Harriet's clothing was sodden and streaked with mud, and her hair was hanging down her head in wet, dark tangles that looked like so much boiled spinach. The bump when the helicopter fell had raised a blue-black swelling around her left eye. Yet, it occurred to Asa, she hadn't voiced the slightest complaint. She was listening intently to his advice.
"I would send parties of three men out in a helicopter," he continued. "One would guard the ship while the other two hunted eggs. As soon as they found an egg they'd hop into the ship and be safe."
They started off again. At the first leap Asa saw a Slider a hundred yards away. As soon as his feet hit the ground he whispered to Harriet. She climbed out of the sling and held her gun ready while he drew his knife to wait. Long minutes passed before he decided they had not been seen and it was safe to continue.
Next time they stopped the girl turned to Asa with a frown and asked, "Just how does Dorr think he can get away with this?"
"Simple." Asa shrugged. "He'll say the Sliders got us despite all he could do. No muck man who could tell a different story will live long enough to get back to Earth."
The sound of a rocket explosion came from somewhere off to their right. It was the loveliest sound Asa had ever heard.
"The rescue party!" he shouted. "Let's go!"
Knowing that rockets meant Sliders, but knowing also that no Slider was a match for a team of armed men, Asa leaped forward with renewed vigor. Once he misjudged his strength and landed in a puddle, splashing both of them with slimy water, but the girl on his back only laughed. They heard the sound of another rocket, and Harriet fired three shots of her own to attract attention. In a few more minutes they were happily welcoming six muck men.
"I heard your message," said one of them, "and back at the settlement Kershaw told us what had happened. Furston tried to stop us and wound up with a knife in his belly. A couple of the others were afraid to come, and two were shot from the tower by Dorr, but the rest are with you."