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The Connie cruiser decelerated, went into reverse, and came to a full stop about a mile from the asteroid. The Planeteers saw fire in two places along the hull, marking the exhausts of two small craft. "Snapper-boats," Koa said tonelessly. "Five men in each, if those are the regular Connie kind." Rip made a quick decision. With only one launcher they couldn’t guard the whole asteroid.
Rip led the way from the mixing chamber, through the heavy safety door, and into the engine control room. His entrance was met with poorly concealed grins by the spacemen. Halfway across the room, Rip turned suddenly and bumped into Sergeant Major Koa. Koa fell to the deck, arms flailing for balance but flailing against his protective clothing.
"We’re on our way. Koa, make it if you can." "Yes, sir." Dominico was already making his way back to the cave. Rip and Dowst started for the horizon at a good walk, not afraid now to use their lights, at least for a few yards. If any of the remaining Connie search teams saw the lights they would think it was two of their own men.
He directed the placing of a very small charge and was moving away from it so Koa could set it off when Santos suddenly yelled, "Sir! The Connie is coming!" Rip called, "Fire the charge, Koa," then looked up. The Consops cruiser was moving slowly toward them. The canny Connie had been waiting for something to happen on the asteroid, Rip guessed.
Scralabus primus was the scientific name of the creature, but the fact that it looked like a silicon armadillo had given it the popular name of "silly dilly." Apart from its desire for oxygen, it was harmless. Koa reported, "Sir, the block of thorium is ready. We've hung it on a line behind the landing-boat. The blast won't hurt it, and it's too big to get inside the boat." "Fine, Koa.
The Hawaiian jerked a repair strip from a belt pouch and slapped it on the crack in Bradshaw's bubble. Rip wasted no time, either. By the time Koa had the strip in place he had pulled the connection from his belt light. He ran the tips of the wires over the edges of the strip. The current sealed the patch in place instantly. Koa grabbed the atmosphere control on Bradshaw's belt and turned it.
Vack worms were a spaceman's equivalent of "the blues." "Not exactly, sir. I happened to overhear the doctor talking today. You're due for a leave in a week." "That's good news!" Rip exclaimed. "You're not unhappy about it, are you?" Koa shrugged. "We were all hoping we'd be together on our next assignment. The gang liked serving under you.
It was too big for use against a landing party. Besides, it would put the Planeteers themselves in danger. "Ever have trouble with the Connies before?" he asked Koa. "More'n once, sir. Sometimes it seems like I'll never get a job where I don't have to fight Connies." Rip was trained in science and Planeteer techniques, and he didn't pretend to know the ins and outs of interplanetary politics.
"Follow me," he directed. Rip picked up the instrument and carried it to a point 90 degrees from the line represented by Koa and Santos. He put the instrument down and zeroed it on Messier 44, the Beehive star cluster in the constellation Cancer.
"I'm not worried," Rip replied and wished it were true. He looked up at the Connie again. It was getting larger. The cruiser was within a few miles of the asteroid. As Rip watched, fire spurted from the cruiser, and it moved with gathering speed toward the asteroid's horizon. He watched the exhaust trail, wondering why the Connie had blasted off. "He has something up his sleeve," Koa muttered.
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