THE EXPENDABLES
BY A. E. VAN VOGT
ILLUSTRATED BY FINLAY
The alien was deadly, dangerous
and inhuman—but he was not the
most feared enemy on the ship!
[Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from
If Worlds of Science Fiction September 1963.
Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that
the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.]
I
One hundred and nine years after leaving Earth, the spaceship, Hope ofMan, went into orbit around Alta III.
The following "morning" Captain Browne informed the shipload of fourthand fifth generation colonists that a manned lifeboat would be droppedto the planet's surface.
"Every member of the crew must consider himself expendable," hesaid earnestly. "This is the day that our great grandparents, ourforefathers, who boldly set out for the new space frontier so long ago,looked forward to with unfaltering courage. We must not fail them."
He concluded his announcement over the intercom system of the big shipby saying that the names of the crew members of the lifeboat would begiven out within the hour. "And I know that every real man aboard willwant to see his name there."
John Lesbee, the fifth of his line aboard, had a sinking sensation ashe heard those words—and he was not mistaken.
Even as he tried to decide if he should give the signal for a desperateact of rebellion, Captain Browne made the expected announcement.
The commander said, "And I know you will all join him in his moment ofpride and courage when I tell you that John Lesbee will lead the crewthat carries the hopes of man in this remote area of space. And now theothers—"
He thereupon named seven of the nine persons with whom Lesbee had beenconspiring to seize control of the ship.
Since the lifeboat would only hold eight persons, Lesbee recognizedthat Browne was dispatching as many of his enemies as he could. Helistened with a developing dismay, as the commander ordered all personson the ship to come to the recreation room. "Here I request that thecrew of the lifeboat join me and the other officers on stage. Theirinstructions are to surrender themselves to any craft which seeks tointercept them. They will be equipped with instruments whereby we herecan watch, and determine the stage of scientific attainments of thedominant race on the planet below."
Lesbee hurried to his room on the technicians' deck, hoping thatperhaps Tellier or Cantlin would seek him out there. He felt himselfin need of a council of war, however brief. He waited five minutes, butnot one member of his conspiratorial group showed.
Nonetheless, he had time to grow calm. Peculiarly, it was the smell ofthe ship that soothed him most. From the earliest days of his life, theodor of energy and the scent of metal under stress had been perpetualcompanions. At the moment, with the ship in orbit, there was a lettingup of stress. The smell was of old energies rather than new. But theeffect was similar.
He sat in the chair he used for reading, eyes closed, breathing in thatcomplex of odors, product of so many titanic energies. Sitting there,he felt the fear leave his mind and body. He grew brave again, andstrong.
Lesbee recognized soberly that his plan to seize power had involvedrisks. Worse, no one would question Browne's choice of him as theleader of the mission. "I am," thought Lesbee, "probably the mosthighly trained technician ever to be on thi