The three cadets whirled as a familiar voice snarled out of the darkness
behind them. They saw three figures, all in cadet uniforms, wearing the
insigne of the _Capella_ unit. In the forefront was Tony Richards
scowling angrily.

"Tony!" gasped Tom. "What are you doing out here?"

"We were on our way over to your dorm, Corbett," growled Tony Richards.
"We saw you three sneaking across the quadrangle."

"Coming to pay us a visit, fellas?" asked Roger blandly.

"You know blasted well why we were coming," snapped McAvoy, the second
member of the _Capella_ crew.

Davison, the third member of the unit, stepped forward. "Give us back
our study spools," he demanded.

"Take it easy," said Tom in a calm voice. "We were bringing them back to
you."

"I'll bet," snapped McAvoy.

"Relax," growled Astro. "Tom said we were returning them. We admit it
was a dirty trick, but you haven't lost much time. Half an hour maybe."

"Don't try to cover for Manning, Astro," said Tony heatedly. "It's a
shame you two guys are stuck with a bad rocket like Manning in your
unit."