"Who enters the flagship of the First One? Answer."
Hammond kept his mind blank. He saw Gena's brow furrow slightly. The words seemed to sound in his ears. "Volkzv, second in command of hybrid Intelligence. Searching flagship on order of Zuggoth, the First One. Gena, commander of the Vandar III, and her sub-commander, Ardiné, have escaped with the two Earthmen. All squads dispatched to the search. Zuggoth orders!"
There was a moment of hesitation. The hideous Sediphron squad leader's eyes swayed gently. Then his reply came. "Proceed, Volkzv. We stay to guard the tank room."
Hammond kept a grip on his thoughts. Stiff-legged, marching with the shuffling gait of the hybrids, he followed Gena and Ardiné and Storm out of the war tank, and across the vast chamber to the corridor.
Zuggoth's ship was practically deserted. Evidently only a skeleton guard had been left behind. All others had been ordered out to battle, and were now concentrated in the captured Metiphron space cruiser.
Hammond breathed a sigh of relief. It looked as if Gena's desperate plan might succeed.
The sudden clanging of a huge bell somewhere in the ship's bowels stiffened them. Storm's quick voice sounded. "The alarm signal! The tank room guard must have suspected—"
"Come!" Gena snapped. "The control room. If we can take over, and seal ourselves in—"
They hurried along the corridor, ducking into side rooms to avoid being sighted by squads of the green crustaceans that suddenly sprouted into being.