Part 2

"Busy at the controls, I guess. They threw us in here."

Quickly Ric searched through his pockets, brought out a disc a few inches in diameter, with a milky-white crystallized facing. Inside were highly sensitized coils, and it was rimmed with a sliding sheathe.

"Short distance trans-telector," he explained. "Now if I can only get the _Valiant's_ wave-length!"

He clicked a switch and manipulated the dials with swift surety. A bit of crackling came through but nothing more. He increased the power. "Afraid we're out of range, and we're moving away fast! Wait...."

The dial began to glow with an inner light. A man's face appeared there, rather fuzzy and indistinct. Ric moved the dials infinitesimally and a faint voice was heard.

"Quickly!" Ric held the disc to Tal Horan's lips.

But the girl came forward. "Allow me, Tal! It is time that Dar Mihelson knew...." She spoke crisply. "Unit Twenty-six calling the _Valiant_! We're moving away fast so listen carefully, Dar Mihelson! You must not fight--it would mean destruction! Look to your magni-plates ... use your speed, and stay out of Earth Fleet's range!"

Mihelson's answer filtered through, something about "Fight to the death...."

The girl's eyes flashed, she became magnificent. Her voice took a tone of unmistakable authority.

"It is Praana speaking, the Princess Praana, daughter of Bedril! I order you not to fight, Dar Mihelson! You will not place my people in such peril!"

A thousand miles away on the _Valiant's_ huge televise, Praana's face must have been visible. She realized that instantly, and went on.

"I am in disguise, Dar Mihelson! It was Bedril's last order, and we planned this well. I must remain as a rallying point for my people in the time of their direst stress. The time is now! Mihelson ... you know my voice, do you not?"

"But what are we to do, your Eminence? We cannot return to Mars ... Wessell blocks our way to Earth...."

* * * * *

After a moment of indecision, Ric whispered, "You're sure he has speed? He could outrace the Earth Fleet?"

"Yes! You will see!"

"The moon, then. Earth's moon! The crater Tycho...."

"Dar Mihelson," she spoke again. "You must get past Earth's fleet. You can do that, with the element of surprise; then head for Earth's moon! Swing around it once and enter Tycho! You will find air-locks there at the abandoned mines, and tunnels leading deep inside. You will be safe for a while! Await further word from me ... I shall contact you again, I promise it!"

Already the wave-length was becoming tenuous, but Praana was sure her final words had reached him. Ric snapped off the disc.

A voice behind them brought them whirling around.

* * * * *

Kueelo stood in the doorway, heat gun held ready as always. He laughed mockingly.

"So. A handy little gadget that is, Earthman. And you really managed to contact Dar Mihelson with it?" he shrugged. "That is all right--we shall have entertainment now. It will be interesting to see how he out-maneuvers the Earth Fleet! If you three will join me?"

They walked ahead of Kueelo, into a room where a visi-panel had already centered the _Valiant_ and was following its slow progress. Naric appeared in the doorway behind them, and remained watchful. Kueelo stepped to the screen and manipulated the magni-lens.

The space scene seemed to widen, draw away a little ... then the Earth Fleet could be seen. Even at this distance it appeared formidable. In staggered horizontal tiers, perhaps fifty of Earth's cruisers had arrayed themselves under Wessell's command. Breathlessly they watched, from their own ship which was already speeding far out of range.

Ric noticed one thing. The Earth ships were all of the heavy type, built for concentrated power-blasts rather than speed. Mihelson might out-maneuver them, but, if he chose to fight....

The Fleet was almost in range of the _Valiant_ now, and still the Mars ship continued its plodding course. It was unlikely that Wessell suspected anything. He was approaching slowly to make sure of doing a thorough job. It was sheer treachery; worse, it was murder! In that moment Ric felt almost ashamed of being an Earthman.

Suddenly, from the prow of the _Valiant_ a beam of light probed forth to cut the gap of darkness like a slashing saber. Once, twice, three times it slashed. This was the accepted signal for a parley in space.

Tal Horan muttered and moved restlessly. Praana's golden face had gone pale. Surely Dar Mihelson was not going to parley! He must know what awaited him! Speed was the only salvation now.

From Earth's flagship the answering signal came. And then, although the _Valiant_ still moved, the Earth Fleet applied forward rockets and began to slow appreciably. Mihelson's strategy was apparent now! This would give him precious seconds needed for acceleration!

And then it came. Without warning the _Valiant_ seemed to burst apart. To the watchers from afar it was startling; to Wessell it must have been unbelievable. Some thirty Units, each a spaceship in itself, moved outward in an ever widening circle ... then all of space seemed aflame as the rockets burst into action. The Mars spacers sped straight at the Earth Fleet, but the circle was widening now and they passed safely _around_ the Fleet, around and beyond it and were gaining acceleration even as the Earth cruisers tried to reverse their drift!

One of the Earth ships opened up with its rear-action ray blasts. Slicing, probing angrily, the livid blue rays tried to intercept the fleeting Martian Units. Two of the rays converged upon one of the Units and held there. The Martian ship grew fiery red, seemed to falter ... then exploded into holocaust.

But the others were beyond range now and gaining acceleration with each second. Even the atomo-bombs, hurled recklessly, fell far short. By the time the Earth Fleet had reversed, the Martian ships were disappearing dots of light, heading for Earth.

"Mihelson did well!" Kueelo said, and whirled dials that dissolved the scene. "Only one Unit lost. But I have the most important Unit ... do I not, Princess Praana!" His voice was mocking; it seemed to have secret meaning.

"Phobian half-breed!" Tal Horan's face was tight with hate. "Murderers and traitors, all of you ... since time began! Ric, I had an encounter with this man back on Mars, at one of the Ionization Towers. He tried to get my identity card so he could come aboard the _Valiant_. How'd you manage it, Kueelo?"

"Never mind, Tal." It was Praana who spoke softly, but her slender body was taut, her golden face showed a pallor. "Where are you taking us, Kueelo?"

"Ah, so you are curious at last! Observe." Again the screen came to life. Ahead of them loomed the bright red disc of Mars! They had made a sweeping parabola and were heading back toward the planet.

Kueelo spoke again, and for once his voice lost its mockery. "Observe further, The Towers have failed, the plague has conquered. Mars is a dead world now. I know that Emperor Bedril and his group of scientists remained there. He was a brave man, I admit--but foolish. This was inevitable."

Praana turned her head away. Tal Horan said bitterly, "I wish I had stayed to die with him! At least our work--"

"Yes! I am aware, Tal Horan, that you were working with Bedril on the atomic breakdown of the new Mercury metal, with which you hoped to combat the plague." Kueelo's eyes became bright. "I am sure you must have gone far. Well ... _we_ have worked on the same principle, and I'm sure your formula will be useful to us!"

"We?" Tal was puzzled.

Kueelo merely grinned, waved a hand at the televise.

They were skirting Mars. Now a tiny world moved unerringly toward them. It was a dark, airless little world of crags and shadows, but it was unmistakable. Mars' smaller moon ... Phobos!

IV

"You may watch if you wish. I'm going to treat you to as masterful a piece of navigation as you've ever seen." Kueelo stood at the control board, hands ready, eyes fastened on the panorama spreading below them. "You especially should appreciate this, Earthman! Naric, keep them covered."

Phobos rushed up before them, a horribly barren world that seemed to encompass all of space. Closer it came, but Kueelo didn't check his drive. They could see vast plains dotted with craters, and huge serrated cliffs reaching up.

At last Kueelo applied his forward thrust, and they levelled out. Half around the planet they raced. A mountain range loomed. The spacer dipped sharply, driving straight at it! Ric was taut, sweat glistening on his brow. No ship could ever brake in time at that suicidal speed! He merely closed his eyes, awaiting the inevitable.

A sudden force sent him reeling. A profound nausea made him retch. Then Kueelo was at his side, touching his shoulder.

"How was that, Earthman?" Kueelo laughed. "Don't worry, we're safe now!"

White-faced and shaken, Ric opened his eyes. They had entered a place of semi-darkness, but were still moving ahead.

"Where are we?"

"Inside the cliffs! We've entered a magnetic field that arrests speed and mass synchronously. We are being slowed in a graduating net of force."

In a few minutes they had come to a complete rest, but Kueelo told them, "Stay where you are! Our trip isn't over yet."

Ric peered into the forward screen. Darkness encompassed them. He turned questioningly. Kueelo grinned and gestured downward.

"You mean we're going inside this planet?"

"Yes. _Very_ far inside. We're on the downward beams now. Patience, Earthman, you'll see many amazing things before we're through."

It took a long time, and there was no telling how far they'd gone or with what speed. They seemed not to be moving at all. But at last a faint blue radiance appeared, and Kueelo opened the lock.

They stepped out onto a ledge which extended perhaps a hundred yards, then dropped sheerly away. The walls curving up were of polished smoothness, and stretched away into unimaginable distances. The soft bluish light came from these walls and seemed to pervade the whole interior of this hollow world. The air was damp but comfortably warm. And the gravity....

Praana clutched at Tal Horan's arm. "This is almost Mars gravity! But ... where do they get it?"

"Yes, we'll have to look into that later." Tal cautioned her to silence.

A three-wheeled car was waiting for them. Kueelo hurried them into it, and Naric took the controls. Soon they were speeding away, and they gasped as their ledge tapered off into nothingness! They were traversing the inside of the shell itself.

"It's eerie at first," Kueelo told them, "but you'll soon become accustomed to our gravity. Just imagine the space out there as being _up_. The only difference is that our light comes from the surface instead of overhead."

"What's the interior diameter?" Ric gestured outward.

"About three hundred miles. And you were wondering about our gravity, Tal Horan? It comes from out there!" Kueelo gestured vaguely at the gray-blue interior. "Our power plant is anchored in space at the exact center of Phobos. But it's reverse gravity--that is to say, its force extends _outward_ toward the shell, instead of pulling inward."

Tal saw that the man was communicative. He nodded thoughtfully. "Quite an engineering feat! It must have taken a long time to set up all this!"

"Two generations! It was not done in my time."

"Where are we going now?"

"To the city of the Phobians."

Praana gasped. "Native Phobians? But there are no Phobians left! For three hundred years--"

"That's the popular supposition, and it suits our convenience. Yes, three hundred years ago the war between Mars and Phobos was supposed to have ended. But you shall see! Perhaps Gorak himself will have much to tell you."

"Gorak?"

"The present Phobian leader! There are only a few thousand Phobians remaining, as there are only a few thousand of your people. Ironic, is it not ... Princess Praana?"

* * * * *

The city came into view, a sheer grotesquerie of impossible buildings jutting crazily into space. However, as they came nearer, it was apparent that many of them were abandoned.

They passed through a long street and entered a building which Kueelo seemed to know well. He was familiar with everything here, Ric thought--too familiar! They came into a room where a man sat at a table, poring over charts and figures. He looked up, greeted Kueelo and Naric by name.

"This is Tal Horan, and the Princess Praana!" Kueelo said, the pride of accomplishment in his voice. "We have done better than we supposed! And this one is Ric Martin, who foolishly came into space to warn Dar Mihelson."

While Kueelo was telling his story, Ric watched this Phobian leader, Gorak, who was as ghastly a character as he had ever seen. Pallid, with a bluish tinge, the man stood well over six feet tall, but his body seemed frail. His head was absurdly large, quite hairless and glistening. The colorless, lidless eyes were not nice to look into. He watched the others, especially Praana, with those cold eyes as Kueelo talked.

"So. The Princess Praana," Gorak said at last, and his thin gash of a mouth parted in a grin, revealing brownish teeth. "But are you quite sure, Kueelo? I seem to remember her differently, in the tele-magnum."

"I am quite sure, Gorak. It was Bedril's wish that she disguise herself."

Gorak nodded, never once taking those lidless orbs from Praana. "You have done well, Kueelo. She will serve as a most valuable pawn. And this other--Tal Horan. Is he not the metallurgist who worked with Bedril?"

"Yes, and I'm sure he must have their formula for the Counter-active! They were working in the right direction, just as we...."

Gorak held up a hand. He surveyed Tal Horan coldly from head to foot, and Tal returned the gaze unflinchingly. Then Gorak's gaze lingered on Tal's right hand. He spoke without emotion.

"Kueelo. You have not been very observant."

Tal Horan whirled for the door, but a dozen Phobians had entered silently to bar the way. Tal lashed out at them, and three went down before his pile-driver fists before the others brought him back, struggling, to stand before Gorak.

"It is useless, Tal Horan. You see, we need this formula." Gorak reached to Tal's right hand, removed a colorless, plastic ring from his finger. From the inside of the ring he stripped a tightly-rolled film, handed it to Kueelo.

"It is you who will need this, Kueelo. I am sure you can persuade Tal Horan to assist you in deciphering it."

"Think again!" Tal husked through clenched teeth.

Praana faced the Phobian leader squarely. "You beast! You'll never reclaim Mars from the red plague! And--my people are safe!" Triumph filtered into her voice.

Gorak grinned down at her. All of him grinned except those horrible eyes. He turned, touched the huge tele-magnum behind him. "Let us say, rather, that your people have gained a temporary respite. They are safe on Earth's moon. I watched it." Sudden vicious hate erased the grin. "But my people remain too, Praana! For three hundred years the Phobians have hidden and burrowed and builded--and planned! The Martians thought they had wiped us out. They levelled our cities with atom-blasts, they slashed and blackened the surface of Phobos and hunted down my people mercilessly. Even when our Fleet had gone down to destruction and we were helpless, even when my people sued for a peace from the horrible war, _pleaded_, the Martian leaders would not listen!"

Praana was taut with emotion. "Yes! Yes, our history tells of it too! Three times the Phobians had initiated wars against Mars which ended in holocaust for both our peoples! And the last time, we determined it should never happen again. However," she gained control of herself, "this was long before your time or mine. Centuries ago."

"True. We are the fourth generation. It is personal, nevertheless! The Phobians as a race do not die easily ... nor as individuals do they ever forget!" Gorak's lips writhed again. "It was for _me_ to resume the war against Mars! _I_ am destined to be our liberator, and I have done exceedingly well. Once more we are on equal terms, Praana!"

"_You_ resumed the war!" Her face was puzzled. "What do you mean?"

"The spores, of course. The red plague that appeared so mysteriously on Mars. Where do you think it came from?"

Praana's face blanched. Tal Horan tried to leap forward, to smash Gorak's sneering face. But a dozen wiry Phobians held him back.

"Yes," Gorak went on. "The spores were launched from here! Almost single-handed, I have accomplished the destruction of Mars. The rest will be easy! We have far-reaching plans!" With a wave of the hand Gorak indicated that he was weary of this. "Take them away, Kueelo. See that Praana is made comfortable, but guard her well. If Tal Horan shows a disinclination to work with you on the Counter-active, refer him again to me, but I am sure you have persuasive methods equal to my own."

Gorak turned his cold orbs on Ric. "As for the Earthman ... watch him well! His lips have been very still, but not his brain!"

V

Outside again, Ric flashed a warning look at Tal Horan and said tentatively to Kueelo:

"As a spaceman and engineer, all of this interests me! Just what is the nature of these spores? How did you manage to get them across to Mars? And"--he looked about the empty streets--"where are the Phobians?"

"You shall learn these things in due time. And, if you are entertaining thoughts of escaping from here," Kueelo said with calm assurance, "you may as well forget it. You will work, Earthman; you will work very hard, in order to stay alive. You'll soon learn why! Later ... you may be of even more use to us."

They entered the car again and soon were speeding away from the city. The shimmering blue surface light began to fade away. They entered a twilight place where the walls were of dull gray stone.

"Where are you taking us now?" Praana asked.

"You shall see! I feel it is best that you understand fully what we have accomplished here, and it is only the beginning. Our plans are far-reaching!"

Far-reaching. Ric thought he knew what that meant, but he remained silent and watchful. A few miles further they entered a region of pallid, purplish vegetation. There were vast patches of it, acres wide, growing from the surface. And they saw the Phobians. Hundreds of these frail, pallid people were working listlessly into the growth, harvesting it, placing it in small fibroid carts to be hauled away.

"You asked about the nature of the spores," Kueelo said to Ric. "Touch it, then. I want you to see for yourself."

Ric examined it curiously. It grew in thick masses close to the stone, almost lichen-like. It was the strangest stuff he had ever seen. It seemed literally to crawl! Carefully he reached out a hand. A faint tingling, almost radioactive, went through his skin.

"Touch it with metal," Kueelo said.

Ric searched his pockets, found a small silver coin. Gingerly he extended it. When the metal was yet a few inches from the fungoid growth, it seemed to be snatched from his fingers! The growth reached swiftly upward at it, and the metal dissolved away. For a three foot radius the growth turned from the pallid purple to blood red ... seemed trying to tear itself from the stone. Ric could even feel a faint heat from it.

So this was Gorak's weapon! This was the stuff he had launched, somehow, upon Mars. It was diabolic ... and Ric could understand, now, how Mars had been devastated in a matter of weeks! Questions were pounding in his brain; but before he could speak, Kueelo was saying with supreme confidence:

"You wonder how we control it. We have only partially done that, by use of the new allotropic metal from Mercury. Under special processing in our atomic furnaces we have been able to strengthen the atomic structure of the Mercury metal, at least to the point where it will counter-act the spores temporarily. With that accomplished, it was a simple matter to propel them on robot-control across the short space to Mars."

"And upon landing there," Tal Horan's voice came fraught with hate, "the spores broke down the metal and were free to spread on Mars! It's diabolic!"

"Let us say, clever," Kueelo continued coldly. "And with the formula you have provided, I believe we can strengthen the atomic structure still more. We can increase our range. We shall have a weapon indeed!"

He dismissed the subject abruptly and turned to Ric. "Tal Horan will assist me tomorrow at the laboratories. _Your_ work will be here. You are new, and can do the work of a hundred of these Phobians."

There was secret meaning, secret amusement in the words. Ric looked again at the Phobians moving slowly, automaton-like, listless and dull-eyed. He felt an awful foreboding as he wondered how long before he became like these shells of men....

* * * * *

They returned to the city where Kueelo assigned them to their quarters. They didn't lack for comfort, but Phobian guards, obviously not of the worker class, patrolled the corridors ceaselessly.

"Their plan is obvious!" Ric said when they were alone. "Earth is to be next, unless it capitulates to their demands. And lord knows what those will be!"

"Yes." Praana was thoughtful. "I think Kueelo would have bargained with Mars, but Gorak wanted his revenge, the wholesale destruction of our people. And he probably figures it will be a good object lesson to Earth."

"They couldn't have picked a better time, with Earth divided on the question of the Mars refugees, and Wessell using the Fleet for his own political ambitions! Tal ... you'll be working with Kueelo tomorrow. Pretend to co-operate, but slow them down if you can! Learn what their plans are. Find out how much time we have!"

Tal nodded. "We'll all have to keep our eyes and ears open. Our only chance is to get back to that spaceship."

"How? Even if we got past the guards, we could never find our way back to that air-lock." Ric laughed bitterly. "Direction is meaningless in this crazy world!"

Then he was strangely silent, as his mind struggled on the threshold of an idea. There was something Kueelo had said, in his boastful mood, something Ric should have remembered. Something....

But Ric couldn't recall it now. Events had happened too swiftly. The more he tried to grasp the idea the more it eluded him. At last his weary mind gave it up, and he sank into a sleep of exhaustion.

He was awakened roughly and looked up to see Kueelo. Tal and Praana were already up, and some Phobian servants were bringing breakfast in to them.

"You won't find existence here too hard," Kueelo told them, "so long as you do as you're told. Eat your breakfast, then you, Tal Horan, will accompany me, and you, Ric Martin, will go with Naric to the spore-fields. As for Praana ... Gorak wishes to confer further with her."

Tal Horan glanced at her anxiously, but Praana whispered, "It's all right, Tal, I can take care of myself; and I may be able to help!"

Ric accompanied Naric, and they reached the spore-fields where groups of Phobians were already beginning the day's work. Ric was given a leather hood that came over his head and around his neck, and soft leather gloves.

He went to work slowly, methodically, following the example of the others. The roots of the growth, he found, were embedded deep. It clung tenaciously. And soon, even through his clothes, through the protecting gear, he could feel faint radiations at work on his skin.

Before an hour had passed, it began to take its toll of him. Sweat was in his eyes, but he did not mind that. Much worse, something seemed to be happening to his metabolism. His blood moved sluggishly in his veins, as a terrible impassivity gripped him. Almost it was as though essential salts within his body were being dissolved, to slow up cellular activity! Ric paused to stare around at the phosphorescent glow that clung about the place like a ghastly pall.