They did not know that Kingston's men on Earth One were beginning to assemble the masses in Ed Bronson's collection of radioisotopic phosphor. Then a bell tinkled gently. Bronson stirred and groaned. The bell tinkled once more. Bronson stirred again--painfully. Another tinkle-- Virginia awakened, opened her eyes vaguely and wondered what had happened. The bell rang insistently. "Ed--Ed Bronson!" she shouted. "The detector!" "Detector?" he asked dully. "They're assembling the space-resonant elements on Earth One!" The bell broke into an insistent clamoring. Ed picked himself from the floor and looked at the gear. The cascaded amplifiers, incapable of detecting the presence of subcritical masses on Earth One, had sufficient gain to trigger the alarm when Earth One's bits of space resonant elements were collected into critical mass. Bronson spun the dials of the viewer. There before him was the familiar laboratory of his own home and four men standing before his bench, upon which stood the crystalline mass. "Now!" breathed Ed Bronson. CHAPTER XVI _A World at Stake_ Uncertainly Virginia paused. "Ed," she said. "Huh?" he asked, turning. "You're going to--" "I must." She smiled and took a deep breath. Bronson looked at her quizzically. It was obvious that something had happened that had pleased her--or convinced her of something, but what it might be eluded him. "Look, Ginger, we haven't much time. I've got to get going--and you know what to do." She nodded, her eyes bright and intent upon him. "Ed," she said in a quiet voice, "I've been both selfish and opportunist, wanting security at any price. But you are willing to trust me with the future of Earth One. That, too, proves the worth of--worth of--of--" "Forget it," he said softly. "If we win it will prove the right of Earth One to survive." Then he turned to the machine again. "I've got to go!" She came up behind him, turned him around and kissed him. "Go," she said. "And as you go, Ed, remember that I've made up my mind. I'm going with you--all the way!" He smiled down at her. "I know," he said cryptically. Then he turned and snapped the button. He landed in his own laboratory amid the four minions of Kingston. The suddenness of his appearance sent them flying in four directions. He whirled and reached for the assembled blocks of the space-resonant elements on the bench, to separate them again. He was hit from behind by one of the thugs and staggered against the bench. Then the other three were upon him. Only Bronson's sheer size and physical power saved him from instant annihilation. He fought them off, hitting them hard but taking a murderous amount of punishment. He kicked one away, traded blows with the second, turned to drive a hard fist into the face of the third--and nearly fell forward on his face as the blow passed through nothing! [Illustration: Bronson tried desperately to fight off the thugs.]