"A matter of hours only," Rovol silenced him. "True, it took us some little time to build _Skylark Three_, but that was because it had not been done before. Every force employed in her construction was of course recorded, and to reproduce her in every detail, without attention or supervision, it is necessary only to thread this tape, thus, into the integrator of my master keyboard. The actual construction will of course take place in the area of experiment, but you may watch it, if you wish, in this visiplate. I must make a short series of observations at this time. I will return in ample time to instruct you in the operation of the vessel and of everything in it." In stunned amazement the two men stared into the visiplate, so engrossed in what they saw there that they scarcely noticed the departure of the aged scientist. For before their eyes there had already sprung into being an enormous structure of laced and latticed members of purple metal, stretching over two miles of level plain. While it was very narrow for its length, yet its fifteen hundred feet of diameter dwarfed into insignificance the many outlandish structures near by, and under their staring eyes the vessel continued to take form with unbelievable rapidity. Gigantic girders appeared in place as though by magic; skin after skin of thick, purple inoson was welded on; all without the touch of a hand, without the thought of a brain, without the application of any visible force. "Now you can say it, Doll; there's no spy ray on us here. What a break--what a break!" exulted DuQuesne. "The old fossil swallowed it bodily, hook, line, and sinker!" "It may not be so good, though, at that, chief, in one way. He's going to watch us, to help us out if we get into a jam, and with that infernal telescope, or whatever it is, the Earth is right under his nose." "Simpler than taking milk away from a blind kitten," the saturnine chemist gloated. "We'll go out to where Seaton went, only farther--out beyond the reach of his projector. There, completely out of touch with him, we'll circle around the Galaxy back to Earth and do our stuff. Easier than dynamiting fish in a bucket--the old sap's handing me everything I want, right on a silver platter!" VIII.