Boyette felt his pulse slow down to normal. "Just the stimulant I was looking for," he explained. "Let's see it." The bottle changed hands and the Exec examined it carefully, finally returning it with a short, "All right." Boyette moved the still groggy and doped alien closer to the microphone, then shot the stimulant into him. The reaction was quick in coming, the animal arose to its feet with a dazed look. The rest of the aliens clustered around, silent but obviously questioning by telepathy. For the moment Boyette was unnoticed and with no sign of haste he depressed the mike-button. There was a low hum over the intercom system, almost inaudible. Evidently it was much louder to the ears of the aliens since several peered around uneasily for the source. He moved the mike slightly and immediately a high-pitched wail broke out. Even Boyette flinched as it grated across his nerves but to the aliens it must have represented pure physical torture. Those still being held by crew-members tore frantically to be free, some even biting in their frantic haste. There was a confused milling about the room, then a mass exodus through the door and out the air-lock. The men inside were almost as rattled by the time Boyette had shut off the mike. He rushed to close the outer lock with every alien now outside the ship. He returned to the lab and laughed at the bewildered expressions on rough-and-ready crewmen. Even the normally belligerent Exec meekly looked to him for an explanation. Boyette explained the train of events since the alien animals had been contacted and what had happened to the crews they had come seeking. * * * * * Only Commander Kellews questioned his explanation, sharply inquiring, "Just a moment. How could you discover all this?" "I'll show you," Boyette said. Before long the amazed Commander was receiving the much amplified telepathic confession of the alien. At the end he grimly took off the helmet and announced, "Mr. Snead, have all hands go to their battle stations and stand by for takeoff. As soon as we're ready systematic destruction of every living thing on this planet will commence. Their invasion of Earth is going to backfire." "Are you sure that such a policy of destruction would be wise, sir?" Boyette asked quietly. The Exec's mouth dropped open in horrified astonishment at this questioning of a military order. The Commander raised a hand to forestall what he knew would be an outburst. "That's all right, Mr. Snead. Since the Doctor was instrumental in saving all of us I believe he has a perfect right to raise an objection." He turned to Boyette, "Now then, why shouldn't we destroy them? After all they did their damnedest to destroy us." "Well, sir," began Boyette confidently. "This is the first alien intelligent life we've run across in our space expansion. What happens now could very well determine our relations with other forms of life contacted later on."