“They’re in that office building,” yelled Bryan in his ear.
He set his staff to radiate a narrow, thin wedge and fanned the beam up and down the building. The pinging noise stopped. An Asiatic dashed out a door that he had not yet touched and fled up the street. Ardmore cut the beam and used another setting, aiming at the figure by means of a thin bright beam of light. The light touched the man; there was a dull, heavy boom and the man disappeared. In his place was a great oily cloud which swelled and dispersed.
“Jumping Judas! What was that?” Bryan demanded.
“Colloidal explosion. I released the surface tension of his body cells.
We’ve been saving it for this day.”
“But what made him explode?”
“The pressure in his cells. They can run as high as several hundred pounds. But let’s go.”
The next few blocks were deserted of all but bodies; however, Ardmore kept his projector turned on and swept the buildings they passed as systematically as the speed would allow. He took advantage of the lull to call headquarters. “Any reports yet, Jeff?”
“Nothing much yet, Chief. It’s too soon.”
They shot out into the open before Ardmore realized where Bryan was taking him. It was the State university campus on the edge of the city, now used as barracks by the imperial army. The athletic fields and golf course adjoining had been turned into an airport.
Here for the first time he realized clearly how pitifully few were the Americans whom he had armed to destroy the PanAsians. There appeared to be a skirmish line of sorts in position off to the right: he could see the toll they were taking of the Asiatics. But there were thousands of them, enough to engulf the Americans by sheer multitude. Damn it, why hadn’t the scout car assigned reduced this place? Had it met with a mishap?
He decided that the crew of the scout car had been kept busy with aircraft, too busy to clean out the barracks. He thought now that he should have fought city by city, using all available scout cars as a unit, and trusting to the jamming of the radio to permit him to do it that way. Was it too late now to change? Yes — the gage was thrown, the battle was on all over the country. Now it must be fought.
He was already busy with his staff in an attempt to swing the issue. He cut into the lines of Asiatics with the primary effect set at full power, doing a satisfying amount of slaughter. Then he decided on a change in tactics — colloidal explosion. It was slower and clumsy, but the effect on morale should be advantageous.
He omitted the guide ray to make it more mysterious and sighted through a deep hole in the cube of the staff. There! One of the rats was smoke!
He had them ranged now — two! Three! Four! Again and again — a dozen or more.
It was too much for the Orientals. They were brave and seasoned soldiers, but they could not fight what they did not understand. They broke and ran, back toward their barracks. Ardmore heard cheers from the scattered Americans, dominated by an authentic rebel yell. Figures rose up from cover and took out after the disorganized Asiatics.
Ardmore called headquarters again. “Circuit AI”
A few seconds’ delay and he was answered, “You’ve got it.”
“All officers, attention! Use the organic explosion as much as possible.
It scares the hell out of ’em!” He repeated the message and released the circuit.
He directed Bryan to go closer to the buildings. Bryan bumped the car over a curb and complied, weaving in and out between trees. They were conscious of a terrific explosion; the car rose a few feet in the air and came lurching down on its side. Ardmore pulled himself together and attempted to get up. It was then that he realized that somehow he had held his staff clear.
The door above him was jammed. He burned his way clear with the staff and clambered out. He looked back in to Bryan. “Are you hurt?”