Chapter 7

“Sound off, Corbett!”

Seated in the pilot’s chair on the control deck of the rocket cruiser Polaris, Major Connel bellowed the order into the intercom as he scanned the many dials on the huge control board.

“One minute to touchdown, sir,” reported Tom over the intercom from the radar bridge of the Polaris.

“One minute to touchdown,” repeated Connel. “Right!”

Connel reached for the switches and levers that would bring the giant ship to rest on the red planet of Mars. Even after his many years in the Solar Guard and thousands of space flights, landing a rocket ship was still a thrill to the veteran spaceman, and knowing that he had a good man on the radar deck made it even more exciting and demanding of his skill.

“Decelerate!” yelled Tom over the intercom.

Connel shut down the main drive rockets and at the same time opened the nose braking rockets. “Braking rockets on!” he yelled.

“One thousand feet to touchdown,” said Tom.

Connel watched the dials spinning before him.

“Seven hundred and fifty feet to touchdown,” reported Tom.

“Keep counting, Corbett!” yelled Connel enthusiastically.

“Five hundred feet!”

Connel quickly cut back the nose braking rockets and again opened the main drive rockets as the ship plummeted tailfirst toward the surface of Mars.

“Two hundred feet!” came the warning call over the intercom.

Connel glanced up at the teleceiver screen over his head that showed the spaceport below. The concrete runways and platforms were rushing up to meet the giant ship. He opened the main rockets full.

“Seventy-five feet! Stand by!” yelled Tom.

Connel’s hands flashed over the control panel of the ship, snapping switches, flipping levers, and turning dials in an effort to bring the ship to a smooth landing. There was a sudden roar of rockets and then a gentle bump.

“Touchdown!” roared Connel.

He flipped off the main switches on the control board, spun around in his chair, and noted the time on the astral chronometer. “Touchdown Marsport, 2117!” he announced.

Tom clambered down the ladder from the radar bridge and immediately noted the time of arrival in the logbook. He turned around and saluted the major sharply. “All secure, sir,” he said.

“Congratulations on a smooth trip, Corbett,” Connel said. “And thanks for letting me take her in. I know it’s unusual to have the senior officer take over the ship, but once in a while I get the urge to put my hands on those controls and--well--” Connel paused, fumbling for words.

Tom was so startled by the major’s stumbling attempt to explain his feelings, he felt himself blush. He had always suspected the major of being a rocket jockey at heart and now he was certain. But he would never tell anyone, not even Roger and Astro about this incident. It was something he knew that he himself would feel if he ever got to be as old as Major Connel and had reached his position. There passed between the officer and the cadet a sudden feeling of mutual understanding.

“I understand, sir,” said Tom quietly.

“Dismissed!” roared Connel, recovering his composure again, and very conscious that he had exposed his innermost feelings to the cadet. But he didn’t mind too much. Tom Corbett had proven beyond the shadow of a doubt that he had the stuff true spacemen are made of, and because of this, Connel could feel as close to him as a man near his own age. There was never a breed of men who were drawn so close together in their love of work as the spacemen and there was no need for further explanation.

When they had climbed out of the Polaris and stepped on the landing ramp at Marsport, Connel and Tom saw that the ground crews were already checking over the afterburners and exhaust tubes of the ship. A young Solar Guard lieutenant, wearing a decidedly greasy uniform, snapped to attention before Connel.

“Lieutenant Slick at your service, sir,” he announced.

“Lieutenant,” bawled Connel, “your uniform is filthy!”

“Yes, sir, I know it is, sir,” replied the young officer. “But I was overhauling a firing unit this morning, sir, and I guess I got a little dirty.”

“That is enlisted man’s work, sir,” stated Connel. “You are an officer.”

“I know, sir, but--” Slick stammered. “Well, sir, once in a while I like to do it myself.”

Tom turned away, hiding a smile. The young officer was expressing the same feelings Connel himself had uttered just a few minutes before. Connel cleared his throat, and with a sidelong glance at Tom and a wink, dismissed the young officer, ordering him to have a jet car sent for them right away.

“Take mine, sir,” said the young officer, happy to have escaped Connel’s wrath so easily. It was not too long ago that he had been a cadet at the Academy and he remembered all too clearly what Connel could do when he was mad.

When the jet car was brought up, Tom slipped behind the wheel, and with Connel seated beside him, he sent the sleek little vehicle roaring across the spaceport to the main administration building.

Inside the gleaming crystal building, Connel and Tom were escorted by a Space Marine guard to the office of the spaceport commander, Captain Jim Arnold. He and Connel knew each other well, and after quick greetings and the introduction of the young cadet, Connel asked for the latest reports on the projectile receivers.

“Lou, I’ve got good news for you,” announced Arnold. “We’ve completed the receiver ramps for the test. As soon as your ship is ready to fire her cargo projectiles, we can receive them.”

Connel’s face showed the surprise he felt. “Why, Jim, that’s the most amazing news I’ve ever heard!” he exclaimed. “How did you do it?”

“Through hard work,” replied Arnold, “and the efforts of a young officer named Slick. He handled the whole thing.”

“Slick!” exclaimed Connel. “I just bawled him out for wearing a dirty uniform.”

“He’s responsible for our success,” asserted Arnold. “And what’s more, those receivers can be taken apart and reassembled again in less than ten minutes.”

“Incredible,” gasped Connel. “I’ve got to see those things right away. Come along, Corbett.”

Tom followed the major out of the office and back to the jet car. They were about to drive off to the opposite end of the field when they heard someone shout to them. Tom stopped the speedy little car and Connel turned around to see who had called them.

Carter Devers rushed up and greeted the Solar Guard officer enthusiastically. “Major, this is a surprise.”

“Hello, Carter. What are you doing here?” Connel asked bluntly.

“Had some business here on Mars,” said Devers. “I’ve finished and I’m on my way back to Earth. You wouldn’t, by any chance, be going back soon, would you? I saw the Solar Guard cruiser come in and one of the attendants told me that they were preparing it for immediate blast-off--”