Page 116 - Astounding Pulp V2

AST0U ro1 lG S CIENCE-FICTION
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human I I . 11 .. Fid1111il ? rht· \\ ,,rk i~ d(ll\(.'. Th, r-
1cac-11 wnu < h:i,·t· .... hi11 ·t
ling?" f he Overlord snorted con· } lOr c ·
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and to ha ve lo take care of for a full - 1t taggcre<l momcntaril)· c, u1 l lU•dtl\' d,utC'. :uul \\t·II.''
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lifetime a someth ing that has not enough temptuouslr. " I could handle se\'en ti le r ·1· I 11101btro,i1y h ·· ~,) :"'t), , 11 ~··
w1i· cpt1 1an y annorecl
intelligence even to s wallow food p laced like him. He is on the verge of faint· ich was Lhc Delgonian. ··Y<•:-. l \\;l, hungr~ and . a , 1 iu-
in its mouth? Remember a lso that the ing a lready. Observe, please, his re· Ri · tilllatt·d. Tt·lh1rian:- ar" lllll\'.'h h n ,H•al,,;
o rganism will be such that they them- action to the fung us-culture injections." r n111so11 went leapi11f{ a\'.ro~::, tlw tn fllr11i:-h :111y n•al ~port. I o ~ ,n1 " i, h
selves will be obliged to amputate a ll F our times the Delgonian rammed \\~e:n .toward a rack of implclllcnt • and (I) i -.pt·t·t what i~ left <)I tlw l .cn:-m a u: ··
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foui· of the creatu rc·s lim bs to save its the needle home; and. true to prcd~c- ,. pons, only lo I><: buried in lllid- Thi:- q11c..•:-t inn wa · saic l.'llOu~h : \ , . n1 -
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lCneat 1 a hurtling ~l\·abiH.:lw of
life." tion, K inn ison's body went limp in its ft try Fo :-d !-1u:w t·:-.:at·t ly how 1 ·iuni:-1.)n ha d
\Vhilc thinking thu s the D elgonian shackles. stoo~I _r a moment lll:111 and monster far~·d during his w hirlwind bodily cn-
s hot o u t a slen de r tentacle which, slith- "Ah, yes ; a weak race, physically- the po1scd, almost en iahlc.'au. tlwn i.:ounl<'r with thc frightfully arnwtl .
e_ring across the floo1·, flipped over the Yery weak." Eichmil observed, as he 01/ era heel to the floor togcthcr-ti-\1- ht'aYilY annon"d engine of de$,lructio n
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tiny s w itch of a s mall mechanism in the left the room • and the O verlord, aloue cy es ; wi ngc1s caw111b<T· o-ou<TiJl<T at w ltich· wa · tltc 1 dgonian.
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ngs, cet hard-o-narlcd ha11cl"
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cent.e r of the room. This en tirely un- v,·ith ·his victim cast off the cha111s 111 S ,._ n11tar d ·1
I 1 t> , ., . ·•.r ." Ei1..·l1111il. a · a high exe·utin·.
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exp ected actio n surprised Worse!. H e order to stretch the L ensman out upon teeth \ ~- ~~ ' balled fist. boots a11cl was accustomed t delegating far mnn:.'"
h ad bee n d ebating fo1· m inutes whether one of the sinister machines so close at bility o~1eal-111:, c,·ery ~1ltilllatc possi- important 1na1tcr~ to ·om pctcnt undt·r-
?r _n<:>t. to release t he G ray L ensman's hand. full dama~e. Agamst the fright - lings. ·· t( you $3)" that it is well don<.' .
mhtbttto n s. H e w o uld ha ve done so it)- of ~ ca~ned a,~d naturally armored body that is s11lncic11l. ..
s ta ntly if he had had a ny w arning of B uT i-1NN1~0N had not fainted. He ons elgo111an, human physical wcap- ·· tea,· th, way for me. then. please:·
. and human strenatl
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w hat the D elgo nia n w as about to do. had not allowed himself to £eel the less . b . ~ were near u ·c- the ,· rlord requc led. Then. pickin~
N ow it was too late. hurt of the knife, of the needle, nor of sna~ fut, msulatcd against the agony of up the hid ousl , ina.11gl~d thing _tha_t w_:i -
" I have: set up a t l1ought screen about the injected fluid. Never before had l_ie the I i_ng bones and bludgeon blow s of
1 111 1111 ghty tail I I . K inniso n\; body. he mca ·cd it u1 1ts
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t! c. 1 ·001:11. I <lo not w ish to share this been more coldly, intently alert t_han_ blo k Jy t at hard-held ncn ·e anuor and. donning his ow n, w riggled
~tlbit w1th any of my fellow s, as there this, the climactic minute of his ltfe. llli1~ct'1 tlr Lensman's furiously active
J S no ~ enough to divide," the monster The full of his powers he did not have, goal iac a goal-a vaguely understood bold ly away with his ~m~dc1_1. '·1 go to
plac..:~ this re · id uum within '~.' ship and
~ plame<l, ~renthetically . "Have you perhaps, y et even now he was better dcad)toward which he directed the
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. Y. Su ggest10ns as to how rny plan may equipped, mentally and physically, than ho Y r_uggle he could not control o~ to 1·eturn it to Stai· Star.
I JC tmp1·oved ?" the Kinnison of eYen a .short year ago, pe to win- ·· ou will be a ble to find the spe "d -
" N o. You have sho wn that you un- able to establish a nerve block that wo~ld Upon and ove ti · ster ?'' .
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ie thought-screen
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c c rs lan<l to rture better than we do ,, permit foll and unshaken concentration gcner~to . ro e<l the madly warrina pair " Cerfainly. H e was to find 1t. \ h_at-
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"I h · · cyer he could have done, I , w ork ing •
as the d 1 · t
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r . s ou_kt, since w e Overlords· have on every. move of offen-se and defense grated • e ica e mechanism disinte- ' thrnua h the cells of his brain, can like-
P_ ~ice<l tt as a fine art since our be- he might make, whatever frightful toll it ceased to function ::.
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ginning~· as a 1 ace. D o you wish tl1e Worsel' 1· · · w ise do."
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p 1 ea s urc o co-operatmg with me in the of pain and injury the inh~nnanl_y po~v- been b ~ proc igious mentality had ·'Can you handle him alone, Kinn i-
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work?" erful, semireptilian Delgon1an might 11 • scr e~tmg . ceaselessly against that son ?" Vv"orsel asked presently . "Can
"I d . flict in the strug ale that the Lensina 11 een ever · ·1 h the boat?"
you d~ not tort ure for pleasure. Since now proposed. Tl1Us, upon the first in· ti le very . t smce its erection and in you hold out untI you reac .
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' you n'lay can·y t 1 ,. • ms ant O · its fall Kinnison be.; ''Yes, to both. I can. h a 1:idle h 1m -_-
ce duee as tl· d ou t 1e pro- .. an1e ag . ti G
O n 1ne All I . . sta~1t of opportunity, he exploded into And . am le :ay L ensman of old. we softened him down plen ty. I will
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assurance that he ~ill b reqmr~ ts the action vdth a violence which took even mi . m. tl~e next mstant both of those last-I'll make m yself last, long enoug~1."
an object le e a warning and the trigger-nerved Overlord entirely by 1
sson to Star A St f g lty mmds-tJ1e t\vo most powerful ··I go, then, lest th_ey be observmg
Galactic Patrol ,, ar o the surprise. th en kno wn o ci-v1 tzation-ha<l hurled with spy rays." .
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" I can assu;e you d h . In practically one motion he rolled, ti 1 e111selves a · • l To the black flier tbe completely sub-
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gamst t 1at of the Delo-oHian.
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\•vill be both. JVIor~ I <: n tely that he ducked, gathered himself tog·ether and
11 .t ttter though the ensuing sfrugo-le was servient D elo-onian then bore his physi-
res ults when I hav~ fiw! Sldiow_you ~he -launched a kick behind which there was 1 \Vas b · f · N · ::. '
A .. ·. n e : . 1 oth1pg· short ·of· an , , cally di; abled master , and carefully he
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0 I' I you ike, I would be 1 . the driving force of every oµnce of his '. , an ~nentahty could have withstood put him aboard. Worsel helped op~nly
you s tay a nd lo l g ~d to have powerful body and the concentrated urge ti 1e ve . . .
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. . <_ on-you will find the nomous 111tens1ty, th~ , berserk there, for be had put out screens agamst
sp ectacle 1nteres tmo- et t ·t . . of every cell of his brain. It struck its P?.w.er, of that . concerted and·· synchro- , all ·£01;.rns of intrusion. The vessel took
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1 e1 a1111ng and
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high 1 y m s tructi ve." mark squarely-the hard toe of the nized attack. ' . · • . ' off and . the Overlord wriggled blithel~
Len:sman's heavy boot crashed squarely
"No, thanks-that is, not if you are _Brain half burned out, the Overlord back toward the dome. H e w as_ {ull o t
against the . Overlord's plated neck at
s u;,c that you _ca n handle him alone." ·the exact base of the skull. That kick Wilted ; and, docility itself, he energized· the ·consciousness of a good job, w ell
Hand!~ hun ! This pitiful weak- the communicator. done. H e even fe1t the sensation of
would have pulped any human or near-