big island
here, so help me! An island covered with circular dwellings, made of
metal like the ovoids, he indicates. Look here."

* * * * *

Carr and Ora moved over to watch the swift sketching of the Titanese
lad. By means of pantomime and his carefully drawn pictures, he told
them of his people, making it clear that they were forced to live in
insulated dwellings and travel only in the ovoids, which likewise were
insulated against the devastating vibrations that emanated from Saturn's
rings. He sketched those rings, illustrating the vibrations and tapping
his own forehead in explanation of the effect on the brain; pointing to
the savages to indicate the ultimate fate of his kind. The protective
insulation, it appeared, was not permanent; sooner or later, all of them
would become barbarians like the others.

The savages out there were their fathers, mothers, sisters and brothers,
gone mad; their skins darkened by continued action of the vibrations
after they fled their insulated homes. His pictures of the family life
were meticulously drawn. His people never warred upon these savage kin
of theirs--naturally--though the reverse was not always true. However,
Nazu pointed to the ovoid and showed his willingness to help the
strangers. But he shook his head sadly as he counted the barbarians on
his fingers, multiplying the number endlessly by clapping his hands.
There were too many of them; the thing was impossible.

"Good Lord!" Carr exclaimed. "He's a marvel at communicating his
thoughts without words. But I'd think his people would beat it for the
hills without waiting. Might as well have it over with."

"But, they're still working on the problem," Ora objected. "With their
wisdom, they'll finally get the thing under control. And they probably
hope to discover a way of restoring their maddened relatives."

She was doing something with the red sand; wetting her fingers in a
trickle of water that oozed from the wall and making a red paste which
she smeared on her white forearm and then rubbed off.

"I guess you're right," Carr admitted. Then, watching her strange
performance, he asked, "What are you doing?"

She looked up with sparkling eyes and stretched forth her arm. "It
stains, Carr, see!" she exclaimed excitedly. "We can fix up Nazu to
resemble one of the savages. It is the exact color of their skin."

"Mado!" he called, sensing at once the possibilities of her discovery.
They