Spacehounds of IPC

oes Not

levator stopped at the uppermost passenger floor. They walked across the small circu

and Miss Newton, sir. Do yo

wall of steel and deftly manipulated an almost invisible dial set flush with its surface. "This is to keep the passengers where they belong,"

ed to the girl the operation of the machinery there automatically at work-devices for heating and cooling, devices for circulating, maintaining,

not immediately apparent, because of the enormous latticed beams and girders which braced the walls in every direction. The air glowed with the violet light of the twelve great ultra-light projectors

kout lenses, aren't we?" asked the

ht through our bodies, or any ordinary substance, like a bullet through a hole in a Swis

l saw that instead of the fierce glare she had expected, it emitted only a soft violet

swing past the vertical, and even if one shines right through you you ca

a-violet

a-light vision. A lot of good men are studying this thing of direct vision,

ng in comfort through empty space, and of actually seeing through seamless s

any adequate explanation is bound to be fairly dee

hrough advanced mechanics. Of course, I didn't get into any such highly specialized

ally got one that could land safely upon Mars. Roeser, who was a mighty keen bird, was one of the first voyagers, and he didn't come back-he stayed there, living in a space-suit for three or four years, and got a brand-new education. Martian science always was hot, you know, but they were impractical. They were desperately hard up for water and air, and while they had a lot of wonderful ideas and theories, they couldn't overcome the practical technical difficulties in the way of making their ideas work. Now p

s and engineers on all three planets, and set to work to improve the whole system, for the vessels they used then were dangerous-regular mankillers, in fact. At about thi

mely short vibrations, such as hard X-rays. Third order, electrons and protons, with their accompanying Millikan, or cosmic, rays. Fourth order, sub-electrons and sub-protons. These, in the material aspect, are suppose

had been listening intently, her wide-s

into what is supposed to be the particles, they have been thought to be the things from which both electrons and protons were built. Therefor

at they are the ultimat

up yet. In fact, Brandon thinks that the product of conversion isn't what we think it is, at all-that the actual fundamental unit and the primary mechanism of the transformation lie somewhere below the fourth order, and possibly even below the level of the ether-but we haven't been able to find a point of attack yet that will let us get in anywhere. However, I'm getting 'way ahead of our subject. To get back to it, energy can be converted into something that acts like matter through Roeser's Rays, and that is the empirical fact underlying the drive of our space-ships, as well as that of almost all other vehicles on all

s notebook, at the sigh

one without a full magazine pencil and a lot of blank pap

le, theta, you integrate, between limits z

, I'm right on your heels, but please lay off of integrations and all that-most especially stay away from those terrible electrical integrat

. There is so much loss that when we get more than a few hundred million kilometers away from a power-plant we lose reception entirely. But to get going again, the receptors receiv

rstand perfectly without it. Energy is stored in the accumulato

indefinitely. From the accumulators, then, the power is fed to the converters, each of which is backed by a projector. The converters simply change the aspect of the rays, from the energy aspect to the material aspect. As soon as this is done, the highly-charged particles-or whatever the

les, being so infinitesimally small that they cannot even be detected, go

cy one. While not rigidly scientific, that is close enough for you and me. Nobody knows what the stuff really is, and it cannot be explained or demonstrated by any model or concept in three-dimensio

dn't!" she excla

or and radio systems work as well as they do. They are pretty good, really, but the ultra-light vision system is something else again. Sending the heterodyned wave through steel is easy, but breaking it up, so as to view an object and return the impulses, was an awful job and one that isn't half done yet. We see things, after a fashion and at a distance of a few kil

ave talked about, you have ended up by describing as 'unknown,' 'rudimentary,' 'temporary,' or a 'makeshift.' You speak as though the entire system w

e on the track of something that will, in all probability, be as far ahead of Roes

at him in astonishmen

y didn't know any too much about some of it when I had to come in

rking with the

r build a house. They're the brains-I simply do som

s modest disclaimer, but in secret gre

bout an unfinished project-I shouldn't

on the same principle as the lights, and are just about as efficient. Instead, of light, though, they send out cones of electromagnetic waves, which set up induced currents in any conductor encountered beyond our own shell. Since all dangerous meteorites have been show

that I've heard discussed so much

snapped on a light, and waved his hand. "You can't see much of it from here, but it's a complete space

retain them? Accidents are

ely. Modern ships, however, have only enough of them to take care

urus more tha

ore of everything else,

ng about junking her.

too many bulkheads and air-breaks, too many and too much of everything. She is so built that if she should break up out in space, nobody would die if they lived through the shock-there are so many bulkheads, air-breaks, and life-boats that no matter how many pieces she broke up into, the survivors would find themselves in something able to navigate. That excessive construction is no longer necessary. Modern ships carry ten times the pay-load on one-quarter of the power that this old battle-wagon uses. Even though

h-light-like affairs mounted upon massive universal bearings, free to turn in any direction, and each having its converter nestling inside its prodigious field of force. Stevens explained that these

, machinery, driving projectors, and such junk, so that the center of gravity is below the center of action of the driving projectors. That makes stable flig

soon show me through t

er, l

any time, and I want to s

s of automatic machinery which Stevens explained to his eager listener. They inspected one of the great driving projectors, which, built rigidly parallel to the axis of the ship and held immovably in place by enormous trus

sked, as the inspe

uite a climb, but I've

'll crawl up into one of these stern lifeboats and ma

f the miniature space-cruisers. Here, although no emergency had been encountered in all the four years of the

u, Miss Newton, so I suppose I'll have to take you back. Bel

, every nerve taut. "What

t? I didn't h

ything that'd make this mountain of steel even quiver m

n she the inconceivable strength and mass of that enormous structure of solidly braced hardened steel, spr

ameter, at a distance of perhaps a mile. From this ball there shot a blinding plane of light, and the Arcturus fell apart at the midsection, the lower half separating clean from the upper portion, which held the passengers. Leaving the upper half intact, the attacker began slicing the lower, driving half into thin, disk-shaped sections. As that incandescent plane of destruction made its first flashing cut through the body of the Arcturus, a

rough the door and along a narrow passage. Soon he opened another door and led her into a tiny compartment so low that they could not stand upright-a mere cubicle of steel. Carefully

the shaken girl aske

rm reassuringly, "it's the only light we've got, and we

think we'll need a

will certainly be left intact. From any one of those rooms we can reach a life-boat. Of course, it's a little too much to expect that any one of the life-boats will be left whole, but they're bulkheaded, too, you know, so that we can be

I'm feeling better now, though, s

s heart stops beating, you know-our turn

width of their slices, and hi

ht be able to get a door open before the loss of pressure seals it. We'll light the flash ... here, you hold it, so that I can have both hands free. Put both arms around me, just under the arms, and stick to me like a

moment later, the phenomenon was repeated, but with much less force, upon the

lted. "Now, if they don't

orried about the wrong things, but I should think tha

Then, too, there's a couple of other big items in our favor-nobody else is in the entire lower half, since all this machinery down here is either automatic or else controlled from up above, so they won't be expecting to see a

hall we

ed up like an accordion-and I'll lie down diagonally across the room. There's just room for me that way. That's one advantage of weightlessness-you

lly weird inside. I was horribly dizzy and

if you're as well as that already, you'll be a regular spacehound in half an hour. I've been weightless for weeks at a stretch, out in the Sirius, and now I've got so I really like it. Here, we'd bett

went through her for the real and chivalrous manhood of the man with whom she

absolutely have to until their rays are off of us, and we have no way of knowing how long that will be. Also, we'd be

rance and understanding. Once a wall of their cell resounded under the impact of a fierce blow and Stevens instantly threw his arm around the girl, twisting himself between her and the threatened wall, ready for any emergency. But nothing more happened; the door remained closed, t

whole?" asked Nadia. "We might have

if there's a difference of one kilogram pressure on the two sides. That's how I knew that

comes

was almost as much as it would have been upon the Earth, at which point it became constant. "... but they haven't," he continued the interrupted sentence. "This seems to be a capture and seizure, as well as an attack, so we'll have to take the risk of looking at them. Besides, it's ge

I'm coming with you," Na

craft were available. Selecting the most completely equipped of these, they took up their residence therein by entering it and closing the massive insulating door. Stevens disconnected all the lights save one, and so shielded that one

it do to take jus

sometime, though, if we can ever get away, so we might as well do it now. I'll put it on very short range first, and see what we can see. By the small number of cells we've got here I'm afraid they've split us up lengthwise, too-so that instead of having a

kage. The upper half of the vessel was still intact, the lower half a jumble of sharply-cut fragments. From each of the larger pieces a brilliant ray of tangible for

ed and cut up be

died with a rattle in the middle of a word, and N

neutralize our communicator beams that way," he admitted. "

you really think we have a chance?" she dem

y this time Brandon's got everything those birds have, and maybe more. They beat us to it, that's all. I'm

ed the little shells from various ports; but as each boat issued, its power was neutralized and it found itself dragged helplessly along in the grip of one of those mysterious, brilliant rays of force. At least one hidden officer must have been watching the fruitless efforts, for the next lifeboat to issue made no attempt, either to talk or to flee, but from it there flamed out into space a concentrated beam of destruction-the terrible ray of annihilation, against which no known substance could endure for a moment; the ray which had definitely outlawed war. But

nded. "A dozen times I've seen you start to do something and then change your

" he replied, indirectly. "I would do it anyway, of course-even

nd be slaughtered?" He flushed, but made no reply. "In that case I'm glad I'm here-that would hav

smoke-do y

a few times at school

n one dilapidated cigarette. He studied it thoughtfully. "I'll smoke this wreck," he decided, "while it's st

don't imagine that any of my ideas will prove

they would have used it in just that way. Mercury is not habitable, at least for organic beings; and we have never seen any sign of any other kind of inhabitants who could work with metals and rays. They're probably from Jupiter, although possibly from further away. I say Jupiter, because I would think, judging

You never even looked toward it

ap iron. But to resume: Their aim is to capture, not destroy, since they haven't killed anybody except the one crew that attacked them. Apparently they want to study us or something. However, they don't intend that

ity of getting back, though, if we got

while Jupiter is clear across the sun from all three of them. Even when Jupiter is in mean opposition to Mars, it is still some five hundred and fifty million kilometers away, so you can form some idea as to how far it is from our near

a long time to go t

days. These birds are using almost that much acceleration, and I don't see how they do it. They must have a tractor ray. Brandon claimed that such a thing was theoretically possible, b

gy? We were taught that it was impossible, but

er-plants become. No, they've got a real power-transmission system-one that can hold a tight beam together a lot farther than anything we have been

f the captor was alert, and no sooner did a clear space show itself between them and the mass than a ray picked them up and herded them back into place. Stevens then nudged other pieces so that they fell out, only to see them also rounded up. Hour after hour he kept trying-doing nothing sufficiently energetic to create any suspicion, but attempting everything he could think of that offered an

y're keen, that gang-but I had to keep at it

t do us any

ant. We'll have to put off any more attempts until they slow us down. They're fairly close to at least one

f we couldn't get back?" Dire fore

l try them all. First, we get away. Second, w

radio will carr

wn may be able to-and there is a bare poss

s a frightful load off

ut they're all pretty slim chances. Even if we get away, it'll probably be about the same thing as though you were to be marooned on a desert island without any tools, and with your rescue depending upon your abil

then

, certain; death, possible; return to Earth, almost c

ou, Steve,

ifty hours. Personally, I'm all in, and you're so near dead that y

than either would have believed possible. Stevens considered his unopened package of cig

ome. You might as well sleep here, and I'll go in there.

eelings as she stared straight into his eyes. "I've never even been away from the Earth before, and with all this happening I'm simply scared to death. I've been trying to hide it, but

eadfast gaze for a

f the tenderness he felt for her, and of his very real admiration for her

nd I know Brandon and Westfall-I know what you've do

e and received in a clasp from which Nadia's right

even Dad or Breckie, ever seems to call you anything but 'Steve' when they talk about you." She w

ed. "Percival Van Schravendyck

Percival's a r

an, I have revealed to you a secret known to but fe

nd she gave him a radiant and honest smile: the fir