The Gods Hate Kansas Page 13

  “Too late we realized our own doom,” the narrative continued. “The doom of perfection. We overlooked the fact that while evolution may be speeded, slowed or diverted into strange by-paths, as your scientists have done through radiation bombardment, it cannot be halted. What we had thought was our ultimate energy-form was not the ultimate after all. Ahead lay one more step—the merging of our separate identities into the one great, all-pervading universal energy—for us, oblivion.” The voice fell to a note of ineffable sadness. “In a few hundred generations we, the highest life-form in the cosmos, will cease to exist.” Temple saw tears sparkle in Lee’s eyes, felt his own throat tighten. “We refused to submit to our doom. Somewhere in the universe there must be a key to the salvation of our race. A great ship was built and I was commissioned to find it.”

  On the screen of his mind Temple followed the endless search through the reaches of space, from world to world and system to system. He saw it come at last to our solar system and flash toward Earth. He could almost feel the tearing impact of the wandering meteorite that smashed the controls and sent it crashing into the Plato crater on the dead moon.

  “We lived in the wrecked ship until those Vards who survived could construct this haven. We were beyond the limits of our communication so we could not even call to our world for rescue. We began to construct crude vessels and hurl them toward your world. Strangely in one spot on Earth, and only one, there is a supply of an element also found on Xacrn. We had only to use material of the opposite magnetic property and the vehicles were drawn to that spot without the need for guidance systems.”

  An Earth element similar to one on Xacrn, and found only one place on Earth? Temple’s eyes widened and he almost shouted, “Helium! The only known deposits of helium in any sizable quantity are in Kansas. You just shot off the stones and the helium pockets under Kansas drew them down like magnets.”

  “Of course. But it was a long time before we realized that the voyagers were destroyed on the way by radiations in space. Protected by the shielding in our wrecked ship, we had been unaware of such a menace, and we were facing a disaster of another kind. Our Vards, being mortal, were growing old and weak and were dying off quickly. Soon we would be left stranded and utterly helpless.

  “With almost their last strength, our surviving Vards built the new vehicles and shielded them with material from the ship. This time the expedition survived to build the crude rocket ships and establish communications, as you have seen.”

  In Temple’s mind, the screen went blank as the picture story ended. For a full minute he was too stunned to marshal his surging thoughts. He drew a ragged breath.

  “Now that you’ve done it, what have you gained? If you had no intention of taking over our world, what were you—or are you—really after? You’ve told me everything but the one basic fact.”

  “That,” Monj said coldly, “will be revealed to you when you become a part of our project.”

  The words jerked Temple back to the harsh realities of their position. “If you wait for that, you’ll be as dead as your Vards and from the same cause—old age.”

  “You underestimate me, Dr. Temple.” He waved a hand toward Lee and Farge. “Remove their protective caps and hold them until the fumes in their brains have evaporated sufficiently for us to resume control. Have this one prepared for an immediate operation.”

  “Operation?” The word burst out of Temple in a croak.

  The figure of Monj held up slim hands. “This body and brain were the property of a skilled surgeon. They will have no difficulty in removing your silver plate and substituting one of a less troublesome metal so that you may apply your full abilities to the furtherance of our work.” He motioned to a Vard. “Get the operating table and instruments ready at once.”

  The grotesque creature bowed, opened a triangular mouth and said in perfect English, “It shall be done as ordered, Master.”

  The shock of hearing human speech from that alien mouth held Temple and his companions frozen, gaping. In that moment the remaining Vards closed in. Leathery tentacles whipped around them, pinning their arms from shoulder to wrist. A tentacle reached to pluck the detector from Temple’s forehead.

  The prospect of losing his last slender advantage filled him with desperation. In a frenzy of resistance he jerked his head back from the reaching tendrils and fought with new fury to free himself. Muscles swelled and corded, sweat streamed down his face as he writhed and strained.

  Suddenly, incredibly, one of the sucker discs let go with a pop like a drawn champagne cork, then another and another. He felt tentacles slipping. It seemed incredible, impossible, but he was slowly winning his trial of strength with the giant decapods. The explanation exploded in his mind.

  “Fight them,” he panted. “Monj said the Vards were dying of old age, with barely strength enough left to send those meteorites. Keep resisting. Wear them down.”

  He could hear Monj raging. The detector showed entities streaming down into the alcove to seize and revive the army of human bodies. With a superhuman surge of effort Temple tore away the last tentacle and broke free.

  Lee and Farge were struggling furiously. Temple plunged to their aid, prying sucker discs loose, dragging the tentacles from their waning grip. The last strength seemed to drain out of the great Vards swiftly and in moments he had the other two freed, if their perilous situation could be considered freedom. Human figures were running from the alcove, spurred by the controlling entities. They were young, strong, invincible.

  “Outside,” Temple panted, “It’s our only escape. I’ll try to hold them off while you and Lee get into those space suits.”

  “No,” Rocossen said. “Grab suits and run out. We can put them on out there. I remember, there’s enough thin air to sustain us a few minutes.”

  Then the theory held by many astronomers was true, that the moon did retain some thin atmosphere with the heavier molecules trapped in pools in the depths of the giant craters. Even a little would temper the intense cold and give them precious moments to don the space suits. No entity would dare leave the shielded cavern to pursue them into the bombardment of cosmic rays.

  An idea flamed in Temple’s mind. In midstride he swerved and caught the limp tentacles of the Vard leader, who had slumped to the floor, exhausted by the struggle. Without pausing he raced on, dragging the unresisting creature with him.

  Lee was jerking suits from the wall while Rocossen struggled with the door catch. Temple snatched a suit and followed into a small air lock, slamming the inner door in the face of pursuit. A blast of intense cold struck him as the outer door swung open.

  Not daring to waste breath on speech, they stumbled across an expanse of what seemed to be a lava shell toward a jumbled heap of gray rock. High above them, sunlight threw a knife-edged lance of almost intolerable illumination along the top of the crater wall, but in the crater it was intensely dark. Only a faint reflection caught by the tenuous atmosphere gave them enough light to see where they were going.

  As they struggled into the bulky suits and clamped down the bulbous helmets, fresh invigorating air poured over them. The sounds of gasping breaths and a muttered exclamation sounded in Temple’s ears. He said, “Well, what do you know? These have some kind of intercom system.”

  “Why, they do,” Lee said. Then her voice sharpened. “Curt, what a cruel thing to do, dragging that poor creature out here without protection. It can’t survive.”

  “I’m pretty sure it can, Lee. They had to work in the open to build that immense layout and to launch the meteorites, and I can’t quite visualize a space suit to fit them. If I’m right, it will have knowledge we’ll need to survive. It should be a willing ally, since it was a slave of the entities, too.”

  The Vard stirred and sat up. Its voice came clearly. “You are correct, Dr. Temple. We feel no cold and our enormous lungs find oxygen even in the thinnest air. I do thank you for my freedom. It is a new and frightening feeling, but I believe I like it.”

&n
bsp; Lee’s voice sounded in the helmets. “But I don’t understand how you happen to speak English. It can’t be your native tongue.”

  “Oh, no, Miss Mason. But we respond in whatever language in which we are addressed. It is only courtesy to do so.”

  Temple’s liking for the weird creatures went up another notch. Apparently they could establish instant telepathic rapport that automatically adapted itself to any tongue. At the moment he had more pressing matters to explore.

  “What is going to happen now? What will they do, and what are our chances?”

  “Not good at all,” the Vard said. “You should have carried away those other suits. They will send out humans to hunt us down with fearful weapons. Our masters dare not come out, but the minds of the hunters will be programmed to stalk us relentlessly. Meanwhile, you have no food or water. Your suits are poorly insulated against cold and your air supply is good for one hour only. This was purposely done so a slave could not break his bonds and remain outside.”

  Temple’s eyes widened. “You mean it can be done? It is possible to wrest control from one of these entities?”

  “Only humans have succeeded, and only those who resisted seizure so strongly that control was not complete. A mind taken unaware is powerless to escape.”

  Lee whistled. “Brother, if they try to grab me again, they are going to get the battle of their lives.”

  “I’m afraid we all are,” Temple said. “Men in space suits are coming out of the air lock now. Can you help us, whatever your name is?”

  “I am Decex Vard, which means my identification number is ten thousand. Wait here and I will try to locate a cave where the rocks give some protection.”

  He lumbered off at surprising speed. Temple could hear a soft clattering and realized it was Lee’s teeth chattering. “I’m f-freezing, Curt.”

  “Enjoy it while you can,” he said grimly. “When that sunshine reaches us, the temperature will go up to over two hundred degrees above zero. Then we’ll really understand that old saying about out of the frying pan, into the fire.”

  The Vard came racing back. “I find no caves and the hunters are close. They bear our most powerful weapon, a beam that causes the atoms of anything it strikes to burst apart violently.”

  CHAPTER 16

  Return To Captivity

  “Come on,” Temple said, gesturing. “Our only chance is to go up that crater wall. We can dodge the sun line longer and hide among the rocks.”

  They crossed the crater floor in great bounds, utilizing the lighter lunar gravity for added speed, dragging the aged Vard. An ache in his chest warned Temple that their limited air supply was nearly exhausted. High up the crater wall they flung themselves down, panting, behind a screen of rocks.

  “We’re nearing the end of the road,” he said at last. “Then that lying Monj and his pack can go ahead with their non-conquest of Earth.”

  “Oh, no,” Decex Vard said quickly. “You do not understand at all. My masters want only to return to their home. If it had not been for the failure of our poor bodies they would never have touched Earth. They discovered at once that the brief life span of humans could offer no clue to the salvation of our race.”

  Temple gaped at him. “Then why all this elaborate plot, the meteor camp, the Crimson Plague, the whole crazy, vicious hoax? If you know the answer, tell us.”

  “Of course. To construct the great ship for their return journey requires the labor of thousands of skilled hands and scientific minds. Yours are not the best, but they will have to do. The Crimson Plague, as you call it, is only our means of securing and protecting those who are needed on the moon to mine and process the special ores. Then we can move to the base on Earth and simply occupy as many bodies as necessary to fabricate the space craft and launch it.”

  The stunned silence was broken by Lee’s strangled voice. “Then this whole horrible reign of terror was for no other purpose than to get the ship built so they could go home. Why in the name of heaven didn’t the stupid idiots simply tell us their problem and ask for our help like gentlemen? The whole civilized world would have broken its neck to co-operate and speed them homeward.”

  Temple received a distinct impression that the Vard was close to a state of total shock. His voice was faint. “But—but, is yours such a strange race that you can ask for something and it is given willingly? That is contrary to natural law.”

  “The law of might makes right,” Rocossen murmured dazedly. “The law of seizure by conquest—the basic law of evolution. In their preoccupation with super-evolution, the Xacrns never discovered that there might be any other laws governing human nature. In science they are eons past us, but in human relations they’re still back in our pre-dawn era of tooth-and-nail existence.”

  “What a colossal misunderstanding,” Temple whispered. “What a grim cosmic joke. Now that I know, I can’t even bring myself to hate them. I just feel sorry for the poor, dumb stupes. If I can talk to them, I’m sure we can iron this all out peacefully.”

  Lee had squirmed up to peer over the rocks. She came scrambling down, her face pale. “You’d better start ironing fast, then. The hunters are coming and, with no wind on the moon to disturb the dust, our tracks show up like Burma-Shave signs.”

  “Climb,” Temple cried. “Stick to rocks where our tracks won’t show. Here, Decex. I’ll give you a boost.”

  The Vard shrank from his extended hand. Temple got an impression of embarrassment. “Please, I want to return to my master. Freedom was exciting, but I am lonely and afraid. Forgive me, kind humans, but those others are our people and they have given us much. They drive us to exhaustion and bring us pain, not because they are cruel but because they have evolved beyond feelings and emotions. Pain and fear, love and hate, are to them only words. We feel them only because we are not as far along on the scale of evolution. You have been kind and I appreciate it, but I must return to my own. Thank you and farewell.” Before anyone could move he sprang up and went loping down the slope, like a many-legged lost dog.

  Lee whispered, “The poor, simple, lovable dupe.”

  “That lovable dupe,” Temple said harshly, “just showed some unlovable dupes exactly where we’re hiding. Run!” Before they could move there was a blinding, soundless flash and a gigantic rock a few yards away vanished into a puff of dust. Another above them succumbed to the titanic energy burst.

  “Follow me,” Temple shouted. “They’ll have this shelter all blasted away in a minute. We’ll be seen if we try to climb. Our only chance is to duck from rock to rock and try to get back to the dome. We’ve got to have fresh oxygen bottles. If I can keep you two alive out here while I go in and talk to them, there’s a chance we can all survive. I think I know the answer to their problem.”

  “You can’t stop the march of evolution,” Rocossen panted.

  “The hell you can’t,” Temple said harshly. “Our history is full of examples. Look at Greece, Rome, and Maya and Inca civilizations. They climbed far up the scale and then fell back.”

  Over their heads a giant pinnacle of rock exploded, then another further back. Apparently they had not been seen and the hunters were only probing blindly. Temple climbed to a spot where he could look down onto the crater floor.

  One of the hunters was almost directly below. He stood half turned, looking back along the wall, cradling his strange weapon as he searched. Temple beckoned the others. “There’s one right below us and he’s been allowed an extra oxygen bottle for this special chase. If we jump him together, we can get his air supply and smash that atomic gun.”

  The figure whirled, looking up. Temple realized, too late, that all the suits were probably on the same intercom band.

  The weapon was lifting toward their hiding place. Temple kicked back against his rock and catapulted out in a headlong dive. He went plunging down with Lee’s scream ringing in his ears.

  The shock of his action slowed the hunter’s movement for an instant. Before he could fire, Temple crashed into him. Even u
nder the light gravity, the impact was stunning. His forehead smashed against the helmet with a force that brought tears to his eyes. The figure of the hunter sprawled limp and unconscious. He hurled the weapon far out and was unfastening the spare oxygen flask as Lee and Rocossen raced up.

  “To the dome,” he snapped. “This will keep you two going until I can dicker with Monj.”

  They went bounding across the crater floor, their suits winking with reflected star-shine. Suddenly the lava around them began to erupt in soundless bursts. With no betraying muzzle flash, there was no way to locate the unseen marksman. Before Temple could think of a countermeasure, another flash burst in their midst, sending them flying like tenpins.

  They scrambled up, maintaining silence for fear of being heard, and started on. Rocossen suddenly staggered and collapsed. Temple ran to him, feeling a sharp knife of fear. “Rocky, how bad is it? Where were you hit?”

  “Not—hit,” the physicist panted. “Air—gone.” One hand stirred feebly, pointing to a ragged gash in his metal breastplate. “Nothing to—patch with. You two—go on. I’ll follow—if I can.”

  Temple shoved the extra oxygen flask into Lee’s hand. “Run! Hide in that rock pile we ran to when we first came out. You can dodge around there until I get Rocky inside and talk to Monj. I’m safe from immediate seizure so I may have time to win him over and send help for you. It’s our only chance.”

  Gathering the protesting astronomer in his arms he stumbled toward the air lock. Lee ran for the rocks, the soundless bursts following her flight. Temple stopped shaking when he saw her vanish into the concealing jumble.

  With Rocossen’s last air turned full on and both hands over the gash, he could eke out a few more minutes. Lunar gravity cut his weight to less than fifty pounds, but it began to feel like fifty tons to Temple, with his own lungs starving for oxygen. He staggered on, reeling on rubbery legs.