"What is it?" said Gwann, coming into the light-beam operator's compartment, stretching to ease the muscle cramps from his long stint in the pilot's cabin.
"I've found a picture of the carnivore, sir!" said Volval proudly. "Look, sir."
"Hmm," said Gwann, studying the fading illustration. "I believe you're right. Jorik!"
The biochemist popped into the compartment, his face curious. "Yes, sir? What is it?"
"Isn't this one of your carnivores, Jorik?" asked Gwann, giving him the book.
Jorik, reaching for the book, nudged one of the newspapers atop the stack near the cabin wall, and the front page fluttered unnoticed to the floor. Across its surface were spread the incomprehensible—to Venusian eyes—words:
LITHIUM BOMB TEST COULD
DESTROY WORLD
Noted Scientist Declares Danger of
Polar Experiment; Melted Polar
Caps May Flood Entire Globe
Jorik studied the picture carefully, his gills trickling a faint stream of bubbles as he concentrated on the image of the carnivore. "Yes, that's one of them, sure enough. I wish I could read Earth writing. I wonder just what a T-i-g-e-r-s-h-a-r-k is."
Volval bobbed up from his place and floated to a port in the ceiling, through which he could see the tiny, glittering ball of Earth, its blue-green surface sparkling like a star against the black backdrop of empty space.