gatroyd. "_Chee-chee!_"

A startled voice came out of the speaker: "What's that?"

"_Chee_," said Murgatroyd zestfully.

The communicator was talking to him. Murgatroyd adored three things,
in order. One was Calhoun. The second was coffee. The third was
pretending to converse like a human being. The speaker said
explosively, "You there, identify yourself!"

"_Chee-chee-chee-chee!_" observed Murgatroyd. He wriggled with
pleasure and added, reasonably enough, "_Chee!_"

The communicator bawled, "Calling ground! Calling ground! Listen to
this! Something that ain't human's talking at me on a communicator!
Listen in an' tell me what to do!"

Murgatroyd interposed with another shrill, "_Chee!_"

Then Calhoun pulled the Med Ship slowly away from the clump of
still-lifeless grain ships. It was highly improbable that the guard
boat would carry an electron telescope. Most likely it would have only
an echo-radar, and so could determine only that an object of some sort
moved of its own accord in space. Calhoun let the Med Ship accelerate.
That would be final evidence. The grain ships were between Weald and
its sun. Even electron telescopes on the ground--and electron
telescopes were ultimately optical telescopes with electronic
amplification--could not get a good image of the ship through sunlit
atmosphere.

"_Chee?_" asked Murgatroyd solicitously. "_Chee-chee-chee?_"

"Is it blueskins?" shakily demanded the voice from the guard boat.
"Ground! Ground! Is it blueskins?"

A heavy, authoritative voice came in with much greater volume. "That's
no human voice," it said harshly. "Approach its ship and send back an
image. Don't fire first unless it heads for ground."

The guard ship swerved and headed for the Med Ship. It was still a
very long way off.

"_Chee-chee_," said Murgatroyd encouragingly.

Calhoun changed the Med Ship's course. The guard ship changed course
too. Calhoun let it draw nearer, but only a little. He led it away
from the fleet of grain ships.

He swung his electron telescope on them. He saw a spacesuited figure
outside one, safely roped, however. It was easy to guess that someone
had meant to return to the Med Ship for orders or to make a report,
and found the Med Ship gone. He'd go back inside and turn on a
communicator.

"_Chee!_" said Murgatroyd.

The heavy voice boomed. "You there! This is a human-occupied world! If
you come in peace, cut your drive and let our guard ship approach!"

Murgatr