" Perry Rhodan 0079 - (71) The Atom Hell of Grautier" - читать интересную книгу автора (Perry Rhodan)

listening everywhere, and with the close attention they paid to every unexpected or unexplained signal, an
even briefer one would not have escaped them.

Paul BrackettтАЩs oscillograph was connected to theRigelтАЩs frequency damper, which prevented the
energy radiated by the shipтАЩs hyper-engines at the beginning and ending of each transition from being
discharged into space. Instead the energy was absorbed within the ship.

If the damper had functioned flawlessly, Paul Brackett would not have been able to see green ╞Тashes.
Since he had seen them, the damper was not operating properly. The residue of energy from the
transition had been released into space and at that moment, somewhere within a range of at most 5
light-years, an Arkonide tracking specialist was occupied with interpreting the strange signals. As a
consequence of its 5th dimensional structure, the wave field of the energy discharge radiated at an
immeasurably high speed.

There was no doubt about it. In a few minutes at most, the Arkonides would know what to make of the
signals; Two minutes later they would have fixed the point in space from which the signals came.

That point was Myrtha, central star of the Grautier system, only 20 Astronomical Units away; once the
Arkonides had determined that much, they would know where to look further.

Brackett gave the alarm. The howling of sirens filled the ship, penetrating even the most remote corners.
Conversations died away. Crewmen got moving and hastily slid into their places.

Brackett picked up the intercom microphone and explained to the crew what had happened At the same
time, the communications officer sent a brief report to Grautier.

"It can meananything ," Brackett concluded, "up to and including the appearance of an Arkonide
battlefleet of 10,000 ships sent to Grautier to destroy the base there."

The mass takeoff was well under way. One ship after another raised itself from the ground and shot with
roaring engines into the blue sky, the mighty colossi of the superbattleships lifting off and flying as lightly
and gracefully as the shining spheres of the light cruisers.

The Terran Fleet was on its way from Grautier to Arkon, on its way to demonstrate in no uncertain
terms what Terrans thought of allies who thought only of their own advantage.

This was a red letter day for Perry Rhodan, this 23d of October, 2043. The combined power of Terra
was winding up for the pitch against Arkon; the Earth was preparing to show the galactic powers what
role it intended to play from here on in.

Under the command of Gen. Deringhouse, the units of the fleet assembled at a point far from all travelled
space routes, about 500 light-years from Grautier. Only 23 ships remained on Grautier itself, along with
the minimum number of men necessary to maintain the operation of the base, for a few vessels were still
out in space either on the way to or returning from the overlapping zone from which the base in the Druuf
Universe, on the planet Hades, was being transmitted supplies.
TheRigel , for example, was still out in space.

Besides the base personnel, four important men were also left behind on Grautier. They had a number of
important affairs to attend to and would join the waiting fleet later, shorty before the moment the attack
on Arkon was to begin. Those men were Perry Rhodan; Atlan, the Arkonide; Reginald Bell; and the