The crater floor was covered with guided missiles. There were thousands of them, half with the symbol of the Free World and half with that of the Enemy. All Earth's deadly weapons had fled here to this desolate lunar crater ... staging ground for an orgy of destruction that would sound the death knell of mankind?
"Human!" a voice rang in Taylor's mind.
He stared wildly about. He could see nothing, no one. Only the missiles.
"Pooling our sentiences," the voice rang out again, bell clear in Taylor's mind but actually soundless, "we can extend our thoughts into the realm of telepathy. At least, we think we can. Can you understand us?"
"Yes," Taylor said.
"You realize humanity is helpless?"
Taylor nodded. There was no sense pretending otherwise. You couldn't fool ten thousand thinking machines.
"Watch!" said the voice.
A missile blasted off from the crater hovered in the airless void overhead.