"(novel) (ebook) - Perry Rhodan 0053 - (45) Unknown Sector Milky Way" - читать интересную книгу автора (Perry Rhodan)

Almost more astounding than this event itself was the endurance Perry demonstrated in his work. By the time the 10th level had been swept through, Feriar was so tired he couldn't stand on his feet and had to be spelled off by a Fenomat recruit. 2 levels farther on, Ivsera had to give up also, after she had selected a substitute for herself from a line-up of people who had regained consciousness.
On the other hand, Perry did not show the slightest sign of fatigue. He looked as if he had just gotten up after a refreshing sleep. Ivsera was ashamed of herself in his presence but while she was in the midst of this embarrassment her eyes closed involuntarily.
When she woke up it was deathly still around her. Most of those who had been stunned had come to again but since they had no idea of what had occurred, they remained calm. Here and there, Sallon captives attempted to extricate themselves from their fetters or to got through the steel doors of various detention cells but none of them succeeded. And so they finally submitted to their fate.
Many of them began to recall having seen Ivsera in the company of a man who had caused all of this confusion with his mysterious weapon. As soon as she got up, Ivsera was deluged with questions. But instead of answering them, she hurried to the nearest elevator and went up to look for Perry.
She found him on the 48th level. With him were Feriar and a 2nd man whose eyeballs were as white as Perry's and who carried the same kind of weapon.
Perry greeted the young woman with a smile. "It's all over," he told her. "The bunker is in our hands. Ivsera-this is my friend Marshall. Without him we'd have a few hours more work to do."
Ivsera made a little bow to Marshall with her head and he gave her a friendly smile.
"But can you imagine?" continued Perry. "There was still a nest of resistance in Fenomat. With only a few weapons a handful of young fellows defended themselves against the attack of the Sallon troops. They had entrenched themselves in the biochemical laboratories."
Ivsera reacted with interest. "Do you know their names?" she asked.
"2 of them. One is called Ther and the other Irvin."
Ivsera cried out, "Ther and Irvin! Good Lord, the poor fellows!" But her tone was one of relief.
"Yes, they could hardly stand on their feet, in the end, because of hunger. I've arranged to get them some food right away. By the way: the question of provisions seems to be more or less our main problem. Without exception your people are undernourished. Aren't there any more supplies?"
Ivsera shook her head dejectedly. "No, nothing."
This seemed to make little impression on Perry. "Well then we'll have to see what we can do about it." Apparently it was no great concern to him as to where he could get sufficient food for at least 10,000 half-starved people.
Feriar wanted to say something. "Perry is planning to also take over the Sallon bunker. What do you think about that?"
Ivsera spread her hands in resignation. "Apparently he could take over every bunker on Isan, one after the other, if he wanted to."
Perry shook his head. "I'm not concerned about the bunker but about Belal."
Ivsera felt that at this stage she was superfluous where politics were concerned. A greater power had taken over administration and any attempt to either help or hinder would be ridiculous.
With Perry's approval, Ivsera instructed some of the Fenomat men to strip the prisoners of all but their essential clothing and to bring the pieces of apparel to the laboratory. She estimated that by this means she might be able to prepare a day's food ration for each Fenomat citizen. That would last them until Perry managed to finally bring help.
In the laboratory she met Irvin and Ther. In his enthusiasm, Irvin threw his arms around her, which was something he had never permitted himself to do before. "Girl!" he cried out. "How glad I am to see you!"
Ivsera extracted herself from the embrace and looked him over. Since she had seen Irvin the last time, he had changed. Evidently the only last thing that had been needed to make a man out of this youth was the battle he had gone through.
"The way I hear it," she said, "you have become a hero."
Irvin laughed. "Not on my own power," he replied, while pointing to Ther. "This slave driver stormed in here all of a sudden with 3 companions. He shoved a rifle into my hands and yelled: 'The Sallon men are coming! Fire at them, or I'll fire at you!' All 4 of us did the shooting. What else was I supposed to do? We made a couple of grenades out of the chemical supplies that were here and they gave us a breather. If it hadn't been for hunger we could have held out forever. But the strange miracle man arrived in the nick of time. Who is he, anyway?"
Ivsera told him she knew as much about him as Irvin did.
"He's going to clean out Sallon, isn't he?" growled Ther suddenly. "Let's hope he finds that traitor, Havan, in the process."
Ivsera whirled about. "Havan? A traitor?"
"Didn't you hear about it? Havan has been plotting with Sallon for a couple of years. They say Belal had promised to set him up as a sort of governor after the conquest of Fenomat. It isn't by chance that the Sallon tunnel came out exactly in Havan's quarters!"
Ivsera groaned. Havan-a traitor! She had always thought him capable of being selfish, dogmatic and insidious in a great number of things-but that he would become a traitor...!"
She suddenly remembered the last words she had heard him say: "Thus far we have the Council!"
So this is what he meant!
Ivsera shuddered when she considered the fate that awaited Havan following his capture. In accordance with the statutes of military law, which were honoured in both bunkers, there was only the penalty of death for treason.
She shook the thought out of her mind and looked along the gleaming row of her equipment. Her gaze fell on the pile of clothing that the collectors had scrounged from the enemy and stacked up in a corner. "Let's go to work," she ordered Irvin. "We all need something to eat!"









4/ IN THE MIDST OF LIFE THERE IS DEATH

Originally it had not been Perry Rhodan's intention to interfere with the course of events on Isan in any manner whatsoever.
Together with the mouse-beaver Pucky; the 2 mutants, Laury Marten and John Marshall; and lastly Count Rodrigo de Berceo-who had been freed from the Galactic Zoo-Rhodan had escaped, not without difficulty, from the Ara World of Tolimon, in a small spaceship which was a special type of space jet or luxury yacht. Marshall and Laury had had the assignment to search for the secret of a certain medical development which slowed down cell deterioration and which was nothing other than a true elixir of life.
Laury had contrived to infiltrate the Galactic Zoo, in which the Aras had collected life forms from all parts of the known galaxy. One of the 'inmates' of the zoo was Count Rodrigo de Berceo, who had been captured long ago during Earth's 17th century and was classified in the intelligence range of 'C'. Laury's basic transgression had been to fall in love with him and owing to her consequent emotional involvement she had made certain blunders which had generated suspicion on the part of the Aras. As a result, Rhodan had been forced to take a hand in the mission. He did not quite succeed in obtaining the actual formula for the life elixir but at least he had been able to liberate the 2 mutants and the unhappy Rodrigo and to flee with them from Tolimon. Also, Laury did manage to secure a small flask of the valuable life elixir itself.
A series of hypertransitions had brought the space jet beyond the range of the pursuing ships and had landed it simultaneously in the heart of the galaxy. Thus the vessel found itself outside all known space routes. Rhodan had planned to spend 4 weeks on the planet which was a companion of the blue sun in this double-star system. This, hopefully, would give time for the search for the space jet to die down.
He had not lost sight of the possibility that the events on Tolimon might attract the attention of the ruling positronic brain in the Arkonide Empire, under given conditions. If it were to obtain sufficient data, concerning the Tolimon incident, then the danger would arise that it would conclude that only Perry Rhodan could have been responsible for what happened. But Perry Rhodan had to be regarded by the vast positronicon as a dead man. It was also necessary to maintain the fiction that a certain Springer attack of more than 50 years ago had destroyed the Earth and wiped out humanity.
Thus at the turn of the 21st century it had only been through this great strategy of deception that the Earth had managed to save itself from the pursuit of the Springers and the intolerant jealousy of the central positronic brain. However, now 56 years later, the success of the whole manoeuvre was still at stake.
Had 56 years been enough time in which to prepare Earth for its struggle of survival among the great galactic powers? Had the time now arrived to drop the game of hide and seek?