Swiftly Balan turned and cancelled the display. 'Please, Doctor, do not waste any more time in this foolishness,' he pleaded.

The Doctor stared furiously at Balan for several seconds.

'Quite!' he suddenly snapped. 'Come along, Jamie, perhaps Director Senex will listen to us.'

Teel and Kando hurried across to prime the second capsule for launching, while Balan escorted the Doctor and Jamie to the launch tube and programmed the destination panel as they clambered aboard.

'Capsule primed,' Teel called out.

'This will deliver you direct to the Capitol,' Balan explained, 'and the Director will see you at his convenience.'

'The Director will see me at once at once,' the Doctor retorted as the canopy and access panel zipped shut.

With a hollow screaming noise the capsule shot out of sight along the tube.

Teel and Kando had been eagerly whispering together and they turned as Balan came back into the laboratory section. 'Now perhaps we can continue with our proper work,' the Educator sighed.

'Willingly,' Kando agreed, glancing covertly at Teel.

'Permission to commence soil-core sampling?'

'Granted,' Balan replied.

Grabbing their equipment, the students almost rushed for the airlock.

'Wait!' Balan cried sharply. 'I shall accompany you, to ensure that nothing distracts you from your tasks...'

Zoe had been wandering impatiently round and round the Council Chamber, now and then glancing hopefully at the wall through which Director Senex had disappeared seemingly hours previously. Kully was lying in his father's chair, his grubby and bruised legs thrown casually over the arm, idly watching a thin trickle of sand running out of the side of his battered sandals.

'Oh, why are they taking so long?' Zoe cried exasperatedly alter a long silence.

Kully yawned. 'Everything takes time on Dulkis.

Nothing's eh rushed. Not any more,' he mumbled.

Zoe clasped and unclasped her hands in frustration. 'If what you told them about the robots is true...'

'So even you don't really believe me,' Kully said disconsolately.

Zoe tousled her neat black hair. 'I don't know. I'm really worried. Jamie and the Doctor should have got here ages ago.'

'Perhaps my imaginary robots have gobbled them both up!' Kully chuckled.

Zoe gave a little sigh of apprehension.

'Sorry,' Kully said gloomily. 'You don't believe me. The Council don't believe me. It's my own fault, I suppose.' He stared at the little heaps of sand on the floor by the chair.

Then he suddenly leaped out of the Director's seat and grasped Zoe by the shoulders. 'Would you come back to the Island with me?' he asked earnestly.

Perplexed and miserable, Zoe gazed listlessly at his grimy bulbous features. 'Why, what are you going to do?'

'Bring back some evidence. Make them believe me before it's too late. Will you come, Zoe?'

Zoe thought for a moment. 'What kind of evidence?

Anyway, how could we get past your father and the Council out there?' she objected.

Kully seized her hand and headed straight towards the blank wall of the Chamber. It dissolved in front of them and before she could resist, Kully dragged Zoe through.

'We'll go through my father's private apartments,' he explained.' Then we'll have to steal a capsule somehow...'

Suddenly Kully stopped. 'Your clothes, Zoe... not exactly Dulcian, are they?' he said with a frown.

Zoe glanced down at her tee-shirt and slacks and then at Kully's shapeless, pleated tunic 'No, I'm glad to say they're not,' she retorted indignantly.

'They'll give us away. We'll never get past the Transport Monitors...' Then Kully's face brightened. You can borrow something from Zanta! She's in the Antipodes'

'Zanta?' Zoe echoed doubtfully.

'My younger sister,' Kully explained. 'You're about the same size,' he grinned. 'Come on. '

Five minute, later, as arranged, Zoo met Kully in the curved shimmering corridor outside Senex's apartments.

Kully whistled approvingly. 'At least you look more like a girl now.'

Zoe grimaced at her chunky pleats and rather loose sandals. 'This clobber isn't very practical, is it?' she complained.

'Never mind, you look 90 per cent Dulcian,' Kully chuckled 'Your friends won't recognise you.'

Zoe looked worried.'We'll probably pa.s.s them going in the opposite direction.'

Kully led the way rapidly along the smooth deserted corridor. 'Luckily I discovered some travel permits in Father's pockets,' he whispered, flourishing aome small plastic tokens. 'All I have to do is forge his signature.'

'Kully, you're a shameless villain...' Zoe giggled admiringly.

you arc an alien imposter,' Kully grinned, seizing her hand and breaking into a trot...

Their huge figures lit by a lurid multicoloured glow, the Dominators were studying a large seismological map of the Island displayed in fluorescent graphics on a panel in their control centre. Five red stars forming a regular pattern pulsated rhythmically, and complex cl.u.s.ters of symbols and figures flashed up in ever-changing sequences over the map. Beside the display, two Quarks were operating a large computer terminal.

'Depth of fourth bore revised in accordance with latest seismological data,' Toba reported in a voice hushed with concentration.

Rago nodded, his leathery face a livid red in the glare from the screen and his green eyes piercingly intent. 'Link with trajectory angles and collate detonation limits,' he ordered quietly.

'Command accepted. Computing now.'

The figures and symbols danced and flickered madly.

'There must be no error,' Rago warned in a menacing whisper. 'There will be no second chance'

At that moment, one of the Quarks sparked and chattered into action. 'Alien specimens approaching!' it bleated.

'Not now!' Rago breathed venomously. 'I warned them...

Visual!' he ordered, turning to the Quark.

The display blacked out and a view of the area around the saucer flashed up in its place. Three white-suited but helmetless figures could be seen descending the slope of the dunes and approaching the Dominators' craft.

'Shall we destroy?' Toba suggested eagerly, trembling with excitement.

'Negative,' Rago retorted. 'These are new specimens.'

He leaned forward in antic.i.p.ation. 'They may be from the superior species. Investigate.'

Balan, Kando and Teel stood underneath the saucer, gazing in wonder at the sleek monster towering over them.

'So Kully was telling the truth,' Teel murmured, awestruck.

'Was he?' Balan said sharply. 'Then where are the robots?'

Kando glanced down at the maze of parallel tracks leading from the open hatchway at the bottom of the central shaft. 'Perhaps... perhaps they are inside,' she suggested nervously.

Balan shook his head dismissively. 'Why seek unlikely answers to simple problems? This is probably some form of experimental craft being tested by the Technological Committee.'

'But why is it here on the Island?' Teel persisted stubbornly.

'No doubt it is highly secret,' Bolan warned, turning to leave. 'Come, we have work to do.'

Kando and Teel stood their ground. 'Perhaps there has been an accident... a forced landing!' Kando burst out.

'Yes, it is our duty to investigate,' Teel agreed, starting towards the hatchway.

'There has been no reference to any accident in the Bulletins,' Balan objected, 'and I forbid you to interfere.'

'If it is secret the Bulletins will not refer to it,' Teel answered triumphantly.

Kando joined him, her beautiful eyes alive with excitement 'We must investigate,' she urged.

Warily the two students stepped into the cylindrical chamber. Speechless with rage Balan came hurrying after them. No sooner had he entered than the hatch slid shut with a slick whirr and the floor immediately heaved under their feet as the elevator bore them rapidly up into the saucer.

The three Dulcians stared around them open-mouthed as they stepped our into the deserted control centre, echoing and dark.

'This is not the technology of Dulkis...' Teel murmured almost reverently, gesturing at the crystal mosaic sphere glittering on the central control column.

Still struck dumb with amazement, Balan walked slowly over to the dais and grasped the slim rail surrounding it or support. From the shadows came a shrill giggling.

Something glowed red and a nauseating throbbing burst our. Balan went chalk white and tried to let go of the rail.

'I... I cannot move...' he stuttered, gaping in utter terror at his shocked pupils.

The throbbing was repeated and Teel was flung across the chamber and pinned helplessly to the wall. Kando screamed in panic as two whirring, chattering machines with flashing antennae marched out of the gloom towards her. Slowly she backed away.

'Stand still!' croaked a hollow alien voice and Toba strode into the chamber hunched in his carapace of armoured plates.

Then Rago entered, his suit creaking menacingly as he loomed over Balan. The terrified Educator's mouth moved but no words emerged, only strange incoherent sounds.

His eyes were bloodshot and popping out of his head.

'You... you are not Dulcians,' Teel gasped, his slim body crumpled against the panel.

'Quark!' Toba harked.

The wall panel swung Teel like a dummy and suspended him horizontally while the globular apparatus descended over him. Then the Quark connected its probes into the bottom edge of the pallet.

Activate!' Toba ordered.

Teel was bathed in the bluish aura as Rago fitted the visor over his head and strode over to examine the new specimen. 'As I antic.i.p.ated, this one is different,' Rago reported with a grunt of satisfaction. 'Greater brain capacity... Two hearts... No superfluous internal organs...

Limited potential for physical activity...' After a few minutes he straightened up and took off the visor.

'Affirmative. There are two species, Neither presents any threat to us.'

Toba was staring at Kando's cowering figure beside the other Quark. 'Then we shall be able to a.s.semble a labour force?'

'Affirmative. Of limited performance, but adequate,'

Rago decided. 'We shall require the oscillation and the central bore target to be cleared of debris. Search the Island. Round up all specimens.'

'Command accepted,' Toba acknowledged eagerly.

When Toba had left, Rago resumed his investigation of the semi-conscious Teel.

'I do not understand...' Balan wailed, still helplessly stuck to the rail of the dais by molecular adhesion. 'Why should they wish to harm us?'

Dazed with shock, Kando shook her head. Then she began to whimper with terror as Rago turned his attention to her, his huge green eye swollen like that of some monstrous Cyclops by the lenses of the visor.

'Muscular development relatively r.e.t.a.r.ded,' the creaking giant rasped, stooping over her. 'However, endurance can be tested. It should prove a most informative experiment...'