ention record fair, psychological report
poor."

His frosty eyes met Phillips'. "Louis Phillips, age twenty-six,
five-ten, one-eighty. Hair brown, eyes brown, complexion darkly
tanned--that was before Luna, wasn't it, Phillips? Convicted of
unjustified homicide, having assaulted a jet mechanic so as to cause
death. Detention record satisfactory."

The blonde girl was last in Varret's review. "Donna Bailey, age
twenty-three, five-five, one-fifteen. Hair blonde, eyes blue, complexion
fair. Convicted of manslaughter by negligence, while piloting an
atmosphere sport rocket in an intoxicated condition. Detention record
satisfactory."

Varret fell silent, regarding them with cynical disgust. His lips
twisted slightly with distaste. "There we have it," he said. "A
violent-tempered thief from the business world; an over-expensive
purchase by a rich playboy who became his widow by her own negligence; a
mentally-unstable fool who thought he was artistically gifted, and a
rocket engineer who was too brutally careless with his own strength when
irritated by a space-fatigued helper. I wonder if you'll do...?"

Phillips felt impelled at last to speak. "Just what plans do you have
for us?" he demanded harshly.

"Nothing complicated," replied Varret, matching the tone. "We need you
to perform a mass murder!"

Phillips blinked, despite his prison-learned reserve. He heard the girl
suck in her breath sharply, and felt the youth beside him begin to
tremble.

"I have shocked you, I see," sneered Varret. "Well, I assure you, it
shocks me also, probably a good deal more since I have lived a normal
life. However--this is the background:

"About three months ago, we had reports of the outbreak of a deadly
plague in one of the asteroid groups. As near as can be determined, it
was spread by the crew of an exploratory rocket after the discovery of a
new asteroid. It began to sweep through the mining colonies out there
with the velocity of an expanding nova!"

"Where was your Health Department?" asked the man named Brecken in a
sneering tone.

Varret frowned at him. "Several members gave their lives trying to learn
the nature of the disease. We have no information to date, except a
theory that it attacks the nervous and circulatory systems, because the
reports indicate that the reason of the victim is markedly affected as
the disease progresses. Not a single survivor is known--they all die in
raving insanity. We do not even know with