ent rocket dome.
Normally, it was never dark in the inhabited parts of the asteroid; a
modulated twilight was considered more conducive to the slumber of the
handicapped. But it wasn't twilight as they neared the rocket dome--it
was a full-scale rehearsal for the darkness of interplanetary space.

Docchi stopped before the emergency airlock which loomed solidly in
front of them. "I hope Nona was able to cut this out of the circuit,"
he said anxiously.

"She understood, didn't she?" asked Jordan. He reached out and the
great slab moved easily aside in its grooves. "The trouble with you is
that you lack confidence."

Docchi, listening with a frown, didn't answer.

"Okay, I hear it, too," whispered Jordan. "We'd better get well inside
before he reaches us."

Docchi walked rapidly into the darkness of the rocket dome. He allowed
his face to become faintly luminescent, the one part of his altered
metabolism that he had learned to control, when he wasn't under
emotional strain.

He was nervous now, but his control had to be right. Enough light so
that he'd be noticed, not so much that details of his appearance would
be plain.

The footsteps came nearer, accompanied by a steady volume of
profanity. Docchi flashed his face once and then lowered the intensity
almost immediately.

The footsteps stopped. "Docchi?"

"No. Just a lonely little light bulb out for an evening stroll."

The rocket pilot's laughter wasn't altogether friendly. "I know it's
you. I meant, what are you doing here?"

"I saw the lights in the rocket dome go out. The entrance was open, so
I came in. Maybe I can help."

"They're off, all right. Everything. Even the standby system." The
rocket pilot moved closer. The deadly little toaster was in his hand.
"You can't help. You'd better get out. It's against regulations for
you to be in here."

Docchi ignored the weapon. "What happened? Did a meteor strike?"

The pilot grunted. "Not likely." He peered intently at the barely
visible silhouette. "Well, I see you're getting smart. You should do
that all the time. You look better that way, even if they're not
usable arms. You look...." His voice faded away.

"Sure, almost human," Docchi finished for him. "Not like a pair of
legs and a spinal column with a lightning bug stuck on top."

"I didn't say that. So you're sensitive about it, eh? Maybe that's not
your fault. Anyway, you'd better get going."

"But I don't want to go," said Docchi deliberate