It was
a pool of liquid fire, so intense in its brilliance that their eyes
were dazzled staring at it. It rose and fell in regular pulsations.
They were not far above it now, and still no one on the strange island
seemed to be aware of their coming.

Nona cried out, "Grant, we're going to fall right into it!"

Pemberton looked down at the small fiery pool with anxious eyes.
Unless something happened, and that quickly, they would be seared to a
crisp. Already the heat was uncomfortable, even through their suits.
He tried to kick himself aside, but the pull of the liquid was too
powerful for him. Then he resolved on a desperate expedient.

"Say, you fellows down there," he cried in the smooth, slurred
Ganymedan speech. "What are you trying to do, fry us? Hurry up and
prepare our landing."

* * * * *

For a moment they were tense with the tenseness of imminent death.
Were the Ganymedans equipped with communication disks; would they
sense the strangeness of the accent? Nona was gripping his hand with a
pressure that penetrated the fabric. And every second brought them
down closer and closer to the dread lake.

"Ah!" Nona's breath came in a shuddering sigh. For one of the figures
glanced upward and saw them dropping. He shouted something to his
fellows, and darted for a lever set in the stone next to the pool. He
threw it over swiftly. Immediately what seemed to be a smooth slab of
transparent glassite shot into position over the pulsating flame, not
an instant too soon, either, for it had barely covered the flaming
death when the Earthlings' feet were already touching it.

"It would have served you two fools right if I had let you drop in,"
their savior grumbled disgustedly. "What in Jupiter took you so long?
Everyone else arrived hours ago. Didn't know there were any more."

"Sorry, but we couldn't help it," Grant responded carefully. "You see,
we got mixed up in a scrap with some Earthmen who evidently suspected
us, just as we were diving out of the air-lock. We had the devil's own
job of beating them off."

"You too! The Chief came down foaming at the mouth. Some dumb Earthman
almost throttled him before he got away. He swears he'll blast Earth
out of space. He's that mad. But here, I've got no time to be talking
to your fellows. I've got work to do. Better report to the Chief at
once, and heaven help you. He's sure in a black rage at this minute."

With that he moved away, ove