The Mystery of Ireta_ Dinosaur Planet & Dinosaur Planet Survivors - Anne McCaffrey [158]
“I told you. I won’t harm you. That bunch is just waiting for a chance to blast us out of existence.” Aygar’s bitterness was intense.
“Your transport shot us down.”
“You and your phony rescue mission. All the time your cruiser was tracking the transport!”
Rianav flinched from his anger, aware of contradictory, nonsensical, and conflicting emotions. But the next moment Aygar had reached the ledge, and she was removed from his arms. She started to protest as she saw him pushed to one side by armed personnel. Then a medic was busy checking the pupils of her eyes and someone else applied an antiseptic pack to her bleeding forehead. She felt a spray go in one arm, a powerful restorative to judge by the flood of energy that surged through her body.
“You’ll do,” the medic muttered and stepped back, signaling his assistant to help Rianav clean the worst of the blood from her skin. The Iretan flies were buzzing in a cloud, attracted by the smell of blood.
“Lieutenant Rianav,” and she turned to look at the officer who now confronted her. His face was totally unfamiliar to her. Even medium-size cruisers were not so huge that officers could remain unknown to one another. His expression was compounded of many elements: anticipation, curiosity, and a tinge of awe. “Commander Sassinak is waiting for your personal report.”
To gain a moment to collect herself, Rianav looked over to where Portegin was being examined. “Is he all right?”
“He’ll have a worse headache than you will, Lieutenant,” the medic replied cheerfully then pointed to the long gash across Portegin’s forehead. “Only a flesh wound. Here, you, let’s get him out of this stinking air and away from those blood-sucking insects.”
Aygar and his friend were summarily encouraged to lift Portegin and bring him into the pinnace.
“We used those two local lads to reach you,” the officer was saying in an apologetic tone as he escorted Rianav to the pinnace. “They said,” and he gave a skeptical snort, “they were on their way to rescue you anyhow.” He dropped his voice to a confidential tone as they entered the little ship. “We haven’t had a planetfall in months and we might have botched the climb. Couldn’t let that happen. Sorry you landed so hard. We saw that transport zap you and the commander only managed to get a tractor beam on you long enough to cushion the fall—All secure back there?”
“Aye, aye, sir.”
Rianav craned her head to see Portegin strapped into a seat, the medics on either side of him. Aygar and his companion were under the wary guard of four marines, two with drawn stunners.
“Why are those men under guard, Lieutenant?” Rianav asked as she fastened her seat belt.
“They’re mutineers. Your people filed a charge of mutiny, you know. First thing your commander told mine.”
There was something wrong with that statement, but Rianav could not fathom what, beyond the obvious error that her commander and his must be the same.
The young lieutenant leaned toward her, his voice low. “The other elements of your group have all reported in, Rianav. Don’t worry about anything.” He turned aside to order the helmsman to take the pinnace back to the ZD-43. Then he grinned complacently at Rianav. “The heavy-worlders’ transport never even knew we were on their tails. Sassinak’s a canny commander.”
As the little pinnace took off, Rianav placed trembling