telescopic lens of the TV camera showed the blood spilling from his open mouth--there was no other motion.

Then the camera picked up the figure of the Priman as he popped into view from inside the building. There was a moment of shocked silence inside the spaceship.

Then three things happened at once.

Somebody snarled, "Get that rat!" There was a flash from a high-powered rifle and the resultant explosion of the bullet against the front of the UN building, too high to do any damage. There was the leap of the startled Priman backward through the door.

Grimes jumped to the communication panel and grabbed a handset. "Stop that firing. Fall in for inspection of firearms immediately. Lieutenant Ramsey, conduct the inspection. Place the man who fired that round in confinement. Lieutenant Fuqua, position your gunners and give orders to fire only at my command."

He threw the handset back in its place and then grabbed it again immediately. "Start scanning the area with the TV camera. Get off that body. There's nothing new there."

"The mayor's on again," the radio operator broke in.

Grimes switched handsets and growled his greeting.

"Captain Grimes," the undulating voice said excitedly. "I have just received a call from the airfield. It seems that one of our citizens was fired upon. We cannot allow that kind of...."

"You'll allow anything that you can't help. One of my men is dead. I can't allow that either, but what can I do about it?" He caught the anxious expression on Dr. Johnson's face and calmed down somewhat. "I'm sorry, Mister, about the firing. The man is being punished. What did your citizen report? Did he do anything?"

"He did nothing. The Terranian entered the building without first reporting to the sanitation chambers. We will resist this sort of thing to our utmost, Captain."

"All right, you've said that before. I've got nothing against you, Mister--at least, nothing that I can prove, but if I don't get to the bottom of this trouble you'll soon find yourself putting up the most futile resistance in solar history. Now listen to me. Get everybody out of the UN building. What we're looking for must be right there. That may not be the only place, but it'll do for a starter."

"I will have the building vacated, Captain. 

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