Nightspore sat on the edge of the table which stood before the window. "He may still have left a message for us."

"What message? Why? Do you mean in this room? - I see no message."

Nightspore's eyes wandered about the room, finally seeming to linger upon a glass - fronted wall cupboard, which contained a few old bottles on one of the shelves and nothing else. Maskull glanced at him and at the cupboard. Then, without a word, he got up to examine the bottles.

There were four altogether, one of which was larger than the rest. The smaller ones were about eight inches long. All were torpedo - shaped, but had flattened bottoms, which enabled them to stand upright. Two of the smaller ones were empty and unstoppered, the others contained a colourless liquid, and possessed queer - looking, nozzle - like stoppers that were connected by a thin metal rod with a catch halfway down the side of the bottle. They were labelled, but the labels were yellow with age and the writing was nearly undecipherable. Maskull carried the filled bottles with him to the table in front of the window, in order to get better light. Nightspore moved away to make room for him.

He now made out on the larger bottle the words "Solar Back Rays"; and on the other one, after some doubt, he thought that he could distinguish something like "Arcturian Back Rays."

He looked up, to stare curiously at his friend. "Have you been here before, Nightspore?"

"I guessed Krag would leave a message."

"Well, I don't know - it may be a message, but it means nothing to us, or at all events to me. What are 'back rays'?"

(Editor：map)