Thompson grunted. "I'm not surprised. After all, they have a quarter of the Galaxy full of them, and even though slave labor isn't the best, a planet full of slaves is better than half a planet of free men if you accept that a slave is fifty percent efficient."
"I'm beginning to see futility ahead," said Lane.
"Well, don't. Terra has a secret weapon that will win for us, you know."
"I know, but you can't swing it yet. It's the waiting and the back-breaking fight that must come first."
"Too bad we can't just let 'em roar in close enough to use it all at once."
"Wouldn't work. We've got to wait until the psychological moment. Then—we'll swing it."
"O.K., now what?"
"Don't toss away any more ships. Not right now. Let the Loard-vogh establish their base," explained Billy. "We can't stop 'em anyway. Let them come on in. I want them close enough so we can get at them without having to go all the way out to get them." He thought a moment. "Tell your boys not to use the atomic sphere any more than necessary. You know why."
"We got a few with it."
"All right," answered Thompson. "At that time it was expedient. We had to dent them to make them cautious."