s as far as Ron Val could get.

"What about him?"

"_He's outside trying to get in!_"

"Have you gone insane? Sarkoff is dead. You helped me bury him."

"I know it. Jed, he's outside. He wants in."

Hargraves had gone to bed without removing even his shoes. He ran
forward to the control room, Ron Val pounding behind him. Lights had
been turned on here, in defiance of orders. Someone had summoned the
crew. They were all here, all eighteen who remained alive. The inner
door of the lock was open. A dazed guard, who had been on watch outside
the lock, was standing in the door. He had a pistol in his hand but he
looked as if he didn't know what to do with it.

In the center of a group of men too frightened to move was a
black-haired, rugged giant.

"Sarkoff!" Hargraves gasped.

The giant's head turned until his gaze was centered on the captain. "You
moved the ship," he said accusingly. "I had the damnedest time finding
it in the dark. What did you move the ship for, Jed?"

If some super-magician had cast a spell over the little group he could
not have produced a more complete stasis. No one moved. No one seemed to
breathe. All motion, all action, all thinking, had stopped.

Sarkoff's face went from face to face.

"What the heck is the matter with you guys?" he demanded. "Am I poison,
or something?"

He seemed bewildered.

"Where--where are the others?" Ron Val stammered.

"What others? What the heck are you talking about, Ron?"

"Nevins and Reese. We--we buried them with you. Where are they?"

"How the hell do I kn----_You buried them with me?_" Sarkoff's face went
from bewilderment to inexplicable good nature. "Trying to pull my leg,
huh? Okay. I can go along with a gag." He looked again at Hargraves.
"But I can't go along with that gag of moving the ship after you sent me
out scouting. Why didn't you wait for me? Wandering around among all
these trees, I might have got lost and got myself killed. Why did you do
that, Jed?" he finished angrily.

"We were--ah--afraid of an attack," Hargraves choked out. "Sorry, Hal,
but we--we had to move the ship. We would have--hunted you up,
tomorrow."

* * * * *

Sarkoff was not a man who was ever long angry about anything. The
apology satisfied him. He grinned. "Okay, Jed. Forget it. Jeepers! I'm
so hungry I could eat a cow. How about a couple of those synthetic
steaks we got in the ice-box?" His eyes went around the group, came to