Chapter VII

It seemed hours later when Ketrik awoke. He had tried in vain to find a way out of the smooth, _crystyte_-walled room. He had sought to loosen one of the heavy stones in the floor until, with bleeding and broken-nailed fingers, he had fallen into a sleep of sheer exhaustion.

Now, in the exact center of the room, he noticed a platter of food. He frowned, until it dawned on him that it must have been lowered from the ceiling! He glanced up, but if the entrance was there, it was tightly closed now.

He ate the palatable food, but noticed the platter was of light plastex, could not possibly be used as a weapon or anything else. He made another search through his clothes, knowing it was useless. But suddenly he remembered the tiny scanner disc which Mark had given him. He had strapped it tightly to the underside of his arm ... and it was still there!

He could think of no use for it now, however. He was still pondering this, when his attuned ears caught a faint sound of footsteps overhead. A moment later a section of the ceiling slid back. Framed in the square of light Ketrik saw a face ... golden, a bit frightened.

Praana! Ketrik's heart leaped.

"Speak softly," she whispered. "You are in a room directly beneath the main palace. Father has gone for the moment, and I took this chance...."

"Why are you here?"

She spoke quickly. "A few hours ago I tuned my tele-vise into this one. I heard everything he told you! It's horrible, what he is doing--unbelievable! I hadn't known before! I knew he was conducting some sort of experiment ... but this...." The shock of it, even disbelief, was still mirrored on her face.

"Praana, listen to me! Doesn't your father have an Ethero-Magnum here, capable of reaching Earth?"

"Yes, in his own private quarters." She was puzzled.

"You must get to it! Tune it into the Earth beam, then give me a channel from this tele-vise here, into that beam. If I can reach Mark Travers, I'll have him send the Earth Fleet!"

He saw her hesitate. She knew that Mars' patrollers could not stand against Earth's mighty armada. She was visioning the holocaust, the destruction of Martian cities and her own people. Ketrik went on quickly.

"Praana, you've been to Earth! You spent most of your girlhood there, and you must remember it still, have a fondness for it! The green forests and wide lakes, the mountains, the unreal clouds in a blue sky--and the people who treated you kindly! All this will go, unless you act. Surely--"

"Mars is my world," she was murmuring. "My own people ... to consign them to another horrible war! Mars would never recover."

"It will not come to that! If Earth takes the initiative, sends its Fleet in a surprise attack--the display of power will be enough. Dar Vaajo will be helpless in the face of it." Ketrik was not at all sure this would be the case, but here was his only chance. "Quickly ... we haven't much time!"

Praana was wavering. "You saved my life," she whispered. "Yes, I will try!" She tossed an electro-gun down to him, her own gun. Then she was gone, as the ceiling door went shut.

Ketrik waited, facing the wall which he knew was the tele-vise. Minutes passed, seemed to lengthen interminably. If he couldn't get through to Mark ... if Praana failed to gain access to the Ethero-Magnum, that was his last hope.... He wondered if she knew how to operate it!

Suddenly a pale glow came across the wall, wavered for a moment and then deepened. He was looking into a luxurious room which must be somewhere in the palace above him. At the far end he saw the magnificent Ethero-Magnum, with Praana standing before it manipulating the controls. He heard the ascending whine as selenic cells poured power into the beam, then minutes passed as it gained full strength. At last a voice came through faint and clear! Mark Travers' voice saying cautiously, "Go ahead, go ahead! You're on Earth beam."

"Ketrik speaking! Mark, listen carefully now and act fast! Mass the Earth Fleet, get it to Mars. Blast the city of Turibek clear off the planet if you have to! Things--"

"The Fleet," Mark cut in, "is already on its way, in full battle formation! Something happened here about thirty hours ago that I suspect is Vaajo's work! Touched an area just south of Kansas City. It's horrible! Everyone within that area--"

"Spare me the details, I know them anyway. Dar Vaajo plans to give you another taste in three days, on what I think will be a vastly wider scale! After that, he'll probably give his ultimatum."

"What is it he's got there?" Mark's voice was harried. "And where are you--"

"No time to tell you now! You wouldn't believe me anyway, and there's no defense against it except to get that Fleet here and fast! I only hope--"

The beam went suddenly dead. For a second the screen blurred, then Ketrik was looking into the room of the Ethero-Magnum again. But it was a different scene now.

* * * * *

Different, because Dar Vaajo strode swiftly into view! He approached Praana who straightened up suddenly from the Magnum's panel. Vaajo was trembling with rage, but Praana faced him defiantly. For a moment no one spoke. Then Vaajo turned, facing the screen so Ketrik could see him. Anger was still on his face, but something of triumph too.

"I really should thank you, Ketrik--and my daughter! I couldn't, have planned it better myself. So the entire Earth Fleet is coming, and I am warned! I shall wait until they are almost here before I use my weapon; yes, it should cover the entire expanse of the Fleet at one stroke! And after that"--he shrugged, permitted his cruel lips to fashion the faintest of smiles--"after that, what shall I have to fear from a Fleet manned by mindless idiots? Yes, it will be a master stroke! Again I thank you."

He flicked off the control. The screen before Ketrik's eyes went dead, almost as dead as the hope within him.

The Fleet might have gotten through and taken Vaajo unawares, if it hadn't been for him! Now Vaajo was warned, and Ketrik knew it was no idle boast he had made. The awful power of the Entity was quite capable of dealing with the Earth Fleet, especially as the Commanders had no idea of the type of thing they were facing. That it would strike suddenly and completely, Ketrik had no doubt.

His soul was bitter within him. He had but one chance left, a wild and improbable chance, but he mustn't miss! It was hours later when he again heard footsteps overhead. He threw himself to the floor, pretended to be asleep. The electro was in his hand, carefully concealed beneath him.

As he thought, it was a Guard bringing him food. From lowered lids he saw the ceiling trap slide back--slowly at first, then wider. The Guard leaned over, concentrated on lowering the platter of food on a long cord. When it had almost touched the floor, Ketrik brought out his hand and fired. It was simple as that. The man's body toppled through the opening, made a dull thud on the floor below.

So far so good, Ketrik thought grimly. He bunched the dead man's limbs under him, stood upon the sagging shoulders and leaped for the opening. A moment later he was swinging his body up and through.

He was in a dim, carpeted corridor, probably part of the servants' quarters. He hurried softly past a row of doors to the end of the hall, then up a short flight of stairs. A heavy door faced him. He pushed it open cautiously, then stepped out into a small flower garden. It was night, but Phobos was making a brilliant path across the sky. Unfortunate. But he'd have to make the best of it now.

He hugged the shadows until he got his bearings. This was the rear of the palace, he realized; at least that was lucky, for it brought him closer to that glass-domed building which he was sure was Vaajo's laboratory. It should be somewhere to the left of here.

Swiftly he crossed the garden. He passed through a tall hedge which concealed him from the palace. He followed the shadow of it all the way to the left, until he came in sight of the laboratory building. It was lying only fifty yards away--but fifty yards drenched in Phobos' glow!

He hesitated. But there was no other way. He started across the space leisurely, remembering he was still "Martian." The building was dark, there seemed to be no Guards about.

He was wrong in the latter surmise, he learned when he had almost reached the building. A voice challenged him. Almost in the same instant he saw the man, deep in the shadow of an arched doorway. Ketrik veered toward him, grunted something in reply and raised a hand in casual greeting. The Guard hesitated. Ketrik came two steps nearer. The Guard dropped a hand to his gun, and Ketrik hurled himself forward--low and hard.

The impact carried the Guard backward. Their combined weight crashed into a door, nearly taking it from the hinges. Ketrik rose quickly but the Guard didn't rise at all, and Ketrik knew his luck was still with him.

He changed his mind a second later. He heard shouts and pounding feet. Guards were all about the place, probably stationed at each of the doors! For a split second Ketrik hesitated. The only way now, was _in_.

He hurled his weight forward and the already weakened door crashed open.

* * * * *

He hurried recklessly forward through darkness. He touched a smooth marble wall, allowed his fingertips to brush lightly along it as he ran. His racing feet sent up echoes in the hollow place.

The Guards were crowding through the doorway behind him now. Suddenly lights leaped up! Just as suddenly, Ketrik swerved aside. An electro-beam hummed, came so close to him he could feel the swirling heat. He hurled himself into a dim cross-corridor, as more electros lanced out. But Ketrik was expert at this game. He raced for a stairway he could see just ahead. He was halfway up when the others came into view below him. He whirled, gave a sweeping burst with his own gun that sent them tumbling back out of range. He gained the second floor corridor.

Suddenly the lights came on there too! Someone at the master-switch was throwing on light all over the place! Ketrik preferred darkness. He couldn't keep this up interminably. Feet pounded on the stairs now. He opened the nearest door, slipped into a dark room. There he stood breathing heavily as the pursuers pounded by. He waited until their footsteps died away, then opened the door a crack.

It was almost his undoing. A beam creased his hair. He drew back, then suddenly flung the door wide and fired at the man they had left to guard the stairs. His beam sliced across the Guard's wrist, sent his gun spinning. But the man's scream of pain sent up shrill echoes that would bring the others back. Ketrik bowled the man aside as he leaped for the stairs leading up. At least he'd gained a few minutes!

He wasn't fleeing blindly now. He had an objective. He was sure the place he sought lay _above_--somewhere near that great, curved glass roof. He reached the third floor and continued upward. Then he groaned. The stairs ended at the next floor. A heavy metal door barred his way. He wasted precious seconds fumbling at the complicated mechanism--was about to use his electro to burn it away, when the great handle slid down under his pressure and the ponderous door swung aside. He leaped forward into more darkness.

There he paused, electro raised. This would be cutting off his own retreat, but he had to do it now! The beam lashed out, played across the door's inner mechanism. Gradually the tough metal fused under the heat. Ketrik made a thorough job of it, was satisfied at last that it would take them some time to blast through!

But he couldn't hear them out there. They should have reached the door by this time. He frowned, then drew out the short-wave scanner disc. He pressed the stud and tiny coils hummed to life. He moved the sliding sheathes around the rim and at last a thought-impression came through--a jumble of them. Ketrik knew his pursuers were standing on the stairs, hesitant and a bit frightened, staring at the metal door. Then a stronger impression came out of the thought-jumble as one of the Guards spoke. "Shall we go ahead? We can burn through the door."

"Enter that place?" came an answer, and Ketrik felt the mental shudder that came with the words. "I'd sooner go unarmed into a den of _hellas_!"

Other thoughts agreed. Ketrik grinned there in the dark. He knew now, that somewhere beyond him must be the lair of Dar Vaajo's _Entity_, and these men were deathly afraid of it. Finally another thought stabbed through.

"Very well. There's no retreat for him now anyway. We'll wait here, but one of you hurry to the palace and bring Dar Vaajo!"

Ketrik acted quickly then. He found the lights, saw that he was in a small metal-walled room. On the opposite side was another door, and near it was a tall case containing half a dozen protective suits.

He hurriedly donned one. It wasn't hard to guess what they were for. The suit itself was of light mesh-beryllium, topped by a heavy _crystyte_ helmet. Again he brought his weapon into play, destroyed the other five suits. Let Vaajo come! He would hardly dare enter this den without protective gear!

But even within the suit Ketrik didn't feel quite safe. He still remembered the power of the thing he had felt the previous night. His stomach turned over in a frightened yawn as he stepped through the opposite door.