" Perry Rhodan 0062 - (54) The Blue Dwarfs" - читать интересную книгу автора (Perry Rhodan)

"IтАЩll be going, then," she said, brushing a vagrant strand of hair out of her face. "You finish up your list."

"At your command, Madame General!" Mullon smiled. "IтАЩll be done by the time you get back."

Freddy left, leaving Mullon to his list, which he had been working on when Milligan came crashing in.
When finished, the list would contain all the things a 4 man expedition to the northern mountains would
require. The PeopleтАЩs Assembly, of which Mullon was President, had accepted his proposal to send out
an exploration party to scout the neighbouring areas to the west of GrautierтАЩs new city, Greenwich.
Mullon had maintained that no one could guarantee the townтАЩs safety if the surrounding territory remained
unexplored. That much was evident to everyoneтАФwith the exception of a handful of HollanderтАЩs
supportersтАФand a decision had been reached to send out at least 2 parties: one to the western
mountains, the other to the east where the lowland jungles cut off the wide grasslands with an
impenetrable wall. Since only a single helicopter had been salvaged from the wreckage of the
Adventurous тАФthe spaceship that had carried the 8000 deportees from EarthтАФit would have to be
used by both expeditions: first by the one into the mountains, then by the one down into the jungle.

Mullon himself had been charged with leading both parties and he threw himself into the task of
preparing for them with unparalleled energy and enthusiasm.

Even so, he did not succeed in completing his list before Freddy came back. Mullon turned to herтАФand
her terrified expression frightened him.

"What is itтАж?" he asked.

"BoosterтАЩs dead!" Freddy cried. "It was awfulтАФit went so fast!"

Mullon leaped up. "What did he die of?"

"Nobody knows," Freddy sobbed. "FlahertyтАЩs at a loss. He called Weeney and Ashbury in but neither
of them know any more than he does."

"What was the disease like?"

Freddy wiped the tears out of her eyes and answered: "Booster was about to plough up some ground so
he could test some seeds. Suddenly he felt weak in the knees. At first he thought it was just an attack of
weakness brought on by moving to another planet. You knowтАФweтАЩve all experienced it at one time or
another. So he laid down to wait for it to pass. But it didnтАЩt. When he tried to stand up, he fell down. He
called for help. Milligan found him and dragged him home. By this time Booster had blue swellings all
over his skin. When Flaherty and I arrived, he was hardly even able to talk. 10 minutes later, he was
dead."

"What did they do with the body?"

"The doctors took it with them for an autopsy."

Mullon had grown extremely earnest. "I hope the disease isnтАЩt contagious!" he murmured.

It did not seem to be, as things worked out. 2 days passed without a new outbreak of the disease being
reported but on the 3rd day 2 men came down with it. It was known that these 2 had never had anything
to do with Booster in the past.