Sean nodded. "That, I think, marks the spot of their Achilles heel. They're like us in many ways--but one difference apparently lies in their ears. I'll get old Doc Perkins to dissect some of them. "My own idea is that their balance canals are constituted differently somehow than ours. Those two Kraks gave all the appearance of being unable to maintain their balance. In us, those ear canals are gyroscopes. That's why even blind persons are aware when they begin to deviate from an upright position. "Both our canals of balance and those of the Kraks probably function the same way, but the extra gravity of this planet may have wrought the chink which we found. With study and experimentation we should find out for sure just what happens." Sean stopped talking, gazed at the people around him who were laughing. He felt his chest swelling with pride. Man was on the road back--back to Earth with its rolling green hills, its blue skies, its brown mountains, its myriad sounds and smells and sights. Man was going home with a weapon to cast out the invader. He stood for a long time, Mike's hand on his arm, watching these happy humans. Even the black and red of Karrar was softened by the joyous light in their clear unfilmed eyes. Finally, Sean McKenna said, "We have a new task, Mike. We've got to take them home." The sullen red sun dipped behind the black hills. The black mist of night flowed over the lowering sky dimming it, finally enveloping it. The black mist thickened, formed silently into the night sky with its countless planets, its myriad suns. Somewhere in that star-scattered vastness is Earth, Sean McKenna thought. Earth. And Maureen with the soft black hair and eyes that are blue flames. _Earth!_ End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Prodigal Weapon, by Vaseleos Garson