Captain Future 06 - Star Trail to Glory (Spring 1941) (16 page)

The rocket-trail led roughly northwestward over the Hot Side. Down to his left the Brain saw the gray, molten expanse of the Sea of Lead. Far out in it rose steep, little, rocky isles that were mantled by flowing flames — the so-called Fire Islands. But the rocket-trail led northward into this forbidding wilderness. The heat of the monster Sun overhead was awful, yet the Brain's insulated case protected him. Steadily he followed the stolen ship.

"They can't be heading for Vapor Valley!" thought Simon. "There's no chance of their base being anywhere near that place."

But his surmise proved incorrect. The ionized rocket-trail led straight ahead toward a distant, gigantic gorge veiled in gray vapor. The Brain approached cautiously. The rocket-trail ended here. Puzzledly Simon Wright glided to and fro above Vapor Valley, peering down into its depths.

This place was a mystery of the System. Heavy clouds of vaporized mercury, made gaseous by the incredible heat, swirled ponderously in it, veiling its depths. It had never been explored, yet it seemed that the stolen ship must have disappeared into it.

The Brain coolly determined to follow. Without hesitation he glided down into the awesome, vapor-shrouded depths of the gigantic chasm.

WHILE the Brain had been lying in wait out in space, the
Comet
had approached Mercury from another quarter of space. Captain Future had driven the little ship at high speed all the way in from Kansu's Comet, for he realized that scant time remained to effect the scheme he had formed. Down through the gray dusk, the ship sank into the landing field behind the Planet Police building of Solar City.

Curt Newton strode into the building hastily, followed by Grag, Otho and young Jan Walker. Joan Randall and Ezra came running to meet him.

"I knew that was the
Comet
I heard landin’," beamed Ezra. "We been waitin' for you."

"You big space-struck idiot!" Joan stormed at Curt. "You had us all thinking something had happened to you!"

"When did Simon Wright disappear?" Curt Newton asked sharply.

"Just a little while ago," Joan answered. "He had been making a new instrument — a super-sensitive electroscope, he said. We went out to have a search made for you in space, just before you called. When we came back, the Brain was gone."

Captain Future felt a little relieved.

"Then Simon's gone on some quest of his own," he decided. "He should be able to take care of himself, and he'll surely call us if he needs help."

"Cap'n Future, what did you find out?" Ezra demanded eagerly. "The hijackers' secret beam was too strong for you, eh?"

"It isn't a beam those ship thieves are using to knock out pilots," Curt said. "It's something vastly more powerful, a secret invented years ago by Doctor Kelso. I've got to duplicate it in a hurry, if I'm to meet these hijackers on even terms next time."

"Next time?" Joan echoed. "Are you crazy enough to let them have another chance at you?"

Curt shrugged. "I've got to, if I'm to break up that ring. I'm going to pilot a ship in the Round-the-System Race. The hijackers will certainly try to capture those valuable racing ships, but Otho and I will be in one of them. This time we'll really be prepared for the attack!"

"You are space-struck, for sure!" Joan declared. "Why, the race itself is a grueling grind that kills pilots. Around the whole System, touching every planet, and then back to Mercury — and you're going into it hoping that those mechanical fiends will attack you. I give up!"

"What did you find out about the space ship magnates?" Captain Future interrupted. "You had them all shadowed?"

"Yes, and without results; None of them contacted any secret base."

"Yet one of them must have some way to keep in communication with the machine men he's using as tools." Curt turned to Ezra. "Did you follow that Durl Cruh clue, as I asked? Did you try to find out where Cruh could have heard of Kelso's machine men?"

"I got a little information," the veteran drawled. "More'n a year ago, Christian Rissman had some idea of usin' intelligent machines instead of human laborers. That'd cut his production costs so much he'd be able to undersell all the other manufacturers. He had the Interplanetary Library send out all the material it has on robots and their use in industry."

"That's when the
Star
Streak
record was sent out to the Rissman plant," Curt muttered thoughtfully, "go on, Ezra."

"AIN'T much more to tell," reported the old marshal. "Gray Garson, who was chief superintendent of Rissman's plant then, kicked about the idea of usin' mechanical workers. The other manufacturers, includin' Durl Cruh, heard about the idea and protested to the Government, which prohibited Rissman from usin' robot-workers. So he had to give it up. He was so mad at Garson that he fired him, and Garson set up a little space ship factory of his own."

"Durl Cruh must have known something more about the business," Curt said. "He was murdered to prevent his talking."

"Say, Chief!" Otho yelped. "It's clear as space that Rissman's the one who got Kelso's secret weapon and is using it to smash the other companies by these thefts!"

"Lan Tark is Rissman's biggest competitor," Grag dissented loudly. "I'm still betting that smooth Martian is behind this. The core of the whole thing is up there in his Space Palace."

"Mere suspicions won't get us anywhere," Captain Future stated. "Ezra, I want you to find out just how many ships have been produced by each company, and how many stolen."

"Rissman's never had any ships stolen," reminded Otho brashly. "It's as plain as a planet, Chief, if you'd only see it."

"I'm going ahead with my scheme of entering the race," Curt declared, ignoring the android. "The heart of this conspiracy is the secret main base where the machine men take the stolen ships. If I can duplicate their weapon, I can penetrate that place and smash the ring."

"But what in space is this mystery weapon you're talking about?" demanded Ezra Gurney. "You say it's not any kind of beam or ray."

"You said it was a speed-up," Grag boomed. "What kind of speed-up?"

"A kind that I've got to speed up to duplicate," Captain Future retorted. "The preliminary eliminations for the race start over at Suicide Station tomorrow morning. I've got to duplicate Kelso's weapon before then. I wish the Brain were here to help me, but since he's not —"

Curt did not finish the sentence. He was already hurrying back to the
Comet.

The others followed, and in deep perplexity watched Captain Future as he began assembling instruments and materials for his task.

"The principle of this is clear enough," he mused as bis hands worked deftly. "Simon and I did some research on it a couple of years ago, when we were investigating electronic structure. Thanks to that groundwork, I may be able to build a practical accelerator."

To Joan and Ezra, the spectacle of the greatest scientific wizard in the System at work was no new thing. But young Jan Walker, the Rocketeer, stared in amazement at the sight. Curt had unfolded a little metal table in the corner of the
Comet's
laboratory-cabin.

He set up the compact, powerful atomic drills, welders and cutters.

"A Number Three wave-trap and transformer-form, Otho. Grag, get a disk of sheet nickel and stamp it into a hemisphere, then lacquer it with liquid insulation. No, Otho, not a transformer — just a form, you idiot! I'll have to make my own windings for this."

The android and the big robot rushed around the laboratory, pulling out of the
Comet's
cabinets of scientific equipment the materials and instruments for which Captain Future called. Curt's bronzed hands flew among the devices before him. Jan Walker, well grounded as he was in ordinary science, had no conception of what the red-headed planeteer was doing. He only perceived that Curt was constructing a skull-cap of insulated nickel, to which was attached thin cables that led to a small square case of complex transformers.

"I think this will do it," Captain Future muttered, two hours later. "If the researches made by Simon and me were valid, it should work. It will certainly cause acceleration of the electronic movement."

"Have a heart, Chief, tell us what it's all about!" Otho pleaded.

CURT looked at them gravely. "This nickel cap will drench my whole body with vibrations capable of stimulating the movement of each atom's electrons. You know that the electrons and other sub-atomic particles of each atom revolve around their nucleus at a certain unvarying speed. That speed of electronic revolution is the same for every atom in our Universe. But this force will make the electrons of my body revolve much faster."

"So they'll revolve faster," agreed Otho. "What of it?"

"According to our researches in electronic structure," Captain Future replied, "upon the speed of electronic revolution directly depends the so-called time-speed of any object. Every electron in my body will be revolving faster. According to the laws of relativity, that should result in the time of my body being faster than ordinary time."

He put the insulated nickel cap upon his head. He stuffed the small transformer case into his jacket, letting the thin wires trail up to connect with the cap. Then, a little hesitantly, he reached into the transformer case and touched a switch. A low droning issued from the case. Curt turned a pointer on the front to a certain position.

He felt a queer vertigo through every fiber of his body for an instant. It changed quickly into a feeling of buoyant stimulation. Except for that sensation, he perceived no difference in himself. But when he looked at the others in the
Comet,
an excited exclamation burst from him.

"It works!"

The other five people in the cabin stood unmoving as statues. Otho's mouth was wide open to speak. Joan Randall's foot was poised in air to take a step forward. Young Walker's eyes were ludicrously wide as he stood motionless, his hands clenched. Then as Captain Future watched, he saw that they were moving so utterly slowly that his eyes could not perceive it. Otho's mouth was slowly closing. Joan's foot was descending with infinite slowness toward the floor.

Curt Newton realized that they were not really moving any more slowly than usual. It was he who was moving infinitely faster. The acceleration of electronic motion in his body had, by the laws of relativity, speeded up the time-passage of his body. He was living many times faster than anyone else in the System.

"I've got it!" Captain Future exulted. "But one more test —"

He picked up Otho's petrified body and carried it rapidly out of the ship into the twilit courtyard. Then Curt turned off the accelerating force. He experienced the same momentary vertigo till he was normal again. Now the others were no longer frozen, but moving naturally.

"What happened?" gasped Ezra Gurney, staring wildly at Curt. "You disappeared!"

"Is that what seemed to happen?" Curt questioned.

Joan nodded vigorously. "You just seemed to vanish. I could see only a vague blur of movement where you had been."

"That was because, in my faster time, I was moving so much more rapidly than you that you couldn't see me," Captain Future explained.

OTHO came bursting into the ship.

"Chief, was that you who did that to me? I couldn't see you or anything else! Something grabbed me and I woke up outside the ship. It was just the same as when the machine men overpowered me in the
Comet
before!"

"I only carried you out," Curt said. "But I was moving so rapidly, compared with you, that it all seemed instantaneous to you. This time accelerator is the device Kelso invented long ago — the mystery weapon the mechanical hijackers have been using."

"You mean the thing would work on machine men the same as on a human bein'?" Ezra queried incredulously.

"Of course it would," Curt Newton asserted. "Metal would respond as well as organic matter. Probably certain of the machine men have the accelerator built into their bodies by the man we're after. They also must have a few of their ships equipped with larger accelerators. A ship under the influence of the time-acceleration could move with immense relative velocity and overhaul the space ship they wanted to capture.

"A couple of the machine men, wearing accelerators, would force open its space-door, enter and grab its pilots and toss them out into space. And the pilots, living by slower time, wouldn't even be able to see their attackers. They'd experience only a blur of movement, and find themselves out in space."

"How're you goin' to use this business to fight back at the hijackers?" Ezra demanded.

"I'll make another of these accelerators. When Otho and I enter the race we will wear them under our space-suits. When the machine men jump us, we'll turn on our own accelerators. Then we'll be moving and living by as fast a time as they, and can meet them on even terms."

"Say, that sounds as if it's going to be fun?" cried Otho, rubbing his hands. "Wait till those metal devils try their trick on us. Will they get a surprise!"