o, and the air was filled with clouds of sodium
hydroxide.

"I suggest that you steer away from all such wicked places in the future.
Of course, if you'd learn how to mine ore, smelt metal, machine
components--"

"First they'd have to discover fire," Hansen said out of the corner of
his mouth.

"You're catching on, son," Candle said, out of the corner of his mouth.
"Now, gentlemen, to open the door it will be necessary to break the
corroded area apart. This is a large heavy mechanism, as such things go.
Since you have no tools heavy enough to batter the corroded area apart,
you'll have to make some."

"How can we?"

Candle sighed. "I wish I had time to teach you to think, but instead,
you'll have to do as I tell you to do. I think you can probably make a
battering ram out of water. You just--don't interrupt--find or make a long
cylindrical container, fill it with water and quick-freeze it in your
refrigerator--"

"But they put R'thagna Bar in the refrigerator again--"

"Then I suggest you get him the hell out," Candle said.

An hour later ten men smashed a half-ton cylinder of ice against the
corroded junction of the two gears. Following Candle's instructions, they
next applied the ram to the door itself, which smoothly swung open. "You'll
find," Candle explained, "that the only damage will be the two missing
teeth on the aluminum gear. Since only two teeth are ever in contact at any
time, you can simply slide the gear forward and engage it at a point where
the teeth are intact. You'll find, I'm quite sure, that your door will
function properly. Also, Captain, don't pull out of here until I'm aboard.
I think I'd like to bring an assistant along, too."

"An assistant?" Hansen asked.

Candle twirled the ends of his long white moustache. "You, my lad, if you'd
like to go along." He pulled a letter from his pocket and fanned the air
with it. "I'm in complete command of this expedition--at least until His
Exalted Excellency gets home to plant his seed."

* * * * *

Hansen's face glowed. "I can't think of anything I'd rather do. Let's get a
couple of messages off to Sector Headquarters and get on board ship."

"It may not be any joy ride," Candle said thoughtfully. "You probably
haven't heard about it, but there've been a number of ship emergencies in
the past few weeks."

"Door failures?"

"No. At least none that I've heard of. But at least two Hegler drives have
stopped wor