We had won this first encounter! Miko must have realized his
disadvantage. His distant light went out.
"Come, Anita."
There was no retreat now. But again I seemed to feel in the pressure
of her hand that vague farewell. Her voice whispered, "We must do our
best, act our best to be convincing."
In the white glow of a searchbeam we climbed the crags, reached the
broad upper ledge. Helmeted figures rushed at us, searched us for
weapons, seized our helmet lights. The evil face of a giant Martian
peered at me through the visors. Two other monstrous, towering figures
seized Anita.
We were shoved toward the port locks at the base of the ship's hull.
Above the hull bulge I could see the grids of projectors mounted on
the dome side, and the figures of men standing on the deck, peering
down at us.
We went through the admission locks into a hull corridor, up an
incline passage, and reached the lighted deck. The Martian brigands
crowded around us.