The Escape Orbit Read Online Free Page B

single member of the escort outranked the Lieutenant although they obeyed his polite requests at the double. Then as they were once again moving up the slope towards the post, with Kelso fighting hard to keep his grin of triumph within dignified limits, Peters came striding back.
    “I’m anxious to hear the latest war news, Lieutenant,” the Commander said in a carefully neutral voice. “I take it you’ve no objections to me listening to what they have to say for a while…?”
    There could be no objection to what on the surface was a completely reasonable request and Warren began to consider the possibility that he had been a trifle hasty in his estimate of Peters’ character—on the present showing the Fleet Commander did not appear to be a man you gave up easily…
    All the way to the post, however, Peters walked at Warren’s side without speaking. Several times he looked as if he was about to say something, and on the other side Kelso edged closer in order to be ready to counter it, but he never progressed farther than clearing his throat. Warren took advantage of the silence to examine the layout of the post.
    The stockade which surrounded the post was roughly twenty feet high, composed of logs which had been either buried or driven deeply into the ground, and was supported at each corner by four massive trees. The trees had had their lower branches lopped off up to the level of the top of the stockade, and above this the larger branches supported what seemed to be defense or observation platforms linked by a system of catwalks and ladders to the platform which ran along the inside of the stockade. Because of the position of its corner posts was governed by nature rather than human design the plan-view of the structure was not quite square and its walls, which had a tendency to curve towards the support of smaller intervening trees, were anything but straight. Entrance was by way of a section of log wall, which dropped open like a drawbridge and was hauled into position again as they passed through.
    Inside the stockade extensive use had again been made of naturally growing trees, which formed the main supports of several large structures, and many smaller huts had been built under them, some with extensions into the upper branches. Only the lower branches had been stripped from any of the trees which Warren could see, so that the whole of the stockade’s interior was in shadow. He was beginning to realize that the post was a larger and more complex place than he had at first thought, and that it would be practically impossible to spot it from the air.
    Or space.
    They were shown into a large, log building in which a long table with benches on each side of it occupied one wall while the three other walls were filled with shelves containing hundreds of what seemed to be loose-leaf files. He wondered briefly where all the paper had come from, and added that question to the others on his list. Despite the fact that the log walls and ceiling had been stripped of bark it was still too dim inside the place to make out details.
    “When the sun rises a little higher you’ll be able to see comfortably,” Kelso explained as he saw Warren peering about. “The de-briefing can wait until after you’ve eaten. It’s only breakfast, I’m afraid, but there’s plenty and it will probably taste like Christmas dinner after the Bug food. But there are a few preliminaries which we can get out of the way while we are waiting…” He broke off suddenly as someone called to him from the other side of the room, then said hastily, “Excuse me, sir. Be right back.”
    The buzz of conversation in the room was growing into a muted roar as the Committeemen extended themselves to make the new arrivals feel at home and answer the questions being shot at them from all sides. Warren did not realize that Peters was speaking to him until the Fleet Commander gripped his arm.
    “… Wondering why a Fleet Commander was out looking for