ck to be finishing a drink
when our friend, the Nipe, popped in on us. And when I do meet him, I'm
going to need every microsecond of reflex speed I can scrape up."

They walked down a soft-floored, warmly lit corridor to an elevator
which whisked them up to the main level of the Neurophysical Institute
Building.

Another corridor led them to a room that might have been the common room
of one of the more exclusive men's clubs. There were soft chairs and
shelves of books and reading tables and smoking stands, all quietly
luxurious. There was no one in the room when the three men entered.

"We can have some privacy here," Dr. Farnsworth said. "None of the rest
of the staff will come in until we're through."

He walked over to a table, where an urn of coffee radiated soft warmth.
"Cream and sugar over there on the tray," he said as he began to fill
cups.

The cups were filled and the three men sat down in a triangle of chairs
before any of them spoke again. Then Bart Stanton said:

"I made the remark that if the Nipe doesn't have time to eat his victims
he just beats them to death, and you started to say something, Colonel."

Colonel Mannheim took a sip from his cup before he spoke. "Yes. I was
going to say that, according to the evidence we have, he _always_ beats
his victims to death, whether he manages to eat them or not."

"Oh?" Stanton looked thoughtful.

"Oh, he's not cruel about it," the colonel said. "He kills quickly and
neatly. The thing is that he never, under any circumstances, uses any
weapons except the weapons that nature gave him--hands or feet or claws
or teeth. He never uses a gun or a knife or even a club. Dr. Yoritomo
has some theories about that which I won't go into now. He'll tell you
about them pretty soon."

Stanton thought about the Japanese scientist and smiled. "I know. Dr.
Yoritomo has threatened to tell me all kinds of theories."

"And believe me he will," said Mannheim with a soft chuckle. He took
another sip of his coffee and then looked up at Stanton. "You've been
through five years of hell, Mr. Stanton. In addition, you've been pretty
much isolated here. Dr. Farnsworth, here, has tried to keep you
informed, but, as I understand it, it has only been during the last few
months that you've actually been able to absorb and retain information
reliably. At least, that's the report I get. How do you feel about it?"

Bart Stanton thought for a moment. It was true that he'd been out of