, bow first, with a repulsion of the bow plates. And
started the central electronic engine. Its thrust from our stern moved
us diagonally over the purple forest trees.

The glade slid downward and away. I caught a last vague glimpse of the
huddled group of marooned passengers, staring up at us. Left to their
fate, alone on this deserted little world.

With the three engines going we slid smoothly upward. The forest
dropped, a purple spread of tree-tops, edged with starlight and
Earth-light. The sharply curving horizon seemed following us up. I swung
on all the power. We mounted at a forty degree angle, slowly circling,
with a bank of clouds over us to the side and the shining little sea
beneath.

"Very good, Gregg." In the turret light Moa's eyes blazed at me. "I do
not know what you meant by darkening the deck-lights." Her fingers dug
at my shoulders. "I will tell my brother it was an error."

I said, "An error--yes."

"An error? I don't know what it was. But you have me to deal with now.
You understand? I will tell my brother so. You said, 'On Earth a man may
kill the thing he loves.' A woman of Mars may do that! Beware of me,
Gregg Haljan."

Her passion-filled eyes bored into me. Love? Hate? The venom of a woman
scorned--a mingling of turgid emotions....

* * * * *

I twisted away from her grip and ignored her; she sat back, silently
watching my busy activities; the calculations of the shifting conditions
of gravity, pressures, temperatures; a checking of the score or more of
instruments on the board before me.

Mechanical routine. My mind went to Venza, back there on the asteroid.
The wandering little world was already shrinking to a convex surface
beneath us. Venza, with her last unknown play, gone to failure. Had I
failed my cue? Whatever my part, it seemed now that I must have horribly
mis-acted it.

The crescent Earth was presently swinging over our bow. We rocketed out
of the asteroid's shadow. The glowing, flaming Sun appeared, making a
crescent of the Earth. With the glass I could see our tiny Moon,
visually seeming to hug the limb of its parent Earth.

We were away upon our course for the Moon. My mind flung ahead.
Grantline with his treasure, unsuspecting this brigand ship. And
suddenly, beyond all thought of Grantline and his treasure, there came
to me a fear for Anita. In God's truth I had been, so far, a very
stumbling inept champion--doomed to failure with ev