Flyn and Sula join up with Papa Minn, who agrees to help them construct a powerful ripple ray. John jaunts aboard the Thargon government ship, whose crew give a very different account of their quarry's nature.
A conflict in stories divides Mike and John while leaving Hsui Tai undecided. On the one hand, Sula and Flyn could be anti-slavery protesters escaping persecution from their world's overlords, but on the other they could be petty criminals fleeing from a space cop who doesn't always answer to protocol. Which to believe (if either)? Negotiations with the megalomaniacal dictator Papa Minn decide the matter for the Tomorrow People.—statmanjeff