" Perry Rhodan 0032 - (24) Infinity Flight" - читать интересную книгу автора (Perry Rhodan)

Inside the control centre of the lead vessel, Commodore Topthor was stomping about in front of the
videoscreens. He wastruly stomping, for Topthor weighed approximately half a ton. This thousand
pound person from another planet was as broad as he was tallтАФfive foot four. His complexion had a
definite greenish tinge, his smooth skull was devoid of any hair. The men of his race compensated for
their baldness by wearing bushy red beards.

The Galactic Traders were descendants of those Arkonides who owned a huge empire 30,000
light-years from Earth but who had become too weak to rule their stellar domain. As a result the Traders
had split off and set up a realm of their own. They established business contacts with all inhabited planets
and lived off this trade.

But Topthor was no ordinary Trader; he belonged to the clan called the Mounders. Ages ago when
these particular descendants of the ancient Arkonides were still living permanently on a planet, their world
had a gravity 2.1 times that of Terra. In the course of many generations this had caused certain
anatomical changes which had resulted in the present body shape of the Mounders. They were outsiders
to their own race but galactic ethic forbade racial discrimination of any kind. True to their cunning and
clever nature, the TradersтАФor Springers as they were more familiarly knownтАФhad made capital out of
the bodily changes of their kinfolk: the Mounders became the guard troops of the Springers, pledged to
come to the aid of their own race whenever needed and, if necessary, do battle for them.

However, this time, Topthor was acting on his own initiative.

He was staring at the videoscreen in the centre of a whole battery of screens covering one wall. It
showed the picture of a blue-green planet with all the signs of a flourishing civilization. Continents were
imbedded in blue oceans. White cloud banks overhung the vast stretches of land, hiding what was
underneath.

The giant being with the humanoid features nodded and hit a button with his huge hand. At once another
videoscreen lit up. The face of a fellow Mounder appeared.

"What do you want, Topthor?"

"Is that where itтАЩs supposed to be? Down there on the third planet of this solar system? ItтАЩs strange we
should find out about it so late."

"They call themselves Terranians," the other Mounder remarked. "ItтАЩs only a few years since they are
capable of space travel and already theyтАЩve managed to stick their nose into our business and establish
trade relations with two other solar systems."

"Yes, IтАЩm aware of that, Grogham. IтАЩve listened to the radio messages of our brethren; the bad news
was quite explicit. Orlgans and Etztak sent out quite detailed reports which we intercepted. Though they
didnтАЩt request our aid, it isnтАЩt against our laws to intervene, as long as it wonтАЩt harm another group of our
traders."

The two Mounders were conversing in the usual Intercosmo spoken by all intelligent races of the empire.
Grogham stroked the beard that made him look older than he was in reality.

"According to the latest reports, Orlgans and Etztak have their hands full trying to catch a special envoy
of the Terranian leader Perry Rhodan. That envoy has entrenched himself on an ice Planet some 300
light-years distant from these parts. Since we are here in this sector I donтАЩt see why we shouldnтАЩt