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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..abfd043 --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #63862 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/63862) diff --git a/old/63862-0.txt b/old/63862-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index bf08fca..0000000 --- a/old/63862-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,1907 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Stalemate In Space, by Charles L. Harness - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you -will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before -using this ebook. - -Title: Stalemate In Space - -Author: Charles L. Harness - -Release Date: December 05, 2020 [EBook #63862] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -Produced by: Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed - Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - -*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK STALEMATE IN SPACE *** - - - - - Stalemate In Space - - By CHARLES L. HARNESS - - Two mighty metal globes clung in a murderous - death-struggle, lashing out with flames of poison. - Yet deep in their twisted, radioactive wreckage - the main battle raged--where a girl swayed - sensuously before her conqueror's mocking eyes. - - [Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from - Planet Stories Summer 1949. - Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that - the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.] - - -At first there was only the voice, a monotonous murmur in her ears. - -"_Die now--die now--die now_--" - -Evelyn Kane awoke, breathing slowly and painfully. The top of the -cubicle was bulging inward on her chest, and it seemed likely that a -rib or two was broken. How long ago? Years? Minutes? She had no way of -knowing. Her slender right hand found the oxygen valve and turned it. -For a long while she lay, hurting and breathing helplessly. - -"_Die now--die now--die now_--" - -The votron had awakened her with its heart-breaking code message, and -it was her duty to carry out its command. Nine years after the great -battle globes had crunched together the mentors had sealed her in this -tiny cell, dormant, unwaking, to be livened only when it was certain -her countrymen had either definitely won--or lost. - -The votron's telepathic dirge chronicled the latter fact. She had -expected nothing else. - -She had only to find the relay beside her cot, press the key that would -set in motion gigantic prime movers in the heart of the great globe, -and the conquerors would join the conquered in the wide and nameless -grave of space. - -But life, now doled out by the second, was too delicious to abandon -immediately. Her mind, like that of a drowning person, raced hungrily -over the memories of her past. - -For twenty years, in company with her great father, she had watched -_The Defender_ grow from a vast metal skeleton into a planet-sized -battle globe. But it had not grown fast enough, for when the Scythian -globe, _The Invader_, sprang out of black space to enslave the budding -Terran Confederacy, _The Defender_ was unfinished, half-equipped, and -undermanned. - -The Terrans could only fight for time and hope for a miracle. - -_The Defender_, commanded by her father, Gordon, Lord Kane, hurled -itself from its orbit around Procyon and met _The Invader_ with giant -fission torpedoes. - -And then, in an intergalactic proton storm beyond the Lesser Magellanic -Cloud, the globes lost their bearings and collided. Hordes of brute-men -poured through the crushed outer armor of the stricken _Defender_. - -The prone woman stirred uneasily. Here the images became unreal -and terrible, with the recurrent vision of death. It had taken the -Scythians nine years to conquer _The Defender's_ outer shell. Then had -come that final interview with her father. - -"In half an hour our last space port will be captured," he had -telepathed curtly. "Only one more messenger ship can leave _The -Defender_. Be on it." - -"No. I shall die here." - -His fine tired eyes had studied her face in enigmatic appraisal. "Then -die usefully. The mentors are trying to develop a force that will -destroy both globes in the moment of our inevitable defeat. If they are -successful, you will have the task of pressing the final button of the -battle." - -"There's an off-chance you may survive," countered a mentor. "We're -also working on a means for your escape--not only because you are -Gordon's daughter, but because this great proton storm will prevent -radio contact with Terra for years, and we want someone to escape with -our secret if and when our experiments prove successful." - -"But you must expect to die," her father had warned with gentle -finality. - -She clenched her fingernails vehemently into her palms and wrenched -herself back to the present. - -That time had come. - -With some effort she worked herself out of the crumpled bed and lay on -the floor of her little cubicle, panting and holding her chest with -both hands. The metal floor was very cold. Evidently the enemy torpedo -fissionables had finally broken through to the center portions of the -ship, letting in the icy breath of space. Small matter. Not by freezing -would she die. - -She reached out her hand, felt for the all-important key, and gasped in -dismay. The mahogany box containing the key had burst its metal bonds -and was lying on its side. The explosion that had crushed her cubicle -had been terrific. - -With a gurgle of horror she snapped on her wrist luminar and examined -the interior of the box. - -It was a shattered ruin. - - * * * * * - -Once the fact was clear, she composed herself and lay there, breathing -hard and thinking. She had no means to construct another key. At best, -finding the rare tools and parts would take months, and during the -interval the invaders would be cutting loose from the dead hulk that -clutched their conquering battle globe in a metallic rigor mortis. - -She gave herself six weeks to accomplish this stalemate in space. - -Within that time she must know whether the prime movers were still -intact, and whether she could safely enter the pile room herself, -set the movers in motion, and draw the moderator columns. If it were -unsafe, she must secure the unwitting assistance of her Scythian -enemies. - -Still prone, she found the first-aid kit and taped her chest expertly. -The cold was beginning to make itself felt, so she flicked on the -chaudiere she wore as an under-garment to her Scythian woman's uniform. -Then she crawled on her elbows and stomach to the tiny door, spun the -sealing gear, and was soon outside. Ignoring the pain and pulling on -the side of the imitation rock that contained her cell, she got slowly -to her feet. The air was thin indeed, and frigid. She turned the valve -of her portable oxygen bottle almost subconsciously, while exploring -the surrounding blackened forest as far as she could see. Mentally she -was alert for roving alien minds. She had left her weapons inside the -cubicle, except for the three things in the little leather bag dangling -from her waist, for she knew that her greatest weapon in the struggle -to come would be her apparent harmlessness. - -Four hundred yards behind her she detected the mind of a low-born -Scythe, of the Tharn sun group. Very quickly she established it as that -of a tired, brutish corporal, taking a mop-up squad through the black -stumps and forlorn branches of the small forest that for years had -supplied oxygen to the defenders of this sector. - -The corporal could not see her green Scythian uniform clearly, and -evidently took her for a Terran woman. In his mind was the question: -Should he shoot immediately, or should he capture her? It had been two -months since he had seen a woman. But then, his orders were to shoot. -Yes, he would shoot. - -Evelyn turned in profile to the beam-gun and stretched luxuriously, -hoping that her grimace of pain could not be detected. With -satisfaction, she sensed a sudden change of determination in the mind -of the Tharn. The gun was lowered, and the man was circling to creep up -behind her. He did not bother to notify his men. He wanted her first. -He had seen her uniform, but that deterred him not a whit. Afterwards, -he would call up the squad. Finally, they would kill her and move on. -Women auxiliaries had no business here, anyway. - -Hips dipping, Evelyn sauntered into the shattered copse. The man moved -faster, though still trying to approach quietly. Most of the radions in -the mile-high ceiling had been destroyed, and the light was poor. He -was not surprised when he lost track of his quarry. He tip-toed rapidly -onward, picking his way through the charred and fallen branches, -thinking that she must turn up again soon. He had not gone twenty yards -in this manner when a howl of unbearable fury sounded in his mind, and -the dull light in his brain went out. - -[Illustration: _She fought for her life under that mile-high ceiling._] - -Breathing deeply from her mental effort, the woman stepped from -behind a great black tree trunk and hurried to the unconscious man. -For I.Q.'s of 100 and less, telepathic cortical paralysis was quite -effective. With cool efficiency and no trace of distaste she stripped -the odorous uniform from the man, then took his weapon, turned the beam -power down very low, and needled a neat slash across his throat. While -he bled to death, she slipped deftly into the baggy suit, clasped the -beam gun by the handle, and started up the sooty slope. For a time, at -least, it would be safer to pass as a Tharn soldier than as any kind of -a woman. - - - II - -The inquisitor leaned forward, frowning at the girl before him. - -"Name?" - -"Evelyn Kane." - -The eyes of the inquisitor widened. "So you admit to a Terran name. -Well, Terran, you are charged with having stolen passage on a supply -lorry, and you also seem to be wearing the uniform of an infantry -corporal as well as that of a Scythian woman auxiliary. Incidentally, -where is the corporal? Did you kill him?" - -He was prepared for a last-ditch denial. He would cut it short, have -the guards remove her, and execution would follow immediately. In a -way, it was unfortunate. The woman was obviously of a high Terran -class. No--he couldn't consider that. His slender means couldn't afford -another woman in his quarters, and besides, he wouldn't feel safe with -this cool murderess. - -"Do you not understand the master tongue? Why did you kill the -corporal?" He leaned impatiently over his desk. - -The woman stared frankly back at him with her clear blue eyes. The -guards on either side of her dug their nails into her arms, as was -their custom with recalcitrant prisoners, but she took no notice. - -She had analyzed the minds of the three men. She could handle the -inquisitor alone or the two guards alone, but not all three. - -"If you aren't afraid of me, perhaps you'd be so kind as to send the -guards out for a few minutes," she said, placing a hand on her hip. "I -have interesting information." - -So that was it. Buy her freedom by betraying fugitive Terrans. Well, he -could take the information and then kill her. He nodded curtly to the -guards, and they walked out of the hut, exchanging sly winks with one -another. - -Evelyn Kane crossed her arms across her chest and felt her broken rib -gingerly. The inquisitor stared up at her in sadistic admiration. He -would certainly be on hand for the execution. His anticipation was cut -short with a horrible realization. Under the paralyzing force of a mind -greater than his own, he reached beneath the desk and switched off the -recorder. - -"Who is the Occupational Commandant for this Sector," she asked -tersely. This must be done swiftly before the guards returned. - -"Perat, Viscount of Tharn," replied the man mechanically. - -"What is the extent of his jurisdiction?" - -"From the center of the Terran globe, outward four hundred miles -radius." - -"Good. Prepare for me the usual visa that a woman clerk needs for -passage to the offices of the Occupational Commandant." - -The inquisitor filled in blanks in a stiff sheet of paper and stamped a -seal at its bottom. - -"You will add in the portion reserved for 'comments', the following: -'Capable clerk. Others will follow as they are found available.'" - -The man's pen scratched away obediently. - -Evelyn Kane smiled gently at the impotent, inwardly raging inquisitor. -She took the paper, folded it, and placed it in a pocket in her blouse. -"Call the guards," she ordered. - -He pressed the button on his desk, and the guards re-entered. - -"This person is no longer a prisoner," said the inquisitor woodenly. -"She is to take the next transport to the Occupational Commandant of -Zone One." - -When the transport had left, neither inquisitor nor guards had any -memory of the woman. However, in the due course of events, the -recording was gathered up with many others like it, boxed carefully, -and sent to the Office of the Occupational Commandant, Zone One, for -auditing. - - * * * * * - -Evelyn was extremely careful with her mental probe as she descended -from the transport. The Occupational Commandant would undoubtedly -be high-born and telepathic. He must not have occasion to suspect a -similar ability in a mere clerk. - -Fighting had passed this way, too, and recently. Many of the buildings -were still smoking, and many of the radions high above were either -shot out or obscured by slowly drifting dust clouds. The acrid odor of -radiation-remover was everywhere. - -She caught the sound of spasmodic small-arm fire. - -"What is that?" she asked the transport attendant. - -"The Commandant is shooting prisoners," he replied laconically. - -"Oh." - -"Where did you want to go?" - -"To the personnel office." - -"That way." He pointed to the largest building of the group--two -stories high, reasonably intact. - -She walked off down the gravel path, which was stained here and there -with dark sticky red. She gave her visa to the guard at the door and -was admitted to an improvised waiting room, where another guard eyed -her stonily. The firing was much nearer. She recognized the obscene -coughs of a Faeg pistol and began to feel sick. - -A woman in the green uniform of the Scythe auxiliary came in, whispered -something to the guard, and then told Evelyn to follow her. - -In the anteroom a grey cat looked her over curiously, and Evelyn -frowned. She might have to get rid of the cat if she stayed here. Under -certain circumstances the animal could prove her deadliest enemy. - -The next room held a foppish little man, evidently a supervisor of some -sort, who was studying her visa. - -"I'm very happy to have you here, S'ria--ah--"--he looked at the visa -suspiciously--"S'ria Lyn. Do sit down. But, as I was just remarking to -S'ria Gerek, here"--he nodded to the other woman, who smiled back--"I -wish the field officers would make up their august minds as to whether -they want you or don't want you. Just why did they transfer you to -H.Q.?" - -She thought quickly. This pompous little ass would have to be given -some answer that would keep him from checking with the inquisitor. It -would have to be something personal. She looked at the false black in -his eyebrows and sideburns, and the artificial way in which he had -combed hair over his bald spot. She crossed her knees slowly, ignoring -the narrowing eyes of S'ria Gerek, and smoothed the back of her braided -yellow hair. He was studying her covertly. - -"The men in the fighting zones are uncouth, S'ria Gorph," she said -simply. "I was told that _you_, that is, I mean--" - -"Yes?" he was the soul of graciousness. S'ria Gerek began to dictate -loudly into her mechanical transcriber. - -Evelyn cleared her throat, averted her eyes, and with some effort, -managed a delicate flush. "I meant to say, I thought I would be happier -working for--working here. So I asked for a transfer." - -S'ria Gorph beamed. "Splendid. But the occupation isn't over, yet, -you know. There'll be hard work here for several weeks yet, before we -cut loose from the enemy globe. But you do your work well"--winking -artfully--"and I'll see that--" - -He stopped, and his face took on a hunted look of mingled fear and -anxiety. He appeared to listen. - -Evelyn tensed her mind to receive and deceive a mental probe. She was -certain now that the Zone Commandant was high-born and telepathic. The -chances were only fifty-fifty that she could delude him for any length -of time if he became interested in her. He must be avoided if at all -possible. It should not be too difficult. He undoubtedly had a dozen -personal secretaries and/or concubines and would take small interest in -the lowly employees that amused Gorph. - -Gorph looked at her uncertainly. "Perat, Viscount of the Tharn Suns, -sends you his compliments and wishes to see you on the balcony." He -pointed to a hallway. "All the way through there, across to the other -wing." - -As she left, she heard all sound in the room stop. The transcribing and -calculating machines trailed off into a watchful silence, and she could -feel the eyes of the men and women on her back. She noticed then that -the Faeg had ceased firing. - - * * * * * - -Her heart was beating faster as she walked down the hall. She felt a -very strong probe flooding over her brain casually, palping with mild -interest the artificial memories she supplied: Escapades with officers -in the combat areas. Reprimands. Demotion and transfer. Her deception -of Gorph. Her anticipation of meeting a real Viscount and hoping he -would let her dance for him. - -The questing probe withdrew as idly as it had come, and she breathed -a sigh of relief. She could not hope to deceive a suspicious telepath -for long. Perat was merely amused at her "lie" to his under-supervisor. -He had accepted her at her own face value, as supplied by her false -memories. - -She opened the door to the balcony and saw a man leaning moodily on the -balustrade. He gave no immediate notice of her presence. - -The five hundred and sixth heir of Tharn was of uncertain age, as were -most of the men of both globes. Only the left side of his face could be -seen. It was gaunt and leathery, and a deep thin scar lifted the corner -of his mouth into a satanic smile. A faint paunch was gathering at his -abdomen, as befitted a warrior turned to boring paper work. His closely -cut black hair and the two sparkling red-gemmed rings--apparently -identical--on his right hand seemed to denote a certain fastidiousness -and unconscious superiority. To Evelyn the jeweled fingers bespoke an -unnatural contrast to the past history of the man and were symptomatic -of a personality that could find stimulation only in strange and cruel -pleasures. - -In alarm she suddenly realized that she had inadvertently let her -appraisal penetrate her uncovered conscious mind, and that this probe -was there awaiting it. - -"You are right," he said coldly, still staring into the court below. -"Now that the long battle is over, there is little left to divert me." - -He pushed the Faeg across the coping toward her. "Take this." - -He had not as yet looked at her. - -She crossed the balcony, simultaneously grasping the pistol he offered -her and looking down into the courtyard. There seemed to be nearly -twenty Terrans lying about, in pools of their own blood. - -Only one man, a Terran officer of very high rank--was left standing. -His arms were folded somberly across his chest, and he studied the -killer above him almost casually. But when the woman came out, their -eyes met, and he started imperceptibly. - -Evelyn Kane felt a horrid chill creeping over her. The man's hair was -white, now, and his proud face lined with deep furrows, but there could -be no mistake. It was Gordon, Lord Kane. - -Her father. - -The sweat continued to grow on her forehead, and she felt for a moment -that she needed only to wish hard enough, and this would be a dream. -A dream of a big, kind, dark-haired man with laugh-wrinkles about his -eyes, who sat her on his knee when she was a little girl and read -bedtime stories to her from a great book with many pictures. - -An icy, amused voice came through: "Our orders are to kill all -prisoners. It is entertaining to shoot down helpless men, isn't it? It -warms me to know that I am cruel and wanton, and worthy of my trust." - -Even in the midst of her horror, a cold, analytical part of her was -explaining why the Commandant had called her to the balcony. Because -all captured Terrans had to be killed, he hated his superiors, his own -men, and especially the prisoners. A task so revolting he could not -relegate to his own officers. He must do it himself, but he wanted his -underlings to know he loathed them for it. She was merely a symbol of -that contempt. His next words did not surprise her. - -"It is even more stimulating to require a shuddering female to kill -them. You are shuddering you know?" - -She nodded dumbly. Her palm was so wet that a drop of sweat dropped -from it to the floor. She was thinking hard. She could kill the -Commandant and save her father for a little while. But then the -problem of detonating the pile remained, and it would not be solved -more quickly by killing the man who controlled the pile area. On the -contrary if she could get him interested in her-- - -"So far as our records indicate," murmured Perat, "the man down there -is the last living Terran within _The Defender_. It occurred to me that -our newest clerk would like to start off her duties with a bang. The -Faeg is adjusted to a needle-beam. If you put a bolt between the man's -eyes, you may dance for me tonight, and perhaps there will be other -nights--" - -The woman seemed lost in thought for a long time. Slowly, she lifted -the ugly little weapon. The doomed Terran looked up at her peacefully, -without expression. She lowered the Faeg, her arm trembling. - -Gordon, Lord Kane, frowned faintly, then closed his eyes. She raised -the gun again, drew cross hairs with a nerveless wrist, and squeezed -the trigger. There was a loud, hollow cough, but no recoil. The Terran -officer, his eyes still closed and arms folded, sank to the ground, -face up. Blood was running from a tiny hole in his forehead. - -The man leaning on the balustrade turned and looked at Evelyn, at first -with amused contempt, then with narrowing, questioning eyes. - -"Come here," he ordered. - -The Faeg dropped from her hand. With a titanic effort she activated her -legs and walked toward him. - -He was studying her face very carefully. - -She felt that she was going to be sick. Her knees were so weak that she -had to lean on the coping. - -With a forefinger he lifted up the mass of golden curls that hung -over her right forehead and examined the scar hidden there, where the -mentors had cut into her frontal lobe. The tiny doll they had created -for her writhed uneasily in her waist-purse, but Perat seemed to be -thinking of something else, and missed the significance of the scar -completely. - -He dropped his hand. "I'm sorry," he said with a quiet weariness. "I -shouldn't have asked you to kill the Terran. It was a sorry joke." -Then: "Have you ever seen me before?" - -"No," she whispered hoarsely. His mind was in hers, verifying the fact. - -"Have you ever met my father, Phaen, the old Count of Tharn?" - -"No." - -"Do you have a son?" - -"No." - -His mind was out of hers again, and he had turned moodily back, -surveying the courtyard and the dead. "Gorph will be wondering what -happened to you. Come to my quarters at the eighth metron tonight." - -Apparently he suspected nothing. - -_Father. Father. I had to do it. But we'll all join you, soon. Soon._ - - - III - -Perat lay on his couch, sipping cold purple _terif_ and following the -thinly-clad dancer with narrowed eyes. Music, soft and subtle, floated -from his communications box, illegally tuned to an officer's club -somewhere. Evelyn made the rhythm part of her as she swayed slowly on -tiptoe. - -For the last thirty "nights"--the hours allotted to rest and sleep--it -had been thus. By "day" she probed furtively into the minds of the -office staff, memorizing area designations, channels for official -messages, and the names and authorizations of occupational field crews. -By night she danced for Perat, who never took his eyes from her, nor -his probe from her mind. While she danced it was not too difficult to -elude the probe. There was an odd autohypnosis in dancing that blotted -out memory and knowledge. - -"Enough for now," he ordered. "Careful of your rib." - -When he had first seen the bandages on her bare chest, that first -night, she had been ready with a memory of dancing on a freshly waxed -floor, and of falling. - -Perat seemed to be debating with himself as she sat down on her own -couch to rest. He got up, unlocked his desk, and drew out a tiny reel -of metal wire, which Evelyn recognized as being feed for an amateur -stereop projector. He placed the reel in a projector that had been -installed in the wall, flicked off the table luminar, and both of them -waited in the dark, breathing rather loudly. - -Suddenly the center of the room was bright with a ball of light some -two feet in diameter, and inside the luminous sphere were an old man, a -woman, and a little boy of about four years. They were walking through -a luxurious garden, and then they stopped, looked up, and waved gaily. - -Evelyn studied the trio with growing wonder. The old man and the boy -were complete strangers. _But the woman--!_ - -"That is Phaen, my father," said Perat quietly. "He stayed at home -because he hated war. And that is a path in our country estate on -Tharn-R-VII. The little boy I fail to recognize, beyond a general -resemblance to the Tharn line. - -"But--_can you deny that you are the woman_?" - -The stereop snapped off, and she sat wordless in the dark. - -"There seemed to be some similarity--" she admitted. Her throat was -suddenly dry. Yet, why should she be alarmed? She really didn't know -the woman. - -The table luminar was on now, and Perat was prowling hungrily about the -room, his scar twisting his otherwise handsome face into a snarling -scowl. - -"Similarity! Bah! That loop of hair over her right forehead hid a scar -identical to yours. I have had the individual frames analyzed!" - -Evelyn's hands knotted unconsciously. She forced her body to relax, but -her mind was racing. This introduced another variable to be controlled -in her plan for destruction. She _must_ make it a known quantity. - -"Did your father send it to you?" she asked. - -"The day before you arrived here. It had been en route for months, of -course." - -"What did he say about it?" - -"He said, 'Your widow and son send greetings. Be of good cheer, and -accept our love.' What nonsense! He knows very well I'm not married and -that--well, if I have ever fathered any children, I don't know about -them." - -"Is that all he said?" - -"That's all, except that he included this ring." He pulled one of the -duplicate jewels from his right middle finger and tossed it to her. -"It's identical to the one he had made for me when I entered on my -majority. For a long time it was thought that it was the only stone of -its kind on all the planets of the Tharn suns, a mineralogical freak, -but I guess he found another. But why should I want two of them?" - -Evelyn crossed the room and returned the ring. - -"Existence is so full of mysteries, isn't it?" murmured Perat. -"Sometimes it seems unfortunate that we must pass through a sentient -phase on our way to death. This foolish, foolish war. Maybe the old -count was right." - -"You could be courtmartialed for that." - -"Speaking of courtmartials, I've got to attend one tonight--an appeal -from a death sentence." He arose, smoothed his hair and clothes, and -poured another glass of _terif_. "Some fool inquisitor can't show -proper disposition of a woman prisoner." - -Evelyn's heart skipped a beat. "Indeed?" - -"The wretch insists that he could remember if we would just let him -alone. I suppose he took a bribe. You'll find one now and then who -tries for a little extra profit." - -She must absolutely not be seen by the condemned inquisitor. The -stimulus would almost certainly make him remember. - -"I'll wait for you," she said indifferently, thrusting her arms out in -a languorous yawn. - -"Very well." Perat stepped to the door, then turned and looked back at -her. "On the other hand, I may need a clerk. It's way after hours, and -the others have gone." - -Beneath a gesture of wry protest, she swallowed rapidly. - -"Perhaps you'd better come," insisted Perat. - -She stood up, unloosed her waist-purse, checked its contents swiftly, -and then followed him out. - -This might be a very close thing. From the purse she took a bottle of -perfume and rubbed her ear lobes casually. - -"Odd smell," commented Perat, wrinkling his nose. - -"Odd scent," corrected Evelyn cryptically. She was thinking about -the earnest faces of the mentors as they instructed her carefully in -the use of the "perfume." The adrenalin glands, they had explained, -provided a useful and powerful stimulant to a man in danger. Adrenalin -slowed the heart and digestion, increased the systole and blood -pressure, and increased perspiration to cool the skin. But there -could be too much of a good thing. An overdose of adrenalin, they had -pointed out, caused almost immediate edema. The lungs filled rapidly -with the serum and the victim ... drowned. The perfume she possessed -over-stimulated, in some unknown way, the adrenals of frightened -persons. It had no effect on inactive adrenals. - -The question remained--who would be the more frightened, she or the -condemned inquisitor? - -She was perspiring freely, and the blonde hair on her arms and neck was -standing stiffly when Perat opened the door for her and they entered -the Zone Provost's chambers. - - * * * * * - -One glance at the trembling creature in the prisoner's chair -reassured her. The ex-inquisitor, shorn of his insignia, shabby and -stubble-bearded, sat huddled in his chair and from time to time swept -his grave tormentors with glazed eyes. He looked a long while at Evelyn. - -She got out her bottle of perfume idly and held it open in her warm -hand. The officers and judge-provost were listening to the opening -address of the prosecution and took no notice of her. - -More and more frequently the condemned man turned his gaze to Evelyn. -She poured a little of the scent on her handkerchief. The prisoner -coughed and rubbed his chin, trying to think. - -The charges were finally read, and the defense attorney began his -opening statement. The prisoner, now coughing more frequently, was -oblivious to all but the woman. Once she thought she saw a flicker of -recognition in his eyes, and she fanned herself hurriedly with her -handkerchief. - -The trial droned on to a close. It was a mere formality. The prosecutor -summed up by proving that a Terran woman had been captured, possibly -named Evelyn Kane, turned over to the defendant for registration and -disposal, and that the defendant's weekly accounts failed to show a -receipt for the release of the woman. Q.E.D., the death sentence must -be affirmed. - -The light in the prisoner's eyes was growing clearer, despite his -bronchial difficulties. He began now to pay attention to what was said -and to take notice of the other faces. It was as though he had finally -found the weapon he wanted, and patiently awaited an opportunity to use -it. - -The defense was closing. Counsel for the prisoner declared that the -latter might have been the innocent victim of the escapee, Evelyn -Kane, possibly a telepathic Terran woman, because only a fool would -have permitted a prisoner to escape without attempting to juggle the -prison records, unless his mind had been under telepathic control. They -ought to be looking for Evelyn Kane now, instead of wasting time with -her victim. She might be anywhere. She might even be in this building. -He bowed apologetically to Evelyn, she smiled at the faces suddenly -looking at her with new interest. - -The man in the prisoner's chair was peering at Evelyn through -half-closed eyes, his arms crossed on his chest. He had stopped -coughing, and the fingers of his right hand were tapping patiently on -his sleeve. - -If Perat should at this moment probe the prisoner's mind.... - -Evelyn, in turning to smile at Perat, knocked the bottle from the -table to the floor, where it broke in a liquid tinkle. She put her -hands to her mouth in contrite apology. The judge-provost frowned, and -Perat eyed her curiously. The prisoner was seized with such a spasm of -coughing that the provost, who had stood to pronounce sentence, paused -in annoyance. The wracking ceased. - -The provost picked up the Faeg lying before him. - -"Have you anything to say before you die?" he asked coldly. - -The ex-inquisitor stood and turned a triumphant face to him. -"Excellency, you ask, where is the woman prisoner who escaped from me? -Well, I can tell you...." - -He clutched wildly at his throat, coughed horridly, and bent in Evelyn -Kane's direction. - -"_She_...." - -His lips, which were rapidly growing purple, moved without saying -anything intelligible, and he suddenly crashed over the chair and to -the floor. - -The prison physician leaped to him, stethoscope out. After a few -minutes, he stood up, puzzled and frowning, in the midst of a strained -silence. "Odd, very odd," he muttered. - -"Did the prisoner faint?" asked the judge-provost incuriously, lowering -the Faeg. - -"The prisoner's lungs are filled with liquid, apparently the result of -hyperactive adrenals," commented the baffled physician. "He's dead, and -don't ask me to explain why." - -Evelyn smothered a series of hacking coughs in her handkerchief as the -court broke up in excited groups. From the corner of her eye she saw -that Perat was studying her thoughtfully. - - - IV - -Two weeks later, very late at "night", Perat lay stretched gloomily on -his sleeping couch. On the other side of the room Evelyn was curled -luxuriously on her own damasked lounge, her head propped high. She was -scanning some of the miniature stereop reels that Perat had brought -from his far-distant home planet. - -"Those green trees and hedges ... so far away," she mused. "Do you ever -think about seeing them again?" - -"Of late, I've been thinking about them quite a bit." - -What did he mean by that? - -"I understood it would be months before the field crews cut us loose -from the Terran ship," she said. - -"Indeed?" - -"Well? Won't it?" - -Perat turned his moody face toward her. "No, it won't. The field crews -have been moving at breakneck speed, on account of some unfounded rumor -or other that the Terran ship is going to explode. On orders from -our High Command, we pull out of here by the end of the working day -tomorrow. Within twenty metrons from now, our ship parts company with -the enemy globe." - -The scar on her forehead was throbbing violently. There was no time now -to send the false orders to the field crew she had selected. She must -think a bit. - -"It seems then, this is our last night together." - -"It is." - -She rose from her couch and walked the room like a caged beast. - -"You could hardly take me, a commoner, back with you...." - -With growing shock she realized that she was more than half sincere in -her request. - -"It is not done. It is unlike you to suggest it." - -"Well, that's that, I suppose." She stopped and toyed idly with a box -of chessmen on his table. "Would you care for a game of Terran chess? -I'll try to play very intelligently, so that you won't be too terribly -bored." - -"If you like. But there are more interesting...." - -"Do you think," she interrupted quickly, "that you could beat me -without sight of the board or pieces?" - -"What do you mean by that?" - -"I just thought it would be more interesting for you. I'll take the -board over to my bed, and you call out your moves and I'll tell you my -replies. I'll see the board, but you won't." - -"A curious variant." - -"But you must promise to keep out of my mind; otherwise you would know -my plans." - -He smiled. "Set up the pieces. What color do you want?" - -"I'll defend. Give me black." - -She loosed her waist-purse, took a handkerchief from it, and set the -purse on the deep carpet in the shadow of her table. She unfolded the -chessboard in front of her on the couch and quickly placed the pieces. -"I'm ready," she announced. - -Indeed, everything was in readiness now except that she didn't know -where the cat was. She regretted bitterly not having killed that -innocent mouser weeks ago. - -"Pawn to king four," announced Perat, gazing idly at the ceiling. - -She made the move and replied, "Pawn to king three." - -From the unlaced purse hidden on the floor a tiny head thrust itself -out, followed soon by a pair of minuscule shoulders. - -"Have you studied this Terran game?" queried Perat curiously, "or don't -you know enough to seize the center on your first move?" - -"Have I made an error already? Was that the wrong move?" - -"It's the first move in a complete defensive system, but few people -outside of Terrans understand it. Pawn to queen four." - -She had blundered in attempting the French Defense, but it was not too -late to convert to something that could be expected of a Scythian woman -beginner. "Pawn to queen three." - -The grey doll was out of the purse, sidling through the shadows to the -door, which stood slightly ajar. - -"So you don't know the book moves, after all. You would really have -astonished me if you had moved your queen pawn two squares. I'll play -pawn to king bishop four. Will you have some _terif_?" - -He spun around upright and reached for the decanter, looking full at -the door ... and the tiny figure. - -Evelyn was up at once, cutting off his line of vision. "Yes, I think I -will have one." - -Telepathically she ordered the little creature to dash through the -crack in the doorway. She heard the faint rustle behind her as she -picked up the glass Perat poured. - -"You know," he said thoughtfully, "for a moment I thought I saw your -little doll...." - -She looked at him dubiously. "Really, Perat? It's in my purse." - -He stepped lithely to the door and flung it open. Far down the hall -there was the faintest suggestion of a scuffle. - -"A mouse, I guess." He returned to his bed, but it was plain that he -was unsatisfied. - - * * * * * - -The game wore on for half a metron. Perat's combinations were met with -almost sufficient counter-combinations, so that the issue hung in doubt -for move after move. - -"You've improved considerably since yesterday," he admitted grudgingly. - -"Not at all. It's your playing 'blind' that makes us even. No cheating! -Keep out of my mind! It isn't fair to know what I'm planning." - -Oh, by the merciful god of Galaxus, if he'll stay out of mind and the -cat out of the communications room for another five minutes! - -"All right, all right. I'll win anyway," he muttered, as he concluded -a combination that netted him the black queen. "You could gracefully -resign right now." - -Evelyn studied the position carefully. She had made a grave -miscalculation--the queen loss had definitely not been a part of the -plan. She must contrive a delaying action that would invoke an oral -argument. - -"Bishop to queen rook eight," she murmured. Her telepathic probe, -focussed on the bit of nervous tissue that the mentors had cut from -her frontal lobe and given to her mannikin as a brain, continued -its tight control. In Gorph's office, far down the wing, the little -creature was hopping painstakingly from one key to another of the -dispatch printing machine. - -"... _takes priority over all other pending projects_...." - -"Your game is hopeless," scowled Perat. "I'm a queen and the exchange -up on you." - -"I always play the game out," replied Evelyn easily. "You never know -what might happen. Your move." - -"... _five horizontal columns of metallic trans-scythium nine hundred -xedars long will be found in a Terran storeroom, our area code_...." - -"All right, then. Queen takes pawn." - -"Pawn to queen knight seven," replied Evelyn. It was her sole remaining -pawn, and she hoped to use it in an odd way. - -Perat checked with his queen at queen bishop four, and Evelyn's king -slid to safety at queen knight eight. Perat moved his rook from queen -knight five to queen five. - -"Do you intend to mate with rook to queen's square next move?" asked -Evelyn demurely. - -"... _under the strictest secrecy. Therefore you are ordered not to -communicate_...." - -"Nothing can prevent it," observed the Viscount of Tharn somberly. He -had already lost all interest in the game and was contemplating the -ceiling tapestries. With a lurch she brought her telepathic probe to -rest, ready to prepare a false front for his searching mind. She must -keep him out a moment longer, or all was lost. - -"But it's my move, and I have no move," she objected, focussing her -probe again. - -"... _signed, Perat, Viscount of Tharn, Commandant, Occupation Zone -One_." - -Through that distant fragment of her mind she sensed that something was -watching the doll with feral interest. - -The cat. - -"So? No move? Then you lose," replied Perat. - -"But my king isn't in check. You told me yourself that when my king was -not in check, and I had no legal move, that I was stalemated, and the -game was a draw." - -In that other room, her telepathic contact guided the little figure -down the table leg. Slowly now, don't excite the cat into pouncing. She -had only seconds left, but it should suffice to place the dispatch in -Gorph's incoming box. The pompous little supervisor would send it by -the first jet messenger without doubt or question, and the field crew -would proceed to draw the five columns. - -Pain daggered into her right leg! - -[Illustration: _And then the cat pounced!_] - - * * * * * - -The cat had seized her homunculus by the thigh; she knew the tiny bone -had been crushed. She caught fleet, dizzy impressions of the animal -striding off proudly with the little creature between its jaws. The -letter lay where it had fallen, under the dispatch machine, almost -invisible. - -The doll ceased her blind writing and drew a tiny black cylinder from -her belt. The cat's right eye loomed huge above her. - -Mentally, Perat studied the chessboard position with growing interest. - -"Idiotic Terran game," he growled. "Only a Terran would conceive of the -idea of calling a crushing defeat a drawn battle. I'm sorry I taught -you the game. It's really quite--_what was that?_" - -"Sounded like the cat, didn't it?" responded Evelyn. - -Her tiny alter ego had dropped from those destructive jaws and was -dragging itself slowly back to the dispatch. It found the message and -picked it up. - -"Do you think something could have hurt it?" asked Evelyn. - -The doll struggled toward Gorph's desk, leaving behind a thin red trail. - -Then several things happened. Hot swords sizzled in Evelyn's back, and -she knew the enraged feline had broken the spinal column of the doll. -With throbbing intuition she collapsed her telepathic tentacle. - -Too late. - -Perat's probe was already in her mind, and she knew that he had caught -the full impact of her swift telepathic return. She lay there limply. -Her rib, now almost healed, began to ache dully. - -The man continued to lie motionless, staring heavy-lidded at the -ceiling. Gradually, his mind withdrew itself from hers. - -"So you're high-born," he mused aloud. "I should have known, but then, -you concealed it very adroitly, didn't you?" - -She sat up against the wall. Her heart was pounding almost audibly. - -He was relentless. "No Scythian would play chess the way you did. Only -a Terran would play for a draw after total defeat." - -"I play chess well, so I am a Terran?" she whispered through a dry -throat. - -Perat turned his handsome grey eyes from the ceiling and smiled at her. -His mouth lifted venomously as he watched her begin to tremble. - -"Pour me a _terif_," he ordered. - -She arose, feeling that she must certainly collapse the next instant. -She forced her legs to move, step by step, to the table by his couch. -There she picked up the _terif_ decanter and tipped it to fill his -glass. The dry clatter of bottle on glass betrayed her shaking hands. - -"One for you, too, my dear Lyn." - -She held the decanter several inches above her glass to avoid that -horrible clatter, and managed to spill quite a bit on the table. - -Perat held his glass up to touch hers. "A toast," he smiled, "to a -mysterious and beautiful lady!" - -He drank prone, she standing. She knew she would spill her drink if she -tried to recross to her couch. - -"So you're a Terran? Then why did you kill the Terran officer on the -balcony?" - -She was so relieved that she sank limply to the floor beside him. - -"Why should I tell you? You wouldn't believe anything I told you now, -or that you found in my mind." She smiled up at him. - -"True, true. Quite a dilemma. Should I shoot you now and possibly bring -the rage of a noble Scythian house down about my ears, or should I -submit you to mechanical telepathic analysis?" - -"I am yours, viscount," she laughed. "Shoot me. Analyze me. Whatever -you wish." - -She knew her gaiety was forced, and that it had struck a false note. -The iron gate of doubt had clanged shut between them. From now on he -would contain her mind in the mental prison of his own. The dispatch -beside Gorph's desk could have no further aid from her. Anyway, the cat -had undoubtedly carried off the doll. - -"What a strange woman you are," he murmured. A brief shadow crossed his -face. "With you, for a little while, I have been happy. But in a few -metrons, of course, you will depart under close arrest for the psych -center, and I'll be on my way back to the Tharn suns." - -Within half a metron the office force would begin straggling into the -Administration offices and her letter would be found and given to a -puzzled Gorph, who would then query Perat as to whether it should not -be in the incoming box for urgent matters. But what would Gorph do if -his superior refused to communicate with him or anyone else for a full -metron? The first messenger jet left very soon, and there was no other -for four metrons. Would Gorph send it on the first jet, or would he -wait? It was a chance she'd have to take. - -She got up from the floor and sat down on the couch beside the Viscount -of Tharn. "Perat," she began hesitantly, "I know you must send me away. -I'm sorry, because I don't want to leave you so soon, and you do not -want me to leave you until the last moment, either. Anything else that -I would tell you, you might doubt, so I say nothing more. I would like -to dance for you. When I dance, I tell the truth." - -"Yes, dance, but take care of your rib," assented the man moodily. - -She filled his glass again with a sure hand and replaced it on the -table. Then she unloosed the combs in her hair and let it fall in a -profusion of curls about her shoulders, where it scintillated in a -myriad sparkling semicircles in the soft light of the table luminar. - -She shook her shoulders to scatter her hair, and unhurriedly released -the clasp of her outer lounging gown. The heavy robe fell about her -feet, leaving her clad only in a thin, flowing under-garment, which she -smoothed languidly while she kicked off her slippers. Her mouth was -now half-parted, her eyelids drooping and slumbrous. Perat was still -staring at the ceiling, but she knew his mind was flowing unceasingly -over her body. - -"I must have music," she whispered. The man made no protest when she -pressed the controls on his communications box to receive the slow and -haunting dance music from the officers' club in the next zone. - -The main avenue of access to Perat was now cut. And Gorph was a bolder -man than she thought if he dared knock on the door of his chief while -she was inside. - -She began to sway and to chant. "_The Song of Karos, the Great God of -Scythe, Father of Tharn folk, Dweller in Darkness_...." - -Perat's glass halted, then proceeded slowly to his lips. Of course, -no educated nobleman admitted a belief in the ancient religion of the -Scythes, but how good it was to hear it sung and danced again? Not -since his boyhood, when his mother had dragged him to the temple by -main force.... He placed one palm behind his head and continued to sip -and to think, as this strange, lovely woman unraveled with undulant -body and husky voice the long, satisfying story of his god. - -As she postured sinuously, Evelyn breathed a silent prayer of thanks to -the dead mentors who had crammed her to bursting with Scythe folklore. - -The luminous metron dial revolved with infinite slowness. - - - V - -One metron had passed when Perat laid his empty glass on the table, -without releasing it. - -"Enough of dancing," he murmured with cold languor, cutting his -communications box back to its authorized channel. "Come here, my dear. -I wish you to kiss me." - -Evelyn glided instantly to the silken couch, tossing her hair back over -her shoulders and ignoring the fact that her rib was alive with pain. -She knelt over the reclining man and kissed him on the mouth, running -her fingers lightly down his right arm. He relinquished his glass at -her touch, and she refilled it absently. - -Only then did she notice that something was wrong. - -His left hand was no longer beneath his head, but was concealed in -the mass of cushions that overflowed his couch in a mute, glittering -cascade. - -Perat swirled his glass silently, apparently watching only the tiny -flashes of iridescence flowing from his jeweled right hand. - -Evelyn thought: What made him suspicious? There's something in his left -hand. If I only dared probe.... But he'd know I was afraid, and I'm not -supposed to be afraid. Anyway, in a little while it won't matter. If -the field crew has started pulling the columns, they should be through -in half a metron. If they haven't started, they never will, and nothing -will matter then, anyway. - -The man's face was inscrutable when he finally spoke. "You couldn't -have gone on much longer, anyway, on account of your rib." - -"It was becoming a little painful." - -"Twice you nearly fainted." - -So he had noticed that. - -He continued mercilessly. "Why were you so anxious to keep me shut up -for a whole metron?" - -"I wanted to amuse you. We have so little time left, now." - -"So I thought, until your rib began to trouble you. The reaction of an -ordinary woman would have been to stop." - -"Am I an ordinary woman?" - -"Decidedly not. That's why the situation has become so interesting." - -"I don't understand, Perat." She sat down beside him, forcing him to -move his legs so that his left hand was jammed under the cushion. - -"A little while ago, I decided to contact Gorph's mind." He took a sip. -"It seems he had been trying to reach me through the communications -box." - -"He had?" She pictured Gorph's old-womanish anxiety. He had found the -sealed message, then, but hadn't been able to verify it because his -chief had been listening to a tale of gods. Had he or had he not sent -the message by the early jet? It had to be! Possibly all five of -the columns had been drawn by now, but she couldn't assume it. The -strain-pile would not erupt for a full Terran hour after the fifth -column has been drawn. From now until death, of one sort or another, -she must delay, delay, delay. - -Her blue eyes were widely innocent, and puzzled, but the nerves of -her arms were going dead with over-tension. Perhaps if she threw -the _terif_ in his eyes with her left hand and crushed the numbing -supraclavicular nerve with her thumb.... - -Perat turned his head for the first time and looked her full in the -face. - -"Gorph says he sent the message," he said tonelessly. - -She looked at him blankly, then casually removed her hand from his knee -and dropped it in her lap. He must absolutely not be alarmed until she -knew more. "Apparently I'm supposed to know what you're talking about." - -He turned back to the ceiling. "Gorph says someone prepared a priority -dispatch with my signature, and he sent it out. I don't suppose you -have any idea who did it?" - -Time! Time! - -"When I was Gorph's assistant, there was a young officer--I can't -remember his name--who sometimes forged your signature to urgent -actions when Gorph was out. This is true, Perat. My mind is open to -you." - -He fastened his luminous grey eyes on her. "I presume you're -lying, but...." His mental probe skimmed rapidly over her cortical -association centers. Her skill was strained to the utmost, setting up -false memories of each of thousands of synaptic groups just ahead of -Perat's probe. On some of the groups she knew she had made blunders, -but apparently she preserved the general impression by strengthened -verification in subsequent nets. She wove a brief tale of a young -officer in charge of metals salvage who had sent an order to a field -group to recover some sort of metal, and since Gorph had been out, and -H.Q. needed the metal urgently, the officer did not wait for official -authorization. His probe then searched her visual lobe thoroughly, but -with growing skepticism. She offered him only indistinct memories of -the dead officer's identity. - -"Who was the man?" asked Perat as a matter of form, sipping his _terif_ -absently. - -"Sub-leader Galen, I think." That would give him pause. He knew she had -offered no visual memory of Galen. He would wonder why she was lying. - -"Are you sure?" - - * * * * * - -She wanted to look at the time-dial on the wall, but dared not. From -the corner of her eye she saw Perat's left arm tense, then relax -warily. His mental probe had fastened grimly to her mind again, though -he must know it would be effort wasted. She conjured up an image of -Sub-leader Galen in the act of telling her he was handling a very -urgent matter and that he'd tell the Viscount later what he'd done. -Then the face of the young officer changed to another of the staff, -then another, then still another. Then back to Galen. - -"No, I'm not sure." - -Perat smiled thinly. "You wished to gain time, and I wished to idle it -away. I suppose we have both been fairly successful." - -The communications box beside the bed jangled. - -"Yes?" cried Perat, all alert. - -As his mouth was forming the word, his probe was collapsing within her -mind, and her own flashed briefly into his mind. The hand under the -pillow held a Faeg, aimed at her chest. But the safety catch was still -on. - -"Excellency?" came Gorph's tinny voice. - -"Yes, Gorph? Have you replaced the columns?" - -"_Replaced_"...? That seemed to indicate that the field crew had -followed her forged order, then returned the columns by Perat's -countercommand, relayed telepathically through Gorph. But once all the -great rods were drawn, replacing them did not halt the strain-pile. The -negative potential would keep on increasing geometrically with time, as -planned, to the final goal of joint catastrophe and stalemate. - -Some sort of knowledge was drumming silently at her threshold of -consciousness. Something she couldn't quite grasp. About the woman in -the stereop? Possibly. It would come to her soon. - -Ignoring Perat's gloating smile, she looked casually at the metron -dial, and her heart leaped with elation, for the dial had ceased -revolving. Electrons must be flowing from the center of the ship -through the walls, outward toward the surface two thousand miles away, -and the massive currents were probably jamming all the wall circuits. - -Within minutes, _finis_. - -Could she really rest, now? She was beginning to feel very tired, -almost sleepy. Her duty had been done, and nothing could ever be -important again. - -Gorph was answering his master over the speaker: "Yes, your excellency, -we got them back, that is to say, excepting that one of the five is -only half-way out of its cradle." - -Life was good, life was beautiful. She almost yawned. Most certainly -all of the columns had been pulled out, and then four had been replaced -and something had broken down with the fifth. But they had all been -out, and that was the only thing that mattered. - -"What happened, Gorph?" asked Perat, sipping at his _terif_ again. His -eyes were fastened on his mistress. - -She knew that he had pulled the safety catch on the Faeg. - -"When the crew took the rods out, the prime mover broke down on the -fifth one, when it was only half-way out. They brought in another mover -and got the other four rods back in, and now they're trying to repair -the first mover and push the fifth rod back." - -(The fifth rod had not been completely drawn. Oh Almighty Heaven!) - -"Very well, Gorph. I need not repeat that none of the rods are to be -moved out again, unless I appear to you personally. I'll talk to you -later." - -The box went dead. - -Perat, now taking no notice of Evelyn, finished his _terif_ leisurely. -She sat at his side, breathing woodenly. She had done all that she -could do. All five rods had not been withdrawn, and they never would -be, now. - -"If all Terran women are like you," he began slowly, "I cannot -understand how you Terrans lost this battle." He did not expect an -answer, and did not wait for one. His hard eyes seemed softened -somewhat by a curious admiration. "Only your own gods know what you -have endured in your attempt to start the pile." - -She looked up wretchedly. - -He went on: "Yes, we learned in the nick of time, didn't we? Our -physicists told Gorph that the great rods were the core of a pile that -could have converted both ships into pure energy, with not a shred -of matter left over--something that all the fission piles in the two -galaxies couldn't do. It seems that the pile, if activated, would have -introduced sufficient energy into the low-packing-fraction atoms, from -iron on down to helium, to transform them completely from matter into -radiation. - -"Unpleasant thought! Now the Scythian plan will be modified slightly. -We shall wait until we tear our globe away from yours, _far_ away, and -then prime movers left behind in your ship here can pull the columns -again, all five, this time. Our globe then proceeds into the Terran -Confederacy, and the war will be over. But of course, you'll know -nothing about that." - -He regarded her wearily. "I'm sorry Lyn--or is it 'Evelyn Kane'? If you -had been of Tharn-blood, or even of the Scythian federacy, I would have -married you." - -She listened to him with only half a mind. Some strange, inaudible -thing was trying to reach her. Something she couldn't grasp, but ought -to grasp. What had the mentors told her to be ready for? Exhaustion lay -like a paralyzing blanket over her inert mind. - -"You killed your countryman that day," he intoned, "just to ingratiate -yourself with me. He was very generous to you. When he saw that you -wouldn't shoot him with his eyes open, he closed them. Who was he?" - -"Gordon, Lord Kane. My father." - -The _terif_ glass shook, and the man's face became perceptibly paler. -He breathed stridently for a while before speaking again. - -This time he seemed to be calling with earnest finality to the -forbidding deity of his own warlike homeland, announcing a newcomer at -the dark portals of the god: "_This woman_...!" - - * * * * * - -Evelyn Kane did not shriek when the Faeg-bolt tore through her rib and -lungs. Even when she sank to the floor, the pain-lines in her own face -were much better controlled than those in Perat's. - -[Illustration: _She did not shriek when the bolt tore through her._] - -Then as she lay quietly on the thick, gilded carpet, with consciousness -rapidly fading and returning with the regularity of her heart -beats, she realized what had been calling to her. The piezo crystal -in her waist-purse, still hidden in the shadows of her table, had -been activated, and had brought into focus within the room the dim, -transparent outlines of a small space ship. - -Perat saw it too, and his eyes widened as they traced it quickly from -wall to wall. - -"It's real ..." whispered Evelyn between clenched lips. "Mentors wanted -me ... return in it ... to Terra ... secret of pile...." - -A strange light was growing over Perat's face. "Of course! So that's -why your father tried so hard at the last to break through our -blockade and get a ship through! If the secret of the strain-pile -had ever reached Terra, all the Tharn suns--indeed, the whole Scythe -federation--would be novae by now! By Karos, it was a narrow thing!" - -There was a soft gurgling in Evelyn's throat. - -He flung his pistol away and sat down beside her, lifting her head to -his chest. "I'll call the physician," he rasped through contorted lips. - -She slid a cold palm over his hot cheek, caressing it lightly. "No ... -we die...." - -He stiffened. "_We?_" - -She continued to stroke his cheek dreamily. "Die with you...." - -He shook her. "What are you talking about!" he cried. "The pile isn't -going to erupt!" - -"Crystal focusses ... ship ... only when pile...." - -His face blanched. - -She whispered again, so softly that he had to bend his ear to her lips. -"_You escape ... get in ship...._" - -He stared at her incredulously. "You'd let me get away with the pile -secret!" - -She relaxed in his arms, smiling sleepily, while the tiny red trickle -from the corner of her mouth grew wider. "Stupid of me." - -She shivered. "... cold...." - -The Viscount of the Tharn Suns, the greatest star-cluster in the Scythe -federation, knotted his jaw muscles feverishly and gnawed at his lower -lip. Somehow or other the strain-pile had been energized. Probably -the terrific proton storm that had hidden both ships for years had -compensated for the unrealized potential of the undrawn fifth rod. It -was his duty to the federation to throw this woman to the floor and -take refuge between the shadowy, shimmering walls of the escape ship. -He must carry the secret of the pile to safety with him. He had only -seconds. - -He looked down distractedly at the small creature who was destroying -the proud ships that two great civilizations had spent a generation in -building. She seemed to be in a deep, peaceful sleep. The only sign of -life was a faint pulse in her throat. - -She was the only woman that he had ever found whose companionship he -could have ... enjoyed hour after hour. He almost thought, "could have -loved." - -The room was growing quite warm. The tremendous currents coursing -through the walls were swiftly growing stronger. - -Another thought occurred to him: How had those Terran mentors planned -for their escape ship to avoid the holocaust? Any matter within -millions of miles would be destroyed. It was evident, then, that -wherever the ship was, it was _not_ within the danger zone. - -Suddenly he understood everything. - -With a queer smile, in which ribald surmise and tenderness fought -for supremacy, he picked the woman up, carried her into the phantom -vessel, placed her on the pilot's lounge, and strapped her in. From -his waist-purse he took a hypodermic syringe, removed the sheath from -the needle, and thrust it into her arm. Her face twinged briefly, but -she did not waken. He threw a blanket over her and then strode quickly -to the controls. They were fairly simple, and he had no difficulty in -switching the automatic drive to the general direction of the Tharn -sun cluster. He wrote a hasty note on the pilot's navigation pad, and -then turned again to the woman. He removed one of his duplicate jeweled -rings and slipped it on her finger. His father would recognize it and -would believe her. - -Then he bent over her and kissed her lightly on the lips. - -"Perhaps I love you too, my dearest enemy," he whispered gently. -"Educate our son-to-be in the ways of peace." - -Again outside the ship, he spun the space lock that sealed her in. The -ship's walls were now growing opaque and he could no longer see inside. - -His communications box was jangling furiously in a dozen different -keys, and anxious, querulous voices were pouring through it into -the room. He snapped it off, loosened his collar, filled his glass -to overflowing with the last of the _terif_, and cut off the table -luminar. His stereop projector next had his attention. - -He lay on his couch in the darkness of his death cell, studying with -the keenest satisfaction his wife, son, and father, while they waved at -him happily from the radiant stereop sphere. - -Those Terran mentors had planned well. The escape ship would not be -affected by the nearing cataclysm, because it was really in a different -time plane--at least five years in the past. The catastrophe would -simply release it to its original continuum, whence it would proceed -with its precious cargo to the Tharn suns. - -Odd effect, that time shift. He wished now he'd read more of the -theories of that ancient Terran, Einstein, who claimed that -simultaneity was an illusion--that "now" here could be altogether -different from "now" in other steric areas. His son, unborn as -yet "here," was more than four years old "there"--on the planet. -Tharn-R-VII, where the lad played in his grandfather's gardens. - -And then there was the mystery of the rings. The old count had not -had another ring made of course. The ring the count had sent with the -stereop coils must have been the same one that Perat had just placed -on the finger of his bride. The ring sent with the stereops was merely -his original ring brought back in the relooping of a time-line. In his -"now" there was only one ring--the one he was wearing. In Evelyn's -"now" there was the same ring, but that was logical, because her "now" -would soon be five years earlier than his. Owing to this five-year -relooping of time, it had been possible for the ring to exist in -duplicate for six weeks. But very soon, in his "now," it would be -destroyed for good. - -He pressed the repeat button on the stereop and started the coil again. -The boy had an engaging grin, rather like his own (he would indulge -a final vanity), but without the scar. He hoped there would never -be another war to disfigure or kill his son. It was up to the next -generation. - -As he swirled his _terif_, he smiled and thought of the note he had -left on the pilot's pad: _Name him after your father--Gordon_. - - * * * * * - -"... _failed to find any survivors, or for that matter, any trace -whatever of either globe, if one excepts the supernova that appeared -for a quarter metron some thirty years ago at the far margin of the -proton storm. We of the Armistice Commission therefore unanimously -urge that further hostilities by either side would necessarily be -indecisive_...." - ---Scythe-Terran Armistice, History and Tentative Provisions (excerpts): -Gordon of Tharn, Editor-in-Chief and Primary Scythian Delegate. - -*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK STALEMATE IN SPACE *** - -***** This file should be named 63862-0.txt or 63862-0.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/6/3/8/6/63862/ - -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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Harness. - </title> - <link rel="coverpage" href="images/cover.jpg" /> - - <style type="text/css"> - -body { - margin-left: 10%; - margin-right: 10%; -} - - h1,h2 { - text-align: center; /* all headings centered */ - clear: both; -} - -p { - margin-top: .51em; - text-align: justify; - margin-bottom: .49em; -} - -hr { - width: 33%; - margin-top: 2em; - margin-bottom: 2em; - margin-left: 33.5%; - margin-right: 33.5%; - clear: both; -} - -hr.chap {width: 65%; margin-left: 17.5%; margin-right: 17.5%;} -hr.tb {width: 45%; margin-left: 27.5%; margin-right: 27.5%;} - -.center {text-align: center;} - -.right {text-align: right;} - -/* Images */ -.figcenter { - margin: auto; - text-align: center; -} - -.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 style='margin-bottom:6em;'>The Project Gutenberg EBook of Stalemate In Space, by Charles L. Harness - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you -will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before -using this ebook. - -Title: Stalemate In Space - -Author: Charles L. Harness - -Release Date: December 05, 2020 [EBook #63862] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -Produced by: Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed - Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - -*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK STALEMATE IN SPACE *** -</pre> - -<div class="titlepage"> - -<h1>Stalemate In Space</h1> - -<h2>By CHARLES L. HARNESS</h2> - -<p>Two mighty metal globes clung in a murderous<br /> -death-struggle, lashing out with flames of poison.<br /> -Yet deep in their twisted, radioactive wreckage<br /> -the main battle raged—where a girl swayed<br /> -sensuously before her conqueror's mocking eyes.</p> - -<p>[Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from<br /> -Planet Stories Summer 1949.<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>At first there was only the voice, a monotonous murmur in her ears.</p> - -<p>"<i>Die now—die now—die now</i>—"</p> - -<p>Evelyn Kane awoke, breathing slowly and painfully. The top of the -cubicle was bulging inward on her chest, and it seemed likely that a -rib or two was broken. How long ago? Years? Minutes? She had no way of -knowing. Her slender right hand found the oxygen valve and turned it. -For a long while she lay, hurting and breathing helplessly.</p> - -<p>"<i>Die now—die now—die now</i>—"</p> - -<p>The votron had awakened her with its heart-breaking code message, and -it was her duty to carry out its command. Nine years after the great -battle globes had crunched together the mentors had sealed her in this -tiny cell, dormant, unwaking, to be livened only when it was certain -her countrymen had either definitely won—or lost.</p> - -<p>The votron's telepathic dirge chronicled the latter fact. She had -expected nothing else.</p> - -<p>She had only to find the relay beside her cot, press the key that would -set in motion gigantic prime movers in the heart of the great globe, -and the conquerors would join the conquered in the wide and nameless -grave of space.</p> - -<p>But life, now doled out by the second, was too delicious to abandon -immediately. Her mind, like that of a drowning person, raced hungrily -over the memories of her past.</p> - -<p>For twenty years, in company with her great father, she had watched -<i>The Defender</i> grow from a vast metal skeleton into a planet-sized -battle globe. But it had not grown fast enough, for when the Scythian -globe, <i>The Invader</i>, sprang out of black space to enslave the budding -Terran Confederacy, <i>The Defender</i> was unfinished, half-equipped, and -undermanned.</p> - -<p>The Terrans could only fight for time and hope for a miracle.</p> - -<p><i>The Defender</i>, commanded by her father, Gordon, Lord Kane, hurled -itself from its orbit around Procyon and met <i>The Invader</i> with giant -fission torpedoes.</p> - -<p>And then, in an intergalactic proton storm beyond the Lesser Magellanic -Cloud, the globes lost their bearings and collided. Hordes of brute-men -poured through the crushed outer armor of the stricken <i>Defender</i>.</p> - -<p>The prone woman stirred uneasily. Here the images became unreal -and terrible, with the recurrent vision of death. It had taken the -Scythians nine years to conquer <i>The Defender's</i> outer shell. Then had -come that final interview with her father.</p> - -<p>"In half an hour our last space port will be captured," he had -telepathed curtly. "Only one more messenger ship can leave <i>The -Defender</i>. Be on it."</p> - -<p>"No. I shall die here."</p> - -<p>His fine tired eyes had studied her face in enigmatic appraisal. "Then -die usefully. The mentors are trying to develop a force that will -destroy both globes in the moment of our inevitable defeat. If they are -successful, you will have the task of pressing the final button of the -battle."</p> - -<p>"There's an off-chance you may survive," countered a mentor. "We're -also working on a means for your escape—not only because you are -Gordon's daughter, but because this great proton storm will prevent -radio contact with Terra for years, and we want someone to escape with -our secret if and when our experiments prove successful."</p> - -<p>"But you must expect to die," her father had warned with gentle -finality.</p> - -<p>She clenched her fingernails vehemently into her palms and wrenched -herself back to the present.</p> - -<p>That time had come.</p> - -<p>With some effort she worked herself out of the crumpled bed and lay on -the floor of her little cubicle, panting and holding her chest with -both hands. The metal floor was very cold. Evidently the enemy torpedo -fissionables had finally broken through to the center portions of the -ship, letting in the icy breath of space. Small matter. Not by freezing -would she die.</p> - -<p>She reached out her hand, felt for the all-important key, and gasped in -dismay. The mahogany box containing the key had burst its metal bonds -and was lying on its side. The explosion that had crushed her cubicle -had been terrific.</p> - -<p>With a gurgle of horror she snapped on her wrist luminar and examined -the interior of the box.</p> - -<p>It was a shattered ruin.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Once the fact was clear, she composed herself and lay there, breathing -hard and thinking. She had no means to construct another key. At best, -finding the rare tools and parts would take months, and during the -interval the invaders would be cutting loose from the dead hulk that -clutched their conquering battle globe in a metallic rigor mortis.</p> - -<p>She gave herself six weeks to accomplish this stalemate in space.</p> - -<p>Within that time she must know whether the prime movers were still -intact, and whether she could safely enter the pile room herself, -set the movers in motion, and draw the moderator columns. If it were -unsafe, she must secure the unwitting assistance of her Scythian -enemies.</p> - -<p>Still prone, she found the first-aid kit and taped her chest expertly. -The cold was beginning to make itself felt, so she flicked on the -chaudiere she wore as an under-garment to her Scythian woman's uniform. -Then she crawled on her elbows and stomach to the tiny door, spun the -sealing gear, and was soon outside. Ignoring the pain and pulling on -the side of the imitation rock that contained her cell, she got slowly -to her feet. The air was thin indeed, and frigid. She turned the valve -of her portable oxygen bottle almost subconsciously, while exploring -the surrounding blackened forest as far as she could see. Mentally she -was alert for roving alien minds. She had left her weapons inside the -cubicle, except for the three things in the little leather bag dangling -from her waist, for she knew that her greatest weapon in the struggle -to come would be her apparent harmlessness.</p> - -<p>Four hundred yards behind her she detected the mind of a low-born -Scythe, of the Tharn sun group. Very quickly she established it as that -of a tired, brutish corporal, taking a mop-up squad through the black -stumps and forlorn branches of the small forest that for years had -supplied oxygen to the defenders of this sector.</p> - -<p>The corporal could not see her green Scythian uniform clearly, and -evidently took her for a Terran woman. In his mind was the question: -Should he shoot immediately, or should he capture her? It had been two -months since he had seen a woman. But then, his orders were to shoot. -Yes, he would shoot.</p> - -<p>Evelyn turned in profile to the beam-gun and stretched luxuriously, -hoping that her grimace of pain could not be detected. With -satisfaction, she sensed a sudden change of determination in the mind -of the Tharn. The gun was lowered, and the man was circling to creep up -behind her. He did not bother to notify his men. He wanted her first. -He had seen her uniform, but that deterred him not a whit. Afterwards, -he would call up the squad. Finally, they would kill her and move on. -Women auxiliaries had no business here, anyway.</p> - -<p>Hips dipping, Evelyn sauntered into the shattered copse. The man moved -faster, though still trying to approach quietly. Most of the radions in -the mile-high ceiling had been destroyed, and the light was poor. He -was not surprised when he lost track of his quarry. He tip-toed rapidly -onward, picking his way through the charred and fallen branches, -thinking that she must turn up again soon. He had not gone twenty yards -in this manner when a howl of unbearable fury sounded in his mind, and -the dull light in his brain went out.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<div class="figcenter"> - <img src="images/illus1.jpg" alt=""/> - <div class="caption"> - <p><i>She fought for her life under that mile-high ceiling.</i></p> - </div> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p>Breathing deeply from her mental effort, the woman stepped from -behind a great black tree trunk and hurried to the unconscious man. -For I.Q.'s of 100 and less, telepathic cortical paralysis was quite -effective. With cool efficiency and no trace of distaste she stripped -the odorous uniform from the man, then took his weapon, turned the beam -power down very low, and needled a neat slash across his throat. While -he bled to death, she slipped deftly into the baggy suit, clasped the -beam gun by the handle, and started up the sooty slope. For a time, at -least, it would be safer to pass as a Tharn soldier than as any kind of -a woman.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p class="ph1">II</p> - -<p>The inquisitor leaned forward, frowning at the girl before him.</p> - -<p>"Name?"</p> - -<p>"Evelyn Kane."</p> - -<p>The eyes of the inquisitor widened. "So you admit to a Terran name. -Well, Terran, you are charged with having stolen passage on a supply -lorry, and you also seem to be wearing the uniform of an infantry -corporal as well as that of a Scythian woman auxiliary. Incidentally, -where is the corporal? Did you kill him?"</p> - -<p>He was prepared for a last-ditch denial. He would cut it short, have -the guards remove her, and execution would follow immediately. In a -way, it was unfortunate. The woman was obviously of a high Terran -class. No—he couldn't consider that. His slender means couldn't afford -another woman in his quarters, and besides, he wouldn't feel safe with -this cool murderess.</p> - -<p>"Do you not understand the master tongue? Why did you kill the -corporal?" He leaned impatiently over his desk.</p> - -<p>The woman stared frankly back at him with her clear blue eyes. The -guards on either side of her dug their nails into her arms, as was -their custom with recalcitrant prisoners, but she took no notice.</p> - -<p>She had analyzed the minds of the three men. She could handle the -inquisitor alone or the two guards alone, but not all three.</p> - -<p>"If you aren't afraid of me, perhaps you'd be so kind as to send the -guards out for a few minutes," she said, placing a hand on her hip. "I -have interesting information."</p> - -<p>So that was it. Buy her freedom by betraying fugitive Terrans. Well, he -could take the information and then kill her. He nodded curtly to the -guards, and they walked out of the hut, exchanging sly winks with one -another.</p> - -<p>Evelyn Kane crossed her arms across her chest and felt her broken rib -gingerly. The inquisitor stared up at her in sadistic admiration. He -would certainly be on hand for the execution. His anticipation was cut -short with a horrible realization. Under the paralyzing force of a mind -greater than his own, he reached beneath the desk and switched off the -recorder.</p> - -<p>"Who is the Occupational Commandant for this Sector," she asked -tersely. This must be done swiftly before the guards returned.</p> - -<p>"Perat, Viscount of Tharn," replied the man mechanically.</p> - -<p>"What is the extent of his jurisdiction?"</p> - -<p>"From the center of the Terran globe, outward four hundred miles -radius."</p> - -<p>"Good. Prepare for me the usual visa that a woman clerk needs for -passage to the offices of the Occupational Commandant."</p> - -<p>The inquisitor filled in blanks in a stiff sheet of paper and stamped a -seal at its bottom.</p> - -<p>"You will add in the portion reserved for 'comments', the following: -'Capable clerk. Others will follow as they are found available.'"</p> - -<p>The man's pen scratched away obediently.</p> - -<p>Evelyn Kane smiled gently at the impotent, inwardly raging inquisitor. -She took the paper, folded it, and placed it in a pocket in her blouse. -"Call the guards," she ordered.</p> - -<p>He pressed the button on his desk, and the guards re-entered.</p> - -<p>"This person is no longer a prisoner," said the inquisitor woodenly. -"She is to take the next transport to the Occupational Commandant of -Zone One."</p> - -<p>When the transport had left, neither inquisitor nor guards had any -memory of the woman. However, in the due course of events, the -recording was gathered up with many others like it, boxed carefully, -and sent to the Office of the Occupational Commandant, Zone One, for -auditing.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Evelyn was extremely careful with her mental probe as she descended -from the transport. The Occupational Commandant would undoubtedly -be high-born and telepathic. He must not have occasion to suspect a -similar ability in a mere clerk.</p> - -<p>Fighting had passed this way, too, and recently. Many of the buildings -were still smoking, and many of the radions high above were either -shot out or obscured by slowly drifting dust clouds. The acrid odor of -radiation-remover was everywhere.</p> - -<p>She caught the sound of spasmodic small-arm fire.</p> - -<p>"What is that?" she asked the transport attendant.</p> - -<p>"The Commandant is shooting prisoners," he replied laconically.</p> - -<p>"Oh."</p> - -<p>"Where did you want to go?"</p> - -<p>"To the personnel office."</p> - -<p>"That way." He pointed to the largest building of the group—two -stories high, reasonably intact.</p> - -<p>She walked off down the gravel path, which was stained here and there -with dark sticky red. She gave her visa to the guard at the door and -was admitted to an improvised waiting room, where another guard eyed -her stonily. The firing was much nearer. She recognized the obscene -coughs of a Faeg pistol and began to feel sick.</p> - -<p>A woman in the green uniform of the Scythe auxiliary came in, whispered -something to the guard, and then told Evelyn to follow her.</p> - -<p>In the anteroom a grey cat looked her over curiously, and Evelyn -frowned. She might have to get rid of the cat if she stayed here. Under -certain circumstances the animal could prove her deadliest enemy.</p> - -<p>The next room held a foppish little man, evidently a supervisor of some -sort, who was studying her visa.</p> - -<p>"I'm very happy to have you here, S'ria—ah—"—he looked at the visa -suspiciously—"S'ria Lyn. Do sit down. But, as I was just remarking to -S'ria Gerek, here"—he nodded to the other woman, who smiled back—"I -wish the field officers would make up their august minds as to whether -they want you or don't want you. Just why did they transfer you to -H.Q.?"</p> - -<p>She thought quickly. This pompous little ass would have to be given -some answer that would keep him from checking with the inquisitor. It -would have to be something personal. She looked at the false black in -his eyebrows and sideburns, and the artificial way in which he had -combed hair over his bald spot. She crossed her knees slowly, ignoring -the narrowing eyes of S'ria Gerek, and smoothed the back of her braided -yellow hair. He was studying her covertly.</p> - -<p>"The men in the fighting zones are uncouth, S'ria Gorph," she said -simply. "I was told that <i>you</i>, that is, I mean—"</p> - -<p>"Yes?" he was the soul of graciousness. S'ria Gerek began to dictate -loudly into her mechanical transcriber.</p> - -<p>Evelyn cleared her throat, averted her eyes, and with some effort, -managed a delicate flush. "I meant to say, I thought I would be happier -working for—working here. So I asked for a transfer."</p> - -<p>S'ria Gorph beamed. "Splendid. But the occupation isn't over, yet, -you know. There'll be hard work here for several weeks yet, before we -cut loose from the enemy globe. But you do your work well"—winking -artfully—"and I'll see that—"</p> - -<p>He stopped, and his face took on a hunted look of mingled fear and -anxiety. He appeared to listen.</p> - -<p>Evelyn tensed her mind to receive and deceive a mental probe. She was -certain now that the Zone Commandant was high-born and telepathic. The -chances were only fifty-fifty that she could delude him for any length -of time if he became interested in her. He must be avoided if at all -possible. It should not be too difficult. He undoubtedly had a dozen -personal secretaries and/or concubines and would take small interest in -the lowly employees that amused Gorph.</p> - -<p>Gorph looked at her uncertainly. "Perat, Viscount of the Tharn Suns, -sends you his compliments and wishes to see you on the balcony." He -pointed to a hallway. "All the way through there, across to the other -wing."</p> - -<p>As she left, she heard all sound in the room stop. The transcribing and -calculating machines trailed off into a watchful silence, and she could -feel the eyes of the men and women on her back. She noticed then that -the Faeg had ceased firing.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Her heart was beating faster as she walked down the hall. She felt a -very strong probe flooding over her brain casually, palping with mild -interest the artificial memories she supplied: Escapades with officers -in the combat areas. Reprimands. Demotion and transfer. Her deception -of Gorph. Her anticipation of meeting a real Viscount and hoping he -would let her dance for him.</p> - -<p>The questing probe withdrew as idly as it had come, and she breathed -a sigh of relief. She could not hope to deceive a suspicious telepath -for long. Perat was merely amused at her "lie" to his under-supervisor. -He had accepted her at her own face value, as supplied by her false -memories.</p> - -<p>She opened the door to the balcony and saw a man leaning moodily on the -balustrade. He gave no immediate notice of her presence.</p> - -<p>The five hundred and sixth heir of Tharn was of uncertain age, as were -most of the men of both globes. Only the left side of his face could be -seen. It was gaunt and leathery, and a deep thin scar lifted the corner -of his mouth into a satanic smile. A faint paunch was gathering at his -abdomen, as befitted a warrior turned to boring paper work. His closely -cut black hair and the two sparkling red-gemmed rings—apparently -identical—on his right hand seemed to denote a certain fastidiousness -and unconscious superiority. To Evelyn the jeweled fingers bespoke an -unnatural contrast to the past history of the man and were symptomatic -of a personality that could find stimulation only in strange and cruel -pleasures.</p> - -<p>In alarm she suddenly realized that she had inadvertently let her -appraisal penetrate her uncovered conscious mind, and that this probe -was there awaiting it.</p> - -<p>"You are right," he said coldly, still staring into the court below. -"Now that the long battle is over, there is little left to divert me."</p> - -<p>He pushed the Faeg across the coping toward her. "Take this."</p> - -<p>He had not as yet looked at her.</p> - -<p>She crossed the balcony, simultaneously grasping the pistol he offered -her and looking down into the courtyard. There seemed to be nearly -twenty Terrans lying about, in pools of their own blood.</p> - -<p>Only one man, a Terran officer of very high rank—was left standing. -His arms were folded somberly across his chest, and he studied the -killer above him almost casually. But when the woman came out, their -eyes met, and he started imperceptibly.</p> - -<p>Evelyn Kane felt a horrid chill creeping over her. The man's hair was -white, now, and his proud face lined with deep furrows, but there could -be no mistake. It was Gordon, Lord Kane.</p> - -<p>Her father.</p> - -<p>The sweat continued to grow on her forehead, and she felt for a moment -that she needed only to wish hard enough, and this would be a dream. -A dream of a big, kind, dark-haired man with laugh-wrinkles about his -eyes, who sat her on his knee when she was a little girl and read -bedtime stories to her from a great book with many pictures.</p> - -<p>An icy, amused voice came through: "Our orders are to kill all -prisoners. It is entertaining to shoot down helpless men, isn't it? It -warms me to know that I am cruel and wanton, and worthy of my trust."</p> - -<p>Even in the midst of her horror, a cold, analytical part of her was -explaining why the Commandant had called her to the balcony. Because -all captured Terrans had to be killed, he hated his superiors, his own -men, and especially the prisoners. A task so revolting he could not -relegate to his own officers. He must do it himself, but he wanted his -underlings to know he loathed them for it. She was merely a symbol of -that contempt. His next words did not surprise her.</p> - -<p>"It is even more stimulating to require a shuddering female to kill -them. You are shuddering you know?"</p> - -<p>She nodded dumbly. Her palm was so wet that a drop of sweat dropped -from it to the floor. She was thinking hard. She could kill the -Commandant and save her father for a little while. But then the -problem of detonating the pile remained, and it would not be solved -more quickly by killing the man who controlled the pile area. On the -contrary if she could get him interested in her—</p> - -<p>"So far as our records indicate," murmured Perat, "the man down there -is the last living Terran within <i>The Defender</i>. It occurred to me that -our newest clerk would like to start off her duties with a bang. The -Faeg is adjusted to a needle-beam. If you put a bolt between the man's -eyes, you may dance for me tonight, and perhaps there will be other -nights—"</p> - -<p>The woman seemed lost in thought for a long time. Slowly, she lifted -the ugly little weapon. The doomed Terran looked up at her peacefully, -without expression. She lowered the Faeg, her arm trembling.</p> - -<p>Gordon, Lord Kane, frowned faintly, then closed his eyes. She raised -the gun again, drew cross hairs with a nerveless wrist, and squeezed -the trigger. There was a loud, hollow cough, but no recoil. The Terran -officer, his eyes still closed and arms folded, sank to the ground, -face up. Blood was running from a tiny hole in his forehead.</p> - -<p>The man leaning on the balustrade turned and looked at Evelyn, at first -with amused contempt, then with narrowing, questioning eyes.</p> - -<p>"Come here," he ordered.</p> - -<p>The Faeg dropped from her hand. With a titanic effort she activated her -legs and walked toward him.</p> - -<p>He was studying her face very carefully.</p> - -<p>She felt that she was going to be sick. Her knees were so weak that she -had to lean on the coping.</p> - -<p>With a forefinger he lifted up the mass of golden curls that hung -over her right forehead and examined the scar hidden there, where the -mentors had cut into her frontal lobe. The tiny doll they had created -for her writhed uneasily in her waist-purse, but Perat seemed to be -thinking of something else, and missed the significance of the scar -completely.</p> - -<p>He dropped his hand. "I'm sorry," he said with a quiet weariness. "I -shouldn't have asked you to kill the Terran. It was a sorry joke." -Then: "Have you ever seen me before?"</p> - -<p>"No," she whispered hoarsely. His mind was in hers, verifying the fact.</p> - -<p>"Have you ever met my father, Phaen, the old Count of Tharn?"</p> - -<p>"No."</p> - -<p>"Do you have a son?"</p> - -<p>"No."</p> - -<p>His mind was out of hers again, and he had turned moodily back, -surveying the courtyard and the dead. "Gorph will be wondering what -happened to you. Come to my quarters at the eighth metron tonight."</p> - -<p>Apparently he suspected nothing.</p> - -<p><i>Father. Father. I had to do it. But we'll all join you, soon. Soon.</i></p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p class="ph1">III</p> - -<p>Perat lay on his couch, sipping cold purple <i>terif</i> and following the -thinly-clad dancer with narrowed eyes. Music, soft and subtle, floated -from his communications box, illegally tuned to an officer's club -somewhere. Evelyn made the rhythm part of her as she swayed slowly on -tiptoe.</p> - -<p>For the last thirty "nights"—the hours allotted to rest and sleep—it -had been thus. By "day" she probed furtively into the minds of the -office staff, memorizing area designations, channels for official -messages, and the names and authorizations of occupational field crews. -By night she danced for Perat, who never took his eyes from her, nor -his probe from her mind. While she danced it was not too difficult to -elude the probe. There was an odd autohypnosis in dancing that blotted -out memory and knowledge.</p> - -<p>"Enough for now," he ordered. "Careful of your rib."</p> - -<p>When he had first seen the bandages on her bare chest, that first -night, she had been ready with a memory of dancing on a freshly waxed -floor, and of falling.</p> - -<p>Perat seemed to be debating with himself as she sat down on her own -couch to rest. He got up, unlocked his desk, and drew out a tiny reel -of metal wire, which Evelyn recognized as being feed for an amateur -stereop projector. He placed the reel in a projector that had been -installed in the wall, flicked off the table luminar, and both of them -waited in the dark, breathing rather loudly.</p> - -<p>Suddenly the center of the room was bright with a ball of light some -two feet in diameter, and inside the luminous sphere were an old man, a -woman, and a little boy of about four years. They were walking through -a luxurious garden, and then they stopped, looked up, and waved gaily.</p> - -<p>Evelyn studied the trio with growing wonder. The old man and the boy -were complete strangers. <i>But the woman—!</i></p> - -<p>"That is Phaen, my father," said Perat quietly. "He stayed at home -because he hated war. And that is a path in our country estate on -Tharn-R-VII. The little boy I fail to recognize, beyond a general -resemblance to the Tharn line.</p> - -<p>"But—<i>can you deny that you are the woman</i>?"</p> - -<p>The stereop snapped off, and she sat wordless in the dark.</p> - -<p>"There seemed to be some similarity—" she admitted. Her throat was -suddenly dry. Yet, why should she be alarmed? She really didn't know -the woman.</p> - -<p>The table luminar was on now, and Perat was prowling hungrily about the -room, his scar twisting his otherwise handsome face into a snarling -scowl.</p> - -<p>"Similarity! Bah! That loop of hair over her right forehead hid a scar -identical to yours. I have had the individual frames analyzed!"</p> - -<p>Evelyn's hands knotted unconsciously. She forced her body to relax, but -her mind was racing. This introduced another variable to be controlled -in her plan for destruction. She <i>must</i> make it a known quantity.</p> - -<p>"Did your father send it to you?" she asked.</p> - -<p>"The day before you arrived here. It had been en route for months, of -course."</p> - -<p>"What did he say about it?"</p> - -<p>"He said, 'Your widow and son send greetings. Be of good cheer, and -accept our love.' What nonsense! He knows very well I'm not married and -that—well, if I have ever fathered any children, I don't know about -them."</p> - -<p>"Is that all he said?"</p> - -<p>"That's all, except that he included this ring." He pulled one of the -duplicate jewels from his right middle finger and tossed it to her. -"It's identical to the one he had made for me when I entered on my -majority. For a long time it was thought that it was the only stone of -its kind on all the planets of the Tharn suns, a mineralogical freak, -but I guess he found another. But why should I want two of them?"</p> - -<p>Evelyn crossed the room and returned the ring.</p> - -<p>"Existence is so full of mysteries, isn't it?" murmured Perat. -"Sometimes it seems unfortunate that we must pass through a sentient -phase on our way to death. This foolish, foolish war. Maybe the old -count was right."</p> - -<p>"You could be courtmartialed for that."</p> - -<p>"Speaking of courtmartials, I've got to attend one tonight—an appeal -from a death sentence." He arose, smoothed his hair and clothes, and -poured another glass of <i>terif</i>. "Some fool inquisitor can't show -proper disposition of a woman prisoner."</p> - -<p>Evelyn's heart skipped a beat. "Indeed?"</p> - -<p>"The wretch insists that he could remember if we would just let him -alone. I suppose he took a bribe. You'll find one now and then who -tries for a little extra profit."</p> - -<p>She must absolutely not be seen by the condemned inquisitor. The -stimulus would almost certainly make him remember.</p> - -<p>"I'll wait for you," she said indifferently, thrusting her arms out in -a languorous yawn.</p> - -<p>"Very well." Perat stepped to the door, then turned and looked back at -her. "On the other hand, I may need a clerk. It's way after hours, and -the others have gone."</p> - -<p>Beneath a gesture of wry protest, she swallowed rapidly.</p> - -<p>"Perhaps you'd better come," insisted Perat.</p> - -<p>She stood up, unloosed her waist-purse, checked its contents swiftly, -and then followed him out.</p> - -<p>This might be a very close thing. From the purse she took a bottle of -perfume and rubbed her ear lobes casually.</p> - -<p>"Odd smell," commented Perat, wrinkling his nose.</p> - -<p>"Odd scent," corrected Evelyn cryptically. She was thinking about -the earnest faces of the mentors as they instructed her carefully in -the use of the "perfume." The adrenalin glands, they had explained, -provided a useful and powerful stimulant to a man in danger. Adrenalin -slowed the heart and digestion, increased the systole and blood -pressure, and increased perspiration to cool the skin. But there -could be too much of a good thing. An overdose of adrenalin, they had -pointed out, caused almost immediate edema. The lungs filled rapidly -with the serum and the victim ... drowned. The perfume she possessed -over-stimulated, in some unknown way, the adrenals of frightened -persons. It had no effect on inactive adrenals.</p> - -<p>The question remained—who would be the more frightened, she or the -condemned inquisitor?</p> - -<p>She was perspiring freely, and the blonde hair on her arms and neck was -standing stiffly when Perat opened the door for her and they entered -the Zone Provost's chambers.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>One glance at the trembling creature in the prisoner's chair -reassured her. The ex-inquisitor, shorn of his insignia, shabby and -stubble-bearded, sat huddled in his chair and from time to time swept -his grave tormentors with glazed eyes. He looked a long while at Evelyn.</p> - -<p>She got out her bottle of perfume idly and held it open in her warm -hand. The officers and judge-provost were listening to the opening -address of the prosecution and took no notice of her.</p> - -<p>More and more frequently the condemned man turned his gaze to Evelyn. -She poured a little of the scent on her handkerchief. The prisoner -coughed and rubbed his chin, trying to think.</p> - -<p>The charges were finally read, and the defense attorney began his -opening statement. The prisoner, now coughing more frequently, was -oblivious to all but the woman. Once she thought she saw a flicker of -recognition in his eyes, and she fanned herself hurriedly with her -handkerchief.</p> - -<p>The trial droned on to a close. It was a mere formality. The prosecutor -summed up by proving that a Terran woman had been captured, possibly -named Evelyn Kane, turned over to the defendant for registration and -disposal, and that the defendant's weekly accounts failed to show a -receipt for the release of the woman. Q.E.D., the death sentence must -be affirmed.</p> - -<p>The light in the prisoner's eyes was growing clearer, despite his -bronchial difficulties. He began now to pay attention to what was said -and to take notice of the other faces. It was as though he had finally -found the weapon he wanted, and patiently awaited an opportunity to use -it.</p> - -<p>The defense was closing. Counsel for the prisoner declared that the -latter might have been the innocent victim of the escapee, Evelyn -Kane, possibly a telepathic Terran woman, because only a fool would -have permitted a prisoner to escape without attempting to juggle the -prison records, unless his mind had been under telepathic control. They -ought to be looking for Evelyn Kane now, instead of wasting time with -her victim. She might be anywhere. She might even be in this building. -He bowed apologetically to Evelyn, she smiled at the faces suddenly -looking at her with new interest.</p> - -<p>The man in the prisoner's chair was peering at Evelyn through -half-closed eyes, his arms crossed on his chest. He had stopped -coughing, and the fingers of his right hand were tapping patiently on -his sleeve.</p> - -<p>If Perat should at this moment probe the prisoner's mind....</p> - -<p>Evelyn, in turning to smile at Perat, knocked the bottle from the -table to the floor, where it broke in a liquid tinkle. She put her -hands to her mouth in contrite apology. The judge-provost frowned, and -Perat eyed her curiously. The prisoner was seized with such a spasm of -coughing that the provost, who had stood to pronounce sentence, paused -in annoyance. The wracking ceased.</p> - -<p>The provost picked up the Faeg lying before him.</p> - -<p>"Have you anything to say before you die?" he asked coldly.</p> - -<p>The ex-inquisitor stood and turned a triumphant face to him. -"Excellency, you ask, where is the woman prisoner who escaped from me? -Well, I can tell you...."</p> - -<p>He clutched wildly at his throat, coughed horridly, and bent in Evelyn -Kane's direction.</p> - -<p>"<i>She</i>...."</p> - -<p>His lips, which were rapidly growing purple, moved without saying -anything intelligible, and he suddenly crashed over the chair and to -the floor.</p> - -<p>The prison physician leaped to him, stethoscope out. After a few -minutes, he stood up, puzzled and frowning, in the midst of a strained -silence. "Odd, very odd," he muttered.</p> - -<p>"Did the prisoner faint?" asked the judge-provost incuriously, lowering -the Faeg.</p> - -<p>"The prisoner's lungs are filled with liquid, apparently the result of -hyperactive adrenals," commented the baffled physician. "He's dead, and -don't ask me to explain why."</p> - -<p>Evelyn smothered a series of hacking coughs in her handkerchief as the -court broke up in excited groups. From the corner of her eye she saw -that Perat was studying her thoughtfully.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p class="ph1">IV</p> - -<p>Two weeks later, very late at "night", Perat lay stretched gloomily on -his sleeping couch. On the other side of the room Evelyn was curled -luxuriously on her own damasked lounge, her head propped high. She was -scanning some of the miniature stereop reels that Perat had brought -from his far-distant home planet.</p> - -<p>"Those green trees and hedges ... so far away," she mused. "Do you ever -think about seeing them again?"</p> - -<p>"Of late, I've been thinking about them quite a bit."</p> - -<p>What did he mean by that?</p> - -<p>"I understood it would be months before the field crews cut us loose -from the Terran ship," she said.</p> - -<p>"Indeed?"</p> - -<p>"Well? Won't it?"</p> - -<p>Perat turned his moody face toward her. "No, it won't. The field crews -have been moving at breakneck speed, on account of some unfounded rumor -or other that the Terran ship is going to explode. On orders from -our High Command, we pull out of here by the end of the working day -tomorrow. Within twenty metrons from now, our ship parts company with -the enemy globe."</p> - -<p>The scar on her forehead was throbbing violently. There was no time now -to send the false orders to the field crew she had selected. She must -think a bit.</p> - -<p>"It seems then, this is our last night together."</p> - -<p>"It is."</p> - -<p>She rose from her couch and walked the room like a caged beast.</p> - -<p>"You could hardly take me, a commoner, back with you...."</p> - -<p>With growing shock she realized that she was more than half sincere in -her request.</p> - -<p>"It is not done. It is unlike you to suggest it."</p> - -<p>"Well, that's that, I suppose." She stopped and toyed idly with a box -of chessmen on his table. "Would you care for a game of Terran chess? -I'll try to play very intelligently, so that you won't be too terribly -bored."</p> - -<p>"If you like. But there are more interesting...."</p> - -<p>"Do you think," she interrupted quickly, "that you could beat me -without sight of the board or pieces?"</p> - -<p>"What do you mean by that?"</p> - -<p>"I just thought it would be more interesting for you. I'll take the -board over to my bed, and you call out your moves and I'll tell you my -replies. I'll see the board, but you won't."</p> - -<p>"A curious variant."</p> - -<p>"But you must promise to keep out of my mind; otherwise you would know -my plans."</p> - -<p>He smiled. "Set up the pieces. What color do you want?"</p> - -<p>"I'll defend. Give me black."</p> - -<p>She loosed her waist-purse, took a handkerchief from it, and set the -purse on the deep carpet in the shadow of her table. She unfolded the -chessboard in front of her on the couch and quickly placed the pieces. -"I'm ready," she announced.</p> - -<p>Indeed, everything was in readiness now except that she didn't know -where the cat was. She regretted bitterly not having killed that -innocent mouser weeks ago.</p> - -<p>"Pawn to king four," announced Perat, gazing idly at the ceiling.</p> - -<p>She made the move and replied, "Pawn to king three."</p> - -<p>From the unlaced purse hidden on the floor a tiny head thrust itself -out, followed soon by a pair of minuscule shoulders.</p> - -<p>"Have you studied this Terran game?" queried Perat curiously, "or don't -you know enough to seize the center on your first move?"</p> - -<p>"Have I made an error already? Was that the wrong move?"</p> - -<p>"It's the first move in a complete defensive system, but few people -outside of Terrans understand it. Pawn to queen four."</p> - -<p>She had blundered in attempting the French Defense, but it was not too -late to convert to something that could be expected of a Scythian woman -beginner. "Pawn to queen three."</p> - -<p>The grey doll was out of the purse, sidling through the shadows to the -door, which stood slightly ajar.</p> - -<p>"So you don't know the book moves, after all. You would really have -astonished me if you had moved your queen pawn two squares. I'll play -pawn to king bishop four. Will you have some <i>terif</i>?"</p> - -<p>He spun around upright and reached for the decanter, looking full at -the door ... and the tiny figure.</p> - -<p>Evelyn was up at once, cutting off his line of vision. "Yes, I think I -will have one."</p> - -<p>Telepathically she ordered the little creature to dash through the -crack in the doorway. She heard the faint rustle behind her as she -picked up the glass Perat poured.</p> - -<p>"You know," he said thoughtfully, "for a moment I thought I saw your -little doll...."</p> - -<p>She looked at him dubiously. "Really, Perat? It's in my purse."</p> - -<p>He stepped lithely to the door and flung it open. Far down the hall -there was the faintest suggestion of a scuffle.</p> - -<p>"A mouse, I guess." He returned to his bed, but it was plain that he -was unsatisfied.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>The game wore on for half a metron. Perat's combinations were met with -almost sufficient counter-combinations, so that the issue hung in doubt -for move after move.</p> - -<p>"You've improved considerably since yesterday," he admitted grudgingly.</p> - -<p>"Not at all. It's your playing 'blind' that makes us even. No cheating! -Keep out of my mind! It isn't fair to know what I'm planning."</p> - -<p>Oh, by the merciful god of Galaxus, if he'll stay out of mind and the -cat out of the communications room for another five minutes!</p> - -<p>"All right, all right. I'll win anyway," he muttered, as he concluded -a combination that netted him the black queen. "You could gracefully -resign right now."</p> - -<p>Evelyn studied the position carefully. She had made a grave -miscalculation—the queen loss had definitely not been a part of the -plan. She must contrive a delaying action that would invoke an oral -argument.</p> - -<p>"Bishop to queen rook eight," she murmured. Her telepathic probe, -focussed on the bit of nervous tissue that the mentors had cut from -her frontal lobe and given to her mannikin as a brain, continued -its tight control. In Gorph's office, far down the wing, the little -creature was hopping painstakingly from one key to another of the -dispatch printing machine.</p> - -<p>"... <i>takes priority over all other pending projects</i>...."</p> - -<p>"Your game is hopeless," scowled Perat. "I'm a queen and the exchange -up on you."</p> - -<p>"I always play the game out," replied Evelyn easily. "You never know -what might happen. Your move."</p> - -<p>"... <i>five horizontal columns of metallic trans-scythium nine hundred -xedars long will be found in a Terran storeroom, our area code</i>...."</p> - -<p>"All right, then. Queen takes pawn."</p> - -<p>"Pawn to queen knight seven," replied Evelyn. It was her sole remaining -pawn, and she hoped to use it in an odd way.</p> - -<p>Perat checked with his queen at queen bishop four, and Evelyn's king -slid to safety at queen knight eight. Perat moved his rook from queen -knight five to queen five.</p> - -<p>"Do you intend to mate with rook to queen's square next move?" asked -Evelyn demurely.</p> - -<p>"... <i>under the strictest secrecy. Therefore you are ordered not to -communicate</i>...."</p> - -<p>"Nothing can prevent it," observed the Viscount of Tharn somberly. He -had already lost all interest in the game and was contemplating the -ceiling tapestries. With a lurch she brought her telepathic probe to -rest, ready to prepare a false front for his searching mind. She must -keep him out a moment longer, or all was lost.</p> - -<p>"But it's my move, and I have no move," she objected, focussing her -probe again.</p> - -<p>"... <i>signed, Perat, Viscount of Tharn, Commandant, Occupation Zone -One</i>."</p> - -<p>Through that distant fragment of her mind she sensed that something was -watching the doll with feral interest.</p> - -<p>The cat.</p> - -<p>"So? No move? Then you lose," replied Perat.</p> - -<p>"But my king isn't in check. You told me yourself that when my king was -not in check, and I had no legal move, that I was stalemated, and the -game was a draw."</p> - -<p>In that other room, her telepathic contact guided the little figure -down the table leg. Slowly now, don't excite the cat into pouncing. She -had only seconds left, but it should suffice to place the dispatch in -Gorph's incoming box. The pompous little supervisor would send it by -the first jet messenger without doubt or question, and the field crew -would proceed to draw the five columns.</p> - -<p>Pain daggered into her right leg!</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<div class="figcenter"> - <img src="images/illus2.jpg" alt=""/> - <div class="caption"> - <p><i>And then the cat pounced!</i></p> - </div> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p>The cat had seized her homunculus by the thigh; she knew the tiny bone -had been crushed. She caught fleet, dizzy impressions of the animal -striding off proudly with the little creature between its jaws. The -letter lay where it had fallen, under the dispatch machine, almost -invisible.</p> - -<p>The doll ceased her blind writing and drew a tiny black cylinder from -her belt. The cat's right eye loomed huge above her.</p> - -<p>Mentally, Perat studied the chessboard position with growing interest.</p> - -<p>"Idiotic Terran game," he growled. "Only a Terran would conceive of the -idea of calling a crushing defeat a drawn battle. I'm sorry I taught -you the game. It's really quite—<i>what was that?</i>"</p> - -<p>"Sounded like the cat, didn't it?" responded Evelyn.</p> - -<p>Her tiny alter ego had dropped from those destructive jaws and was -dragging itself slowly back to the dispatch. It found the message and -picked it up.</p> - -<p>"Do you think something could have hurt it?" asked Evelyn.</p> - -<p>The doll struggled toward Gorph's desk, leaving behind a thin red trail.</p> - -<p>Then several things happened. Hot swords sizzled in Evelyn's back, and -she knew the enraged feline had broken the spinal column of the doll. -With throbbing intuition she collapsed her telepathic tentacle.</p> - -<p>Too late.</p> - -<p>Perat's probe was already in her mind, and she knew that he had caught -the full impact of her swift telepathic return. She lay there limply. -Her rib, now almost healed, began to ache dully.</p> - -<p>The man continued to lie motionless, staring heavy-lidded at the -ceiling. Gradually, his mind withdrew itself from hers.</p> - -<p>"So you're high-born," he mused aloud. "I should have known, but then, -you concealed it very adroitly, didn't you?"</p> - -<p>She sat up against the wall. Her heart was pounding almost audibly.</p> - -<p>He was relentless. "No Scythian would play chess the way you did. Only -a Terran would play for a draw after total defeat."</p> - -<p>"I play chess well, so I am a Terran?" she whispered through a dry -throat.</p> - -<p>Perat turned his handsome grey eyes from the ceiling and smiled at her. -His mouth lifted venomously as he watched her begin to tremble.</p> - -<p>"Pour me a <i>terif</i>," he ordered.</p> - -<p>She arose, feeling that she must certainly collapse the next instant. -She forced her legs to move, step by step, to the table by his couch. -There she picked up the <i>terif</i> decanter and tipped it to fill his -glass. The dry clatter of bottle on glass betrayed her shaking hands.</p> - -<p>"One for you, too, my dear Lyn."</p> - -<p>She held the decanter several inches above her glass to avoid that -horrible clatter, and managed to spill quite a bit on the table.</p> - -<p>Perat held his glass up to touch hers. "A toast," he smiled, "to a -mysterious and beautiful lady!"</p> - -<p>He drank prone, she standing. She knew she would spill her drink if she -tried to recross to her couch.</p> - -<p>"So you're a Terran? Then why did you kill the Terran officer on the -balcony?"</p> - -<p>She was so relieved that she sank limply to the floor beside him.</p> - -<p>"Why should I tell you? You wouldn't believe anything I told you now, -or that you found in my mind." She smiled up at him.</p> - -<p>"True, true. Quite a dilemma. Should I shoot you now and possibly bring -the rage of a noble Scythian house down about my ears, or should I -submit you to mechanical telepathic analysis?"</p> - -<p>"I am yours, viscount," she laughed. "Shoot me. Analyze me. Whatever -you wish."</p> - -<p>She knew her gaiety was forced, and that it had struck a false note. -The iron gate of doubt had clanged shut between them. From now on he -would contain her mind in the mental prison of his own. The dispatch -beside Gorph's desk could have no further aid from her. Anyway, the cat -had undoubtedly carried off the doll.</p> - -<p>"What a strange woman you are," he murmured. A brief shadow crossed his -face. "With you, for a little while, I have been happy. But in a few -metrons, of course, you will depart under close arrest for the psych -center, and I'll be on my way back to the Tharn suns."</p> - -<p>Within half a metron the office force would begin straggling into the -Administration offices and her letter would be found and given to a -puzzled Gorph, who would then query Perat as to whether it should not -be in the incoming box for urgent matters. But what would Gorph do if -his superior refused to communicate with him or anyone else for a full -metron? The first messenger jet left very soon, and there was no other -for four metrons. Would Gorph send it on the first jet, or would he -wait? It was a chance she'd have to take.</p> - -<p>She got up from the floor and sat down on the couch beside the Viscount -of Tharn. "Perat," she began hesitantly, "I know you must send me away. -I'm sorry, because I don't want to leave you so soon, and you do not -want me to leave you until the last moment, either. Anything else that -I would tell you, you might doubt, so I say nothing more. I would like -to dance for you. When I dance, I tell the truth."</p> - -<p>"Yes, dance, but take care of your rib," assented the man moodily.</p> - -<p>She filled his glass again with a sure hand and replaced it on the -table. Then she unloosed the combs in her hair and let it fall in a -profusion of curls about her shoulders, where it scintillated in a -myriad sparkling semicircles in the soft light of the table luminar.</p> - -<p>She shook her shoulders to scatter her hair, and unhurriedly released -the clasp of her outer lounging gown. The heavy robe fell about her -feet, leaving her clad only in a thin, flowing under-garment, which she -smoothed languidly while she kicked off her slippers. Her mouth was -now half-parted, her eyelids drooping and slumbrous. Perat was still -staring at the ceiling, but she knew his mind was flowing unceasingly -over her body.</p> - -<p>"I must have music," she whispered. The man made no protest when she -pressed the controls on his communications box to receive the slow and -haunting dance music from the officers' club in the next zone.</p> - -<p>The main avenue of access to Perat was now cut. And Gorph was a bolder -man than she thought if he dared knock on the door of his chief while -she was inside.</p> - -<p>She began to sway and to chant. "<i>The Song of Karos, the Great God of -Scythe, Father of Tharn folk, Dweller in Darkness</i>...."</p> - -<p>Perat's glass halted, then proceeded slowly to his lips. Of course, -no educated nobleman admitted a belief in the ancient religion of the -Scythes, but how good it was to hear it sung and danced again? Not -since his boyhood, when his mother had dragged him to the temple by -main force.... He placed one palm behind his head and continued to sip -and to think, as this strange, lovely woman unraveled with undulant -body and husky voice the long, satisfying story of his god.</p> - -<p>As she postured sinuously, Evelyn breathed a silent prayer of thanks to -the dead mentors who had crammed her to bursting with Scythe folklore.</p> - -<p>The luminous metron dial revolved with infinite slowness.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p class="ph1">V</p> - -<p>One metron had passed when Perat laid his empty glass on the table, -without releasing it.</p> - -<p>"Enough of dancing," he murmured with cold languor, cutting his -communications box back to its authorized channel. "Come here, my dear. -I wish you to kiss me."</p> - -<p>Evelyn glided instantly to the silken couch, tossing her hair back over -her shoulders and ignoring the fact that her rib was alive with pain. -She knelt over the reclining man and kissed him on the mouth, running -her fingers lightly down his right arm. He relinquished his glass at -her touch, and she refilled it absently.</p> - -<p>Only then did she notice that something was wrong.</p> - -<p>His left hand was no longer beneath his head, but was concealed in -the mass of cushions that overflowed his couch in a mute, glittering -cascade.</p> - -<p>Perat swirled his glass silently, apparently watching only the tiny -flashes of iridescence flowing from his jeweled right hand.</p> - -<p>Evelyn thought: What made him suspicious? There's something in his left -hand. If I only dared probe.... But he'd know I was afraid, and I'm not -supposed to be afraid. Anyway, in a little while it won't matter. If -the field crew has started pulling the columns, they should be through -in half a metron. If they haven't started, they never will, and nothing -will matter then, anyway.</p> - -<p>The man's face was inscrutable when he finally spoke. "You couldn't -have gone on much longer, anyway, on account of your rib."</p> - -<p>"It was becoming a little painful."</p> - -<p>"Twice you nearly fainted."</p> - -<p>So he had noticed that.</p> - -<p>He continued mercilessly. "Why were you so anxious to keep me shut up -for a whole metron?"</p> - -<p>"I wanted to amuse you. We have so little time left, now."</p> - -<p>"So I thought, until your rib began to trouble you. The reaction of an -ordinary woman would have been to stop."</p> - -<p>"Am I an ordinary woman?"</p> - -<p>"Decidedly not. That's why the situation has become so interesting."</p> - -<p>"I don't understand, Perat." She sat down beside him, forcing him to -move his legs so that his left hand was jammed under the cushion.</p> - -<p>"A little while ago, I decided to contact Gorph's mind." He took a sip. -"It seems he had been trying to reach me through the communications -box."</p> - -<p>"He had?" She pictured Gorph's old-womanish anxiety. He had found the -sealed message, then, but hadn't been able to verify it because his -chief had been listening to a tale of gods. Had he or had he not sent -the message by the early jet? It had to be! Possibly all five of -the columns had been drawn by now, but she couldn't assume it. The -strain-pile would not erupt for a full Terran hour after the fifth -column has been drawn. From now until death, of one sort or another, -she must delay, delay, delay.</p> - -<p>Her blue eyes were widely innocent, and puzzled, but the nerves of -her arms were going dead with over-tension. Perhaps if she threw -the <i>terif</i> in his eyes with her left hand and crushed the numbing -supraclavicular nerve with her thumb....</p> - -<p>Perat turned his head for the first time and looked her full in the -face.</p> - -<p>"Gorph says he sent the message," he said tonelessly.</p> - -<p>She looked at him blankly, then casually removed her hand from his knee -and dropped it in her lap. He must absolutely not be alarmed until she -knew more. "Apparently I'm supposed to know what you're talking about."</p> - -<p>He turned back to the ceiling. "Gorph says someone prepared a priority -dispatch with my signature, and he sent it out. I don't suppose you -have any idea who did it?"</p> - -<p>Time! Time!</p> - -<p>"When I was Gorph's assistant, there was a young officer—I can't -remember his name—who sometimes forged your signature to urgent -actions when Gorph was out. This is true, Perat. My mind is open to -you."</p> - -<p>He fastened his luminous grey eyes on her. "I presume you're -lying, but...." His mental probe skimmed rapidly over her cortical -association centers. Her skill was strained to the utmost, setting up -false memories of each of thousands of synaptic groups just ahead of -Perat's probe. On some of the groups she knew she had made blunders, -but apparently she preserved the general impression by strengthened -verification in subsequent nets. She wove a brief tale of a young -officer in charge of metals salvage who had sent an order to a field -group to recover some sort of metal, and since Gorph had been out, and -H.Q. needed the metal urgently, the officer did not wait for official -authorization. His probe then searched her visual lobe thoroughly, but -with growing skepticism. She offered him only indistinct memories of -the dead officer's identity.</p> - -<p>"Who was the man?" asked Perat as a matter of form, sipping his <i>terif</i> -absently.</p> - -<p>"Sub-leader Galen, I think." That would give him pause. He knew she had -offered no visual memory of Galen. He would wonder why she was lying.</p> - -<p>"Are you sure?"</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>She wanted to look at the time-dial on the wall, but dared not. From -the corner of her eye she saw Perat's left arm tense, then relax -warily. His mental probe had fastened grimly to her mind again, though -he must know it would be effort wasted. She conjured up an image of -Sub-leader Galen in the act of telling her he was handling a very -urgent matter and that he'd tell the Viscount later what he'd done. -Then the face of the young officer changed to another of the staff, -then another, then still another. Then back to Galen.</p> - -<p>"No, I'm not sure."</p> - -<p>Perat smiled thinly. "You wished to gain time, and I wished to idle it -away. I suppose we have both been fairly successful."</p> - -<p>The communications box beside the bed jangled.</p> - -<p>"Yes?" cried Perat, all alert.</p> - -<p>As his mouth was forming the word, his probe was collapsing within her -mind, and her own flashed briefly into his mind. The hand under the -pillow held a Faeg, aimed at her chest. But the safety catch was still -on.</p> - -<p>"Excellency?" came Gorph's tinny voice.</p> - -<p>"Yes, Gorph? Have you replaced the columns?"</p> - -<p>"<i>Replaced</i>"...? That seemed to indicate that the field crew had -followed her forged order, then returned the columns by Perat's -countercommand, relayed telepathically through Gorph. But once all the -great rods were drawn, replacing them did not halt the strain-pile. The -negative potential would keep on increasing geometrically with time, as -planned, to the final goal of joint catastrophe and stalemate.</p> - -<p>Some sort of knowledge was drumming silently at her threshold of -consciousness. Something she couldn't quite grasp. About the woman in -the stereop? Possibly. It would come to her soon.</p> - -<p>Ignoring Perat's gloating smile, she looked casually at the metron -dial, and her heart leaped with elation, for the dial had ceased -revolving. Electrons must be flowing from the center of the ship -through the walls, outward toward the surface two thousand miles away, -and the massive currents were probably jamming all the wall circuits.</p> - -<p>Within minutes, <i>finis</i>.</p> - -<p>Could she really rest, now? She was beginning to feel very tired, -almost sleepy. Her duty had been done, and nothing could ever be -important again.</p> - -<p>Gorph was answering his master over the speaker: "Yes, your excellency, -we got them back, that is to say, excepting that one of the five is -only half-way out of its cradle."</p> - -<p>Life was good, life was beautiful. She almost yawned. Most certainly -all of the columns had been pulled out, and then four had been replaced -and something had broken down with the fifth. But they had all been -out, and that was the only thing that mattered.</p> - -<p>"What happened, Gorph?" asked Perat, sipping at his <i>terif</i> again. His -eyes were fastened on his mistress.</p> - -<p>She knew that he had pulled the safety catch on the Faeg.</p> - -<p>"When the crew took the rods out, the prime mover broke down on the -fifth one, when it was only half-way out. They brought in another mover -and got the other four rods back in, and now they're trying to repair -the first mover and push the fifth rod back."</p> - -<p>(The fifth rod had not been completely drawn. Oh Almighty Heaven!)</p> - -<p>"Very well, Gorph. I need not repeat that none of the rods are to be -moved out again, unless I appear to you personally. I'll talk to you -later."</p> - -<p>The box went dead.</p> - -<p>Perat, now taking no notice of Evelyn, finished his <i>terif</i> leisurely. -She sat at his side, breathing woodenly. She had done all that she -could do. All five rods had not been withdrawn, and they never would -be, now.</p> - -<p>"If all Terran women are like you," he began slowly, "I cannot -understand how you Terrans lost this battle." He did not expect an -answer, and did not wait for one. His hard eyes seemed softened -somewhat by a curious admiration. "Only your own gods know what you -have endured in your attempt to start the pile."</p> - -<p>She looked up wretchedly.</p> - -<p>He went on: "Yes, we learned in the nick of time, didn't we? Our -physicists told Gorph that the great rods were the core of a pile that -could have converted both ships into pure energy, with not a shred -of matter left over—something that all the fission piles in the two -galaxies couldn't do. It seems that the pile, if activated, would have -introduced sufficient energy into the low-packing-fraction atoms, from -iron on down to helium, to transform them completely from matter into -radiation.</p> - -<p>"Unpleasant thought! Now the Scythian plan will be modified slightly. -We shall wait until we tear our globe away from yours, <i>far</i> away, and -then prime movers left behind in your ship here can pull the columns -again, all five, this time. Our globe then proceeds into the Terran -Confederacy, and the war will be over. But of course, you'll know -nothing about that."</p> - -<p>He regarded her wearily. "I'm sorry Lyn—or is it 'Evelyn Kane'? If you -had been of Tharn-blood, or even of the Scythian federacy, I would have -married you."</p> - -<p>She listened to him with only half a mind. Some strange, inaudible -thing was trying to reach her. Something she couldn't grasp, but ought -to grasp. What had the mentors told her to be ready for? Exhaustion lay -like a paralyzing blanket over her inert mind.</p> - -<p>"You killed your countryman that day," he intoned, "just to ingratiate -yourself with me. He was very generous to you. When he saw that you -wouldn't shoot him with his eyes open, he closed them. Who was he?"</p> - -<p>"Gordon, Lord Kane. My father."</p> - -<p>The <i>terif</i> glass shook, and the man's face became perceptibly paler. -He breathed stridently for a while before speaking again.</p> - -<p>This time he seemed to be calling with earnest finality to the -forbidding deity of his own warlike homeland, announcing a newcomer at -the dark portals of the god: "<i>This woman</i>...!"</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Evelyn Kane did not shriek when the Faeg-bolt tore through her rib and -lungs. Even when she sank to the floor, the pain-lines in her own face -were much better controlled than those in Perat's.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<div class="figcenter"> - <img src="images/illus3.jpg" alt=""/> - <div class="caption"> - <p><i>She did not shriek when the bolt tore through her.</i></p> - </div> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p>Then as she lay quietly on the thick, gilded carpet, with consciousness -rapidly fading and returning with the regularity of her heart -beats, she realized what had been calling to her. The piezo crystal -in her waist-purse, still hidden in the shadows of her table, had -been activated, and had brought into focus within the room the dim, -transparent outlines of a small space ship.</p> - -<p>Perat saw it too, and his eyes widened as they traced it quickly from -wall to wall.</p> - -<p>"It's real ..." whispered Evelyn between clenched lips. "Mentors wanted -me ... return in it ... to Terra ... secret of pile...."</p> - -<p>A strange light was growing over Perat's face. "Of course! So that's -why your father tried so hard at the last to break through our -blockade and get a ship through! If the secret of the strain-pile -had ever reached Terra, all the Tharn suns—indeed, the whole Scythe -federation—would be novae by now! By Karos, it was a narrow thing!"</p> - -<p>There was a soft gurgling in Evelyn's throat.</p> - -<p>He flung his pistol away and sat down beside her, lifting her head to -his chest. "I'll call the physician," he rasped through contorted lips.</p> - -<p>She slid a cold palm over his hot cheek, caressing it lightly. "No ... -we die...."</p> - -<p>He stiffened. "<i>We?</i>"</p> - -<p>She continued to stroke his cheek dreamily. "Die with you...."</p> - -<p>He shook her. "What are you talking about!" he cried. "The pile isn't -going to erupt!"</p> - -<p>"Crystal focusses ... ship ... only when pile...."</p> - -<p>His face blanched.</p> - -<p>She whispered again, so softly that he had to bend his ear to her lips. -"<i>You escape ... get in ship....</i>"</p> - -<p>He stared at her incredulously. "You'd let me get away with the pile -secret!"</p> - -<p>She relaxed in his arms, smiling sleepily, while the tiny red trickle -from the corner of her mouth grew wider. "Stupid of me."</p> - -<p>She shivered. "... cold...."</p> - -<p>The Viscount of the Tharn Suns, the greatest star-cluster in the Scythe -federation, knotted his jaw muscles feverishly and gnawed at his lower -lip. Somehow or other the strain-pile had been energized. Probably -the terrific proton storm that had hidden both ships for years had -compensated for the unrealized potential of the undrawn fifth rod. It -was his duty to the federation to throw this woman to the floor and -take refuge between the shadowy, shimmering walls of the escape ship. -He must carry the secret of the pile to safety with him. He had only -seconds.</p> - -<p>He looked down distractedly at the small creature who was destroying -the proud ships that two great civilizations had spent a generation in -building. She seemed to be in a deep, peaceful sleep. The only sign of -life was a faint pulse in her throat.</p> - -<p>She was the only woman that he had ever found whose companionship he -could have ... enjoyed hour after hour. He almost thought, "could have -loved."</p> - -<p>The room was growing quite warm. The tremendous currents coursing -through the walls were swiftly growing stronger.</p> - -<p>Another thought occurred to him: How had those Terran mentors planned -for their escape ship to avoid the holocaust? Any matter within -millions of miles would be destroyed. It was evident, then, that -wherever the ship was, it was <i>not</i> within the danger zone.</p> - -<p>Suddenly he understood everything.</p> - -<p>With a queer smile, in which ribald surmise and tenderness fought -for supremacy, he picked the woman up, carried her into the phantom -vessel, placed her on the pilot's lounge, and strapped her in. From -his waist-purse he took a hypodermic syringe, removed the sheath from -the needle, and thrust it into her arm. Her face twinged briefly, but -she did not waken. He threw a blanket over her and then strode quickly -to the controls. They were fairly simple, and he had no difficulty in -switching the automatic drive to the general direction of the Tharn -sun cluster. He wrote a hasty note on the pilot's navigation pad, and -then turned again to the woman. He removed one of his duplicate jeweled -rings and slipped it on her finger. His father would recognize it and -would believe her.</p> - -<p>Then he bent over her and kissed her lightly on the lips.</p> - -<p>"Perhaps I love you too, my dearest enemy," he whispered gently. -"Educate our son-to-be in the ways of peace."</p> - -<p>Again outside the ship, he spun the space lock that sealed her in. The -ship's walls were now growing opaque and he could no longer see inside.</p> - -<p>His communications box was jangling furiously in a dozen different -keys, and anxious, querulous voices were pouring through it into -the room. He snapped it off, loosened his collar, filled his glass -to overflowing with the last of the <i>terif</i>, and cut off the table -luminar. His stereop projector next had his attention.</p> - -<p>He lay on his couch in the darkness of his death cell, studying with -the keenest satisfaction his wife, son, and father, while they waved at -him happily from the radiant stereop sphere.</p> - -<p>Those Terran mentors had planned well. The escape ship would not be -affected by the nearing cataclysm, because it was really in a different -time plane—at least five years in the past. The catastrophe would -simply release it to its original continuum, whence it would proceed -with its precious cargo to the Tharn suns.</p> - -<p>Odd effect, that time shift. He wished now he'd read more of the -theories of that ancient Terran, Einstein, who claimed that -simultaneity was an illusion—that "now" here could be altogether -different from "now" in other steric areas. His son, unborn as -yet "here," was more than four years old "there"—on the planet. -Tharn-R-VII, where the lad played in his grandfather's gardens.</p> - -<p>And then there was the mystery of the rings. The old count had not -had another ring made of course. The ring the count had sent with the -stereop coils must have been the same one that Perat had just placed -on the finger of his bride. The ring sent with the stereops was merely -his original ring brought back in the relooping of a time-line. In his -"now" there was only one ring—the one he was wearing. In Evelyn's -"now" there was the same ring, but that was logical, because her "now" -would soon be five years earlier than his. Owing to this five-year -relooping of time, it had been possible for the ring to exist in -duplicate for six weeks. But very soon, in his "now," it would be -destroyed for good.</p> - -<p>He pressed the repeat button on the stereop and started the coil again. -The boy had an engaging grin, rather like his own (he would indulge -a final vanity), but without the scar. He hoped there would never -be another war to disfigure or kill his son. It was up to the next -generation.</p> - -<p>As he swirled his <i>terif</i>, he smiled and thought of the note he had -left on the pilot's pad: <i>Name him after your father—Gordon</i>.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>"... <i>failed to find any survivors, or for that matter, any trace -whatever of either globe, if one excepts the supernova that appeared -for a quarter metron some thirty years ago at the far margin of the -proton storm. We of the Armistice Commission therefore unanimously -urge that further hostilities by either side would necessarily be -indecisive</i>...."</p> - -<p>—Scythe-Terran Armistice, History and Tentative Provisions (excerpts): -Gordon of Tharn, Editor-in-Chief and Primary Scythian Delegate.</p> - -<pre style='margin-top:6em'> -*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK STALEMATE IN SPACE *** - -This file should be named 63862-h.htm or 63862-h.zip - -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: -http://www.gutenberg.org/6/3/8/6/63862/ - -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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