r which Tom
knew he used when he was on the defensive, "that I had my own special
reasons for being here. I'm _not_ a hero, Corbett! Never was and never
will be. You're strictly the hero type. Tried and true, a thousand just
like you all through the Academy and the Solar Guard. Strong is a hero
type!"

"Then what about Al James?" asked Tom. "What about that time in Atom
City when you defended the Academy?"

"Uh-uh," grunted Roger, "I wasn't defending the Academy. I was just
avoiding a fight." He paused and eyed Tom between half-closed lids.
"You'll never do anything I can't, or won't do, just as well, Tom. The
difference between us is simple. I'm in the Academy for a reason, a
special reason. You're here, like most of the other cadets, because you
believe in it. That's the difference between you, me and Astro. You
believe in it. I don't--I don't believe in anything but Roger Manning!"

Tom faced him squarely. "I'm not going to buy that, Roger! I don't think
that's true. And the reasons I don't believe it are many. You have a
chip on your shoulder, yes. But I don't think you're selfish or that you
only believe in Manning. If you did, you wouldn't be here on the _Lady
Venus_. You had your chance to escape back in the rocket tube, but you
_came back_, Roger, and you made a liar out of yourself!"

"Hey, you guys!" yelled Astro, coming up behind them. "I thought we left
that stuff back at the Academy?"

Tom turned to face the power-deck cadet. "What's cooking below, Astro?
Were you able to get rid of the radiation?"

"Naw!" replied the cadet from Venus. "Too hot! Couldn't even open the
hatch. It'll take a special job with the big equipment at the space
shipyards. We need their big blowers and antiradiation flushers to clean
this baby up."

"Then I'd better tell Captain Strong right away. He's going to get in
touch with Commander Walters at the Academy for orders."

"Yeah, you're right," said Astro. "There isn't a chance of getting those
people back aboard here now. Once we opened up that outer control deck
to dump that tube, the whole joint started buzzing with radioactive
electrons."

Tom turned to the ladder leading to the control deck and disappeared
through the hatch, leaving Astro and Roger alone.

"What was that little bit of space gas about, Roger?"

"Ah--nothing," replied Roger. "Just a little argument on who was the
biggest hero." Roger smiled and waved a hand in a friendly gesture. "Tom
won, two to on