Chapter 4

Everyone worked until The Ancient One returned. He went over to some equipment and began to work with it. A few minutes later he straightened. "Problem!" he muttered, "Big problem!"
Durga came over. "What?" she asked.
"The atmosphere those people are making out there, it's almost pure methane with some very nasty chemicals mixed in with it, completely foreign to this world. If their shields were to collapse and the local atmosphere rush in, and there was even a tiny spark, a VERY tiny one, the resulting explosion would undoubtedly push this world out of orbit. It would either head off into deep space, or slowly spiral into the sun. There's simply too much of it. They're obviously pumping the oxygen out, and sending it someplace else, probably under shields in their native world to get rid of it. We have absolutely no margin for error. We make one mistake and it's oblivion for these people!"
"So we don't make any mistakes!" The Ax Man put in, "We're good at that."
"We mustn't get over confident," The Ancient One warned. "As their shields can't be allowed to collapse I think it only appropriate we have our own to back them up. So if we take theirs out ours will keep the two atmospheres from mixing."
"Oh oh!" The Ax Man muttered, "I know that look! He's planning something! Somebody's going to be very, very unhappy."
"Let's hope so!" The Ancient One sighed, "Let's hope so! Let's get everything together. Professor, what do you do when you rise to high altitude and the air gets too thin to breathe?"
"We seal up," the Professor answered. "We can go twenty to twenty-five minutes without taking in air. We use what is in our internal pockets."
"Why didn't your warriors do that before," The Ancient One asked, "when they were attacking?"
"They were at low altitude," the Professor explained. "We never realized there was a danger. If we had, we would've sealed up, not breathed in there."
"Pity!" The Ancient One sighed. "If you'd have you probably would've been able to drive these people out, and you wouldn't have lost so many of your brave sons. What if you had some auxillary air for your main lungs?"
"Oh, we could go a couple of hours," the Professor answered. "Our secondary organs would go dormant. But as long as we got to air within a couple of hours they would survive without harm."
"Excellent!" The Ancient One snapped, "Excellent! I'm going to work up a design. I want your people to manufacture them right away. With the anti gravs the bomb Durga is making and us to back you up, I think we could succeed!"
"What would happen if we do?" the Professor asked.
"If we can destroy their equipment," The Ancient One answered, "in the proper sequence, we should be able to break the machinery that is bringing their air into your world and taking yours out. Then by collapsing their shields we should be able to push what they've already brought here, back, through the portals. If all goes well, your world should be returned to you and very little harm done."
The Professor looked disturbed. "But they'll all die, won't they?" he asked, "None of them will survive?"
"I'm afraid so," The Ancient One answered. "There's no alternative. It's them or you, nothing in between."
"There is another world," the Professor remarked, "in our solar system that has an atmosphere with a high percentage of methane. If we were to offer it to them, is there a possibility that they might accept it, and leave us in peace? The idea of destroying life is appalling to us. We will fight if we have to, but if there are alternatives we prefer to take them. Do you think you could speak with them, tell them that we do not wish to destroy them, we would rather live in peace with them?"
"Well, I doubt if I'd be very successful," The Ancient One answered. "But if it is your wish I will make the effort! I have figured out why it is so hard for your people to destroy them. They are out of faze in time. When you fire bullets at them they're simply not there! They're a little bit ahead in time. But when you destroy something that takes several seconds to blow up it catches up with them and they're destroyed.
I think I can shift myself to match them. If I am successful before we take any action I will attempt to negotiate. But please, don't get your hopes up! The chances of them making ANY kind of an agreement is VERY slim."
The Professor nodded and everybody continued working. It got dark and The Ax Man disappeared skyward. A while later there was a bright flash after bright flash.
"Why did he have to wait until darkness?" the Professor asked.
"We can get out into space," The Ancient One answered, "unprotected, only in the shadow of the Earth, otherwise than that the sun would disperse the corona of our Souls, and the solular wind would destroy us forever. We are not indestructible! There are things that can harm us. Very little can destroy us, but The Great Father can."
"Phenomenal!" the Professor sighed, "Most phenomenal! So much that The Old One taught was considered legend, but you prove it all!"
The Ax Man returned. "I destroyed their launch site," he announced. "It's going to be quite a while before they send up any more satellites. They're deaf, dumb and blind!"

Page 7

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