They paused before a bulkhead with "UNIT 26" blazoned on the door. Kueelo rapped sharply. After a long moment the door opened slightly. Kueelo thrust it wide, shoved Ric forward and stepped in quickly behind him. Ric caught a glimpse of a dozen people in this room, men and women alike. There were startled gasps as Kueelo waved the heat gun at them. "Back! Move back all of you, and quickly! You, Earthman--get over there with them." Ric joined the group, saw a slow grin come over Kueelo's face. The other Martians were stunned, speechless, partly at the sight of an Earthman aboard but mainly because one of their kind stood there waving a lethal weapon at them. Then Ric heard a gasp from a Martian girl standing near him, and she clutched at the arm of her companion. "Tal ... it's he, the same one! He managed to get aboard!" Kueelo flashed them a glance, bowed mockingly. "Yes. So our paths cross again, Tal Horan. How fortunate for me!" His smile faded. "Naric! You may come forward now. I shall need you." A tall brooding Martian came from the group to stand at Kueelo's side. He too produced a heat gun and helped to keep the others covered. He jerked his head toward the inner corridor. "How did things go?" "This Earthman interfered. Luhor is dead. It doesn't matter now, we have to get away from here fast! Wessell is bringing out the Earth Fleet!" Ric heard mutterings about him and knew that any moment these two renegades were going to have their hands full. Kueelo knew it, too. He opened the door again and motioned the group through, as he and Naric kept them carefully covered. "You may stay and fight it out with your brave Commander," Kueelo told them mockingly. "_We_ have plans a little less foolhardy ... no, these two stay," he told Naric, indicating Tal Horan and the girl. "The Earthman, too!" One of the Martians leaped forward, making a try for Kueelo's gun. Kueelo blasted him down calmly, the heat beam making a charred hole completely through the man's neck. The others dragged him out, the door clanged shut and the five of them were alone in Unit 26. "Quickly now! They'll be giving the alarm! Naric, take the controls while I release the plates. But first...." Kueelo faced the three, holding a different type of gun, shorter and thicker. Without warning he aimed it at the floor near their feet. A projectile burst, a pinkish gas sprayed quickly up. Ric tried to leap forward, but now he couldn't move! Intuition told him to hold his breath. He glimpsed Tal Horan trying to support the girl as she slumped to the floor. But Tal was going down too, slowly, his eyes burning hatred. Then things blurred for Ric. Somehow he kept himself erect as a shadow swayed toward him. His head seemed to burst, but he knew it wasn't the gas ... it was Kueelo's gun crashing down.... III