om the instrument room sounded in my ears. I gave the
signal; and flying wedge-shaped, we hurled ourselves forward. It was
like lying on the air, diving head foremost. The rush of wind sang past
me; the ground, a hundred feet below, was a white surface flowing
backward.

We were heading for the base of one of Tarrano's barrage projectors. It
was mounted within the wall; but the wall itself was protected merely by
a fan-shaped subsidiary beam--a weaker barrage over that small area,
which by concentrated effort we hoped to break.

From a helan away on both sides of me I saw other wedges of our men
coming slanting in to assail the same point; overhead a corps of girls
was hovering. Our towers, three of them concentrated here, had risen to
a moderate height; their rays were playing upon the threatened area; a
steady fountain of sparks showed where they were striking the barrage.

A silent bombardment of flashing beams and sparks. At five hundred feet
we added our own smaller rays to the turmoil. If the barrage would break
at this point....

The instrument room, watchful of everything, sailed over me. On my
mirror I saw Georg's intent face; his voice said:

"Careful, Jac! They may come out."

Prophetic words! The segment of barrage here suddenly vanished. A ray
darted out. Beside it, a cloud of flying figures came out of the city
like insects from a hive.

An inferno of almost hand to hand fighting. It was everyone for himself;
and I gave the order for my men to break formation. Ordered them to get
up close to the wall if they could ... to strike, with the closest
possible range at the base of the enemy ray....

I flung myself forward. Tarrano's men soon were around me. Twisting,
darting figures ... tiny beams of death to be fended off with my
shield....

A body fell past me in the air ... others, while I looked at them, in
the blink of an eyelid, vanished into nothingness ... One of our towers
sailing high, suddenly went dark, turned over, wavered down, dismembered
with leprous missing parts--and then in a puff was obliterated.

I found myself nearly up to the wall, and higher than its top. The
segment of barrage remained broken. I could see into the city--the Ice
Palace, still seemingly deserted. And near it, the base of the powerful
ground ray which was assailing our towers ... If I could get past the
wall, unnoticed, get within range of that projector....

Most of the fighting was now behind me. We seemed to