The Space Pioneers Part 3

asked Astro.

"No, but allowances have been made for them. One thousand colonists means one thousand men _who can produce_. However, a man may take his family," Hardy went on, adding, "providing, of course, that he doesn't mean twenty-three children, aunts, uncles, and so forth."

The three cadets looked at each other dumfounded. The very idea of the project was staggering, and as Strong, Hardy, and Commander Walters began to discuss the details of the screening system, they turned to each other excitedly.

"This is the greatest thing that's happened since Jon Builker made his trip into deep s.p.a.ce!" whispered Tom.

"Yeah," nodded Astro, "but I'm scared."

"About what?" asked Roger.

"Having the responsibility of saying No to a feller that wants to go."

The big cadet seemed to be worried and Tom attempted to explain what the job would really be.

"It's not a question of saying an outright No," said Tom. "You just ask the applicant about his experience with motors and reactors to see if he really knows his stuff."

Astro seemed to accept Tom's explanation, but he still seemed concerned as they all turned to Commander Walters, who had finished the discussion around the desk and was giving Captain Strong his orders.

"You and the cadets, along with Governor Hardy, will blast off tonight and go to Venusport for the first screenings." He faced the cadets. "You three boys have a tremendous responsibility. In many cases your decisions might mean the difference between success or failure in this mission. See that you make good decisions, and when you've made them, stick by them. You will be under the direct supervision of Captain Strong and Governor Hardy. This is quite different from your previous a.s.signments, but I have faith in you. See that you handle yourselves like s.p.a.cemen."

The three cadets saluted sharply, and after shaking hands with their commander, left the room.

Later that evening, their gear packed, the three members of the _Polaris_ unit were checked out of the Academy by the dormitory officer and were soon being whisked along on a slidewalk to the Academy s.p.a.ceport. As they neared the s.p.a.cious concrete field, where the mighty fleet of the Solar Guard was based, they could see the rows of rocket cruisers, destroyers, scouts, and various types of merchant s.p.a.ce craft, and in the center, on a launching platform, the silhouette of the rocket cruiser _Polaris_ stood out boldly against the pale evening sky. Resting on her directional fins, her nose pointed skyward, her gleaming hull reflecting the last rays of the setting sun, the s.h.i.+p was a powerful projectile ready to blast off for distant worlds.

[Ill.u.s.tration: _Her nose pointed skyward, the_ Polaris _was ready to blast off_]

Reaching the _Polaris_, the three cadets scrambled through the air lock into the s.p.a.ces.h.i.+p and prepared for blast-off.

On the control deck, Tom began the involved check of the control panel.

One by one, he tested the dials, gauges, and indicators on the instrument panel that was the brains of the mighty s.h.i.+p.

On the radar bridge, above the control deck, Roger adjusted the sights of the precious astrogation prism and took a checking sight on the Pole Star to make sure the instrument was in true alignment. Then turning to the radar scanner, the all-seeing eye of the s.h.i.+p, he began a slow, deliberate tracking of each circuit in the maze of wiring.

And below on the power deck, Astro, stripped to the waist, a leather belt filled with the rocketman's wrenches and tools slung around his hips, tuned up the mighty atomic engines. He took longer than usual, making sure the lead baffling around the reactor units and the reaction chamber was secure, before firing the initial ma.s.s.

Finally Tom's voice crackled over the intercom, "Control deck to all stations. Check in!"

"Radar bridge, aye!" came Roger's reply. "Ready for blast-off!"

"Power deck, aye!" said Astro, his booming voice echoing through the s.h.i.+p. "Ready for blast-off!"

"Control deck, ready for blast-off," said Tom, and then turned to the logbook and jotted down the time in the s.h.i.+p's journal. The astral chronometer over the control board read exactly 1350 hours.

Fifteen minutes later Captain Strong and Governor Hardy climbed aboard and Tom received the order to raise s.h.i.+p.

The young curly-haired cadet turned to the control board and flipped on the teleceiver. "Rocket cruiser _Polaris_ to s.p.a.ceport control tower,"

he called. "Request blast-off orbit and clearance!"

The traffic-control officer in the s.p.a.ceport tower answered immediately.

"Control tower to _Polaris_. You are cleared for blast-off at 1405 hours, orbital tangent 867."

Tom repeated the instructions and turned to the intercom and began snapping out orders. "Power deck, energize the cooling pumps!"

"Power deck, aye!" replied Astro. The slow whine of the powerful pumps began to scream through the s.h.i.+p. Tom watched the pressure indicator and when it reached the blast-off mark called to Roger for clearance.

"All clear, forward and up!" declared Roger.

"Feed reactant at D-9 rate!" ordered Tom. And far below on the power deck, Astro began to feed the reactant energy into the firing chambers.

Hardy looked at Strong and nodded in appreciation of the cadets' smooth efficient work. They strapped themselves into acceleration cus.h.i.+ons and watched the red second hand of the astral chronometer sweep around, and then heard Tom counting off the seconds.

"Blast off--" bawled Tom, "minus five--four--three--two--one--_zeroooo!_"

The giant s.h.i.+p lurched off the blast-off platform a few feet, the exhaust of the powerful rockets deflected against the concrete surface.

Then, poised delicately on the roaring rockets, the mighty s.h.i.+p picked up speed and began to accelerate through the atmosphere.

Pushed deep in his acceleration chair in front of the control board, unable to move because of the tremendous pressure against his body, Tom Corbett thought about his new adventure. And as the s.h.i.+p hurtled into the black velvet depths of s.p.a.ce, he wondered what the future held for him as he and his unit mates began a new adventure among the stars.

CHAPTER 3

"Control deck to power deck, check in!" Tom's voice crackled over the power-deck loud-speaker and Astro snapped to quick attention.

"Power deck, aye!" replied the giant Venusian into the intercom microphone. "What's up?"

"Stand by for course change," said Tom. "Roger's picked up a meteor on the radar scanner and--"

"Here's the course change," Roger's voice broke in over the intercom.

"Three degrees up on the plane of the ecliptic and five degrees starboard!"

"Get that, Astro?" snapped Tom. "Stand by for one-quarter burst on steering rockets!"

"One-quarter--right!" acknowledged the power-deck cadet and turned to the ma.s.sive panel that controlled the rockets.

On the control deck Tom Corbett continued talking to Roger. "Relay the pickup to the control-deck scanner, Roger," he ordered. "Let me take a look at that thing."

In a moment the thin sweeping white line on the control-deck scanner swept around the green surface of the screen, picking out the blip that marked the meteor. Tom watched it for a moment and then barked into the intercom, "Stand by to execute change course!"

He watched the meteor a few more seconds, making sure the course change would take them out of its path, and then gave the command. "Fire!"

Before he could draw another breath, Tom felt himself pressed into his seat as the _Polaris_ quickly accelerated and curved up and away from the onrus.h.i.+ng meteor in a long, smooth arc.

Captain Strong suddenly stepped through the hatch into the control deck.

Glancing quickly at the scanner screen, he saw the white blip that was the meteor flas.h.i.+ng away from the _Polaris_ and he smiled.