ay, as all Earth-men know, is a matter of nearly fifteen of
Earth's days. Spud O'Malley was wild with impatience when at last the
Sun was striking less flatly across the land and he knew that the time
had come when he could start.

He had sensed the change that took place in the world outside; from the
lookouts of the control room he had seen the bare rocks lose their white
markings of hoar frost and at last actually quiver with heat as the Sun
beat upon them. He had seen the growing things that crept from every
crevice and hollow--pale, colorless mosses that threw out long tendrils
which licked across the hot rocks as if hungry for the nourishment the
thin air brought.

Spud knew nothing of the carbon dioxide which these pale green growths
could combine with water under the Sun's hot rays and build into
vegetable tissue. But he marveled again and again at the hungry things
that made a mesh of ropy strands across the smooth area about the ship.
They even hung in drooping masses from the weird rocks beyond; and, so
light they were, they raised their heads hungrily in air, while the
corded tendrils even threw themselves in contorted writhings at times
when the Sun struck with increasing warmth.

"A dead world!" said Spud scornfully. "How much the scientists back
there don't know! First those livin', flyin' devils; and now this! The
whole place is fairly wrigglin' with life."

* * * * *

It was then that he made one last flight over the inner crater and saw
light on the floor of stone in the funneled depths. Then he sent the
ship like a rocket down to the shelf of rock where Chet had begun his
descent; and he worked with trembling fingers to adjust the metal suit
and regulate the oxygen supply.

He waited only to strap a couple of detonite pistols about him; then,
with never a backward look, he let himself out through the air-locking
doors and started pell-mell toward the inner crater.

Like Chet, he had learned to gage his tremendous strength; like the
master pilot, he threw himself down the rocky slope. But where Chet had
leaped and stumbled in the darkness, O'Malley worked in full light.

He came at last to the rocky floor where molten stone in ages past had
hardened to seal the throat of this vent. Hundreds of feet across, Spud
estimated; smooth in appearance from above, but broken with deep
crevasses and excrescences where hot, fluid stone had frozen in its
moment of bubbling tu