<h2><SPAN name="XII" id="XII"></SPAN>12</h2>
<h3>Baldies</h3>
<p>"Ohhhh!" Karara clutched at Ross, her breath coming in little gasps,
giving vent to her fear and horror. They had not known what might come
from this plan; certainly neither had foreseen the present chaos in the
lagoon.</p>
<p>Perhaps the broadcast energy of the enemy whipped the already
vicious-tempered salkars into this insane fury. But now the moonlit
water was beaten into foam as the creatures fought there, attacking each
other with a ferocity neither Terran had witnessed before.</p>
<p>Lights gleamed along the shore where the alien invaders must have been
drawn by the clamor of the fighting marine reptiles. Somewhere in the
heights above the beach of the lagoon a picked band of Rovers should now
be making their way from the opposite side of Kyn Add under strict
orders not to go into attack unless signaled. Whether the independent
sea warriors would hold to that command was a question which had worried
Ross from the first.</p>
<p>Tino-rau and Taua in the waters to the seaward of the reef, the two
Terrans on that barrier itself, and between them and the shore the wild
melee of maddened salkars. Ross started. The sonic warning which had
been pulsing steadily against his skin cut off sharply. The broadcast in
the bay had been silenced! This was the time to move, but no swimmer
could last in the lagoon itself.</p>
<p>"Along the reef," Karara said.</p>
<p>That would be the long way round, Ross knew, but the only one possible.
He studied the cluster of lights ashore. Two or three figures moved
there. Seemingly the attention of the aliens was well centered upon the
battle still in progress in the lagoon.</p>
<p>"Stay here!" he ordered the girl. Adjusting his mask, Ross dropped into
the water, cutting away from the reef and then turning to swim parallel
with it. Tino-rau matched him as he went, guiding Ross to a second break
in the reef, toward the shore some distance from where the conflict of
the salkars still made a hideous din in the night.</p>
<p>The Terran waded in the shallows, stripping off his flippers and
snapping them to his belt, letting his mask swing free on his chest. He
angled toward the beach where the aliens had been. At least he was
better armed for this than he had been when he had fronted the Rovers
with only a diver's knife. From the Time Agent supplies he had taken the
single hand weapon he had long ago found in the armory of the derelict
spaceship. This could only be used sparingly, since they did not know
how it could be recharged, and the secret of its beam still remained
secret as far as Terran technicians were concerned.</p>
<p>Ross worked his way to a curtain of underbrush from which he had a free
view of the beach and the aliens. Three of them he counted, and they
were Baldies, all right—taller and thinner than his own species, their
bald heads gray-white, the upper dome of their skulls overshadowing the
features on their pointed chinned faces. They all wore the skintight
blue-purple-green suits of the space voyagers—suits which Ross knew of
old were insulated and protective for their wearers, as well as a medium
for keeping in touch with one another. Just as he, wearing one, had once
been trailed over miles of wilderness.</p>
<p>To him, all three of the invaders looked enough alike to have been
stamped out from one pattern. And their movements suggested that they
worked or went into action with drilled precision. They all faced
seaward, holding tubes aimed at the salkar-infested lagoon. There was no
sound of any explosion, but green spears of light struck at the scaled
bodies plunging in the water. And where those beams struck, flesh
seared. Methodically the trio raked the basin. But, Ross noted, those
beams which had been steady at his first sighting, were now interrupted
by flickers. One of the Baldies upended his tube, rapped its butt
against a rock as if trying to correct a jamming. When the alien went
into action once again his weapon flashed and failed. Within a matter of
moments the other two were also finished. The lighted rods pushed into
the sand, giving a glow to the scene, darkened as a fire might sink to
embers. Power fading?</p>
<p>An ungainly shape floundered out of the churned water, lumbered over the
shale of the beach, its supple neck outstretched, its horned nose down
for a gore-threatening charge. Ross had not realized that the salkars
could operate out of what he thought was their natural element, but this
wild-eyed dragon was plainly bent on reaching its tormentors.</p>
<p>For a moment or two the Baldies continued to front the creature, almost,
Ross thought, as if they could not believe that their weapons had failed
them. Then they broke and ran back to the fairing which they had taken
with such contemptuous ease. The salkar plowed along in their wake, but
its movements grew more labored the farther it advanced, until at last
it lay with only its head upraised, darting it back and forth, its
fanged jaws well agape, voicing a coughing howl.</p>
<p>Its plaint was answered from the water as a second of its kind wallowed
ashore. A terrible wound had torn skin and flesh just behind its neck;
yet still it came on, hissing and bubbling a battle challenge. It did
not attack its fellow; instead it dragged its bulk past the first comer,
on its way after the Baldies.</p>
<p>The salkars continued to come ashore, two more, a third, a fourth,
mangled and torn—pulling themselves as far as they could up the beach.
To lie, facing inland, their necks weaving, their horned heads bobbing,
their cries a frightful din. What had drawn them out of their
preoccupation of battle among themselves into this attempt to reach the
aliens, Ross could not determine. Unless the intelligence of the beasts
was such that they had been able to connect the searing beams which the
Baldies had turned on them so tellingly with the men on the beach, and
had responded by striving to reach a common enemy.</p>
<p>But no desire could give them the necessary energy to pull far ashore.
Almost helplessly beached, they continued to dig into the yielding sand
with their flippers in a vain effort to pursue the aliens.</p>
<p>Ross skirted the clamoring barrier of salkars and headed for the
fairing. A neck snapped about; a head was lowered in his direction. He
smelled the rank stench of reptile combined with burned flesh. The
nearest of the brutes must have scented the Terran in turn, as it was
now trying vainly to edge around to cut across Ross's path. But it was
completely outclassed on land, and the man dodged it easily.</p>
<p>Three Baldies had fled this way. Yet Jazia had reported five had come
out of the sea to take Kyn Add. Two were missing. Where? Had they
remained in the fairing? Were they now in the sub? And that sub—what
had happened to it? The broadcast had been cut off; he had seen the
failure of the weapons and the shore lights. Might the sub have suffered
from salkar attack? Though Ross could hardly believe that the beasts
could wreck it.</p>
<p>The Terran was traveling blindly, keeping well under cover of such brush
as he could, knowing only that he must head inland. Under his feet the
ground was rising, and he recalled the nature of this territory as
Torgul and Jazia had pictured it for him. This had to be part of the
ridge wall of the valley in which lay the buildings of the fairing. In
these heights was the Shrine of Phutka where Jazia had hidden out. To
the west now lay the Rover village, so he had to work his way left,
downhill, in order to reach the hole where the Baldies had gone to
ground. Ross made that progress with the stealth of a trained scout.</p>
<p>Hawaika's moon, triple in size to Terra's companion, was up, and the
landscape was sharply clear, with shadows well defined. The glow, weird
to Terran eyes, added to the effect of being abroad in a nightmare, and
the bellowing of the grounded salkars continued a devils' chorus.</p>
<p>When the Rovers had put up the buildings of their fairing, they had
cleared a series of small fields radiating outward from those
structures. All of these were now covered with crops almost ready to
harvest. The grain, if that Terran term could be applied to this
Hawaikan product, was housed in long pods which dipped from
shoulder-high bushes. And the pods were well equipped with horny
projections which tore. A single try at making his way into one of those
fields convinced Ross of the folly of such an advance. He sat back to
nurse his scratched hands and survey the landscape.</p>
<p>To go down a very tempting lane would be making himself a clear target
for anyone in those buildings ahead. He had seen the flamers of the
Baldies fail on the beach, but that did not mean the aliens were now
weaponless.</p>
<p>His best chance, Ross decided, was to circle north, come back down along
the bed of a stream. And he was at the edge of that watercourse when a
faint sound brought him to a frozen halt, weapon ready.</p>
<p>"Rosss—"</p>
<p>"Loketh!"</p>
<p>"And Torgul and Vistur."</p>
<p>This was the party from the opposite side of the island, gone expertly
to earth. In the moonlight Ross could detect no sign of their presence,
yet their voices sounded almost beside him.</p>
<p>"They are in there, in the great hall." That was Torgul. "But no longer
are there any lights."</p>
<p>"Now—" An urgent exclamation drew their attention.</p>
<p>Light below. But not the glow of the rods Ross had seen on the beach.
This was the warm yellow-red of honest fire, bursting up, the flames
growing higher as if being fed with frantic haste.</p>
<p>Three figures were moving down there. Ross began to believe that there
were only this trio ashore. He could sight no weapons in their hands,
which did not necessarily mean they were unarmed. But the stream ran
close behind the rear wall of one of the buildings, and Ross thought its
bed could provide cover for a man who knew what he was doing. He pointed
out as much to Torgul.</p>
<p>"And if their magic works and you are drawn out to be killed?" The Rover
captain came directly to the point.</p>
<p>"That is a chance to be taken. But remember ... the magic of the Foanna
at the sea gate did not work against me. Perhaps this won't either.
Once, earlier, I won against it."</p>
<p>"Have you then another hand to give to the fire as your defense?" That
was Vistur. "But no man has the right to order another's battle
challenge."</p>
<p>"Just so," returned Ross sharply. "And this is a thing I have long been
trained to do."</p>
<p>He slid down into the stream bed. Approaching from this angle, the
structures of the fairing were between him and the fire. So screened he
reached a log wall, got to his feet, and edged along it. Then he
witnessed a wild scene. The fire raged in great, sky-touching tongues.
And already the roof of one of the Rover buildings smoldered. Why the
aliens had built up such a conflagration, Ross could not guess. A signal
designed to reach some distance?</p>
<p>He did not doubt there was some urgent purpose. For the three were
dragging in fuel with almost frenzied haste, bringing out of the Rover
buildings bales of cloth to be ripped apart and whirled into the
devouring flames, furniture, everything movable which would burn.</p>
<p>There was one satisfaction. The Baldies were so intent upon this
destruction that they kept no watch save that now and then one of them
would run to the head of the path leading to the lagoon and listen as if
he expected a salkar to come pounding up the slope.</p>
<p>"They're ... they're rattled!" Ross could hardly believe it. The Baldies
who had always occupied his mind and memory as practically invincible
supermen were acting like badly frightened primitives! And when the
enemy was so off balance you pushed—you pushed hard.</p>
<p>Ross thumbed the button on the grip of the strange weapon. He sighted
with deliberation and fired. The blue figure at the top of the path
wilted, and for a long moment neither of his companions noted his
collapse. Then one of them whirled and started for the limp body, his
colleague running after him. Ross allowed them to reach his first victim
before he fired the second and third time.</p>
<p>All three lay quiet, but still Ross did not venture forth until he had
counted off a dozen Terran seconds. Then he slipped forward keeping to
cover until he came up to the bodies.</p>
<p>The blue-clad shoulder had a flaccid feel under his hand as if the
muscles could not control the flesh about them. Ross rolled the alien
over, looked down in the bright light of the fire into the Baldy's
wide-open eyes. Amazement—the Terran thought he could read that in the
dead stare which answered his intent gaze—and then anger, a cold and
deadly anger which chilled into ice.</p>
<p>"Kill!"</p>
<p>Ross slewed around, still down on one knee, to face the charge of a
Rover. In the firelight the Hawaikan's eyes were blazing with fanatical
hatred. He had his hooked sword ready to deliver a finishing stroke. The
Terran blocked with a shoulder to meet the Rover's knees, threw him
back. Then Ross landed on top of the fighting crewman, trying to pin the
fellow to earth and avoid that recklessly slashing blade.</p>
<p>"Loketh! Vistur!" Ross shouted as he struggled.</p>
<p>More of the Rovers appeared from between the buildings, bearing down on
the limp aliens and the two fighting men. Ross recognized the limping
gait of Loketh using a branch to aid him into a running scuttle across
the open.</p>
<p>"Loketh—here!"</p>
<p>The Hawaikan covered the last few feet in a dive which carried him into
Ross and the Rover. "Hold him," the Terran ordered and had just time
enough to throw himself between the Baldies and the rest of the crew.
There was a snarling from the Rovers; and Ross, knowing their temper,
was afraid he could not save the captives which they considered, fairly,
their legitimate prey. He must depend upon the hope that there were one
or two cooler heads among them with enough authority to restrain the
would-be avengers. Otherwise he would have to beam them into
helplessness.</p>
<p>"Torgul!" he shouted.</p>
<p>There was a break in the line of runners speeding for him. The big man
lunging straight across could only be Vistur; the other, yelling orders,
was Torgul. It would depend upon how much control the Captain had over
his men. Ross scrambled to his feet. He had clicked on the beamer to its
lowest frequency. It would not kill, but would render its victim
temporarily paralyzed; and how long that state would continue Ross had
no way of knowing. Tried on Terran laboratory animals, the time had
varied from days to weeks.</p>
<p>Vistur used the flat side of his war ax, clapping it against the
foremost runners, setting his own bulk to impose a barrier. And now
Torgul's orders appeared to be getting through, more and more of the men
slacked, leaving a trio of hotheads, two of whom Vistur sent reeling
with his fists.</p>
<p>The Captain came up to Ross. "They are alive then?" He leaned over to
inspect the Baldy the Terran had rolled on his back, assessing the
alien's frozen stare with thoughtful measurement.</p>
<p>"Yes, but they can not move."</p>
<p>"Well enough." Torgul nodded. "They shall meet the Justice of Phutka
after the Law. I think they will wish that they had been left to the
boarding axes of angry men."</p>
<p>"They are worth more alive than dead, Captain. Do you not wish to know
why they have carried war to your people, how many of them there may yet
be to attack—and other things? Also—" Ross nodded at the fire now
catching the second building, "why have they built up that blaze? Is it
a signal to others of their kind?"</p>
<p>"Very well said. Yes, it would be well for us to learn such things. Nor
will Phutka be jealous of the time we take to ask questions and get
answers, many answers." He prodded the Baldy with the toe of his sea
boot.</p>
<p>"How long will they remain so? Your magic has a bite in it."</p>
<p>Ross smiled. "Not my magic, Captain. This weapon was taken from one of
their own ships. As to how long they will remain so—that I do not
know."</p>
<p>"Very well, we can take precautions." Under Torgul's orders the aliens
were draped with capture nets like those Ross and Loketh had worn. The
sea-grown plant adhered instantly, wet strands knitting in perfect
restrainers as long as it was uncut.</p>
<p>Having seen to that, Torgul ordered the excavation of Kyn Add.</p>
<p>"As you say," he remarked to Ross, "that fire may well be a signal to
bring down more of their kind. I think we have had the Favor of Phutka
in this matter, but the prudent man stretches no favor of that kind too
far. Also," he looked about him—"we have given to Phutka and the Shades
our dead; there is nothing for us here now but hate and sorrow. In one
day we have been broken from a clan of pride and ships to a handful of
standardless men."</p>
<p>"You will join some other clan?" Karara had come with Jazia to stand on
the stone ledge chipped to form a base for a column bearing a strange,
brooding-eyed head looking seaward. The Rover woman was superintending
the freeing of the head from the column.</p>
<p>At the Terran girl's question the Captain gazed down into the dreadful
chaos of the valley. They could yet hear the roars of the dying salkars.
The reptiles that had made their way to land had not withdrawn but still
lay, some dead now, some with weaving heads reaching inland. And the
whole of the fairing was ablaze with fire.</p>
<p>"We are now blood-sworn men, Sea Maid. For such there is no clan. There
is only the hunting and the kill. With the magic of Phutka perhaps we
shall have a short hunt and a good kill."</p>
<p>"There ... now ... so...." Jazia stepped back. The head which had faced
the sea was lowered carefully to a wide strip of crimson-and-gold stuff
she had brought from Torgul's ship. With her one usable hand the Rover
woman drew the fabric about the carving, muffling it except for the
eyes. Those were large ovals deeply carved, and in them Ross saw a
glitter. Jewels set there? Yet, he had a queer, shivery feeling that
something more than gems occupied those sockets—that he had actually
been regarded for an instant of time, assessed and dismissed.</p>
<p>"We go now." Jazia waved and Torgul sent men forward. They lifted the
wrapped carving to a board carried between them and started downslope.</p>
<p>Karara cried out and Ross looked around.</p>
<p>The pillar which had supported the head was crumbling away, breaking
into a rubble which cascaded across the stone ledge. Ross blinked—this
must be an illusion, but he was too tired to be more than dully amazed
as he became one of the procession returning to the ships.</p>
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