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Updated: May 2, 2025
But we’ll take plenty of them with us before we’re finished." "That’s the spirit," Rip approved. He told them, "I won’t last much longer. When I get too weak, Koa will take over. Meanwhile, I want to get outside. Bring the rocket launcher outside, too. Who’s the gunner? Santos? Stand by, then. We’ll need you in case the Connie decides to send a few snappers before it goes after the Scorpius."
The Scorpius sent its entire complement of snapper-boats to the asteroid for protection, in case Consops made another try, then flamed off to Marsport to put in new supplies to replace those damaged when Rip had forced sudden and disastrous acceleration. The asteroid had reached earth’s orbit before the cruiser returned. Of course, earth was on the other side of the sun.
The Scorpius leaves in five minutes." Rip ran. The realization hit him that the big nuclear cruiser had stopped at the platform for the sole purpose of collecting him and nine enlisted Planeteers. The low gravity helped him cover the hundred yards to the personnel office in five leaps. He swung to a stop by grabbing the push bar of the office door.
Koa had half turned to shake hands. Suddenly he spun on around, his head banging against the deck. Rip felt a surge of loosened muscles that had been braced against acceleration. At the same time, silence flooded in on them with an almost physical shock. He murmured, "brennschluss," and the murmur was like a trumpet blast. The Scorpius had reached velocity and the nuclear drive had cut out.
Rip watched and saw several blips on it that indicated asteroids. They were all small. He watched, interested, as the Scorpius overtook them. Once, according to the screen, the cruiser passed under an asteroid, with a clearance of only a few hundred feet. "You didn't miss that one by much," Rip told the space officer. "Don't have to miss by much," he retorted.
He thought he knew why he had been chosen for the job. Word of the priceless asteroid must have reached headquarters only a short time before he was scheduled to leave the space platform. He could imagine the speed with which the specialists at Terra base had acted. They had sent orders instantly to the fastest cruiser in the area, the Scorpius, to stand by for further instructions.
Tibi jam brachia contrahit ardens Scorpius. Virg. Georg. l. 1. 34. A new star appeared in Cassiope's chair in 1572. Herschel's Construction of the Heavens. Phil. Trans. Flax Five males and five females. It was first found on the banks of the Nile. The Linum Lusitanicum, or portigal flax, has ten males: see the note on Curcuma.
Rip wished for a communicator powerful enough to reach the Scorpius, but he knew it was useless to try with his helmet circuit. The carrier waves of the snapper-boats were on the same frequency, and they would smother the faint signal from his bubble. But the boats might be able to hear if they got close enough! He had a swift memory of the communications circuits.
Then he took the landing boat to the Scorpius, talked the problem over with the ship's medical department, and arranged for his men to take injections that would keep them from getting radiation sickness. They left the asteroid belt far behind and passed within ten thousand miles of Mars.
He yelled at the enlisted spaceman on duty, "Where do I find nine men?" The spaceman looked at him vacantly. "What for? You got a requisition, Lieutenant?" "Never mind requisitions," Rip snapped. "I’ve got to find nine Planeteers and get them on the Scorpius before it flames off." The spaceman’s face cleared. "Oh. You mean Koa’s detachment. They left a few minutes ago." "Where? Where did they go?"
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