 What would have happened if Allen's blaster had not run out of charge?
Two more blasts, quickly together, and the sound of a scream faintly. Frowning, worrying about the sounds, Alan momentarily forgot to watch his step until his foot suddenly plunged into an ant hill, throwing him to the jungle floor. At midday some few of the blue sun's rays filtered through to the jungle floor, but now, late afternoon on the planet, the shadows were long and gloomy. Two short, popping sounds echoed across the stillness, drowned out almost immediately and silenced by an explosive crash. He tried to run, but vines blocked his way and woody shrubs caught at his legs, tripping him and holding him back. Beyond, nose high, stood the silver scout ship that had brought the advance exploratory party of scientists and technicians to Waiamea three days before. He stepped forward just as a roar of blue flame dissolved the branches of a tree, barely above his head. Without pausing to think, Alan leaped back, and fell sprawling over a bush just as one of the robots rolled silently up from the right, lowering its blaster barrel to aim directly at his head. With an awkward jerk the robot swung around and fired its blaster, completely dissolving the lower half of the cat creature which had clung across the barrel. But the back pressure of the cat's body overloaded the discharge circuits. The robot started to shake, then clicked sharply as an overload relay snapped and shorted the blaster cells. If I can just hold out until morning, when the big ship arrives ... The metal killers, tuned to blast any living flesh, would murder them the instant they stepped from the ship! It was crazy, he supposed, to marry a girl and then take off for an unknown planet, with her to follow, to try to create a home in a jungle clearing. Blaster ready, Alan rolled over onto his back. In the movement, his elbow struck the top of a small earthy mound and he was instantly engulfed in a swarm of locust-like insects that beat disgustingly against his eyes and mouth. For a split second the jungle stood frozen in a brilliant blue flash, followed by the sharp report of a blaster. The planet's double moon had risen and he could see a robot rolling slowly across the clearing in his general direction, blasting indiscriminately at whatever mind impulses came within its pickup range, birds, insects, anything. Apparently the robot hadn't sensed him yet, but Alan didn't know what the effective range of its pickup devices was.
 He would still have hit the switch, ending the story the same way.
 He would still have hit the switch, ending the story the same way.  He would have been able to shoot the switch from where he stood instead of having to make a run for it.  He would have accidentally cut off communication with other ships.  He would have been able to shoot down the robots and not need to hit the switch.