 Why was the fuel drained out of Hennessy's ship's tank?
They were something more—and something less—they were, in short, humanity's hopes for survival! [Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from Worlds of If Science Fiction, September 1961. She seemed to be restless to end her fool's errand here, two hundred light years from the waiting hordes on Earth. Captain Gwayne cursed and rolled over, reaching for his boots. Earth couldn't turn out enough starmen in the schools, so promising kids were being shipped out for training as cadets on their twelfth birthday. The two he'd drawn, Kaufman and Pinelli, seemed to be totally devoid of any sense of caution. But something had happened to the exploration party fifteen years back, and to the more recent ship under Hennessy that was sent to check up. The Sol-type sun must be rising, since there was a dim light. Even the deep gorge where they'd found Hennessy's carefully buried ship was completely hidden by the fog. Earth had ordered him to detour here, after leaving his load of deep-sleep stored colonists on Official World 71, to check on any sign of Hennessy. If there was no sign in another day or so of what had happened to the men who'd deserted their ship and its equipment, he'd have to report back. One, at the front, was stuttering into life, and Gwayne dashed for it as the exit port slid back. At a gesture, the jeep rolled down the ramp, grinding its gears into second as it picked up speed. The creatures dived downward into lower ground, beginning to disappear into the mists. Then it cleared to show the mob of creatures doubling back on their own trail to confuse the pursuers. A spear crunched against the windshield from behind, and Gwayne caught it before it could foul the steering wheel. They'd have to get to the group with the cadets in a hurry or the horde would all vanish in the uneven ground, hidden by the fog. But Gwayne was out of the jeep before it stopped, diving for the figure. Another jeep had drawn up, and men were examining the cadets. Pinelli was either laughing or crying, and Kaufman was trying to break free to kick at the monster. The two were loaded onto a jeep while men helped Barker and Gwayne stow the bound monster on another before heading back. "I want that thing to live—and you're detailed to save it and revive it. I want to know what happened to Hennessy and why that ship was buried against detection.
 Hennessy drained it so they couldn't leave
 Gwayne doesn't know  Hennessy drained it so they couldn't leave  it was destroyed by creatures from the planet  the blobs used it for energy