"Perry Rhodan 040 - Challenge of the Unknown" - читать интересную книгу автора (Perry Rhodan)

The case had been similar with Tako Kakuta. The delicate Japanese had discovered his extraordinary faculty as a result of a catastrophe and had kept it a secret until he became a part of Rhodan's Mutant Corps.
When these two received their orders, they responded at once. The teleport leap to the alien ship where it was docked against the Titan's hull was a minor detail; it would be another matter to remain undetected by its alien crew. They worked separately. While Tako concentrated on the afterнdeck areas, Ras took on the middle portion of the ship.
As he materialized and his vision cleared, he was able to determine with relief that he was alone. In this particular room were all kinds of equipment, the purpose of which at first eluded him. Since he saw no portholes he deduced that he must be deep inside, away from the outer hull.
He decided to start a routine search. The room had two doors. One of these was easily opened by pushing against it and he found himself in a corridor containing a number of doors. He didn't dare open any of them so he went onward, ready at any second to quickly dematerialise.
The forward opening was a bulkhead door, obviously leading to a continuation of the corridors. He hesitated a moment before he swung it open. The passage behind it was clear. He stood with his back to the wall and listened. Somewhere ahead he heard human voices. They conversed in Intercosmo. Thanks to hypnoнschooling, he had mastered this Esperanto of space. In spite of this, however, he couldn't understand a single word of the present conversation. Yet it devolved on him to learn what he could about the Zalites on this ship.
Cautiously he stalked onward until he could hear the voices more clearly. They emerged from one of the rooms behind one of the numerous doors. Inwardly triggered to teleport, he pressed an ear against the smooth surface. Now he could understand them.
"...we are probably putting our foot in it..."
The unknown speaker did not say this in so many words but the sense of it was the same. Another voice answered, "Hemor certainly must know what he's doing. He's operating under orders of the Zarlt. And he must know very well what he's about."
"I'll grant you that but you can't play games with the Empire. If it's detected that we're being deceptive, there'll be a whole fleet on our necks. We should avoid such an eventuality."
"Our opportunity is unique. just remember that this alien from the Universe has outwitted the great Brain!"
"My very point! And now the Zarlt thinks he'll be even smarter. To me, its a rash undertaking."
A slight pause ensued. Tschubai heard footsteps coming toward the door. He drew back and looked for an exit so he could avoid having to teleport. But there was little time to decide. The door was shoved open and a head appeared in the corridor.
Tschubai wouldn't have ventured to say later whether or not the Zalite had seen him. He dematerialised in the same second and simultaneously concentrated on the bow section, where the alien ship's control room would be located. It was a big risk but he had the assurance of knowing that he could disappear again at any moment if he ran into any people.
He was lucky.
While his vision returned and he readied himself for another transfer, he perceived that he was alone. Surrounding him completely was-the Universe.
But it was filled with air and he could breathe.
Fortunately, his initial fear that his direction had gone wrong and that he had landed in the vacuum of space, was unfounded. Much to his amazement he stood in the middle of a sphereнlike room, the walls and deck and ceiling of which consisted of transparent material. Probably an observation room.
To the right of him he saw the massive hull of the Titan towering above. A human figure walked briskly through a plastic boarding tube to the other vessel, under escort of several officers: probably the alien commander whom Rhodan wished to interview.
Ras observed with some relief that only one door gave access to the observation room. He hurried to it and risked a quick look into the corridor beyond. It was empty. From this direction there was nothing to fear. He closed the door and tamed around.
And then he saw the monster.

* * * *

From the beginning, Tako had not fared so well.
When he materialized he found himself in the midst of a group of people who were engaged in a highly agitated debate. Without exception they were Zalites and they wore smudged and soiled work clothes, indicating that in all probability they were members of the technical personnel.
Tako didn't have the presence of mind to disappear immediately. Now that he'd been discovered, perhaps he didn't consider the fact overly important, since naturally it would be impossible for them to capture him.
The excited discussion stopped abruptly. The men turned to him with a general raising of brows. They stared in speechless amazement at this strange apparition which had popped up in their midst and who nonetheless seemed to be composed of flesh and blood. Tako was inwardly amused but maintained a bard and grim expression, which of course was in tremendous contrast to his very delicate frame.
One of the Zalites, a hefty fellow in green trousers, came up to Tako and took hold of him, his face a mixture of fear and curiosity.
Tako pushed his hand away. "Okapka!" he warned in Intercosmo. "Don't touch me!"
The Zalite understood him. "Tono-who are you?" he asked, and added suspiciously, "Alda-where do you come from?"
"Perhaps I can make myself invisible," retorted Tako. He pushed the nearest Zalite aside and walked leisurely through the opened passage between them to the nearest door. "With your permission, I'll just take a look at your ship."
He opened the door. No one stopped him. They simply stood and stared at him, unable to believe the evidence of their eyes. Only when Tako was already halfway into the corridor and had the door just about closed behind him did the reaction set in. They came storming and crowding into the narrow opening like commandos and sought to grasp him. But they grasped at empty air.
Tako dematerialised and sprang toward the middle of the ship but had the misfortune of arriving precisely in the spot that Ras had just vacated seconds before. Thus it happened that the officer who was just emerging into the corridor became witness to an event that might require years for his reason ever to explain.
At first he saw a black monstrosity that suddenly began to shimmer and dissolve into the air. Certainly this was a most uncanny phenomenon that defied explanation, because the black apparition had no sooner become invisible than here was another form materializing in its place. The form of Tako.
With a cry of alarm the officer drew back and clanged the door shut behind him. Puzzled by the unusually fast reaction of the Zalite, Tako concentrated on seeking out Ras. He reasoned that he must be somewhere about, barring the unexpected.
He had hardly taken 10 steps before the alarms began to shrill through the entire ship. The sirens had an unpleasantly high tone to them which was painful to human eardrums. It was enough to wake the dead.
Tako cursed his luck and raced along the corridor. Actually he had accomplished nothing other than to panic these people into a full alarm. Rhodan wasn't going to be too happy about it but the damage was done. He figured be might just as well return to the Titan, as Ras might have done already.
So Tako teleported.

* * * *

Ras Tschubai froze in his tracks. He had thought he was alone in the bubble chamber but he was not.
The creature was approximately five feet high and about three feet wide and somewhat circular in shape, reminding Ras of a giant jellyfish. Beneath its body he was aware of an indeterminate number of short feet which appeared to be as flabby as the rest of the horrible shape. The whole mess was topped off by a ball-shaped head as though plunked into the middle of a pudding. Large, knobнlike eyes stared at him with baleful intent.
The most curious part of the situation was that the weird creature squatted in a glass container which appeared to be hermetically sealed on all sides. Ras recognized it at once as a spherical pressure chamber. Silvery metal pipes connected the container with an apparatus that was similar to an oxygen tank. An underнchassis of simple construction completed the picture.
Ras remained motionless and regarded the creature, sensing that it actually would not harm him. This was the only reason he stayed. He had an awareness of having discovered something very important.
Where do you come from?
Ras was very familiar with telepathy. Often enough he had practiced it with John Marshall and the mentalists of the Corps. The projected thought stood clearly in his mind. The monster was a telepath.
He ignored the question and took a few steps closer to the container, coming within about six feet of it. The cold, searching eyes made him wary; a certain threat emanated from them, the nature of which Ras was not able yet to determine. He was wondering what Rhodan would make of this discovery
Who is Rhodan? came the next question.
Ras was apprehensive now. If this beast could read thoughts, then the situation became dangerous. He strained to apply the training he had received, to screen his mind from telepathic surveillance. He must have succeeded as the next thought seemed to confirm.