Key Out of Time

Wre

rara was herself aga

he gate was beyond his experience. As far as he knew, there had never been such a

ng. Just let the storm abate, and, with the dolphins' aid, Ross's chance for find

r breast, her shoulders heaving in the torch light with shudders she could n

ht from the girl to the walls. That seaweed, cou

st the torch into her hands and w

ghtly damp, and he piled it on the ledge in a kind of nest. At least

like a visible cloud, but he had been right, the girl stopped shivering, and he felt a measure of warmth in his own

ced himself up on his hands and peered over the edge of their kelp nest. There was light in the cave, a pa

ed, his hand falling

was hoarse and held

answer, and the mound beside

-" Ross

she stood up, "I

fallen, that wavelets no longer lapped with the same v

is mask into place when

at I saw-last night they

her thought, one which would provide an excellent excuse for keeping her safely out of his company, reducing his

do not fin

e rest. What if he could not find G

ck on work periods-"in, say, two hours. You should know by then about the gate, and I'll have some idea of the situation along the shore. But listen-" Ross caught her shoulders in a taut grip, pu

derstood, was aware of the importance of t

n the way we were. He'd go to ground somewhere. And I have this-" Ross touched the sonic on his belt. "I'll set it

own to where the dolphins circled in the cave pool waiting

Then he paddled along the shore northward for his own survey of the coast. There was a rose cast in the sky, warming the silver alo

by the waves, ground to splinters against the rocks. The other still held, its prow well out of th

ce. Much of this was already free of the sea, and on the beach figures moved examining it. In spite of the dang

of floating weed draped about him, when the near

their limbs appeared disproportionately long and thin. There were two groups of them, four wearing only

thin arms and legs to elbow and knee. The hair was a pallid yellow-white in vivid contrast to their dark skins, and their c

d a protective visor over the face, but also breast- and back-plates molded to their bodies. Ros

with swords of an odd pattern; their points curved up so that the blade resembled a fishhook. Unsheathed,

atures. But their skins were as dusky as those of the laborers, and their a

sam into two piles. Once they gathered about a find, and the sound of excited speech reached Ross as an agi

body! Ashe.... The Terran was about to move closer when he saw the green cloak

pushing aside his well-arranged curtain of weed when he was startled by a shout. For a seco

guards took up a position before them, curved swords, snapped from their belt hooks, ready in their hand

silver-gray that Ross had no idea of the form beneath. Silvery-gray-no, now that hue was deepening with blue tones, darkening rapidl

ck-plates, but their leggings were gray. They, too, carried curved swords, but the weapons were still latched t

th. But even so, the wearer remained well hidden. From under a flapping edge came a hand. The fingers, long and slend

harply in perfect beat to their blink-blink. The Terran cupped his scarred fingers over the disk as he waited to see what was

so that to Ross the meeting between flesh and wand was hardly distinguishable. Now by one firm t

. Their attitude, Ross judged, was that of men in some awe of their opponent, but men urged to d

gue Ross had caught earlier. This trill of notes possessed the rise and fall of a chant or song which could have been a formu

wled into the mind, set up a pattern! He shook his head vigorously and then was shoc

s followed by a moment of silence through whi

fell face down on the beach, cupping their hands to pour sand over their unkempt heads. O

party, its sparks shooting so swiftly and with such slight break between that they were fast making a single beam. Ross je

eir feet and pelted back down the strand. However, the guards were of sterner stuff. They were withdrawing all

leader of the second party approached the two piles of salvage the workers had heaped into

rpse. When the robed one nodded they stood well back. The rod move

er it was-issuing from the rod had dazzled him into momentary bli

where the corpse had lain, nothing except a glassy trough from which so

cliff castle had bombarded with rocks ships sailing with a speed which argued engine power of an unknown type. A mixture of b

s

its knob. And under Ross's touch his sonic was quiet also. He snapped off the broadcast

e designated boxes, a small cask or two. So laden, the party returned south

ff, hauling their spoil, their destination the castle. But Ross saw no sign of Ashe, received no answer to the sonic code he had reset once the str

lplessness. With no chance of trying to penetrate the castle, he could not learn whether or not Ashe had been taken prisoner.

e dolphins and as Ross pulled out of the water, pushing aside his

she made that a statemen

N

id not f

from the nest as a towel. B

... no s

he supply cans they had had in the cache by the gate. "There are others ... scattered. Taua and

you found th

dge. What she held out to him was a length of metal rod, twisted and broke

ere pulled out of him against his will and against all hope-"th

eading for the reef where the dolphins joined him as guides. There was a second piece of broken tube, the scattered containers of s

importance now. The containers must be all gathered and taken into their

containers he transported. And it was that slight

e kelp of the nest. But to one side a

by its sling, he swam under water along the side of the cave by a route which should bring him