The Winged Men of Orcon: A Complete Novelette Read online

  CHAPTER IV

  _In the Caverns of Orcon_

  I came out of it to find myself lying on my back upon the rocky floor ofa cavern more lofty than any cathedral. The air was warm and chargedwith a pungent, almost mephitic odor. Blue light filled the vastsubterranean place. I heard the far-away, droning throb of machinery.Crackling sounds like static on a vast scale ripped back and forth atintervals.

  Neither Captain Crane, Koto, nor LeConte was in sight, but wherever Ilooked as I twisted my head slowly, I saw winged Orconites staring atme. They stood back against the walls of the cavern chamber, their wingsfolded, the antennae on their orange foreheads waving gently. None wasclose, but all watched with cold, intelligent interest. I decided that Iwas in Leider's headquarters, a closely guarded prisoner. It was to besupposed that Leider had brought us here, as Hargrib had said he might,to interview us before he finished us off.

  Fear for the others laid hold of me, but I was still too dazed and giddyto get up and look for them. I lay still, trying to remember everything.

  "He waited until we made an aggressive move," I thought, "and then hedid _something_ to us. He did something which brought us shootingthrough the air here to his headquarters!"

  After I had progressed so far, it did not take me long to realize whatmethod Leider had employed to fetch us to the caverns. Nor did it takeme much longer, once I was sure of the method, to roll over heavily andbegin to yank the metal buttons off my coat. Since the manyguards--fully twenty of them--made no move to interfere, I did not stopuntil I had torn every button off my clothing, dumped from my pocketsevery object which had a scrap of metal on it, and even dug the metaleyelets out of my shoes.

  * * * * *

  What had happened was that Leider had simply readjusted the forces ofhis damned power houses so as to yank us to him, ship and all, _without_the medium of a magnetic cable. What he had done was to direct at us amagnetic current so terrific that, taking hold of the few odds and endsof metal on our persons, it had snatched us bodily through space. Andthe ship, too! It was stupendous; incredible.

  Full consciousness had returned by this time, and fear possessed me evenmore completely than it had before--fear for what might be going tohappen to Earth and fear of what might already have happened to myfriends. The Leider who had planned the Calypsus war had had no suchgigantic powers as these. As thoughts of Virginia Crane and the othersincreased until they filled my whole mind, I sat up on the floor of thecavern and then rose slowly to my feet.

  The guards never relaxed their vigilance, but they made no move as Imoved; they only stared, and I ventured to call out.

  "Captain Crane! Koto! LeConte!" I shouted loudly.

  No answer came. Since the Orconites still did not prevent me, I began towalk swiftly down the length of the great, echoing cathedral cavern,toward an abutment of rock which jutted out from one wall, separatingthe room I was in from another. Again I shouted, and the whole placerang with echoes, and my fears grew.

  But all at once fear vanished. I knew that the worst had not happenedand that I was not to be left alone.

  "Doctor Weeks!" It was Koto's voice, and it came from behind theabutment of rock toward which I was hurrying.

  "Koto!" I yelled and entered the next cavern and saw it all.

  * * * * *

  He was lying stretched out on the rocky floor of an underground room asvast as the one I had left behind me. He was unhurt, and he was wavingto me! Captain Crane, just waking up, was stretched out beside him. Ourship, a colossal bulk of battered, gleaming metal, had come to alighting point some fifty yards beyond them. LeConte was sitting on thedeck, staring groggily at me.

  Guards were posted all around the walls of this new cavern, and those Ihad just walked away from now came crowding in to join their fellows,but none spoke to us or held us back. In another thirty seconds LeContehad slid down from the ship, Captain Crane had stumbled to her feet,Koto had flung an arm about me, and we were all babbling together.

  I will not attempt to tell of our feelings during that interval. But thereunion did much for us. When I had returned to consciousness, it hadbeen with the thought that our puny scouting expedition had been wreckedbefore it had begun, and that all else had been lost to us. Now the merefact that we were together once more changed my attitude suddenly andcompletely.

  "Defeated?" I asked myself, and as I gripped the warm hands of friends Iknew that we were not defeated at all. Rather it seemed that everythingwe could have hoped to gain was won.

  The penopalatrin I had injected in Koto and LeConte had mended theformer's broken arm and the latter's cracked ribs, so that none of uswas in any way disabled. And we seemed to be free within limits. And ourship was here in Leider's caverns--our ship laden with two tons of themost terrific explosive science had ever created. And the Orconites,though they might be suspicious, knew nothing of our weapon.

  Now that hope had sprung to life again, I knew that the opportunitiesopen to us were huge. We were in great trouble, and whatever we didwould probably not be easily done, but there was a strong chance that wemight yet strike a blow that would help the peoples of Earth in theirhour of need.

  * * * * *

  It was not necessary to explain to the others all that was passing in mymind, for I could tell by their expressions that they were comprehendingthe possibilities as clearly as I.

  "What's Leider up to?" Captain Crane asked after a while.

  "He's brought us here to put us through an interview," I answered. "Hehasn't sent for us yet because he's busy getting ready for his war.Also, since he's a Prussian all the way through, he's probably ignoringus in the belief that his absence will make us more impressed with hismightiness."

  "Yes, but what are we going to do while he ignores us?" she snappedback.

  "Quite a lot," I answered, and turned to LeConte. "What are the chancesof getting word to Earth?"

  "Impossible," he said, shaking his head. "The set was wrecked when themagnetism--or whatever it was--took hold of us."

  "All right. Never mind it." I looked at Koto now. "Koto, what do youhave to do to fire your explosive?"

  I was sure now that the thought had already been in their minds, forCaptain Crane and LeConte nodded and Koto smiled.

  "The kotomite," he answered, "is packed in telargeium drums in theship's hold, and protected against being exploded until oxygen isadmitted to the drums and force applied. It was our original hope toland on Orcon, deposit the drums, and fire them by a time fuse. Thequickest way now would be simply to place one of our atomic guns in thehold, turn it loose, and get out. The stream of the gun would in a veryshort time disintegrate the drums to admit oxygen, and would at the sametime set off the explosive."

  "Good," I said shortly, and without more ado glanced about the cavern tolook over the situation with regard to the forty or so Orconites whom wehad been ignoring, and who had ignored us, ever since we found eachother.

  * * * * *

  They were standing motionless against the walls, eyes alert, uglyantennae waving, but with their arms folded across their chests. Thereseemed to be no reason why we should not all march boldly to the ship,climb aboard, and forthwith do the work that was to be done there. Ihad, however, a feeling that our task was not to be so easilyaccomplished, and was not long in discovering that the feeling wascorrect.

  The moment I told the others to come with me, and we all started to walktoward the ship, the whole encircling force of Orconites began to movesilently forward. When we were within a few yards of the ship's ladder,a tall lithely built Orconite who seemed to be captain of the guard,flopped his wings, shot across the cavern, and dropped down before us.Into the instrument on his chest he rapped a word of Orconese which wastranslated instantly into the German.

  "_Verboten!_" was the word.

  Forbidden! The Orconites were not taking any chance
s with us. It wasdiscouraging, but no more than I had expected. It simply meant that ifwe were to be interfered with, we should have to do something about theinterference.

  I quickly began to work out a plan.

  First of all I shrugged at the captain of the guard and turned back fromthe ship as though his refusal to let us aboard was of no consequence.Next I spoke to the others.

  "Come on," I said in a normal voice. "Don't make a fuss now, but pullback, from the gangway."

  They saw, I think, that I was planning something, and we retreatedtogether, with the result that the Orconites ceased to threaten and oncemore fell back to the walls of the cavern. Their captain flew over andjoined them.

  * * * * *

  "I thought for a moment," I said, "that we might tell the captain thatHargrib was locked up in the ship, and so furnish an excuse to getaboard. But that isn't good. Some of the Orconites would surely go withus, and in that case it would be next to impossible to get at thekotomite properly. What we need is at least a couple of minutes whichwill be uninterrupted. We'll leave Hargrib right where he is, and getaccess to the ship in another way. We'll fight for it!"

  "Fight?" Captain Crane shot a glance at me, and I saw that the ideaappealed to her.

  "So far as I can see," I said quickly, "Leider hasn't armed his guardswith any unique weapon, but has merely left them to watch us. And theOrconites don't know how to fight! Think of the ease with which I gotaway with Hargrib last night. When it comes to dealing destruction withscientific weapons, their power is appalling. When it comes to aslugging match, they are only so many sheep. And Leider's forgotten totake that fact into account!"

  I felt really sure that the guards were not armed with some mysteriousweapon we could not see, and Koto felt the same.

  "Doctor, you're right!" he exclaimed. "Leider's made a mistake! He'sforgotten what damage can be done by physical strength, and left usalone with a mere flesh-and-blood guard. There are forty of theOrconites and their leader, and only four of us. But we have strengththat they never dreamed of possessing. It makes the odds almost even!"

  "Right," I snapped. "And they will be even altogether if we can get holdof some clubs."

  * * * * *

  Koto and the others looked doubtful at that, but I had been thinkinghard of the problem all the while we were talking. I motionedunobtrusively toward the end of the room, where a tunnel, blue-lightedand lined with curious, glittering dials like ammeters, gave entrance,evidently, to another great underground chamber. On the floor of thattunnel, close to the entrance, lay a pile of heavy stalactites of somemineral which resembled jade. The spikes had seemingly been cleared offthe tunnel roof and left to be carried away. They were pointed enough tobe used for stabbing, and looked heavy enough to make stout clubs.

  Captain Crane smothered an exclamation as she glanced at the pile, andKoto and LeConte smiled.

  Our conversation all this while had been carried on with seemingcasualness, and not even the leader of the Orconites showed suspicion.More than ever I felt that neither they nor Leider would be prepared todefend the ship against a sudden physical attack.

  "The weak point for us," I said, "is that we'll have to make an awfulrow, and the alarm will go out, and eventually some weapon will bebrought out to stop us. But if we work quickly, there's a good chancethat we can finish everything before Leider is able to step in with somedevilish freak instrument. Take it easy until we've got the clubs, andthen cut loose for all you're worth. Captain Crane, it's a great pityyou're a woman. In all this you'll simply have to--"

  I did not finish. Something in the look she gave me stopped me quite,and somehow, whether I would admit it or not, I knew she was as fit aswe were. By this time we were strolling away from the ship toward thetunnel.

  * * * * *

  Blue-lighted, brilliant, the opening loomed larger as we approached. Thesame sounds of static on a vast scale which filled our cavern, filledthe tunnel, but the place was deserted. The pile of jade spikesshimmered right at the entrance. A few of the guards behind us saunteredat our heels without speaking, and the dozen or so about the tunnelclosed in toward the opening, but no restraint was put upon us.

  "We seem to have the freedom of the place and the key to the city!" wasCaptain Crane's dry comment.

  "Yes," I answered. "I'm pretty sure it's going to be a case of lambs ledto the slaughter. Looks as if--Oh, good Lord, look!"

  At the moment when I spoke those last words, we had approached to withinthirty or forty feet of the pile of stalactites, and from the quickmovement which eight or ten Orconites made ahead of us, drawingthemselves up in a line across the tunnel mouth, I knew that we hadalmost reached the limit of our freedom. But it was not that fact, orthe movement of our guards, that brought the exclamation from me.

  "Look!" I cried again, even though I knew each of the others had seen asclearly as I.

  From where we were walking slowly forward, it was possible to see cleardown the tunnel to the tall, lighted cavern beyond our own. In thecenter of that cavern, with her nose pointing toward a wide tunnel downwhich showed a glimmer of daylight, rested the long, needle-like, brighthull of the most beautifully designed space flier I had ever seen.

  We did not need to be told that this was Leider's own cruiser. A ship ofsuch magnitude and exceeding beauty could have been nothing else.

  * * * * *

  The guards knew we had seen and were aware of our excitement, butcontented themselves by standing fast in the line they had alreadyformed across the tunnel. We advanced another few yards.

  "Mother of Mercy!" LeConte whispered, almost in awe.

  "There's a chance for us!" Koto gasped. "A chance! We'll set one of theguns going in the hold of our own ship, and then--"

  Captain Crane's face was flushed with intense excitement, and herfingers were moving as though she felt the delicate controls of thespace ship under them even now.

  "Could you pilot it?" I asked.

  "_Could_ I! Give me the chance!" she cried.

  "All right," I snapped, "we will!"

  And in that second I enlarged my plans to take this gorgeous newdevelopment into account.

  "Fight to take the cruiser," I ordered. "Captain Crane, Koto, LeConte,get aboard as soon as you can cut your way through. I'll take care ofour ship and the kotomite at that time and join you, if possible. Comeon!"

  Thus was it decided. Thus did we enter our fight with an outlook asutterly different from our original one as hope is different fromdespair. Our discovery of the cruiser had been almost accidental, athing which might never have taken place except for our trip to get thespikes of jade. Surely such a happy accident had never happened before!

  * * * * *

  The moment I gave the command to go ahead, and we started to run, all ofthe ugly, bird-like faces of the Orconites across the tunnel becameconvulsed, and the creatures commenced to howl at us. Before we hurledourselves against the line, swift reinforcements shot through the airover our heads and joined them, and the temporary uncertainty which hadheld them gave way, so that they met our advance with an advance oftheir own. But we did not care.

  A few smashing blows which I delivered with my fists served to bringscreams of agony from the several creatures immediately about me, and asone or two staggered and crashed to the floor, the others gave way alittle. In a moment I was through the line to the pile of stalactites.And the others were through with me.

  "Here you go, Koto!" I cried, and stooping down in spite of the jostlingbodies and clammy hands that tried to prevent us, I caught up one of thelong, needle-pointed, heavy stalactites. As I shoved it at him andsnatched another for myself, Captain Crane and the others armedthemselves.

  By this time every Orconite in the heavy guard was on the spot, and thewhole mass was all over us, gasping, burbling, flapping their w
ings,fighting to clutch at us with their hideous orange hands and wavingantennae. Decidedly the fight was on, and I was forced to admit the factthat, though these creatures might be sheep, even sheep have power. Butthe first skirmish was already won, and I had faith that we could winthe real battle.

  I balanced my peculiar weapon in my hand to get the feel of it, thenbrushed aside a pair of sucking paws which were trying to take it fromme, and plunged the spike clean through the body of the man who held me.

  He fell without making a sound. I regained my weapon by planting my booton his chest and wrenching it free.

  I swung the spike like a club and crushed two heads with a single blowat each. A downward blow served almost to hack a long, clutching armfrom an Orconite's body. With four men out of the struggle, I looked tosee how my companions were faring, and was assured by a single glancethat they were as well off as I.

  * * * * *

  Encouraged greatly, I met an advance of pressing, jostling bodies by areturn to my original technique of stabbing. I stabbed every time a handreached out to hold me, and if I did not take a life with each stab, Iat least drew a spout of greenish-colored blood.

  It was not a nice business, any of it, especially as the Orconites wereas fearless before our onslaught as they were powerless. But it had tobe done. We were fighting for far more than our own lives.

  The blue-lighted corridor with its rippling sounds of static and itsgigantic ammeters became worse than a shambles. We walked upon, stumbledover, wallowed amongst the piled corpses of the slain, whose master,knowing more of the science of destructive warfare than any other beingin the Universe, had nevertheless forgotten that it was still possiblefor mankind to fight with their hands.

  Such a fight could have only one ending.

  When the end came I saw that Virginia Crane was splashed with the uglyblood of the Orconites from her smooth forehead to the soles of herflying boots, but she was unhurt. The rest of us were likewiseblood-stained and uninjured. We were all too excited to feel tired. Themoment the pressure about us began to relax, she surged toward thewaiting cruiser at the end of the tunnel, and I shouted to Koto andLeConte.

  "Go and help her, you two! I'll do the work on our ship!"

  They did not question my order, but obeyed.

  There were only ten or a dozen of the winged ones left now, and when thetwo men leaped after the woman, it was easy for me to fight a jabbing,slashing battle which not only protected the retreat, but enabled me towork my way slowly toward our own ship and its kotomite.

  * * * * *

  With Leider's cruiser already headed toward the tunnel which led outfrom the underground hangar, I knew that it could be taken into spacewith a minimum loss of time. I believed that I could get an atomic gungoing in our hold quickly, too. My hopes rose high as I darted a glanceover my shoulder and saw Captain Crane and Koto taking, three at a time,the gangway steps which led to the deck and control room, with LeContedirectly behind them. Now there were only seven guards left instead of adozen, and those were at last showing signs of being cowed. I cut downtwo, and gave a great bound which carried me away from the others in thedirection of our wrecked ship.

  No sooner, though, did I tense myself for a second leap than I felt anerveless sensation in my knees, as though the bones had turned tobutter, and knew that my high hopes had budded too soon. Instead ofleaping, I staggered on for two short steps, then stopped because Icould stagger no farther. Looking back at the cruiser, I saw thatLeConte, still on the gangway, had stopped also. Captain Crane and Kotowere making weak, despairing signs at me from the entrance to thecontrol room. Both of them looked as sick as cats. I heard a laugh, ashrill, rasping sort of laugh, from the forward end of the brightcruiser, and I looked in that direction.

  I saw a short man, bald headed, with frog eyes peering at us from behindthick prismatic glasses. He was clad in baggy green overalls, and wasslowly waving in our direction a glistening metal tube which he held inboth hands. From the end of the tube emanated a purplish light.

  "You were clever, my good young friends," he chortled, "to think offighting with your hands, but you were not quite quick enough. Notto-day goes anyone in my cruiser! What do you think of the enervatingray, heh? Ingenious, not? Ludwig Leider discovered it. I am LudwigLeider. You shall come with me and with your own eyes watch thede-energizing of New York and Paris and Berlin. For I am ready to doaway with your paltry Earth now!"

  I felt the last energy ooze out of me and I sunk, all in a heap, on thefloor of Ludwig Leider's cavern.