Finding himself safe, he drew his knife and started to rip and hack at the skin of the balloon. He had known, before making his perilous leap, that he was courting almost certain death, for, should he succeed in deflating the gas vessel, he himself would share in the disaster which must follow.
Yet he knew that if the dirigible reached the Forth Bridge her crew would be able to drop explosives without serious interruption. There were no anti-aircraft guns in the neighbourhood at that time, while an attempt to beat off the aerial monster with rifle fire would be hopeless. He alone could avert the threatened disaster.
The monoplane, now in charge of Mike, had disappeared in the darkness, and Lawless supposed that the mechanic had gone off to give the alarm.
While the Lieutenant was still hacking away at the balloon fabric, a man's head appeared above the rounded edge of the gas vessel. Lawless did not notice him at first, but when the portion of fabric upon which he was kneeling suddenly grew taut under the climber's weight he looked up.
"The devil!" he muttered.
He gripped his knife tightly and drew back a little. He had an idea that he might be able to spring upon his antagonist before the latter had time to assume the offensive. Just as he was about to do this a second head appeared above the edge of the balloon, but on the opposite side and Lawless realised that his first plan was now hopeless. There was nothing for it but to await the attack. Yet even then he could not restrain a grim smile at the thought of his extraordinary position. There had been many strange combats in many strange places; but surely never before had there been a fight on the top of a huge airship five or six hundred feet above the sea.
Nearer and nearer crept the men, one on each side of the Lieutenant, and the latter braced his muscles for the coming struggle. Then, as if acting upon a given signal, the two Germans simultaneously levelled revolvers at him, at the same time shouting something he could not understand.
To have attempted resistance when covered by two revolvers would simply have been courting a useless death, and so Lawless, guessing what they wanted, threw his knife away and made a sign that he surrendered. After all, he reflected, he might do more as a live prisoner than as a dead hero.
The men crawled up to him, and one, who had the end of a rope round his waist, slipped it off and placed the noose beneath the aviator's shoulders, then, both holding the line, they lowered their prisoner down through a sort of hatch, and eventually he found himself standing upon the deck of the airship.
"Who are you?" asked a voice in excellent English; and, turning, the Lieutenant saw that his questioner was an officer, evidently the commander of the Zeppelin.