"Aye, sir," said Tom.
"Three-and-a-half miles," said Roger a few moments later. "Closing in fast. Lady Venus looks like a dead ship."
"That could only mean one thing," said Strong bitterly. "There has been a power-deck failure of some sort."
"Three miles to objective, sir," reported Roger. "I think I can pick her up on the teleceiver now, but only one way, from us to her."
"All right," said Strong, "see what you can do."
In a few moments the teleceiver screen glowed and then the silver outline of the Lady Venus appeared on the screen.
"I don't see any damage to her hull," said Strong half to himself. "So if it was an explosion, it wasn't a bad one."
"Yes, sir," said Tom. "Shall I stand by with the flares?"
"Better send up a yellow identification flare, identifying us as the Solar Guard. Let them know who we are!"
Tom turned to the yellow button on his left and pressed it. Immediately a white flash resembling a meteor appeared on the teleceiver screen.