Authentic Science Fiction Monthly No. 43 — page 84: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

ERRAND OF MERCY The ship lurched again. Raikes swore. ““They’re back again!” He snatched up the rifle and ran out. With a queer sick feeling, Lewes followed him. The steady rain of particles from the bank had begun again, and the second foot had slipped over the infinitely slowly moving edge. The inroad was spreading towards a third foot, and Lewes saw at a glance that when that was left unsup- ported, the ship would tilt off balance altogether and crash straight into the river. Raikes, gun ready, was staring searchingly at the river. Not a single black snout was visible. “They’re there,” he said, quietly. “I glimpsed a couple of ’em as I came from the air lock. They’re hiding just under the surface. We can’t see them, but maybe they can see us.” ““Look,”’ said Lewes, ur- gently, “there’s no sense in hanging around now Hacking 83 . gets here. isn’t coming back. We'd better take off before me “Take off?” snapped Raikes, rounding on him. ““How the hell can we take off with the ship canted at that cockeyed angle? We'd drop straight in the drink— | I’m telling you.” Raikes was a first-rate pilot. He knew what he was talking about, and Lewes realised that. *‘There’s only one chance,” said Raikes, through his teeth. ““We’ve got to stop the rot, or we'll lose the ship alto- gether. Seems to me we can only do it by killing those brutes—but quick. After- wards, we'll have time to think. Perhaps we can shore up the ship some way.” “Afterwards?” ‘repeated Lewes, slowly. ‘“‘What about the thing that killed Hacking? It’s heading this way at a hundred miles an hour—at least. Can’t be long before it What do we do about that?’ “Pump it full of atomic comicloooks.com