I spent quite a little time in the Hall, standing in the center of the table and sending out wave after wave of electricity over the dead Plutonians—doing things to their bodies.
Finally satisfied I had accomplished my purpose, I arranged the beings in life-like poses along the table and moved silently to a spot beneath the balcony-rail.
Augie had succeeded in tearing one of the tough vines loose from the palace wall and now he lowered it to me, keeping a wary eye on the Hall door.
Going quickly up the thin fiber strand, I stepped jubilantly over the rail—and found myself looking directly into the venom-filled eyes of Mon Pordo!
He was standing in back of Augie, a little to one side, so the deadly ato-matic held unwaveringly in his hand could cover us both.
The frozen surprise on my face caused Augie to turn and stare sickly. All the heart seemed to go out of him at that moment. His shoulders slumped wearily and the hard lines of determination in his face dissolved into a black pool of despair beneath the caustic solvent of a big, unashamed tear. We were beaten!
For once, Pordo was so infuriated he forgot all about bowing. His eyes smouldered like blobs of hot grease, about to burst into flame; frenzied, unholy hate seemed to ooze from every pore. Even so, he spoke quietly.
"A nead plan, gendlemen. Bud id has failed, jusd as all plods againsd Xan VIII will fail! Drue, you have given us a demporary sed-back by killing de Pludonians, bud we sdill have de formula and dere are odders who, dough nod as indelligend, will well serve our purpose. Id is doo bad I decided do visid you during de recess, isn'd id? Odderwise, your rash acd may have succeeded! When I found you gone and your guards dead, I knew insdandly whad you were up do and came here as de logical poind for you do sdrike from. I am sorry, gendlemen, bud you are doo dangerous do be allowed do live. So, I musd eliminade you!" Pordo raised the gun and his finger tightened on the firing stud.
This was it! I couldn't blast Pordo with an electric shock without killing Augie, too. Good-bye, "Tod Mulhane"—you've had a short but interesting life! I steeled myself for the atomic capsule that would soon rip through my body.
Augie acted almost impulsively. He still held the fibrous vine in his hand and had noted slyly one of Pordo's feet enmeshed in the extending end. He lunged suddenly backward and Pordo came down hard on the balcony floor!