ote chance."

Yuan Saltario broke in. "All they care about is their damned sterile
destiny! They don't care about people. Well we do! We care about
something to live for. The hell with the destiny of the Galaxies! They
don't know, and we'll be gone before they do know."

"They know plenty now. O'Hara's beamed them in."

"So we must hurry," Portario said. "Three days, Commander, will you
protect us for three days?"

A Council offense punishable by instant destruction with United Galaxies
reserve ionic weapons in the hands of the super-secret police and
disaster teams. And three days is a long time. I would be risking my
whole Company. I heard Rajay-Ben laugh.

"Blast me, Red, it's so damned crazy I'm for it. Let's give it a shot."

I did not know then how much it would really cost us. If I had I might
not have agreed. Or maybe I would have, it was good to know people could
still have such dreams in our computer age.

"Okay," I said, "beam the full Companies and try to get one more.
Mandasiva's Sirian boys would be good. We'll split the fee three ways."

Yuan Saltario said, "Thanks, Red."

I said, "Thank me later, if we're still around."

We beamed the Companies and in twenty minutes they were on their way.
Straight into the biggest trouble we had had since the War of Survival.
I expected trouble, but I didn't know how much. Pete Colenso tipped me
off.

Pete spoke across the light years on our beam. "Mandasiva says okay if
we guarantee the payment. I've deposited the bond with him and we're on
our way. But, Red, something's funny."

"What?"

"This place is empty. The whole damned galaxy out here is like a desert.
Every Company has moved out somewhere."

"Okay," I beamed, "get rolling fast."

There was only one client who could hire all the Companies at one time.
United Galaxies itself. We were in for it. I had expected perhaps ten
Companies, not three against 97, give or take a few out on other jobs.
It gave me a chill. Not the odds, but if Council was that worried maybe
there was bad danger. But I'd given my word and a Companion keeps his
word. We had one ace in the hole, a small one. If the other Companies
were not here in Menelaus yet, they must have rendezvoused at Galaxy
Center. It was the kind of "follow-the-book" mistake United would make.
It gave us a day and a half. We would need it.

They came at dawn on the second day. We were deployed across five of
the dead planets of Menelaus XII in a rin