Threadlike streams from one of the brain-lobes of the monster were swaying past me; and as I turned, I saw a dozen little Physicals attached to the faintly luminous threads—Physicals who came marching in with Bragg among them—Bragg, more pallid than ever with his hawk-face contorted by terror. Torkine stood aside, still chuckling. Then Physicals were surrounding Dora and me, herding us away. We stumbled back through the luminous darkness; along a little path. It was no more than a hundred feet until the outlines of a small house—loomed before us. A voice from one of the Physicals said:
"You go inside and wait for my decision." A miniature of the monster's central voice. I realized now that all the Physicals spoke with the same voice, in miniature.
"All right," I said. "You'll have no trouble with us, Master."
The dim room was crudely furnished with Earth furniture. I sat the trembling Dora on a couch; dropped beside her with my arm around her.
"Weird, Dora." I whispered it. "But don't be too frightened. We'll find a way out of this."
In the shadows two figures suddenly were moving! Then I saw that they were the Martian woman, Setta, and young Johnny Blair. They came forward.
"The Physicals all went outside?" Johnny murmured.
"Yes," I agreed. "Good Lord, that weird monster—can it hear us, if we whisper like this?"
"No. Safe enough, in here now."