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Read Ebook: Blind Play by Davis Chandler Houlihan Raymond F Illustrator
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Ebook has 72 lines and 8139 words, and 2 pages
"If it's all right with Yusuf, we're going to put you altogether, completely on your own. You're not going to be working for anybody else, not even for stinkers like the Beldens. You're going to be all by yourself, and you're going to have to do a good job of looking out for yourself. Not for anyone else, just for Nick Pappas--'Number One,' as people used to say. We're not going to give you a word of advice, either. If we did, you wouldn't be independent enough. How does it sound, Yusuf? Appropriate?"
Garcia smiled. "Sounds about right, Arne. Maybe I'm too angry at the Beldens to think straight, but it sounds like a pretty appropriate way to handle Mr. Pappas. He'll be all on his own, and if he doesn't work things out just right--he'll get the most spectacular finish any individualist could ask for!"
Nick Pappas hung weightless in interplanetary space.
The ship still floated there, within shouting distance if there had been an atmosphere; but now from its jets there extended long, perfectly straight streaks of shimmering blue-violet. It seemed to Pappas as though he was drifting slowly parallel to the ship, in the direction of the jets. He shook his head to get rid of the illusion. He was remaining perfectly still, the ship's hull was sliding past him. When the jets were abreast of him, they cut off. He watched the ship receding, rapidly now. A minute or so later there were two short blasts on the steering jets; Pappas realized they were swinging the ship around so he wouldn't be caught in the rocket blast. Then the main jets started up again.
Not only were there no walls around him, there wasn't even anything under his feet. There was nothing, anywhere.
"So this was what all that talk added up to," Pappas thought. "They simply set me out here in the middle of the vacuum to stay until the suit's food and air give out."
He thought he might as well make himself at home. He checked over the suit. It was nicely equipped. In addition to standard items, there were several things strapped onto the back of the suit on the outside which pleased him until he realized how little difference they made: There was a reel of light, strong cable with magnetic grapples which could be clamped onto it. There was a hand reaction motor the size of a Stillson wrench, and ten containers of fuel, each the size of a fountain pen. There was a large mirror, for signaling. Also for the same purpose, there was a powerful, highly directional searchlight. He checked the cells which powered it; they were low, but he knew they were charging at that moment from the sunlight falling on them. The searchlight would work. For what that was worth.
As for the Earth, that would be the next brightest body in his sky. He craned his head in all directions, searching. Then he took out the hand reaction motor and gave a blast to start himself spinning, so he could search in the directions he hadn't been able to see in before. Even the short blast he used made the motor tug at his hand and started the universe whirling around him frighteningly. He turned the control on the motor down as low as it would go, then pressed the button several more times. Finally he had canceled out most of his rotation, and the Milky Way was wheeling calmly about him. He got himself oriented again and after a short time had identified Earth, which was close enough to appear as a blue-green disk.
Now he should be back on course, he figured. Assuming, that is, that he'd ever been off. The small thrust of his reaction motor, applied for such a short time, might not be enough to make any appreciable difference as to where he ended up. He didn't bother trying to calculate it.
He'd have to find something else, Pappas decided. This whole Belden business was pretty provincial, anyway. And as for Birkerod, Garcia, and those people--! Pappas dismissed Callisto from his thoughts completely. There would have to be some angle on the inner planets.
After several hours of thought on the subject, he took stock of his situation again. The disk of Earth was a little larger, he thought, but not enough so you'd notice it. He pulled the semi-opaque visor over his faceplate and went to sleep.
He slept for ten days.
Not Earth days, however. When Pappas went to sleep the Sun was behind him. He thought he had eliminated his rotation, but actually he was tumbling head over heels, extremely slowly. Thus, for him, the Sun rose between his feet and set directly "above" him.
How long had his nap lasted? The spacesuit's chronometer was running. Its minute hand indicated 37; its hour hand, 15; its day hand, 3. That would have told him how long he'd slept, if he'd read the chronometer before he went to sleep; but he hadn't. All he knew was that he'd slept much longer than he'd expected, and long enough to get painfully stiff.
Pappas took out the reaction motor. Using low power, he turned himself till he faced Earth. The planet seemed to have swelled just in the time since he'd waked up. He set the reaction motor to full power, grasped it with both hands, held it in front of his chest, and pointed it straight at Earth. Then he pressed the button and held it down.
The force of the hand jet pushed in at his midriff, made his legs and head swing forward. Well, that was okay as long as they didn't get into the exhaust. He stopped blasting a moment to get a better grip on the reaction motor, then fired continuously. Occasionally he would find he'd started himself spinning; then he'd shift the motor just a trifle to keep himself facing the planet. He kept the button firmly pressed down, and the cylinder in his hands sent a continuous jet of intense blue toward Earth. When the first fuel cartridge was exhausted, he put in the second and kept it up.
Twice he stopped for a food pellet and a little water. The rests were welcome: his arms and chest were stiff and aching. But he didn't rest long, because he was getting really scared now. He was sure he was dangerously close to his destination, and his speed hadn't been cut enough. The continents and oceans of Earth's day side were clearly visible, and grew noticeably larger as he looked at them.
Something bothered him: America had not been in sight a while ago, but now he could see a corner of Brazil appearing at the edge of the disk of Earth. Did that mean he was passing by Earth instead of falling straight at it? No, he realized in a moment, it just meant Earth was rotating; for he could see that the sunset line, the line between night side and day side, had not changed its apparent position on the disk.
One after another the fuel cartridges burned out. Pappas longed for another rest, but he didn't dare take one now. He kept firing, and still the Earth kept growing larger and brighter below him. Finally, there was no more fuel.
After a short breather, Pappas took the reaction motor, detached it from the cord which bound it to his spacesuit, and flung it downward with all his strength. Then he did the same with the mirror, the searchlight, and the reel of cable. It was all he could do.
But he hadn't thought of it. It had never occurred to him that even when he was alone, as thoroughly alone as anyone can ever be, his life could depend on dozens of other people. He'd thought only of reaching safety by himself. And, seeing only the one possibility, he'd played it blindly.
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