Anderson, Poul The Star Fox

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Aleriona radar can't?"
"My engineer is off explaining the setup to your technical staff. Let us stick to the tactical side for now.
The diversion should be ample. One well-armed ship, striking by surprise, can raise all kinds of hell.
OnceMeroeth's in space,Fox will escort her to the limit. According to all our information-from
instruments, radio monitor, captured documents, and so forth; we've got a man who can puzzle out the
language if you give him time-most of the enemy strength here is chasing through the Auroran System and
beyond, looking for me. So we ought to be out of danger well before they can bring more power to bear
against us than Fox can handle."
The colonel frowned. "You juggle too many unknowns for my taste."
"Or mine," Heim said dryly. "But one way to clear away some of 'emis obvious. Let me go along with
your delegation to the Aleriona. They won't know I'm not just another colonist. But I know them pretty
well. I ought to, after so many years sparring with them. I also have a professional Navy eye, which they
won't be expecting. Endre should come too. He's got a poet's grasp of non-human psychologies.
Between us, we can not only help you make a better deal, but carry back a lot of useful information to
base our specific plans on."
"M-m-m ... well-" De Vigny pondered a moment. Then, crisply: "Sobe it. Time is short, and we do not
really have much to lose. This, then, is the schedule as I understand itWe begin at once to arrange
evacuation. During the next few days, the people chosen can flit in by ones and twos. We must also load
supplies, and must not be observed doing it. But my men .canrun a cargo tube from the forest to one of
your locks below water, without exposing it to the sky.
"Meanwhile I establish radio contact with the Aleriona and ask for a parley. They will doubtless agree,
especially since their new chief of naval operations seems, from Lieutenant Irribarne's account, to be a
rather decent fellow. I daresay they will receive our representatives already tomorrow,,,
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"If we can reach an agreement, cessation of guerrilla operations and perhaps the supplying of some
engineers in exchange for vitamins-good.Whether that works out or not, the delegation returns here.
"Then your ship attacks to get this transport safely away. "After that, if we are provided with the
capsules, you continue your warfare in space as long as possible. If not, and if we cannot steal them, I
call the enemy again and offer an end to your activities, provided he supplies us. This he is virtually sure
to accept.
"At large cost or small, we shall have gained time, during which we hope Earth will come to help. Am I
right?"
Heim nodded and got out his pipe. "That's the idea," he said.
De Vigny's nostrils dilated."Tobacco?One had almostI forgotten."
Heim chuckled and threw the pouch on the desk. De Vigny picked up a little bell and rang it. And
aide-de-camp materialized in the tent entrance, saluting. "Find me a pipe," de Vigny said. "And, if the
captain does not object, you may find one for yourself too."
"At once, my colonel!"The aide dematerialized.
"Well." De Vignyunbent a trifle. "Thanks are a poor thing, I monsieur. What can New Europedo for
you?" ^ Heim grew conscious of Vad�sz's half jocose, half sympathetic regard, blushed, and said
roughly, "I have an old friend on this planet, who's now Jean Irribarne's sister-in-law. See to it that she
and her family are among the evacuees."
"Pierre will not go when other men stay," the Basque said gently.
"But they shall most certainly come here if you wish," de Vigny said. He rang for another aide.
"Lieutenant, why do you not go with Major Legrand to my own flyer? It has a set which can call to
anywhere in the Haute Garance. If you will tell the operator where they are, your kin-" .When that was
done, he said to Heim and Vad�sz, "I shall be most busy today, it is plain. But let us relax until after
lunch. We have many stories to trade."
And so they did.
When at last de Vigny must dismiss them, Heim and Vad�sz were somewhat at loose, ends. There was
little to see. Though quite a few men were camped around the lake, the shelters were scattered and
hidden, the activity unobtrusive. Now and then a flyer came by, as often as not weaving between tree
trunks under the concealing foliage. Small radars sat in camouflage, watching for the unlikely appearance
of an Aleriona vessel. The engineers could not install their loading tube to the ship before night, unless one
of the frequent fogs rose to cover their work. Men sat about yarning, gambling,doing minor chores. All
were eager to talk with the Earthlings, but the Earthlings soon wearied of repeating themselves. Toward
noon a degree of physical tiredness set in as well. They had been up for a good eighteen hours.
Vad�sz yawned. "Let us go back to our tent," he suggested. "This planet has such an inconvenient
rotation. You must sleep away a third of the daylight and beawake two thirds of the night."
"Oh, well," Heim said. "It wouldn't be colonizable otherwise."
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"What?How?"
"You don't know? Well, look, it has only half Earth's mass, and gets something over 85 percent of the
irradiation. The air would've bled away longago, most of it, except that air loss is due in 'large part to
magnetic interaction with charged particles from the sun. Even a G5 star like Aurore spits out quite a bit
of stuff. But slow spin means a weak magnetic field."
"Another thanks due to Providence," the Hungarian said thoughtfully.
"Huh!" Heim snorted. "Then we've got to blame Providence for Venus keeping too much atmosphere.
It's a simple matter of physics. The smaller a planet is, and the closer to its sun, the less difference of
angular momentum between the inner and outer sections of the dust cloud that goes to form it.Therefore,
the less rotation."
Vad�sz clapped his shoulder. "I do not envy you your philosophy, my friend. God isgood. But we are in
mortal danger of becoming serious. Let us, I say, return to the tent, where I have a flask of brandy, and-"
They were not far from it then, were crossing a meadow where flame-colored blossoms nodded in the
golden grass. Jean Irribarne stepped from under the trees. "Ah," he hailed,"vous voil�. I have looked for
you."
"What about?"Heim asked
The lieutenant beamed. "Your friends are here." He turned and called," 'Allo -o-o!"
They came out into the open, six of them. The blood left Heim's heart and flooded back. He stood in a
sunlit darkness that whirled.
She approached him timidly. Camp clothes, faded and shapeless, had today been exchanged for a dress
brought along to the woods and somehow preserved. It fluttered light and white around her long-legged
slenderness. Aurore had bleached the primly braided brown hair until it was paler than her skin; but still it
shone, and one lock blew free above the heart-shaped face. Her eyes were violet.
"Madelon," he croaked. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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