"(novel) (ebook) - Perry Rhodan 0019 - (13) The Immortal Unknown" - читать интересную книгу автора (Perry Rhodan)

"These Arkonides don't have much resistance," Rhodan murmured thoughtfully. "They've passed the climax of their positive development. Their stellar empire falls apart under the hammer blows of the rebellious population of their colonies."
"We've acquired the knowledge of the Arkonides and that's all that matters," Bell scowled. "Khrest set out to find eternal life in our space sector. He was forced to crashland on the moon where we found him. Then we established the New Power with the aid of his awe inspiring knowledge. We were able to prevent an atomic war and almost unite all mankind. We've built a super-city in the middle of the Chinese Gobi Desert and have created an ultra-modern industry in the wilderness, applying Arkonide technology. Alright, Chief, I know all that. You're avoiding the subject. We've accomplished all sorts of possible and impossible things, but you can't render a stupid mouse-beaver harmless. Can you?"
Rhodan winced. Capt. Klein regained consciousness. With a moan he straightened up in his seat. His eyes looked glazed.
"Oh..." he uttered, still disturbed. That was all.
The ship returned to life. Somebody yelled, loud and shrill, into the telecom that the Stardust was racing into a sun. Moments later the air next to Rhodan's pilot-seat began to stir.
Tako Kakuta, the positive mutant with the astounding capability of tele-transportation, materialized out of nowhere. Smiling sweetly, he nodded to the Second Astronaut, who flinched and gasped for air until he became red in the face.
"I'll murder you!" Bell gnashed his teeth. "One of these days this guy is going to land in my stomach. Has everybody gone crazy around here?"
Rhodan listened to the reports coming in quick succession from all departments as they were ready to function again.
This time Chief Engineer Garand was indeed on the intercom. Very condescendingly he stated his opinion.
"Everything is under control, sir," he beamed. His high voice sounded jubilant. "Has any mischief been committed?"
"You see!" Bell exclaimed. "He has the same suspicion. Maybe that beast can also make that blue giant sun move out of our way!"
Rhodan cut off the telecom connection with the engine control room. Nothing on board the super-battleship seemed to have changed.
Dr. Haggard had quietly and unobtrusively entered the command centre. He gave Khrest a high-pressure injection in the arm.
"Very unstable," Haggard said softly. "Thora hasn't snapped out of it yet. What happened? I've never experienced such a transition."
"The limit of the hyper-field converter is at about 35,000 light-years. We've taken a risk by doing it in one jump. I won't try it again."
Haggard-the physician who with his newly developed anti-serum cured the leukaemia from which the Arkonide suffered-silently shrugged his shoulders. The commander ought to know best; he had learned everything by hypno-training that the once active and wise Arkonides had created and developed.
"If I only knew where we are," rasped Klein, who still had trouble speaking. "Is this Vega?"
As Rhodan was about to call the astronomical section, the alarm sounded. The positronic computer controlling the range-finder automatically set off the warning signal without human assistance.
All heads were suddenly raised and the conversation stopped abruptly. The relaxed atmosphere changed and every muscle in their bodies tensed up.
The co-ordinated team of 500 men quickly sprang into action. Seconds after the first howling of the sirens, the heavily armoured hatches were sealed hermetically. The spacious sphere was subdivided into thousands of units leaving no doubt as to its mechanical efficiency. The gigantic Arkonide vessel of the renowned Imperium class could not be destroyed by any single hit
Far below the command station, which was located at the geometrical centre of the sphere, the atomic fusion-reactors of Arkonide origin began to rumble and all power stations rose to peak output.
In the empty, immeasurably large space between the stars the dimensions of a ship were only significant insofar as they could contain in its innards the necessary installations to produce the energy for its engines, weapons and auxiliary machines.
Rhodan, observed the bright points of light flashing on his control screen. The gun-turrets of the Stardust automatically swung out. On the range-finder screen of Klein's fire control section the first peaked echo-lines became visible.
The calculating machines whirred. It was a seeming chaos of technology in which man played only a minor role.
"Object located in green sector, 86A degrees horizontal, 22.8 degrees vertical," the mechanical voice of the calculator rattled. Klein pushed the button of the automatic sensor to pinpoint the detected foreign object.
"Fire Control ready!" he calmly reported. Suddenly he had become very alert.
A strange calm settled over all departments. The automatic control devices had done their part, now it was the duty of the Commander to make the final decisions.
Rhodan looked impassively at the front panel of the observation screen. The foreign object located by the sensor, working at a speed faster than light, should be situated ahead to the right and on a plane a little above.
Seconds later the next message came through. The robot-brain had completed its computations.
"Evaluation as requested at 13:52 hours pursuant to programming by Commander. Ship position in Vega system. Transition accomplished. Pulsating star identical with known Vega. Determined with 100% probability that Vega sun is in process of transformation into Nova. Advise against continuing on course of re-emergence. Growth of star proceeds with abnormal speed incompatible with astronomical laws. Stop.
Bell's eyes popped. He looked across at Rhodan, whose face betrayed deep concern.
"Nova? Vega is supposed to have become a nova in a few weeks? Ridiculous! It can't be. Such a process takes eons."
Bell looked around as if pleading for help. He barely registered the awakening of the Arkonide scientist. Khrest understood such phenomenons better. His constitution, which differed from terrestrial humans, had presently overcome his frailty.
"Great Imperium!" he whispered, "I suspected it." His reddish eyes sought Rhodan's attention.
"How's that?" the commander asked. The sharp lines around his mouth deepened.
"The last riddle of the Unknown threatens to destroy an entire solar System. Vega is an essential reference point for navigating our positions. If this star goes, we'll never locate the planet we want to find. And Vega has been set to explode!"
"And what about the Ferrons living here?" Bell gasped. The poor devils will be boiled to death on their molten planets. Their spaceships are no faster than the velocity of light. They'll never be able to escape from the exploding sun. Did the Unknown go mad?"
"We came a little too late," Rhodan said in a choked voice. "Much too late. Our wrong transition has cost us weeks. Meanwhile things have happened here. Khrest, will you please work out the course for the eighth planet. Change of course in three minutes. Thank you."
The 500 men of the ship's crew looked at each other. The triggers of their weapons remained untouched. The previously spotted objects turned out to be Ferronian spaceships. The egg-shaped outlines were unmistakable as was the fact that it was an enormous fleet consisting of 600 units.
"They're fleeing to the outer planets," Bell moaned. "What's going on here?"
Rhodan gave no answer. He seemed to know, or at least surmise, what had occurred on great Vega.
Exactly three minutes later the engines of the super-battleship began to roar. The computed change of course required a curve correction of 18 million miles at a velocity close to the speed of light.
Flaming Vega slowly moved out of the front observation screen. Instead, the infinite darkness of inter-galactic space with its multitude of stars took its place. The eighth planet of Vega, Ferrol, was still 4 billion miles distant
After the course adjustment Rhodan decided to go into a quick transition. Even at close to the speed of light they would have needed 7 hours to reach the eighth planet of the immense stellar system.
Space shook as the battleship disappeared in a brilliant burst of light. It was as if there had never been a Stardust II.




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