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Then several things happened at once.

“This is rescue mission! Is anyone on that beacon?” demanded an impatient voice. After a moment of silence, the voice spoke to someone in the background. “No luck on this frequency, sir . . . Roger. All frequencies at max power.”

The telltagger began to hum. Not chatter or squawk but the hum which experience told Rianav was a large airborne object slowly approaching them from a height.

“A ship? Can you see it, Portegin?”

“No. Shouldn’t I answer the rescue hail?”

“Not if they’re homing in on this beacon. We say nothing. Oh Krims! and bollux!” Rianav swore fiercely and loudly, trying to deny what they saw.

“We’ve had it!” Portegin’s resigned words came out in an awed whisper.

They had risen above the screening terrain, the hills from which the iron ore had been mined to cushion the vast bulk of the transport ship which was settling to earth. The light seen by Rianav and Portegin was radiating from its underside and from arc lights surrounding the landing site.

“That isn’t what’s making the telltagger talk,” protested Portegin and looked over his shoulder. He opened his mouth to speak when a bolt spewed from the maw of the transport.

Rianav slowed the sled in a frantic effort to avoid the beam. That was all she remembered.

“Kai? Kai, are you awake?”

At the panicky tone in Dimenon’s voice, Kai sprang awkwardly toward the comunit.

“I’m here.”

“Kai, I’ll swear it. We got Thek here. Thek all around. Big ones, little ones, like they were taking turns!”

“Where are you, Dim?”

“We’re just over the pitchblende strike—”

Dimenon’s words were cut off abruptly. Kai tried to reestablish contact. Not that Dimenon or Margit would be in any danger from the Thek, but he would prefer a little more detailed report. When he failed to raise the geologists, he switched to Lunzie.

“Whereabouts are you, Lunzie?”

“Nearly to the cave. Why?”

“Dimenon just reported there are Thek on the first strike. Then he went silent.”

“Thek? Kai, I think we’d better raise Varian and abort that mission. If Thek are here . . .”

“THIS IS RESCUE MISSION. IS ANYONE ON THAT BEACON? THIS IS AN ALL-FREQUENCIES HAIL. WE ARE A RESCUE MISSION. WE ARE HOMING IN ON YOUR BEACON!”

The interruption stunned Kai and Lunzie.

“You are blasting our eardrums, rescue,” Lunzie said. “What is your origin?”

“Ryxi.”

“Maintain silence and home in on beacon.” Lunzie interrupted in a tone that inspired compliance. “I’ll get back to you, Base.” Kai knew to maintain his silence.

Which beacon? he wanted to shout. And why were Thek appearing all over the landscape? Should he not attempt to warn Varian? Well, if the rescue ship was heading toward the heavy-worlders’ beacon, Varian would abort on her own initiative.

His moment of panic subsided. The appearance of Thek meant that Tor had informed others. It was as likely that Tor had organized a rescue from Ryxi, and humans at that by the voice. Then Kai found another reason to be alarmed, since he seemed determined to be anxious: Tor would not know that Kai had roused other members of his team. Tor would know that the heavy-worlders were active on the planet. Surely a Thek could tell the difference between normal humans and heavy-worlders? Dimenon wouldn’t panic when faced with a Thek, even a horde of them. And Dimenon would know to ask for Tor, wouldn’t he?

Two anxious hours Kai waited.

“Kai, are you there?” Lunzie’s voice had a buoyancy which Kai had never heard in it before.

“Yes, yes, I’m here! Where else?”

“At ease,” Lunzie’s voice had a lilt of laughter for his sarcasm. “All’s well here at the cliff beacon. I’ll have to apologize to Varian. Those giffs of hers are far more intelligent than we suspected.”

“Why?”

“I’ll swear they recognized the difference between my sled and the one Captain Godheir sent in. When I got here, the giffs were protecting the cave and our shuttle against any unauthorized intrusion . . .”

“Who’s Godheir?”

“The captain of the Ryxi supply vessel, the Mazer Star. And I apologize to you, too. Your Thek,