given to himbefore evening. I found I could not do this without first borrowing yourkey for a pattern."
There was a frightened look in her eyes as they went to the door andback to the servant. "_No_ ... don't try to make a key!"
"Yes, your highness." The servant bowed and turned away.
A familiar gravelly voice spoke from behind them:
"Ah ... an unscheduled little meeting, I see!"
It was Narf, anger on his face, already within the doorway as theservant went out it.
"We were going to talk about the Space Guard," Lyla said in anemotionless tone. "Lieutenant Hunter has promised to show how SpacePatrol methods will improve it and--"
"By a coincidence, Sonig and I were discussing military matters only afew minutes ago," Narf said. He looked at Hunter. "I'm afraid that Sonigand I agree that the Terran Space Guard is quite out of date, now._The_ fighting force of the galaxy is the Verdam's Peoples Guards."
Narf spoke to Lyla, "You may go ahead and talk with this lieutenant ifyou wish to, but it's a waste of time. I'm arranging to have Sonig sendPeoples Guards officers here to supervise the rebuilding of the SpaceGuard.
"And now"--there was insinuation in Narf's tone as he spoke toHunter--"I have to give Sonig a demonstration of my skill with weapons.He insists on it--he has heard of several of my modest feats."
Narf left the door open behind him so that by turning his head as hewalked, he could see the two inside.
"I suppose I might as well go," Hunter said.
Lyla did not answer. She sat motionless, staring unseeingly before her,and he wondered if she was thinking of how very soon Narf would be kingand his authority as great as hers.
She did not notice when he quietly left the room.
* * * * * * * * *
Rockford was waiting in the cabin, still in the easy-chair.
"Well," Rockford said, "what do you think of her?"
Hunter tried to keep the personal dislike out of his coldly formalreply:
"If you refer to your suggestion that I not make love to her, sir, I canassure you that such a suggestion was never necessary. I happen to havea code of ethics."
"I didn't say 'make love'. I said, 'fall in love'. That's quite ethical.Did you complete your discussion with her?"
"Well ... no."
"You must do that this afternoon, then. Can't let anything as importantas that be delayed."
Hunter stared at him, trying to find one small grain of sanity inRockford's actions. The Verdam empire already had Jardeen within itsgrasp, and Vesta, and the end for Earth was inevitable. And Rockfordslept, and drank beer, and regarded it as very important that the VestanSpace Guard discussions--of a change that Narf would never permit--becontinued without delay.
He walked slowly into his own room. In the nightmare situation offrustration there was one single sane and stable conviction for his mindto cling to: Supreme Command would by now have received his message andshot back the reply that would relieve Rockford of his command. Perhapsit wasn't yet too late--
Then his mind reeled as a new conviction struck it.
There was a sheet of paper on his bed--a message.
_His_ message!
... SITUATION EXTREMELY CRITICAL ... VAL BORAN ALREADY CONVINCED BYSONIG'S PROPAGANDA ... MUST REPORT ROCKFORD IS UTTERLY INCOMPETENT, HISMIND AND WILL DESTROYED BY ALCOHOL ... REPEAT: ROCKFORD IS DOINGNOTHING, HIS MIND DESTROYED BY ALCOHOL....
The words screamed up at him and he felt the sickness of one who seesthe last faint hope shattered and gone. All was lost, now....
He went outside, feeling a savage desire for violence rising above thesickness.
"Rootenant!" Alonzo came bounding to meet him and slid to a halt withhis saucer feet scattering gravel and the idiotic grin on his face. "Imair your retter and you owe me six fig cook--"
It occurred to Hunter that it was not Alonzo that should be punished.He, Hunter, was the one who deserved execution for ever entrustinganything so important as the message to an imbecilic animal.
He said with cold distinctness:
"The ... letter ... is ... inside."
"Oh?" Alonzo blinked. "I sure mair something, awr right. After Mr.Rockford correct it."
"_Correct it?_"
"Oh, sure. Mr. Rockford, he up rong before you this morning to find meand say you are writing a retter rast night and I must bring it by forhim to make awr your mistakes over again."
_So Rockford was watching all the time, pretending to be in a drunkensleep...._
"Rootenant--" Alonzo shifted his big feet impatiently. "You stirr owe mesix fig--"
Hunter swung around and strode away, afraid he might decide to choke theanimal after all. A culture of twenty worlds was the same as alreadydestroyed, and he was held in a maddening quagmire of helplessness by acrafty alcoholic and a dog with the mind of a small child.
"Ah ... my boy!" Rockford came out of the cabin, beaming as thoughnothing had ever happened. "Look to your left, among those ghosttrees--Narf is demonstrating his quick-draw skill to Sonig. Narf issupposed to be a very dangerous man, you know."
Hunter looked, and saw Narf whipping up the blunt, ugly spread-beamblaster--known to soldiers as the Coward's Special, because at shortrange it could not miss and would always cripple and blind a man forlife even though it would not always kill him. Sonig was standing by,nodding his weasel head and smiling in open admiration.
"Of course," Rockford said, "Sonig isn't mentioning the needle gun allVerdam envoys carry up their sleeve. He's flattering Narf's ego for areason--he intends to have Vesta, as well as Jardeen, sewed up for theVerdam empire when he leaves here."
"And so far as I can see," Hunter said coldly, "Sonig never is goingto have anything vaguely resembling intelligent resistance to hisplans."
"Ah, yes ... so far as you can see," Rockford agreed amiably. "But youobey my order to take Lyla for another walk and everything will turn outall right. In fact, I'll speak to her about that right now."
Hunter stared after Rockford as he walked away. There could be nopossible shred of doubt--Rockford was insane!
The breeze shifted and the voice of Narf came:
"... Certainly no weapon for a timid man, this spread-beam blaster. Haveto meet the enemy man-to-man at close range."
"In that respect, too," Sonig said, "you remind me of our great GeneralPaluk. His skill in hand-to-hand combat was something that--"
"Rootenant--"
Hunter quivered and steeled himself.
"Rootenant--" Alonzo came to a flopping halt beside him. "I terrPrincess Ryra and she say I are bad to be mad at you. So I not mad, evenif you didn't give me my pay."
"Thank you," Hunter said acidly. "I was deeply disturbed by yourresentment."
"Oh, I know, you don't rike me. But I think you not as mean as you act.But Rord Narf--he is. I terr you, he awready mad enough to kirr you."
"What? Lord Narf wants to kill me?"
"Oh, he know you hord Princess Ryra's hand awrmost awr the way down thehirr this morning. Mr. Sonig, he see you, and he run and terr Rord Narfand Mr. Boran, too."
"But I was only helping her down the hill."
"Rord Narf, he are going to say mean things about it to Princess Ryra,too. I know. He are awrways saying mean things to my Princess Ryra."
Alonzo sighed, a sound strangely humanlike in its sadness.
"Who wirr watch over my Princess Ryra after she marry Rord Narf? Hesaid, 'The first thing to go around here wirr be that stupidbrabber-mouth animar that are not worth what it costs to feed it.' Ithink maybe he are afraid that if he ever hit my Princess Ryra, I wirrkirr him." The brown eyes looked up at Hunter, and suddenly they wereunlike he had ever seen them; cold with deliberate decision. "I wirr,too."
* * * * * * * * *
Hunter was still standing by the cabin, thinking of what Alonzo hadsaid, when Rockford returned.
"I also stopped by to see V
al Boran," Rockford said. "While you're offwith Lyla, we'll go to the city. Lyla is giving us free access to theRoyal Library and the records of a neutral world carry more weight thananything I could say. Not that it's going to change his mind any--butit will give me a chance to work on him in another way."
Rockford went into the cabin as Val Boran came up the path, PrincessLyla walking beside him. She was saying, "... And anything we have inthe library is yours for the asking."
They were close enough for Hunter to see her expression as she looked upat Val and added with what seemed a touch of wistfulness, "I'll be gladto go in with you and Mr.