The four spaceship captains and as many technicians as could crowd into the room, set up a babble of questions as Barry entered. He glanced around quickly, searching for two faces, but neither Dorothy Voorhees nor Robson Hind was there. He held up a hand for silence.
The noise subsided.
"Gentlemen, there is intelligent life on Venus, intelligent human life of an origin common to our own. You tangled with them recently."
"My God!" a man exclaimed. "We thought it was some animal that killed Evans."
"I told you that was a knife wound and not the mark of teeth," another interrupted.
"We heard Fred shooting out beside the slough," someone explained. "But by the time we got there he was dead and there was nothing in sight."
"Don't underestimate these Venusians," Barry warned. "They live under water. No knowledge of fire or explosives—they lost those when they went aquatic—but their bacteriology is advanced. They once staged a full scale bacterial war. And they knew enough biological science—a damn sight more than we know—to deliberately become water-breathers to escape the mess their war created."
He noticed sceptical looks on some of the faces.
"Just look at me," he said. "What happens by accident can be done on purpose. This colony is facing death. A fanatical group of Venusians are planning to wipe us out, and the attack will come soon. They will use a chemical that attracts every swamp beast and water monster within miles.
"It works. I know it works," he insisted, and shuddered as he remembered the torvaks.