Rogue Ship

14

He had been watching the Karn at their work of destruction, while he had these thoughts. Now, he said aloud: 'Hainker, Graves.'

'Yes?' The two men spoke together.

'In a few moments I'm going to ask Captain Browne to turn the ship again. When he does, use our specimen gas guns!'

The men grinned with relief. 'Consider it done,' said Hainker.

Lesbee ordered the other four crewmen to be ready to use the specimen-holding devices at top speed. To Tellier he said, 'You take charge if anything happens to me.'

Then he wrote one more message in the notebook: 'These beings will probably continue their mental intercommunication after they are apparently rendered unconscious. Pay no attention, and do not comment on it in any way.'

He felt a lot better when that statement also had been read by the others, and the notebook was once more in his possession. Quickly, he spoke to the screen:

'Captain Browne! Make another turn, just enough to pin them.'

And so they captured Dzing and his crew.

As he had expected, the Karn continued their telepathic conversation. Dzing reported to his ground contact: 'I think we did that rather well.'

There must have been an answering message from below, because he went on, 'Yes, Commander. We are now prisoners as per your instructions, and shall await events... The imprisoning method? Each of us is pinned down by a machine that has been placed astride us, with the main section adjusted to the contours of our bodies. A series of rigid metal appendages fasten our arms and legs. All these devices are electronically controlled, and we can, of course, escape at any time. Naturally, such action is for later...'

Lesbee was chilled by the analysis; but for expendables there was no turning back.

He ordered his men: 'Get dressed. Then start repairing the ship. Put all the floor plates back, except the section at G-8. They removed some of the instruments, and I'd better make sure myself that it all goes back all right.'

When he had dressed, he reset the course of the lifeboat, and called Browne. The screen lit up after a moment, and there, staring back at him, was the unhappy countenance of the forty-year-old officer.

Browne said glumly: 'I want to congratulate you and your crew on your accomplishments. It would seem that we have a small scientific superiority over this race, and that we can attempt a landing.'

Since there would never be a landing on Alta III, Lesbee simply waited without comment, as Browne seemed lost in thought.

The officer stirred finally. He still seemed uncertain. 'Mr. Lesbee,' he said, 'as you must understand, this is an extremely dangerous situation for me – and' – he added hastily – 'for this entire expedition.'

What struck Lesbee, as he heard those words, was that Browne was not going to let him back on the ship. But he had to get aboard to accomplish his own purpose. He thought: 'I'll have to bring this whole conspiracy out into the open, and apparently make a compromise offer.'

He drew a deep breath, gazed straight into the eyes of Browne's image on the screen, and said, with the complete courage of a man for whom there is no turning back: 'It seems to me, sir, that we have two alternatives. We can resolve all these personal problems either through a democratic election or by a joint captaincy, you being one of the captains and I being the other.'

To any other person who might have been listening, the remark must have seemed a complete non sequitur. Browne, however, understood its relevance. He said with a sneer, 'So you've come out in the open. Well, let me tell you, Mr. Lesbee, there was never any talk of elections when the Lesbees were in power. And for a very good reason. A spaceship requires a technical aristocracy to command it. As for a joint captaincy, it wouldn't work.'

Lesbee urged his lie: 'If we're going to stay here, we'll need at least two people of equal authority – one on the ground, one on the ship.'

'I couldn't trust you on the ship!' said Browne flatly.

'Then you be on the ship,' Lesbee proposed. 'All such practical details can be arranged.'

The older man must have been almost beside himself with the intensity of his own feelings on this subject. He flashed, 'Your family has been out of power for over fifty years! How can you still feel that you have any rights?'

Lesbee countered, 'How come you know what I'm talking about?'

Browne said, a grinding rage in his tone, 'The concept of inherited power was introduced by the first Lesbee. It was never planned.'

'But here you are,' said Lesbee, 'yourself a beneficiary of inherited power.'

Browne said, from between clenched teeth, 'It's absolutely ridiculous that the Earth government which was in power when the ship left – and every member of which has long been dead – should appoint somebody to a command position... and that now his descendant thinks that command post should be his, and his family's, for all time!'

Lesbee was silent, startled by the dark emotions he had uncovered in the man. He felt even more justified, if that were possible, and advanced his next suggestion without a qualm.

'Captain, this is a crisis. We should postpone our private struggle. Why don't we bring one of these prisoners aboard so that we can question him by use of the films, or play acting? Later, we can discuss your situation and mine.'

He saw from the look on Browne's face that the reasonableness of the suggestion, and its potentialities, were penetrating.

Browne said quickly, 'Only you come aboard – and with one prisoner. No one else!'

Lesbee felt a dizzying thrill as the man responded to his bait. He thought: 'It's like an exercise in logic. He'll try to murder me as soon as he gets me alone and is satisfied that he can attack without danger to himself. But that very scheme is what will get me aboard, and I've got to get on the ship to carry out my plan.'

Browne was frowning. He said in a concerned tone: 'Mr. Lesbee, can you think of any reason why we should not bring one of these beings aboard?'

Lesbee shook his head. 'No reason, sir,' he lied.

Browne seemed to come to a decision. 'Very well. I'll see you shortly, and we can then discuss additional details.'

Lesbee dared not say another word. He nodded, and broke the connection, shuddering, disturbed, uneasy.

'But,' he thought, 'what else can we do?'

He turned his attention to the part of the floor left open for him. Quickly he bent down and studied the codes on each of the programming units, as if he were seeking exactly the right ones that had previously been in those slots.

He found the series he wanted: an intricate system of cross-connected units that had originally been designed to programme a remote-control landing system, an advanced Waldo mechanism capable of landing the craft on a planet and taking off again, all directed on the pulse level of human thought.

He slid each unit of the series into its sequential position and locked it in.

Then, that important task completed, he picked up the remote-control attachment for the series and casually put it in his pocket.

He returned to the control board and spent several minutes examining the wiring and comparing it with a wall chart. A number of wires had been torn loose. These he now reconnected, and at the same time he managed with a twist of his pliers to short-circuit a key relay of the remote-control pilot.

Lesbee replaced the panel itself loosely. There was no time to connect it properly. And, since he would easily justify his next move, he pulled a cage out of the storeroom. Into this he hoisted Dzing, manacles and all.

Before lowering the lid, he rigged into the cage a simple resistance network that would prevent the Karn from broadcasting on the human-thought level. The device was simple merely in that it was not selective. It had an on-off switch which triggered, or stopped, energy flow in the metal walls on the thought level.

When the device was installed, Lesbee slipped the tiny remote control for it into his pocket. He did not activate the control. Not yet.

From the cage, Dzing telepathed: 'It is significant that these beings have selected me for this special attention. We might conclude that it is a matter of mathematical accident, or else that they are very observant and so noticed that I was the one who directed activities. Whatever the reason, it would be foolish to turn back now.'

A bell began to ring. As Lesbee watched, a spot of light appeared high on one of the screens. It moved rapidly toward some crossed lines in the exact center of the screen. Inexorably, then, the Hope of Man, as represented by the light, and the lifeboat moved toward their fateful rendezvous.