The Ethical Engineer Read online

smugsatisfaction out of his voice, "I'll take care of things for you. Idon't know what kind of horror stories you may have heard aboutPyrrus--but they're all true. That's a nice looking heat ray you havethere, but I doubt if you could move fast enough to use it."

  The figure lowered the gun and fumbled for a switch on the front ofthe space armor, it clicked and a speaker diaphragm rustled.

  "I'm looking for a man called Jason dinAlt. Can you tell me if he ison this planet or if he has left?"

  It was impossible to tell the speaker's tone from the raspingdiaphragm, and no face was visible that might betray an emotion. Thiswas the moment when Jason should have shown caution, and haveremembered that there were thousands of policemen scattered across thegalaxy who would heartily enjoy putting him under arrest. Yet hecouldn't imagine any of them going to the trouble of following himhere. And certainly there could be very little danger from aspacesuited man with a rifle, not to the man who had learned to takePyrrus on its own terms, and live.

  "I'm Jason dinAlt," he said. "What do you want me for?"

  "I've come a long way to find you," the speaker rasped. "Now"--thegloved hand pointed--"what is THAT?"

  Jason's reactions were instantaneous, conditioned to move withoutthought. He wheeled, crouched, the gun in his hand and fingerquivering lightly on the trigger, pointed in the indicated direction.There was nothing unusual to be seen, just an empty field and thecontrol building at the edge.

  "Whatever are you talking about ..." Jason asked, then stopped as itbecame very obvious what the stranger had been talking about. Thelarge, flanged mouth of the maser-projector ground into the small ofhis back. His own gun snapped halfway out of its holster, buzzedbriefly, then slipped back as he realized his position.

  "That's much better," the stranger said. "If you attempt to move,turn, lower your gun hand or do anything I don't like I'll pull thistrigger and...."

  "I know," Jason sighed, careful to stand with every muscle frozen."You will pull the trigger and burn a nice round hole through mybackbone and intestines. But I would just like to know why? Who is itthat is so interested in my worthless old carcass that they werewilling to pay interstellar freight charges to send you and thatoversize toaster all the way here in order to threaten it?"

  Jason was only talking to kill time, since he knew this situationwould not stay static for long, not on Pyrrus. He was completely rightbecause before he had finished the ground-control door burst open andMeta ran out, circling to the left. At the same moment Kerk appearedfrom behind the building, his Pyrran reflexes absorbing the situationin an instant and with no perceptible delay he ran in the oppositedirection. Both Pyrrans had their guns ready and closed in with themerciless precision of trained predators.

  "Tell them to stop," the suit speaker grated at Jason. "I'll shoot youif they try anything."

  "Hold it!" Jason shouted, and the running Pyrrans stopped instantly."Don't come any closer and whatever you do don't shoot." Hehalf-turned his head and spoke in a quieter voice to the suited figurebehind him. "Now you see where you stand. Lower the gun and get backinto your ship, I guarantee you'll stay alive if you do that at once."

  "Don't try and buff me, dinAlt," the maser barrel pushed harderagainst his back. "You are my prisoner and your friends can't saveyou. Start walking backwards now--I'll stay right behind you."

  "Look," Jason said calmly, not permitting himself to get angry. "Thoseare _Pyrrans_ out there. Either of them could kill you so quickly thatyou couldn't possibly have time to pull that trigger. I'm saving yourlife--though I don't know why I'm bothering--so be a good boy and getback into your ship and go home and we'll give you a T for trying."

  "Could I have him, please Kerk?" Meta called out, the deadlyassumption of her remark punctuating Jason's logic. "After all, Jasonmeans more to me than you. Shall I kill him yet, Jason?"

  "Just shoot his gun hand off, Meta," Kerk told her, in the sameemotionless tone. "I want to know who this is, why he came here,before he dies."

  "Get back into your ship, you fool," Jason hissed. "You've got onlyseconds to live."

  "Start walking backwards," his captor said. "You are under arrest.I'll count to three, then shoot. One ... two...."

  Jason shuffled a cautious step to the rear and the Pyrran guns snappedup at the same instant, extended at arm's length. Jason was so closeto the man in the spacesuit that the guns could have been pointed athim, the eyes sighting carefully over the dark muzzles.

  "Don't shoot!" Jason shouted to his friends.

  "Don't worry," Kerk called back. "We won't hit you."

  "I know that--it's this idiot here that I'm worrying about. You justcan't shoot him for trying to do his job. In fact I'm surprised tofind out that there is one honest cop left on any of the places I'vebeen."

  "Don't talk so crazy," Meta said with maddening sweetness. "We'll killhim, Jason. We'll take care of you."

  Anger hit him. "You will NOT take care of me because I can take careof myself. Either of you kill him and so help me I'll kill you." Jasonshuffled backwards faster now until his legs hit the lower edge of thehatch. He clambered into it and burst out laughing at the dumfoundedexpressions of his friends' faces. The laugh died as something prickedthe back of his neck. The pressure of the gun was gone and he swungaround, surprised to see the floor rushing up towards him, but beforeit struck him blackness descended.

  Consciousness returned, accompanied by a thudding headache that madeJason wince when he moved, and when he opened his eyes the pain of thelight made him screw them shut again. Whatever the drug was that hadknocked him out, it was fast working, and seemed to be oxidized justas quickly. The headache faded away to a dull throb and he could openhis eyes without feeling that needles were being driven into them. Hewas seated in a standard spacechair that had been equipped with wristand ankle locks, now well secured. A man sat in the chair next to him,intent on the spaceship's controls; the ship was in flight and wellinto space. The stranger was working the computer, cutting a tape tocontrol their flight in jump-space.

  Jason took the opportunity to study the man. He seemed to be a littleold for a policeman, though on second thought it was really hard totell his age. His hair was gray and cropped as short as a skull cap,but the wrinkles on his leathery skin seemed to have been caused moreby exposure than advanced years. Tall and firmly erect, he appearedunderweight at first glance, until Jason realized this effect wascaused by the total absence of any excess flesh. It was as though hehad been cooked by the sun and leeched by the rain until only bone,tendon and muscle were left. When he turned his head the muscles stoodout like cables under the skin of his neck and his hands at thecontrols were the browned talons of some bird. A hard finger pressedthe switch that actuated the jump control, and he turned away from theboard to face Jason.

  "I see you are awake. It was a mild drug. I did not enjoy using it,but it was the safest way."

  When he talked his jaw opened and shut with the seriousness of a bankvault. The deep-set and cold blue eyes stared fixedly from under darkbrows. Jason stared back just as steadily and chuckled.

  "I suppose you didn't enjoy using the maser-projector either, northreatening to cook holes in me. For a cop you seem to be very tenderhearted."

  "I did it only to save your friends. I did not want them to get hurt."

  "Get hurt!" Jason roared with laughter. "Space-cop, don't you have anyidea what Pyrrans are like, or what kind of a setup you were walkinginto? Don't you realize that I saved your life--though I really don'tknow why. Call me a natural humanitarian. You may have a swollen headand a ready trigger-finger, but you were so far out of your class thatyou just weren't in the race. They could have blasted you into pieces,then shot the pieces into smaller pieces, while you were stillthinking about pulling the trigger. You should just thank me for beingyour savior."

  "So you are a liar as well as a thief," Jason's captor answered withno change of expression. "You attempt to play on my sympathies to gainyour freedom. Why should I believe this story? I came to arrest you,thr
eatening to kill you if you didn't submit, and your friends werethere ready to defend you. Why should you attempt to save my life? Itdoes not make sense." He turned back to the controls to make anadjustment.

  Mikah Samon]

  It didn't make sense, Jason agreed completely. Why had he saved thisoaf who meant nothing to him? It was not an easy question to answer,though it had seemed so right at the time. If only Meta hadn't saidthat they would take care of him; he knew they