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."If that sand has penetrated inside theship far enough and heavily enough to jam that hatch, you can imagine whatis on top, outside! A mountain of sand! And we're buried under it with abouteight hours of oxygen left!"Tom and Astro were silent, thinking about the truth in Roger's words.Roger walked slowly across the deck and stood in front of them defiantly."You were counting on the ship being spotted by Captain Strong or part ofa supposed searching party! Ha! What makes you think three cadets are soimportant that the Solar Guard will take time out to look for us? And if they docome looking for us, the only thing left up there now"-he pointed his fingerover his head-"is a pile of sand like any other sand dune on this crummyplanet.We're stuck, Corbett, so lay off that last chance, do-or-die routine.I'vebeen eating glory all my life.If I do have to splash in now, I want it to be onmy own terms.And that's to just sit here and wait for it to come.And if theypin the Medal-the Solar Medal-on me, I'm going to be up there where all goodspacemen go, having the last laugh, when they put my name alongside myfather's!""Your father's?" asked Tom bewilderedly."Yeah, my father.Kenneth Rogers Manning, Captain in the Solar Guard.Graduate of Space Academy, class of 2329, killed while on duty in space,June 2335.Awarded the Solar Medal posthumously.Leaving a widow andone son, me!"Astro and Tom looked at each other dumfounded."Surprised, huh?" Roger's voice grew bitter."Maybe that clears up a fewthings for you.Like why I never missed on an exam.I never missed becauseI've lived with Academy textbooks since I was old enough to read.Or why Iwanted the radar deck instead of the control deck.I didn't want to have tomake a decision! My father had to make a decision once.As skipper and pilotof the ship he decided to save a crewman's life.He died saving a bum, a nogood space-crawling rat!"Tom and Astro sat stupefied at Roger's bitter tirade.He turned away fromthem and gave a short laugh."I've lived with only one idea in my head since I was big enough to knowwhy other kids had fathers to play ball with them and I didn't.To get into theAcademy, get the training and then get out and cash in! Other kids hadfathers.All I had was a lousy hunk of gold, worth exactly five hundred credits!A Solar Medal.And my mother! Trying to scrape by on a lousy pension thatwas only enough to keep us going, but not enough to get me the extra thingsother kids had.It couldn't bring back my father!""That night-in Galaxy Hall, when you were crying-?" asked Tom."So eavesdropping is one of your talents too, eh, Corbett?" asked Rogersarcastically."Now, wait a minute, Roger," said Astro, getting up."Stay out of this, Astro!" snapped Roger.He paused and looked back atTom."Remember that night on the monorail going into Atom City? That manBernard who bought dinner for us? He was a boyhood friend of my father's.He didn't recognize me, and I didn't tell him who I was because I didn't wantyou space creeps to know that much about me.And remember, when I gaveAl James the brush in that restaurant in Atom City? He was talking about theold days, and he might have spilled the beans too.It all adds up, doesn't it? Ihad a reason I told you and it's just this! To make Space Academy pay meback! To train me to be one of the best astrogators in the universe so I couldgo into commercial ships and pile up credits! Plenty of credits and have agood life, and be sure my mother had a good life-what's left of it.And thewhole thing goes right back to when my father made the decision to let aspace rat live, and die in his place! So leave me alone with your last bigefforts-and grandstand play for glory.From now on, keep your big fat mouthshut!""I-I don't know what to say, Roger," began Tom."Don't try to say anything, Tom," said Astro.There was a coldness in hisvoice that made Tom turn around and stare questioningly at the big Venusian."You can't answer him because you came from a good home.With amom and pop and brother and sister.You had it good.You were lucky, but Idon't hold it against you because you had a nice life and I didn't." Astrocontinued softly, "You can't answer Mr.Hotshot Manning, but I can!""What do you mean?" asked Tom."I mean that Manning doesn't know what it is to really have it tough!""You got a real hard luck story, eh, big boy?" snarled Roger."Yeah, I have!" growled Astro."I got one that'll make your life look like aspaceman's dream.At least you know about your father.And you lived withyour mother.I didn't have anything-nothing! Did you hear that, Manning? Ididn't even have a pair of shoes, until I found a kid at the Venusport spaceportone day and figured his shoes would fit me.I beat the space gas out of himand took his shoes.And then they were so tight, they hurt my feet.I don'tknow who my father was, nothing about him, except that he was a spaceman.A rocket buster, like me.And my mother? She died when I was born.Since Ican remember, I've been on my own.When I was twelve, I was hangingaround the spaceport day and night.I learned to buck rockets by goingaboard when the ships were cradled for repairs, running dry runs, goingthrough the motions, I talked to spacemen-all who would listen to me.I liedabout my age, and because I was a big kid, I was blasting off when I wasfifteen.What little education I've got, I picked up listening to the crew talk onlong hops and listening to every audioslide I could get my hands on.I've had ittough.And because I have had it tough, I want to forget about it.I don't wantto be reminded what it's like to be so hungry that I'd go out into jungles andtrap small animals and take a chance on meeting a tyrannosaurus.So lay offthat stuff about feeling sorry for yourself.And about Tom being a hero,because with all your space gas you still can't take it! And if you don't want tofight to live, then go lie down in the corner and just keep your big mouth shut!"Tom stood staring at the big cadet.His head jutted forward from hisshoulders, the veins in his neck standing out like thick cords.He knew Astrohad been an orphan, but he had never suspected the big cadet's life had beenanything like that which he had just described.Roger had stood perfectly still while Astro spoke [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]