Hammond clung to the struggling saboteur he had floored. The Sediphron had lost rifle and shield, and was gouging at Hammond's eyes with the fingers of his dwarfed right hand. The other, huge and leg-like, was locked behind the chemist's neck in a bone crushing grip.
Hammond's shoulder muscles writhed. He thrust his right hand up to a scraggy bearded chin. To his surprise, not only the chin but the whole face came away, revealing another beneath it. A hideous, crablike face with popping eyes that stood out on stalks. It was covered with a green chitinous armor.
Startled, the Sediphron "fifth columnist" relaxed its grip on his neck. Hammond wrenched free. His hand clamped down on the huge arm.
The Sediphron surged back, leaving the artificial limb in the chemist's hand. A huge, toothed claw was revealed. The Sediphron surged in, reaching for Hammond.
The Earthman twisted, a faint sneer writhing his lips. The Sediphron was unbelievably clumsy. Hammond caught the descending claw and gave a sharp, quick twist. The entire limb came off in his hands, broken cleanly at the shoulder joint. Swinging the heavy limb in a swift moulinet the Earthman brought it down with crushing force beneath the popping eyes of his adversary. It crashed through the chitinous skull as if it were an eggshell.
Hammond whirled back to the fallen girl-commander, bent by her limp body. Her fallen rifle caught his eye, and he reached for it, sensing the swift swirl of battle swing toward him.
His fingers fell short. A numbing pain lashed through his head, bringing quick blackness.
Consciousness returned slowly to Hammond. He felt himself being carried. But it was the sharp barked order that lingered in his mind, that seemed to rift the blackness that shrouded his aching brain.
His eyes opened. He found himself looking up into the hideous, crablike face of a Sediphron who carried him by the shoulders.