Adventures on Other Planets Anthology by Donald A Wollheim (ed)

Author:Donald A Wollheim (ed)
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

SUNRISE ON MERCURY by Robert Silverberg

Nine million miles to the sunward of Mercury, with the Leverrier swinging into the series of spirals that would bring it down on the Solar System’s smallest world, Second As-trogator Lon Curtis decided to end his life.

Curtis had been lounging in a webform cradle waiting for the landing to be effected; his job in the operation was over, at least until the Leverrier s landing-jacks touched Mercury’s blistered surface. The ship’s efficient sodium-coolant system negated the efforts of the swollen sun visible through the rear screen. For Curtis and his seven shipmates, no problems presented themselves; they had only to wait while the autopilot brought the ship down for Man's second landing on Mercury.

Flight Commander Harry Ross was sitting near Curtis when he noticed the sudden momentary stiffening of the astrogator’s jaws. Curtis abruptly reached for the control nozzle. From the spinnerets that had spun the webfoam, came a quick green burst of dissolving fluorochrene; the cradle vanished. Curtis stood up.

“Going somewhere?” Ross asked.

Curtis’ voice was harsh. “Just—taking a walk.”

Ross returned his attention to his microbook for a moment as Curtis walked away. There was the ratchety sound of a bulkhead dog being manipulated, and Ross felt a momentary chill as the cooler air of the superrefrigerated reactor-com-partment drifted in.

He punched a stud, turning the page. Then—

What the hell is he doing in the reactor compartment?

The autopilot would be controlling the fuel flow, handling it down to the milligram, in a way no human system could. The reactor was primed for the landing, the fuel was stoked, the compartment was dogged shut. No one—least of all a Second Astrogator—had any business going back there.

Ross had the foam cradle dissolved in an instant, and was on his feet in another. He dashed down the companionway and through the open bulkhead door into the coolness of the reactor compartment.

Curtis was standing by the converter door, toying with the release-tripper. As Ross approached, he saw the astrogator get the door open and put one foot to the chute that led downship to the nuclear pile.

“Curtis, you idiot! Get away from there! You’ll kill us all!”

The astrogator turned, looked blankly at Ross for an instant, and drew up" his other foot. Ross leaped.

He caught Curtis’ booted foot in his hands and, despite a barrage of kicks from the astro gator’s free boot, managed to drag Curtis off the chute. The astrogator tugged and pulled, attempting to break free. Ross saw the man’s pale cheeks quivering; Curtis had cracked, but thoroughly.

Grunting, Ross yanked Curtis away from the yawning roactor chute and slammed the door shut. He dragged him out into the main section again, and slapped him, hard.

“Why’d you want to do that? Don’t you know what your mass would do to the ship if it got into the converter? You know the fuel intake’s been calibrated already; a hundred eighty extra pounds and we’d arc right into the sun. What’s wrong with you, Curtis?”

The astrogator fixed unshaking, unexpressive eyes on Ross.

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