nd the beings on it can control its
movements. They've brought it in from interstellar space, into our
solar system. Evidently the point they've reached now is far as they
want to come. They've poised out there, getting ready to attack, not
only us, but Mars and Venus simultaneously."

Grantline gazed at us through the smoke of his cigarette. He was much
like Snap, small, wiry, brisk of movement and manner, but older. His
hair was graying at the temples; his voice carried the authority of
one accustomed to commanding men.

"Don't ask me for the technicalities of how they reached these
conclusions. I'm no astronomer. I'm only telling you their conclusions
and what their discussions have been here for the past hour."

Heaven knows, we had no inclination to dispute him. What we had seen
and heard at the Red Spark tallied with his words.

He went on swiftly, "The attack, of whatever nature it may be, is
impending at once. Not next month, or next week, but now. Lord, Gregg,
I don't blame you for staring like that. You don't know what's been
going on for the past two days on Earth, and Venus and Mars. It's all
been suppressed. Neither did I, until I heard it here tonight. The
U.S.W., the Martian Union, the Venus Free State, are all preparing for
war. Every government spaceship on Earth is being commissioned. We're
not going to sit around and wait for invaders to land; the war won't
be fought on Earth if we can help it."

We stared. Snap asked, "What makes them so sure?"

"That war is coming? Plenty. This new planet has sent out spaceships.
The planet itself is hovering sixty million miles away from us, about
forty million miles from Mars and close to ninety million from Venus.
Perhaps its leaders think that's the most strategic spot.

"Then it sent out spaceships, three of them. One is hovering close to
Venus. Another is near Mars, and the third is some 200,000 miles off
Earth. Several of our interplanetary freighters are overdue; it seems
now that they must have encountered these invading ships and been
destroyed.

"Still more, and worse: these three hovering ships have already landed
the enemy on Mars and Venus. The helio-reports mention mysterious
encounters in Ferrok-Shahn and Grebhar. For three or four days, Mars
has been in a panic of apprehension; Venus almost as bad. And some
have landed here. Not many, perhaps; but one has been captured. A
thing--God, it's almost beyond description."

We could well agree w