h had caused the alarm to sound.
One hand upon the switch, his face was hard and merciless as he waited
to make sure of the identity of the approaching space-ship, before he
released the frightful power of his generator upon it.

"I've been expecting DuQuesne to try it again," he gritted, striving to
make out the visitor, yet more than two hundred miles distant. "He's out
to get you, Dot--and this time I'm not just going to warm him up and
scare him away, as I did last time. This time that misguided mutt's
going to get frizzled right.... I can't locate him with this small
telescope, Mart. Line him up in the big one and give me the word, will
you?"

"I see him, Dick, but it is not DuQuesne's ship. It is built of
transparent arenak, like the 'Kondal.' Even though it seems impossible,
I believe it is the 'Kondal'."

"Maybe so, and again maybe DuQuesne built it--or stole it. On second
thought, though, I don't believe that DuQuesne would be fool enough to
tackle us again in the same way--but I'm taking no chances.... O. K., it
is the 'Kondal,' I can see Dunark and Sitar myself, now."

The transparent vessel soon neared the field and the four Terrestrials
walked out to greet their Osnomian friends. Through the arenak walls
they recognized Dunark, Kofedix of Kondal, at the controls, and saw
Sitar, his beautiful young queen, lying in one of the seats near the
wall. She attempted a friendly greeting, but her face was strained as
though she were laboring under a burden too great for her to bear.

As they watched, Dunark slipped a helmet over his head and one over
Sitar's, pressed a button to open one of the doors, and supported her
toward the opening.

"They mustn't come out, Dick!" exclaimed Dorothy in dismay. "They'll
freeze to death in five minutes without any clothes on!"

"Yes, and Sitar can't stand up under our gravitation, either--I doubt if
Dunark can, for long," and Seaton dashed toward the vessel, motioning
the visitor back.

But misunderstanding the signal, Dunark came on. As he clambered heavily
through the door he staggered as though under an enormous weight, and
Sitar collapsed upon the frozen ground. Trying to help her,
half-kneeling over her, Dunark struggled, his green skin paling to a
yellowish tinge at the touch of the bitter and unexpected cold. Seaton
leaped forward and gathered Sitar up in his mighty arms as though she
were a child.

[Illustration: _Trying to help her, half kneeling over her, Duna