It was a pulsing mass of protoplasm some twenty feet across, floating in a bath of some thick gray-green fluid that roiled obscenely beneath its bulk. A single great eye stared upward from the middle of the thing, and from the eye outward radiated corded blue bundles of nerve-cells that formed a web running through the creature's legless body. [Illustration: This was the lair of the Khethlani. What dread secrets of injustice were hidden here?] Gendron and the other two men from the _Vanguard_ were standing as if frozen, staring down at the Khethlani. Carter grasped the railing that encircled the thing's pit, and held on firmly. Beating waves of thought emanated from the Khethlani. * * * * * _I control you, Earthmen. I am your master._ The thoughts washed up over Carter's brain with almost unbearable urgency. _I am your master. You will obey me to the fullest._ Carter glanced at the three men with him. Their eyes were glassy; they were caught in an unbreakable hypnotic current. "You ... are ... my ... master," Gendron said slowly. The other two repeated the phrase, parrot-like. Carter stared down at the horror in the pit. Again the wave of thought rolled up. _I am your master, strange one._ The force of the thing's mind overwhelmed him; he rocked dizzily, but kept his balance. Now, he knew what had happened, why Gendron had behaved as he did. The _Vanguard_ had landed on unexplored Deneb IV, and the minds of its crew of twelve had been snared by the Khethlani. It had turned them into so many puppets. They had set a trap for him. Evidently the Khethlani was greedy for minds, for some purpose of its own. Somehow, Carter had avoided the trap, had stayed free of the thing's control. Even now, at close range, he was able to resist the powerful hypnotic command. _I am your master_, came the statement a fourth time. _I order you to kneel._ Carter saw Gendron and the other two looking at him. Sweat burst out and ran down his face as he fought off the Khethlani's mental command. "He resists," Gendron said, surprised. "He resists the Khethlani." _I order you to kneel. Kneel or be destroyed._ Gendron began to draw forth his blaster. Carter grasped the rail more tightly, shuddering. There was only one thing to do. Keeping his mind shut tight against the creature's command, he knelt slowly and bowed his head. "You ... are ... my ... master," Carter said, in slow, solemn tones. "I ... will ... obey ... you." "The Khethlani has won!" Gendron exclaimed. "He's under control!" _Rise, Earthman._ Carter rose obediently and faced the creature in the pit. _I am now your master. You will obey everything._ "You are my master now. I will obey everything." * * * * * When they were in the corridor again, Gendron yanked the switch and the heavy metal door clanged down, shutting them off from the chamber of the Khethlani. The Squadron Leader turned to Carter, grinning.