"They haven't found the source of the trouble yet," he said dully, "and there's not a thing to be done until they do. I'm sorry that, as navigator of this Carrier, I am plunging you all to your death. But it's a case of a simple mechanical failure which I couldn't foresee." Keltry stepped forward impulsively and laid her hand on the navigator's wrist. "Nobody could blame you, Borion," she said gently. "It isn't your fault if the attractor or the repellor lever, whichever it is, gets broken. You are already--" "Wait a minute!" Borion shouted, eyes darting out of his head. "The attractor! In my excitement I forgot!" The navigator leapt to the control levers, spun the dial and put his hand on the attractor lever. "If--I'm only--on time!" he muttered agonizedly. "It's just possible--the counter-attraction of Jupiter--Lord it's hot!" The control room was silent as death as the navigator eased the attractor lever carefully forward. Dynamon whipped a glance at the periscope screens. The ground was rushing up at a terrific rate, and out behind the Carrier, a dense cloud of black smoke was forming. The veins were standing out in Borion's forehead as he inched the attractor lever forward. The girl and the two men watched him with bated breath as he slowly raised his eyes to the altimeter. A wild incredulous expression appearing on the navigator's face. "_It's--it's working!_" Borion muttered hoarsly, "_the attractor beam from Jupiter is slowing us up!_" * * * * * Dynamon's heart leapt and he sprang back to the periscope screens. The column of smoke behind them was still there but it seemed to be thinning out. But the surface of Saturn seemed to be rushing upward just as fast as ever. Dynamon twisted his head around to look at Borion. A feverish smile was lighting up the navigator's face as he pressed forward on the attractor lever. "We may just make it!" he breathed, and Dynamon said a little prayer. In the screen a range of dark gray mountains stood out in bold relief and seemed to reach claw-like peaks toward the speeding Carrier. But the smoke had ceased to whip past, and only a small black cloud far behind served to remind Dynamon of the fearful friction that the surface of the ship had been subjected to. At the same time Dynamon felt an invisible force dragging him toward the front bulkhead of the control room, and he knew that the Carrier was slowing up its forward speed. Through the bow periscopes the jagged range of mountains seemed so close that Dynamon almost felt he could reach out and touch them. Miraculously, they rose up to one side of the ship. A moment later a voice sounded in the loud-speaker system. "The magnet room calling the navigator. A break in the control shaft has been discovered and repaired. Throw the repellor lever into neutral and then advance it."