As Raskujan was of the opinion that this question had to be answered is the negative, he took another step to prepare for this turn of events, keeping it a secret from everybody except the pilot he needed to fly his helicopter.

Together with the pilot, Raskujan tied up the hands of his two most prominent prisoners; Thora and Tomisenkov, behind their backs. At gunpoint he drove the couple to the waiting aircraft and helped them climb in.

As Tomisenkov was shoved into the gunship by the hard fists of the pilot, he looked back over his shoulder and said derisively: "Something went wrong, didn't it? The rats are leaving the sinking ship!"

"Shut up!" Raskujan growled, saying no more.

The c.o.c.kpit was roomier than in other helicopters. There were four pa.s.senger seats. Thora and Tomisenkov were put in the first two while Raskujan sat behind them with his c.o.c.ked gun. The pilot squeezed into his narrow seat and waited for something. The doors clicked shut.

"Listen to me!" Raskujan began with a strained voice. "My overriding concern now is not to fall into the hands of Perry Rhodan. Rhodan has managed to get into the base and he's bound to arrive here in a few minutes. My situation is very desperate.

"I'm taking you both with me. You, Tomisenkov, because you know your way around on Venus and you, Thora, as hostage for Rhodan.

"It'll be your job, Tomisenkov, to find a safe hideout for us where we can stay till Rhodan is ready to negotiate with me.

"My situation is so critical you can rest a.s.sured I'd kill you before I'd let you ruin my last chance.

"Tomisenkov, give the pilot instructions where to fly!"

"Fly between 270 and 280!" he grudgingly told the pilot. "Climb up to an alt.i.tude of 1500 feet because we'll soon get to the mountains."

Perry Rhodan had enough strength left to formulate a message for the positronic brain which was transmitted telepathically by Marshall. It was a fair a.s.sumption that the brain, once its attention had been drawn to Rhodan, would correctly interpret the message and act accordingly:

The instructions included a request for a vehicle enabling them to travel as quickly as possible to the center of the base and for medication to restore Rhodan's freedom of action without delay.

Alicharin had not only survived the bombardment from Pjatkow's helicopter without getting hurt but had also managed to dart at the right moment into the field of the base.

Rhodan finally lost consciousness as soon as he had given his instructions to Marshall. The telepath kept repeating his message until Son Okura saw a glider approach with high speed close above the ground. They carried Rhodan inside and took their seats. A few minutes later the glider was admitted through the portal of the mountain fortress and Rhodan was led to a room where the medicine was administered.

In half an hour Rhodan had recuperated enough to be in a position to issue his commands. He instructed the positronic brain to lift the barrier girdling the entire planet so that Reginald Bell could at last land in his auxiliary s.p.a.ceship. In order not to complicate matters, he further requested that the regular protective border surrounding the base in normal times at a diameter of 300 miles shouldn't be reinstated in place of the special mantle shrouding the planet during the emergency.

Finally Reginald Bell was commissioned to finish the current military action on Rhodan's behalf and was given the necessary detailed information.

Only then, after having attended to the final measures, did Rhodan conclude that the time had come for him and his exhausted friends to relax from their super-human efforts. They fell into a long sleep.

Bell reacted with the raging energy of a pent-up volcano whose fiery eruption had been barred by a crust of earth.

The Guppy - one of the auxiliary s.p.a.ceships measuring 200 feet in diameter - swooped down with activated shock screens full speed ahead into the lower strata of the Venusian atmosphere. At Mach 15 - fifteen times the velocity of sound - the air molecules around the shock screen became ionized and began to light up. With a brilliant blue-white trail of ionized air the ship shot through the Venusian night like a gigantic comet in all its splendor. It appeared over Raskujan's camp spreading stark terror among the defenders who had never before seen such an awesome spectacle.

n.o.body dared shoot at the vessel. It was totally impervious to missiles made on Earth in any case. Coming to a stop at about 300 feet above the encampment, it hovered motionlessly above the ground. Bell took no chances. He ordered Tako Kakuta, the teleporter, to use the psycho-beamer to saturate the entire territory with hypnotic commands for surrender.

Afterwards the s.p.a.ceship touched down and Bell began to take stock. He knew that Thora was held prisoner in this camp and despite his ambivalent feelings toward her, her well being was foremost in his mind.

He was unable to find her. His newly-made captives were quite willing to show him the part of the camp where Thora had been detained since they were under the influence of the hypnotic spell. However, she was missing and n.o.body seemed to know where she could be.

After awhile it was also noted that General Tomisenkov was among the missing and when it became known that Raskujan had fled too, Bell began to get the picture emerging from the facts of the case.

At the same time he realized that it was useless to track down the culprit. Raskujan was sure to come forward as soon as the situation was cleared up and as long as Thora was at his mercy there was very little that could be done to bring him to his knees.

"Between the two mountain peaks!" Tomisenkov directed the flier.

The pilot gave him a running report of his findings on the observation instrument and Tomisenkov advised him accordingly as to his course.

In Tomisenkov's estimation they had put about 90 miles between themselves and the army post in the last two hours. They were slowed down by the numerous peaks and the complicated way of communicating flying instructions.

Their speed was further reduced by Tomisenkov's endeavor to gain time. He waited for Raskujan to relax his vigilance and hoped that Thora would create some commotion to divert his attention.

"There are several other peaks behind them," the pilot stated. "Three in a row. The one in the middle is about two and a half to three thousand feet high."

"Keep between the center and the left peak and then set your course at 265."

Raskujan cleared his throat. "Are you sure you know where you're going?"

"Of course," Tomisenkov snorted.

At this moment Thora uttered a shrill scream and clung close to Tomisenkov.

"What's the matter?" Raskujan asked gruffly.

Thora shuddered. "There!" she cried, frightened. "A flying reptile!"

She stared out the window at the side as if she were seeing something out there. Her horror was so well pretended that Tomisenkov didn't know at first whether or not a lizard was actually flying by.

Raskujan slid over to the next seat and pressed his face against the plexigla.s.s. His automatic pistol was lying across his knees.

Tomisenkov spun abruptly around. He got up on his seat with his knees and bent forward. Before Raskujan was aware what was going on, Tomisenkov pushed his back against him and pinned him down. He raised his hands behind him in his doubled up position and gripped Raskujan by the throat. He choked the colonel with brute force but was unable to see what effect he had on him.

"Stop it!" Thora shouted. "You're strangling him."

Meanwhile the pilot was aroused. He turned his head and looked back.

"Watch the chopper or we'll smash up!" Tomisenkov yelled at him.

Raskujan fell limp in his seat when Tomisenkov released his grip and moved away. With his hands still tied, he picked up the automatic pistol and propped it up between two seats, pointing it at the pilot. Then he told him: "You better believe me, I can, pull the trigger with my hands tied behind my back and without looking. One false move and you're dead. Now turn around and fly back to the camp!"

It was an incredible situation. Tomisenkov kneeled on the seat where a moment ago Raskujan had been sitting. He was facing the back of the seat and held the trigger of the gun behind him between the two forward seats. Although he would have no trouble shooting the weapon, it would be the end of him if it slipped off the target.

Fortunately it was a simple matter to free his hands from the ropes now that Raskujan was immobilized. Thora pulled out a little pocket knife he had managed to conceal in his pants and cut his bonds.

From then on, everything was child's play. The pilot had never been especially enamored of Raskujan as a beloved commander. His orders had not impressed him as very sensible and all he needed was the little reminder of the gun pointed at him to obey Tomisenkov unconditionally, willingly and promptly. Tomisenkov turned to Raskujan with the intention of taking care of him. He was profoundly shocked when he found that the colonel was dead.

He covered him with his jacket.

"He deserved it," the general commented, "but I feel sorry for him just the same."

A few hours past midnight Rhodan's arrival was announced. Using a craft from the base, Rhodan set down in Raskujan's former post close to Reginald Bell's auxiliary ship. The camp was lit brightly.