tific knowledge of their ancestors but had
lost the vigor and fire that are found in active and vital nations.

* * * * *

Below them lay the greenish yellow expanse of the Great Sea. Though
these electronic flying cars of Moorn traveled with a noiseless
smoothness that was the last word in flying comfort, their speed was
much less than that of the _Viking_ at even minimum rocket power. The
pilots were holding the flotilla down to a level of only a few hundred
feet. The sight of the vast expanse of rippling waters sliding past so
close below them was a strange experience to Gerry Norton, who had spent
his life in space-ships that always traveled at the upper levels where
everything below looks like a gigantic patch-work quilt.

Scattered islands shouldered their way upward through the sea ahead, and
then sailed past below. So utterly smooth and noiseless was the movement
of the electronic flying cars that they seemed to be standing
motionless, while a strong wind blew against their glass shields and the
surface of the planet unrolled beneath them. It was well into the
afternoon before the familiar mountain ranges bordering Savissa came
into view ahead.

Closana was leaning forward on her seat, her eyes eager and youthful in
the shadows of the steel helmet with which she had been fitted out from
the _Viking's_ stores. Then, as the coast line became clearer with every
passing mile, she suddenly pointed ahead and down to two black dots on
the surface of the sea. The pilot took one glance at them, and then his
hand moved to the dimensional control lever.

When they first entered the flying cars, Gerry had noticed that each one
bore a very realistic appearing metal bird at the end of a sort of
flag-staff that protruded upward at the bow. At the time he had thought
it was simply a form of decoration. Now he realized that the metal bird
fulfilled a much more useful purpose. It was outside the zone of
invisibility, and gave all the pilots something to indicate the
locations of the other cars and avoid collisions. When he glanced back,
all he could see was a flock of birds following them in a wide V. The
flotilla was keeping formation.

* * * * *

As they soared closer to shore, the two black dots gradually took shape
as a pair of good-sized surface craft. A black-hulled raider, manned by
a crew of the Scaly Ones, was hotly engaged with a wooden Savissan
patro