From the Asiatic Federation's circle, a great smothering fire of shells had been falling in those moments upon the westernmost of our own cities, upon Omaha. Its guns were still thundering in savage answer; but, battery by battery, they were going silent as there fell upon them the concentrated fire of the whole advancing Asiatic Federation cities, the great guns of Peking thundering at the center of the rest. Then Omaha, too, had slipped and staggered and was whirling down to earth in fusing destruction, its motors reached by the bursting shells at last! Avoiding the Ambush Now it seemed as though in all the world was nothing but thundering guns and bursting shells; for now as they came nearer toward each other the three great circles of cities were exchanging a veritable tempest of heat-shells upon each other. Watching that hell of battle through our screens, we three sat tensely there. Yarnall's eyes were intent upon the advancing armadas; Connell, gripping his distance-phone, was barking orders to the great cities that were thundering about us. The two giant circles of the enemies' cities were very near our own now, rushing toward us at their tremendous speed; and, as they thus neared us, it seemed that nothing could surpass the tremendous roaring broadsides that were hurled from city to city. I saw Amsterdam and Madrid staggering a little behind their fellows, reeling beneath our awful fire, saw Hong-Kong in the Asiatic forces, its great towers all but levelled by the flaring heat-shells, plunge suddenly downward as more of those shells reached its motors! But in our own mass now New Orleans was plunging likewise beneath the fire of the advancing fleets; and St. Louis was swaying as though badly hit! But at that moment there came an abrupt exclamation from Yarnall; and then we saw that the two advancing circles of the enemy cities, rushing toward our own, were changing their form, were changing swiftly into two great crescents of which the horns of each were toward us. Those two giant crescents were moving to join each other, to form one great circle; and, if they did so, our own mass of cities would be completely surrounded by the overwhelming numbers of our enemies, the easy target for all their mighty batteries. We would inevitably be annihilated by the enclosing circle of the enemy. But, even before I had understood that maneuver, Yarnall's swift order was flashing out to all our gathered cities. "North at full speed for all cities! Unchanged formation!"