The Best Made Plans by Everett B. Cole (1959)

Posted on March 2nd, 2008

The sports flier dropped free for the last few feet, bounced, tilted, and finally righted itself. It was not a very good landing.

Don snapped the switch off and sat for a moment, looking out at the long, low house. Then he let himself out of the flier and walked across the courtyard and through the door.

The front room was empty. He looked over at the wide glass panels that formed one side of the room. A small, dark man came from between the bushes of the inner garden. He slid a panel aside and looked expressionlessly at Don for a moment. Then he slowly allowed his head to drop.

“Master Donald,” he said. He raised his head, looking at Don with brilliant yellow eyes. “Your father did not expect you until two days.”

“I know, Dowro. But I came home early. I want to talk to him.”

“It is well.” The man motioned toward a curtained arch. “He is below.”

“Thanks, Dowro. I’ll find him.” Don swept the curtains aside and turned, to open a heavy door.

As he started down the steep flight of stairs, a sharp crack came from the basement. He grinned. With this kind of weather, the range would be busy.

Kent Michaels stood on the plastic flooring, a rifle at his shoulder. The front sight weaved almost imperceptibly, then steadied. He seemed completely unaware of his son’s presence.

Suddenly, a spurt of smoke came from the muzzle of the rifle. There was another sharp crack and the muzzle swept upward then dropped, to become steady again.

At last, the shooter took the weapon from his shoulder and opened the action. He looked around.

“Oh, Don,” he said. “Didn’t expect you for a couple of days. There’s no holiday down there right now, is there?”

Don shook his head. “I made a new one,” he said. “Permanent type.”

His father bent over the rifle action, examining it. Then he stepped over to place the weapon in a rack. Finally, he turned, to look searchingly at his son.

“Permanent?”

“Afraid so, Dad. I guess I sort of blew up.”

“Want to tell me about it?”

The older man motioned Don to a camp stool and pulled one over for himself. As Don talked, he listened intently. At last, he nodded.

“So that’s all of that, eh?”

“Guess it is, Dad. Looks as though I’ll have to start working for my keep. Won’t be any police official in the family after all.”

“Could be.” Kent Michaels got up and reached out to the weapons rack.

“Got one more shot on this target. Then we’ll talk it over, hm-m-mm?”

He stepped up to a line inlaid in the floor. Deliberately, he placed a cartridge in the rifle and closed the action. Then, he raised the weapon, seated it on his shoulder, and brought it into position with a twisting motion.

Don watched, smiling in spite of himself, as the front sight rose and fell with his father’s breathing. That routine never changed. From the time the Old Man picked up his weapon till he laid it down, you could predict every move he’d make.

The motion stopped and for endless seconds, the man stood motionless, the muzzle of his rifle probing steadily toward the lighted space downrange. Then the front sight jumped upward, settled back, and steadied again.

“Looked good.” Kent Michaels let the weapon down, opened the action and checked it, then racked the weapon. He touched a button near the firing line and waited for the target to come in to him.

Deliberately, he unclipped the sheet of paper, laid it down, and clipped another in its place. He touched another button, then picked up the fired target and bent over it, checking his score. Finally, he looked up.

“Ninety-seven,” he said. “Four X’s. Think you can beat it?” He walked back to the rack and picked out a rifle. After glancing into the action, he held it out toward Don.

“Zero hasn’t been changed since you fired it last. Want to take a couple of free ones anyway, just to be sure?”

Don looked at him indignantly.

“Good grief, Dad,” he objected. “This is no time for a rifle match.”

“Good as any, I’d say,” his father told him. “Go ahead. There’s a block of ammo at the point. Take your time, but you’ll have to make ‘em good.” He sat down on his camp stool and waited.

Don looked at him for a few seconds, then shook his head resignedly and stepped up to the line.

“Oh, well,” he said. “I’ll try. Never mind the zero rounds.”

He loaded the rifle and brought it to his shoulder. The sight weaved and bobbed. He brought it down again and looked back at his father. The older man pulled a cigarette from his breast pocket.

“Go ahead,” he said calmly. “Take a few deep breaths. And relax.”

Don bowed his shoulders and let the rifle hang loosely from his outstretched arms. He looked downrange, trying to drive everything out of his mind but the target hanging down there. Finally, he raised the weapon again. The sight bobbed about, then steadied. He put pressure on the trigger, then growled softly as the weapon fired.

“Oh, no! Drifted off at three o’clock.”

His father exhaled a small cloud of smoke and said nothing. Don looked at him unhappily for a moment, then reloaded and brought the rifle up again.

Finally, the tenth shot smacked against the backstop and he racked his weapon and punched at the target return button.

His father got up and unclipped the sheet.

“Well, let’s see,” he said. “Eight, nine, nine … here’s a nipper ten … nine … oh, me! You didn’t do so well, did you?”

“What would you expect?” grumbled Don. “Give me a couple of hours to simmer down and I’ll take you on. Beat you, too.”

“Suppose you got into a fight, Don?” his father asked. “Think the guy’d give you a couple hours to simmer down? So you could maybe shoot his eye out?”

He turned and led the way to a couple of lounge chairs.

“Sit down,” he advised. “And turn on that light, will you?” He leaned back.

“So you gave Andy Masterson a fast outline on manners, eh?” He laughed softly. “Boy, I’d like to have seen his face about then!”

Don jerked his head around. “You know him, Dad?”

“You could say I did once,” his father answered. “We went through Guard training together. Served on the same base a few times. Some years ago, I retired. I’m pretty sure he didn’t.”

Don pushed himself out of the chair and stood in front of his father.

“You mean Mr. Masterson is——”

Kent Michaels nodded slowly. “Stellar Guard Investigations? Yes, and I suspect he could wear quite a bit of silver lace, too, if he wanted to get dressed up.” He clasped his hands behind his head.

“Let’s see, Don, you’re almost twenty now. Right?”

“That’s right, Dad.”

“Uh huh. And you were born here on Khloris. Means I’ve been out of active duty for quite a while, at that.” He smiled.

“Got papers upstairs. They say I retired a little more than twenty-one years ago. Got official permission to live on an outworld and joined the first group of colonists here. Of course, they don’t say anything about the people that told me to do all that.”

Don stared at him. “What are you getting at, Dad?”

His father smiled. “Man retires, he’s supposed to be all through with duty. Not subject to recall except in case of galaxy-wide emergency.” He nodded thoughtfully.

“True. But a lot of people never really retire from the Guard. Things keep coming up, and that pension begins to look more like a retainer fee.”

He held up a hand.

“Suppose I give you a little go-around on some history that isn’t in the books—at least not in the books they use in these schools.

“Of course, you know about the arrival of the Stellar Queen. You’ve read all about the original trade contracts here in Oredan. And you’ve read a lot about the immigrations. And the border settlements.

“Yes, and you know about the accession of Daniel Stern, first to the Ministry of Finance, then to the Prime Ministry, then to the Regency. Quite a success story, that. And you have read about the mixup in the royal succession.” He smiled.

“It all went about that way. Oh, sure, it wasn’t quite as peaceable and orderly as the books make it look, but no history bothers with the minor slugfests. What they’re concerned in is the big picture.

“Well, when the king agreed to colonization of the outer provinces, quite a few people came crowding out here. And there was more than a little thievery and brawling and rioting. Naturally, the Federation Council was interested. And the Stellar Guard was more directly interested.

“So, they encouraged a lot of retired guardsmen to come out here, weapons and all. And they assigned a few more people to … well, sort of keep an eye on things. They set some people up with reasonably decent claims, saw to it that the rest of us got a good start, and left us to take it from there.” He smiled.

“We had some fun, now and then. Got the border pacified. Got the crooks and the tough boys calmed down. And we got the hill tribes cooled off some, too. Even made friends with them—after a while. And some guys got married and made noises like real Khlorisanu—genuine Oredanu, in fact. A few of them married Oredana girls.” He laughed shortly.

“The Khlorisanu are humanoid—human to as many decimals as you need to go. There’s a little minor variation in superficial appearance between them and the average galactic, but there’s no basic difference. Quite a few of the fellows found the local girls made good wives.

“But anyway. There wasn’t any real organization among us. We just … well, sort of knew what the other fellow was about. Kind of kept our own personal policy files. And things went along pretty well.

“Oh, there were some fellows who stuck to some sort of organizational structure, I suppose. You know how that is—some guys can’t draw a deep breath unless the rest of the team is there to fill in the picture.

“And then, there were several people like Andy Masterson, who showed up from nowhere. That was none of my business. Happened to know Andy, but I’ve never talked to him here. Those people had complete new backgrounds. No Guard experience—it says here. And they joined the economy—took out Oredan citizenship. Some of them got into government work.

“Then this guy, Daniel Stern, showed up. He started grabbing influence with both hands. Smart young guy. Killed off a prime minister—we think—and a king. Can’t prove any of that, though.” Kent shook his head.

“Don’t think we didn’t try to stop him, once we realized what he was up to. We did. About that time, a whole lot of us did get together and organize. But he’s one of those people. If he tells a man to go out and shoot himself, the next thing you hear is the sound of a falling body.” His eyes clouded and he looked searchingly at Don.

“You should know what I mean. Like when you told that Ghar thief to tell us all about it—remember?”

“Look, Dad, that’s something I’d like to know….”

Kent Michaels waved a hand. “So would I. But I know less about it than you do, so it’s no use. All I know is that some people can tell most anyone to do almost anything—and it gets done. As I said, Stern seems to be one of them.” He shrugged.

“Anyway, we lost a lot of good colonists before we decided to sit back and wait this boy out.

“It’s been a long wait. Some of us have gotten rich in the meantime, in spite of Stern’s trick taxes. Some of us have had a pretty rough time, I guess. But we’re all growing older, and Stern’s pretty cagey about immigration. Doubt if many guardsmen are getting in these days. We’re going to have to depend on our kids, I think.”

Don leaned forward.

“In other words, I could have kicked over an applecart?”

“Well, let’s say you might have bent an axle on your own pretty, blue wagon. It’s a good thing Masterson was there when you blew up. Anyone else, and I might have come up short one son. I wouldn’t like that too well. Might make me go down to Oreladar and try a little target practice.” He frowned thoughtfully.

“You know, come to think of it, no one ever made me do anything I didn’t want to do.”

Don looked thoughtful.

“What do I do now?”

“Just what you said. Start working for your keep. If I get the news right, the waiting period is about over. Stern’s finally dipped his toe in the water, with that business over Waern, and we might be able to do something. You just might get your teeth into it. And maybe I’ll find myself going back to work.

“First, you’ll have to go back to Riandar. Apologize to Masterson, of course, and give him a peace offering. I’ll give you a bottle of Diamond Brandy before you leave. Be sure you hold the diamond in front of him when you stick the bottle out. Otherwise, he might throw something. He’ll take it from there.” The older man grinned.

“And if I remember Andy Masterson, he’ll come up with enough work to keep you busy.”

Andrew Masterson frowned at the bottle held before him.

“What’s this?” he inquired. “You know better than to bring stuff like this on the grounds.”

Don Michaels shrugged. “Dad said there wasn’t too much of it around any more. Thought you might like some.”

“Oh, he did? Yeah. Well, I’ll take it as well meant. Might find someone who could use it.” Masterson opened a drawer and thrust the bottle inside.

“He have anything else to say?”

Don nodded, looking at Masterson’s suddenly watchful eyes. “He said if you’d come up our way, he’d show you how to hold ‘em and squeeze ‘em. Said maybe you might like to bring up some friends some time and give them a chance to find out what border life is like.”

“Huh! You mean he’s still playing games with those antique lead tossers?” Masterson grinned suddenly. “Thought he’d have outgrown that foolishness years ago. By the way, how’s he shooting these days?”

“Fired a pinwheel after I told him about the row yesterday. Meant he only dropped three points on the target—standing.”

“So? Maybe he could do damage with one of those antiques of his, at that—if he could get someone to hold still long enough for him to shoot at them. But nobody makes ammunition for the things any more. Where’s he getting that?”

“Makes it himself.” Don smiled. “He’s got quite a workshop down in the basement.”

Masterson nodded. “That’s Kent Michaels, all right. O.K., youngster, I knew who you were in the first place. Just checking. Tell me, did he get you mixed up with that antique craze of his?”

Don nodded. “I beat him at it once in a while, sir.”

“Did you hand him another beating yesterday? When you went out of here, it looked as though you were going to have to whip somebody.”

Don frowned. “He made a monkey out of me. I couldn’t stay on target.”

“Uh, huh.” Masterson nodded slowly. “Figures. Remember that, that it’ll be the most valuable match you ever lost.”

“Sir?”

“That’s right. Yesterday, you got pretty well charged up. Even managed to warm up a secret police agent. Doesn’t pay, believe me. About the time you get emotionally involved in a problem, the problem turns around and bites you. You’re lucky. Someone else got bit instead—this time. You see, one of us didn’t get shook up.”

“I don’t——”

Masterson tilted his head. “We had an unfortunate accident here right after you left. Dr. Rayson went rushing out of here and took off in his flier. Something went wrong—nobody’s sure what. Maybe he didn’t let his stabilizing rotors have time to lock in. Maybe a lot of things. Anyway, he flipped about fifty meters up. Came down pretty fast, and burned right by the parking lot. Quite a mess.” He nodded sadly.

“Shame. Fine psychologist, and one of the best secret policemen in the realm.”

“You——”

Masterson held up a hand. “Let’s just say he was careless.” He motioned.

“Sit down. No, not in the hot seat. Take that one over there. Then you can see things.” He drew a long breath.

“Your father say anything about Stern?”

Don nodded. “He doesn’t like him too well.”

“He’s got company. Know what Stern’s trying to do, don’t you?”

Don laughed uneasily. “I’m pretty well mixed up, to be truthful. From what Dad told me, he’s trying to turn Oredan into a Dictatorship, with him at the head. Then, he’ll take over the rest of the planet—a piece at a time.”

“Close. He’s planned it pretty well, too. He’s got the royal succession pretty well balled up. He’s almost ready to move in right now. Only one stumbling block. Know what that is?”

Don shook his head.

“Youngster named Petoen Waern. He’s old enough—older than he looks. His mother’s a niece of the last king. Conclave of the tribes could put him on the throne tomorrow morning. He’s a bet Stern missed a while back. Now, he’s trying to make up for it.”

Don frowned. “Is that really why——”

“Right. That’s why the row in the locker room. That would have eliminated that claimant in a hurry. Nobody wants a king with a family criminal record and a habit of starting brawls—especially when he loses those brawls. Kings just aren’t supposed to go in for that sort of thing.” Masterson smiled mirthlessly.

“Anyway, I doubt he’d have survived that affair if you hadn’t rammed your neck into it.”

“But there are other claimants. They’ll come of age pretty soon.”

“Sure they will. But that’s pretty soon—and not soon enough. Besides, Stern’s got them under control, along with their families—the important ones, anyway. There’d be a deadlock when a conclave started checking their claims. And somehow, their councilors wouldn’t be able to come up with quite the right arguments.

“If a formal conclave meets, and no claimant is clearly eligible for the throne—know who’ll be called to start a new royal line?”

“But he——” Don shook his head doubtfully.

“Yes, he could.” Masterson shook his head. “Sure, he’s regent. But he hasn’t renounced his position as prime minister. And with his personal effect on people, he couldn’t lose. No, the only reason he can’t stand a conclave right now is one youngster—and one family he’s never been able to control, because they stay out of his personal reach. And he almost got the youngster out of the way. Neat little operation, with only one thing that could go wrong. You.”

Don frowned. “But that affair was just a personal——”

“Think so? Oh, sure, I gave the Hunters a big horselaugh yesterday. Rayson was around then. And Rayson was a pretty big boy. He knew all about the Hunters, I’m pretty sure. And I know better than to laugh about them.” He leaned forward.

“I can’t prove it, and it wouldn’t do too much good if I tried, but I know perfectly well who’s behind not only the Hunters, but a flock of other criminal gangs—juvenile and adult as well. Think I didn’t know I was talking to a bunch of Hunters when I listened to that rigged story of theirs about the Keltons? Think I didn’t realize Rayson was sitting there prompting them whenever they started to get confused?” He smiled.

“Maybe I’m stupid, but I’m not that stupid. The reason I was rough on you was the fact I didn’t want you signing any statements that Pete had hypnotized—or what would you call it—you. That would have fixed the whole thing and they’d have had him.” He coughed.

“And, too, I knew who you were, of course. I didn’t know for certain how you stood, or how much you could do, but you looked good. And it was pretty obvious you had capabilities.” He smiled.

“Some of the retired guardsmen have had sons go sour on them, you know, so I can’t take ‘em just on faith. But, as I said, the locker room deal looked good, and the more you talked, the better I liked it.”

“But you——”

“Yeah, I know. I wasn’t taking such a chance, though, at that. Truth of the matter is I’m about as bad as your father. You couldn’t make me give you the right time if I didn’t feel like it.” Masterson’s eyes crinkled in an amused smile.

“Go ahead. Try it.”

Don shook his head. “I’ll take your word,” he said. “I tried to tell Dad off once. Somehow, things get a little unpleasant.”

“Yeah.” Masterson stretched luxuriously. “Anyway, I figured you’d be a lot handier around here alive and in operating condition. The last thing I could let happen would be for Rayson to get you on that trick table of his. Once he got that thing to rocking and rolling, he’d stand back there, making soothing noises, and almost anyone would break down and give him all they’d ever known. After that, they’d lie back and believe anything he felt like telling them.” He waved a hand back and forth as Don started to speak.

“Later, huh? We can discuss all the ins and outs some day when this is all over. Right now, let’s be getting back to business.” He smiled disarmingly and leaned back in his chair.

“Somehow, Stern’s hand has got to be forced. He’s off balance right now, and we want him further off. We want him to make a move he can’t back out of. And you may be able to make him do just that.”

“I might?”

“Yes. Suppose the hill tribes joined with the Waernu and demanded that a conclave consider Pete’s claim to the throne. What then?”

“I guess there’d be a conclave.”

“There might, at that. Now, let’s go a little further. Suppose the Waernu claim were upheld and we got a new king—let’s see, he’d drop a syllable—King Petonar. Where would our friend, Stern, end up?”

Don grinned wolfishly. “Khor Fortress. Even I can figure that much out.”

Masterson stood up and paced around the office.

“So, if we can get Jasu and his son in motion and get them up in the Morek, something’s bound to break. Right?” He stopped in front of Don.

“Oh, of course, Stern might call out the Royal Guard and scream rebellion. He’d probably do just that, if things went that far. He’s getting in the propaganda groundwork for it now. But what he doesn’t know is that he’d help us that way.” He perched on Rayson’s desk.

“You see, we’ve got some colonists that would yell at the top of their lungs for protection of their interests by the Federation. And then there would be a conclave—with plenty of supervision. Either way, he’d get right into checkmate.” He clasped one knee in his hands and rocked back and forth.

“But there’s one thing that stands in our way. Jasu Waern’s scared to death. We’ve never quite dared explain this whole thing to him, and now no one can get near enough to talk to him. Harle was the clan head and the one with the nerve. He’s gone, and Jasu’s holed up. Won’t let his son out of the house. Won’t let anyone in. We can’t move.”

He got back to his feet and walked over to the window.

“Now, let’s take some more suppositions. Suppose a flier went out of control and crashed in the middle of the Waern house. Or suppose some major criminal took refuge close to the place and decided to shoot it out with the Enforcement Corps. Seems to be a habit criminals have gotten into lately. And suppose a stray inductor beam just happened to graze the Waern living room.

“Then, who’s checkmated?”

He looked down at his chair, then walked over and dropped into it.

“There’s only one way to get Jasu in motion. You’re it. The way you slammed Rayson back in his chair yesterday gave me an idea. You can get in there, and you’ll have to move him—by force—compulsion—however you want to.

“Meantime, I’ll get some things going. Your father can start the hill tribes getting together. He knows all the important head men. I’ll give him a little push in that direction. Then, we’ll get some more people to work.”

Don looked at him for a moment. “Well, Dad told me I’d probably have to earn my keep. Anything else I ought to know?”

Jasu Waern looked up in annoyance, then got to his feet.

“Who are you?” he demanded. “How did you get in here?” He reached into a pocket.

Don Michaels spread his hands away from his body.

“Leave that weapon alone,” he said sharply. “I came as a friend, and I’d hate to have someone shooting at me.”

“But who are you?”

“I’m Donald Michaels. I want to talk to Pete … Petoen, I should say.”

“My son is seeing no one. There has been——”

“I know,” interrupted Don. “Trouble. Listen, I’ve had trouble myself in the past couple of days. It all started when I prevented a bunch of roughnecks from slapping Pete around.” He frowned.

“Since then, things haven’t been too pleasant.” He held up a finger.

“I got accused of falsifying my report on the affair in the locker room. Pete didn’t show up to testify, and everyone was looking at me.” He extended a second finger.

“Pressure was put on me to sign a statement saying Pete used mental influence to make me put in a false statement. And I got into it with the school psychologist.” A third finger snapped out.

“Next thing, I was being accused of accepting a money bribe from Pete. And I really got into it with the faculty advisor. That’s not good.” He dropped his hands to his sides.

“Right now, I’m not too popular at school. And I want to know what’s going on. I want to know why Pete didn’t show up to give me backing. I want to know what can be done to unscramble this mess.”

Wearn shook his head slowly. “There are other schools—private schools,” he said. “And we are still possessed of some——”

“Careful, Mr. Waern.” Don held up a warning hand. “I don’t carry the sling, but I do come from the Morek. Don’t say something that might be misinterpreted. I want to see things straightened out. I didn’t come here to start a feud with you.”

Jasu Waern shivered a little. “But you are galactic, are you not? Surely, you are no hillman.”

“I was brought up among them. Now get Pete. I want to talk to both of you.”

Waern looked unhappy. But he walked across the room and pulled at a cord.

A servant came to the door.

“Tell Master Petoen,” ordered Waern, “that I would like to see him in here.”

The man bowed and left. Waern turned back to Don.

“You see, Mr. Michaels,” he said apologetically, “we are in difficult times here. My brother——”

“I know.” Don nodded. “Pete was upset the other evening. He told me a little. A little more than is made public.”

Waern’s eyebrows went up. “He said nothing about that.”

Don waved negligently. “It did no harm. Maybe it was a good thing.” He turned toward the door, waiting.

Pete came in, looking about the room. “You brought Don Michaels here, Father?”

Waern shook his head. “He came. He insisted on talking to you, Petoen. And I find he is very persuasive.”

“Oh.” Pete turned. “I’m sorry, Don. Father thought that I——”

Don laughed shortly. “He was right—to some extent. But I’d like to talk to both of you about a few things.”

He moved back, to perch on the edge of a heavily carved table.

“Let’s look at it this way. I got into trouble over the affair. Not good, of course, but what happened to me is just one small incident. All over Oredan, good intentioned people have things happening to them. Sometimes, they’re pretty serious things—like someone getting killed. And they usually can’t figure out what hit them. These things happen pretty often. Why?”

Waern looked uncomfortable, but said nothing. Don looked at him curiously.

“Do you really think, Mr. Waern, that you can sit here in peace? That if you ignore this whole mess, it’ll go away?”

Jasu Waern spread his hands. “What dare I do? My brother was trying to do something. He is gone.”

“True. He tried to clean up a little here and fix a little there. And that only in one city. He didn’t come boldly out and demand. He was playing on the edge of the board, not in the center. A king could do much more than that.”

Waern looked at him, shaking his head.

“Yes, I know about the succession,” Don told him. “And why shouldn’t you demand? You could get the support of the hill tribes. All you need do is ask.”

“I have thought of that. Perhaps we should have done that—once. But now? After my brother’s death? And what could the hillmen do against the weapons of the plains?”

Don smiled at him. “Would the hillmen believe the stories about your brother in the face of your personal denial before their own council? Would they accept such a thing about any of the Waernu unless it were proven by strong evidence? Yours is one of the clans, even yet, you must remember. And how about the honor of the Waernu?”

Jasu’s face was suddenly drawn. Don continued.

“And would the plainsmen dare use their weapons against a legitimate claimant? For that matter, what good would their weapons be against a Federation Strike Group, even if they did use them?”

“You seem so sure.”

“Not just sure. Certain.” Don glanced at his watch, then frowned.

“We’ve lost a lot of time.” His voice sharpened.

“Come on,” he snapped. “My sportster will carry three people. Let’s get out of here while we can still make it.” He made shooing motions.

Waern moved toward the door, then turned.

“To the Morek?”

“That’s right. Up to the Morek. We’re going to start a feud.”

Andrew Masterson looked at the handset approvingly. Little Mike was getting the idea. He was still just as fast as he’d ever been. He made a little noise in his throat, then spoke.

“Well, if you have any questions, Mr. Michaels, feel free to call us here. Thank you, and good-by.”

He dropped the handset to its cradle and leaned back again.

So that was set up. Little Mike would be on his way out to the hills by the time he’d completed this next call. And he’d have the clans ready for talks with the Waernu. Now, the next step would be to alert Jahns, down in the Resident Commissioner’s office.

He looked at the surface of his desk, considering, then reached for the phone again. He’d have to be careful on this one.

The door opened and two men came through. One of them held out a card.

“Masterson?”

“That’s right.”

“Like to have you come with us. People investigating Rayson’s accident have some questions they’d like to ask you.”

“Oh?” Masterson’s eyebrows went up. “I’m afraid I wouldn’t be much help on that. I saw him go down, of course, but the view from this window isn’t the best. I really——”

The other shook his head. “Look, don’t tell me about it. They just told us to come out and get you. Got a lot of experts down there. They’ll ask the questions.”

Masterson looked at the man appraisingly, then glanced at his partner, who stood by the door, leaning against the wall.

These two, he thought, would be no great problem. Nothing here but arms and legs. But——

He smiled to himself.

It would be you or the whole tribe, he thought.

He might still be able to remain under cover, and he’d be a lot more effective that way.

So maybe they were a little suspicious. He glanced down at the desk. The little control box was safely destroyed and its operation had left no evidence. Even if they did suspect the cause of Rayson’s crash, they couldn’t prove a thing. No, his best bet was to go along with these two and hope the questioning would be short enough to allow him to brief Jahns with plenty of time to spare. He shrugged.

“Well,” he said aloud, “I’ll go with you, of course, though I don’t see how I can be of any help. Terrible thing, losing Rayson that way.”

“Yeah. Real bad.” The other nodded curtly. “Come on. Let’s go.”

Daniel Stern looked angrily at his aide.

“Just who is responsible for this report?” he demanded.

The aide looked aside. “It came in from Riandar Headquarters, your honor,” he said. “Colonel Konir signed it himself.”

“I can read,” snapped Stern. “But who’s responsible? What idiot let this thing fall apart?” He shook the papers angrily.

“Look at this thing,” he ordered. “Simple instructions were issued. With the organization they have up there, any fool could have carried them out. So long as they kept it simple, even an idiot could have eliminated that Waern nuisance. But no! Someone had to be subtle. Someone had to make a big project out of it. And, of course, something went wrong.” He snorted angrily and slapped the papers down on his desk.

“Rayson was responsible in part, I suppose?”

The aide nodded unhappily and Stern let out an explosive breath.

“Your man! Well, at least, where he is, he can do no more harm. Tell me, are they going to get a confession out of that man, Masterson?”

“I doubt it, your honor. He claims to know nothing of the accident. And there isn’t a scrap of evidence that——”

“Evidence! There’s very little doubt is there? With those notes of Rayson’s? And who else could have caused the crash?”

“Well, there certainly is no other——”

“Of course not. We know Masterson did it somehow. But why?”

The aide said nothing and Stern glared at him.

“Who is this Masterson?” he demanded. “Have you checked back on him?”

“He came here from Nogira,” said the aide slowly, “seventeen years ago. He had some civil police experience there. We’ve checked that. He has a degree in criminalistic science. We checked that, too. Not a suspicious move since he came here. He was in the Civil Branch for a few years, then was assigned to instructional duty. He’s got a perfectly clean record.”

Stern shook his head slowly, then looked down at the desk again.

“Just that little,” he growled. “He could have simply hated Rayson for some private reason. He could have seen him as an obstacle. We could care less about that.” He tapped at a paper.

“Or, he could be working with the Waernu. And that’s probable. He could even be an undercover agent for the Federation, though that seems a little improbable. He’s been here too long. Hah! He could be almost anything except what Rayson thought.” He looked up.

“Well, don’t let him go. Keep him out of circulation. In fact, you better have him put in tight confinement. We’ll look into him more closely later. Right now, I want to know what became of that Waern boy.”

The aide pointed at the papers on the desk. “The boy and his father are reported to have left their residence, your honor. It is thought they went with that same Donald Michaels who interfered with the original plan.”

Stern nodded. “The boy Rayson had right in his hands, and then let go. Yes.” He looked around the room, then got to his feet.

“Tell me, has any progress been made on locating the Waern ‘Book of Ancestors’?”

“No, your honor. Records has located and destroyed the last of the evidence here in Oreladar. But the Waern copy has not yet been located.”

Stern nodded. “Find out who is responsible for the long delay in discovering the Waern claim, Lander. That is inexcusable.” He frowned.

“Now, to the Waernu. Did anyone see them leave their home?”

The aide shook his head. “Observers say Michaels’ flier landed in the Waern courtyard. A few minutes later, it took off and headed toward the mountains. The observers were unable to determine how many people were in the flier when it departed. It left too abruptly and traveled too fast. They determined its direction, but were unable to follow it.”

“Valuable men! I think we should take careful note of all those people up at Riandar. Possibly they should be reassigned to duties more suited to their abilities. Tell me, did anyone have the elementary intelligence to have this flier tracked?”

“They tried, your honor. But it disappeared in the canyons, flying very low. Search fliers have been operating for several hours, but no trace of it has been found.”

Stern nodded. “Well, we won’t discuss it any further,” he decided. “You know my feelings on the Riandar people. I should say it would be safe to assume the Waernu are holed up in Michaels’ home. Get the exact location of that place. Then set up an Enforcement Corps operation.” He frowned.

“Get some men out to make sure those people don’t go into the hill country before we can take care of them. You can use the search planes for that. Then attend to your advance publicity and set up elimination. You’ll give that personal supervision, all the way through. Clear?”

The aide nodded.

“Very well. See that you make it simple. I’m not going to tell you how to handle this in detail, but I expect to watch a broadcast showing their removal within the next three days. Get started.”

“Yes, your honor.” The aide backed out of the room.

Stern watched the door close behind the man, then faced around as a dry voice sounded behind him.

“Real nice, Danny,” it said. “You went through it without a stumble. Even came up with something of your own. You’re learning, Kid.”

Stern glared at the scrawny man.

“I thought you picked those people up at Riandar. I thought you said they knew how to do things.”

The other shrugged and spread his hands. “Well, Danny,” he said, “you know how it is. Once in a while, we underestimate the opposition, and they slip one over.” He leaned back in his chair, staring at Stern.

“But maybe this way, it’s even better,” he added. “We get a few in the net we didn’t even suspect existed, you see?” He paused.

“I think you should have a talk with this Masterson yourself,” he went on. “Maybe you should tell him to give us some of this information he has, eh?”

Stern looked at him in annoyance. “I expect you and the rest of the people around here to do some work, Gorham. After all, I’m the regent. Do I have to do everything?”

Gorham got to his feet and brushed some of the dust from his trousers.

“I tell you, Danny,” he said seriously, “some of these little things, you have to be doing. Some of these things, only your talent will take care of, no?” He held up one hand, waggling a finger in the air.

Stern glared at him.

“Gorham,” he snapped, “I think I’ll have to remind you of your place.” He tapped himself on the chest.

“I’m the regent, remember? I’m the kingpin here. You’re just a senior executive secretary. You wanted it that way, and that’s the way it is. But I expect you to start doing some work. I don’t care how you get information out of that man, Masterson, but I expect you to get it. I certainly don’t intend to do your work for you. Now get at it!”

Gorham considered him for a moment, then walked slowly across the room till he stood before Stern’s desk.

“Now, Danny-boy,” he said softly, “don’t you go trying that funny stuff on old Jake. It don’t work so good, remember? Nobody ever tells old Jake he should do things. Nobody!”

He planted his left hand on the desk before Stern and leaned over a little.

“We got an agreement, you and I, remember? I do the thinking. Me—old Jake Gorham—I’m the brain. You got this talent, see. You tell people they should go do something, they go do it. But not old Jake. No, no. With him, it don’t work so good. Everybody else, maybe, but not old Jake.” He waved his head to and fro, keeping watchful eyes on Stern.

The younger man slammed his hands to his desk, pushing himself back.

“You listen to me, old man,” he snapped. “We had an agreement—once. And you’ve been using it to ride my back ever since. It’s come to an end. Right now.” He got to his feet, his deepset eyes seeming to flame.

“From now on, I’m the top man, do you understand?” His lip curled.

“I’m the regent. I’m the law. I tell these people what to do, and they do it. And I can tell them to take you out and shoot you. Don’t forget that.” His hand started toward a button on his desk.

Jake Gorham’s hand blurred into motion and a small weapon was suddenly in it. He pointed it at Stern.

“Sit down, Danny-boy,” he ordered menacingly. “Sit down. And listen. Listen real good.” He spread his legs a little.

“Like I said, I’m the brains here. I do the thinking. Remember back in Tonar City? Remember what happened, you tried once to run things for yourself? Remember who came along and pulled you out just in time?” He laughed shortly.

“Yeah, you need old Jake. You gotta have him. You think you just tell these people—they should do anything you want. Oh sure. That lasts for a while, maybe, but they get tired. Just like on Konelree, remember? And what do you do when a whole mob moves in on you? Eh? What do you do? You ain’t got the moxie to handle no mobs, remember?

“But old Jake, he thinks of things, and we both get along real good. Yeah, Danny-boy, you need old Jake.” He glanced down at his weapon, then waved it from side to side.

“But you know something else? Old Jake, he don’t need you so much. Oh, sure, it’s nice here. I like it real good. But I got along real nice for a long time before I picked you up, you see what I mean. You didn’t do no good at all. Talent, you got. But brains? No, them they didn’t give you. And they didn’t give you much guts, either, Danny-boy. Them, I got.

“And you know something else, Danny-boy? I got all kinds evidence. You done some pretty bad things here, remember?” He smiled, exposing yellow teeth.

“Real bad things, they wouldn’t like them at all. And I can prove all them things. Me, I ain’t got no responsibility. I’m just a poor, little old guy you keep around for laughs, remember?” He chuckled.

“You tell them to take me out and shoot me? I should laugh. You reach for that button. Go ahead. Stick your finger out. Then this thing here, it sings you a little song. And I go get some papers I got somewhere around here. And I go get some recordings. And maybe a few pictures. And then Old Jake’s a public hero. And he takes a lot of money and goes away from here, he should spend his old age some place where he likes it better.” He waved the weapon again.

“Still want to play?”

Stern’s face was bloodless. He dropped into his chair, then put his head in his hands.

“I’m sorry, Jake,” he said. “Sorry. I guess I’m just a little tired right now. Forget it, will you?”

“Sure, Danny-boy. Sure. We forget all about it. Now suppose we quit for the night, eh? Then in the morning, we get this Masterson fellow in here. And you find out from him just who he is and why he comes here. And you can let him tell us what he’s been doing and who he’s been working with, eh?” Gorham smiled and stuck the weapon back in his sleeve.

“We ain’t doing so bad,” he went on. “We ain’t doing bad at all.” He reached out to stir the papers on Stern’s desk with a forefinger.

“These people up at Riandar, they don’t do so good maybe on that Waern kid. But they don’t do so bad all the time. They get this Masterson, see? Right away, they’re on him, soon as this guy Rayson gets himself killed off.”

Stern nodded. “Yes,” he admitted, “at least, they did have the sense to pick up Masterson—after he’d done plenty of damage. They were pretty slow. And they missed the Michaels boy entirely. So now, the Waern boy is out of easy reach.” He frowned.

“We had things set up for an elimination on him, you know.”

Gorham wagged his head. “Makes very little. Him, we can get. Him, they take care of in a couple days. Same operation, they should just move it a few miles, eh? Your boy with all them buttons, he takes care of that, see?” He grinned.

“And that takes care of this Michaels kid, too.” Again, he poked at the papers.

“And here, we got another report. This young Michaels’ father, he talks to this guy Masterson on the phone. You see that? And right away, he heads for the mountains. Maybe he wants to talk to the hill people, eh?” His grin became wider.

“But somebody at Riandar, he gets a rush of brains to the head, see? And the border patrol, they challenge this old guy, you get it? Just a routine check, see, but the old guy, he don’t get the word so quick.

“So they don’t take no chances up there. They knock him down in some canyon up there.” He shrugged.

“So all this leaves this Masterson, you could talk to him, maybe he sings us some nice music.” He turned away.

“I stay around, back at my desk. Maybe I should think of a question or two while we talk, the three of us, eh?”

The royal gold and blue receded from the screen and Merle Boyce’s face looked out at his audience.

“This,” he said shortly, “is the second day of the hunt for the Wells gang.” He came out from behind his desk, his piercing eyes intent.

“For the past full day, this group of robbers have made their way toward the west. It is thought they hope to join rebellious hill tribes somewhere in the Morek region.” He paused.

“Late yesterday afternoon,” he continued, “these four men burned their way through a road block near Riandar. And despite reinforced blocks and stringent sky checks, they are still at large. All subjects of the realm are urgently requested to notify the authorities of any suspicious strangers.”

He faded from the screen, to be replaced by the figures of four men.

“In co-operation with the Enforcement Corps,” his voice continued, “we are showing pictures of the fugitives. We see here, Howard Wells, Merla Koer, Dowla Wodl, and Jake Milton.” The voice stopped for a moment, then continued.

“These men are regarded as extremely dangerous. Subjects are urged to make no effort to approach them personally. Notify the authorities immediately if they are seen.”

Don reached to the switch and snapped the receiver off.

“I don’t like it,” he said slowly. “I don’t like any part of it.”

“Think we might have visitors?” Pete looked at him thoughtfully.

Don nodded. “It could be just a build-up,” he said. “Did you get that thrust about the tribes?”

Jasu Waern cleared his throat. “You mean those four are perhaps——”

“I doubt if those four ever lived,” Don told him. “At least not with those names. If we have visitors, they’ll be more official—and a lot more dangerous.” He paused.

“Wish Dad had come back. I’d like to get you off to the hills. Not so comfortable, perhaps, but it would be safer.” He looked at the ceiling.

“Of course, with all those fliers chasing around right now,” he added, “it might be complicated.”

Pete looked at him curiously. “One thing I can’t figure, Don,” he remarked. “Why didn’t you head right on into the hills from Riandar?”

Don spread his hands. “Intended to, hang it,” he said. “They loused me up. Remember the dipsy-doodle I turned in that box canyon?”

“Think I’d forget?” Pete grinned. “Nearly got a busted head out of that one.”

“Yeah. Well, I’d planned to jump the ridge and go on over to a clan village I know. We nearly caught it right there.”

“We did?”

“Uh, huh. Some border patrol ship had a ripper. Lucky he got over-anxious. He cut loose out of effective range and shook us up. That gave me the news and I ducked for cover and streaked for home before he could get to us for a better shot.”

“And now, you think perhaps they are trying to hunt us down as they did my brother?” Jasu Waern shook his head. “But this—it would be impossible to represent us as….”

Don tilted his head. “Nothing impossible about it—if they know where we are.” He looked around the room.

“And it looks as though they do. Someone probably spotted my flier when I landed in your courtyard.”

Pete looked at him unhappily. “Maybe we moved right into his hands. Maybe we’re better targets here than we were in the city.”

Don moved his head from side to side decisively. “Never happen. This mythical Wells gang could have been holed up in the city, too, you know. And there, you’d have no warning. You’d have no defense and nowhere to go. This isn’t some little summer cottage, you know. We can give them a bad time.”

Jasu Waern shook his head sadly. “Yes,” he admitted, “we can, as you say, give them a bad time. But a flash or two from one of their inductors will destroy this house just as surely as it did my brother’s cottage.”

“Maybe.” Don smiled. “I’ve got some ideas on that, too. But there’s more to this house than you see from outside. This place was built during the border wars, you know. We’ve got a place to duck to.”

Pete stood up. “What’s that?”

“There’s a basement under this house. Shelters down there. Even total inductor destruction of the house wouldn’t hurt anyone down there.” Don pointed with a thumb.

“Got entry locks right out in the court.”

“But their clean-up crews. Where would you hide from them?”

Don shook his head, smiling. “They won’t do too much searching,” he said calmly. “If they actually do attack this place, they’ll get some genuine resistance. And there’ll be a Federation patrol out here right after the shooting, to investigate the destruction of a Galactic Citizen’s property.”

His smile broadened. “At least, that’ll be a good excuse. You see, Mr. Masterson’s alerted people at the Commissioner’s office. They know who’s here—or will, when the shooting starts.”

“But with this build-up, it will seem like an ordinary hunt for a criminal gang.” Pete shook his head doubtfully.

“No, I don’t think so.” Don walked over to the heavy door leading to the range.

“Better get some of the weapons up here now, though. We’ll have to give them a little show.”

Pete looked at him curiously.

“Why bother?” he asked. “Why can’t we just duck into the shelter and let ‘em blast? Then we could wait for the patrol.”

Don shook his head.

“The type of resistance offered will be a tip-off to the Guard,” he said. “I’m going to use an unusual type of weapon. Besides, Stern’s people have detectors. Remember those? There’s got to be life force in detector range, or they’ll assume we’ve either deserted the place or found refuge below ground. Then they would come in for sure. And they’d really search the place.” He smiled grimly.

“I’d rather take my chances on getting shelter from a blast after they commit themselves than take on a batch of those monkeys in a hand-to-hand down in the basement.” His smile faded.

“It’ll be touch and go, at that. The force of an inductor blast is nothing to joke about. We can roll into the ledges and hope, but we still might get singed a little.” He sighed and spread his hands.

“Well, I asked for work. Guess I’ve got it. Sorry you may get scorched around the edges, but——”

Pete looked at the heavy wall on the other side of the outer court.

“At least, we’ve got a better chance than Uncle Harle had. They probably tied him up. And no matter——” He shrugged.

“All right, Don, let’s get those weapons.”

Illustrated by van Dongen

“Well, here they come.” Don Michaels looked out of a weapons embrasure.

From the port, the advancing men were far more visible than they intended to be. One after another, they crawled and dashed through the grass, their weapons held before them. They concealed themselves from the house as best they could behind hummocks and clumps of grass. Then, weapons probing toward the house, they waited.

A couple of hundred meters from the house, a weapons carrier purred into position, wheeled to face the house, and stopped, the muted roar of its motor dying to a faint rumble.

Closer to the house, there was a hollow in the earth, a scar from some long-forgotten skirmish. Over the years, rain and wind had worked on it, softening its once harsh outlines. Grass had grown in, to further mask the crater, till now it was a mere smooth depression in the ground. From the edge of this depression, rose the slender rod of a speaker, a small, directional loud-speaker blossoming from it.

Michaels grinned and turned aside for an instant.

“Just like the big broadcasts, Pete,” he remarked. “Feel important? You’re going to have a big audience.”

“Kind of like it better if I were making a personal appearance. Be a lot nicer if I could talk to them—and they could see my face.”

“They can’t let you do that,” Don grinned. “You don’t look enough like any of those guys they’re supposed to be hunting. Spoil the whole effect that way.”

Pete looked at him thoughtfully.

“You know, they always tell people to throw their weapons out and come out with their hands in the air. What would happen if someone took ‘em up on it—like the wrong someone—like me, for instance?”

“Good question,” Don told him. “Saw a guy come out in one broadcast. Someone vaporized him. No way of telling which direction the spray came from, of course. No tracer on the beam.” He shrugged.

“Somehow, I don’t think it would lead to a long and happy life.”

“No.” Pete nodded. “I didn’t suppose it would.” He looked at the long target rifle in Don’s hands.

“You could have gotten several of them with that, while they were getting into position, couldn’t you?”

“Suppose so,” Don nodded. “But I’m saving it for a while. Got an idea, but it’s a one-shot and I’ll have to wait before I try it.” He paused as a head appeared close to the base of the loud-speaker stand.

“Well, the show’s about to start,” he added quietly. “Here’s the man with the serenade.”

The speaker disintegrated in blazing fury and Pete turned away from the glare, to look back at the house.

“Took your father years to get this place built the way he wanted it,” he remarked. “Shame you’re going to have to lose it this way.” He glanced over at his companion.

Don was stretched out in the prone position, his sling tight on his arm, the rifle extended.

“Yeah,” he said. “But maybe we won’t lose it—not just yet.”

He rolled, forcing his elbow further under the rifle.

“Look, Pete, I think I’ll wait till these guys are ready for the last act, but you better go ahead and take cover. They’ve committed themselves now. I’ll duck later, if I have to, but I’ve got an idea that just might work out.”

He laid his cheek against the stock, concentrating on his sights. The barrel moved up and down with his breathing, then stopped.

Pete examined him curiously, then looked out of his port.

The projector barrel was moving, to center its lens on target. As Pete watched, the lens barrel swung till he could see the glint of light on the outer focusing circles. As the rack with its charges started to face him, he moved back, preparing to roll into the narrow slit beneath the wall.

Now, the lens was pointing directly toward him, its iris beginning to widen. He slid off the ledge.

There was a sudden, snapping explosion near him. He looked up, to see the lens system disintegrate. The projector suddenly became a blue glare.

Pete watched as the tiny figures of the crew members flew back from their fiercely glowing weapon.

Abruptly, he realized he was in an exposed position. He ducked sideways, away from the opening, and covered his face.

There was a rumbling multiple explosion. Blinding light reflected from the walls of the house. A few tiles crashed to the court. Pete caught his breath again and risked an upward glance.

A tall pillar of flame had grown from the field outside. For long moments, it stood motionless, searching for a limit to the sky. Then it darkened. Smoke drifted toward the ranch house and bits of wreckage rained down upon house and field alike. Little puffs of smoke appeared in the sky, close by the still rising cloud.

“Pinwheel,” said Don calmly. “That’s one Dad couldn’t beat if he tried. Wish he’d been around to see it.” Suddenly, his forced calm deserted him.

“Oh, boy,” he yelled happily. “Like shooting snakes in a pit.” He shoved his rifle back through the port.

“Try to wreck our house, will you, you bums!”

A figure wobbled up from the field, weapon weaving unsteadily toward the wall. The rifle snapped viciously and the figure melted back into the ground.

There was another motion and a sudden spurt of dust followed immediately after the sound of a shot. The motion ceased.

The sound of the click of the rifle action was loud against the silence of the scene.

No more figures moved. Bright flames were growing—working toward one another, to form a widening lake of flame in the grass. Don sighed and started pulling the sling from his arm. Pete stood up, looking at him.

“I’m a little confused,” he said slowly. “I thought that weapon of yours merely threw a solid missile. The way you described it, I thought it was just … well, something like a long-range throwing sling.”

He looked out the port again, then pointed.

“But that weapons carrier was shielded. I didn’t think you could touch one of those with anything but another inductor.”

Don leaned the rifle against the wall.

“That’s the way they figured it, too,” he remarked. “But they forgot something.

“You see, rifles have been obsolete for so long everybody’s forgotten their capabilities. Everybody, that is, except a few crazy hobbyists. And no one ever thinks in terms of long-range missile throwers.”

“So?”

“So, I’ve been watching these clay pigeon shoots of theirs for a long time. They’ve had a lot of them on broadcasts, you know. And I noticed they always operate the same way. Actually … well, you saw them. They’re not too careful.” He smiled.

“Remember you remarked that I could have potted a few of them while they were getting into position? Only reason I didn’t was that I didn’t want to give them a warning.” He shoved his hands in his pockets.

“You see, they know they’re going to use that projector. The rigged speaker just makes it look good—as though the blast were necessary and unavoidable. That way, the public is convinced that the whole affair is a heroic battle against evil. See what I mean?

“So, they have everything all set up. Safeties are off. Activators are hot. Everything’s lined up so they can look sharp. Snappy operation.”

He shook his head with a smile. “But actually, they’re a little overconfident. Their field screen will stop any heat ray. No khroal charge can get through—it’d get damped. The screen will ground out a Nerne-Herzfeld couple, and no bunch of fugitives is going to be lugging an inductor around with them. So there can’t be any counter-battery fire. Result? The projector crew feels perfectly safe.”

His smile widened. “But that isn’t enough. They want to be comfortable, too. It’s hot inside a deflector screen and they’d get their uniforms all sweaty and out of press. Besides, the screen draws a lot of power and they’d have to rev up their motor. The noise would make it rough for the sound crew. Catch?”

Pete moved his head. “I begin to get the idea,” he said. “The inductors are real touchy when they’re armed. They can arc over and flare back in a real hurry if things get in their fields. That’s why the safety lens—and the iris.”

“Sure.” Don nodded. “Sure it is. And it keeps the beam tube nice and unobstructed. Dry, too. As I said, they’re pretty safe. Just like pigeon hunters.” He looked out at the field.

“Sort of funny how things can add up,” he added. “Here’s a guy who makes all sorts of plans. He’s got everything figured out and tied up with a ribbon. He’s got the whole Galactic Federation standing around, just watching. Not a thing they can do to him legally. And he’s got all Oredan in his pocket—all but one family and a few odd yokels he doesn’t even worry about. So he’s about to fix the family.

“Then someone else starts planning. And some little guy goes and slips a little chunk of fast moving lead down a lens barrel that nobody even thought of protecting. And everything goes wrong. All kinds of things happen. Like investigating patrols ordered in by the Stellar Guard. And conclaves.” He grinned and looked at the sky to the west.

“So,” he added, “a few little things add up. One family. One little piece of lead. One house that didn’t get blown up. One flight of——” He let his voice trail off and looked at his watch.

“Wonder where those patrol ships are. They should be in plain sight by this time, diving down the eastern slope.”

He narrowed his eyes, searching the empty western sky.

Pete looked around the courtyard. Broken tiles littered the ground. Here and there, lay bricks and bits of mortar. Some freak of backblast had torn a shutter off the house and it lay brokenly a few feet from him. He looked back toward the house.

One corner of the roof had been shattered and he could see broken roof beams. A cornice from the wall had crashed into the house front and bits of it lay strewn through a gaping hole in the living room wall. Stucco littered the narrow border of shrubbery around the house, whitening the green of the leaves.

And a twisted bit of metal caught his attention. Obviously, it was part of a flier. He shook his head and looked at the sky over the western mountains.

“Quite a blast,” he said. “Look, Don, are you sure anything’s coming to back us up? A couple more of these and we’ll be standing in an open field.”

Michaels reached up to stroke his face. “Right now, I’m not too sure about anything,” he admitted. “Except that next time they try to comb us over, they’ll take a few less chances.” He frowned.

“Mr. Masterson was pretty certain about things, but——”

He spun around and walked toward the flier port.

“You know, I think we’d better play it safe,” he went on. “Right now, we’ve got clear air. That explosion put everything around here on the ground, but hard. But that won’t last. Stern’s people will be flocking around here in a few minutes to see what went on. We better not be around when they arrive. Go get your father.”

He pulled the flier door open.

“I’ll have this thing warmed and ready to flit by the time you get back up here. Make it fast, will you?”

Pete had already dived down an escape slot. As Don started through his pre-flight routine, he reappeared. Jasu Waern followed him.

“What happened?” The older man looked around the littered courtyard, then at the flier which Don had pushed out of its cover. His eyes widened.

“But I thought they would use an inductor.”

“They tried,” Don told him. “Come on. Get in.” He looked anxiously at his instrument panel.

“Little risky,” he muttered, “taking off so fast. Synchs and generators haven’t had time to stabilize. But it beats letting them get in range for some more target practice.”

He eased a lever toward him and watched the pointers on a dial as the flier lifted. The red needle started to oscillate and he reached quickly to adjust a knob. The oscillation stopped. He looked overside.

“Hm-m-m,” he said, “so far, so good. Well, let’s have at it.”

He reached out and pulled a handle toward him, watching the needles. They remained steady and he nodded and pulled another control toward him, then gripped the control wheel.

The flier leaped into the air and surged toward the mountains.

Don sighed and made a minute adjustment on the synchro knob.

“Well, we haven’t flipped yet,” he said. “We’ll stay on deck all the way. Not such a good target that way. Take a look back there, Pete. See anything in the air to the east?”

“Yeah.” Pete had been looking back. “There’s plenty back there. And they’re in a hurry.”

Don jerked his head around, then glanced at the mountains before them.

“So are we. They built this thing to win races, not lose them. Hope they knew what they were doing.” He pulled a panel lever all the way back and the flier surged forward, pressing them back into their seats.

“Hang on,” he said. “Some of these corners are going to be tight.”

The ship swung into a narrow valley between two hills, bucking and twisting as Don worked the control back and forth. As a high cliff loomed up in front of them, he pulled the flier up, then around in a screaming turn. A second later, they almost touched the tips of trees as they swung around the shoulder of a steep hill. The flier dropped abruptly, seeking the floor of a gorge, then swung violently as it followed a swift flowing stream.

Don guided it into a side gorge, then suddenly pulled up, to jump through a notch in the surrounding hills. For an instant, the flier paused, hovering in the air over a deep, wide valley, then it dropped like a stooping falcon, sweeping sideways at the end of its drop, to come to rest under an overhanging rock formation. The pilot snapped off switches and leaned back.

“We’ve got a small-sized walk ahead of us,” he said, “but it’s through some pretty dense growth and we’ll be invisible from the air.” He grinned.

“The way I dove into that first canyon, anyone with detectors on me would assume I was heading for the Doer—if he knew the country fairly well. Hope that’s the way they know it—just about that well.”

He climbed out of the ship, holding the door open.

“Come on, Pete,” he ordered, “give me a hand and we’ll shove this thing back in the cave so it won’t be too easy to spot.”

Jasu Waern climbed out after his son.

“I shall help, too,” he said resignedly. “Which of the clans do we join?”

Don put a shoulder against the side of the flier. “Kor-en,” he said. “I know them pretty well. Matter of fact, the Korenthal wanted to adopt me at one time. Dad talked him out of it.”

Waern nodded. “The Kor-en are known to us,” he murmured. “Possibly——” He added his weight to the pressure on the flier’s side.

They pushed the machine far back into the cavern under the rock, then camouflaged its smooth lines with brush and rubble. Finally, they walked over the rough ground to a nearby thicket. Don paused, looking up. Then he pointed.

“There they are,” he said, “in a search pattern. Guess they got a detector flash on us when we jumped the ridge.” He shrugged. “Well, they’ve got a tough hunt now. We’ll detour through that line of trees to keep out of the open.”

He jerked his head, to point.

“There’s a narrow break in the cliffs way over there. When we get through that, we’ll come into Korelanni.”

Halfway through the narrow crevice, Don stopped and turned aside, to enter a narrow alcove that had been carved out of the rock. Hanging inside was a long tube of wood. Don rubbed his hands vigorously on the moss which grew on the rocks, then stroked the tube.

A tone resonated from the chamber, growing louder as Don continued to stroke the tube. After a few seconds, an answering note of different pitch could be heard. Don nodded and stepped back into the path.

“It’s all right,” he said. “They’ll meet us at the head of the path.” He smiled.

“This way, we don’t have someone dropping rocks on our heads.”

Pete looked up at the towering cliffs which almost joined overhead.

“You mean they’ve got guards up there?”

“Always,” Don told him. “Day and night. Right now, they’re at peace with everybody, but they never let their guard down. We’ll have a reception committee waiting for us.” He started striding up the steep path.

At the head of the chasm, five men waited for them. In their hands, they held sticks about two feet long. At the end of each stick was a thong, with a flexible leather pad which could hold a fair sized stone. Don bowed in the direction of one of the group.

“I know you, Korendwar,” he said.

The other bowed. “Michaels,” he said. “I know you. And these?”

Don looked at him, his thoughts going into overdrive. The form of address was all wrong. Always before, he had been Donald, of the clan Michaels—they abbreviated it to Michaelsdon. But what had gone wrong now?

He tensed a little, then relaxed. At least, it was a friendly greeting. One does not “know” an enemy. He extended a hand toward Jasu Waern.

“I bring the Waerntal, Jasu. And his son, Waernpeto,” he said.

The other nodded. “The men of Kor-en know the Waernu,” he said noncommitally. “You want dealings with the Korental?”

Don nodded. “The Waerntal would discuss clan affairs with the Korental.” he said. “I but serve as guide.”

“It is well. You and this clansman may rest by the wells.” Korendwar turned toward Jasu Waern, gesturing with his sling.

“I will conduct you to the Korental, your honor.”

Pete leaned against a mossy bank and watched one of the village women as she raised a clay pot from a well.

“Tell me, Don, why did you push my father forward to consult with the Korental? Why didn’t you go ahead and deal with him yourself? You said you knew him. Father doesn’t.”

“That’s just the point,” smiled Don. “I do know him. And I know his people, and his way of thinking.” He waved a hand to indicate the entire collection of huts.

“These people are about as formal as you can get, when business is at hand. Did you notice the way I talked to Korendwar? Migosh, I’ve hunted with that guy, rolled around in the dirt with him when we were kids, know him about as well as you’d know a brother. But he was on guard. And, friend, you don’t get informal with a clansman when he’s on guard.

“This is just like a little nation, and the Korental is just as surely a ruler as any king of a huge country,” he went on. “Even more so than most.”

He fixed his eyes on the council hut, across the narrow end of the valley.

“Everyone in his clan is his child—symbolically, at least. He tells them what to do. He tells them what to plant and when—and how much. He tells them when to hunt, and where. Governs their lives down to some pretty fine points. I mean, he’s as absolute as an absolute monarch can get.

“And if you want to get along with an absolute monarch, you treat him on his terms.” He glanced at his companion.

“Oh, I don’t mean this guy’s a tyrant or despot,” he added quickly. “These people are pretty proud. They wouldn’t like a dictator—as such. But the Korental doesn’t need force to govern his people. They do things his way because … well, it’s a matter of tradition. It’s the only honorable way to do things. See what I mean?”

Pete shook his head doubtfully and Don frowned.

“Pete, your family was originally a mountain clan. I should think you’d know these customs better than I do.”

Again, Pete shook his head. “I’m sorry,” he said slowly, “but I don’t. You see, my father and my uncle thought it would be better if I learned the customs and culture of your people and of the plainsmen. And they thought I should be familiar with the ways of the great cities.”

He looked across the village at the great tree which shaded the council hut.

“You see,” he continued, “my great uncle was king. And he had no children. He was getting old and it was agreed that if he died childless, his queen would then adopt me. And, of course, I would then be head of the Onaru, and king of Oredan.” He smiled wanly.

“The agreement was not made public, of course. And the queen no longer lives. But signatures and agreement are recorded at Oreladar. And they appear in the Book of the Waernu, against my name. References in the Book of the Waernu are so arranged that I may be quickly removed, to be placed in an already prepared place in the Book of the Onaru, if the time should come. This and the fact that my mother was the daughter of a brother of the king, places me in the line of kings of Oredan.” He shrugged.

“Especially since the king did, in fact, die childless.

“And this, in my father’s eyes, meant that I should know of the plains, of the cities, and of the galactics, since there, he said, lies the power and wealth of the present day Oredan.”

Don shrugged. “Wealth, maybe,” he said quietly. “I’m not so sure about the power. The pressure of History is a very real thing, and I seem to remember noticing that every time some king has gotten into a jam with one of the other kingdoms or with his own nobles, he’s had to raise the clans. And there have been times when that wasn’t easy.”

Pete nodded. “I know. The Onaru took the throne two hundred years ago, simply because the clans withheld support from the Chalenu—the Old Line.”

“Yeah.” Don picked idly at the bark of a tree. “And Stern’s been trying to get the clans into hot water ever since he took over.”

Pete looked at him for a moment, then looked about the village.

There was no orderly arrangement of houses, as could be found in town. Wherever someone had found a suitable spot, there he had embedded his poles. And there, he had erected walls, daubed them with clay from the nearby stream, and formed long, limber wands from the thickets into arched roofs, to be covered with long grass from the valley. There were isolated houses, and there were tight little groups of houses. Possibly, Pete thought, family groups.

No streets existed here, though generations of sandaled feet had beaten the ground into winding paths which led from houses to wells, and from wells to fields, and to the surrounding forest.

And there was no litter, as could be found in any city. No fallen twig or leaf was allowed to remain on the ground of the village. Grass and moss grew on unused ground and on hillsides, but before each hut, the growth gave way to the forecourt and the small garden.

Here and there, a bank by a path had been reinforced with clay cemented stones and over these grew the moss, to soften the hard outlines of the works of man. Here and there, a small, neat pile of material for building lay, to remind the onlooker that this was a still growing community. Pete leaned back.

“It’s quite a bit different from the plains,” he said, “and not as I thought it would be. I always thought the hillmen were wild and uncultured.” He turned toward Don.

“But you still haven’t really answered my question. Why is it my father has to talk to the Korental—alone?”

Don lifted a shoulder. “Simple enough,” he said. “Your father is the head of your branch of the family right now. It’s a pretty small clan branch—just the two of you, but he’s the clan head—the Waerntal. Right?”

“I suppose so. Yes.” Pete thought a moment. “Actually, I guess he’s tal over more than just the two of us. We are the senior line of the family.”

“Well, then. This is clan business. Your father wants to advance a member of his clan as a claimant for the throne of Oredan. He needs the support of other clans to do this. And this is important clan business. See?”

Pete rubbed at an ear. “I begin to get the idea, I guess, but it just doesn’t make too much sense. He could have you speak for him. Or I could plead my own case, for that matter, couldn’t I?”

“Makes all kinds of sense.” Don shook his head. “Look, you can’t talk to the Korental—not on even terms—not now. You’re just a clansman. If he accepts you as king-to-be, then you’ll be a sort of super clan head. Then you’ll be able to discuss policy with him. But even then, only as an equal—never as a superior. He actually acknowledges no superior.” He pointed to himself, pausing.

“Me? Good grief, I’m not even in this. I’m just a hired hand—not even a member of your clan. Before I could open my mouth, I’d have to be adopted into your clan and designated as a clan councilor. Even then, the tal would have to open the discussion.

“Oh, I can talk to the Korental as an individual who wants to get help from some of his people for a hunt, sure. And we can then arrange an exchange of goods. That’s between him and me. But if I tried to talk to him on this affair, he’d throw me out of the village.” He rubbed his cheek thoughtfully.

“And, come to think of it, if he thought you’d asked me to intervene, after he’d tossed me out, he’d probably feed you to the Choyneu. That, he’d regard as a selling of honor.”

Pete looked at him quizzically. “I can just see him—or any other person, monarch or no—throwing you anywhere you didn’t want to go. I’d say the throwing would be the other way.”

Don laughed softly. “Oh, that.” He shook his head. “Well, let’s just say I don’t think I’d care to try it out on a whole clan at once. Things might get a little complicated.”

A short, heavily muscled man came out of the council hut. In his hands, he held his slender sling-stick. He paused as he got to the door, then shook out the thong. For a moment, he stood, glancing across the end of the valley, then he wound the thong about the stick, securing it at the end with a half-hitch.

Again, he looked in the direction of Don and Pete. Then he held up the stick and beckoned to them.

Don pushed himself away from the bank.

“Well,” he said, “here we go. They’ve come to some sort of a decision.”

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