ver the Nipe was up to, it wouldn't
include planting a bomb or anything that might kill anyone accidentally.
If there was a life in danger, it was his own, and the danger would come
from the Nipe's hands, not from any device or weapon.

He was thankful that it was Captain Greer up in that tower, not an
ordinary guard who would have fired the instant he saw the alien through
the infra-red-transparent walls. Even so, he knew that the captain's
fingers must be tightening on those triggers. No human being could do
otherwise with that monster in his sights.

Mannheim spoke very calmly and deliberately. "Captain, listen very
carefully. Do _not_--I repeat, do _not_, under any circumstances
whatever, fire that gun. Understand?"

"Yes, sir."

"What's he doing?"

"I can't tell, sir. He has some sort of gadget in his hands, but he just
seems to be squatting there."

"At the door?"

"No. To the left of it, at the wall."

"You have your cameras going?"

"Yes, sir."

"All right. Get everything that happens. Under no circumstances shoot or
give the alarm--_even if he kills me_. Let him go. I don't think that
will happen, but if it does, let him go. I think I can talk to him. I
don't think there's much danger. I'm going to leave the phone open so
you can record everything, and--"

There was a muffled noise from the living room. He heard Captain Greer's
gasp as he turned. He could see through the bedroom door to the wall of
the living room. A large section of the ferro-concrete wall had sagged
away and collapsed, having suddenly lost its tensile strength. On the
top of the rubble, frozen for a long instant, stood the Nipe, watching
with those four glowing violet eyes.

Mannheim let go the phone and turned to face the monster, and in that
instant he realized his mistake.

* * * * *

The Nipe stared at the human being. Was this, at last, a Real Person? It
was surprising that the man should be awake. Only a minute before, the
instruments had shown him to be in the odd cataleptic state that these
creatures lapsed into periodically, similar to, but not identical with,
his own rest state. And yet he was now awake and fully dressed. Surely
that indicated--

And then the man turned, and the Nipe saw the weapon in the holster at
his waist. There was a blinding instant of despair as he realized that
his hopes had been shattered--

--and then he launched himself across the room.

*