idea has gotten into their feeble
minds," said Placer. "But I can take care of it in short order."

He stepped back into the room, and Nuwell heard him apologizing to the
others for the disturbance. Then Placer reappeared, two whips in his
hand, and closed the door behind him. He handed one of the whips to
Nuwell.

"They're a lot more tractable than that woman of yours," said Placer.
"Let's go."

Placer moved down the corridor toward the slowly advancing Jellies, and
Nuwell followed reluctantly, at a respectable distance.

"Get back below!" shouted Placer at the Jellies as he neared them. "You
know better than to come up here without permission!"

They stopped and milled as he approached them relentlessly, those in
front trying to hold back and those behind them pushing them on. Placer
moved straight up to them and began slashing right and left with his
whip.

There was a sudden surge forward of the Jellies and Placer was engulfed.
He vanished in a mass of seething, translucent flesh. Nuwell stopped,
appalled, and began to edge backward.

There was a flurry of movement in the forefront of the Jellies, and
Placer burst out of the group, his hair awry, his clothing torn, his
whip gone. He staggered toward Nuwell at a half run.

"Get back to the room!" cried Placer. "I don't know what's stirred them
up, but they can't be frightened back with whips!"

The two men ran back down the corridor and burst through the door,
startling a conference group of five of the other Masters.

"Heatguns!" snapped Placer. "Something's stirred the Jellies up, and
they're up here causing trouble! I'll turn the Toughs loose on them."

While two of the others hurried out another door for weapons and a third
bolted the door through which the two men had just come, Placer picked
up a microphone and switched on the amplifier system that covered every
area of all levels of the Canfell Hydroponic Farm.

Into the microphone, he gave an animal call, a cry that started out on a
low crooning note and rose in volume and intensity until it hurt the
ears. He repeated this three times. Then he set the microphone down and
turned back to his colleagues, an expression of satisfaction on his
face.

"That releases the Toughs," he said. "Every Tough in the place is free
to maim or kill any Jelly he sees, without fear of restraint or
punishment. That should bring them to heel pretty quickly!"

17

Behind the locked door of the conference