous fleet moved ponderously on -Tjadlinn.</p> - -<p>The Delbans waited behind their featureless grey shield, not firing -a single Kellander blast at the advancing fleet. When it reached to -within fifty kilometers of the discoid, Glayne gave the order to -commence fire.</p> - -<p>In the center of the huge discoid the Jewel, the Second Universe of -the Elder Tane, blazed with a chill, golden luminescence. It did not -waver a fraction as the tremendous energy demands struck it. The power -drains fed voraciously of its infinite energies and flooded them into -sub-space. The cumbersome mesh antennae on the hulls of the numberless -ships in the massed fleet gulped it up and transmitted it to screaming -accumulators which in turn fed it to the ravenous Kellander condensers. -They, in turn, cast it through the miatron projectors at the shield of -Tjadlinn from whence it had emerged.</p> - -<p>For minutes on end those titanic torrents of energy blasted at that -phenomenal shield. But it held. The inconceivable energies could not -crack it. Not even when every single accumulator and condenser in the -massed fleets of the Terran Combine labored at peak capacity did the -shield so much as tremble. Not even to the extent of a tiny spider web -of coruscation along the power foci.</p> - -<p>Glayne barked a command to cease fire. He saw that the hail of -torpedoes and mines which they had strewn had penetrated the shield. -But they had been detonated by roving beams from the Tjadlinn -secondaries before they could strike the surface of the discoid. If -they could get through that mighty barrier, Glayne reasoned, then so -could the <i>Algol</i>. He peered into the battle screen, attempting to -locate the mammoth landing dock of the discoid through its shimmering -grey shield.</p> - -<p>He made his decision. Garstow's face came to life on his communicator -screen. Briefly he communicated his intention to the Guardian leader. -When he had finished, Garstow nodded soberly and mumbled farewell.</p> - -<p>When he learned that the <i>Algol's</i> Kellander batteries had been rigged -to fire by remote control from the pilot's seat, Glayne contacted -Harbin.</p> - -<p>"Abandon ship!" he ordered laconically when the youngster's face filled -the screen.</p> - -<p>"Wha—what?" blurted Harbin incredulously.</p> - -<p>"I said," Glayne repeated curtly, "abandon ship. Make haste!"</p> - -<p>"Aye, sir," said Harbin. His face still mirrored astonishment as it -faded from the screen.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p class="ph1">XI</p> - -<p>Glayne sat alone in the pilot's massive shock seat of the <i>Algol</i>. The -instruments rose about him on all sides in terraced banks with the -battle screen directly in front of his eyes. Tentatively he reached for -the firing studs, accustoming his fingers to their shape. When he saw -that the last of the <i>Algol's</i> lifeboats had been picked up he realized -that the time had come.</p> - -<p>He transferred his gaze to the discoid that was vague and indistinct -beneath its anti-energy shield. Fastening his eyes to the armored outer -lock doors of the landing dock, he gently fed power to the drivers. The -<i>Algol</i> shuddered and gradually picked up speed. Glayne dropped the -anti-shield, realizing that he would never get through the barrier with -the energized shield functioning. But once he was through, it would -have to go up quickly or his ship would be shattered by the roving -secondaries. Hand hovering tensely over the shield control, he guided -the ship toward the landing dock.</p> - -<p>His speed increased; at twenty kilometers he was streaking -toward the discoid in a free fall, all energy sources quiet. -Fifteen—ten—five—and the <i>Algol</i> was boring through the energy -barrier, stormed and buffeted as it sought to impede the passage of -the individual circuits. Suddenly she emerged <i>inside</i> the shield and -Tjadlinn was rushing upwards.</p> - -<p>Like lightning Glayne's fingers stabbed at the shield control and fed -power to the drivers. He braked the ship crazily to avoid the lashing -secondary beams that reached hungrily for him. Once ... twice—and yet -a third time the Kellander beams found the cruiser and slashed through -her half-formed shield, dealing terrific blows to the plummeting ship.</p> - -<p>Then the massive beralloy doors of the landing stage were expanding -hugely in his screen and he braked with all the power he could shunt -into the straining drivers. Somehow his clutching fingers found the -Kellander firing studs and he lashed out repeatedly against the outer -lock. It whitened, ran into slag, crusted, and flared again and again -as the ravening bolts struck it. Desperately Glayne fought to prevent -blackness encroaching on the corners of his vision.</p> - -<p>Suddenly a rending, thundering roar filled the <i>Algol</i> and she was -crashing headlong through the weakened beralloy doors of the landing -dock. But even above that deafening roar, Glayne could hear the scream -of twisted and tortured metal. Then the big ship stopped moving and all -was quiet except for the shriek of air escaping through the crevices -around her mangled hull.</p> - -<p>Groggily, Glayne shook his head in an effort to shake off the black-out -which had engulfed his vision. In spite of his circulation exercises he -couldn't see anything. Then a glimmering of the answer occurred to him -and with wild surmise he experimentally flicked the firing stud of the -ship's Kellanders.</p> - -<p>Nothing happened.</p> - -<p>Then Glayne understood. Every bit of the ship's power was cut off, -including the lights and the battle screen. Obviously the Jewel power -was cut off. Evidently the impact of the <i>Algol's</i> crash had jarred the -delicate power drains so that Tjadlinn was once again without power. -But he'd have to make sure.</p> - -<p>Heartened, he rose and took a space suit from the locker, checking -to see if its light torch was operating. As he turned away, a vague, -ridiculous hope struck him. He took a second suit from the locker.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Twisted and buckled beralloy plates had sheered long, jagged gashes in -the equally tough armor of the cruiser, Glayne saw, as he clambered -from the emergency lock. A little air still sighed through the huge -rent which the cruiser had smashed in the skin of the discoid. The -gigantic landing dock was dwarfed by the three hundred meter bulk of -the cruiser. Small Delban craft had been flung violently on either side -and now littered the walls with their battered bodies. One or two of -the Delban technicians had been caught by the crash and were either -smeared thinly along the blastway or turned inside out as their bodies -exploded from lack of air pressure.</p> - -<p>Hurriedly Glayne flashed his torch about, trying to find the mono-car -which his party had used to get to Selzi-Narfid's quarters. The car -itself was gone but he found the gleaming mono-rail and followed it at -a rapid trot. Fortunately the passage was well-equipped with automatic -air-locks, one of which had whipped in place when the air pressure -dropped suddenly. When he came to the first of these, he found that the -dilator was without power. He fumed at the wasted time as he burned -around the lock with his torch and triggered the mechanism with his -finger.</p> - -<p>After he closed it behind him, Glayne picked up his jogging pace down -the mono-rail passage. He felt a kind of grim, ruthless hatred when -he thought of Bro-Doral. He hoped wistfully that he would find the -sneering sadist before Garstow's energy beams ripped the discoid to -pieces.</p> - -<p>He wondered what had happened to Niala Chodred. During the battle he -had consciously held his thoughts away from her and the dull ache of -her memory. A chill loathing spread through him as he thought of the -Vibra-Death. He knew of the agonies of that nerve torture; it produced -not one slow death but thousands. More passionately than ever he longed -to find the Bro.</p> - -<p>Suddenly Glayne felt the floor of the discoid tremble under his feet. -At first he ignored it, but it grew persistently stronger and he -realized that the fleet was again hurling its energy beams at the -discoid—but this time they were penetrating because there was no -shield to stop them. He quickened his pace, rounded a long curve, and -found that he had reached his goal.</p> - -<p>He vaulted the high curbing and pounded down the tapestried corridor to -the wide entrance stage. The dilator stud refused to operate, so Glayne -burned into the lock to operate the stud. He discovered that the port -itself was locked and a sudden unreasoning hope blazed up in him. With -rapid movements he burned the lock out altogether and threw his weight -against the door. With a wheeze it dilated and he staggered into the -luxurious apartment, stumbling from the force of his own momentum.</p> - -<p>He was scrambling to his feet when something hit him. It was soft with -rounded contours which he perceived even through the unsympathetic -thickness of his spacesuit. And it had red hair and green eyes.</p> - -<p>It was Niala.</p> - -<p>"Glayne ... oh, Glayne," she murmured, clinging tightly to him.</p> - -<p>"But ... but you're not hurt," he stammered, his mind striving to -adjust to the realization of a hope which it had long rejected.</p> - -<p>"I thought they had killed you," she sobbed happily. "But you got away."</p> - -<p>"Yes, he did," remarked a third voice, familiar and hated. "It was -unfortunate."</p> - -<p>Glayne whirled. Gort Bro-Doral stood inside the entrance stage, a black -Cardy gun in his hand.</p> - -<p>"Without you in the audience, Captain, I didn't see much point in -amusing myself with the girl. But now that you have returned, Glayne—"</p> - -<p>The big Guardian crouched to spring at the Delban, gathering his legs -under him.</p> - -<p>"I shouldn't do that, Captain," Bro-Doral observed sharply, waving the -Cardy menacingly. "Life is too sweet to throw it away so rashly, isn't -it? Besides, such refined methods require time and I fear your leader, -Admiral Garstow, doesn't propose to give us that commodity."</p> - -<p>It was true, Glayne realized. The energy beams of the assaulting fleets -were smashing tremendous blows at the discoid so that it shuddered -violently. The shocks increased in strength even as he turned his -attention to them. Somewhere deep in Tjadlinn air was escaping with a -screaming whistle where the skin was ruptured.</p> - -<p>"You seem to have no idea how hideous Death is, Glayne," said the -Delban, approaching them slowly. "Out here on the periphery of the -galaxy we like to make some sort of a ceremony of his coming—you see, -he is always hovering around us." The Delban produced his explosive, -nasal snicker. "Death is a fascinating subject; I have often wondered -why you people in the Main Galaxy ignore him. Ever present, you know. -And always waiting for you to step into his dark embrace."</p> - -<p>Glayne watched Bro-Doral narrowly. He was but a couple of meters -away. As the blows of the Kellander beams smashing into the discoid -increased, he became more preoccupied with his subject and his grip on -the Cardy grew lax. Glayne's hand tightened imperceptibly on the spare -spacesuit.</p> - -<p>"—out here on the Edge," Bro-Doral was saying, "Life is considered -only a prelude to Death. Personally—"</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Glayne lunged, flinging the extra spacesuit to one side. Bro-Doral -alerted instantaneously, but his Cardy wavered for a fraction of an -instant toward the empty space suit. Before he could recover his -mistake Glayne's flying body had struck him. The two went down together -in a thrashing tangle. Glayne's movements were hampered by the bulky -spacesuit and he felt his desperate grip on the Delban slipping. Out of -the corner of his eye he saw Bro-Doral extending his long fingers for -the Cardy which he had dropped. Frantically he sought to restrain the -Delban's long arm, missed, and saw the Delban slither from his grasp -and reach for the gun.</p> - -<p>Glayne scrambled to his feet just in time to see Niala snatch up the -weapon a split second ahead of Bro-Doral. For a brief instant the Ruler -of Ten Thousand Suns stared into the muzzle of Death. Then it wrapped -him in its dark embrace forever as Niala fired.</p> - -<p>Glayne retrieved the spacesuit and hurriedly helped her don it. -The screaming whistle of escaping air formed a mad symphony with -the rumbling crashes of corridors and whole levels caving in upon -themselves. They raced from the apartment, through the tapestried -corridor to the mono-rail which twisted like a live thing under the -impact of the blasting energy beams. Jolt after jolt shook the discoid -as torpedoes and mines exploded with devastating energy concussions -deep within its entrails.</p> - -<p>It was uphill all the way as the tremendous mass of the Tane Jewel -dragged at their flagging steps. Niala fell a half a dozen times from -the smashing shocks that shook the discoid. Glayne helped her to her -feet, only to be thrown down himself the next instant by the concussion -of an energy torpedo. Huge seams opened in the tough beralloy sides of -the mono-rail passage as the mammoth support beams fractured.</p> - -<p>Panting, they finally reached the point where the air-lock had fallen -in place automatically. Glayne pushed at the port, expecting it to -dilate. It didn't move a fraction of a centimeter. A rapid examination -showed that it was sprung. Feverishly he felt for his torch to cut it -down.</p> - -<p>But it was gone!</p> - -<p>He suddenly felt sick, realizing that he had lost it in the struggle -with Bro-Doral. Now he would never be able to find it again. They were -trapped. Waves of defeat swept over him as he crouched in the darkness.</p> - -<p>Suddenly he heard a new sound in the mad cacaphony of destruction that -raged about them. It was the tortured scream of rending, snapping -beralloy. And along with it came the sensation of increased weight.</p> - -<p>The Tane Jewel!</p> - -<p>The huge beams which had anchored it in place had evidently collapsed -under the impact of the assault and now the Jewel was falling freely -through space, crashing through everything that stood in its path. And -it was falling toward them!</p> - -<p>Glayne's weight grew unbearable as it approached. Vaguely he could make -out its steady gold brilliance behind him in the passage. Grimly he -clung to a projection in the wall with one arm and hung onto Niala with -the other.</p> - -<p>Then the miraculous happened.</p> - -<p>The air-lock door which had been sprung now dilated under its own -tremendous weight and the air pressure which remained in the passage -flung Glayne and Niala through the lock.</p> - -<p>Summoning the last reserves of his diminishing strength, Glayne put his -arm around her body and half-supported her, half-dragged her up the few -remaining steps of the mono-rail passage to the landing dock. Forty -meters separated him from the emergency lock of the <i>Algol</i>. Thirty -meters. His straining muscles groaned in anguish. Twenty meters. Niala -was unconscious and her slight form was an unbearable weight to him as -he dragged her with painfully slow steps. Ten.... Five ... he reached -the lock.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<div class="figcenter"> - <img src="images/illus.jpg" alt=""/> - <div class="caption"> - <p><i>The battle raged on across the stars!</i></p> - </div> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p>He heaved her bodily into the lock and clambered in himself. Then -through the inner door. Across to the elevator. His muscles were a -symphony of agony. Slowly, slowly the elevator climbed. The discoid -was splitting and breaking up around the <i>Algol</i>—or was it wedging -the cruiser more firmly than ever in the vise grip of the beralloy -outer portals? The elevator door quivered for a moment, then dilated -in a series of little shudders. Ever so slowly Glayne crawled across -the bridge deck, dragging the girl. A shock seat ... a surette of -verchromynal into the blue vein inside her elbow.</p> - -<p>The crescendo of destruction reached new heights. The Tane Jewel was -following him, splashing its insidious yellow radiance through the -glassene window of the navigation bridge. It dogged his footsteps ... -closer ... closer. The pilot's seat. The surette. Blackness encroached -upon his vision. Dimly he was aware of his arm; it moved -instinctively ... slowly ... slowly. The regular driver atomics began -to shriek. His arm made another movement, flicking jet studs. Power -suddenly sang in the forward jet chambers and ejected itself in a -great, mushrooming flame. The <i>Algol</i> lurched backwards ... another -lurch ... straining ... a third. And the <i>Algol</i> was suddenly free.</p> - -<p>The yawning pit of blackness closed its gaping maw on Glayne and he -slid down, down, down....</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>It occurred to Glayne, when he woke up, that his quarters in the -<i>Algol</i> had a changed appearance. He climbed from his acceleration -hammock and bounded to the shower.</p> - -<p>"Terran Standard!" he snorted to himself. "What the hell is Harbin -doing puttering along like that?"</p> - -<p>As he dried himself from the tingling shower he tried to put his finger -on the change that had come over his quarters. For one thing, he -couldn't find what he wanted. But an even worse defect was the absence -of his dust.</p> - -<p>Flag officers in the Stellar Guardians were generally conceded some -slight idiosyncrasy through which they could assert their individuality -in a service where individuality was otherwise rigorously suppressed. -Glayne's own idiosyncrasy was dust. After five long years as a Dorleb -training-cadet without a speck of dust to his name, Glayne felt he had -earned his right to wallow in a bit of dust. But now it was all gone. -His quarters were spotless.</p> - -<p>He had finished dressing when a cautious knock sounded on his entrance -portal; then it dilated before he could answer. Harbin's face appeared -in the opening.</p> - -<p>"Oh! I'm sorry, sir. Didn't think you were awake yet," Harbin said -apologetically.</p> - -<p>"Forget it," grunted Glayne. "Come in."</p> - -<p>Harbin entered the room and fidgeted nervously for a moment. "Sir!" he -finally burst out, "I ... we're sorry about that unpleasantness. I want -to apologize on behalf of—"</p> - -<p>Glayne snorted and cut him off with a wave of his arm. "What I want to -know," he said with deceptive calmness, "is, where the hell is my dust?"</p> - -<p>Harbin grinned. "Lieutenant Chodred. I advised her against it—told her -it was one of your peculiarities. But she wouldn't listen."</p> - -<p>"What 'she' is this?" inquired a new voice, pleasantly husky.</p> - -<p>Glayne turned and saw Niala leaning in the entrance stage. "You know -damned well whom we are talking about," he said ominously. "Why did you -take away my dust?"</p> - -<p>"Oh, is that all?" she laughed. It was a deliciously cool and tinkling -laugh. Harbin foresaw an imminent explosion. Being a discreet warrior -who longs to fight another day, he fled from the room.</p> - -<p>But it never quite jelled. Glayne extended his arms to the laughing, -green-eyed Niala. But she stood her ground.</p> - -<p>"No," she teased. "Not when you have a beard like that."</p> - -<p>Glayne swore and reached for his depilatory. 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