"Donald E. Wollheim - The Secret of the ninth Planet" - читать интересную книгу автора (Wollheim Donald A)

lever was activated. There was a slight change in the radiance of one globe.
"Dad!" Burl shouted. "It works! It works for me now!"
Mark Denning watched as Burl turned dials and levers and got responses. "You
must have been charged in a special way," he said excitedly. "That's how they
lock their devices. They will only respond to a person carrying that special
energy charge, whatever it was. Come on, let's get to the main control, before
the effect goes away-- if it does."
The two dashed to the panel which, they guessed, activated the main Sun
transmitter. Burl grabbed the instruments and threw them back to what seemed to
be the zero positions.
The humming rose in intensity, then quieted down and finally stopped. There was
a series of clicks, and one by one, the various globes, condensers and glowing
machines died out. Above them came a whirring noise, and Burl looked up to see
the masts withdrawing into the building, their discs presumably left flat and
directionless.
It felt different. Suddenly they knew that the vibrations which had been so
heavy in the air about them were gone. There was silence everywhere, the natural
silence of an empty, lifeless building in an uninhabited valley.
Burl and his father made their way to the break in the wall and climbed through
it.
Outside, the Sun shone down brighter than it had before. The sky was the calm
serene blue of a cloudless day. Burl knew that at that same moment, all over the
world, the sky was clearer and the Sun warmer.
But for how long? Behind them the building still stood-- and its inventors were



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still to be found.
CHAPTER THREE-- The Secret of A-G 17
THE DENNINGS did not have much time to speculate on the mystery of the
Sun-stealers. For just as they were discussing what should be their next course
of action, the problem was solved for them. There was a roaring in the air, then
a humming, and in a matter of a few more seconds, six rocket helicopters popped
into sight, hovered over the valley on streaming jets, and settled down.
"They're U.S. planes!" gasped Burl, jumping to his feet and going to meet them.
"It must mean that they know we stopped the machines."
"Obviously," said his father, striding with him to greet the helmeted man who
was now stepping out of the lead machine. By this time the last of the squad had
landed, and the khaki-clad soldiers in them were already disembarking. "I
imagine that all over the world the sky turned a little brighter. It must have
been apparent at once."
The leader of the 'copter men reached them. He was a tall, bronzed man, wearing
the service coveralls and markings of a captain of the Air Force. He stretched
out his hand. "You must be the Dennings. I'm Captain Saunders. I've been asked
to bring you back with me right away so that we can get a complete report on
this affair. How fast can you get ready?"
"Why," said Burl, "we're ready right now. As soon as we can dump our packs