CHAPTER 9
"Rocket cruiser _Polaris_ to Solar Guard Venusport! Request emergencyrelay circuit to Commander Walters en route Earth!"
On the radar bridge of the _Polaris_, Roger Manning spoke quickly intothe teleceiver microphone. Just a few minutes before the giant spaceshiphad blasted off from Venusport, heading for the Sinclair plantation,Major Connel had ordered Roger to get in touch with Walters to reportthe latest security leak. On the control deck the major paced back andforth restlessly as Tom guided the _Polaris_ on its short flight.
"I'll find the spy in the Solar Guard if I have to tear Venusport apartpiece by piece!" fumed Connel.
"What about that jet freighter we took away from the Nationalists, sir?"asked Tom. "Did you ever find out where it came from?"
Connel nodded. "It was an old bucket on the Southern Colonial run. Shewas reported lost last year. Somehow those jokers got hold of her andarmed her to the teeth."
"You think maybe the crew could have mutinied, sir?"
"It's highly possible, Corbett," answered Connel, and glanced around."If they have any other ships of that size, the _Polaris_ will be ableto handle them."
"Yes, sir." Tom smiled. "The repair crew did a good job on her." Thecadet paused. "Do you suppose one of the Nationalists planted that bombon her fin?"
"No doubt of it," replied Connel. "And it seems to tie in with a ratherstrange thing that happened in the Venusian Delegate's office the daybefore it happened."
"What was that, sir?" asked Tom.
"Three priority orders for seats aboard a Venusport--Atom City expresswere stolen. Before a check could be made, the ship had made its run andthe people using the priorities were gone. They must have been the onesthat bumped you off your seats."
"How do you think that ties in with the bomb on the _Polaris_, sir?"
"We're trying to figure that out now," said Connel. "If only we knewwhat they looked like it would help. The girl at the ticket officedoesn't remember them and neither does the ship's stewardess."
"But we saw them, sir!" exclaimed Tom.
"You what!" roared Connel.
"Yes, sir. We were standing there at the ticket counter when they calledfor their tickets."
"Do you think you'd recognize them again?"
"I'll say!" asserted Tom. "And I'm sure Astro and Roger would, too. Wewere so mad, we could have blasted them on the spot."
Connel turned to the intercom and shouted, "Manning, haven't you gotthat circuit through yet?"
"Working on it, sir." Roger's voice was smooth and unruffled over theintercom. "I'm in contact with the commander's ship now. They're callinghim to the radar bridge now."
Tom suddenly jumped out of his seat as though stung. "Say! I saw one ofthe fellows again too!"
Connel whirled quickly to face the young cadet. "Where?" he demanded."Where did you see him?"
"I--I'm trying to remember." Tom began pacing the deck, snapping hisfingers impatiently. "It was sometime during the past few days--I knowit was!"
"In Venusport?" demanded Connel, following Tom around the deck.
"Yes, sir--"
"Before or after your trip into the jungle?"
"Uhh--before, I think," Tom replied hesitantly. "No. No. It was after wecame back."
"Well, out with it, Corbett!" exploded the major. "When? Where? Youdidn't do that much visiting! You were too tired to move!"
"That's just it, sir," said Tom, shaking his head. "I was so tiredeverything was a blur. Faces are all mixed up. I--I--" The boy stoppedand put his hands to his head as though trying to squeeze the one vitalface out of his hazy memory.
Connel kept after him like a hungry, stalking animal. "Where, Corbett?When?" he shouted. "You've got to remember. This is important! Think,blast you!"
"I'm trying, sir," replied the cadet. "But it just won't come to me."
The buzz of the intercom suddenly sounded and Connel reluctantly leftTom to answer it. Roger's voice crackled over the speaker. "I haveCommander Walters now, sir. Feeding him down to the control-deckteleceiver."
"Oh, all right," replied Connel and turned to Tom. "Come on, Corbett. Iwant you to report to the commander personally."
"Yes, sir," replied Tom, walking slowly to the teleceiver. "I'm sorry Ican't remember where I saw that man."
"Forget it," Connel said gruffly. "It'll come to you again sometime." Hepaused and then added as gently as he could, "Sorry I blasted you likethat."
When Commander Walters' face appeared on the teleceiver screen, Connelreported the incident of the cab driver and the news that Tom, Roger,and Astro had seen the three men who had taken the priorities on the_Venus Lark_.
"Just a minute," said Walters. "I'll have a recorder take down thedescriptions."
Connel motioned to Tom, who stepped before the screen. When he sawWalters nod, he gave a complete description of the three men he had seenin the Atom City spaceport.
"Let's see, now," said Walters, after Tom had concluded his report. "Theman who asked for the tickets was young, about twenty-two, dressed inVenusian clothing, dark, six feet tall, weighed about one hundred andfifty pounds. Right?"
"Yes, sir," replied Tom.
Connel suddenly stepped before the screen to interject, "And Corbett sawhim in Venusport again sometime during the last two days."
"Really? Where?"
Connel glanced at Tom and then replied hurriedly, "Well, he can't besure, sir. We rushed him around pretty fast and he saw a lot of people.But at least we know he's in Venusport somewhere."
"Yes," nodded Walters. "That's something to work on, at least. And youhave nothing more to add to the descriptions of the other two, Corbett?"
"Not anything particular, sir," said Tom. "They were dressed inVenusian-type clothes also, but we didn't get a close look at them."
"Very well," said Walters. "Proceed with your mission, Major. I'll havean alert sent out for the cab driver, and I'll have the owner of thepawnshop picked up. There must be someone on the Solar Delegate's staffwho stole those priorities. We'll start searching there first, and if wecome up with anyone who can't explain his absence from Venusport at thetime the priorities were used, and fits Corbett's description, we'llcontact you. End transmission!"
"End transmission!" repeated Connel. The screen blanked out and Roger'svoice came over the intercom immediately. "We'll be over Sinclair's inthree minutes," he called. "Stand by."
Tom turned to the controls and in exactly two minutes and fifty secondsthe clearing surrounding Sinclair's home and the burned outbuildingscame into view. Working effortlessly, with almost casual teamwork, thethree cadets brought the giant spaceship to rest in the middle of theclearing. As the power was cut, the cadets saw George and Mrs. Hilljumping into a jet car and speeding out to greet them.
After Tom introduced Connel to the couple, the major questioned themclosely about their absence during the attack by the shock troops.
"Mr. Sinclair often gives us time off for a trip into Venusport,"explained Hill. "It gets pretty lonely out here."
"Is Mr. Sinclair in now?" asked Connel.
"No, he isn't," replied the plantation foreman. "He's on his weekly triparound the outer fields. I don't expect him back for another day ortwo."
"For goodness sakes," exclaimed Mrs. Hill, "you can ask your questionsjust as easily and a darn sight more comfortably in the house! Come on.Let's get out of the sun."
The small group climbed into the jet car and roared off across theclearing toward the house. The lone building left standing by theNationalists looked strange amid the charred ruins of the otherbuildings. In the house, the three cadets busied themselves withhome-baked apple pie which the housekeeper had brought out, while Connelwas telling George of the attack on the plantation.
"I've known about them all along, of course," said the foreman. "But Inever paid any attention to them. I just quit, like Mr. Sinclair, whenthey started all that tomfoolery about wearing uniforms and stuff."
"Well," said Connel, accepting a wedge o
f pie at Mrs. Hill's insistence,"now they've made the wrong move. Burning Sinclair's property andattacking an officer of the Solar Guard is going too far."
"What are you going to do about it?" asked George.
"I'm not at liberty to say, Mr. Hill," replied Connel. "But I can tellyou this. When any person, or group of persons, tries to dictate to theAlliance, the Solar Guard steps in and puts a stop to it!"
Suddenly the silence of the jungle clearing was shattered by the roar ofa single jet craft coming in for a landing. Without looking out thewindow, George smiled and said, "There's Mr. Sinclair now! I know thesound of his jets."
The group crowded out onto the front porch while George took the jet carand drove off to pick up his employer. A few moments later Sinclair wasseated before Connel, wiping his sweating brow and accepting a cooldrink from Mrs. Hill.
"I was on my way to the north boundary when I saw your ship landing,"explained Sinclair. "At first I thought it might be those devils comingback, but then I saw the Solar Guard insigne on the ship and figured itmight be you." He looked at Connel closely. "Anything new, Major?"
"Not yet," replied Connel. "But you can rest assured that you won't bebothered by them again."
Sinclair paused, eying the major speculatively. "You know, as soon asyou left, I went over to talk to Al Sharkey. I was plenty mad and reallyblasted him, but he swears that he was in Venusport at the time anddoesn't know a thing about the raid."
Connel nodded. "That's true. We checked on him. But while he might nothave been in on the raid itself, there's nothing that says he didn'torder it done!"
"I doubt it," said Sinclair, with a queer apologetic note in his voice."I'm inclined to believe that it was nothing more than a bunch of theyounger, more hotheaded kids in the organization. As a matter of fact,Sharkey told me he was quitting as president. Seems you fellows inVenusport scared him plenty. Not only that, but I heard him calling upthe other planters telling them what happened and every one of them ischipping in to rebuild my plantation."
Connel looked at the planter steely-eyed. "So you think it was done by abunch of kids, huh?"
Sinclair nodded. "Wouldn't be surprised if they're not scared too!"
"Well, you are entitled to your opinion, Mr. Sinclair. And if the otherplanters are going to rebuild your buildings, that's fine and charitableof them." Suddenly Connel's voice became harsh. "That does not, however,erase the fact that a group of uniformed men, armed with paralo-ray gunsand with ships equipped with blasters, attacked you! Atomic blasters,Mr. Sinclair, are not bought at the local credit exchange. They are madeexclusively for the Solar Guard! That bunch of hotheaded kids, as youcall them, are capable of attacking any community--even ships of theSolar Guard itself! That is a threat to the peace of the solar systemand must be stopped!"
Sinclair nodded quickly. "Oh, I agree, Major, I agree. I'm just sayingthat--"
Connel stopped him. "I understand, Mr. Sinclair. You're a peaceful manand want to keep your life peaceful. But my job is to ensure that peace.As long as a group of militant toughs like we had here are on the loose,you won't have peace. You'll have pieces!"
Tom, Roger, and Astro, sitting quietly and listening, felt like standingup and cheering as the major finished.
"I know you can't tell me what you're going to do, Major Connel," saidthe planter, "but I hope that you'll allow me to help in any way I can."
Connel hesitated before answering. "Thank you, Mr. Sinclair. But I'm nothere officially now." And then he added, "Nor in regard to theNationalists."
Sinclair's eyes lit up slightly. "Oh?"
"No. As you know, the cadets had quite a time with a tyrannosaurus. Theywounded it and it might still be dangerous. That is, more dangerous thannormally. I've got orders to track him down and finish him off."
"But I thought you said you were going to put a stop to this businesswith the Nationalists," said the planter.
"I said the Solar Guard would, Sinclair."
"Oh, yes," mumbled Sinclair, "the Solar Guard. Of course."
Connel got up abruptly. "I would appreciate it if you would look afterour ship, though," he said. "I don't think we'll be longer than a week.Shouldn't be hard to track a tyrannosaurus, especially if it's wounded."
"I suppose you have all the equipment you need," said Sinclair.
"Yes, thank you," replied Connel. Then, thanking Mrs. Hill for therefreshments, the burly spaceman and the three cadets said good-by andleft the house.
An hour later, ready to strike off into the jungle, the Solar Guardofficer took four of the latest model shock rifles out of the armslocker of the _Polaris_ and gave one to each boy with extra ammunition."Never go after a giant with a popgun," he said. "It's a wonder youdidn't kill yourselves with those old blasters you used, let alone killa tyranno."
The three cadets examined the rifles closely and with enthusiasm.
"These are the latest Solar Guard issue," said Connel. "When you pullthat trigger, you release a force three times greater than anything putinto a rifle before."
Then, checking the _Polaris_ and cutting all power, Connel removed themaster switch and hid it. "That's so no one will get any bright ideaswhile we're gone," he explained as the boys watched curiously.
"You think someone might try to steal her, sir?" asked Tom.
"You never can tell, Corbett," answered Connel noncommittally.
Once again the three boys moved across the clearing toward the junglewall. Astro took the lead as before, followed by Roger and Tom, andConnel brought up the rear. They moved directly to the spot where theyhad last seen the tyrannosaurus, found the trampled underbrush andmassive tracks, and moved purposefully into the dank, suffocating greenworld.
The trail was plain to see. Where the boys once had to hack their waythrough the thick underbrush, the monster had created a path for them.The three cadets felt better about being back in the jungle with morereliable equipment and joked about what they would do to thetyrannosaurus when they saw it again.
"I thought you were supposed to be the home-grown Venusian hick thatcould manage in the jungle like that fairy-tale character, Tarzan,"Roger teased Astro.
"Listen, you sleepwalking space Romeo," growled Astro, "I know moreabout this jungle than you could learn in ten years. And I'm not foolishenough to battle with a tyranno with the odds on his side. I ran for agood reason!"
"Boy, did you run!" taunted Roger. "You were as fast as the _Polaris_ onemergency thrust!"
"Knock off that rocket wash!" roared Connel. "The Nationalists mighthave security patrols in this area. They could hear you talking andblast you before you could bat an eyelash! Now keep quiet and stayalert!"
The three cadets quieted down after that, walking carefully, steppingaround dead brush that might betray their presence. After working theirway along the tyrannosaurus's trail for several hours, Connel called ahalt, and after a quick look at his compass, motioned for them to cutaway from the monster's tracks.
"We'll start working around in a circle," he said. "One day east, onesouth, west, and north. Then we'll move in closer to the heart of thecircle, and repeat the same procedure. That should cover a lot of groundin eight days. If anything's moving around out here, besides what shouldbe here, we'll find it. From now on, we'll have a scout. Astro, you knowthe jungle, you take the point, about five hundred yards ahead. If yousee anything, signs of a patrol or any danger from the jungle, fall backand report. Don't try to do anything yourself. Four guns in a goodposition are better than one popping off by itself."
"Aye, aye, sir," said Astro. With a quick nod to Tom and Roger, he movedoff through the jungle. In ten feet he was invisible. In thirty secondshis footsteps were lost in the thousands of jungle sounds around them.
"I'll take the lead now," said Connel. "Corbett, you bring up the rear.All right, move out!"
From above, in the leafy roof covering the jungle; from the side, in thethick tangle of vines; and from below, in the thorny underbrush, theeyes of living things, jungle things, followed t
he movements of thethree spacemen, perhaps wondering if these new beasts were a threat totheir lives.