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.Rock apes? Cunning as those beasts were, it was against their nature to trail in uttersilence, to be able to carry through a long-term project.Lion, perhaps?He noted that Nymani and Asaki took turns at rear guard today, and that each was alert.Yet, oddly enough, none of them mentionedthe uneasiness they must all share.They had a dry climb, finding no mountain stream to renew their water supply.All being experienced in wilderness travel, they made amouthful of liquid go a long way.When the party halted slightly before midday, canteens were still half full."_Haugh!_"They jerked up, hands on weapons.A rock ape, its hideous body clearly seen here, capered, coughed, spat.Asaki fired from the hipand the thing screeched, clawed at its chest where the dark blood spewed out, and raced for them.Nymani cut the beast down and theywaited tensely for the attack of the thing's tribe, which should have followed the abortive lunge on the part of their scout.But therewas nothing--neither sound nor movement.What did follow froze them all momentarily.That mangled body began to move again, drew itself together, crawled toward them.Dane knew that it was impossible that the creature could live with such wounds.Yet the beast advanced, its head lolling on itshunched shoulders so that the eyes were turned blindly up to the full glare of the sun, while it crawled to reach the man it could notsee."Demon!" Nymani dropped his needler, shrank back against the rocks.As the thing advanced, before their eyes the impossible happened.Those gaping wounds closed, the head straightened on the almostinvisible neck, the eyes glared once more with life, and slaver dripped from the swine snout.Jellico caught up the needler Nymani had dropped.With a coolness Dane envied, the captain shot.And for the second time the rockape collapsed, torn to ribbons.Nymani screamed, and Dane tried to choke back his own cry of horrified protest.The dead thing put on life for the second time,crawled, got somehow to its feet, healed itself, and came on.Asaki, his face greenish-pale, stepped out stiffly as if each step he tookwas forced by torture.He had dropped his needler.Now he caught up a rock as large as his own head, raised it high with arms onwhich the muscles stood out like ropes.He hurled the stone, and Dane heard as well as saw the missile go home.The rock ape fell forthe third time.When one of those taloned paws began to move again, Nymani broke.He ran, his screams echoing thinly in the air, as the thinglurched up, the gory mess of its head weaving about.If his feet would have obeyed him, Dane might have followed the Khatkan.As itwas, he drew his ray and aimed it at that shambling thing.Tau struck up the barrel.The medic's face was livid; there was the same horror in his eyes.But he moved out to front that monster.A spot of shadow coalesced on the ground, deepened in hue, took on substance.Crouched low facing the rock ape, its haunchesquivering for a deadly spring, narrowed green eyes holding on its prey, was a black leopard.Voodoo Planet 19/38Voodoo PlanetThe tiny forward and backward movements of its body steadied, and it arched through the air, brought down the ape.A pitting,snarling tangle rolled across the slope--and was gone!Asaki's hands shook as he drew them down his sweating face.Jellico readied a second clip in the needler mechanically.But Tau wasswaying so that Dane leaped to take the shock of the other's weight as he collapsed.Only for a moment did the medic hang so, then hestruggled to stand erect."Magic?" Jellico's voice, as controlled as ever, broke the silence."Mass hallucination," Tau corrected him."Very strong.""How!" Asaki swallowed and began again."How was it done?"The medic shook his head."Not by the usual methods, that is certain.And it worked on us--on me--when we weren't conditioned.Idon't understand that!"Dane could hardly believe it yet.He watched Jellico stride to where the tangle of struggling beasts had rolled, saw him examine bareground on which no trace of the fight remained.They must accept Tau's explanation; it was the only sane one.Asaki's features were suddenly convulsed with a rage so stark that Dane realized how much a veneer was the painfully builtcivilization of Khatka."_Lumbrilo!_" The Chief Ranger made of that name a curse [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]