The five Earthmen covered the surface of the ship, looking for an exterior hatch control. Beveridge found it first—a narrow lever extruding a few inches from the skin of the alien vessel. He called to the others, then yanked down on the lever. The hatch pivoted back, opening into an airlock.

There was the usual moment of Alphonse-Gaston as the five crewmen jockeyed for position, none willing to let any of the others get ahead of him on anything. Then Lasseux slipped through and into the alien spaceship, followed by Gregson and Beveridge almost simultaneously, and then Golovunoff and Lal.

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