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"Or by this organization that von Zarndirl belongs to?"
"They may try again tonight, storm or no," Doc said.
The car rocked with the wind's buffets. The half-rain, half-snow splopped on the windshield and was carved away by the wipers. Doc was driving at about fifteen miles an hour because of the limited visibility and the wetness of the road.
"I don't want to be left behind just because I'm a woman," Barbara said.
"The invitation included you."
He turned on the headlights.
She patted Caliban's huge arm and said, "I like your trusting a frail vessel such as myself."
Doc flicked a sidewise look at her but he did not reply. She had not shown the slightest sign of fear or hysteria, and outside the house she had picked up an automatic rifle and checked it out as if she were a veteran soldier.
He drove for several miles more in silence, wondering why they did not ask more questions. He was taking a chance by bringing them along if they were agents for the Nine. They might get an opportunity to trip him up. But if he left them at the village, he would not be able to keep his eye on them.
The storm continued for hours after they got back to the i
Grandrith's communications, as usual, were more than cut to the bone. They went all the way to the marrow. He had been met by a big party of men out to kill him, and he had elude them so far. He would be going on, as pla
Von Zarndirl, having received another injection, slept on Doc's bed. Pauncho brought up more food from the kitchen after observing its preparation. He gri
"They think we're crazy, and of course they're talking about us. Half the village must know we're acting very peculiarly." "We'll move out at nine o'clock," Doc said. "According to Cobbs, the cave-in is only two miles from here, on the north side of the mountain and about 2,000 feet below the castle." At nine o'clock the storm had been dead for an hour. The wind was gentle but icy; the clouds were ragged, passing below the moon slowly as if they were battle-torn veterans on parade.
Von Zarndirl, taped and gagged, slept on the floor of the bathroom. The others, bundled up in climbing clothes, carrying alpenstocks and various boxes, went out a side door of the i
Cobbs stopped for a moment and said, "It's about a quarter mile ahead." "We'll go more cautiously now, "Doc Caliban said. "Iwaldi is no dummy. He'll have backtracked after he caught you and either shut up the entrance or stationed a guard there."
They started walking again. The moon came out. Doc, looking up, saw the first of the big winged shapes. The broad beam from the projector revealed lammergeiers, the eagles of the Alps. There seemed to be dozens, and all were heading toward them.
He said, "Look out above!" and shifted the metal box he had been carrying on a strap around his shoulder to a position on his chest. "Don't fire!" he said. He pressed a button on the top of the box and held it there.
None of the humans could hear the noise that was broadcast from the box, but the eagles turned and flapped away swiftly to escape the eardrum-paining frequencies.
Immediately after, Barney said, "Doc! Wolves ! "
Doc looked up and saw the first of the big beasts bounding over a bush to their left. But it was not a wolf. It was a large blackish German shepherd dog. Behind him came three more and behind them six big Doberman pinschers. Their mouths were open, revealing their sharp teeth, but they uttered no sounds.
A few minutes later, they turned and bounded away as if they had seen a pack of tigers.
Doc and his party climbed on toward the excavation, taking advantage of every bit of cover. The eagles and the dogs would undoubtedly be back. The noise had momentarily overcome the stimulus of the microcurrent in the hostility area of their brain. But once they were out of the influence of the supersonic frequencies, they would return.
"How can they see us, Doc?" Pauncho said. "I mean, how can the operators of the control boxes see much through the eyes of the animals in this dark?"
"I doubt they're using TV tonight," he said. "It's too hard to keep the narrow beams locked in under these conditions. They probably are just transmitting the code that turns on the juice to the aggression areas of the brain and letting the animals attack whatever they come across.
"I hope so, Doc," Pauncho said. "If they can spot us through the eyes of the birds, we're going to have a hard time.
"Here they come again," Caliban said. He had turned the sound generator off so that the animals would not be affected until they got close.
The eagles, their only noise the flapping of their wings, and the dogs, their only noise the brushing aside of the wet rain-covered plants, came in swiftly. They had but one intention: to tear apart these strangers in the dark.
Then Doc pressed the button, and the dogs whirled so fast they slipped in the mud and fell on their sides or scrabbled desperately to keep from sliding on down the slope. The eagles veered away and were swallowed by the night.
A minute later, the birds and the dogs were charging in again.
Thirty seconds later, they were frenziedly trying to get away from the invisible agony.
"How long's this going on, Doc?"
"Until something—or somebody—breaks," Caliban said.
Pauncho knew it was useless to ask him to elaborate.
The next time, the birds came in first and the dogs did not appear until the birds had been turned away.
"They're catching on," Barney muttered.
"And probably moving in on us," Pauncho said.
"Isn't it really too risky to stay in this one spot?" Cobbs said. "I think we should be moving about a bit."
"That's up to you," Doc said. He pressed the button again as the first of the birds appeared. This time they kept on coming and had almost reached them, with Doc saying, "Hold your fire! " when they broke and flew upward.
The dogs bounded down the slope again, just as the birds turned away. Doc said, "Hold your fire on these, too, unless you can stick your guns down their throats."