Tom was speechless over the loss of the mastodon, but in a few moments he asked the Sky Queen's radio operator, "Where is the Flying Lab now?"
       "We had to come down in a wild spot," the operator reported. "Something went wrong with our lifting power. I believe that has been repaired now. Shall we go home or can you use us?"
       "You'd better take the Flying Lab to Shopton for a thorough inspection. I'll call if I need you."
       "Roger."
       Tom hurried to Bud's bed and shook him awake. "Emergency! Follow me," he ordered.
       Half asleep, Bud staggered after Tom to the lab. Mr. Swift was there, working on the damaged Transmittaton. Tom broke the news about the loss of the mastodon from the Sky Queen and the sabotage of the machinery.
       "I suppose they couldn't rouse us because we'd been gassed by the Tall One."
       Mr. Swift's face clouded. "This is very disturbing. There's a little doubt in my mind that the Brungarians had a hand in this sabotage."
       "It puts us back where we started," Tom observed. "We still have to find both the mastodon and the galaxy ghost."
       Bud looked puzzled. "I should think the mastodon was gone for good."
       "Not necessarily, Bud," Tom replied. "Of course salt water normally melts ice. But this particular cake of ice, with the tremendous weight of the mastodon inside, must have plummeted to a depth where the water is frigid enough to keep the ice from melting."
       "Right," his father agreed. "The mastodon is undoubtedly still in once piece. The big question is––where?"
       Mr. Swift frowned. "I suggest that you boys stay on the more important problem, the missing P-E. I'll radio the Sky Queen to pick me u and fly to the general area where they lost the mastodon. I can use the Sea Dart to search the ocean floor for it."
       The Sea Dart was a two-man submarine that Tom had invented for deep-sea exploration. Protected by Tomasite and powered by jets, it could go deeper and stay down longer than atomic subs. At present the jetmarine was aboard the Flying Lab with another of Tom's inventions, the diving seacopter.
       "Of course a couple of the Sky Queen crew could hunt for the mastodon," Mr. Swift went on, "but raising it is going to be tricky. I want to go down and look over the situation for myself."
       Tom nodded. "I'm glad. As for the Transmittaton, Culbertson can repair it."
       The next morning Burkart drove Tom and Bud to the valley where they had left their jet. Minutes later the boys were in the air headed for Valparaiso. They landed at the airport and took a taxi to the city.
       "Let's begin on the waterfront," Tom said.
       "Why not, Tom? It's where most of the action is in Valpo."
       The boys strode to the dock area through busy streets filled with throngs of people in colorful native costumes. Freighters were discharging their cargoes. Beyond the harbor was the broad expanse of the Pacific.
       Tom and Bud stopped to eat at a restaurant overlooking the ocean, thinking they might pick up a clue. The sign that had caught their attention read: LOBSTERS FROM JUAN FERNANDEZ ISLAND.
       "That's Robinson Crusoe's desert island," Tom commented as the boys were being served. "Daniel Defoe heard about a fellow who had been marooned there, so he put the island into his story."
       "If Robinson Crusoe and his man Friday had lobsters this good every evening, they couldn't have had too rough a time," Bud replied.
       As the Indian waiter started collecting the dishes, Tom asked him if he had ever heard of a man named Voss.
       "Sí, everyone in Valpo has heard of Señor Voss," the waiter said. "He is a rich Australian who lives in Viña del Mar near the big rocks on the beach."
       After paying their bill, the boys took a taxi to the beautiful resort area. Getting out a half mile from the rocks, they slipped quietly through the sand, and stationed themselves behind a dune where they could watch the Voss house. Tom and Bud could not see inside because the building had porches on every side, with bamboo blinds pulled down.
       "We'll stay here and keep the place under surveillance," Tom decided.
       Nothing happened all afternoon. But as night was falling, a rowboat came silently to the beach. Offshore a motorboat was anchored. Two bearded men jumped from the rowboat, pulled it onto the sand behind the rocks, and strode up to the house. Both were short and powerfully built. They knocked and were admitted.
       A light switched on. Through the bamboo blinds Tom and Bud could see three silhouettes, two short and squat, the third medium-sized.
       Bud grabbed Tom's arm as an elongated shadow joined the others. "The Tall One!" he hissed.
       "And the carrying case!" Tom whispered back. "He's just put it on the table! The ghost's still glowing inside!"
       Stealthily the boys crept between the sand dunes, reached the side of the house undetected, and crouched under a window. Their hearts were beating wildly.
       The first snatches of conversation identified the group inside. The Tall One's name was Tokatyan.
       The medium-sized man was Voss, who allowed Brungarian agents to use his house as headquarters. The other two men were brothers named Ivan and Demetri Stasha. Both ranked high among the scientists of Brungaria.
       Suddenly the Tall One cried out angrily, "What's wrong with you, Voss? Losing your nerve?"


       "I don't like it," Voss quavered. "My information from Brungaria states that Swift says the galaxy ghosts are lethal. They're getting ready to invade the earth! Everyone will be killed if you don't return the ghost."
       The other three laughed harshly. "That's just a Swift trick," said Ivan Stasha. "He's trying to outwit us."
       "Swift wants to frighten us into returning the P-E," said the other Stasha. "Fat chance."
       Tokatyan gave a sinister chuckle. "Voss, the only good tricks are Brungarian tricks. We've just pulled one of the sweetest you'll ever see. We got the mastodon away from the Swifts' Sky Queen."
       The Tall One went on to tell how he had learned about the Flying Lab from a villager who did odd jobs for the crew. "I sent an agent, who is an expert machinist, disguised as this villager. He sneaked aboard the Sky Queen. The agent sabotaged the grappling mechanism by putting a tiny deactivator inside the giant winch controls. He also tampered with the ship's lifting controls. Then the saboteur sneaked out."
       Tokatyan snickered. "My man took a good look at the flight chart. I had the route taped all the way to the U.S.A. I triggered the deactivator at the right time. The winch lost its power. The mastodon fell into the Pacific just where I want it. Presto!"
       "What good is that?" Voss complained. "The mastodon is gone."
       "Correction. Temporarily gone. It will be rescued very shortly by a Brungarian sub."
       Ivan Stasha growled, "That's enough explaining, Tokatyan. We should already be on our way to Tierra del Fuego with the ghost."
       "Our lab is in a remote spot," his brother argued, "but we can't depend on it going undetected for long. We need to harness that P-E radiation for military purposes before anyone down there gets wise to us."
       The Tall One agreed. "We're going to plan our strategy, Voss. You stay right here until we call you."
       Voss grumbled, but obviously he was afraid to refuse. The others went into the next room and shut the door.
       Tom and Bud noiselessly climbed the steps and stopped under the window where they could see the shadow of Voss. The man was pacing nervously back and forth.
       Tom scratched on the bamboo slats. Voss opened them a slit. "Who's there?" he murmured in panic.
       "Friends," Tom replied. "We want to help you." Quickly he explained the situation.
       Tom asked Voss to get the carrying case and bring it outside.
       "Meet me on the beach at the big rocks," Voss muttered. "I'll grab the case and make a run for it."
       Tom and Bud hastened across the moonlit beach to the place where the boat was beached. A minute later they saw Voss emerge from the house with a cloth bag.
       "He must have the carrying case with the ghost inside that bag," Tom remarked.
       "He'd better get a move on," Bud said. "Here comes trouble with a capital T."
       The three men raced from the house in pursuit of Voss. He was a poor runner and the gap between them narrowed with every stride. Voss turned and threw the cloth bag at them and ran on, carrying the glowing carrier by the handle. The clumsy attempt to slow down his pursuers did not work.
       "We'd better get set to take the offensive," Tom said to Bud. Tom scrambled on the top of the nearest high rock. Bud followed him.
       As Voss pounded past, the other three were at his heels. Tom leaped down, striking Tokatyan between the shoulders. He and the Tall One hit the ground together.
       At the same time Bud hurtled into the Stasha brothers. The three went down in a tangle of bodies.
       "Run, Voss!" Tom shouted.
       Panicking, the Australian began to climb the rocks. Tokatyan and one of the Stashas broke loose and charged after him. Tom followed rapidly.
       On the peak of the highest rock, Tokatyan seized Voss by the shoulder. With his free hand, the Australian ghost carrier in a wide half circle and let fly. The glowing cube case arched over the cliff and hit the water with a splash.
       "Dive after it, Swift!" the Australian cried out. "The water's deep enough!"
       Tom glanced down at the waves breaking against the sheer side of the rock. He gave a powerful spring and made a perfect dive into the ocean.
       He came up and swam toward the Tomasite container, which was bobbing up and down. Catching the carrier by the handle, Tom began towing to shore.
       The put-put of a motorboat echoed over the water. Frantically he tried to submerge with the carrier in the hope of not being seen. The container was too buoyant to go under.
       As Tom struggled with it, the motorboat came roaring down on him!