ds and men was much the same as between man and dog in
the old, earthbound days. Appropriate name for the beast, Digger. With
those large, incredibly hard claws, designed for rooting in the metal
make-up of the asteroids for vital elements, the spacehound could
easily have shredded the man's spacesuit and helmet, could, at any time,
tear huge chunks out of men's fine ships.

The half-conscious man jerked his thin form erect. His mouth, which had
gaped loosely, closed with a snap into firm lines.

"She isn't in this hell hole, Digger. You wouldn't expect her to be
where we could find her easily."

Scooping the small beast up under his good arm, he quickly climbed the
steep, slimy slope of the cave. The other arm in his suit hung empty.
That empty arm in the spacesuit told the story of an earthman become
voluntary exile, choosing the desolation of space to the companionship
of other humans who would deluge him with unwonted sympathy. The
spacehound was friendly in its own fashion; fortunately, such complex
things as sympathy were apparently outside its abilities. The two could
interchange impressions of danger, comfort, pleasure, discomfort, fear,
and appreciation of each other's company, but little more. Whether or
not the creature could understand his thoughts, he could not tell.

As he went on, he reviewed, mentally, the events leading up to his
landing here. The sudden appearance on his teleview screen of the
face and slim shoulders of a girl. Her attractiveness plainly
distinguishable through her helmet; for a moment he forgot that he
disliked women. The call for help, cut short ... but not before he had
learned that apparently she was being held prisoner on Asteroid Moira.
He knew he'd have to do what he could even if it meant unwonted
company for an indefinite length of time. The spell was gone soon
after her face vanished; he remembered former experiences with
attractive-looking girls. Damn traditions!

A change in his course and a landing on Asteroid Moira. Here he'd
found a honeycomb of caves, all leading from one large main tunnel.
The cavern walls had been of a translucent, quartz-like substance,
ranging in color from yellowish-brown to violet-grey. It looked
vaguely familiar, yet he could not place it. There was not time to
examine it more carefully.

The room in which he'd found the evil, hungry lake had been the first
one to the right. Now he crossed to the opening in the opposite wall.
The mouth of