Adventure stories; Love stories; Science fiction; Venus (Planet) -- Fiction; War stories
Then suddenly she was whispering to us, that the Gorts in the turret
might not hear. "I have a brother--my twin--his name is Leh. Tollgamo
does not know there is such a person." She shot a furtive glance
around the turret. "For several years he has been living with the
Gorts. Pretending he is one of them. From him, father has gotten much
information of Tollgamo's plans. It would be death to Leh if who he is
were known. And now I will tell you--Leh is--"
A guttural shout from Rhool at the control table checked her.
"He says, stop whispering," she murmured. "That other thing I will tell
you later.... I speak the English," she said to Rhool. "You speak it
too? Then we talk it here, so that these Earthmen may understand?"
Rhool laughed. His heavy dark gaze roved her. "You very beautiful," he
said. "See--I talk English. Come sit by me. The starshine makes you
beautiful, girl of Arron."
I tensed, with my heart pounding as I saw his darkly leering gaze rove
over her again.
"Easy!" whispered Allen. "Don't start anything."
Then at last Venus had grown to a full-round, glowing silver disk
before our bow. After the next time of sleep it was a monstrous
ball, filling half the firmament, mottled with clouds so that its
surface configurations were only vaguely apparent. Heavy, thick Venus
atmosphere. Within another day of our living routine we dropped into
it, sliding diagonally downward, with slackening velocity now and
rocket streams of fluorescent gases to check and guide us.
With Rhool and Nereid I was in the starlit turret. It was night here,
the Venus night of atmospheric fog. Rhool had been drinking from a
little gourd at his belt, and was flushed with his triumph and the
liquor.
"A few hours," he said to Nereid. "Then I give you to Tollgamo." His
arm went suddenly around her waist, drawing her against him. What he
was muttering in his own language I had no idea; but as she cried out,
struggling with him, I jumped.
"That's enough from you--let her alone!" I rasped.
* * * * *
He cast her off, leaped to his feet. Rage darkened his heavy face so
that it seemed to blacken. My lunging jab struck his mailed chest, but
my swing at his face missed him. He jumped backward, with a hand going
to a weapon at his belt. I have no doubt that I would have been dead
in another few seconds. But there were shouts behind me; the woman
Garga and Allen coming from the corridor. Garga's guttural remonstrance
checked the angry Rhool. And then Borgg, the weird little hunchback,
came shambling forward.
"Stop it!" Allen shouted at me. "Easy there, you idiot!"
Borgg grabbed me. As I fought, his mouth jabbed against my ear. His
voice was a sibilant whisper. "Fight me--not too hard! I am Leh--her
brother!"
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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