"Now what?" he asked.
"I don't know, sir," Koa answered somberly.
They went back to the cave, not hurrying because Rip no longer had the strength to hurry. Weakness and a deep desire to sleep almost overcame him, and he knew that he was finished anyway. His wound must be too deep to clot, which meant it would bleed until he bled to death. Whether he warned the Scorpius or not, his end was the same.
Back in the cave, he leaned against the wall and asked tiredly, "How is Dominico?"
"I am fine, sir. My wound stopped bleeding."
"How is the Connie I got?"
"Unconscious, sir," Santos replied. "He must be bleeding badly, but we can't tell. The one you landed on is all right now, but he may have a broken rib or two."
Because his voice was weak, Rip had to turn up the volume on his communicator to tell the Planeteers about the Scorpius. They were silent when he finished, then Dowst spoke up.
"Looks like they have us, sir. But we'll take plenty of them with us before we're finished."
"That's the spirit," Rip approved. He told them, "I won't last much longer. When I get too weak, Koa will take over. Meanwhile, I want to get outside. Bring the rocket launcher outside, too. Who's the gunner? Santos? Stand by, then. We'll need you in case the Connie decides to send a few snappers before it goes after the Scorpius."