"What next?" Governor Haydin asked.
"That's what I'm concerned about. At night, and out in the open, I'll back my boars against the Sulbani — or against human beings, for that matter. But these tunnels are a death trap for them. Even their speed won't protect them against gunfire. So let's even the odds. Everyone — back flat against this wall."
The Governor obeyed quickly enough, but it took a bit of tail pulling and two well-placed kicks to get the excited boars to obey. Only after they were all in position did Bron throw the switch on the wall of the entrance chamber of the tunnel. A large, inset metal door moved slowly upward — and laser beams hissed through the expanded opening.
"The hovercraft hangar," Bron whispered. "Looks as if some of them are still in there."
The boars didn't need orders. They waited, trembling with repressed energy, until the gap had widened enough to admit them. Then they struck at once, twin furies.
"Don't damage the gun!" Bron shouted as the laser beam fired again, wildly, then vanished. There were loud crunching sounds from inside.
"We can go in now," Bron said.
Inside the tool-lined room they found the body of only a single Sulbani. He must have been a mechanic, since the torn skirt had been removed from the hovercraft and a new one was ready to be fitted into place. Bron stepped over the corpse and picked up the laser rifle.
"Have you ever shot one of these?" he asked.
"No, but I'm willing to learn."
"Some other time. I'm an expert marksman with this particular weapon and I will be happy to prove it. Stay here."
"No, I won't do that."
"That's your choice. Stay behind me, then, and maybe I can get you a weapon too. Let's move fast while we can still make some use of surprise."
Cautiously, flanked by the two boars, he moved down the well-lit cavern, and Haydin followed close behind. Trouble came at the first tunnel crossing. When they were about twenty yards from the other tunnel, a Sulbani leaped out suddenly, with his gun poised and ready to fire. Bron snapped a single shot from his waist, without appearing to aim, and the alien collapsed, motionless, on the tunnel floor.
"Go get them!" he shouted, and the boars plunged forward, one to each opening of the cross tunnel. Bron fired over them, into the tunnel mouths, until the air cracked and glowed with the discharge of the laser. The two men ran forward, but when they reached the cross tunnel the battle was over. Moe had a burn along one side— which did not slow him down, though it did make his temper worse. He rooted, snorting like a steam engine, in the temporary barricade, tossing boxes and furniture over his head.
"Here's your gun," Bron said, picking up an undamaged laser rifle. "HI set it on maximum discharge, single shot. Just aim it and pull the trigger. And let's go. They know we're in now, but luckily they were not prepared for a battle inside their own hideout."
They ran, counting on speed and shock to get them through, stopping only when they encountered resistance. As they passed one tunnel mouth they heard distant shouting, and Bron skidded to a stop and called to the others.
"Hold it. In here. Those sound like human voices." The metal door was set into solid rock. The laser beam turned the lock to a molten puddle, and Bron pulled the door open.
"I was so sure we would never be found — that we would die here," Lea Davies said. She came out of the cell, half supported by a tall man with the same coppery red hair.
"Huw Davies?" Bron asked.
"The same.” he said, "but let's keep the introductions until later. When they brought me in here I saw a good bit of the layout. The most important thing is a central control room. Everything operates from there — even their power plant is right next to it. And they have communication equipment."
"I'm with you," Bron said. "If we take that, we can cut out all the power and make them work in the dark. My boars will like that. They'll cruise around and keep things stirred up until the militia arrives. We'll call the town from there."
Huw Davies pointed at the laser rifle Haydin held. "I'd like to borrow that for a while, Governor, if you would let me. I have a few scores I want to settle."
"It's all yours. Now show us the way."
The battle for the control room was a brief one — the boars saw to that. Most of the furniture was smashed up, but the controls appeared still to be in working order.
"You stand guard at the entrance, Huw," Bron said, "since I read Sulbani script and you probably don't." He mumbled to himself over the phonetic symbols, then smiled with satisfaction. " 'Lighting circuit'—that's all that can mean."
He stabbed at a button, and all the lights went out.
"I hope that it's dark all over, not just here," Lea said weakly in the black depths of the room.
"Everywhere.” Bron told her. "Now, the emergency lighting circuit for this room should be here." Blue bulbs, scattered over the ceiling, flickered and came to life. Lea sighed audibly. "I've really had just about enough excitement.” she said.
The two boars were looking expectantly at Bron, a wicked red gleam in their eyes. "Go to it, boys," he said. "Just don't get hurt."
"Little chance of that," Huw said as the great beasts exploded out the doorway and vanished with a rapid thud of hooves. "I've seen how they operate, and I'm glad I'm not on the receiving end." A distant- crashing and thin screams echoed his sentiments.
Governor Haydin looked around at the banks of instruments and controls. "Now," he said, "that the excitement and immediate danger are over for the moment, will someone please tell me what is happening here and what all this is about?"
"A mine," Huw said, pointing towards a tunnel diagram on the far wall of the room. "A uranium mine — all in secret, and it has been running for years. I don't know how they're getting the metal out, but they mine and partially refine it here, all with automatic machinery. Then powder the slag and dump it into the river out there."
"I'll tell you what happens then," Bron said. "When they have a cargo, it's lifted off by spacer. The Sulbani have very big ideas about moving out of their area and controlling a bigger portion of space. But they are short of power metals, and Earth has been working hard to keep it that way. One of the reasons this planet was settled was that it is near the Sulbani sector and, while we didn't need the uranium, we didn't want it falling into the Sulbani's hands. The Patrol had no idea that they were getting their uranium from Trowbri — though they knew it was coming from somewhere — but it was a possibility. When the governor here sent in his request for aid, it became an even stronger possibility."
"I still don't understand it," Haydin said. "We would have detected any ships coming to the planet; our radar functions well."
"I'm sure it functions fine — but these creatures have at least one human accomplice who sees to it that the landings are concealed."
"Human. .!" Haydin gasped. Then he knotted his fists at the thought. "It's not possible. A traitor to the human race. Who could it be?"
"That's obvious," Bron said, "now that you have been eliminated as a possibility."
"Me!"
"You were a good suspect — in the perfect position to cover things up; that's why I was less than frank with you. But you knew nothing about the hovercraft raid and would have been killed if I hadn't pulled you down, so that took you off the list of suspects. Leaving the obvious man: Reymon — the radio operator."