ng on all forty barrels. You're an Operator, all
right; and it takes a damn good one to lie like that with her mind!"

"Thanks to you, Clee. And thanks a million, really. I'm me again--I
think."

Then, since Belle was looking, she took him by both ears, pulled his
head down, and kissed him lightly on the lips. The spontaneity and
tenderness were perfect at that moment. Clee's appreciation was obvious.

"I know I said you'd have to kiss me next time," Lola said, very low,
"but this act needs just this much of an extra touch. Anyway, such
little, tiny, sisterly ones as this, and out in public, don't count."

CHAPTER 3

Lola and Garlock went to town in the same taxi. As they were about to
separate, Garlock said:

"I don't like those hell-divers, yellow, green, or any other color; and
you, Brownie, are very definitely not expendable. Are you any good at
mind-bombing?"

"Why, I never heard of such a thing."

"You isolate a little energy in the Op field, remembering of course,
that you're handling a hundred thousand gunts. Transpose it into
platinum or uranium--anything good and heavy. For one of these monsters
you'd need two or three micrograms. For a battleship, up to maybe a gram
or so. 'Port it to the exact place you want it to detonate. Reconvert
and release instantaneously. One-hundred-percent-conversion atomic bomb,
tailored exactly to fit the job. Very effective."

"It would be. My God, Clee, can _you_ do _that_?"

"Sure--so can you. Any Operator can."

"Well, I _won't_. I _never_ will. Besides, I'd probably kill too many
people, besides the monster. No, I'll 'port back to the Main if anything
attacks me. I'm chain lightning at that."

"Do that, then. And if anything very unusual happens give me a flash."

"I'll do that. 'Bye, Clee." She turned to the left. He walked straight
on, toward the business center, to resume his study at the point where
he had left off the evening before.

For over an hour he wandered aimlessly about the city; receiving,
classifying, and filing away information. He saw several duels between
guardians and yellow and green-bat monsters, to none of which he paid
any more attention than did the people around him. Then a third kind of
enemy appeared--two of them at once, flying wing-and-wing--and Garlock
stopped and watched.

Vivid, clear-cut stripes of red and black, even on the tremendously
long, strong wings. Distinctly feline as to heads, teeth, and claws.
While they