Air Wonder Stories, April, 1930
Air Wonder Stories
2
LL Earth-Guard rockets
its half-hundred men had been hurtling toward
attention! One-man rocket Pallas
earth after its weary week’s vigil in space,
“A speaking. Am pursued by pirate before this call had come.
rocket believed to be that of the Hawk! I am
And weary enough indeed was the
running toward earth on space-lane 18, now in
vigil that the rocket ships of the Earth-Guard
zone 44-6, but am being rapidly overtaken!”
kept around the earth and its moon, and had
As the clear voice came from the kept up for more than fifty years. More than radiophone before him, Captain Wright Evans
fifty years it had been since, back in 1954, the
slammed over the reply-switch and shouted
first crude rocket had thundered out from earth
back into it.
into the great void toward its shining satellite.
“Earth-Guard Rocket 283 answering.
Neither that first rocket nor the twenty-first
Standing toward you at top speed instantly!”
had reached their goal, but the next one had.
Then he was up and bursting into the
Thus had begun the commerce that
great rocket ship’s squat little pilot-house, now filled all the space-lanes between the where a man seated at the controls turned
earth and moon. In their first flame of
inquiringly to him.
exploration, men had headed out toward the
“Full speed ahead, Calden!” he cried.
nearer planets, too, but they had found them
“The Hawk’s out again and after a one-man
unapproachable because of the fierce guard
rocket not a thousand miles ahead—it’s our
maintained by their strange peoples. Every
chance to get him at last!”
ship that had sought to explore another planet
“Full speed it is,” rejoined Calden had been annihilated on reaching it and we calmly, his hands flashing forth to flick down
had finally realized that our planetary
a half-score of the banked shining levers neighbors were guarding fiercely their before him.
isolation.
Instantly the great ship lurched and
trembled as, from its rear, came thunderous
THERE had remained to earth only its own
explosion on explosion. In a moment every
moon. But that had become swiftly a lure to
one of its rear-tubes was firing, and the speed-
all adventurous earthlings. Upon the moon’s
dial’s arrow was creeping steadily forward
other side were great mines in which men,
until in a few minutes more it registered the
dwelling in air-tight cities and toiling in
ship’s top speed of ten thousand miles an
hermetically-tight metal suits, worked the rare
hour. The long gleaming craft, stubby of nose
metals and minerals in which earth’s satellite
and stern and fully five hundred feet in length,
abounded. And upon the moon’s earthward
was like a giant projectile, as it tore through
side were other great air-tight cities, glass-
the void, belching fire behind it.
roofed and luxurious, to which went each year
From the squat pilot-house set atop it,
hundreds of thousands of the earth’s
Evans and Calden gazed ahead. The great gray
wealthy—there to spend their vacations—
disk of earth filled a quarter of the heavens
enjoying the wondrous celestial views, the
before them, the outline of its continents and
astounding strength and youth given them by
seas visible here and there through its shifting
the moon’s lesser gravity, and the chance to
screen of clouds. Behind them the moon’s
view the earth from the outside.
silvery sphere was dwindling rapidly, as they
So that there had grown gradually the
had seen it dwindle now for hours. It was
commerce that kept endless streams of ships
hours that the great Earth-Guard rocket with
moving between earth and moon—great and
Evans of the Earth-Guard
3
luxurious passenger-craft laden with the muffled cheer came up from the gun-rooms wealthy and powerful of earth; and sleek beneath “They’re on their toes, evidently,” he private ships bound like the others for the
commented. “They’re as crazy to get their
luxurious lunar cities. Bulky and battered hands on the Hawk as you are.”
cargo-rockets had their own space-lanes,
Evans made no answer but started
carrying metals and minerals to the earth, and
ahead with teeth clenched upon his lower lip,
returning with loads of supplies and tanks of
glancing over now and then at the dials that
the liquid rocket-fuel to the moon.
recorded the rocket’s position between earth
It was inevitable that all this traffic
and moon. This recording was automatic,
should need regulating, and so there had been
being dependent on the change in the
formed the Earth-Guard, an organization gravitational power of the two bodies. Evans corresponding to the old Coast-Guards of the
saw by them now that the rocket was hurtling
nations, but controlled by an international into the very zone in which the Pallas had commission of earth’s powers. The Earth-reported itself.
Guard boasted five hundred gleaming rockets
that patrolled ceaselessly the space between
HE reached to turn a knob and there clicked
and around the earth and moon, enforcing
up into position against the lenses set in the
peace with their electric guns and guarding the
pilot-house window two long metal tubes with
lunar commerce.
eye-pieces that formed powerful binoculars.
For there were those against whom it
Gazing ahead through these he kept watch,
must be guarded—space-pirates who dashed
while with fingers on the firing-levers of the
forth from time to time from hidden bases on
rocket’s tubes Calden kept them steady on
earth or moon to harry and hold up in the void
their course. Minutes passed before Evans
the rich lunar commerce. The boldest and uttered a cry.
most dreaded of them all was that swift and
“They’re just ahead!” he exclaimed.
flashing corsair of the void known to all on
Then, into the tube— “All batteries ready,
earth and moon alike as the Hawk, and who
Hartley, and use the port guns when we bank.”
for years had been the despair of all the Earth-
“Lord, look at that fellow!” breathed
Guard.
Calden as he too stared ahead. “He sure can
“Lord, if we can get him!” Evans was
handle a rocket—the Hawk can’t get his guns
praying as he gazed out of a port hole from the
on him!”
hurtling ship’s pilot-house. “I get so tired of
Far ahead of them in the void the scene
jabs about him that I’d lose an arm to get
of combat to which they had been summoned
him.”
was rushing into view. A tiny and shining one-
“Well, everyone’s turn comes sooner
man rocket was dodging and twisting and
or later in that game,” philosophized Calden.
circling in space, with its firing-tubes flaming
“It may be the Hawk’s now.”
first on one end and then on the other to keep
Evans pulled a speaking-tube toward
it in an ever-changing course. And around it,
him and shouted down into it over the roar of
like a great grim pike rushing a shining chub,
the rocket’s explosions. “Hartley? Put full was circling and swooping a long dead-black crews on all the electric guns and have them
rocket of the same size almost as the Earth-
Guard craft. It was the dreaded black rocket of
the Hawk we’re after this time—it’ll put them
the Hawk, reputed the swiftest craft in space.
on their toes.”
The grim black rocket, whirling and
Calden grinned as a moment later a
dipping with a swiftness of maneuver
Air Wonder Stories
4
astounding in a ship of its size, was one swift swoop and blow it had flashed off endeavoring to bring the twisting little craft
the space-lane into the uncharted void, and
that evaded it into the line of its guns. As their
they glimpsed it only as a dwindling point of
own ship thundered down on the scene, Evans
fire that vanished in the next instant.
and Calden saw the one side of the Hawk’s
Evans, filled by a blind fury, whirled
rocket stabbing forth a half-score slender jets
to give Calden the order that would send them
of blue fire as its electric-guns blasted toward
in wild pursuit, but checked himself as he
the smaller craft. But the latter had shot realized, despite his rage, the futility of such a upward in time to avoid the fire, and in the
pursuit. Once out of sight, the Hawk in his
next moment the Earth-Guard rocket was immensely swift rocket could laugh at all rushing down upon the ebon attacker.
pursuit, as he had laughed many times. His
“Fire!” As Hartley’s voice below face a study of conflicting emotions, Evans shouted the order, the Earth-Guard ship turned back toward his second-officer.
poured a deadly fire toward the black rocket
“Back to our regular course on the
of the Hawk. But at the very instant of firing,
space-lane,” he ordered wearily. “He’s got
with a swiftness born of a hundred space-
away again.”
fights, the Hawk’s rocket had shot upward.
Silently Calden headed the great Earth-
“Missed him!” Calden cried. “Look Guard rocket again toward the great disk of out—he’s tailing—!”
earth. But in a moment he motioned toward
“Over quick!” Evans exclaimed. “Let
something outside and above them. “It’s the
him have the stern guns, Hartley!”
rocket the Hawk was attacking,” he said.
For in the instant after shooting “He’s signaling” for a contact.”
upward to avoid their fire, the rocket of the
“Let him come on, then,” answered the
Hawk had flashed back down on them in the
other.
familiar maneuver of “tailing,” using all the
Calden pressed the studs that flashed from
firing-tubes placed in its nose for braking their own rocket’s nose the answering colored purposes to halt it and reverse it in a flash.
signal-lights, and quickly the shining smaller
Evans had a lightning glimpse of the
craft drove down until it hung just over the big
great black shape rushing stern-foremost down
Earth-Guard ship. It settled smoothly then on
on them. Then he felt his own rocket dip and
the greater craft’s back, its nose firing-tubes
dive like light as Calden’s hands flashed on
blasting it to a halt. The ring of metal contact-
the firing-levers, and for a moment Evans saw
pins on its lower side fitted smoothly into the
the white-lit pilot-house of the other rocket,
standardized ring of openings ready for them
with the tense figures inside it, before it on the Earth-Guard’s back.
whirled out of view. He sensed rather than
Held thus to the greater craft, the little
saw the blast of the Hawk’s guns above them
rocket was carried along through space like a
as they dived just in time to avoid the deadly
pilot-fish clinging to a great shark. In a
missiles.
moment there was the clang of the contact-
door opening, as the occupant of the Pallas
EVANS heard shouting voices from their own
passed into the Earth-Guard rocket through
gun-rooms and had no need to cry to Calden
the latter’s similar door. In a moment more
little craft’s sole occupant.
black craft of the Hawk was gone! After that
He was a tall young man with dark
Evans of the Earth-Guard
5
hair and dark, laughing eyes. He came forward
allowing the Hawk to come there, and to
with hand outstretched to Evans and as the
refuel in exchange for a share of his loot. I
pocket-captain grasped it, he introduced was sent up to investigate, and I found out himself.
enough to call the Hawk’s attention to me, and
“Francis Seaworth,” he named himself,
this is the second time he or his men nearly
“and just now mighty pleased to see you!
got me. I couldn’t find his base, but I did find
Indeed, if you hadn’t come when you did, the
that there’s a man now on earth who was
Hawk would have had me in another minute—
formerly in his service and who could tell me
I didn’t have anyone to work my gun and
where his base is if he wanted to. So I started
could only try to evade him till you came.”
back to earth in my own ship to see him. Well,
Evans laughed. “What in the devil the Hawk was waiting, and if you hadn’t been made you start for earth all by yourself?” he
within call it would have been all up with
demanded. “Didn’t you hear two days ago that
me.”
the Hawk was out?”
Evans considered. “It did seem mighty
The other shook his head. “I heard,” he
queer to us that the Hawk would stoop to
said, “but that’s just why I chose this holding up one-man rockets,” he admitted, particular time for the trip. No, I don’t mean
“but that explains it. So they’ve had a secret
that as bravado,” he added quickly,
as he saw
agent on his trail, eh?”
the incredulous smiles of the three officers.
“A very secret agent,” smiled the
“What I mean is that I knew the Hawk was
other. “My emblem,” he smiled as he opened
waiting for a chance to jump on me, and when
his jacket and showed a little card sewed onto
I heard he was out on the space-lanes again, I
the inside.
thought he’d be too busy at his usual trade to
Evans nodded. The card of an agent of
think of me.”
the International Commission merited any
Evans regarded him with more help he could furnish.
interest. “But what’s the Hawk after you for?”
“In fact,” continued Seaworth, “I doubt
he asked.
if a dozen men on earth outside of the
Seaworth
hesitated.
“Well, I wouldn’t
International Commission know what I’ve
want to spill too much.” He nodded toward the
been doing. I’ve got no business, really,
other officers.
telling even you about it, but it’s about all
Evans straightened with interest. wound up now, for if I get the information I’m
“Anything you want to say you can tell me in
after on earth it means we’ll catch the Hawk in
front of my officers.”
short order.”
“Well,” said Seaworth, “I’ve been
“Seems like catching the Hawk is
spending the last year as a secret agent of the
work for the Earth-Guard rather than for any
International Commission, looking for the secret agents,” growled the bulldog-visaged Hawk’s base on the moon. They had an idea—
Hartley. “We’re good enough to chase after all
just an idea—that the Hawk’s base was really