It had been an anxious hour for the forces of the Solar System.

They were in the last fine stages of Earth's defense when the general
staff received notice that a radio message of tremendous power had
penetrated the ray screen, with advice for them. It was signed "Arcot."

"Bringing new weapon. Draw all ships within the atmosphere when I start
action, and drive Thessians back into space. Retire as soon as a
distance of ten thousand miles is reached. I will then handle the
fleet," was the message.

"Gentlemen: We are losing. The move suggested would be eminently poor
tactics unless we are sure of being able to drive them. If we don't, we
are lost in any event. I trust Arcot. How vote you?" asked General
Hetsar Sthel.

The message was relayed to the ships. Scarcely a moment after the
message had been relayed, a tremendous battleship appeared in space,
just beyond the battle. It shot forward, and planted itself directly in
the midst of the battle, brushing aside two huge Thessians in its
progress. The Thessian ships bounced off its sides, and reeled away. It
lay waiting, making no move. All the Thessian ships above poured the
full concentration of their moleculars into its tremendous bulk. A
diffused glow of opalescence ran over every ship--save the giant. The
moleculars were being reflected from its sides, and their diffused
energy attacked the very ships that were sending them!

A fort moved up, and the deadly beam of destruction reached out,
luminous even in space.

"Now," muttered Morey, "we shall see what cosmium will stand."

A huge spot on the side of the ship had become incandescent. A vapor, a
strange puff of smokiness exploded from it, and disappeared instantly.
Another came and faster and faster they followed each other. The cosmium
was disintegrating under the ray, but very slowly, breaking first into
gaseous cosmic rays, then free, and spreading.

"We will not fight," muttered Morey happily as he saw Arcot shift in his
seat.

Arcot picked the moleculars. They reached out, touched the heavy relux
of the fort, and it exploded into opalescence that was hazily white, the
colors shifted so quickly. A screen sprang into being, and the ray was
chopped off. The screen was a mass of darting flames as energies of
stupendous magnitude clashed.

Arcot used a bit more of his inconceivable power. The ray struck the
screen, and it flashed once--then died into blackness. The fort suddenly
crumpled in like a dente