Alfred Bester - Biped Reegan
The strongest man, the last woman, at bay against a world that had destroyed their fellows, take a last grim gamble with eternity that the human race might survive.
IF IT please your Imperial Maternity, the day is won. I have here the full report of the last victory, and if your Imperial Maternity would deign to listen...?
At the first light our forces were drawn up at the crest of the semicircle of hills surrounding the bipeds' last citadel. In the ten moons following our first attack on their cities, only this last stronghold prevailed. Within were less than two hundred bipeds. Like a sickle, our armies pressed close.
We were at all times within close observation of the enemy. Spy-alpha had slipped through their traps and barriers during the dark and had taken up a post in the vast room in which the bipeds were accustomed to meet and talk. Spy-alpha telecasted to us shortly after the first light that the bipeds were entering the room, and all of us picked up his thought band.
They came in slowly, those bipeds, for they were desperate. The big one with flushed face and beard, called Otis, banged his hand on the table.
"It's hopeless," he said. "What if we do win out?"
The biped with red hair interrupted.
"Not if," he said. "We shall. Chung and I have something new. It can't fail.
We've been working on it for two months. "
Then the biped with slant eyes, the one called Chung, nodded.
"In some ways," he said, "the attack of the ants has worked miracles. First, it ended a war between the Chinese and Whites. Second, it has provided a necessity that is proving to be the mother of miracles. Between Ivar's technique and my theory we have created a new thermodynamics..."
"You're too long-winded," Ivar said.
"You're both too optimistic," Otis added. "When do we see this miracle worker of yours? What's it all about?"
"Not yet," Ivar replied. "In three hours it'll be ready for a final demonstration. Not now."
"And if it works?" Otis asked.
"Then we win," said Chung.
"Win what?" Otis demanded. "A slow and sorry death for the race and two hundred men. Two hundred men, I said. You don't seem to understand. The race of men is dead. It died with the last woman. You're only prolonging the inevitable. "
Ivar said: "I'd rather make a fight of it... No matter how hopeless it is.
You too, Otis. You're just depressed."
At that moment the vast portal to the room was smashed open and one of the biped underlings rushed in. He lifted his hand to his forehead and poured out a message so excitedly that Spy-alpha had difficulty following, and so did we. The gist of it, however, was that the ants were attacking.
Instantly we telecast across the entire field of battle. Not an attack was reported in progress, although Marshal-gamma announced that he had moved one hundred thirty thousand of his troops forward slightly to maintain an even line across the crest of the ridge. We turned our attention then back to Spy-alpha in the meeting room of the bipeds.
They were in a state of alarm, doubtless convinced from the reported troop movements that our attack was coming. The red-haired biped, Ivar, was especially concerned.
"I must have three hours more," he repeated over and over. "Three hours will make the difference between success and failure. Can you give Chung and me three hours?"
"I'd like to," Otis said, "but how?"
"I'LL tell you how!"
It was the biped, Reegan... The one of great daring whose long lean body and reckless lean face we had all grown to hate and fear. The numbers of us whom he had killed mounted to the millions. A wave of fury leaped across the battlefield as all of us telecast our hatred of Reegan. At the room of the bipeds, Spy-alpha warned us to be quiet lest we miss an important detail.
"If we sit here and wait," Reegan snarled, "we can sit and wait until the ants make up their minds what they want to do with us. Waiting's no good. It just plays right into their hands. Ivar wants three hours? Hell, I'll give him sixty-three."
"How?" asked Otis.
"Counter-attack," Reegan snapped. "Give me a suicide squad. Ten men, that's all.
I'll go out there and blast the guts off them!"
"The man is crazy," spoke the biped, Chung.
"Sure I'm crazy," Reegan said. "I'm crazy with waiting. I've only got a lifetime to live, and I know there's nothing worth living for anyway. If I die and I've given Ivar his three hours... then what the hell?"
Chung said: "What would you do?"
"I'll take ten men and torches," Reegan said. "I'll go out there and stay out until I'm dead. It ought to take them three hours to chew me to pieces. Me and the rest..."
"No," said Otis, "I can't let you."
"I'm going anyway," Reegan said. "I'd like to see you stop me."
He arose to his full height and faced the biped, Otis. He raised hand to brow languidly and started out of the chamber. Spy-alpha rushed to precede him so as to learn the site of Reegan's attack, and just then the biped Otis clutched
Reegan by the arms.
"One more step," he said, "and I call the guard. No plan is worth your suicide,
Reegan."
The biped Reegan shook the arm away. Otis clutched him once more and this time
Reegan raised his fist and smote Otis full in the face. He was already out the door when Otis arose and began to shout for the guard. The biped Ivar quieted him.
"Let him alone, Otis," he said. "Don't you know the poor guy's been looking to die since he lost his girl? You'll be doing him a favor if you'll let him kill himself,.. And you'll be saving the rest of us."
SPY-ALPHA picked up no more of their vibrations, for he had slipped under the portal and was following the biped Reegan down the hall. When he had caught up, the biped Reegan had already summoned ten others, some with the slant eyes and others with the white faces They were donning the tight suits of metal fabrix with the glass helmets and Reegan was handing out the torches.
Our research legions are at present investigating these torches, Imperial
Maternity. They consist of large tanks which the bipeds strap over their backs.
From the tanks lead two hoses which join in a metal nozzle held in the hand. It is believed that two kinds of substance are carried in different compartments of the tank, and when these substances are mingled at the nozzle, they burst into flame.
"Here is the plan," Reegan said. "We go out through the north gate. From there we..."
At this point he uttered an exclamation and Spy-alpha telecast that he had been spotted by biped Reegan. All of us received the blurred impression that he was fleeing rapidly for cover, and then his telecasts ceased. So passed another happy sacrifice for your Imperial Maternity.
Commander-lambda immediately dispatched Spy-zeta and Spy-zeta-prime to the citadel of the bipeds to break through along the came route that Spy-alpha had worked out. Meanwhile the scout legion was advanced slightly to await the first appearance of the biped sortie and report its direction.
The sickle of hills, as your Imperial Maternity doubtless knows, is the length of eight hundred and eight bipeds. It is a perfect formation, the arc of a circle, and at each point, the same distance from the bipeds' citadel as it is long, The height of the hills vary, the tallest being the central flat-topped peak which covers the mouth of the caverns.
The hills are not steep, for they lead down toward the-citadel in a gentle slope which makes our attack easier. Moreover the slope is entirely covered with a low dry vegetation which makes for better concealment.
It was an hour after first-light that the scout legion sighted Reegan and the squad. They immediately telecast back and we saw that they were headed due north toward the tall central peak of the hills. Although we
had nothing to fear from the bipeds in the long run, it was judged advisable to keep them as far as possible from the cavern mouth, lest they disrupt the mechanism which is our inspiration and very life, as you are aware.
Marshal-alpha, on the left flank, suggested that he be permitted to show his troops so as to lure the bipeds to that side of the hills, and permission was immediately granted by Commander-lambda who, at the same time, ordered
Marshal-delta to begin moving troops from the left center toward the left flank to cover the gap that would be created by the maneuver.
At the order your Imperial Maternity's troops clambered to the heights of the dry vegetation by the tens of thousands, and permitted the bright light to glisten on their jet chiton. Almost immediately, the shimmer of light was noticed by the bipeds, who halted and consulted. Fortunately our scout legions were thick in the neighborhood and partially able to translate the bipeds' communication at that important crisis.
The biped Reegan said: "Hell, thousands of them!"
"Lucky for us," said a second. "We can burn up the (word not understood by the scout legion) by the millions without even trying. It's easy."
"Yeah, " said Reegan, "it's too easy. That's what makes me suspicious. The trouble with you guys is that you never figure these little black vermin can think. I tell you they can, They're smart. Smarter than we or they have ever been!"
Nevertheless they turned west toward Marshal-alpha's exposed troops and began to advance. Inasmuch as their plan was designed to delay our attack for three hours
... that, Imperial Maternity, is a period equal to one quarter a light or one quarter a darkness... we had decided to finish them off quickly.
Commander-lambda had already announced that the first faint telecasts from the red armies had been received. The red armies were reinforcements coming up from the south and were expected to arrive by mid-light.
MARSHAL-ALPHA had not intended to let the troops throw themselves away. The first waves for a distance of ten bipeds remained concealed under the vegetation. It was not until they reported that the bipeds had passed them that the order was given for an attack.
Immediately the troops rushed down the slope from the crest of the hill toward the squad. These at once ignited the torches, which hissed out flame to the distance of two bipeds. The van of the charge was seared to death instantly, but the following waves plunged over their ashes toward the bipeds. And as the bipeds advanced in a rank toward the hill-crest, Marshal-alpha ordered the concealed troops behind them to attack by stealth.
Unfortunately the biped Reegan was alert. Glancing backward, he noticed the action in the rear and instantly called orders to the others. They formed a circle, standing shoulder to shoulder, surrounding themselves with a roaring fiery curtain. In that fashion they slowly reached the crest of the hill and began moving toward the central peak.
Matters were becoming serious when several of the troops just before death reported that one of the bipeds was throwing flame with his left hand. This meant that an occasional gap was left between himself and the biped to the right of him. When this was understood, troops immediately began to filter through the flame and wait inside until their numbers had grown.
Although the bipeds wore the metal fabrix for protection, it had a tactical disadvantage that ultimately proved to be their downfall. They could not sense the attack of our troops on their person. Thus, slowly from the inside, our troops mounted the backs of the bipeds until they were thousands thick from nape to heel. Then, when they had telecast readiness, Marshal-alpha gave the order.
The attack was an instant success. As our troops bit through the fabrix and swarmed to the skin of the bipeds, they screamed and broke formation. Despite the shouts of Reegan, they dropped the torches and writhed on the ground, striking at themselves with their palms. Instantly they were covered by hordes of our troops, who had been waiting for this.
Two of the bipeds scorched themselves to death with their own torches. The others struggled and screamed for a long time before the venom of our troops then to both sides, the biped Reegan escaped. Despite the thousands of wounds that our troops were inflicting, he ran calmly and swiftly across the crest of the hills, throwing the destructive flame as he ran. When he reached the central peak, from which we had been attempting to lure him, he climbed to the surface of the broad flat stone that covers the cavern mouth, and flamed it clear.
Then, despite the agony of his wounds, he lay down carefully and rolled slowly from face to back and then from back to face, pressing the inside of his fabrix suit between the weight of his body and the stone. In such manner he succeeded in crushing those of our troops who had penetrated to his skin. It was a cool device.
Commander-lambda was rushing troops toward the stone in hopes of occupying the biped Reegan with another attack before he discovered the secret, when suddenly
Reegan felt the stone shift on its pivots under his weight. He was the quickest, the most alert of the bipeds, and in little time he had swung the stone back, revealing the broad steps that led down into the cavern.
THROWING the flame before him, Reegan descended slowly and curiously until at last he reached the foot of the steps. Commander-lambda had already telecast warnings, and fresh troops were massing along the floor of the cavern to await
Reegan. The digger legions were rapidly boring passages down to the roof in hopes that our troops might be able to drop down on Reegan from above.
Unfortunately he moved forward too rapidly for us. Keeping his torch in continual rotation from ceiling to floor and then to both sides, the biped
Reegan, passed down the length of the vast cavern until he reached the heavy oak portal which barred the way to the machine room.
This door he burned through, and as it sagged away, he kicked it down and passed into the great domed chamber where the machine lay.
As your Imperil Maternity is no doubt aware, the machine room is a circular vault, the distance of ten bipeds across and almost as high. In the center is the machine itself. It is a structure so complicated that it defies description.
All we know is that it is fed with ore from the pits around the chamber and secretes the gas that is our life and inspiration from crystal tubes which lead to the surface above.
To one side of the machine are the two great masses of straw where the bipeds who made and now tend the machine, sleep. There is a great wooden chamber where their foodstuff is kept, and a high wooden structure where they eat. The chamber was at all times surrounded on the inside with thousands of our troops who, by the continual menace of their presence, kept the bipeds from escaping and forced them to continue the operation of the machine.
These troops Reegan instantly flamed to death. As he was staring at the machine and listening to its soft hiss, he suddenly became aware of the bipeds lying on the straw masses. He emitted a peculiar sound and ran to them.
"Dinah!" he cried. "In God's name... I must be mad!"
She raised her head and cried out. Then Reegan threw his arms about her and crushed her to him. The both of them emitted peculiar sobbing sounds continually and totally ignored the ancient biped with the hairless skull, who gazed at them in astonishment.
AS Commander-lambda received the reports of the biped's peculiar actions, he deemed it wise to attempt a fresh attack. The cavern and steps were already choked with our troops, who were ready at all costs to prevent an escape.
The biped Dinah said: "Wes, darling, this is Doctor Elmer Gropper."
Reegan nodded curtly and aided the ancient biped called Doctor Elmer Gropper to his feet. "There's no time for talk," Reegan said. "First let me get you back to the fort. I can hear all about everything there."
He rekindled his torch and flamed the broken chamber entrance. Then he swiftly removed the metal fabrix suit and forced the biped called Dinah to don it. The biped named Doctor Elmer Gropper was too weak to travel, and Reegan lifted him to his shoulder.
Then the biped called Dinah said: "Wes.... Please
destroy the apparatus. You'll find out why later. But do it... "
Reegan... for although she named him "Wes" she spoke to him... turned and played the flame over the machine. It fused and exploded, filling the chamber with a maze of small broken parts. I fear, Imperial Maternity, that we shall never be able to reconstruct it, but in my subsequent report you will see that it is unimportant.
Our troops charged valiantly as the three bipeds came through the cavern.
Reegan, without the metal suit, was especially open to attack, but he moved with infinite caution, carefully flaming the four sides of the tunnel before he would advance a step. Despite our every effort he managed to reach the stairs and mount them.
It was impossible to hold him back once he began descending the slope and we deemed it wiser to let him return to the citadel of the bipeds, where we could attack at our leisure. Our troops drew off and Commander-lambda telecast a message to Spy-zeta and Spy-zeta-prime. All of us caught their response, clear and calm. Zeta-prime was stationed in the council room of the bipeds; Zeta was trailing the biped Ivar, in an attempt to ferret out the new weapon he had spoken of.