came from Liggett. He pointed excitedly.

* * * * *

She was in sight, unrecognizable in space-suit and helmet, floating
along the wreck-pack's edge toward them. A mass of the glassite
space-helmets tied together was in her grasp. She climbed bravely over
the stern of a projecting wreck and shot on toward the _Martian Queen_.

The airlock's door was open for her, and, when she was inside it, the
outer door closed and air hissed into the lock. In a moment she was in
among them, still clinging to the helmets. Kent grasped her swaying
figure and removed her helmet.

"Marta, you're all right?" he cried. She nodded a little weakly.

"I'm all right. It was just that I had to go over those guards that were
all frozen.... Terrible!"

"Get these helmets on!" Crain was crying. "There's a dozen of them, and
twelve of us can stop Jandron's men if we get back in time!"

Kent and Liggett and the nearer of their men were swiftly donning the
helmets. Krell grasped one and Crain sought to snatch it.

"Let that go! We'll not have you with us when we haven't enough helmets
for our own men!"

"You'll have me or kill me here!" Krell cried, his eyes hate-mad. "I've
got my own account to settle with Jandron!"

"Let him have it!" Liggett cried. "We've no time now to argue!"

Kent reached toward the girl. "Marta, give one of the men your helmet,"
he ordered; but she shook her head.

"I'm going with you!" Before Kent could dispute she had the helmet on
again, and Crain was pushing them into the airlock. The nine or ten left
inside without helmets hastily thrust steel bars into the men's hands
before the inner door closed. The outer one opened and they leapt forth
into space, floating smoothly along the wreck-pack's border with bars in
their grasp, thirteen strong.

Kent found the slowness with which they floated forward torturing. He
glimpsed Crain and Liggett ahead, Marta beside him, Krell floating
behind him to the left. They reached the projecting freighters, climbed
over and around them, braced against them and shot on. They sighted the
_Pallas_ ahead now. Suddenly they discerned another group of eleven
figures in space-suits approaching it from the wreck-pack's interior,
rolling up the tube-line that led from the _Pallas_ as they did so.
Jandron's party!

* * * * *

Jandron and his men had seen them and were suddenly making greater
efforts to reach the _Pallas_. Kent and