Stand by for Mars! Part 29

"_Polaris_ to _Lady Venus_," he called. "Come in _Lady Venus_. Rocket cruiser _Polaris_ calling _Lady Venus_. Come in! Come in!"

There was no answer. The pa.s.senger s.h.i.+p's instruments had gone dead.

CHAPTER 13

"_Polaris_ to Commander Walters at s.p.a.ce Academy--Come in, Commander Walters!" Captain Strong's voice was urgent in the teleceiver.

"Just worked up an a.s.sumed position on the _Lady Venus_," said Roger over the intercom. "I think she's bearing about seventeen degrees to port of us, and about one-twenty-eight on the down-plane of the ecliptic."

"O.K., Roger," said Tom. "Captain Strong's trying to reach Commander Walters now." He made a quick mental calculation. "Golly, Roger--if you've figured it right, we're closer to the _Lady Venus_ than anyone else!"

The teleceiver audio crackled.

"Commander Walters at s.p.a.ce Academy to Captain Strong on the _Polaris_.

Come in, Steve!"

"Commander!" Strong's voice sounded relieved. "Did you get that emergency from the _Lady Venus_--the S O S?"

"Yes, we did, Steve," said the commander. "How far away from her are you?"

Without a word, Tom handed Strong the position that Roger had computed.

Strong relayed the information to the commander.

"If you're that close, go to her aid in the _Polaris_. You're nearer than any Solar Guard patrol s.h.i.+p and you can do just as much."

"Right, sir," replied Steve. "I'll report as soon as I get any news. End transmission!"

"s.p.a.ceman's luck, end transmission!" said the commander.

"Have you got a course for us, Roger?" asked Strong.

"Yes, sir!"

"Then let's get out of here. I have a feeling there's something more than just the usual emergency attached to that S O S from the _Lady Venus_."

In twenty seconds the mighty cruiser was blasting through s.p.a.ce to the aid of the stricken pa.s.senger s.h.i.+p.

"Better get the emergency equipment ready, Tom," said Strong. "s.p.a.ce suits for the four of us and every spare s.p.a.ce suit you have on the s.h.i.+p. Never can tell what we might run into. Also the first-aid surgical kit and every spare oxygen bottle. Oh, yeah, and have Astro get both jet boats ready to blast off immediately. I'll keep trying to pick them up again on the teleceiver."

"Yes, sir," replied Tom sharply.

"What's going on up there?" asked Astro, when Tom had relayed the orders from Captain Strong. Tom quickly told him of the emergency signal from the _Lady Venus_.

"_Lady--Venus--_" said the big cadet, rolling the name on his tongue, "I know her. She's one of the Martian City--Venusport jobs--an old-timer.

Converted from a chemical burner to atomic reaction about three years ago!"

"Any ideas what the trouble might be?" asked Tom.

"I don't know," replied Astro. "There are a hundred and fifty things that could go wrong--even on this wagon and she's brand new. But I wouldn't be surprised if it was on the power deck!"

"And what makes you think so?" asked Tom.

"I knew a s.p.a.ceman once that was on a converted tub just like the _Lady Venus_ and he had trouble with the reaction chamber."

"Wow!" exclaimed Tom. "Let's hope it isn't that now!"

"You can say that again," said Astro grimly. "When this stuff gets out of control, there's very little you can do with it, except leave it alone and pile out!"

The _Polaris_, rocketing through s.p.a.ce at full s.p.a.ce speed, plunged like a silver bullet through the vastness of the black void, heading for what Strong hoped to be the _Lady Venus_. Tom prepared the emergency equipment, doubling all the reserves on the oxygen bottles by refilling the empties he found on the s.h.i.+p and making sure that all s.p.a.ce suits were in perfect working order. Then he opened the emergency surgical kit and began the laborious task of examining every vial and drug in the kit to acquaint himself with what there was to work with just in case. He brought all the stores of jelly out for radiation burns and finally opened a bottle of special sterilization liquid with which to wipe all the instruments and vials clean. He checked the contents of the kit once more, and, satisfied that everything was as ready as he could make it, he went up to the control deck.

"Any other message from them yet, sir?" asked Tom.

"Nothing yet," answered Strong. "If I could pick them up on the teleceiver, maybe they could tell us what the trouble is and then we could more or less be prepared to help them." He bent over the teleceiver screen and added grimly, "If there is anything left to help!"

"Radar deck to control deck!" Roger's voice was tense. "I think I've picked them up on the radar scanner, Captain Strong!"

"Relay it down here to control-deck scanner, Manning," ordered Strong.

"Ummmh!" murmured the captain when the screen began to glow. "I'm pretty sure that's her. Here's that a.s.sumed position Roger worked up, Tom.

Check it against this one here on the scanner."

Tom quickly computed the position of the object on the scanner and compared it to the position Roger had given them previously.

"If Roger's positioning was correct, sir," said Tom, "then that's the _Lady Venus_. They both check out perfectly!"

Strong, bent over the radar scanner, didn't answer. Finally he turned around and flipped off the scanner. "That's her," he announced.

"Congratulations, Roger. You hit it right on the nose!"

"How shall we approach her, sir?" asked Tom.

"We'd better wait until she sends up her flares."

"You mean the identification flares for safety factors?"

"That's right," replied Strong. "A white flare means it's all right to come alongside and couple air locks. A red one means to stand off and wait for instructions." Strong turned to the intercom.

"Control deck to power deck. Reduce thrust to one quarter s.p.a.ce speed!"

"Power deck, aye," answered Astro.

"We'll wait until we're about two miles away from her and then use our braking jets in the bow of the s.h.i.+p to bring us within a few thousand feet of her," commented Strong.

"Yes, sir," said Tom.