chemical warfare of the Moon men. The United Americas, still weakened
from a civil war of their own, remained aloof and, for some strange
reason, the Zar left them in peace, contenting himself with his conquest
of practically all of the rest of the world. Now, it seemed, the two
major powers were as separate as if on different planets, there being no
traffic between them save by governmental sanction; and that was rarely
given.

It grew uncomfortably warm in the compartment as the rocket car entered
the lower atmosphere but Karl listened spellbound to the astounding
revelations of the Moon man. There came a pause in the discourse of the
dwarf as a number of relays clicked furiously on the control board and
the vessel slackened its speed perceptibly.

"But," said Karl, thinking aloud rather than meaning to interrupt,
"what has all this to do with me? Why does the government of this Zar
want me?"

The dwarf bent close and eyed him cautiously. "Poor kid!" he whispered,
"it doesn't seem right that you should suffer for something that
happened when you were born; something you know nothing about. But the
Zar knows best. You--"

There came a stabbing pencil of light from over Karl's shoulder and the
green eyes of the dwarf went wide with horrified surprise. He clutched
at his breast where the flame had contacted, then slowly collapsed in a
pitiful, distorted heap. Karl recoiled from the odor of putrefaction
that immediately filled the compartment. He whirled to face the new
danger but saw nothing but the padded walls.

Then they were in darkness save for the blinking lights of the control
board. He was thrown forward violently and the piercing screech of
compressed air rushing past the vessel told him they had entered the
receiving tube at their destination and were being retarded in speed for
the landing. This much he had gathered from the explanations of the now
silenced dwarf.

Laro, the other Moon man, remained mute at the controls. His companion
evidently had talked too much.

* * * * *

The vessel had stopped and a section of the padded rear wall of the
compartment moved back to reveal a second chamber. There were three
other occupants of the ship and Karl knew now at whose hands the
talkative Moon man had met his death. One of the three--all wearers of
the purple--still held the generator of the dazzling ray in his hands.
He decided wisely that resistance was useless and follo