. "You change it all when you come down to
us out of the great beyond. Our people, they call you genii of the
Master, they----"

"Oh gee, I never thought of that," murmured the Very Young Man. "What
_do_ you think of us?"

"They think you are supernatural beings of course," the Chemist said
smiling. "Yet they accept you without fear and they look to you and to
me for help."

"This morning, there at the court," said Lylda, "I heard them say that
Targo spoke against you. Devils, he said, from the Great Blue Star, come
here with evil for us all. And they believe him, some of them. It was
for that perhaps they acted as they did before the court. In Arite now,
many believe in Targo. And it is bad, very bad."

"The truth is," added the Chemist, "your coming, while it gives us
unlimited possibilities for commanding the course of events, at the same
time has precipitated the crisis. Naturally no one can understand who or
what you are. And as Lylda says, the Targos undoubtedly are telling the
people you come to ally yourself with me for evil. There will be
thousands who will listen to them and fear and hate you--especially in
some of the other cities."

"What does the king say?" asked the Doctor.

"We will see him to-morrow. He has been anxiously waiting for you. But
you must not forget," the Chemist added with a smile, "the king has had
little experience facing strife or evil-doing of any kind. It was almost
unknown until recently. It is I, and you, gentlemen, who are facing the
problem of saving this nation."

The Very Young Man's face was flushed, and his eyes sparkled with
excitement. "We can do anything we like," he said. "We have the power."

"Ay, that is it," said Lylda. "The power we have. But my friend, we
cannot use it. Not for strife, for death; we cannot."

"The execution of Targo will cause more trouble," said the Chemist
thoughtfully. "It is bound to make----"

"When will you put him to death?" asked the Big Business Man.

"To-morrow he dies," Lylda answered. "To-morrow, before the time of
sleep."

"There will be trouble," said the Chemist again. "We are in no personal
danger of course, but, for the people who now believe in Targo, I am
afraid----"

"A plan I have made," said Lylda. She sat forward tensely in her chair,
brushing her hair back from her face with a swift gesture. "A plan I
have made. It is the only way--I now think--that may be there comes no
harm to our people. It is that we want to