But now there was real danger. Since Terra was cognizant of the peril Terra would be destroyed. Destroyed or conquered early--the aliens not waiting for the normal development of their plans of expansion. Carroll looked around for something to tie Kingallis with. And he saw-- Rhinegallis, supine upon the floor, a wide thick strap constricting her ribs. Her eyes were closed. The pulse in her shapely throat was fluttering weakly. "You swine!" said Carroll. Kingallis threw him off, leaped to his feet and raced for the teleport disc. He plunged through as Carroll dropped to the floor on one knee and started to fumble at the heavy strap. * * * * * He tore his fingers and he cursed, and he looked wildly for something to cut the thing with. His eyes caught the tinsnips on the bench and he arose to get them as Pollard came through the teleport. Back in Pollard's office the psychologist looked at the perfection of the silvery plane and shuddered mentally. Then he said, "I don't know what's up, but I'm going--through!" Majors nodded. He had not seen Carroll using the thing at all. His mind was baffled but not psychopathically afraid of any gadget that made men disappear so quickly. Pollard stepped gingerly into the circle and came through. It was like walking through a ring. There was neither pain nor strain nor feeling. He might have been stepping over a slight, wide sill. Then he was looking down at Carroll, who was fumbling at the strap. Carroll cut it through as Pollard knelt beside the girl. Then as Pollard made an instant check of the girl's heart and sighed with relief, Carroll rose and turned on the doctor. "Now," he said, "are you satisfied?" "Satisfied?" echoed the doctor. "They almost got her!" snarled Carroll. "Oh?" "The teleport is theirs. They have many of them. They were worried about discovery, so they came and--" "They did?" asked the doctor sarcastically. He turned to Majors. "I was wrong," he said. "Wrong?" Pollard nodded sadly. "I believed that Carroll would not direct his hate towards anything living. I did not anticipate his fastening the embodiment of his hallucination upon a human being!" Carroll turned to Pollard with a glassy stare. "Just what do you mean?" he asked in a flat voice. "That was an attempt at sheer wanton murder!" replied the doctor. Majors looked down at the girl and his face went black with anger. "Why," he said, "that's Rita Galloway!" Pollard looked at Majors. "Who?" "Rita Galloway. The head librarian over at the Scientific Section of the Foundation Library." "She is Rhinegallis of the aliens," said Carroll quickly. Pollard shook his head. Majors growled. He started to speak and then closed his lips tightly. "Go ahead," said Pollard. "All right," snarled Majors. "It was my fault!" "Your fault?" exploded Pollard.