nd bump of the small space vessel
touching the surface of the planetoid. The jets cut out suddenly and
Williams stood up.

"Please follow me. Do not speak to anyone, and do not stop walking. Keep
your hands in front of you and maintain a distance of ten feet between
you and the man in front of you."

He walked through the open hatch where a hard-faced enlisted guardsman
stood rigidly, holding a paralo-ray gun at the ready.

With a quick nod to the cadets Strong followed Williams through the
hatch. At ten-foot intervals they followed him out of the hatch, with
Tom bringing up the rear and the enlisted guardsman behind him.

As Tom stepped out onto the surface of the asteroid he wasn't quite sure
what he expected to see, but he certainly wasn't ready for the sight
that greeted his eyes.

As far as he could see, there was grass, spotted with small one-story
buildings. To the left was a single towering structure built of Titan
crystal and on top of it was the largest atomic blaster he had ever
seen. He turned to ask the guardsman about the gun but was motioned
ahead with a curt, "No questions. Keep walking."

Tom continued to walk. He noticed that they were heading for the tower.
As he drew nearer, he could see men walking around a narrow catwalk at
the top. They all carried paralo-ray rifles with miniature grids mounted
on the barrel. Inside the rifle was a tiny radar direction finder. It
was a simple but effective control against escaping prisoners. Each of
the inmates of the Rock wore small metal disks welded to a thin chain
around their waists. The disk was sensitive to radar impulses, and with
no more effort than snapping a thumb catch on the rifle, the guard could
locate and paralyze the nearest disk-wearing inmate.

Tom was so full of questions it was necessary for the guard to warn him
again, only this time in sharper tones.

Entering the tower, they were scrutinized and cleared by an electronic
beam that passed through their bodies and indicated any metal they might
carry. Once through this last barrier, they were escorted to a
slidestairs, where Williams left them.

Throughout the entire procedure few words had passed between the cadets.
Now left alone on the stairs, they couldn't contain themselves and the
comments and questions tumbled out.

"Did'ja see that blaster on top of this place?" Roger blurted out.

"Those radar-controlled paralo-ray rifles are really something!" said
Astro.

"The thing I