man’s return and a visualization of his home world. It was so startling that the interpretive bank was recalled from its effort to try to devise a means through the spacesuit and set at the new problem.

I

t was

A hasty check of the man’s subconscious thoughts revealed the big news. “Do you know,” the interpretive bank announced, “not only does this being’s home world have a moist atmosphere like that in his ship but two thirds of the surface of his world is liquid water!”

Even the speculative bank was silent for a full two seconds after this news. Then a hasty impulse was sent to the disciplinary corps and the entire mind called into action. An extreme emergency upon which the fate of the race hinged called for the utmost effort by even the humblest members of the group.

The Rell worked diligently and many blind alleys were explored, but it was not for some time that anyone thought of enquiring of the not-too-bright feeding bank how they were managing to keep the mind operating at considerably more than normal power with no frost within feeding distance.

“We’re taking moisture from the air,” was the answer.

“Where is the moisture coming from?” the interpretive bank was asked.

The answer didn’t take long. Rapid measurements supplied it. “Some of it is vaporized frost but that wouldn’t be enough for our [95]  needs. The only other possibility is that moisture must be seeping away from either the man or his ship despite his sureness that they were both airtight and our own investigations which confirmed it.”

[

95

]  

They had maintained a cautious distance from the ship for the most part despite the interpretive bank’s assurance of no immediate danger. But now they swarmed over both it and the spacesuit determined to detect the leak.

They found none.

And now the man was returning to his ship.

“This is the last time,” the mesh warned. It was now or never.

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