been severed.

He yanked out his knife. Pale moonlight flickered on the polished blade. Van Alen tapped Kesley's arm, shook his head cautioningly. Kesley saw the Antarctican aim the blaster.

Another spurt of light. The smell of singed leaves, sharp and acrid—and then, the smell of singed human flesh. A dull groan.

"That's one," van Alen muttered. "Seven to go."

Branches rustled behind them. Kesley whirled and raised his knife, but it was only van Alen's horse returning to its master. At a gesture from van Alen, Kesley slapped the steed's rump and sent it roaming again. Overhead, hoarse-voiced birds chattered their angry commentary on the conflict below.

The blaster spurted again, and in its sudden light Kesley saw a shadowed figure outside the copse char and fall.

Kesley began to perspire. There were still six bandits at large out there, and eventually van Alen's blaster would run out of charges.

Another bullet came whistling through the woods and thunked into a tree overhead.

"They've spotted the source of the beam," van Alen said. "Let's get moving."

"Where to?"

"Anywhere. We've got to misdirect them. I've only got two charges left."

Again came the rustling of branches behind them. Van Alen's horse again, Kesley thought, but this time he was wrong. The bandits were upon them.

All six at once—making a suicide charge on the man with the blaster. They came piling into the copse on foot, swarming around Kesley and van Alen, leaping and clawing and punching.

Van Alen's blaster spurted once, and a sharp-featured bandit took the charge in his stomach. He pitched forward on the Antarctican, who tried desperately to wriggle out from under the corpse. He did—but not before another bandit had seized the hand that held the blaster. There was a bright flare overhead suddenly, and the birds shrieked wildly. With an angry curse at having wasted the last charge, van Alen broke free of the man and hurled the useless blaster away.

Meanwhile Kesley found himself busy. His knife dripped red; he had slashed it into one man's arm, then ripped downward. Another had seized his wrist as he drew back for a second 

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