m to use his ID code alone to access the
Imperial priority band, something he'd done before only with highly
sophisticated equipment, and project an image of himself in open-shirted
uniform to the Palace, to the Emperor's private comset.

He made the comscreen's viewpoint his own, to avoid mistakes, so when
the screen activated he found himself looking at the Emperor's head,
bent over the inevitable stack of printout paper, from the familiar low
right three-quarter view. "Just a minute, please," Davis said tiredly,
without looking up.

"Of course, sir." Tarlac sensed the Emperor was too fatigued, too
distracted, to recognize his voice right away. His Majesty had changed
in the three months since Tarlac had left Terra; his short-clipped hair
was almost totally white, his shoulders were less erect, and his shirt
more rumpled than he had tolerated then.

When the Emperor did look over at the screen, Tarlac was shocked to see
the strain etched into his face. Davis looked ten years older, and
utterly worn out. Then fatigue gave way to a startled grin. "Steve!
You did it! Will you be back soon?"

"Yes, Your Majesty, to both. I'm on the Traiti Homeworld, and I'll be
leaving, aboard one of their cruisers, in about five hours. Palace ETA
is noon tomorrow, your time." He raised a hand to forestall the
Emeror's beginning objection. "I know that's impossibly fast by
Imperial technology, sir, but we'll be getting a one-time-only boost
from a sort of super-computer the Others left here."

"The Others." Davis frowned, then shrugged. "I won't look a gift
horse in the mouth. Captain Willis reported what Fleet-Captain Arjen
told you. Steve, can you end this damn war?"

"I can't, sir, no. What I can do is arrange things so you and the
Traiti rulers, their Supreme and First Speaker, can try to end it."

"Good enough. After those people we massacred on Khemsun, I'll take
anything I can get." Davis looked bitter, angry. "Maybe you'd better
give me the whole story; I can ask questions later. I don't want you
missing your ship."

Tarlac grinned. "They'd wait for me, sir, but that is a good idea.
And if you wouldn't mind taping it, I think it should be made public."

"You're the Ranger on-scene; recommendation accepted." Davis touched a
control on his comset. "All right, Ranger Tarlac. This is for the
record."

"Very well, Your Majesty. I assume the record already holds the
Empress Lindner's log tapes."

"Th