D-248, LK-745 and LG-25
scouted southward at 3,000 feet. The GK-43, GK-981 and GK-220 stood
above at 2,500 feet, and the GK-18 landed to permit personal inspection
of the wreck by the science committee. The party debarked, leaving one
man on board in the control cabin. He set all projectoscopes at
universal focus except RB-3," (this meant the third projectoscope from
the bow of the ship, on the right-hand side of the lower deck) "with
which he followed the landing group as it walked around the wreck.

"The first abnormal phenomenon recorded by any of the instruments at
Base was that relayed automatically from projectoscope RB-4 of the
GK-18, which as the party disappeared from view in back of the wreck,
recorded two green missiles of roughly cylindrical shape, projected from
the wreckage into the landing compartment of the ship. At such close
range these were not clearly defined, owing to the universal focus at
which the projectoscope was set. The Base Captain of GK-18 at once
ordered the man in the control room to investigate, and saw him leave
the control room in compliance with this order. An instant later
confused sounds reached the control-room electrophone, such as might be
made by a man falling heavily, and footsteps reapproached the control
room, a figure entering and leaving the control room hurriedly. The Base
Captain now believes, and the stills of the photorecord support his
belief, that this was not the crew member who had been left in the
control room. Before the Base Captain could speak to him he left the
room, nor was any response given to the attention signal the Captain
flashed throughout the ship.

"At this point projectoscope RB-3 of the ship now out of focus control,
dimly showed the landing party walking back toward the ship. RB-4 showed
it more clearly. Then on both these instruments, a number of blinding
explosives in rapid succession were seen and the electrophone relays
registered terrific concussions; the ship's electronic apparatus and
projectoscopes apparatus went dead.

"Reports of the other ships' Base Observers and Executives, backed by
the photorecords, show the explosions as taking place in the midst of
the landing party as it returned, evidently unsuspicious, to the ship.
Then in rapid succession they indicate that terrific explosions occurred
inside and outside the three ships standing above close to their rep-ray
generators, and all signals from these ships thereupon went dead.