way
you might believe."

Gray eyes met brown, held so straightly. Then Hume spoke. "I believe
you. But I have told you the truth."

"I have never doubted that--only the amount of it. There must be more
talking later on--you understand that?"

"I never thought otherwise." Hume set the needler inside the flitter.
The civ smiled again, this time including Vye in that evidence of good
will before he walked away.

Hume made no comment. "That does it," he told his companion. "Still
want to go?"

"If you do--and you can't do it alone." No man could take on the
valley and Wass and his men.

Hume made no comment. They had rested briefly after their return to
the safari camp, and Vye had been supplied with clothing from Hume's
bags, so that now he wore the uniform of the Guild. He went armed,
too, with the equipment belt taken from Rovald and that other's
weapons, needler and tube. At least they started on their dubious
rescue mission with every aid the safari camp could muster.

It was mid-afternoon when the flitter took to the air once again,
scattering the hovering globes. There was no alteration in the ranks
of the blue watchers waiting--for the barrier to go down, or someone
in the camp to step beyond that protection?

"They're stupid," Vye said.

"Not stupid, just geared to one set of actions," Hume returned.

"Which could mean that what sends them here can't change its orders."

"Good guess. I'd say that they were governed by something akin to our
tapes. No provision made for any innovations."

"So the guiding intelligence could be long gone."

"I think it has been." Hume then changed the subject sharply.

"How did you get into service at the Starfall?"

It was hard now to think back to Nahuatl--as if the Vye Lansor who had
been swamper in that den of the port town was a different person
altogether. In that patch of memories into which Rynch Brodie still
intruded he hunted for the proper answer.

"I couldn't hold the state jobs. And once you get the habit of eating,
you don't starve willingly."

"Why not the state jobs?"

"Without premium they're all low-rung tenders' places. I tried hard
enough. But to sit pressing buttons when a light flashed, hour after
hour--" Vye shook his head. "They said I was too erratic and gave me
the shove. One more move on and it would have been compulsive
conditioning. I turned port-drift instead."

"Ever thought of trying for a loan premium?"

Vye laughed shortly.