ll surrounded by the alert Venusians, shuffled
down to the edge of the water.

Over the Great Briney was silence. No shape broke its calm. The air
held only the nervous whispers of the crowd and the scrape and crunch
of the lone Earthling's dragging boots as they made wide furrows in
the hard pebbly soil of the beach.

The men had fallen back a little, and now were a half circle around
him down to the water's brink. The watch-beacon's light caught them
full there, and threw great blots of shadows lakeward from them. Their
ray-guns were gripped tighter as their shifty eyes darted from his
huge bulk to the water ahead, and back. Doubt and fear swayed them
all.

The Hawk wasted no time, but stepped out to knee-high level on the
sharply shelving bottom. At this Tantril objected.

"Hold, Carse!" he roared. "You play for time, I think! Where is this
point of attack?"

The bloated figure did not answer him, but bent over as if searching
for something under the tiny waves which now were slapping his thigh.
He reached one hand down and probed around with it, apparently
feeling. The eyes watching him were wide and fear-fascinated.

* * * * *

"Here--or no," the Hawk muttered to himself, though a dozen could hear
him. "A little farther, I think.... Here--but no, I forgot: the tide
has come in. A little farther...." He stopped suddenly and
straightened, turned to the Venusian chief. "Don't forget. Lar
Tantril, you have promised I can go free!"

Then he resumed his search of the bottom, the black surface of water
up to his waist. Again the fearful Venusian leader roared an
objection:

"You're tricking us. Carse, you little devil--"

"Oh, don't be an ass!" Carse snapped back. "As if I could get
away--your ray-guns on me!"

Another half minute passed; a few more short steps were taken. A
muttered oath came from one of the wet, uncomfortable men in the grip
of fear. Several there were on the brink of turning in, a panicky dash
for the safety of the enclosure behind, the warm buildings, guarded by
ray-batteries--and yet an awful fascination held them. What metallic
horror of the deeps was being exposed?

"Just a second, now," the Hawk was murmuring. "You'll all see....
Somewhere ... right ... here ... somewhere...."

He held them taut, expectant. The water licked around the waist of his
suit. One more slow step; one more yet.

"_Here!_" he cried triumphantly, and clicked his face-plate c