Danger in Deep Space | Page 6

the uniform of the enlisted
guard.
"Yes, Captain Strong?" he asked.
"Call the cadets of the Polaris unit," Strong ordered. "Have them report
to me here on the double!"
"Aye, aye, sir."
Strong started to turn the set off, but the enlisted man added, "By the
way, sir, Al Mason and Bill Loring are here to see you."
"Oh--well--" Strong hesitated.
"They're quite anxious to know if you've reached any decision
regarding their petition for reinstatement."
"Mmm--yes, of course. Very well, send them in."
"Aye, aye, sir."
The teleceiver screen blackened. In a moment the door opposite
Strong's desk slid back, and Loring and Mason stepped into the office.
They shambled forward and stopped in front of the huge desk,

obviously ill at ease.
Strong stood up, holding their petition in his hand, and glanced over it
briefly even though he knew its contents by heart. He motioned to
near-by chairs. "Sit down, please," he said.
The two spacemen settled themselves uncomfortably on the edge of
their chairs and waited expectantly as Strong continued to look at the
paper.
Loring finally broke the heavy silence.
"Well, Captain Strong, have you made a decision?" he asked. Loring
was a heavy-set man, in his middle forties. He needed a shave, and
when he talked, his mouth twisted into an ugly grimace.
"Hope it's in our favor, sir," suggested Mason. He was shorter than
Loring and, seated, his feet hardly reached the floor. His eyes darted
nervously about the huge room, and he kept rolling a dirty black
spaceman's cap in his hands.
"Yes, I've reached a decision," said Strong slowly. He faced the two
men and looked at both of them with a steady cold stare. "I've decided
to sustain Major Connel's action. You are both grounded for the next
twelve months. Earth months!"
"What?" shouted Loring, jumping to his feet. He banged his fist down
on the desk and leaned over, his face close to Strong's. "You can't do
that to us!"
Captain Strong didn't move. "I can," he said coldly. "And I have."
"But--but--" Mason began to whine. "But space flight is all we know!
How will we live?"
Strong sat down and leaned back in his chair to get away from the foul
odor of Loring's breath. He stared at the two men.
"You should have thought of that before you stole a rocket scout from

the expedition and made an unauthorized flight while on Tara," Strong
replied. "You're lucky you're not accused, tried, and convicted of theft
of a Solar Guard spaceship!"
"We had permission to take that flight," snarled Loring. "That Major
Connel is so blasted space happy he forgot he gave us permission. Then
when we came back, he slapped us in the brig!"
"Do you have any proof of that?" asked Strong.
"No! But it's our word against his!" He slammed his hat down on the
desk and shook his finger in Strong's face. "You haven't any right to
take away our papers just on the say-so of a lousy Solar Guard officer
who thinks he's king of the universe!"
"Take your filthy hat off my desk, Loring!" barked Strong. "And watch
your language!"
Loring realized he had made a mistake and tried to backtrack. "Well, I
apologize for that. But I don't apologize for saying he thinks he's--"
"Major Connel has been in the Solar Guard for thirty years," said
Strong emphatically. "He's been awarded the Solar Medal three times.
No other living spaceman has achieved that! Not even Commander
Walters! He rose through the ranks of the enlisted Solar Guard and was
commissioned as an officer of the Solar Guard in space during an
emergency. He qualifies higher than any other spaceman, and he has
never been found to be unjust! He's one of the finest spacemen ever to
hit the wide, deep, and high!" Strong stopped, choked for breath, and
turned away. It wasn't often he lost his temper, but something had to be
said in defense of his fellow officer, and particularly since that officer
was Connel. He turned back to face the two spacemen, and his voice
was hard and cold again.
"You are hereby suspended from space flight for twelve Earth months.
Any further petition for appeal of this decision will be denied!"
"All right! All right, Mr. Big!" snapped Loring. "Does this mean we

can't even ride as passengers?"
"No rights under the Universal Bill of Rights of the Solar Alliance have
been denied you, except that of actively participating in the flight of a
spaceship!"
The signal bell of the teleceiver began to chime softly, and on the desk
the teleceiver screen glowed again. "Cadets Corbett, Manning, and
Astro are here for their assignments, sir," announced the enlisted man
outside.
Loring glared at Strong. "I suppose you're going to send