Rip Foster in Ride the Gray Planet Part 26

Do you hear me?"

"Same way," Rip replied. "Get this, Koa. Don't fail to explode that charge at twenty-three-oh-five. Can you see us?"

The reply was very slightly stronger. "I will explode the charge as ordered, Lieutenant. We can see a pair of rocket exhausts, but no boats.

Is that you?"

"Yes. We're coming in on propulsion tubes."

Koa waited for a long moment, then asked, "Sir, what if you're not with us by twenty-three-oh-five?"

"You know the answer," Rip retorted crisply.

Of course Koa knew. The nuclear blast would send Rip and Santos spinning into outer s.p.a.ce, perhaps crippled, burned, or completely irradiated.

But the lives of two men couldn't delay the blast that would save the lives of eight others, not counting prisoners.

Rip estimated his speed and course and the distance to the asteroid. He was increasingly sure that they wouldn't make it, and the knowledge was like the cold of s.p.a.ce in his stomach. It would be close but not close enough. A minute would make all the difference.

For a few heartbeats he almost called Koa and told him to wait that extra minute, to explode the nuclear charge at 23:06, at the very last second.

But even Planeteer chronometers could be off by a few seconds, and he couldn't risk it. His men had to be given some leeway.

He surveyed the asteroid. The nuclear charge was on his left side, pretty close to the sun line. At least he and Santos could angle to the right, to get as far away as possible.

The edge of the asteroid's shadow was barely visible. That it was visible at all was due to the minute particles of matter and gas that surrounded the sun, even millions of miles out into s.p.a.ce. He reduced helmet power and told Santos, "Angle to the right. Get as close to the edge of shadow as you can without being cooked."

As an afterthought, he asked, "How many tubes do you have?"

"One after this, sir. I had three."

"Save the one you have left."

Rip didn't know yet what use they would be, but it was always a good idea to have some kind of reserve.

The Connie cruiser was sliding up to the crippled a.s.sault boat. Rip took a quick look, then shifted his hands and angled toward the edge of shadow. When he was within a few feet, he reversed the direction of the tube to keep from shooting out into the sunlight. A second or two later the tube burned out.

Santos was several yards away and slightly above him. Rip saw that the Planeteer was all right and turned his attention back to the cruiser. It was close enough to the a.s.sault boat to haul it in with grappling hooks.

The hooks emerged and engaged the torn metal of the boat, then drew it into the waiting port. The ma.s.sive air door slid closed.

The question was, would the Connie try to set his ship down on the asteroid? Rip grinned without mirth. Now would be a fine time. His chronometer showed a minute and a half to blast time.

He took another look at his own situation. He and Santos were getting close to the asteroid, but there was still over a half mile of Earth distance to go. They would cover perhaps three-fourths of that distance before Koa fired the charge.

He had a daring idea. How long could he and Santos last in direct sunlight? The effect of the sun in the open was powerful enough to make lead run like water. Their suits could absorb some heat, and the ventilating system could take care of quite a lot. They might last as much as three minutes, with luck.

They had to take a risk with the full knowledge that the odds were against them. But if they didn't take the risk, the blast would push them outward from the asteroid--into full sunlight. The end result would be the same.

"We're not going to make it, Santos," he began.

"I know it, sir," Santos replied.

Rip thought anyone with that much coolness and sheer nerve rated some kind of special treatment. And the young corporal had shown his ability time and time again. He said, "I should have known you knew, _Sergeant_ Santos. We still have a slight chance. When I give the word, use an air bottle to push yourself into the sunlight. When I give the word again, light off your remaining tube."

"Yessir," Santos replied. "Thank you for the promotion. I hope I live to collect the extra rating."

"Same here," Rip agreed fervently. His eyes were on his chronometer, and with his free hand he took another air bottle. When the chronometer registered exactly one minute before blast time, he called, "Now!" He triggered the bottle and moved from shadow into glaring sunlight. A slight motion of the bottle turned him so his back was to the sun; then he used the remaining compressed air to push himself downward along the edge of shadow. The sun's gravity tugged at him.

He pulled the last tube from his belt and held it ready while he watched his chronometer creep around. With five seconds to go, he called to Santos and fired it. Acceleration pushed at him.

In the same moment, the nuclear charge exploded.

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

Ride the Planet!

A mighty hand reached out and shoved Rip, sweeping him through s.p.a.ce like a dust mote. He clutched his propulsion tube with both hands and fought to hold it steady. He swiveled his head quickly, searching for Santos, and saw the corporal a dozen rods away.

From the far horizon of the asteroid the incandescent fire of the nuclear blast stretched into s.p.a.ce, turning from silver to orange to red as it cooled.

Rip knew they had escaped the heat and blast of the explosion, but now there was a question of how much prompt radiation they had absorbed.

During the first few seconds, a nuclear blast sprayed gamma radiation and neutrons in all directions. He and Santos certainly had gotten plenty.

But how much? His lower-level colorimeter had long since reached maximum red, and his high-level dosimeter could be read only on a measuring device.

Meanwhile, he had other worries. Radiation had no immediate effect. At worst, it would be a few hours before he felt any symptoms.

As he sized up his position and that of the asteroid, he let out a yell of triumph. His gamble would succeed! He had estimated that going into the direct gravity pull of the sun at the proper moment and lighting off their last tubes would put them into a landing position. The asteroid was moving rapidly, into a new orbit that would intersect the course he and Santos were on. He had planned on the asteroid's change of orbit. In a minute at most they would be back on the rock.

His propulsion tube flared out, and he released it. It would travel along with him, but his hands would be free.

Then he saw something else. The blast had started the asteroid turning!

He reacted instantly. Turning up his communicator he yelled, "Koa! The rock is spinning! Cut the prisoners loose, grab the equipment, and run for it! You'll have to keep running to stay in the shadow. If sunlight hits those fuel tanks or the rocket tubes, they'll explode!"

Koa replied tersely, "Got it. We're moving."

At least the Connie cruiser couldn't harm them now, Rip thought grimly.

He looked for the cruiser and failed to find it for several seconds. It had moved. He finally saw its exhausts some distance away.

He forgot his own predicament and grinned. The Connie cruiser had moved, but not because its commander had wanted to. It had been right in the path of the nuclear blast and had been literally shoved away.

Then Rip forgot the cruiser. His suit ventilator was whining in the terrific heat, and his whole body was now bathed in perspiration. The sun was getting them. It would be only a short time until the ventilator overloaded and burned out. They had to reach the asteroid before then.

The trouble was that there was nothing further he could do about it. He had only air bottles left, and their blast was so weak that the effect wouldn't speed him up much. Nevertheless, he called to Santos and directed him to use his bottles.

Santos spoke up. "Sir, we're going to make it."

In the same instant, Rip saw that they would land on the dark side. The asteroid was turning over and over. For a second he had the impression that he was looking at a turning globe of the earth, the kind used in elementary school back home. But this gray planet was scarcely bigger than the giant globe at the s.p.a.ce Council building on Terra.