"Philip E. High - These Savage Futurians" - читать интересную книгу автора (High Phillip E)

A few moments later they were moving on but, after about a thousand
paces, Herman turned.

"Disc! You got a disc, boy, you got a disc?"

"Why yes, I've—"

Herman ripped open his shirt before he could finish the sentence.

"As I thought, like the one the gel had. Gotta get rid of it. Metal's tough
but brittle, needs a sharp hard knock. Put the chain across that big flat
stone there."

"But I was told never to—"

"You're out now, got to lose it, see? Don't know quite what they do or
how they do it but disc burns up suddenly, you burn with it, follow?" He
found a heavy stone and weighed it in his hand. "Mind your
face—all—again—got him!"

There was a tinkling sound and Ventnor watched the disc and chain fall
to the ground with something akin to superstitious terror.

"Come." Herman tugged at his arm. "You're safe now. There's a rest
cave at the top of the hill, we'll bed up there."

They followed what had clearly been a road. It went up and down, over
low hills and down into small valleys. Finally it began to ascend steadily.

Later, far behind them, when the afternoon sun was beginning to sink
towards the horizon, an identity disc suddenly flickered, turned white and
puffed upwards in a sheet of flame.

The disc was 'tuned' to an instrument far out in the Atlantic and the
chemical content of the minor explosion analyzed. The readings showed
ho chemical contents such as might be expected from the destruction of
the organic human body and, almost immediately, alarms began to ring.

Hobart looked at the readings and turned pale. "My God, Matheson,
he's escaped! This will mean an investigation, heads are going to roll
before this business is finished."

At the same time, inland, another group of men had already received
orders to pick Ventnor up.

There were six in the patrol but it did not look like a patrol. It looked, as
it was intended to, like a hunting party. The men were bearded, their
clothing tattered and make-shift and their limbs, although bronzed had
been artificially stained to suggest ingrained dirt.