LOMBAR HISST WAS INSANE!

The Grand Council hall was quiet with a strange hush. Here and in the streets, over Homeview, people heard that eerie, babbling voice. But there was no definable response. Heller breathed a sigh of relief, thinking this would come off all right after all. The people seemed distracted from the subject of Earth. Maybe, as they did not seem to be displaying ferocity toward Hisst, they had exhausted much of their frenzy. Now, if he could just keep them calm… "Gentlemen," he said to the vast table, "I do not think the prisoner is in any condition to answer charges and, as we all know the record, there is no point in another public trial. We know he sought to ascend the throne illegally and donned the robes of a monarch, so let us dispense with further formalities and find him guilty of that. Are you agreed?" Heads nodded at the table. No voice was lifted in dissent. Heller took heart. "I propose," and he turned to a clerk who was now on duty, signalling him to be very careful to inscribe what he was going to say, "that the proclamation cancels all his posts-assigned, assumed or otherwise. We shall cancel, as well, all orders, appointments, assumptions, manifestoes, proclamations, ordinances, instructions or regulations of whatever kind issued by him in writing, verbally or by others for him in their own names. We hereby cancel as well any and all pay, pay arrangements made by, for or on behalf of said subject, including all pledges and debts and any claim that could be made by him or on him. Agreed so far?" The heads at the table nodded. Heller was simply amplifying a form common in courts-martial where an officer, found guilty of a felony of magnitude, was being dismissed from service. Then, to this, Heller added the civil declaration used when a person was reprieved from execution without being found innocent. It was a nice touch, for Hisst had used this countless times on people for his own ends and, in fact, had used it on the Countess Krak. "He is hereby declared a nonperson. Anything he does may be declared or deemed illegal. Anything done to him is not actionable under law." The clerk was writing busily. Heller thought with some elation that he was going to get away with this without another riot: the wrath against Earth seemed to have cooled off. He said, "He would seem to be incapable of responding to routine communication. It seems obvious that he is not sane. Do you gentlemen agree?" The officials at the board looked at Hisst. The marine captain had stepped away with the small voice amplifier: Hisst was just mouthing the same words as before. His eyes were weird, a sort of overbright yellow. The officials looked back at Heller and nodded. "Therefore," said Heller, "the prisoner is relegated to the Confederacy Insane Asylum and is to remain there in custody for the remainder of his li–" Suddenly Hisst whipped around. He roared in a deafening voice, "DOWN ON YOUR KNEES! DOWN ON YOUR KNEES, YOU RIFFRAFF! I AM THE GOD OF ALL THE HEAVENS!" He had yanked the chain out of the hands of the marine! He held it in the air before him. "I WILL STRIKE YOU ALL DOWN! WORSHIP ME! WORSHIP ME!" Any hope Heller might have had that the population would be less emotional about Earth suddenly went up in smoke. The first whisper ran through the hall, "The man is mad!" Then a louder voice: "Use of Earth material has driven him insane!" Then, "Look what Earth can do!" Then a screaming shout, "We've been in the hands of a man driven crazy by Earth!" It all came in a building rush of sound. And it was capped by the howling shout from a thousand throats, "KILL HIM!" The captain thought he had been ready. He was not. He had had five marines surrounding Hisst. The crowd hit them! Daggers out, they stumbled back, trying to bar the surge. Twenty more marines charged in a phalanx, plowing people away. They got to the crumbling circle. Screaming people fought to get at Hisst to tear him to bits. The marines, blades held horizontally, fought to establish a ring. People were going down, people were being trampled, people howling with ferocity and rage still tried to fight inward. The trumpets and cymbals were blaring and clashing for order. A whistle in the mouth of the marine captain was shrieking for reinforcements. Fifty Domestic Police who had been stationed outside blasted through the door, stingers flashing. Sparklewater bottles were being thrown. Three hundred Fleet spacers armed with coils of safety line rushed through the door swinging!

SHAMBLES!

Heller stood up. He got out his hand blastgun and set it to maximum noise. He fired repeatedly into the air! No result! Then he saw through the hedge of tan uniforms that still sought to defend the prisoner that Hisst was crawling toward this end of the room. Heller went over the raised table in a headlong vault. He used his arms as though he was parting waves. The backs of the defending marines were to him. He grabbed down and got Hisst by the collar. He towed him free. He crawled under the table, dragging his burden behind him. Heller emerged back up on the dais. Hisst swung at him. Heller grabbed the man again in a paralyzing grip. He held him by the back of the collar. "I GOT HIM!" shouted Heller in that piercing Fleet voice. "HE DIDN'T GET AWAY!" A Homeview lighting man in a balcony hit him with a spot. The red uniform of Hisst was glaring bright. Eyes in the room turned from battle and swung to the dais. The twenty marines suddenly strung out in front of the split-level of the table, preventing further rush. "THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR ASSISTANCE!" shouted Heller. "BUT HE CAN'T ESCAPE AGAIN! I'VE GOT HIM!" A sigh of relief came from the embattled throats. The riot was over.

A marine major wound Hisst round and round with chains and then, at Heller's whispered direction, wound them around some more. He carted Hisst off to an upper balcony and put him there with electric daggers pointed at his throat, on display and out of the reach of the crowd. Army casualty teams were going through the hall, handling the injured and picking people up. Heller sat back down in his chair. A voice sounded just behind him. "You just got a sample of what will happen if you try to give Earth an easy ride." It was the Countess Krak. He turned. She had brought Hightee and the Master of Palace City. Heller went down the rear steps to them. He pulled their heads close to his and whispered some urgent instructions. The Master said, "That's awfully short notice!" "You better learn to open up your throttles, Master," said Hightee. "You're dealing with Jettero Heller. My brother wants it, he'll get it!" "I did NOT say I would not do it!" said the wizened old man. "Crown and I have already got a good working arrangement going. I love it." "That's better!" said Hightee. "We haven't got much time. COME ON!" They rushed off, the Countess with them. Heller sat back down in his chair and spent the next five minutes cursing Madison. These people were at overheat on the subject of planet Earth: "Mob hysteria" did not even begin to describe it. He had six proclamations to issue: he had not even completed two of them. The mop-up was still going on. It was all right. He needed the time. He became aware of somebody standing down below the raised end of the table. It was Bis. He was laughing. "That's the first time I knew athletics went with that post," he said. "Giving a reason for the riot and then solving it to stop it is the funniest gag I think I've ever seen. You're a wonder, Jet!" "You want this job, Bis?" "Good Heavens! What could possibly be wrong with it?" "Being expected to kill five billion people including friends is what's wrong with it. Here, I'll give you my tunic." "Oh, no! But I suddenly see what you mean. Can I help?" "Yes. Go up to that balcony and help that marine major prevent Hisst from doing anything else foolish. We're not through with him yet." A medical Army general approached Heller and gave him the casualty figures as though this were a battle, not a conference. Because electric daggers had been set to paralyze, only knockouts and minor injuries had resulted. The general went back to the table. Heller glanced up to where they had Hisst in chains on the balcony, then he surveyed the room. He trusted passions were spent enough for him to finish this second proclamation. He signalled for the cymbals and, when Ihey clashed, he said in a rush, "If you will vote now on the Hisst proclamation as outlined so far, we can conclude this second____________________