Dwight V. Swain

“ Gadar was almost to the screen's center now.
Shane said: "You're like that dark star, Kyrsis. What men can see is beautiful—but beneath the surface you're both all mystery. Where did you come from? Where are you going? And why? I always come back to that one question: why, why, why?"
She came very close to him, then, and what might have been sorrow was in her face, her eyes. "I've told you, Shane. To me, life is a sacred thing ... more sacred than you can ever dream. To see it wasted as yours would have been is the sin above all sin. And there was Reggar. ”

“ But the great lobed eyes that saw in the dark were pure Fantay, and the scaly roughness of the mottled skin was Pervod. The bulge of the skull went with Mars; the peculiar, pad-footed stride with the swamplands of Io. Hybrid, mongrel, the thing was a queer, off-trail mixture of all the races of Mars and Earth and Venus, and the gods of the far stars knew where else.
And there, at its waist, hung the belt of the Chonyas.
"I remember," Shane said. "You're Reggar, Quos Reggar—the slaver, the theol-peddler." Deliberately, insultingly, he spat on the floor. ”

“ The Earthman laughed harshly. "Send out the word to break the Federation fleet into squadrons, each to stay far from the others, and all to strike at Gadar. We'll see how many meteor swarms our friends down there can muster!"
"And the rest of us—the Malyas, Chonyas—?"
"You'll follow me," Shane said. He took the jet-globe. "I'll set the course."
Kyrsis' eyes were like great violet flames. "Pay him no heed, Chonya!" she cried hoarsely. "Kill him! Lock him away! He is of Earth, and he has gone mad with fear for his homeland! He takes you there to try to battle another, greater meteor swarm! ”

“ Shane the slaver, the worlds will call you."
"And then?" clipped Shane.
The note of triumph in the mongrel's voice rose higher. A scaly fist came up, in a gesture that spoke of arrogance and power. "Chaos will sweep the void, Earthman—and I shall sweep the asteroids! The fools in the Federation will hang deadlocked for a time, for some still fear war more than they fear raiders. So long as that deadlock lasts, the void is mine! The Chonyas have given up their war fleets; they cannot strike back. Yet no matter how they cry of raids and beg for mercy, no one will believe them. ”

“ Quos Reggar slashed back bitterly. "He is a legend, a madman who has carved his destiny across the void." He slapped the great Chonya belt that girded him. "Do you think that weakness won this belt? He is built of blood and iron! Even I confess it, though I hate him. But you cannot let yourself think of that now. For he must live, and he must raid, and he must be seen, if we are to break the power of the Federation and open up the void to slaving. Trust me, I know—"
Shane said: "I once knew a man who trusted Reggar. ”

“ We could have taken such a planet only by conquest. Would your worlds have liked that, Shane? Would they have been willing to see us come in and seize their homelands? You fought out of pride, for the belt the Chonya chieftains gave you. Would the worlds of your system do less if we tried to invade them?"
Shane stood mute.
Kyrsis' arm slipped about him. The rich purple lips came close to his. "Come with us, Shane! Join us!" she whispered. "For a million aching years I have sought a man like you. ”

“ Shane did not speak.
"A hundred years, Earthman? A thousand? Ten thousand? A hundred thousand?" Again she laughed—wildly, up and down the scale. And then, steady once more: "Shane, I first drew breath a million years ago! Our science has kept me as I am—young in body and mind and heart. But without new life—without the living slaves we buy—I would wither and die in months. This child,"—and she gestured to the limp, dead body of the Chonya girl—"what did she know of life? ”

“ Other dark, cold-eyed fighting men stood by the mirrored door to the huge hybrid's quarters.
Talu was with them, her face aglow with fierce joy. "Malyas, Malyas—!"
The silver woman, Kyrsis, stood silent and apart. But shadows of strain showed in the lines and hollows of her face.
"We have done our work well," the leader of the dark men said. "We have the Earthman, Shane. We have Reggar, the mongrel. We have the silver woman. There'll be joy and feasting at Amara when we ramp our ships."
"You are of Amara, Malya?" ”

“ It dissipates and scatters, transmuted into useless forms by a process that not even our science can reverse." Her voice fell. "Then, Shane, your planet dies."
Shane stared at her. "So you bought slaves—"
"Of course we bought slaves!" A note of hysteria crept into the silver woman's laugh. "Power, you talked about. Why would anyone buy slaves in a universe where power is free? What we sought was life—life in a form we could drink up, before our bodies finally died!" She came close to Shane, her pale face smooth and glowing, the violet eyes afire. "Look at me, Earthman! ”

“ Shane asked.
The other's dark eyes gleamed. "We are of Amara, Earthman—and before you die, you'll wish you'd never heard of us or our asteroid! Other races may let the slavers raid and not strike back. But we claim blood for blood—"
Shane said: "I am gar of the Chonyas, not a slaver. Ask Talu, the slave girl. She is of your people—"
"Who takes the word of a captive woman?" The Malya laughed thinly. "We Malyas have raided for slaves ourselves, in our day. A woman's heart goes with her man, not her race."
"Check with others, then—"
"We have checked already. The word is out: you raid with Reggar. ”

“ With a tremendous, savage effort, he hurled the silver woman from him.
"You'd steal my life as Quos Reggar stole my belt!" he shouted. Stark murder was in his eyes.
"No, Shane—! No!"
"Words!" the Earthman lashed fiercely. "Words, to lull me as you lulled that Chonya child!" He caught Kyrsis' arm, dragged her up from the place where she had fallen. "You talk of life as if you, your people, were the only ones who knew the way to live it. But life belongs to each man, alone—his precious own, to waste or hoard as he sees fit—"
The woman asked: "And what will you do, now that you have decided?" ”

“ Talu shook her head. "No, not here. This is only a ramping-spot—some small moon the slavers have taken over. But I have seen a woman here, a silver woman—Kyrsis, they name her." A momentary tremor rippled through the Malyalara. "She is evil ... more evil than words can tell. They say that she is the agent for those who buy. But where she comes from, why her people seek slaves—that I do not know."
"And who serves her? Who is the raider, the starbo whose wolf-pack gathers in the slaves?"
"His name is Reggar, Quos Reggar—"
"Quos Reggar!" Shane spat the name as if it were an epithet. ”

“ Shane flicked the switch. "Blast, then, Reggar! Blast—but you'll blast the Lady Kyrsis with me!"
Beside him, Kyrsis screamed, "No Reggar! Not that—not that! The meteors—"
Shane snapped the switch. "The meteors—?"
The silver woman's poise was gone. She shook her fist, and the glittering metallic hair came tumbling down about her shoulders. "You'll see, Earthman! You'll see! We have weapons such as you've never dreamed of—"
Shane's eyes flicked back to the long-range visiscreen—to the silver fleet that raced towards Gadar. ”

“ Then the great room exploded into a cacophony of hate, a tumult of affirmation: "Yes, yes—!" "Seize him!" "Jail him!" "Burn him down!"
Two uniformed Fantays and the Mercurian from the door rushed towards Shane.
The Earthman stood as if frozen in his tracks. Then, explosively, he leaped backward, twisting, and of a sudden the light-pistol that had swung at his hip was in his hand. ”

“ It loomed like a monstrous metal ball, glistening with the hood of structure that encased it.
"The swarm is following us now," the commander said. "It moves with us, traveling even faster than are we." His lips twisted wryly. "Their control is getting better all the time."
Shane stared into the visiscreen. It was as if the satellite were hurtling up to meet them. The exploding speed of it made the screen seem almost to whirl.
And still the meteors swarmed and blazed around them.
"Thirty seconds more," the Chonya said. "We must brake by then, or crash instead of ramp." ”

“ Kyrsis whispered. Her pale hand touched the Earthman's arm. "I tell you, Shane: there is none. How many years have our scientists sought it? How many eons of spatial time? But always, the answer is no. We must have life itself—humanoid life, like that of this girl here. No other can be transmuted to our bodies."
"If life is an element, as you say, a thing that wells up with creation, out of the birth of a planet, then you could have moved to another planet," Shane said in a dull, flat voice. "If life is gone from Gadar, then you could have migrated, picked a new home." ”

“ It will be your second dose. Madness is just one more away."
Shane stood very still. He looked from Kyrsis, with her pale ethereal beauty and silver hair and translucent skin, to Talu, the slave girl—dark, tempestuous, all Malya; then back to Reggar again. Instinctively, his muscles tensed.
The mongrel said: "You'll take the dose, Earthman—because if you so much as move a hair, I'll burn your arms off!" The light-gun in his webbed hand was rock-steady.
"Talu—"
"Yes, Sha Reggar." Quickly, efficiently, she stepped to the Earthman's side. "Twist your neck, Sha Shane." ”

“ His jaw was hard. "I swore my oath on the star-stone of Hiaroloch, Reggar," he slashed harshly. "There's nothing in this world or any other that will make me break it." And then, with savage force: "Get on with your killing, butcher—and make sure your first beam hits me true, for it will be your last!"
The mottlings stood out on Reggar's scaly face. The light-gun thrust forward, and muscles stood out along the webbed hand's bones. "Perhaps there is a thing you have forgotten, chitza!" he snarled. "Perhaps you do not recall—the theol!" ”

“ Reggar sneered. "Loot will always buy someone in the Federation. But you—you fight from hate; and that is different."
"Then why haggle with me? Why not kill me now, if indeed you fear me?"
"Why does anyone bargain?" Again the mongrel shrugged. "Because you have something I want and need—something I cannot get without your aid."
"Well? What is it?"
Thoughtfully, the great lobed eyes surveyed the Earthman. The rasping voice sank lower. "It is sanctuary, Gar Shane. That is what I seek ... a place in the asteroids to hide, away from the eyes of the Federation. ”

“ Shane bared his teeth in a death's-head grin. "To your ramps, Shi Kyrsis. Even slavers carry a fleet alarm."
"A fleet alarm—?"
"When a space ship wallows through the void, out of control, a crewman throws the switch on the fleet alarm box. It sends out a distress call on a Federation beam—a call so strong that it can reach to the farthest star."
"And then—?"
"The fleet command sends aid." The Earthman laughed thinly. "They send a patrol most often, or even a single ship. But when they get a call straight out of the core of Gadar, they'll waste no time on mere patrols or squadrons. ”

“ The Earthman lunged for it, staggering wildly. Only collision with the hull of the space ship kept him from pitching to the ground again.
"What? You don't want it?" cried the Pervod, sidling closer. "I thought you were gar of the asteroids, yanat—high chief of the Chonyas! Why don't you take your belt?"
Again Shane lunged. But this time the Venusian did not dart away. Instead, he ducked beneath the Earthman's outstretched arms and hurled his whole weight into Shane's middle.
Shane catapulted backward under the impact and crashed against a heavy-thewed Uranian. ”

“ A Paulsini projector, focussed on your ship. They captured your minds with it—yours, and all your crews'."
Shane stared at her incredulously. "A Paulsini that can reach out into space and take over a ship—? You're mad as a ban!"
"They say it is the strongest Paulsini mind-control beam the universe has ever seen, Sha Shane," Talu replied. "It was ten Earth years in the building. The power output would send a space ship beyond the stars."
Shane's eyes narrowed. "'The strongest Paulsini beam the universe has ever seen'," he repeated slowly. ”

“ For a long moment he peered through the vision slot in silence, then backed away again. "A slaver is a slaver, Dylar. Some are small, and some are big. But this is too big for any slaver. The whole surface of this moon is covered with a rabbit-warren such as this, twelve levels deep. We find power converters by the million—more than a major planet could use, even in the days before the Federation began to broadcast free power to all."
Another of the Chonyas broke in now: "The Uranian says the Paulsini lies just beyond the next stop, Gar Shane—and his fear runs too high for him to lie." ”

“ You will never believe them until you see them. We have conquered time and space and matter—"
"And the child is dead," Shane said.
"The child—" Kyrsis broke off, and a shadow crossed her face. "Yes, the child is dead."
Unspeaking, the Earthman waited. His temple veins no longer throbbed, but his jaw was hewn of granite.
Kyrsis said: "There are so many things your childish science knows that are not true—and one of them is the nature of life."
Shane studied her, narrow-eyed. "So? In what way?"
"You think that life comes into being when certain conditions are correct. But we know otherwise." ”

“ Shane nodded grimly. "Theol breaks the will. Not even a Malya can fight, with the hunger for it in him." He broke off. "And then, Malyalara—?"
"Then the slave ships came. What else?" Again Talu's ripe lips took on the bitter twist. "They came by the score—whole fleets of them, blasting and killing and hunting us down. The Federation had taken our proton batteries and our fighting ship away, and theol had broken the men who should have led us. So they stripped Hidalgo bare: every man, every woman, every child—"
Shane's fingers dug into the slave girl's arms. ”

“ Shane answered bleakly. "Call it madness, not habit. It works on the brain a hundred times worse than wormwood—and a thousand times faster."
"You live for it," the mongrel nodded, chuckling. "Night and day, you dream of it, they say. You'll steal for it, fight for it, kill for it. With every dose, you need it more. And nowhere is there a cure." ”