in another sense. For the wonderful
crystal goblets were filled with a grayish-green slime of a nauseous and
over-powering odor, the smaller bowls were full of living sea spiders
and other such delicacies; and each large platter contained a fish fully
a foot long, raw and whole, garnished tastefully with red, purple, and
green strands of seaweed!

Clio looked once, then gasped, shutting her eyes and turning away from
the table, but Costigan flipped the three fish into a platter and set it
aside before he turned back to the visiplate.

"They'll go good fried," he remarked to Bradley, signaling vigorously to
Nerado that the meal was not acceptable and that he wanted to talk to
him, _in person_. Finally he made himself clear, the table sank down out
of sight, and the Nevian commander cautiously entered the room.

At Costigan's insistence, he came up to the visiplate, leaving near the
door three alert and fully-armed guards. The man then shot the beam into
the galley of the pirate's lifeboat, suggesting that they should be
allowed to live there. For some time the argument of arms and fingers
raged--though not exactly fluent conversation, both sides managed to
convey their meanings quite clearly. Nerado would not allow the
Terrestrials to visit their own ship--he was taking no chances--but
after a thorough ultra-ray inspection he did finally order some of his
men to bring into the middle room the electric range and a supply of
Terrestrial food. Soon the Nevian fish were sizzling in a pan and the
appetizing odors of coffee and browning biscuit permeated the room. But
at the first appearance of those odors the Nevians departed hastily,
content to watch the remainder of the curious and repulsive procedure in
their visiray plates.

Breakfast over and everything made tidy and ship-shape, Costigan turned
to Clio.

"Look here, girl; you've got to learn how to sleep. You're all in. Your
eyes look like you've been on a Martian picnic and you didn't eat half
enough breakfast. You've got to sleep and eat to keep fit. We don't
want you passing out on us, so I'll put out this light, and you'll lie
down here and sleep until noon."

"Oh, no, don't bother. I'll sleep tonight. I'm quite...."

"You'll sleep now," he informed her, levelly. "I never thought of you
being nervous, with Bradley and me on each side of you. We're both right
here now, though, and we'll stay here. We'll watch over you like a
couple of old hens with one chick