I drank that last glass, I knewthey didn't have a chance.
"They were metal monsters. No wonder they feared that liquid. It wouldrust their joints, short their wiring, and kill them. No wonder theystared when I kept alive after drinking enough to completely annihilatea half-dozen of them.
"But what happened when you met the ship?"
The space captain grinned.
"Not much. Our crew was busy creating a hollow shell filled with _water_to be shot out of a rocket tube converted into a projectile thrower.
"These Steel-Blues, as you call them, put traction beams on us andstarted tugging us toward the asteroid. We tried a couple of atomicshots but when they just glanced off, we gave up.
"They weren't expecting the shell of water. When it hit that blue ship,you could almost see it oxidize before your eyes.
"I guess they knew what was wrong right away. They let go the tractionbeams and tried to get away. They forgot about the force field, so wejust poured atomic fire into the weakening ship. It just melted away."
Jon Karyl got up from the divan where he'd been lying. "They thought Iwas a metal creature, too. But where do you suppose they came from?"
The captain shrugged. "Who knows?"
Jon set two glasses on the table.
"Have a drink of the best damn water in the solar system?" He askedCapt. Small.
"Don't mind if I do."
The water twinkled in the two glasses, winking as if it knew just whatit had done.
Transcriber's Note:
This etext was produced from _Planet Stories_ July 1952. Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed. Minor spelling and typographical errors have been corrected without note.
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