"(novel) (ebook) - Perry Rhodan 0060 - (52) Fortress Atlantis" - читать интересную книгу автора (Perry Rhodan)

1/ MY FUTURE

I STRUCK DOWN Perry Rhodan.
With an exact replica of an ancient Teutonic sword.
It was in the sword room of the Terra Museum on Venus that I temporarily bested the First Administrator of the tiny planetary domain which he, with a dramatic flare, called the 'Solar Empire'.
The fact that I had once confronted and defeated this man and had held him in my power for a time, satisfied my Arkonide pride.
Now I awaited him.
"You look splendid, sir!" The officer addressing me with a smile was of medium height, unostentatious looking, wearing the insignia of a Captain of the Terranian Spacefleet, Hubert Gorlat. But although he acted in a polite and respectful manner, one couldn't overlook the fact that he wore the badge of the Security Service on the left sleeve of his uniform.
I wondered with some amusement whether he referred to my personal appearance of my newly acquired sartorial splendour. I looked down and examined my trimly fitting pale green uniform, flecked a speck of dust from my pants leg and remarked, "You think so, Captain?"
"Indeed, sir!" But his next words piqued my ego. "It's about time they gave you an appropriate outfit." He meant my attire after all. I was disappointed. These Terranians always paid a great deal of attention to appearance and why should he make an exception in my case?
Hubert Gorlat coughed slightly and glanced at his watch-an overt hint, which I chose to ignore. I scanned my motivation and realized I would have deliberately taxed his patience less if he had been a little more diplomatic.
I knew why he had been sent to me: Gorlat was the officer in charge of security aboard the super-battleship Drusus, which had returned 3 days ago to the spaceport of Terrania from an adventurous trip, bringing back with it the man whom I awaited with considerable impatience: Perry Rhodan.
Our encounter on Venus had turned out for the best: I had realized at the penultimate moment how senseless it would have been to seriously injure this remarkable Earthling, let alone kill him. There were more than enough people about to thwart my escape and in any event it had become unnecessary.
Capt. Gorlat belonged to the type of cool, ever alert, never relaxing men who guided the fate of Earth since the beginning of the 21st century. If Gorlat's manners in dealing with extraterrestrial beings left something to be desired, it didn't mean he didn't know the right thing to do at the right moment. Perry Rhodan had carefully selected his men. I had no doubt that these daring death-defying Earthlings, aided by a mixture of shrewdness, personal courage and scientific and technological know-how, were on the verge of conquering the Galaxy.
They proceeded step by step, exercising cautious restraint. At times, however, they struck with overwhelming force, only to vanish without a trace. Strictly speaking, they conducted a kind of cosmic guerilla warfare. In so doing they always showed the greatest concern for their opponents, taking care not to hurt friendly beings and treating them in such a fashion that no burning, lasting hatred was created in them. Their anger invariably subsided once they had a chance to coolly reflect on the situation. Precisely what happened to me after I awoke from my long deep-sleep at the bottom of the ocean and ascended to the face of the Earth. I had believed that an atomic war had taken place on Earth but this proved to be an erroneous assumption.
Perry Rhodan, whom I had known as a simple Major of the U.S. Spaceforce, had meanwhile surpassed himself and it had been painful for me to see that Terra's might was based on the knowledge and methods developed by my worthy ancestors.
Without the Arkonide super-technology Rhodan would probably be long forgotten and his accomplishments would have been buried in the chronicles of some archives as having been those of the commander of the first expedition to the Moon in an atomic rocket.
When I learned that he was the driving force behind the phenomenal development of Terra's leap into space, I had seen my chance to return home after thousands of years. However my efforts to flee had failed twice and each time it had been the tall lean grey-eyed barbarian who had frustrated my plans by his personal intervention.
After my arrest at the capital of the Venus colony Rhodan was gone one night but Lt. Gmuna, my constant companion and guard of the Special Corps for Psychological Defence, had dropped a few hints now and then, according to which some inhabitants of the Galaxy, who had believed that Rhodan was dead, had now found out that he was still among the living. This had ended the biggest game of hide & seek but I had to admit that it had borne amazing fruits.
This bold barbarian had been able to make all intelligent populations of other worlds believe for 56 years that Terra had been destroyed in the wake of a mighty attack from outer space in which Rhodan had met his death.
Taking advantage of this welcome respite, Rhodan had begun to work feverishly. What he and the young generation of men and women had created boggled the mind. I had no choice but to admit that these Earthlings were not inferior to my own people in any respect and they probably had more energy and determination, features which I had often found to my great sorrow absent from my race when I was an Admiral in charge of an Arkonide Fleet.
Now the mysterious Rhodan, who had become almost legendary, had returned to Earth. I could vividly imagine what hazardous ventures he had undertaken in the 4 months since last July when I was taken in custody at Port Venus.
When Capt. Gorlat appeared a few minutes earlier it became clear to me that I approached a final decision about my future. Rhodan was not one of those procrastinating people who kept putting unpleasant matters off. I expected him to ask me a few blunt questions in his ironic manner which I was supposed to answer either yes or no.
However I figured I had a good chance. If he really had been discovered again there was no compelling reason he should refuse my return to the Arkon system. I closed my eyes to recall the 3 planets from which I had departed 10,000 Terrestrial years ago with the intention of remaining a few months in the distant Solar system.
How different it all turned out to be! I had become immortal. Why this happened was something I could never learn. A mysterious fate had chosen me to wander on Earth for thousands of years.
Capt. Gorlat cleared his throat again and interrupted my reminiscing. This time I was ready to respond to his glance at his watch. "You don't have much time, do you?" I asked him.
He sighed with relief and relaxed his stiff posture. "Yes, sir, that's right! Would you do me the favour...?"
He left it up to me to guess what he wanted. Without saying it, it was clear that Rhodan expected me. I rose from my comfortable armchair and walked to the wide picture window of my living room. My apartment was located on the 108th floor of a new sky-rise building which housed the offices of a recently established government department. The chief of the department was called Minister for Outer Solar Settlements and for his employees it was simply MOSS.
They had made a luxurious apartment available for my use. The balcony offered a magnificent panoramic view of the nearby spaceport and the continually growing suburbs of Terrania, a city of 14 millions.
The salt lake Goshun could no longer be seen since the bold architectural forms of Terra's capital obstructed the view. The little lake had lost its importance. Its salty water had never contributed to making the former desert of Gobi bloom.
Now the weather on Earth was controlled to perfection. The artificially produced rains had turned the desert into a verdant land. It was miraculous what the former astronaut and test pilot Perry Rhodan had accomplished with this wasteland. It was enough to put fear in me for the future of the Great Empire under the hegemony of Arkon and I was unwilling to stand idly by and allow these Earthlings to pursue their ambitions.
Such reflections only reinforced my burning desire to return home. I was fed up with the hospitality of my captors and wished I could reach my goal as quickly as possible.
I turned around and leaned against the windowsill. I looked at Gorlat, who was getting more and more nervous, Apparently he had instructions to be polite and considerate. If I had been in his shoes, I would have spoken in no uncertain terms. But he waited till I, his prisoner, was ready to comply with his request. This was a good omen for me since it indicated an intention to treat me more obligingly. "Are you aware, Captain, that I've made a written appeal to the Chief of the Psychological Defence? I've demanded my release."
Gorlat was informed about it. "Lt.-Gen. Kosnow has already contacted the Administrator as soon as we landed. This is why you're requested to come to the Drusus without delay, sir."
His tone had become a shade sharper and he no longer 'asked my favour' but he 'requested' me. It was time to go.
I put on the gold-braided uniform belt with the service weapon in the holster. However it was only a facsimile of the real thing. They didn't trust me with a genuine impulse-beamer.
Of course I owed it only to Lt. Gmuna, my black friend and protector, that I wore the uniform of the Solar Imperium at all. He had groused so long about my civilian garb that I finally gave in. However I had insisted on wearing the symbol of Arkon on my chest.
My wish had been granted and a picture of the 3 planets was embroidered on the uniform. I wore the Terranian insignia on my shoulders. I remembered the mischievous grin of Gmuna when he fastened the epaulets with the silver comets on my shoulder pads. It must have struck him as odd to adorn an Arkonide Squadron Chief with the insignia of a Terranian Lieutenant General.
From then on Gmuna had saluted me with such exaggerated precision at all possible and impossible occasions that I shoved him one day without a word into a swimming pool.
I donned my snappy cap and walked out the door. The guard robots posted outside the door pulled up their movably mounted impulse-blasters and stood at attention. The people around me seemed to enjoy a display of good manners.
Gmuna waited at the antigrav elevator. His thin face had a blasщ expression and he leaned at such a grotesque angle against the wall that I had trouble not breaking out in loud laughter. Ever since I had nearly drowned him in the swimming pool, he acted with deliberate nonchalance.
"Hi!" he greeted me. "Coming, daddy!"
I stopped and looked at his grinning face. I had called him 'son' a few times and now he called me 'daddy'. I couldn't help feeling friendlier and friendlier each day toward these Earthlings. They were so natural and sincere. They acted the way my own people never could do: they let others know what to expect of them. Sometimes their unrestrained behaviour was almost insulting but it was usually tempered by a healthy life-sustaining humour such as Gmuna exhibited.
"Next time I'm going to throw you into the salt lake, son," I promised, tongue in cheek.
"Okay, daddy," he drawled. "I'll evaporate the puddle with an energy-cannon, then what are you going to do?"
Hesitantly Capt. Gorlat made a superfluous remark: "The Chief is waiting!"
I dropped into the antigrav field and pushed myself up. A Spaceforce helicopter waited on the roofport for me.