"A. E. Van Vogt - The Rull" - читать интересную книгу автора (Van Vogt A E)

A E Van Vogt
The Rull


I

Trevor Jamieson saw the other space boat out of the corner of his
eye. He was sitting in a hollow about a dozen yards from the edge of
the precipice, and some score of feet from the doorway of his own
lifeboat. He had been intent on his survey book, annotating a comment
beside the voice graph, to the effect that Laertes III was so close to the
invisible dividing line between Earth-controlled and Rull-controlled
space that its prior discovery by man was in itself a major victory in the
Rull-human war.
He had written: “The fact that ships based on this planet could
strike at several of the most densely populated areas of the galaxy,
Rull or human, gives it an AA priority on all available military
equipment. Preliminary defense units should be set up on Mount
Monolith, where I am now, within three weeks
It was at that point that he saw the other boat, above and
somewhat to his left, approaching the tableland. He glanced up at it,
and froze where he was, torn between two opposing purposes. His first
impulse, to run for the lifeboat, yielded to the realization that the
movement would be seen instantly by the electronic reflexes of the
other ship. For a moment, then, he had the dim hope that, if he
remained quiet enough, neither he nor his ship would be observed.
Even as he sat there, perspiring with indecision, his tensed eyes
noted the Rull markings and the rakish design of the other vessel. His
vast knowledge of things Rull enabled him to catalogue it instantly as a
survey craft.
A survey craft. The Rulls had discovered the Laertes sun.
The terrible potentiality was that, behind this small craft, might be
fleets of battleships, whereas he was alone. His own lifeboat had been
dropped by the Orion nearly a parsec away, while the big ship was pro-
ceeding at antigravity speeds. That was to insure that Rull energy
tracers did not record its passage through this area of space. The
Orion was to head for the nearest base, load up with planetary defense
equipment, and then return. She was due in ten days.
Ten days. Jamieson groaned inwardly and drew his legs under him
and clenched his hand about the survey book. But still the possibility
that his ship, partially hidden under a clump of trees, might escape
notice if he remained quiet, held him there in the open. His head tilted
up, his eyes glared at the alien, and his brain willed it to turn aside.
Once more, while he waited, the implications of the disaster that could
be here struck deep.
The Rull ship was a hundred yards away now and showed no
signs of changing its course. In seconds it would cross the clump of
trees, which half hid the lifeboat.
In a spasm of movement, Jamieson launched himself from his
chair. With complete abandon, he dived for the open doorway of his