It was a J-planet, though, a colossus more massive even than Jupiter, its atmosphere a hell’s broth of hydrogen, methane, ammonia, and less well-known compounds. It was a beautiful sight, hanging there in space, a flatte-@ied globe of soft amber radiance, belted with greens and blues and dusky browns, one red spot like a pool of blood. The man discerned three moons close enough to show perceptible crescents.
“It doesn’t make sense!” Joachim stared at the flickering meters which told of a spaceship nearby. At this range, the neutrinos given off by its engines were detectable, and there was the “wake” of gravity fluctuations caused by the drive, and even the faint pull of its own mass. The Peregiqne’s maltreated instruments might be somewhat inaccurate, but there could be no mistaking their message.
“It doesn’t make sensel” Joachim repeated. “We know there’s nobody here with atomic power.”
“X,” said Trevelyan, “Suppose they have a patrol vessel in each system of their empir@or at least in many systems within the volume they regard as their own. By mounting detectors in suitable orbits around this star, they would antom,,ltically know of our arrival. So their ship could run at high acceleration to intercept us.”
“Yeah, yeah, I suppose.” Joachim lit a clay pipe and _drew heavily on it. “And we’re in no condition to fight. Should
we clear out as of now?”
“‘IA7e]l, we came here to study the Great Cross beings.” “Uh-huh. We can always go into hyperspace. All right,
let’s wait.”
The Pereg.@ne went into free fall, ctimng slowly down
toward the J-plane:,,. The bridge was still. Only the muted
purr of engines had voice-warmed up, waiting. DoNvn the length of the ship, men stood by gu-is and missile racks. Armed boats hovered in space a few nieters from the vessel.. SeaD-would be piloting one of them, Trevelyan thought,
The communications man looked up from Ms set. “I’ve tried the whole band,” he said. “Not a whisper of a signal. Shall I call them?”
“No,” said joacl-tirr.. “They know we’re here.”
He took a restless turn about the bridge and came back to give Trevelyan a defiait glance. “Your Union exists for peace,” he said, “What if we have to fight tl-iese otherlings?”
The Coordinator’s green eyes were steady and flat. “If we are attacked without provocation, we can fight as much as necessary to save our lives. But we have to find out why we are assaulted. Their reasons may be completely valid
in terms of their own thinking.”
“And my epitaph will be: ‘Here lies a, b-zw-abiding citizen!”’ Petroff Manuel’s shout ripped the quiet. “I can see ‘em nowl”
They hurried to his screen and peered out. at dark-Desg. There was a tiny point of reflected red light moving swiftly across the stars. It grew even as they watched. Joachim turned the screen to full magnification, and the image of a
spaceship was before them.
It had the elongated shape necessary to any hyperdrive ship, where field generators must be mounted fore and aft. But it was no vessel of man’s building. The. cylinder was beveled into flat planes; the stern bulged, and the nose
held a spear-shaped mast of some kind. Its metal was a coppery alloy, flaming ruddy in the harsh sunlight, and they could see that the hull was patched and pitted-old.
Trevelyan sucked a hissing breath through his teeth. Joachim gave him a long stare. “You know that design?”
“Tiunra.’
“Hub?”
“I’ve seen pictures of their ships.”
“The same otberlings who lost boats out here in the Cross, four hundred years ago-”
“X is Tiunran?” murmured Ferenczi.
“It isn@t logical,” replied Trevelyan sbauy. “The Tiunrans were explorers and scientists. They were neither physically nor culturally fitted for conquest. And when a techriol@ has advanced to the point of interstellar drive, it doesn’t need an empire.”
“X,” said Joachim, “has one.” The ship was drawing closer, matching velocities as it approached. He stepped down the magnification.
“Maybe!” snapped the Coordinator. “We do@t know yet.”
The strartger was only a hundred kilometers or so from the Peregriite by noA,, visible to the naked eye as a blink of lig’ it. In the magnifying screens it was a grotesque spindle in the sky. joachim’s stubby fingers punched signals to his crew on the communications board.