After an uncomfortable night on the hard metal floor during which Klane slept only fitfully, he was startled to be woken by the light touch of Lucalle and the low whisper of her voice in his ear. "I know the creature is recording the sights and sounds from this room so we must speak very softly and closely as if we were really lovers and I had submitted to the creature's orders. But don't go getting any wrong ideas about me! Listen carefully. I have been thinking about a way to escape from this crater for a long time and I have a plan. I had hoped to wait for a better moment but now there is no time!" Klane was acutely conscious of the proximity of the beautiful young woman as she pressed herself close to preserve her secret communication. The warmth of her body and the faint scent of her skin made it hard to concentrate on her words. In truth he had many doubts about her ideas but she knew more about this place than him and he didn't have any better ones himself. When she was finished, the princess surprised him by planting a light kiss on his forehead. He caught her last look of playful ambiguity - a cross between affectionate mockery, clever acting and perhaps just a tiny hint of something genuine as though despite her warning she really did reciprocate a little of the growing attraction the youth now felt for her. It was almost as disturbing to his equanimity as the prospect of facing the creature. It was a grey day. Locked in the glass prison again, Klane could only wait and worry. Lucalle was biding her time until the creature was as far away as possible. She had found a way to neutralise the control collars by shorting them out and more importantly she knew the location of the base master power switch, a blue crystalline hemisphere, lit from within. The power centre maintained the electric fields round the rim and the locks on the doors. If she could just get to the switch she thought she could free them all and they might make a run for it. "The fuel lines on that flying machine can be cut beforehand", she said. "It is a shame we cannot steal it and use it against the creature, either to flee or fight but I do not know how to fly it and I think it is too dangerous. We just need some time when the creature is in that metal tower at the other end of the crater. It goes there sometimes for an hour or more but its routine is not totally predictable. We must be patient. When the power is down the walls of your tube will drop automatically. At least I think so." "If they do not you must throw the klane to me over the lip of the cell wall", Klane whispered, knowing that with his weapon back he could cut his way free. In the end it was almost night before Lucalle was ready to make her fateful move. The subtle sabotage of the flying machine was actually carried out by Ketha in the manner the two young women had often plotted together in secret. There was no need for Lucalle to say anything other than to give and receive the private signals they had agreed long beforehand for the day when they would finally act. Now came the moment of truth. Lucalle hesitated for a long time before the blue switch but there was no way back. The creature would soon discover what had been done to the flying machine. She needed to move quickly and the princess finally slapped her hand down forcefully on the giant glass button. At first nothing happened. Then she twisted her head in alarm as a siren rang out...