Border, Breed Nor Birth

  Produced by Sankar Viswanathan, Greg Weeks, and the OnlineDistributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net

  Transcriber's Note:

  This etext was produced from Analog Science Fact & Fiction July 1962. Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.

  Border, Breed nor Birth

  Part 1 of Two. Kipling said those things didn't count when two strong men stood face to face. But ... do they count when two strong ideologies stand face to face...?

  by Mack Reynolds

  Illustrated by Schoenherr

  * * * * *

  I

  El Hassan, would-be tyrant of all North Africa, was on the run.

  His followers at this point numbered six, one of whom was a wisp of atwenty-four year old girl. Arrayed against him and his dream, he knew,was the combined power of the world in the form of the ReunitedNations, and, in addition, such individual powers as the United Statesof the Americas, the Soviet Complex, Common Europe, the FrenchCommunity, the British Commonwealth and the Arab Union, working bothtogether and unilaterally.

  Immediate survival depended upon getting into the Great Erg of theSahara where even the greatest powers the world had ever developedwould have their work cut out locating El Hassan and his people.

  * * * * *

  Bey-ag-Akhamouk who was riding next to Elmer Allen in the lead aircushion hover-lorry, held a hand high. Both of the solar powereddesert vehicles ground to a halt.

  Homer Crawford vaulted out of the seat of the second lorry before ithad settled to the sand. "What's up, Bey?" he called.

  Bey pointed to the south and west. They were in the vicinity ofTessalit, in what was once known as French Sudan, and immediately tothe south of Algeria. They were deliberately avoiding what littleexisted in this area in the way of trails, the Tanezrouft route whichcrossed the Sahara from Colomb-Bechar to Gao, on the Niger, was somefifty miles to the west.

  Homer Crawford stared up into the sky in the direction Bey pointed andhis face went wan.

  The others were piling out of the vehicles.

  "What is it?" Isobel Cunningham said, squinting and trying to catchwhat the others had already spotted.

  "Aircraft," Bey growled. "A rocket-plane."

  "Which means the military in this part of the world," Homer said.

  The rest of them looked to him for instructions, but Bey suddenly tookover. He said to Homer, "You better get on over beneath thatoutcropping of rock. The rest of us will handle this."

  Homer looked at him.

  Bey said, flatly, "If one of the rest of us gets it, or even if all ofus do, the El Hassan movement goes on. But if something happens toyou, the movement dies. We've already taken our stand and too much isat stake to risk your life."

  Homer Crawford opened his mouth to protest, then closed it. He reachedinside the solar-powered lorry and fetched forth a Tommy-Noiseless andstarted for the rock outcropping at a trot. Having made his decision,he wasn't going to cramp Bey-ag-Akhamouk's style with needlesspalaver.

  Isobel Cunningham, Cliff Jackson, Elmer Allen and Kenny Ballalougathered around the tall, American educated Tuareg.

  "What's the plan?" Elmer said. Either he or Kenny Ballalou could havetaken over as competently, but they were as capable of taking ordersas giving them, a desirable trait in fighting men.

  Bey was still staring at the oncoming speck. He growled, "We can'teven hope he hasn't seen the pillars of sand and dust these vehiclesthrow up. He's spotted us all right. And we've got to figure he'slooking for us, even though we can hope he's not."

  The side of his mouth began to tic, characteristically. "He'll makethree passes. The first one high, as an initial check. The second timehe'll come in low just to make sure. The third pass and he'll clobberus."

  The aircraft was coming on, high but nearer now.

  "So," Elmer said reasonably, "we either get him the second pass hemakes, or we've had it." The young Jamaican's lips were thinned backover his excellent teeth, as always when he went into combat.

  "That's it," Bey agreed. "Kenny, you and Cliff get the flac rifle, andhave it handy in the back of the second truck. Be sure he doesn't seeit on this first pass. Elmer, get on the radio and check anything hesends."

  Kenny Ballalou and the hulking Cliff Jackson ran to carry out orders.

  Isobel said, "Got an extra gun for me?"

  Bey scowled at her. "You better get over there with Homer where it'ssafer."

  She said evenly, "I've always considered myself a pacifist, but whensomebody starts shooting at me, I forget about it and am inclined toshoot back."

  "I haven't got time to argue with you," Bey said. "There aren't anyextra guns except handguns and they'd be useless." As he spoke, hepulled his own Tommy-Noiseless from its scabbard on the front door ofthe air cushion lorry, and checked its clip of two hundred .10 caliberultra-high velocity rounds. He flicked the selector to the explosiveside of the clip.

  * * * * *

  The plane was roaring in on what would be its first pass, if Bey hadguessed correctly. If he had guessed incorrectly, this might be theend. A charge of napalm would fry everything for a quarter of a milearound, or the craft might even be equipped with a mini-fission bomb.In this area a minor nuclear explosion would probably go undetected.

  Bey yelled, "Don't anybody even try to fire at him at this range.He'll be back. It takes half the sky to turn around in with thatcrate, but he'll be back, lower next time."

  Cliff Jackson said cheerlessly, "Maybe he's just looking for us. Hewon't necessarily take a crack at us."

  Bey grunted. "Elmer?"

  "Nothing on the radio," Elmer said. "If he was just scouting us out,he'd report to his base. But if his orders are to clobber us, then hewouldn't put it on the air."

  The plane was turning in the sky, coming back.

  Cliff argued, "Well, we can't fire unless we know if he's just huntingus out, or trying to do us in."

  Elmer said patiently, "For just finding us, that first pass would beall he needed. He could radio back that he'd found us. But if he comesin again, he's looking for trouble."

  "Here he comes!" Bey yelled. "Kenny-Cliff ... the rifle!"

  Isobel suddenly dashed out into the sands a dozen yards or so from thevehicles and began running around and around in a circle as thoughdemented.

  Bey stared at her. "Get back here," he roared. "Under one of thetrucks!"

  She ignored him.

  The rocket-plane was coming in, low and obviously as slow as the pilotcould retard its speed.

  The flac rifle began jumping and tracers reached out fromit--inaccurately. The Tommy-Noiseless automatics in the hands of Beyand Elmer Allen gave their silenced _flic flic flic_ sounds, equallyineffective.

  On the ultra-stubby wings of the fast moving aircraft, a row ofbrilliant cherries flickered and a row of explosive shells plowedacross the desert, digging twin ditches, miraculously going betweenthe air cushion lorries but missing both. It was upon them, over andgone, before the men on the ground could turn to fire after.

  Elmer Allen muttered an obscenity under his breath.

  Cliff Jackson looked around in desperation. "What can we do now? Hewon't come close enough for us to even fire at him, next time."

  Bey said nothing. Isobel had collapsed into the sand. Elmer Allenlooked over at her. "Nice try, Isobel," he said. "I think he came inlower and slower than he would have otherwise--trying to see what thedevil it was you were doing."

  She shrugged, hopelessly.

  "Hey!" Kenny Ball
alou pointed.

  The rocketcraft was wobbling, shuddering, in the sky. Suddenly itburst into a black cloud of fire and smoke and explosion.

  At the same moment, Homer Crawford got up from the sand dune behindwhich he'd stationed himself and plowed awkwardly through the sandtoward them.

  Bey glared at him.

  Homer shrugged and said, "I checked the way he came in the first timeand figured he'd repeat the run. Then I got behind that dune there andfaced in the other direction and started firing where I _thought_ he'dbe, a few seconds before he came over. He evidently ran right intoit."

  Bey said indignantly, "Look, wise guy, you're no longer the leader ofa five-man Reunited Nations African Development Project team. Then,you were expendable. Now,