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had it in you."
"I don't," admitted Bill. "I was actually more concerned about the fact that
he's the only one who knows how to fix the autopilot."
"Clear thinking," said Blight. "I slept through that part in officer's
school."
"They don't teach autopilot repair anymore," said Christianson. "It's too
complicated for us officers. If we had to learn stuff like that we wouldn't
have time to learn the real important things like how to give lavish
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Bill, the Galactic Hero on the Planet of Zombie Vampires parties, raise our
sperm count, and brutalize the troops. And, if I might be so bold as to
suggest it, the MP
should bring that stinking dog. It might help; maybe Barfer can sniff out a
trail."
"He's probably stuffing his face in the okra room," said Bill. "Where else
would he be?"
Sure enough, Barfer was chowing down on some
Abelmoschus humungous
, happily stumbling from one end of the bed to the other, picking out only the
tenderest, tastiest buds. Blight was about to kill the grazing dog but was
convinced not to when Caine informed him that a selective harvest would
stimulate new growth in the established plants and was, indeed, a recommended
procedure.
They picked up the trail outside Curly's door. It was not a terribly difficult
trail to follow, being a strip of shedded orange fur a yard wide going down
the corridor. It led them to what used to be the door to the docking tube.
The door was a twisted and destroyed wreck, lying in pieces on the floor. All
the edges were melted, as if they had been sizzled by a giant welding torch or
hosed down by a caustic acid.
"This is awful," said Uhuru, scribbling on a piece of paper. "I'll have to
revise my shopping list. Pick me up a door if you find one."
"Such power," said Caine admiringly, hefting a chunk of broken door. "They are
truly amazing creatures."
"They're creeping horrors, if you ask me," shivered Rambette. "Let's find
Curly and get the damn ship ready to go. If you want to study them, do it on
your own time."
The station appeared just as they had left it, except for about a thousand
crisscrossing orange fur trails of all sizes. The crew huddled together in the
command center.
"We've got to split up into groups," said Bill, tearing Uhuru's shopping list
into strips and giving everyone a piece. "This place is too large to explore
as one unit. You'll each take a list and find the items on it. But be careful
about wandering off on your own  it might have a negative impact on your
life."
"Look at all these fur tracks," moaned Tootsie. "There must be hundreds of
these creatures up and about. I
don't think even being here is a good idea. I mean, what if the creatures
already had Curly for lunch? We ought to just fix the ship and get off this
miserable planet."
"Our first objective is to find our shipmate Curly," said Bill, assuming his
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best Trooper stance. "Not only is he our good buddy  but we can't fly the
ship without him, so fixing the ship won't help much. Our second objective is
to find the material Uhuru needs for repairs."
"Our third objective is to gather specimens," said Caine. "Remember,
scientific observation should never be curtailed, even if we are currently
fighting for our very lives."
"You want specimens?" asked Bruiser. "Then you come to da basement wit me and
Bill? Plenty action dere, you bet."
"I'm sticking with Rambette," said Captain Blight. "She's armed to the teeth."
"I made a flamethrower out of a welding torch," said Larry or Moe happily. "If
I see anything move that isn't one of us, I'm going to fry it on the spot."
"I wish I had big chainsaw," said Bruiser. "I'd massacre dem Texas-style like
in da video."
"What's a Texas?" asked Rambette.
"What's a chainsaw?" asked Christianson.
"I think Texas is a star," said Blight.
"A double star?" asked Bill.
"No, a lone star," said Blight.
"Shut up!" Rambette shouted. "Every minute we stand around jawing about the
situation is a minute more they have to munch on Curly. I think we've been
breathing spores again."
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Bill, the Galactic Hero on the Planet of Zombie Vampires
The rope was still tied to the heavy desk, and Bill followed Bruiser down into
the threatening unknown with a great deal of trepidation. Not to mention fear.
And trembling. Caine followed Bill, happy to be in search of specimens and
secure in the knowledge that androids were unpalatable to alien taste buds.
Barfer once again drew guard duty at the top of the rope.
"I wish I had that flamethrower instead of this flashlight," Bill complained
as they looked around. "It's a great flashlight and all that, but if I'm
attacked.... Flamethrowers are better."
"All we need is Slasher," grinned Bruiser threateningly. "I'm going to wander
off in da dark by myself and find my axe."
"Look over here," said Caine. "This is most interesting."
"What did you find?" asked Bill, going towards the light of Caine's flashlight
as Bruiser wandered off alone.
"Look at these pods," he said. "Most of the ones in this pool have hatched.
There must be a whole horde of the little monsters around here somewhere.
Maybe I can collect a few live specimens. I know that I'd feel bad if one [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]