It was possible. In the universe all things were possible.

Many strange cultures had risen from seeds planted by the founders of small colonies governed by freakish convictions. Holphera where men walked backwards for fear of meeting death. Andhara where no woman looked directly at the face of her child but always used a mirror. Inthelle where the old were given all they could desire for a month and then killed and ceremoniously eaten. Chage where each birth had to be accompanied by a death. Xanthis where women ruled and men groveled at their feet.

"Earl?" Lavinia looked up with luminous eyes. "You are so quiet. Don't you believe me?"

To argue with her was useless. She, all of Zakym, believed in the living presence of the dead-against such conviction what chance had logic?

"Earl?"

"I was thinking." His hand fell to touch the silken strands of her hair. "Unless you are willing to attack at night there is only one other thing to do. Gydapen cannot be a fool. He will have anticipated the possibility of the Council moving against him and will have taken elementary precautions. If we assemble a large force it will be spotted. Therefore we must go in with the minimum number."

"How many?"

"Two." He heard the sharp intake of her breath. "Just you and I in the largest raft you have. We'll pay a visit to the barren wastes."

"And?"

"That depends on what we find." Some wine remained in the goblet and Dumarest drank it before rising to his feet. "You had better get some rest now. Tomorrow you need to look your best."

They left at dawn, rising high and heading towards the west before swinging in a wide circle which would bring them back over Gydapen's land. The raft was a plain, commercial affair, devoid of any decoration aside from a blazon on the prow. The body was open, edged with a solid rail, the controls shielded by a curved, transparent canopy. The engine which fed power to the anti-grav units was too small for the bulk of the vehicle and progress was slow.

From where she sat at his side, Lavinia said, "Earl, you are a man of many surprises. Where did you learn to handle a raft?"

"I forget."

"And to fight? Where did you learn that?"

On Earth as a boy, a time he would never forget. Life had been hard and devoid of comfort. There had been no toys, no easy times, regular food or loving care. He had hunted vermin with a sling, gutting his prey with a jagged stone, eating the meat raw because a fire would have betrayed his position to those who would have stolen his kill.

"Earl?"

With the insistence of a child she wanted an answer or, bored, merely wanted to talk.

"It doesn't matter."

"It does to me." Her hand reached out to touch his arm and she wondered if he guessed how little she had slept. "I'd like to know all about you. You are so strong, so self-sufficient. Don't you ever get tired of traveling? Have you never been tempted to settle down?"

Too often, yet always something had happened to smash the dream and, always, the yearning was present to find his home.

"At times, yes."

"But you never did? Of course not, it was a stupid question. If you had then you wouldn't be here now."

Her hand closed on his arm, the fingers digging into his flesh, then was snatched away as, abruptly, the raft tilted and fell. An air pocket of lesser density, a momentary hazard quickly overcome and again the raft rose and leveled. Below the terrain became a blur, the ground blotched with hills, rolling scrub, grassy plateaus, the silver thread of a river.

"Taiyuah's boundary," she said. "And there is an emergency stop-over."

It was a low, black building fitted with a single door and holding, as Dumarest had learned, bottles of wine, food, some medical supplies. A haven for those who should be lost or crash nearby.

"You have many of them?"

"Of course. We set them up for common use. People use them if they are caught by night."

"As protection against the Sungari?"

"Yes, Earl. As a defense."

A bolster to the illusion, he thought, as the building passed beneath them far below. Once create a situation and props fell automatically into place. The curfew, tunnels connecting close-set buildings such as were to be found in the town, and in the open ground places which could shut out the darkness.

The raft dropped again, rose, headed slowly on its way. The lift was strong as was to be expected in a transport but that was all. Dumarest glanced at the sky judging the position of the suns. They had passed the zenith and were edging towards the horizon. It had been a long, monotonous flight and the woman was hungry.

"Can we land and eat, Earl?"

"We haven't the time."

"But-"

"Eat as we go. You can handle a raft, of course? Good. We'll take turns at the controls. Keep us high. I want to arrive with the suns behind us."

Two hours later the hutments came into sight.

Dumarest was at the controls and he veered the raft, watching, studying the terrain. The buildings were set in a row, another cross ways at the rear, one, larger, placed well to one side. Before them the ground was level, set with swollen bags set on tripods.

"They weren't here before, Earl." Lavinia looked up from her binoculars. "What are they?"

"Water containers. The hut crossways to the others is probably a latrine. The large one could house the man I spoke of."

"The mercenary?"

"If there is one, yes. He'll be using it as living quarters and command office. The range?" Dumarest scanned the terrain as he kept one hand on the controls. In the field of his binoculars the view skittered as the craft hit uneven air. "Look for a firing range of some kind. A flat space ending in a mound. There could be targets."

A moment, then she said, "Nothing like that, Earl. Not that I can see. There are some cairns set well to one side. A row of them."

"Any men?"

"A few. They are facing the cairns. They seem to be holding something."

"Guns." Dumarest lowered the binoculars. "Those heaps of stone are targets. Get ready now. We're going in."

It was madness, a display of naked audacity and yet, as Dumarest had pointed out, Gydapen had no reason to be suspicious beyond the range of normal caution. The arrival of the guns, as far as he knew, was still a secret. Lavinia, aware of his interest in her, intrigued as any woman would be in a similar situation, would naturally pay a visit. And, as a member of the Council, she had every right to inspect the proposed mining installation.

Things he had painstakingly explained during the journey, impatient with her objections.

"A spy!" she'd blurted. "You want me to act the spy. Just like Taiyuah!"

"He was right."

"But-"

"If you know a better way let me hear it. No? Then do as I say."

And now they were slanting down in the glare of the suns to skim over the buildings and come to a landing close beside the larger construction.

The man who came to greet them was a worker from Gydapen's estate but one who had undergone a subtle change. It was manifest in the way he stood, the tilt of his head, the something-a touch of arrogance?-in his eyes.

Yet his voice was gentle and his words polite.

"My lady! How may I serve you?"

"You know who I am?"

"Of course. You are the Lady Lavinia Del Belamosk. A member of the Council-"

"And a close friend of your master. Is he here?" Then, before the man could answer, she snapped, "Never mind. I was to have been met. Well, perhaps he has been delayed. While I'm waiting you will show me around."

She carried herself well, speaking with a curt imperiousness, forcing the man's attention. For a moment he hesitated, then bowed, extending a hand to help her descend from the raft. Dumarest watched as they headed towards the open space then, dropping over the far side of the craft, walked without hesitation towards the nearest hut.