Thorn tried to keep Lana behind him as he advanced with Gunner and Sual Av at the head of the pirates, his atom-pistol hot in his gloved hand from firing.
"Gun them all down!” old Stilicho's shrill voice was crying from his suit audio.
"John, look — they're destroying the machine, over there!” Sual Av yelled, wildly pointing.
Thorn glimpsed where the Venusian pointed, far on the other side of the colossal mechanism. A little group of space-suited men there were firing into Blaine's huge machine with their atom-pistols, endeavoring to destroy its generators.
"Forward!” Thorn shouted. “We've got to stop them."
They rushed forward. And ahead of them bounded the space dog, Ool, great-fanged jaws yawning wide!
Reckless of their own lives, maddened with apprehension, the Planeteers shot their way forward through the disorganized mob of League defenders.
With Lana Cain now close behind them, they forced through to the other side of the gigantic machine.
Thorn recognized the tall, spacesuited figure of the leader of the little group who were trying to destroy the mechanism. The face inside that glassite helmet was the bony green face and insanely raging eyes of Haskell Trask.
"Throw down those guns!” ‘Thorn yelled through his suit-audio. “Surrender!"