Tom and Astro stood quietly, hands in the air.

"How in blazes did they get here?" Brett cried.

"They must have followed me," said Miles. "They certainly couldn't have
known about this place."

"But how did they get past the trap?" Brett persisted, still amazed and
shaken by the unexpected appearance of the cadets.

Astro snorted his contempt. "You must think we're a couple of prize
space jerks," he growled. "You can't even kill a mouse with that thing
now."

"Let's cut the talk," said Miles. "What do we do with them?"

"Freeze them!" snapped Brett. "No telling how long they've been here and
how much they know."

"We know enough to put you on a prison asteroid," challenged Tom.

"Freeze 'em, it is," said Quent. "We'll get the ship loaded and decide
what to do with them later."

He pressed the trigger on his ray gun. There was a harsh crackling sound
and Tom and Astro stiffened into immobility, every nerve and muscle
deadened. With the exception of their hearts, and sense of seeing and
hearing, they might have been dead men.

Laughing to themselves, Quent Miles and Charles Brett picked up their