The absence of visible security measures was disturbing. It suggested
several possibilities: that there was nothing of value inside, that
Gommaf had complete confidence in the ordinary police patrol, or that
they relied on other means of protection. The last seemed likely.
It was a local organization and Rains had never heard of it. That was
not strange. There was much about India that had never reached the
Western world. There were records inside, the records of a teleport,
and he had to get to them.
He couldn't just walk in; somewhere there was a master telepath on
duty. Rains had confidence in his own ability, but he saw no point in
overmatching himself. "What do you know about Gommaf?" he asked.
His guide looked at the tea with less than delight. "It's fairly new,"
he said slowly, searching his memory. "Organized about ten years
ago, I believe. There was competition at first. Some of the mystics,
mentalists and fakirs thought they were outside the orbit of ordinary
trade unionism. They formed a rival organization and tried to eliminate
Gommaf's chief organizer, a man called Handas Bvandeghat. They found
him one morning while he was practising yoga, and of course he refused
to interrupt his spiritual contemplation. They riddled him with machine
gun bullets."
Rains nodded. "But they couldn't kill the idea. Handas Bvandeghat
became a martyr and the organization went on in spite of, or because
of, his death." It was a familiar story.
"Who said he died? Handas Bvandeghat is president of Gommaf."
"But they machine gunned him!"
"Sure, they shot him. But he's a fakir, still makes a living letting
people drive spikes through his body. What's a few bullets to him?"
Gowru swallowed the tea and made a face. "Of course, there were some
physical consequences. Even today Bvandeghat has trouble keeping food
on his stomach." Gowru wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.
"Holes," he added.
* * * * *
It was not such a familiar story after all, but it did emphasize the
difficulties. An organization headed by such a character would be
tough. The telepath to spot intruders, which had previously been merely
a possibility, became a certainty. An approach to the front entrance
was inadvisable.
But the comet was still hurtling through space and the only man who
could avert the collision was the teleport. Rains had to contact him.
He produced a map and consulted with his guide. After some discussion
they evolved a plan.
"If we come through the rear it's your opinion the telepath won't
detect us?" Gowru murmured, obviously doubtful.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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