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"But that's clear out in the Alpha System," Judge Ledue objected. "We don't have a spaceship on the planet, certainly nothing with a hyperdrive engine. And it would take a lifetime to get out to the Gamma System and back on reaction drive." Conn put his empty brandy glass on the table and sat erect.
The Times had run quite a few stories, some with black borders, about ships that had gotten into trouble with monsters. A hunter-ship is heavy and it is well-armored install hyperdrive engines in one, and you could take her from here to Terra but a monster is a tough brute, and he has armor of his own, scales an inch or so thick and tougher than sole leather.
The computer considered Jesperson's plea a few moments, reviewing the brief which the lawyer had taped and fed to the computer earlier. Time passed. Then the green panel lit, and the words, APPLICATION GRANTED. Alan smiled. Bryson had been defeated; Max's money was his. Money that could be turned toward intensified research on the hyperdrive. "Well, son?" Jesperson asked.
There aren't a dozen and a half planets in the Old Federation that still have hyperdrive, and they're all civilized. That's if 'civilized' is what Gilgamesh is," he added. "These are homemade barbarians. Workers and peasants who revolted to seize and divide the wealth and then found they'd smashed the means of production and killed off all the technical brains.
"This is where we're going first," he said, placing a finger on a ball-shaped satellite in orbit around the misty planet. "This is the Venus space station. As you know, Venus has no natural satellite of its own, so we built one. We'll blast off from here and go directly to the space station where the Polaris will be fitted with hyperdrive for deep-space operations.
The central communicator over the door suddenly buzzed, and the three cadets waited for the announcement. "... Cadets Corbett and Astro report to rocket cruiser Polaris for indoctrination on hyperdrive on the double by order of Major Connel." Tom and Astro got up.
And above all else, he was convinced that the secret of the Cavour Hyperdrive was hidden somewhere on Earth the Cavour Hyperdrive, that would enable man to leap interstellar distances almost instantaneously, and bring an end to the sharp differences between Earthers and Spacers.
No interference with anything that passed for a planetary government, but only one sovereignty on any planet with nuclear weapons, and only one supreme sovereignty in a galaxy with hyperdrive ships. And there was rioting on Amaterasu, because of public indignation over a fraudulent election. He looked at that in incredulous delight.
Alfie sat back and waited, hands clasped around one knee. "In the first place," began Astro, "hyperdrive was developed by Joan Dale back at the Academy. And it's so blasted simple, I get mad at myself for not thinking of it first!" "Uhhh," snorted Alfie. "I respect your great talent on the power deck, Astro, but I would hardly compare myself with Dale!" "Shut up!" barked Astro.
"Nothing, Corbett," answered Connel wearily. "Instead of supplying the Solar Alliance with copper, in another week Junior will be hardly more than a molten piece of space junk." He looked at the teleceiver screen. All ready, Junior was falling away. "Stand by for full acceleration, hyperdrive," said the big officer in a hoarse whisper. "We're heading home!"
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