The Throg task force struck the Terran survey camp a few minutes after dawn, without warning, and with a deadly precision which argued that the aliens had fully reconnoitered and prepared that attack. Eye-searing lances of energy lashed back and forth across the base with methodical accuracy. And a single cowering witness, flattened on a ledge in the heights above, knew that when the last of those yellow-red bolts fell, nothing human would be left alive down there. And so Shann Lantee, most menial of the Terrans attached to the camp on the planet Warlock, was left alone and weaponless in the strange, hostile world, the human prey of the aliens from space and the aliens on the ground alike. ANDRE NORTON has become one of the highest rated authors of science-fiction adventure now writing. A native of Cleveland, Ohio, a book collector, and s-f fan, Ace Books have had the pleasure of presenting her best novels in newsstand editions. Reviews: "A satisfying and mature novel which readers will seize upon if they want to enjoy a good adventure story. "A survey base on a remote planet is wiped out by a raid of Earth's enemies, the Throgs; the only survivor must face the perils of an unexplored planet while trying somehow to strike back at the enemy.... "As always Norton creates both human and alien beings well, and tells a story that you can't stop reading." --New York Herald Tribune "UP TO NORTON'S BEST STANDARDS." --Library Journal