forth in the U.N., condemning the
actions of country after country that had made possible the great
wheel; and just as suddenly, word had been announced:

Earth would be protected. The U.N. would act.

The U.N., it suddenly was found, controlled the majority of all
weapons on Earth; controlled the majority of all armies, navies, and
all stockpiles of ships and planes and ammunition that it had so
boastingly told everyone that it had scrapped.

The honeyed phrases of a few years before that there would always be
peace on Earth, and that the U.N. had taken the bite out of war,
changed; and the individual nations were now forgotten.

Now the U.N. itself was the military power; and now it would be U.N.
telling others what to do.

Mobilization would be declared. A war footing for the economy.
Everyone must fight back against the insane scientists above with
their inhuman weapon.

With appalling swiftness, where apparently nothing had been before, a
military force stepped forth in full armor to grind man's hopes for
freedom under an iron heel while waving its fist at the stars.

At first there had been voices crying out against this monstrous
action, this unbelievable birth, in the U.N. Assembly. But the voices
had become fewer and fewer, weaker and weaker, and in a matter of
hours had been drowned out.

Amazingly, even now, there were one or two who stood up in an attempt
to stem the tide; but they were ignored, and a ninety-eight per cent
favorable vote was cast.

The U.N. Security Forces had been granted dictatorial powers.

For the "duration of the emergency."

The die was cast, and the yoke fitted, ever so snugly but firmly,
across mankind's back, while he cheered the fitting.

Captain Nails Andersen sat stunned at his console.

The communications officer sat back, paying little attention to the
board before him, a light smirk on his face.

But the smirk dropped from his face suddenly. Rising over the
background chatter of the radio announcements from U.N. Headquarters,
came loudly over the ship general intercom the voice of Major Steve
Elbertson, counting down through the list of Security personnel.

He, too, sat stunned until, as the voice ended "This is war," he came
to, stood up needle gun in hand, pointed at the captain.

"I don't know how your slipstick boys cracked our code and picked that
message up," he said, "and I don't really care. As you heard, the
major has ordered me to take command of