A voice crackled across space from Earth. "This is Terra base. Foster, a Consops cruiser has apparently been hiding behind the sun waiting for you. Our screens just picked it up, heading your way. We've sent orders to the _Sagittarius_ on Mercury to give you cover, and the _Aquila_ has taken off from here. But get this, Foster. The Consops cruiser will reach you first. You have about one hour. Do you understand?" Rip understood all right. He understood too well. "Got you," he said shortly. "Now what?" The communicator buzzed. "Take any appropriate action. You're on your own. Sorry. Sending the cruisers is all we can do. We'll stand by for word from you. If you think of any way we can help, let us know." Rip asked, "How long before the cruisers arrive?" "You're too close to us for them to move fast. They'll have to use time accelerating and decelerating. The _Sagittarius_ should arrive in something less than two hours and the _Aquila_ a few minutes later." The communicator paused, then continued. "One thing more, Foster. The Connies know how badly we want that asteroid, but they also know we don't want it enough to start a war. Got that?" "Got it," Rip stated wryly. "I got it good. Thanks for the warning, Terra base. Foster off." "Terra base off. Stay out of high vack." Fine advice, if it could be taken. Rip stared up at the brilliant stars, thinking fast. The Connie would have almost an hour's lead on the space-patrol cruisers. In that hour, if the Connie were willing to pay the price in blasted snapper-boats, Consops would have the asteroid. And Terra base had made it clear that the space patrol would not try to blast the Connie cruiser, because that would mean war. Added together, the facts said just one thing: They had one hour in which to think of some way to hold off the Connies for an additional hour. The Planeteers were clustered around him. Rip asked grimly, "Any of you ever study the ancient art of magic?" The Planeteers remained silent and tense. "Magic is what we need," Rip told them. "We have to make the whole asteroid disappear, or else we have to conjure up a space cruiser out of the thorium. Otherwise, we have barely an hour till we're either prisoners or dead!" CHAPTER THIRTEEN Peril! Sergeant major Koa asked thoughtfully, "Sir, would it do the Connie much good to launch boats this close to the sun? They'd have to use too much fuel just keeping position." "You could be right," Rip said slowly. Koa had a point! To counter gravitational attraction took velocity, which meant consumption of fuel. Maneuvering boats meant rapid velocity changes. Against the sun's terrific gravity at this distance, it also meant maximum thrust and maximum fuel flow most of the time. The asteroid, in a planned orbit with the correct velocity, was safe enough, and the Connie cruiser would simply match the asteroid's orbit. But boats, which had to maneuver, were another matter.