war. I can't think of a better way for a man to
die."

Meta set the orbit, then called operations.

"Trouble getting through," she said. "I have a robot landing beam
response, but no one is answering the call."

A man appeared on the empty screen. He was beaded with sweat and had a
harried look in his eyes. "Kerk," he said, "is that you? Get the ship
back here at once. We need her firepower at the perimeter. All blazes
broke loose a minute ago, a general attack from every side, worse than
I've ever seen."

"What do you mean?" Kerk stammered in unbelief. "The war is over--we
blasted them, destroyed their headquarters completely."

"The war is going like it never has gone before," the other snapped
back. "I don't know what you did, but it stirred up the stewpot of hell
here. Now stop talking and get the ship back!"

Kerk turned slowly to face Jason, his face pulled back in a look of raw
animal savagery.

"You--! You did it! I should have killed you the first time I saw you. I
wanted to, now I know I was right. You've been like a plague since you
came here, sowing death in every direction. I knew you were wrong, yet I
let your twisted words convince me. And look what has happened. First
you killed Welf. Then you murdered those men in the cave. Now this
attack on the perimeter--all who die there, you will have killed!"

Kerk advanced on Jason, step by slow step, hatred twisting his features.
Jason backed away until he could retreat no further, his shoulders
against the chart case. Kerk's hand lashed out, not a fighting blow, but
an open slap. Though Jason rolled with it, it still battered him and
stretched him full length on the floor. His arm was against the chart
case, his fingers near the sealed tubes that held the jump matrices.

Jason seized one of the heavy tubes with both hands and pulled it out.
He swung it with all his strength into Kerk's face. It broke the skin
on his cheekbone and forehead and blood ran from the cuts. But it didn't
slow or stop the big man in the slightest. His smile held no mercy as he
reached down and dragged Jason to his feet.

"Fight back," he said, "I will have that much more pleasure as I kill
you." He drew back the granite fist that would tear Jason's head from
his shoulders.

"Go ahead," Jason said, and stopped struggling. "Kill me. You can do it
easily. Only don't call it justice. Welf died to save me. But the men on
the island died because of your stupidity. I wanted peac