[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
.There were tiny windows spotted about it not much more than portholes, really and therewas little to see through them.All I could make out,through the pale glimmer of the edenite film on thewindow itself, was the steep curve of the dome beneathus, glowing unsteadily with its own film.The coldblue light from the dome caught two or three juttingpoints of dark rock.125Beyond that, the darkness of the deep was brokenonly by the occasional ghostly glimmerings of deep-seacrea-tures that carried lights of their own.I glanced at David, startled."I don't see anything!"He nodded."You wouldn't, Jim.You need microsonarto see very far under the surface of the sea.That's whatGideon is working on now, I should judge.This missilegun it can be worked manually, if its microsonar sightsare working.But it's been fifteen years at least since itwasmanned always it was controlled from the fire-controlchamber below, you see.And that is wrecked _ "Gideon glanced up abstractedly.He noddedagreement, started to speak, and returned to his work.It wasn't hard to see that he was worried.The missile gun almost filled the turret.It was anugly, efficient machine of destruction, though the firingtube, what little of it was within its turret, looked oddlyslim.The bright-cased missiles racked in the magazineweren't much larger than my arm."Looks old-fashioned to you?" David was reading my mind."But it's deadly enough, Jim.One of thoseshells will destroy a sea-car the shock neutralizes theedenite film for a tiny fraction of a second.And the sea'sown pressure does the rest.They're steamjets athodyds, they're called; they scoop up water andfire it out behind in the form of steam."There was a sudden exclamation from Gideon.He plucked something out of a kit of spare parts,plugged a new component into the tangle of wires andsub-assemblies."That should do it!" he said softly.And he touched aswitch.We all stood waiting, almost holding our breaths.There was a distant hum of tiny motors.The turret shuddered and turned slightly.The microsonar screen came to life."You've done it!" David cried.Gideon nodded."It works, at any rate." He patted theslim breech, almost fondly."Anyway, I think it does.Itwas the sonar hookup that was the big headache.Itserves as the sights for the missile-gun.Without thesonar, it126would be like firing blind.Now I think we can seewhat we're doing."I stared into the microsonar, fascinated.It was an old,old model hardly like the bright new screen theAcade-my had taught me to work with.Everything wasreduced and distorted, as though we were looking into the wrong end of a cheap telescope.But, as I grew used to it, I could pick some detailsout.I could see the steep slopes of the sea-mount fallingaway from us.I found the jagged rim of a ravine theone the saurians used for their breeding trail, no doubt;the same one that Maeva and Old Ironsides had carriedus along.I glanced at the screen, and then again.There was a whirling pattern of tiny shapes.For amoment I couldn't make them out.Then I said: "Why, it'sa school of fish.At least that proves the saurians aren'taround, doesn't it? I mean, they would frighten the fishaway and ---- ""Fish?" Gideon was staring at me."What are youtalking about?"I said patiently, "Why, Gideon, don't you see? If therewere saurians, they'd show in the microsonar, wouldn'tthey? And that school of fish ---- "He looked at me with a puzzled expression, thenshrugged."Jim," he said, "look here." He adjusted the verniers ofthe microsonar with a delicate touch, bringing into sharpfocus.He pointed."There," he said."Right in frontof you.Saurians a couple of hundred of them, I'dguess.They look pretty small, because these old targetscreens reduce everything but there they are, just outof range!"I stared, unbelieving.What he was pointing at was what I had thought was a school of tiny fish!They were saurians, all right hundreds uponhun-dreds of them.I looked more closely, and Icould see another little object among my "fish" not asaurian this time, but something infinitely moredangerous.I pointed to it.Gideon and David followed mypointing finger."That's right, Jim," said David."It's the Killer Whale.They're waiting _ But they won't wait much longer."727They waited exactly five more minutes.Then all three of us saw the little spurt of light jet outfrom the Killer's bright outline and come arrowingin toward us.Another jet missile!Seconds later, the dull boom of its explosion shookthe dome once more.But even before that, Gideon had leaped into thecradleof the missile-gun.One hand on the trips, the othercoax-ing the best possible image from the microsonar sights,hewheeled the turret to bring the weapon to bear onthedistant shape of the Killer Whale
[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]