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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..a24b82d --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #62261 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/62261) diff --git a/old/62261-h.zip b/old/62261-h.zip Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 1534a9f..0000000 --- a/old/62261-h.zip +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/62261-h/62261-h.htm b/old/62261-h/62261-h.htm deleted file mode 100644 index 2f53eff..0000000 --- a/old/62261-h/62261-h.htm +++ /dev/null @@ -1,1559 +0,0 @@ -<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN" - "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd"> -<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en"> - <head> - <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;charset=us-ascii" /> - <meta http-equiv="Content-Style-Type" content="text/css" /> - <title> - The Project Gutenberg eBook of Planet of No-return, by Wilbur S. Peacock. - </title> - <link rel="coverpage" href="images/cover.jpg" /> - - <style type="text/css"> - -body { - margin-left: 10%; - margin-right: 10%; -} - - h1,h2 { - text-align: center; /* all headings centered */ - clear: both; -} - -p { - margin-top: .51em; - text-align: justify; - margin-bottom: .49em; -} - -hr { - width: 33%; - margin-top: 2em; - margin-bottom: 2em; - margin-left: 33.5%; - margin-right: 33.5%; - clear: both; -} - -hr.chap {width: 65%; margin-left: 17.5%; margin-right: 17.5%;} -hr.tb {width: 45%; margin-left: 27.5%; margin-right: 27.5%;} - -.center {text-align: center;} - -.right {text-align: right;} - -.caption {font-weight: bold;} - -/* Images */ -.figcenter { - margin: auto; - text-align: center; -} - -.caption p -{ - text-align: center; - text-indent: 0; - margin: 0.25em 0; -} - -div.titlepage { - text-align: center; - page-break-before: always; - page-break-after: always; -} - -div.titlepage p { - text-align: center; - text-indent: 0em; - font-weight: bold; - line-height: 1.5; - margin-top: 3em; -} - -.ph1 { text-align: center; text-indent: 0em; } -.ph1 { font-size: medium; margin: .83em auto; } - - - </style> - </head> -<body> - - -<pre> - -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Planet of No-Return, by Wilbur S. Peacock - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll -have to check the laws of the country where you are located before using -this ebook. - - - -Title: Planet of No-Return - -Author: Wilbur S. Peacock - -Release Date: May 28, 2020 [EBook #62261] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ASCII - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK PLANET OF NO-RETURN *** - - - - -Produced by Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - - - - - -</pre> - - -<div class="figcenter"> - <img src="images/cover.jpg" width="346" height="500" alt=""/> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<div class="titlepage"> - -<h1>Planet of No-Return</h1> - -<h2>By WILBUR S. PEACOCK</h2> - -<p>The orders were explicit: "Destroy the<br /> -'THING' of Venus." But Patrolmen Kerry<br /> -Blane and Splinter Wood, their space-ship<br /> -wrecked, could not follow orders—their<br /> -weapons were useless on the Water-world.</p> - -<p>[Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from<br /> -Planet Stories Winter 1942.<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>Old Kerry Blane exploded.</p> - -<p>"Damn it!" he roared. "I don't like you; and I don't like this ship; -and I don't like the assignment; and I don't like those infernal pills -you keep eating; and I—"</p> - -<p>"Splinter" Wood grinned.</p> - -<p>"Seems to me, Kerry," he remarked humorously, "that you don't like much -of anything!"</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane growled unintelligibly, batted the injector lever with a -calloused hand. His grizzled hair was a stiff wiry mop on his small -head, and his oversize jaw was thrust belligerently forward. But deep -within his eyes, where he hoped it was hidden, was a friendly twinkle -that gave the lie to his speech.</p> - -<p>"You're a squirt!" he snapped disagreeably. "You're not dry behind -the ears, yet. You're like the rest of these kids who call themselves -pilots—only more so! And why the hell the chief had to sic you on me, -on an exploration trip this important—well, I'll never understand."</p> - -<p>Splinter rolled his six foot three of lanky body into a more -comfortable position on the air-bunk. He yawned tremendously, fumbled a -small box from his shirt pocket, and removed a marble-like capsule.</p> - -<p>"Better take one of these," he warned. "You're liable to get the space -bends at any moment."</p> - -<p>Old Kerry Blane snorted, batted the box aside impatiently, scowled -moodily at the capsules that bounced for a moment against the pilot -room's walls before hanging motionless in the air.</p> - -<p>"Mister Wood," he said icily, "I was flying a space ship while they -were changing your pants twenty times a day. When I want advice on how -to fly a ship, how to cure space bends, how to handle a Zelta ray, or -how to spit—I'll ask you! Until then, you and your bloody marbles can -go plumb straight to the devil!"</p> - -<p>"Tsk! Tsk! Tsk!" Splinter reached out lazily, plucked the capsules from -the air, one by one.</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane lit one of the five allotted cigarettes of the day.</p> - -<p>"Don't 'tsk' me, you young squirt," he grunted around a mouthful of -fragrant smoke. "I know all the arguments you can put up; ain't that -all I been hearing for a week? You take your vitamins A, B, C, D, all -you want, but you leave me alone—or I'll stuff your head down your -throat, P.D.Q.!"</p> - -<p>"All right, all right!" Splinter tucked the capsule box back into his -pocket, grinned mockingly. "But don't say I didn't warn you. With this -shielded ship, and with no sunlight reaching Venus' surface, you're -gonna be begging for some of my vitamin, super-concentrated pills -before we get back to Earth."</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane made a rich, ripe noise with his mouth.</p> - -<p>"Pfuii!" he said very distinctly.</p> - -<p>"Gracious!" Splinter said in mock horror.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>They made a strange contrast as they lay in their air bunks. Splinter -was fully a head taller than the dour Irishman, and his lanky build -gave a false impression of awkwardness. While the vitriolic Kerry Blane -was short and compact, strength and quickness evident in every movement.</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane had flown every type of ship that rode in space. In the -passing years, he had flight-tested almost every new experimental ship, -had flown them with increasing skill, had earned a reputation as a -trouble shooter on any kind of craft.</p> - -<p>But even Kerry Blane had to retire eventually.</p> - -<p>A great retirement banquet had been given in his honor by the -Interplanetary Squadron. There had been the usual speeches and -presentations; and Kerry Blane had heard them all, had thanked the -donors of the gifts. But it was not until the next morning, when he was -dressed in civilian clothes for the first time in forty years, that he -realized the enormity of the thing that had happened to his life.</p> - -<p>Something died within Kerry Blane's heart that morning, shriveled and -passed away, leaving him suddenly shrunken and old. He had become like -a rusty old freighter couched between the gleaming bodies of great -space warriors.</p> - -<p>Finally, as a last resort so that he would not be thrown entirely -aside, he had taken a desk job in the squadron offices. For six years -he had dry-rotted there, waiting hopefully for the moment when his -active services would be needed again.</p> - -<p>It was there that he had met and liked the ungainly Splinter Wood. -There was something in the boy that had found a kindred spirit in Kerry -Blane's heart, and he had taken the youngster in hand to give him the -benefits of experience that had become legendary.</p> - -<p>Splinter Wood was a probationary pilot, had been admitted to the -Interplanetary Squadron because of his inherent skill, even though his -formal education had been fairly well neglected.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Now, the two of them rode the pounding jets of a DX cruiser, bound -for Venus to make a personal survey of its floating islands for the -Interplanetary Squadron's Medical Division.</p> - -<p>"Ten to one we don't get back!" Splinter said pessimistically.</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane scrubbed out his cigarette, scowled bleakly at the -instrument panel. He sensed the faint thread of fear in the youngster's -tone, and a nostalgic twinge touched his heart, for he was remembering -the days of his youth when he had a full life to look forward to.</p> - -<p>"If you're afraid, you can get out and walk back," he snapped -disagreeably.</p> - -<p>A grin lifted the corners of Splinter's long mouth, spread into his -eyes. His hand unconsciously came up, touched the tiny squadron pin on -his lapel.</p> - -<p>"Sorry to disappoint you, glory grabber," he said mockingly, "but I've -got definite orders to take care of you."</p> - -<p>"<i>Me!</i> You've got orders to take care of <i>me</i>?" Kerry Blane choked -incoherently for a moment, red tiding cholerically upward from his -loosened collar.</p> - -<p>"Of course!" Splinter grinned.</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane exploded, words spewing volcanically forth. Splinter -relaxed, his booted foot beating out a dull rhythm to the colorful -language learned through almost fifty years of spacing. And at last, -when Kerry Blane had quieted until he but smoldered, he leaned over and -touched the old spacer on the sleeve.</p> - -<p>"Seventy-eight!" he remarked pleasantly.</p> - -<p>"Seventy-eight what?" Kerry Blane asked sullenly, the old twinkle -beginning to light again deep in his eyes.</p> - -<p>"Seventy-eight new words—and you swore them beautifully!" Splinter -beamed. "Some day you can teach them to me."</p> - -<p>They laughed then, Old Kerry Blane and young Splinter Wood, and -the warmth of their friendship was a tangible thing in the small -control-room of the cruiser.</p> - -<p>And in the midst of their laughter, Old Kerry Blane choked in agony, -surged desperately against his bunk straps.</p> - -<p>He screamed unknowingly, feeling only the horrible excruciating agony -of his body, tasting the blood that gushed from his mouth and nostrils. -His muscles were knotted cords that he could not loosen, and his blood -was a surging stream that pounded at his throbbing temples. The air he -breathed seemed to be molten flame.</p> - -<p>His body arced again and again against the restraining straps, and his -mouth was open in a soundless scream. He sensed dimly that his partner -had wrenched open a wall door, removed metal medicine kits, and was -fumbling through their contents. He felt the bite of the hypodermic, -felt a deadly numbness replace the raging torment that had been his -for seconds. He swallowed three capsules automatically, passed into a -coma-like sleep, woke hours later to stare clear-eyed into Splinter's -concerned face.</p> - -<p>"Close, wasn't it?" he said weakly, conversationally.</p> - -<p>"Close enough!" Splinter agreed relievedly. "If you had followed my -advice and taken those vitamin capsules, you'd never have had the -bends."</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane grinned, winced when he felt the dull ache in his body.</p> - -<p>"I've had the bends before, and lived through them!" he said, still -weakly defiant.</p> - -<p>"That's the past," Splinter said quietly. "This is the present, and you -take your pills every day, just as I do—from now on."</p> - -<p>"All right—and thanks!"</p> - -<p>"Forget it!" Splinter flushed in quick embarrassment.</p> - -<p>A buzzer sounded from the instrument panel, and a tiny light glowed -redly.</p> - -<p>"Six hours more," Splinter said, turned to the instrument panel.</p> - -<p>His long hands played over the instrument panel, checking, controlling -the rocket fire, adjusting delicate instruments to hairline marks. -Kerry Blane nodded in silent approval.</p> - -<p>They could feel the first tug of gravity on their bodies, and through -the vision port could see the greenish ball that was cloud-covered -Venus. Excitement lifted their spirits, brought light to their eyes as -they peered eagerly ahead.</p> - -<p>"What's it really like?" Splinter asked impatiently.</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane yawned, settled back luxuriously. "I'll tell you later," he -said, "I'm going to take a nap and try to ease this bellyache of mine. -Wake me up so that I can take over, when we land; Venus is a tricky -place to set a ship on."</p> - -<p>He yawned again, drifted instantly into sleep, relaxing with the -ability of a spaceman who sleeps when and if he can. Splinter smiled -down at his sleeping partner, then turned back to the quartzite port. -He shook his head a bit, remembering the stories he had heard about the -water planet, wondering—wondering—</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p class="ph1">II</p> - -<p>Venus was a fluffy cotton ball hanging motionless in bottomless -space. Far to the left, Mercury gleamed like a polished diamond in -the sunlight. Kerry Blane cut the driving rockets, let the cruiser -sink into a fast gravity-dive, guiding it only now and then by a brief -flicker of a side jet.</p> - -<p>Splinter Wood watched breathlessly from the vision port, his long face -eager and reckless, his eyes seeking to pierce the clouds that roiled -and twisted uneasily over the surface of the planet.</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane glanced tolerantly at his young companion, felt a nostalgic -tug at his heart when he remembered the first time he had approached -the water-planet years before. Then, he had been a young and reckless -firebrand, his fame already spreading, an unquenchable fire of -adventure flaming in his heart.</p> - -<p>Now, his aged but steady fingers rested lightly on the controls, -brought the patrol cruiser closer to the cloud-banks on the line of -demarcation between the sunward and sunless sides of the planet. He -hummed tunelessly, strangely happy, as he peered ahead.</p> - -<p>"Val Kenton died there," Splinter whispered softly, "Died to save the -lives of three other people!"</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane nodded. "Yes," he agreed, and his voice changed subtly. -"Val was a blackguard, a criminal; but he died in the best traditions -of the service." He sighed. "He never had a chance."</p> - -<p>"Murdered!"</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane smiled grimly. "I guess I used too broad an interpretation -of the word," he said gently. "Anyway, one of our main tasks is to -destroy the thing that killed him."</p> - -<p>His lean fingers tightened unconsciously.</p> - -<p>"I'd like nothing better than to turn a Zelta-blaster on that chunk of -living protoplasm and cremate it."</p> - -<p>Splinters shivered slightly. "Do you think we'll find it?" he asked.</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane nodded. "I think it will find us; after all, it's just an -animated appetite looking for food."</p> - -<p>He turned back to the controls, flipped a switch, and the cutting of -the nose rocket dropped the ship in an angling glide toward the clouds -a few miles below. Gravity was full strength now, and although not as -great as Earth's, was still strong enough to bring a sense of giddiness -to the men.</p> - -<p>"Here we go!" Splinter said tonelessly.</p> - -<p>The great cottony batts of roiling clouds rushed up to meet the ship, -bringing the first sense of violent movement in more than a week of -flying. There was something awesome and breath-taking in the speed with -which the ship dropped toward the planet.</p> - -<p>Tendrils of vapor touched the ports, were whipped aside, then were -replaced by heavier fingers of cloud. Kerry Blane pressed a firing -stud, and nose rockets thrummed in a rising crescendo as the free fall -of the cruiser was checked. Heat rose in the cabin from the friction of -the outer air, then dissipated, as the force-screen voltometer leaped -higher.</p> - -<p>Then, as though it had never been, the sun disappeared, and there was -only a gray blankness pressing about the ship. Gone was all sense of -movement, and the ship seemed to hover in a gray nothingness.</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane crouched over the control panel, his hands moving deftly, -his eyes flicking from one instrument to another. Tiny lines of -concentration etched themselves about his mouth, and perspiration -beaded his forehead. He rode that cruiser through the miles of clouds -through sheer instinctive ability, seeming to fly it as though he were -an integral part of the ship.</p> - -<p>Splinter Wood watched him with awe in his eyes, seeing for the first -time the incredible instinct that had made Kerry Blane the idol of a -billion people. He relaxed visibly, all instinctive fear allayed by the -brilliant competence of his companion.</p> - -<p>Seconds flowed into moments, and the moments merged into one another, -and still the clouds pressed with a visible strength against the -ports. The rockets drummed steadily, holding the ship aloft, dropping -it slowly toward the planet below. Then the clouds thinned, and, -incredibly, were permeated with a dim and glowing light. A second -later, and the clouds were gone, and a thousand feet below tumbled and -tossed in a majestic display of ruthless strength an ocean that seemed -to be composed of liquid fluorescence.</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane heard Splinter's instant sigh of unbelief.</p> - -<p>"Good Lord!" Splinter said, "What—"</p> - -<p>His voice stilled, and he was silent, his eyes drinking in the weird -incredible scene below.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>The ocean was a shifting, white-capped wash of silvery light that -gleamed with a bright phosphorescence of a hundred, intermingled, -kaleidoscopic colors. And the unreal, unearthly light continued -unbroken everywhere, reflected from the low-hanging clouds, reaching -to the far horizon, bathing every detail of the planet in a brilliance -more bright than moonlight.</p> - -<p>Splinter turned a wondering face. "But the official reports say that -there is no light on Venus," he exclaimed. "That was one of the reasons -given when exploration was forbidden!"</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane nodded. "That was merely a pretext to keep foolhardy -spacemen from losing their lives on the planet. In reality, the -ocean is alive with an incredibly tiny marine worm that glows -phosphorescently. The light generated from those billions of worms is -reflected back from the clouds, makes Venus eternally lighted."</p> - -<p>He turned the ship to the North, relaxed a bit on the air bunk. He -felt tired and worn, his body aching from the space bends of a few -hours before.</p> - -<p>"Take over," he said wearily. "Take the ship North, and watch for any -island."</p> - -<p>Splinter nodded, rested his long hands on the controls. The space -cruiser lifted a bit in a sudden spurt of speed, and the rocket-sound -was a solid thrum of unleashed power.</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane lit a cigarette, leaned toward a vision port. He felt again -that thrill he had experienced when he had first flashed his single-man -cruiser through the clouds years before. Then the breath caught in his -throat, and he tapped his companion's arm.</p> - -<p>"Take a look!" he called excitedly.</p> - -<p>They fought in the ocean below, fought in a never-ending splashing of -what seemed to be liquid fire. It was like watching a tri-dim screen of -a news event, except for the utter lack of sound.</p> - -<p>One was scaly, while the other was skinned, and both were fully three -hundred feet long. Great scimitars of teeth flashed in the light, and -blood gouted and stained the water crimson whenever a slashing blow was -struck. They threshed in a mad paroxysm of rage, whirling and spinning -in the phosphorescent water like beings from a nightmare, exploding -out of their element time and again, only to fall back in a gargantuan -spray of fluorescence.</p> - -<p>And then the scaly monster flashed in a half-turn, drove forward with -jaws agape, wrenched and ripped at the smooth black throat of the other -creature. The second creature rippled and undulated in agony, whipping -the ocean to foam, then went limp. The victorious monster circled the -body of its dead foe, then, majestically, plunged from sight into the -ocean's depths. An instant later, the water frothed, as hundreds of -lesser marine monsters attacked and fed on the floating corpse.</p> - -<p>"Brrrr!" Splinter shivered in sudden horror.</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane chuckled dryly. "Feel like going for a swim?" he asked -conversationally.</p> - -<p>Splinter shook his head, watched the scene disappear from view to the -rear of the line of flight, then sank back onto his bunk.</p> - -<p>"Not me!" he said deprecatingly.</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane chuckled again, swung the cruiser toward the tiny smudge of -black on the horizon. Glowing water flashed beneath the ship, seeming -to smooth into a gleaming mirror shot with dancing colors. There was no -sign of life anywhere.</p> - -<p>Thirty minutes later, Kerry Blane circled the island that floated -free in the phosphorescent ocean. His keen eyes searched the tangled -luxuriant growth of the jungle below, searching for some indication -that the protoplasmic monster he seeked was there.</p> - -<p>"I don't see anything suspicious," Splinter contributed.</p> - -<p>"There's nothing special to see," Kerry Blane said shortly. "As I -understand it, anyway, this chunk of animated appetite hangs around an -island shaped like a turtle. However, our orders are to investigate -every island, just in case there might be more than one of the -monsters."</p> - -<p>Splinter buckled on his dis-gun, excitement flaring in his eyes.</p> - -<p>"Let's do a little exploring?" he said eagerly.</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane shook his head, swung the cruiser north again.</p> - -<p>"Plenty of time for that later," he said mildly. "We'll find this -turtle-island, make a landing, and take a look around. Later, if we're -lucky enough to blow our objective to Kingdom Come, we'll do a little -exploring of the other islands."</p> - -<p>"Hell!" Splinter scowled in mock disgust. "An old woman like you should -be taking in knitting for a living!"</p> - -<p>"Orders are orders!" Kerry Blane shrugged.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>He swung the cruiser in a wide arc to the north, trebling the flying -speed within minutes, handling the controls with a familiar dexterity. -He said nothing, searched the gleaming ocean for the smudge of -blackness that would denote another island. His gaze flicked amusedly, -now and then, to the lanky Splinter who scowled moodily and toyed with -the dis-gun in his long hands.</p> - -<p>"Cheer up, lad," Kerry Blane said finally. "I think you'll find plenty -to occupy your time shortly."</p> - -<p>"Maybe?" Splinter said gloomily.</p> - -<p>He idly swallowed another vitamin capsule, grinned, when he saw Kerry -Blane's automatic grimace of distaste. Then he yawned hugely, twisted -into a comfortable position, dozed sleepily.</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane rode the controls for the next three hours, searching the -limitless ocean for the few specks of islands that followed the slow -currents of the water planet. Always, there was the same misty light -surrounding the ship, never dimming, giving a sense of unreality to the -scene below. Nowhere was there the slightest sign of life until, in the -fourth hour of flight, a tiny dot of blackness came slowly over the -horizon's water line.</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane spun the ship in a tight circle, sent it flashing to the -west. His keen eyes lighted, when he finally made out the turtle-like -outline of the island, and he whistled softly, off-key, as he nudged -the snoring Splinter.</p> - -<p>"This is it, Sleeping Beauty," he called. "Snap out of it!"</p> - -<p>"Huh? Whuzzat?" Splinter grunted, rolled to his elbow.</p> - -<p>"Here's the island."</p> - -<p>"Oh!" Splinter swung his feet from the bunk, peered from the vision -port, sleepiness instantly erased from his face.</p> - -<p>"Hot damn!" he chortled. "Now we'll see a little action!"</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane grinned, tried to conceal the excitement he felt. He shook -his head, his fingers flickering over the control studs.</p> - -<p>"Don't get your hopes too high, lad," he counseled. "With those super -Zelta guns, it won't take ten minutes to wipe out that monster."</p> - -<p>Splinter rubbed his hands together, sighed like a boy seeing his first -circus. "Listen, for ten minutes of that, I'd ride this chunk of metal -for a year!"</p> - -<p>"Could be!" Kerry Blane agreed.</p> - -<p>He peered through the port, seeking any spot clear enough for a landing -field. Except for a strip of open beach, the island was a solid mass of -heavy fern-like growth.</p> - -<p>"Belt yourself," Kerry Blane warned. "If that beach isn't solid, I'll -have to lift the ship in a hell of a hurry."</p> - -<p>"Right!" Splinter's fingers were all thumbs in his excitement.</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane set the controls for a shallow glide, his fingers moving -like a concert pianist's. The cruiser yawed slightly, settled slowly -in a flat shallow glide.</p> - -<p>"We're going in," Kerry Blane said quietly.</p> - -<p>He closed a knife switch, seeing too late the vitamin capsule that was -lodged in the slot. There was the sharp splutter of a short-circuit, -and a thin tendril of smoke drifted upward.</p> - -<p>"Damn!" Kerry Blane swore briefly.</p> - -<p>There was an instant, terrific explosion of the stern jets, and the -cruiser hurtled toward the beach like a gravity-crazed comet.</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane said absolutely nothing, his breath driven from him by the -suck of inertia. His hands darted for the controls, seeking to balance -the forces that threw the ship about like a toy. He cut all rockets -with a smashing swoop of his hand, tried to fire the bow rockets. But -the short had ruined the entire control system.</p> - -<p>For one interminable second, he saw the uncanny uprush of the island -below. He flicked his gaze about, saw the instant terror that wiped -all other expression from his young companion's face. Then the cruiser -plowed into the silvery sand.</p> - -<p>Belts parted like rotten string; they were thrown forward with crushing -force against the control panel. They groped feebly for support, their -bodies twisting involuntarily, as the ship cartwheeled a dozen times in -a few seconds. Almost instantly, consciousness was battered from them.</p> - -<p>With one final, grinding bounce, the cruiser rolled to its side, -twisted over and over for a hundred yards, then came to a metal-ripping -stop against a moss-grown boulder at the water's edge.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p class="ph1">III</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane choked, tried to turn his head from the water that trickled -into his face. He opened his eyes, stared blankly, uncomprehendingly -into the bloody features of the man bending over him.</p> - -<p>"What happened?" he gasped.</p> - -<p>Splinter Wood laughed, almost hysterically, mopped at his forehead with -a wet handkerchief.</p> - -<p>"I thought you were dead!" he said simply.</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane moved his arm experimentally, felt broken bones grate in -an exquisite wave of pain. He fought back the nausea, gazed about the -cabin, realized the ship lay on its side.</p> - -<p>"Maybe I am," he said ruefully. "No man could live through that crash."</p> - -<p>Splinter moved away, sat down tiredly on the edge of a bunk. He shook -his head dazedly, inspected the long cut on his leg.</p> - -<p>"We seem to have done it," he said dully.</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane nodded, clambered to his feet, favoring his broken arm. -He leaned over the control panel, inspecting the dials with a worried -gaze. Slowly, his eyes lightened, and his voice was almost cheerful as -he swung about.</p> - -<p>"Everything is more or less okay," he said. "The board will have to -be rewired, but nothing else seems to be damaged so that repairs are -needed."</p> - -<p>Splinter looked up from his task of bandaging his leg. "What caused -the crash?" he asked. "One minute, everything was all right; the next, -Blooey!"</p> - -<p>Anger suddenly mottled Kerry Blane's face; he swore monotonously and -bitterly for a moment.</p> - -<p>"Those gol-damned pills you been taking caused the crash!" he roared. -"One of them broke and shorted out the control board." He scowled at -the incredulous Splinter. "By the three tails of a Martian sand-pup, I -ought to cram the rest of them down your throat, boxes and all!"</p> - -<p>Splinter flushed, seemed to be fumbling for words. After a bit, Kerry -Blane grinned.</p> - -<p>"Forget it, lad," he said more kindly, "those things happen. Now, if -you'll bind a splint about my arm, we'll see what we can do about -righting the ship."</p> - -<p>Splinter nodded, opened the medical locker, worked with tape and -splints for minutes. Great beads of perspiration stood out in high -relief on Kerry Blane's forehead, but he made no sound. At last, -Splinter finished, tucked the supplies away.</p> - -<p>"Now what?" he asked subduedly.</p> - -<p>"Let's take a look outside, maybe set up the Zelta guns. Can't tell but -what that protoplasmic nightmare might take a notion to pay us a visit -in the near future!"</p> - -<p>"Right!" Splinter unscrewed the port cogs, swung the portal back.</p> - -<p>He swung lithely from the portal, reached down a hand to help the -older man. After much puffing and grunting, Kerry Blane managed to -clamber through the port. They stood for a moment in silent wonder, -staring at the long lazy rollers of milky fluorescence that rolled -endlessly toward the beach, then turned to gaze at the great fern-like -trees that towered two hundred feet into the air.</p> - -<p>"How big do you feel now?" Kerry Blane asked quietly.</p> - -<p>Splinter Wood was silent, awed by the beauty and the tremendous size of -the growths on the water world.</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane walked the length of the cruiser, examining the slight -damage done by the crash, evaluating the situation with a practiced -gaze. He nodded slowly, retraced his steps, and stood looking at the -furrow plowed in the sand.</p> - -<p>"Won't be any trouble at all to lift the ship," he called. "After -rewiring the board, we'll turn the ship with an underjet, swing it -about, and head her toward the sea."</p> - -<p>Splinter nodded, dropped into the open port. A moment later, he flipped -a rope ladder outside, where it dangled to the ground, then climbed out -himself, carrying the two Zelta guns.</p> - -<p>"We'd better test these," he said. "We don't want any slip-ups when we -do go into action."</p> - -<p>He climbed down the ladder, laid the guns aside, then reached up a -hand to aid Kerry Blane's descent. Kerry Blane came down slowly and -awkwardly, jumped the last few feet. He felt surprisingly light and -strong in the lesser gravity.</p> - -<p>He stood, leaning against the ship, watching as Splinter picked up -the first gun and leveled it at a gigantic tree. Splinter sighted -carefully, winked at the older man, then pressed the firing stud.</p> - -<p>Nothing happened; there was no hissing crackle of released energy.</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane strode forward, puzzlement on his lined face, his hand -out-stretched toward the defective weapon. Splinter gaped at the gun in -his hands, held it out wordlessly.</p> - -<p>"The crash must have broken something," Kerry Blane said slowly.</p> - -<p>Splinter shook his head. "There's only one moving part," he said, "and -that's the force gate on the firing stud."</p> - -<p>"Try the other," Kerry Blane said slowly.</p> - -<p>"Okay!"</p> - -<p>Splinter lifted the second gun, pressed the stud, gazed white-faced at -his companion.</p> - -<p>"It won't work, either," he said stupidly. "I don't get it? The source -of power is limitless. Solar rays never—"</p> - -<p>Old Kerry Blane dropped the first gun to his side, swore harshly.</p> - -<p>"Damn it," he said. "They didn't think of it; you didn't think of it; -and I most certainly forgot! Solar rays can't penetrate the miles of -clouds on Venus. Those guns are utterly useless as weapons!"</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Neither of them moved for a long moment, then their eyes swung -automatically toward the restless ocean. Kerry Blane jerked his head -toward the ship.</p> - -<p>"Get in there," he ordered, "and start that rewiring job. I'll stand -guard out here, and, if anything shows up, use the hand guns we've got."</p> - -<p>"But—" Splinter began.</p> - -<p>"Damn it!" Command was in the old man's tone. "If we're attacked, we -won't stand a chance without the big guns. There are animals on this -world that have digestive juices more corrosive than hydrofluoric -acid—they could wreck the cruiser in ten minutes."</p> - -<p>Splinter darted to the rope ladder, swarmed upward. He paused at the -port, his youthful face concerned.</p> - -<p>"I'm sorry about causing the short," he said. "I didn't—"</p> - -<p>"Get that job done," Kerry Blane snapped. "You're not to blame for -anything that has happened."</p> - -<p>He watched the younger man disappear within the port, then shook his -head slowly, peered about the long stretch of silver beach. He swore -bitterly for a moment, realizing the full import of the stupid line of -reasoning that had equipped them with the wrong style of weapons on -their expedition. Should they be attacked by the monster of insatiable -protoplasm, their chances of survival were almost none.</p> - -<p>He swung in a slow circle, studying the forest edge, seeking any sign -that would indicate the presence of an alien danger. Tree fronds -moved gently in the soft breeze, giving an uncanny life to the vines -and creepers whose tips lay on the silvery sand. He had the weird -prescience that he was being watched, but could not detect the watcher.</p> - -<p>He turned to face the ocean, sat on the dry sand, a dis-gun clutched -within the curl of the fingers of his good hand. His broken arm -throbbed unmercifully, a slow streak of pain traveling into his -shoulder. He sighed unconsciously, lit a cigarette, then gripped his -weapon again, the slim cigarette canted upward in his firm mouth.</p> - -<p>Sand rustled a bit a dozen feet away. The old space-pilot watched the -sand bulging slightly, then sliding softly to one side as a blunt, -scaly head poked through into the atmosphere. He lifted the gun a bit, -felt the skin crawl on his back, as a scaly lid peeled back from a -single eye which stared at him with unwinking malevolence.</p> - -<p>The head emerged from the sand, was followed by the sinuous length of -a snakelike body. Eight tiny legs made little scraping sounds in the -sand. Feelers, like thick antennae, unfolded from cavities in the head, -flicked slowly back and forth. The creature hissed suddenly, moved -slowly toward the seated pilot.</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane blasted it into nothingness with full power of the dis-gun. -A few flakes of smoking ashes drifted lazily in the breeze for a -moment, and the odor of charred flesh was a dank miasma.</p> - -<p>"Holy Hell!" Kerry Blane ejaculated, wiped quick perspiration from his -face.</p> - -<p>He felt the slight tap on his shoulder then, turned with a quick shake -of his head. "Listen, Splinter—" he began, felt a terrifying horror -draining all strength from his compact body.</p> - -<p>He tried to swing the dis-gun up, felt the double band of rubbery-like -creeper flip about his shoulders, pinning his arms to his chest. Terror -constricted his throat, as his gaze followed the line of creeper to its -parent plant that waited with blossom agape like some bloody, sucking -mouth.</p> - -<p>He whirled to one side in a diving plunge, surged with a desperate -strength against the coil of creeping vine that was coiled so tightly -about his body, was brought to a bone-shaking halt with a suddenness -that jarred his injured arm with a force that cramped him with nausea. -His gun went flying to the sand, lay there, out of reach of his -straining fingertips.</p> - -<p>And now the creeper contracted with a deadly purpose and inevitability. -Kerry Blane fought with braced feet to pull away, felt himself dragged -toward the avid blossom.</p> - -<p>He screamed then, called with every bit of power in his body, hoped -that Splinter would hear him within the dungeon of the ship. He -strained, tried to whirl, fought again and again against the uncanny -strength of the creeper.</p> - -<p>A dis-gun sang briefly; the creeper tightened as though in pain, -then dropped to the sand where it writhed like the severed body of a -boa-constrictor. Splinter, white faced, leaned out of the cruiser's -port, blasted the parent flower out of existence with a hissing -discharge of dis-rays.</p> - -<p>"What the devil happened?" he asked. "What was that thing?"</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane came shakily to his feet, retrieved his gun, kicked moodily -at the now-silent length of creeper.</p> - -<p>"Some aggravated form of the Earth's Venus-fly-trap plant," he -explained. "I was plenty lucky it didn't get me by the throat, for then -I couldn't have made a sound."</p> - -<p>"Yeah, sure!" Splinter's freckles were dark against the sickly white of -his skin.</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane grinned reassuringly. "Better get back on the job," he -said. "I'll make damned certain that nothing sneaks up on me this time!"</p> - -<p>Splinter shook his head. "We might as well eat something," he said, -some of the color stealing back into his features. "I've got some -wire-plastic cooking; it'll be another ten minutes before it's ready."</p> - -<p>"Bring the stuff out here, where we can eat and watch at the same time."</p> - -<p>"Right!" Splinter disappeared into the port, reappeared a moment later -with several cans and boxes in the crook of his left arm.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>He dropped down the ladder, squatted at Kerry Blane's side, opened the -cans with twists of their keys. More composed now, he handed several -boxes to Kerry Blane, grinned at the old pilot.</p> - -<p>"Take several of those capsules, first," he ordered.</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane grunted disagreeably, took a gelatin capsule from each of -the boxes, then dropped the containers into his pockets. He popped the -vitamin pills into his mouth, swallowed convulsively.</p> - -<p>"Satisfied?" he snapped.</p> - -<p>Splinter laughed aloud, followed the other's example. Then he handed a -can of food and another of water to Kerry Blane, found cans for himself.</p> - -<p>They ate for minutes, finding themselves strangely hungry, their eyes -drinking in the strange beauty of the phosphorescent ocean, feeling -contentment softening the terror and action of the past hours.</p> - -<p>"It's just like a picnic," Kerry Blane commented whimsically, tossed a -can toward the water's edge.</p> - -<p>And then they were on their feet, cans spilling from their laps, their -dis-guns alert.</p> - -<p>The Venusian creatures were like visions out of a drunkard's dreams. -They scuttled from the water on great, jointed legs, their crab-like -bodies glowing from the millions of phosphorescent sea-organisms -captured in the stiff hair that covered them. They screamed in a pitch -so high the sound was like a knife blade cutting into the terrestrials' -minds.</p> - -<p>"This is it!" Kerry Blane yelled, dropped one of the creatures with a -blasting streak of energy to its single, pupilless eye.</p> - -<p>Splinter grinned woodenly, handling his twin guns with an inherent -skill, dropping crab after crab, dull horror mounting in his eyes, as -the creatures surged nearer.</p> - -<p>The attack seemed endless. The sand was slippery with a greenish -blood; and the crabs fed on smoking carcasses. Kerry's and Splinter's -disruptors roared in increasing fury, blasting ragged holes in the -vanguard of the attackers. A crab leaped through, knocked Splinter to -his knees, was blasted into a quivering heap by Kerry Blane's instant -shot.</p> - -<p>"Back to the ship," Kerry Blane grated.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<div class="figcenter"> - <img src="images/illus.jpg" width="390" height="500" alt=""/> - <div class="caption"> - <p><i>Kerry and Splinter retreated, their guns hot in their -hands, seeing the crabs erupting from the ocean in a never-ending -stream.</i></p> - </div> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p>They retreated, their guns hot in their hands, seeing the crabs -erupting from the ocean in a never-ending stream. Their breath was hot -in their straining chests, and the high-pitched scream of the savage -monsters was like a physical pain when it struck their ears.</p> - -<p>Splinter went up the ladder first, climbing with one hand, firing with -the other. Kerry Blane hooked his good arm through the ladder, braced -his feet on a bottom loop, was hauled instantly upward. At the port, -both turned and fired with a desperate, accurate fire.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>The entire world seemed to have come alive. Sinuous creepers flashed -from the jungle, growing, uncurling with a fantastic speed, each -capturing a dead crab, then pulling it back to the parent plant in the -jungle. Scaly monsters bored up from within the sand, feasted on the -shattered bodies of the sea beasts, pausing now and then to fight away -the crabs that attacked them. From somewhere came a flying creature -that appeared to be half fish, half animal, which swooped, then mounted -sluggishly into the air, a crab's phosphorescent body dangling from its -claws.</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane shifted on his feet slightly, cleared four crabs from -beneath the ladder, turned a sweating face toward his companion.</p> - -<p>"How long will it take to fix the control panel?" he gasped.</p> - -<p>"Thirty minutes, at least."</p> - -<p>"Get in there and fix it."</p> - -<p>"And leave you here, alone? To hell with you!"</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane drew the ray of his single gun like a hose across a horde -of attackers, grinned mirthlessly as they fell in convulsive heaps.</p> - -<p>"I'm your superior," he grated. "Get in there!"</p> - -<p>"This is no time for technicalities!"</p> - -<p>A tiny smile etched itself around Kerry Blane's mouth, was instantly -erased. He heard Splinter's gasp, felt terror driving him back a full -step.</p> - -<p>It came out of the water with a deceptive speed, great loops of itself -flicking toward the crabs that scuttled wildly to escape. It had no -definite shape, no arms, no features, yet it was alive! It surged up -on the beach like a congealed mass of glowing syrup that rose a full -hundred feet into the air. It had no eyes, yet seemed to see the entire -scene with an uncanny intelligence.</p> - -<p>"My God!" Splinter said wonderingly. "Is that the thing we were -supposed to destroy?"</p> - -<p>"That's it," Kerry Blane said tonelessly.</p> - -<p>"And us with only four hand-guns!"</p> - -<p>And even as he spoke, his gun went dead in his hand.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p class="ph1">IV</p> - -<p>The sea Thing was almost out of the water now, its pseudopods -flicking to the bodies of the slain beasts, resting momentarily, then -drawing back into the main bulk. Almost instantly, the bodies had -been dissolved and assimilated; so fast, indeed, that there was no -appreciable interval of time between the flicking of the pseudopod and -the assimilation.</p> - -<p>"Get in that ship," Kerry Blane barked. "Get the panel fixed the best -you can. Fix up a jury-rig. But fix it so that this ship can move -within seconds."</p> - -<p>"But—" Startled knowledge came into Splinter's eyes.</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane twisted at the gun in Splinter's right hand, tucked it into -his belt, pulled at the second. His face was like chiseled stone, and -he seemed strangely youthful again.</p> - -<p>"No heroics!" he said coldly. "One of us has to get back. I've lived my -life."</p> - -<p>"Listen, Kerry—"</p> - -<p>"Get going! If you fix things in time, I'll come aboard. If that -creature ever reaches the ship, neither of us will escape."</p> - -<p>Splinter nodded, his eyes filled with tears of mingled bafflement and -rage. He touched Kerry Blane gently on the arm, then dropped through -the port. Kerry Blane watched him go, shivered slightly, then lifted -the port and clanged it shut. His mouth was a thin gash, as he turned -to face the Venusian monster.</p> - -<p>He felt no regrets; it was a good way to go, with flaming guns and the -surge of excitement deep in his heart. Far better than to die unsung -and unwanted in some bed on Earth.</p> - -<p>He fired directly into the slimy body of the gelatinous mass, laughed -aloud as the flame of the shot pulsed redly deep with the monster's -bulk. The gigantic blob of protoplasm seemed to draw back a bit, then -flowed silently forward again.</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane half-slid, half-climbed down the ladder, raced along -the beach to the left of the monster. He dodged the great blob of -protoplasm that was spat at his running figure, felt a sick faintness -creeping into his mind, when he saw the mindless horror move -unerringly toward the ruptured body of a crab.</p> - -<p>He paused at a safe distance, blasted shot after shot of rending energy -into the glowing bulk. A crab scuttled past him, plunged into the -ocean, sank immediately to safety. The protoplasmic monster moved like -glowing tar over the beach, seeking fresh food.</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane emptied the charge of one gun, felt a sick futility -beating at his mind when he saw how little damage had been done to the -insatiable slime. He tossed the gun to one side, drew the second, knew -its charge was already half gone.</p> - -<p>The protoplasm flowed toward the ship, flicking loops of itself at the -few remaining bodies, then stilled to motionlessness.</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane approached its bulk slowly, knowing he had to attract the -cohesive slime his way, if Splinter was to have enough time to finish -his repairs and make his escape.</p> - -<p>He flicked the dis-gun aside, fumbled for a cigarette, laughed in -sudden ironic mirth when his fingers touched the boxes of vitamin -capsules. He opened one box, flipped the amber balls straight into the -protoplasm.</p> - -<p>"A <i>balanced</i> diet is the thing you need," he cried aloud, felt the -first fingers of insanity plucking at his reason.</p> - -<p>The monster surged forward, great loops of itself questing for Kerry -Blane. He dodged one, felt a second touch his jacket lightly. He tore -his jacket off instantly, hurled it savagely at the towering death.</p> - -<p>"Let's get it over with!" he screamed.</p> - -<p>And walked directly forward into the sea-Thing.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>In the ship, Splinter finished his wiring of the panel, wiped his -tear-streaked face with the back of a dirty hand. He tested the -installments, found they were satisfactory, turned the ship on its -belly with a brief roar of an underjet. Then he peered from the vision -port.</p> - -<p>He swore briefly, harshly, when he saw that, except for the gargantuan -monster, the beach was empty. His hands were clenched until the -muscle-ache traveled into his shoulders.</p> - -<p>"Damn, oh damn!" he sobbed in futile rage and regret.</p> - -<p>He knew now how much he had revered the old man, how much faith and -reliance the years had given him in the other's judgment. He felt then -that he had lost more than he could ever regain.</p> - -<p>"That's the trouble with the service now," a voice said disagreeably. -"Too damned many, wet-diapered squirts! Sitting around, bawling, when -they should be tailing it toward home!"</p> - -<p>Splinter turned incredulous eyes toward the side port, stared blankly -at the grinning face of Kerry Blane.</p> - -<p>"What the—"</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane wriggled through the port, adjusted his broken arm into a -comfortable position, then went directly to the medicine cabinet. He -opened the door, ignored the other's amazement, proceeded to swallow -half a box of vitamin capsules.</p> - -<p>"Bellyache!" he said succinctly.</p> - -<p>"I thought you were dead," Splinter whispered.</p> - -<p>"Should be," Kerry Blane admitted. "But decided to live. Guns went -back on me, I had to figure out something else." He frowned. "That's -the trouble with you young squirts, you never figure out anything!" he -finished accusingly.</p> - -<p>"What happened?" Splinter asked slowly.</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane jerked his head toward the vision port. "Gave that thing -a bellyache," he explained. "It assimilated two hundred vitamin D -capsules. And Vitamin D, which is <i>concentrated sunshine</i>, is as fatal -to its sunshine-denied life as arsenic would be to yours."</p> - -<p>Splinter gulped. "But why are you taking so many yourself?"</p> - -<p>Kerry Blane grinned. "Just in case," he said succinctly, "that baby's -got a brother who gets a bite at me. My pills and me will give it the -damnedest bellyache this solar system ever saw."</p> - -<p>They laughed then, laughed in relief and in quick, ironic amusement; -and there was a mutual liking and understanding in their eyes that -could never be quenched.</p> - -<p>"Let's be getting home," Kerry Blane said. "Our assignment's finished."</p> - -<p>Splinter nodded happily, reached for the controls.</p> - - - - - - - - -<pre> - - - - - -End of Project Gutenberg's Planet of No-Return, by Wilbur S. Peacock - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK PLANET OF NO-RETURN *** - -***** This file should be named 62261-h.htm or 62261-h.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/6/2/2/6/62261/ - -Produced by Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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Peacock - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll -have to check the laws of the country where you are located before using -this ebook. - - - -Title: Planet of No-Return - -Author: Wilbur S. Peacock - -Release Date: May 28, 2020 [EBook #62261] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ASCII - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK PLANET OF NO-RETURN *** - - - - -Produced by Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - - - - - - - - - Planet of No-Return - - By WILBUR S. PEACOCK - - The orders were explicit: "Destroy the - 'THING' of Venus." But Patrolmen Kerry - Blane and Splinter Wood, their space-ship - wrecked, could not follow orders--their - weapons were useless on the Water-world. - - [Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from - Planet Stories Winter 1942. - Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that - the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.] - - -Old Kerry Blane exploded. - -"Damn it!" he roared. "I don't like you; and I don't like this ship; -and I don't like the assignment; and I don't like those infernal pills -you keep eating; and I--" - -"Splinter" Wood grinned. - -"Seems to me, Kerry," he remarked humorously, "that you don't like much -of anything!" - -Kerry Blane growled unintelligibly, batted the injector lever with a -calloused hand. His grizzled hair was a stiff wiry mop on his small -head, and his oversize jaw was thrust belligerently forward. But deep -within his eyes, where he hoped it was hidden, was a friendly twinkle -that gave the lie to his speech. - -"You're a squirt!" he snapped disagreeably. "You're not dry behind -the ears, yet. You're like the rest of these kids who call themselves -pilots--only more so! And why the hell the chief had to sic you on me, -on an exploration trip this important--well, I'll never understand." - -Splinter rolled his six foot three of lanky body into a more -comfortable position on the air-bunk. He yawned tremendously, fumbled a -small box from his shirt pocket, and removed a marble-like capsule. - -"Better take one of these," he warned. "You're liable to get the space -bends at any moment." - -Old Kerry Blane snorted, batted the box aside impatiently, scowled -moodily at the capsules that bounced for a moment against the pilot -room's walls before hanging motionless in the air. - -"Mister Wood," he said icily, "I was flying a space ship while they -were changing your pants twenty times a day. When I want advice on how -to fly a ship, how to cure space bends, how to handle a Zelta ray, or -how to spit--I'll ask you! Until then, you and your bloody marbles can -go plumb straight to the devil!" - -"Tsk! Tsk! Tsk!" Splinter reached out lazily, plucked the capsules from -the air, one by one. - -Kerry Blane lit one of the five allotted cigarettes of the day. - -"Don't 'tsk' me, you young squirt," he grunted around a mouthful of -fragrant smoke. "I know all the arguments you can put up; ain't that -all I been hearing for a week? You take your vitamins A, B, C, D, all -you want, but you leave me alone--or I'll stuff your head down your -throat, P.D.Q.!" - -"All right, all right!" Splinter tucked the capsule box back into his -pocket, grinned mockingly. "But don't say I didn't warn you. With this -shielded ship, and with no sunlight reaching Venus' surface, you're -gonna be begging for some of my vitamin, super-concentrated pills -before we get back to Earth." - -Kerry Blane made a rich, ripe noise with his mouth. - -"Pfuii!" he said very distinctly. - -"Gracious!" Splinter said in mock horror. - - * * * * * - -They made a strange contrast as they lay in their air bunks. Splinter -was fully a head taller than the dour Irishman, and his lanky build -gave a false impression of awkwardness. While the vitriolic Kerry Blane -was short and compact, strength and quickness evident in every movement. - -Kerry Blane had flown every type of ship that rode in space. In the -passing years, he had flight-tested almost every new experimental ship, -had flown them with increasing skill, had earned a reputation as a -trouble shooter on any kind of craft. - -But even Kerry Blane had to retire eventually. - -A great retirement banquet had been given in his honor by the -Interplanetary Squadron. There had been the usual speeches and -presentations; and Kerry Blane had heard them all, had thanked the -donors of the gifts. But it was not until the next morning, when he was -dressed in civilian clothes for the first time in forty years, that he -realized the enormity of the thing that had happened to his life. - -Something died within Kerry Blane's heart that morning, shriveled and -passed away, leaving him suddenly shrunken and old. He had become like -a rusty old freighter couched between the gleaming bodies of great -space warriors. - -Finally, as a last resort so that he would not be thrown entirely -aside, he had taken a desk job in the squadron offices. For six years -he had dry-rotted there, waiting hopefully for the moment when his -active services would be needed again. - -It was there that he had met and liked the ungainly Splinter Wood. -There was something in the boy that had found a kindred spirit in Kerry -Blane's heart, and he had taken the youngster in hand to give him the -benefits of experience that had become legendary. - -Splinter Wood was a probationary pilot, had been admitted to the -Interplanetary Squadron because of his inherent skill, even though his -formal education had been fairly well neglected. - - * * * * * - -Now, the two of them rode the pounding jets of a DX cruiser, bound -for Venus to make a personal survey of its floating islands for the -Interplanetary Squadron's Medical Division. - -"Ten to one we don't get back!" Splinter said pessimistically. - -Kerry Blane scrubbed out his cigarette, scowled bleakly at the -instrument panel. He sensed the faint thread of fear in the youngster's -tone, and a nostalgic twinge touched his heart, for he was remembering -the days of his youth when he had a full life to look forward to. - -"If you're afraid, you can get out and walk back," he snapped -disagreeably. - -A grin lifted the corners of Splinter's long mouth, spread into his -eyes. His hand unconsciously came up, touched the tiny squadron pin on -his lapel. - -"Sorry to disappoint you, glory grabber," he said mockingly, "but I've -got definite orders to take care of you." - -"_Me!_ You've got orders to take care of _me_?" Kerry Blane choked -incoherently for a moment, red tiding cholerically upward from his -loosened collar. - -"Of course!" Splinter grinned. - -Kerry Blane exploded, words spewing volcanically forth. Splinter -relaxed, his booted foot beating out a dull rhythm to the colorful -language learned through almost fifty years of spacing. And at last, -when Kerry Blane had quieted until he but smoldered, he leaned over and -touched the old spacer on the sleeve. - -"Seventy-eight!" he remarked pleasantly. - -"Seventy-eight what?" Kerry Blane asked sullenly, the old twinkle -beginning to light again deep in his eyes. - -"Seventy-eight new words--and you swore them beautifully!" Splinter -beamed. "Some day you can teach them to me." - -They laughed then, Old Kerry Blane and young Splinter Wood, and -the warmth of their friendship was a tangible thing in the small -control-room of the cruiser. - -And in the midst of their laughter, Old Kerry Blane choked in agony, -surged desperately against his bunk straps. - -He screamed unknowingly, feeling only the horrible excruciating agony -of his body, tasting the blood that gushed from his mouth and nostrils. -His muscles were knotted cords that he could not loosen, and his blood -was a surging stream that pounded at his throbbing temples. The air he -breathed seemed to be molten flame. - -His body arced again and again against the restraining straps, and his -mouth was open in a soundless scream. He sensed dimly that his partner -had wrenched open a wall door, removed metal medicine kits, and was -fumbling through their contents. He felt the bite of the hypodermic, -felt a deadly numbness replace the raging torment that had been his -for seconds. He swallowed three capsules automatically, passed into a -coma-like sleep, woke hours later to stare clear-eyed into Splinter's -concerned face. - -"Close, wasn't it?" he said weakly, conversationally. - -"Close enough!" Splinter agreed relievedly. "If you had followed my -advice and taken those vitamin capsules, you'd never have had the -bends." - -Kerry Blane grinned, winced when he felt the dull ache in his body. - -"I've had the bends before, and lived through them!" he said, still -weakly defiant. - -"That's the past," Splinter said quietly. "This is the present, and you -take your pills every day, just as I do--from now on." - -"All right--and thanks!" - -"Forget it!" Splinter flushed in quick embarrassment. - -A buzzer sounded from the instrument panel, and a tiny light glowed -redly. - -"Six hours more," Splinter said, turned to the instrument panel. - -His long hands played over the instrument panel, checking, controlling -the rocket fire, adjusting delicate instruments to hairline marks. -Kerry Blane nodded in silent approval. - -They could feel the first tug of gravity on their bodies, and through -the vision port could see the greenish ball that was cloud-covered -Venus. Excitement lifted their spirits, brought light to their eyes as -they peered eagerly ahead. - -"What's it really like?" Splinter asked impatiently. - -Kerry Blane yawned, settled back luxuriously. "I'll tell you later," he -said, "I'm going to take a nap and try to ease this bellyache of mine. -Wake me up so that I can take over, when we land; Venus is a tricky -place to set a ship on." - -He yawned again, drifted instantly into sleep, relaxing with the -ability of a spaceman who sleeps when and if he can. Splinter smiled -down at his sleeping partner, then turned back to the quartzite port. -He shook his head a bit, remembering the stories he had heard about the -water planet, wondering--wondering-- - - - II - -Venus was a fluffy cotton ball hanging motionless in bottomless -space. Far to the left, Mercury gleamed like a polished diamond in -the sunlight. Kerry Blane cut the driving rockets, let the cruiser -sink into a fast gravity-dive, guiding it only now and then by a brief -flicker of a side jet. - -Splinter Wood watched breathlessly from the vision port, his long face -eager and reckless, his eyes seeking to pierce the clouds that roiled -and twisted uneasily over the surface of the planet. - -Kerry Blane glanced tolerantly at his young companion, felt a nostalgic -tug at his heart when he remembered the first time he had approached -the water-planet years before. Then, he had been a young and reckless -firebrand, his fame already spreading, an unquenchable fire of -adventure flaming in his heart. - -Now, his aged but steady fingers rested lightly on the controls, -brought the patrol cruiser closer to the cloud-banks on the line of -demarcation between the sunward and sunless sides of the planet. He -hummed tunelessly, strangely happy, as he peered ahead. - -"Val Kenton died there," Splinter whispered softly, "Died to save the -lives of three other people!" - -Kerry Blane nodded. "Yes," he agreed, and his voice changed subtly. -"Val was a blackguard, a criminal; but he died in the best traditions -of the service." He sighed. "He never had a chance." - -"Murdered!" - -Kerry Blane smiled grimly. "I guess I used too broad an interpretation -of the word," he said gently. "Anyway, one of our main tasks is to -destroy the thing that killed him." - -His lean fingers tightened unconsciously. - -"I'd like nothing better than to turn a Zelta-blaster on that chunk of -living protoplasm and cremate it." - -Splinters shivered slightly. "Do you think we'll find it?" he asked. - -Kerry Blane nodded. "I think it will find us; after all, it's just an -animated appetite looking for food." - -He turned back to the controls, flipped a switch, and the cutting of -the nose rocket dropped the ship in an angling glide toward the clouds -a few miles below. Gravity was full strength now, and although not as -great as Earth's, was still strong enough to bring a sense of giddiness -to the men. - -"Here we go!" Splinter said tonelessly. - -The great cottony batts of roiling clouds rushed up to meet the ship, -bringing the first sense of violent movement in more than a week of -flying. There was something awesome and breath-taking in the speed with -which the ship dropped toward the planet. - -Tendrils of vapor touched the ports, were whipped aside, then were -replaced by heavier fingers of cloud. Kerry Blane pressed a firing -stud, and nose rockets thrummed in a rising crescendo as the free fall -of the cruiser was checked. Heat rose in the cabin from the friction of -the outer air, then dissipated, as the force-screen voltometer leaped -higher. - -Then, as though it had never been, the sun disappeared, and there was -only a gray blankness pressing about the ship. Gone was all sense of -movement, and the ship seemed to hover in a gray nothingness. - -Kerry Blane crouched over the control panel, his hands moving deftly, -his eyes flicking from one instrument to another. Tiny lines of -concentration etched themselves about his mouth, and perspiration -beaded his forehead. He rode that cruiser through the miles of clouds -through sheer instinctive ability, seeming to fly it as though he were -an integral part of the ship. - -Splinter Wood watched him with awe in his eyes, seeing for the first -time the incredible instinct that had made Kerry Blane the idol of a -billion people. He relaxed visibly, all instinctive fear allayed by the -brilliant competence of his companion. - -Seconds flowed into moments, and the moments merged into one another, -and still the clouds pressed with a visible strength against the -ports. The rockets drummed steadily, holding the ship aloft, dropping -it slowly toward the planet below. Then the clouds thinned, and, -incredibly, were permeated with a dim and glowing light. A second -later, and the clouds were gone, and a thousand feet below tumbled and -tossed in a majestic display of ruthless strength an ocean that seemed -to be composed of liquid fluorescence. - -Kerry Blane heard Splinter's instant sigh of unbelief. - -"Good Lord!" Splinter said, "What--" - -His voice stilled, and he was silent, his eyes drinking in the weird -incredible scene below. - - * * * * * - -The ocean was a shifting, white-capped wash of silvery light that -gleamed with a bright phosphorescence of a hundred, intermingled, -kaleidoscopic colors. And the unreal, unearthly light continued -unbroken everywhere, reflected from the low-hanging clouds, reaching -to the far horizon, bathing every detail of the planet in a brilliance -more bright than moonlight. - -Splinter turned a wondering face. "But the official reports say that -there is no light on Venus," he exclaimed. "That was one of the reasons -given when exploration was forbidden!" - -Kerry Blane nodded. "That was merely a pretext to keep foolhardy -spacemen from losing their lives on the planet. In reality, the -ocean is alive with an incredibly tiny marine worm that glows -phosphorescently. The light generated from those billions of worms is -reflected back from the clouds, makes Venus eternally lighted." - -He turned the ship to the North, relaxed a bit on the air bunk. He -felt tired and worn, his body aching from the space bends of a few -hours before. - -"Take over," he said wearily. "Take the ship North, and watch for any -island." - -Splinter nodded, rested his long hands on the controls. The space -cruiser lifted a bit in a sudden spurt of speed, and the rocket-sound -was a solid thrum of unleashed power. - -Kerry Blane lit a cigarette, leaned toward a vision port. He felt again -that thrill he had experienced when he had first flashed his single-man -cruiser through the clouds years before. Then the breath caught in his -throat, and he tapped his companion's arm. - -"Take a look!" he called excitedly. - -They fought in the ocean below, fought in a never-ending splashing of -what seemed to be liquid fire. It was like watching a tri-dim screen of -a news event, except for the utter lack of sound. - -One was scaly, while the other was skinned, and both were fully three -hundred feet long. Great scimitars of teeth flashed in the light, and -blood gouted and stained the water crimson whenever a slashing blow was -struck. They threshed in a mad paroxysm of rage, whirling and spinning -in the phosphorescent water like beings from a nightmare, exploding -out of their element time and again, only to fall back in a gargantuan -spray of fluorescence. - -And then the scaly monster flashed in a half-turn, drove forward with -jaws agape, wrenched and ripped at the smooth black throat of the other -creature. The second creature rippled and undulated in agony, whipping -the ocean to foam, then went limp. The victorious monster circled the -body of its dead foe, then, majestically, plunged from sight into the -ocean's depths. An instant later, the water frothed, as hundreds of -lesser marine monsters attacked and fed on the floating corpse. - -"Brrrr!" Splinter shivered in sudden horror. - -Kerry Blane chuckled dryly. "Feel like going for a swim?" he asked -conversationally. - -Splinter shook his head, watched the scene disappear from view to the -rear of the line of flight, then sank back onto his bunk. - -"Not me!" he said deprecatingly. - -Kerry Blane chuckled again, swung the cruiser toward the tiny smudge of -black on the horizon. Glowing water flashed beneath the ship, seeming -to smooth into a gleaming mirror shot with dancing colors. There was no -sign of life anywhere. - -Thirty minutes later, Kerry Blane circled the island that floated -free in the phosphorescent ocean. His keen eyes searched the tangled -luxuriant growth of the jungle below, searching for some indication -that the protoplasmic monster he seeked was there. - -"I don't see anything suspicious," Splinter contributed. - -"There's nothing special to see," Kerry Blane said shortly. "As I -understand it, anyway, this chunk of animated appetite hangs around an -island shaped like a turtle. However, our orders are to investigate -every island, just in case there might be more than one of the -monsters." - -Splinter buckled on his dis-gun, excitement flaring in his eyes. - -"Let's do a little exploring?" he said eagerly. - -Kerry Blane shook his head, swung the cruiser north again. - -"Plenty of time for that later," he said mildly. "We'll find this -turtle-island, make a landing, and take a look around. Later, if we're -lucky enough to blow our objective to Kingdom Come, we'll do a little -exploring of the other islands." - -"Hell!" Splinter scowled in mock disgust. "An old woman like you should -be taking in knitting for a living!" - -"Orders are orders!" Kerry Blane shrugged. - - * * * * * - -He swung the cruiser in a wide arc to the north, trebling the flying -speed within minutes, handling the controls with a familiar dexterity. -He said nothing, searched the gleaming ocean for the smudge of -blackness that would denote another island. His gaze flicked amusedly, -now and then, to the lanky Splinter who scowled moodily and toyed with -the dis-gun in his long hands. - -"Cheer up, lad," Kerry Blane said finally. "I think you'll find plenty -to occupy your time shortly." - -"Maybe?" Splinter said gloomily. - -He idly swallowed another vitamin capsule, grinned, when he saw Kerry -Blane's automatic grimace of distaste. Then he yawned hugely, twisted -into a comfortable position, dozed sleepily. - -Kerry Blane rode the controls for the next three hours, searching the -limitless ocean for the few specks of islands that followed the slow -currents of the water planet. Always, there was the same misty light -surrounding the ship, never dimming, giving a sense of unreality to the -scene below. Nowhere was there the slightest sign of life until, in the -fourth hour of flight, a tiny dot of blackness came slowly over the -horizon's water line. - -Kerry Blane spun the ship in a tight circle, sent it flashing to the -west. His keen eyes lighted, when he finally made out the turtle-like -outline of the island, and he whistled softly, off-key, as he nudged -the snoring Splinter. - -"This is it, Sleeping Beauty," he called. "Snap out of it!" - -"Huh? Whuzzat?" Splinter grunted, rolled to his elbow. - -"Here's the island." - -"Oh!" Splinter swung his feet from the bunk, peered from the vision -port, sleepiness instantly erased from his face. - -"Hot damn!" he chortled. "Now we'll see a little action!" - -Kerry Blane grinned, tried to conceal the excitement he felt. He shook -his head, his fingers flickering over the control studs. - -"Don't get your hopes too high, lad," he counseled. "With those super -Zelta guns, it won't take ten minutes to wipe out that monster." - -Splinter rubbed his hands together, sighed like a boy seeing his first -circus. "Listen, for ten minutes of that, I'd ride this chunk of metal -for a year!" - -"Could be!" Kerry Blane agreed. - -He peered through the port, seeking any spot clear enough for a landing -field. Except for a strip of open beach, the island was a solid mass of -heavy fern-like growth. - -"Belt yourself," Kerry Blane warned. "If that beach isn't solid, I'll -have to lift the ship in a hell of a hurry." - -"Right!" Splinter's fingers were all thumbs in his excitement. - -Kerry Blane set the controls for a shallow glide, his fingers moving -like a concert pianist's. The cruiser yawed slightly, settled slowly -in a flat shallow glide. - -"We're going in," Kerry Blane said quietly. - -He closed a knife switch, seeing too late the vitamin capsule that was -lodged in the slot. There was the sharp splutter of a short-circuit, -and a thin tendril of smoke drifted upward. - -"Damn!" Kerry Blane swore briefly. - -There was an instant, terrific explosion of the stern jets, and the -cruiser hurtled toward the beach like a gravity-crazed comet. - -Kerry Blane said absolutely nothing, his breath driven from him by the -suck of inertia. His hands darted for the controls, seeking to balance -the forces that threw the ship about like a toy. He cut all rockets -with a smashing swoop of his hand, tried to fire the bow rockets. But -the short had ruined the entire control system. - -For one interminable second, he saw the uncanny uprush of the island -below. He flicked his gaze about, saw the instant terror that wiped -all other expression from his young companion's face. Then the cruiser -plowed into the silvery sand. - -Belts parted like rotten string; they were thrown forward with crushing -force against the control panel. They groped feebly for support, their -bodies twisting involuntarily, as the ship cartwheeled a dozen times in -a few seconds. Almost instantly, consciousness was battered from them. - -With one final, grinding bounce, the cruiser rolled to its side, -twisted over and over for a hundred yards, then came to a metal-ripping -stop against a moss-grown boulder at the water's edge. - - - III - -Kerry Blane choked, tried to turn his head from the water that trickled -into his face. He opened his eyes, stared blankly, uncomprehendingly -into the bloody features of the man bending over him. - -"What happened?" he gasped. - -Splinter Wood laughed, almost hysterically, mopped at his forehead with -a wet handkerchief. - -"I thought you were dead!" he said simply. - -Kerry Blane moved his arm experimentally, felt broken bones grate in -an exquisite wave of pain. He fought back the nausea, gazed about the -cabin, realized the ship lay on its side. - -"Maybe I am," he said ruefully. "No man could live through that crash." - -Splinter moved away, sat down tiredly on the edge of a bunk. He shook -his head dazedly, inspected the long cut on his leg. - -"We seem to have done it," he said dully. - -Kerry Blane nodded, clambered to his feet, favoring his broken arm. -He leaned over the control panel, inspecting the dials with a worried -gaze. Slowly, his eyes lightened, and his voice was almost cheerful as -he swung about. - -"Everything is more or less okay," he said. "The board will have to -be rewired, but nothing else seems to be damaged so that repairs are -needed." - -Splinter looked up from his task of bandaging his leg. "What caused -the crash?" he asked. "One minute, everything was all right; the next, -Blooey!" - -Anger suddenly mottled Kerry Blane's face; he swore monotonously and -bitterly for a moment. - -"Those gol-damned pills you been taking caused the crash!" he roared. -"One of them broke and shorted out the control board." He scowled at -the incredulous Splinter. "By the three tails of a Martian sand-pup, I -ought to cram the rest of them down your throat, boxes and all!" - -Splinter flushed, seemed to be fumbling for words. After a bit, Kerry -Blane grinned. - -"Forget it, lad," he said more kindly, "those things happen. Now, if -you'll bind a splint about my arm, we'll see what we can do about -righting the ship." - -Splinter nodded, opened the medical locker, worked with tape and -splints for minutes. Great beads of perspiration stood out in high -relief on Kerry Blane's forehead, but he made no sound. At last, -Splinter finished, tucked the supplies away. - -"Now what?" he asked subduedly. - -"Let's take a look outside, maybe set up the Zelta guns. Can't tell but -what that protoplasmic nightmare might take a notion to pay us a visit -in the near future!" - -"Right!" Splinter unscrewed the port cogs, swung the portal back. - -He swung lithely from the portal, reached down a hand to help the -older man. After much puffing and grunting, Kerry Blane managed to -clamber through the port. They stood for a moment in silent wonder, -staring at the long lazy rollers of milky fluorescence that rolled -endlessly toward the beach, then turned to gaze at the great fern-like -trees that towered two hundred feet into the air. - -"How big do you feel now?" Kerry Blane asked quietly. - -Splinter Wood was silent, awed by the beauty and the tremendous size of -the growths on the water world. - -Kerry Blane walked the length of the cruiser, examining the slight -damage done by the crash, evaluating the situation with a practiced -gaze. He nodded slowly, retraced his steps, and stood looking at the -furrow plowed in the sand. - -"Won't be any trouble at all to lift the ship," he called. "After -rewiring the board, we'll turn the ship with an underjet, swing it -about, and head her toward the sea." - -Splinter nodded, dropped into the open port. A moment later, he flipped -a rope ladder outside, where it dangled to the ground, then climbed out -himself, carrying the two Zelta guns. - -"We'd better test these," he said. "We don't want any slip-ups when we -do go into action." - -He climbed down the ladder, laid the guns aside, then reached up a -hand to aid Kerry Blane's descent. Kerry Blane came down slowly and -awkwardly, jumped the last few feet. He felt surprisingly light and -strong in the lesser gravity. - -He stood, leaning against the ship, watching as Splinter picked up -the first gun and leveled it at a gigantic tree. Splinter sighted -carefully, winked at the older man, then pressed the firing stud. - -Nothing happened; there was no hissing crackle of released energy. - -Kerry Blane strode forward, puzzlement on his lined face, his hand -out-stretched toward the defective weapon. Splinter gaped at the gun in -his hands, held it out wordlessly. - -"The crash must have broken something," Kerry Blane said slowly. - -Splinter shook his head. "There's only one moving part," he said, "and -that's the force gate on the firing stud." - -"Try the other," Kerry Blane said slowly. - -"Okay!" - -Splinter lifted the second gun, pressed the stud, gazed white-faced at -his companion. - -"It won't work, either," he said stupidly. "I don't get it? The source -of power is limitless. Solar rays never--" - -Old Kerry Blane dropped the first gun to his side, swore harshly. - -"Damn it," he said. "They didn't think of it; you didn't think of it; -and I most certainly forgot! Solar rays can't penetrate the miles of -clouds on Venus. Those guns are utterly useless as weapons!" - - * * * * * - -Neither of them moved for a long moment, then their eyes swung -automatically toward the restless ocean. Kerry Blane jerked his head -toward the ship. - -"Get in there," he ordered, "and start that rewiring job. I'll stand -guard out here, and, if anything shows up, use the hand guns we've got." - -"But--" Splinter began. - -"Damn it!" Command was in the old man's tone. "If we're attacked, we -won't stand a chance without the big guns. There are animals on this -world that have digestive juices more corrosive than hydrofluoric -acid--they could wreck the cruiser in ten minutes." - -Splinter darted to the rope ladder, swarmed upward. He paused at the -port, his youthful face concerned. - -"I'm sorry about causing the short," he said. "I didn't--" - -"Get that job done," Kerry Blane snapped. "You're not to blame for -anything that has happened." - -He watched the younger man disappear within the port, then shook his -head slowly, peered about the long stretch of silver beach. He swore -bitterly for a moment, realizing the full import of the stupid line of -reasoning that had equipped them with the wrong style of weapons on -their expedition. Should they be attacked by the monster of insatiable -protoplasm, their chances of survival were almost none. - -He swung in a slow circle, studying the forest edge, seeking any sign -that would indicate the presence of an alien danger. Tree fronds -moved gently in the soft breeze, giving an uncanny life to the vines -and creepers whose tips lay on the silvery sand. He had the weird -prescience that he was being watched, but could not detect the watcher. - -He turned to face the ocean, sat on the dry sand, a dis-gun clutched -within the curl of the fingers of his good hand. His broken arm -throbbed unmercifully, a slow streak of pain traveling into his -shoulder. He sighed unconsciously, lit a cigarette, then gripped his -weapon again, the slim cigarette canted upward in his firm mouth. - -Sand rustled a bit a dozen feet away. The old space-pilot watched the -sand bulging slightly, then sliding softly to one side as a blunt, -scaly head poked through into the atmosphere. He lifted the gun a bit, -felt the skin crawl on his back, as a scaly lid peeled back from a -single eye which stared at him with unwinking malevolence. - -The head emerged from the sand, was followed by the sinuous length of -a snakelike body. Eight tiny legs made little scraping sounds in the -sand. Feelers, like thick antennae, unfolded from cavities in the head, -flicked slowly back and forth. The creature hissed suddenly, moved -slowly toward the seated pilot. - -Kerry Blane blasted it into nothingness with full power of the dis-gun. -A few flakes of smoking ashes drifted lazily in the breeze for a -moment, and the odor of charred flesh was a dank miasma. - -"Holy Hell!" Kerry Blane ejaculated, wiped quick perspiration from his -face. - -He felt the slight tap on his shoulder then, turned with a quick shake -of his head. "Listen, Splinter--" he began, felt a terrifying horror -draining all strength from his compact body. - -He tried to swing the dis-gun up, felt the double band of rubbery-like -creeper flip about his shoulders, pinning his arms to his chest. Terror -constricted his throat, as his gaze followed the line of creeper to its -parent plant that waited with blossom agape like some bloody, sucking -mouth. - -He whirled to one side in a diving plunge, surged with a desperate -strength against the coil of creeping vine that was coiled so tightly -about his body, was brought to a bone-shaking halt with a suddenness -that jarred his injured arm with a force that cramped him with nausea. -His gun went flying to the sand, lay there, out of reach of his -straining fingertips. - -And now the creeper contracted with a deadly purpose and inevitability. -Kerry Blane fought with braced feet to pull away, felt himself dragged -toward the avid blossom. - -He screamed then, called with every bit of power in his body, hoped -that Splinter would hear him within the dungeon of the ship. He -strained, tried to whirl, fought again and again against the uncanny -strength of the creeper. - -A dis-gun sang briefly; the creeper tightened as though in pain, -then dropped to the sand where it writhed like the severed body of a -boa-constrictor. Splinter, white faced, leaned out of the cruiser's -port, blasted the parent flower out of existence with a hissing -discharge of dis-rays. - -"What the devil happened?" he asked. "What was that thing?" - -Kerry Blane came shakily to his feet, retrieved his gun, kicked moodily -at the now-silent length of creeper. - -"Some aggravated form of the Earth's Venus-fly-trap plant," he -explained. "I was plenty lucky it didn't get me by the throat, for then -I couldn't have made a sound." - -"Yeah, sure!" Splinter's freckles were dark against the sickly white of -his skin. - -Kerry Blane grinned reassuringly. "Better get back on the job," he -said. "I'll make damned certain that nothing sneaks up on me this time!" - -Splinter shook his head. "We might as well eat something," he said, -some of the color stealing back into his features. "I've got some -wire-plastic cooking; it'll be another ten minutes before it's ready." - -"Bring the stuff out here, where we can eat and watch at the same time." - -"Right!" Splinter disappeared into the port, reappeared a moment later -with several cans and boxes in the crook of his left arm. - - * * * * * - -He dropped down the ladder, squatted at Kerry Blane's side, opened the -cans with twists of their keys. More composed now, he handed several -boxes to Kerry Blane, grinned at the old pilot. - -"Take several of those capsules, first," he ordered. - -Kerry Blane grunted disagreeably, took a gelatin capsule from each of -the boxes, then dropped the containers into his pockets. He popped the -vitamin pills into his mouth, swallowed convulsively. - -"Satisfied?" he snapped. - -Splinter laughed aloud, followed the other's example. Then he handed a -can of food and another of water to Kerry Blane, found cans for himself. - -They ate for minutes, finding themselves strangely hungry, their eyes -drinking in the strange beauty of the phosphorescent ocean, feeling -contentment softening the terror and action of the past hours. - -"It's just like a picnic," Kerry Blane commented whimsically, tossed a -can toward the water's edge. - -And then they were on their feet, cans spilling from their laps, their -dis-guns alert. - -The Venusian creatures were like visions out of a drunkard's dreams. -They scuttled from the water on great, jointed legs, their crab-like -bodies glowing from the millions of phosphorescent sea-organisms -captured in the stiff hair that covered them. They screamed in a pitch -so high the sound was like a knife blade cutting into the terrestrials' -minds. - -"This is it!" Kerry Blane yelled, dropped one of the creatures with a -blasting streak of energy to its single, pupilless eye. - -Splinter grinned woodenly, handling his twin guns with an inherent -skill, dropping crab after crab, dull horror mounting in his eyes, as -the creatures surged nearer. - -The attack seemed endless. The sand was slippery with a greenish -blood; and the crabs fed on smoking carcasses. Kerry's and Splinter's -disruptors roared in increasing fury, blasting ragged holes in the -vanguard of the attackers. A crab leaped through, knocked Splinter to -his knees, was blasted into a quivering heap by Kerry Blane's instant -shot. - -"Back to the ship," Kerry Blane grated. - -[Illustration: _Kerry and Splinter retreated, their guns hot in their -hands, seeing the crabs erupting from the ocean in a never-ending -stream._] - -They retreated, their guns hot in their hands, seeing the crabs -erupting from the ocean in a never-ending stream. Their breath was hot -in their straining chests, and the high-pitched scream of the savage -monsters was like a physical pain when it struck their ears. - -Splinter went up the ladder first, climbing with one hand, firing with -the other. Kerry Blane hooked his good arm through the ladder, braced -his feet on a bottom loop, was hauled instantly upward. At the port, -both turned and fired with a desperate, accurate fire. - - * * * * * - -The entire world seemed to have come alive. Sinuous creepers flashed -from the jungle, growing, uncurling with a fantastic speed, each -capturing a dead crab, then pulling it back to the parent plant in the -jungle. Scaly monsters bored up from within the sand, feasted on the -shattered bodies of the sea beasts, pausing now and then to fight away -the crabs that attacked them. From somewhere came a flying creature -that appeared to be half fish, half animal, which swooped, then mounted -sluggishly into the air, a crab's phosphorescent body dangling from its -claws. - -Kerry Blane shifted on his feet slightly, cleared four crabs from -beneath the ladder, turned a sweating face toward his companion. - -"How long will it take to fix the control panel?" he gasped. - -"Thirty minutes, at least." - -"Get in there and fix it." - -"And leave you here, alone? To hell with you!" - -Kerry Blane drew the ray of his single gun like a hose across a horde -of attackers, grinned mirthlessly as they fell in convulsive heaps. - -"I'm your superior," he grated. "Get in there!" - -"This is no time for technicalities!" - -A tiny smile etched itself around Kerry Blane's mouth, was instantly -erased. He heard Splinter's gasp, felt terror driving him back a full -step. - -It came out of the water with a deceptive speed, great loops of itself -flicking toward the crabs that scuttled wildly to escape. It had no -definite shape, no arms, no features, yet it was alive! It surged up -on the beach like a congealed mass of glowing syrup that rose a full -hundred feet into the air. It had no eyes, yet seemed to see the entire -scene with an uncanny intelligence. - -"My God!" Splinter said wonderingly. "Is that the thing we were -supposed to destroy?" - -"That's it," Kerry Blane said tonelessly. - -"And us with only four hand-guns!" - -And even as he spoke, his gun went dead in his hand. - - - IV - -The sea Thing was almost out of the water now, its pseudopods -flicking to the bodies of the slain beasts, resting momentarily, then -drawing back into the main bulk. Almost instantly, the bodies had -been dissolved and assimilated; so fast, indeed, that there was no -appreciable interval of time between the flicking of the pseudopod and -the assimilation. - -"Get in that ship," Kerry Blane barked. "Get the panel fixed the best -you can. Fix up a jury-rig. But fix it so that this ship can move -within seconds." - -"But--" Startled knowledge came into Splinter's eyes. - -Kerry Blane twisted at the gun in Splinter's right hand, tucked it into -his belt, pulled at the second. His face was like chiseled stone, and -he seemed strangely youthful again. - -"No heroics!" he said coldly. "One of us has to get back. I've lived my -life." - -"Listen, Kerry--" - -"Get going! If you fix things in time, I'll come aboard. If that -creature ever reaches the ship, neither of us will escape." - -Splinter nodded, his eyes filled with tears of mingled bafflement and -rage. He touched Kerry Blane gently on the arm, then dropped through -the port. Kerry Blane watched him go, shivered slightly, then lifted -the port and clanged it shut. His mouth was a thin gash, as he turned -to face the Venusian monster. - -He felt no regrets; it was a good way to go, with flaming guns and the -surge of excitement deep in his heart. Far better than to die unsung -and unwanted in some bed on Earth. - -He fired directly into the slimy body of the gelatinous mass, laughed -aloud as the flame of the shot pulsed redly deep with the monster's -bulk. The gigantic blob of protoplasm seemed to draw back a bit, then -flowed silently forward again. - -Kerry Blane half-slid, half-climbed down the ladder, raced along -the beach to the left of the monster. He dodged the great blob of -protoplasm that was spat at his running figure, felt a sick faintness -creeping into his mind, when he saw the mindless horror move -unerringly toward the ruptured body of a crab. - -He paused at a safe distance, blasted shot after shot of rending energy -into the glowing bulk. A crab scuttled past him, plunged into the -ocean, sank immediately to safety. The protoplasmic monster moved like -glowing tar over the beach, seeking fresh food. - -Kerry Blane emptied the charge of one gun, felt a sick futility -beating at his mind when he saw how little damage had been done to the -insatiable slime. He tossed the gun to one side, drew the second, knew -its charge was already half gone. - -The protoplasm flowed toward the ship, flicking loops of itself at the -few remaining bodies, then stilled to motionlessness. - -Kerry Blane approached its bulk slowly, knowing he had to attract the -cohesive slime his way, if Splinter was to have enough time to finish -his repairs and make his escape. - -He flicked the dis-gun aside, fumbled for a cigarette, laughed in -sudden ironic mirth when his fingers touched the boxes of vitamin -capsules. He opened one box, flipped the amber balls straight into the -protoplasm. - -"A _balanced_ diet is the thing you need," he cried aloud, felt the -first fingers of insanity plucking at his reason. - -The monster surged forward, great loops of itself questing for Kerry -Blane. He dodged one, felt a second touch his jacket lightly. He tore -his jacket off instantly, hurled it savagely at the towering death. - -"Let's get it over with!" he screamed. - -And walked directly forward into the sea-Thing. - - * * * * * - -In the ship, Splinter finished his wiring of the panel, wiped his -tear-streaked face with the back of a dirty hand. He tested the -installments, found they were satisfactory, turned the ship on its -belly with a brief roar of an underjet. Then he peered from the vision -port. - -He swore briefly, harshly, when he saw that, except for the gargantuan -monster, the beach was empty. His hands were clenched until the -muscle-ache traveled into his shoulders. - -"Damn, oh damn!" he sobbed in futile rage and regret. - -He knew now how much he had revered the old man, how much faith and -reliance the years had given him in the other's judgment. He felt then -that he had lost more than he could ever regain. - -"That's the trouble with the service now," a voice said disagreeably. -"Too damned many, wet-diapered squirts! Sitting around, bawling, when -they should be tailing it toward home!" - -Splinter turned incredulous eyes toward the side port, stared blankly -at the grinning face of Kerry Blane. - -"What the--" - -Kerry Blane wriggled through the port, adjusted his broken arm into a -comfortable position, then went directly to the medicine cabinet. He -opened the door, ignored the other's amazement, proceeded to swallow -half a box of vitamin capsules. - -"Bellyache!" he said succinctly. - -"I thought you were dead," Splinter whispered. - -"Should be," Kerry Blane admitted. "But decided to live. Guns went -back on me, I had to figure out something else." He frowned. "That's -the trouble with you young squirts, you never figure out anything!" he -finished accusingly. - -"What happened?" Splinter asked slowly. - -Kerry Blane jerked his head toward the vision port. "Gave that thing -a bellyache," he explained. "It assimilated two hundred vitamin D -capsules. And Vitamin D, which is _concentrated sunshine_, is as fatal -to its sunshine-denied life as arsenic would be to yours." - -Splinter gulped. "But why are you taking so many yourself?" - -Kerry Blane grinned. "Just in case," he said succinctly, "that baby's -got a brother who gets a bite at me. My pills and me will give it the -damnedest bellyache this solar system ever saw." - -They laughed then, laughed in relief and in quick, ironic amusement; -and there was a mutual liking and understanding in their eyes that -could never be quenched. - -"Let's be getting home," Kerry Blane said. "Our assignment's finished." - -Splinter nodded happily, reached for the controls. - - - - - -End of Project Gutenberg's Planet of No-Return, by Wilbur S. 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