There was a moment’s pause before the answer came. “Right. Well, shout if you need help, chief. Well be here waiting.”

There was a brisk click as the unseen guard shut off his transmitter.

“Whew!” Rick let out his breath. “That was close.”

“We may not be out of it yet,” Hosato murmured thoughtfully. “Sasha, was it just me, or did our caller sound suspicious to you, too… there at the end?”

“It isn’t just you,” Sasha confirmed. “It occurs to me 'Sammy' could be a nickname for Samantha.”

Hosato was kneeling at Gedge’s side before she finished speaking.

“Gedge!” he snarled, shaking the injured security chief. “I don’t want to have to hurt you any more. Where’s the spaceport?”

“I can tell you that,” Sasha supplied. “It’s upstairs, directly over us.”

“You’re sure?”

“Come on, Hosato. Do you think we don’t track their layout and security as close as they track ours?”

“Okay, let’s go,” Hosato said, rising. “There’s probably a squad on their way here already.”

“What about your gear?” James asked suddenly.

“Leave it,” Hosato ordered. “I’ve got everything I need!”

“But your swords!” the boy insisted.

Hosato hesitated and looked at the youth’s expression. For the first time he realized who had shot the guard at the door, and why.

“Okay, James,” he relented. “Bring the epees but that’s all. We’ll have to move fast.”

“Say, Hosato,” Sasha interrupted. “Do you still need this pig. I’ve waited a long time to have him in my sights.”

Her blaster was pointed levelly at Gedge’s head.

“Yes!” Hosato insisted more hastily than was necessary. “Rick. Bring him along. He might be our ticket out of here.”

The small party traversed the stairs to the spaceport without further incident, though Hosato felt an increasing pressure for speed. He was sure that somewhere in the complex a counterattack was being prepared.

“What are you expecting to find in the spaceport?” Sasha asked.

“Hopefully a ship to get us away from this complex and off this planet,” Hosato replied.

“I mean, specifically what are we going after. Do you know if there’s a ship standing by for takeoff?”

“No,” Hosato admitted. “We’ll just have to take pot luck.”

Sasha shook her head. “It doesn’t work that way. They might have some company ships posted here, but it takes at least half an hour to get them ready for takeoff.”

“I know that!” Hosato snapped. “If we have to take the half-hour, we’ll just have to take it. I’m hoping there’s something ready to go. Either way, we won’t know until we check it out, will we?”

“Don’t get your back up. I was just asking.”

Hosato sighed. The strain of the last thirty-six hours was starting to tell on his nerves. He had catnapped in the crawler, but except for that, had had no sleep since the robot uprising.

“Sorry, Sasha. I’m just a bit tired is all.”

“Shh!” came Rick’s call from ahead.

Hosato hurried up the stairs to join the mechanic at the head of the formation. Rick was squatting on the stairs, a half-dozen steps short of where they terminated at a small landing. Gedge was sitting beside the mechanic, staring groggily at his shoes.

At the far side of the landing were two sets of airlocks with large glass windows in them. Through the farthest set Hosato could see a uniformed security guard apparently in casual conversation with a man in a gray jumpsuit.

“Security,” Sasha hissed in his ear from close behind him. “The double doors are a safety precaution against a failure in the hookups with the ships. They can be opened only from the inside.”

“That’s what we have Gedge here for,” Hosato replied grimly. “Rick. Get Gedge up there and rap on the glass. Don’t let them see your face!”

Rick nodded his understanding. He grabbed Gedge by one arm and stood up boldly in full view of the door. Dragging his dazed charge with him, he strode to the first lock and began rapping frantically on the glass.

Surprised, the interior guard spun around and took in the scene at a glance. What he saw was one of his fellow guards supporting their chief, who was obviously in bad shape physically. Human nature took over.

The guard whirled and shoved his companion aside. He hammered two buttons in the wall panel with his fist, and the double doors opened.

“It’s a trick!” Gedge managed, coming suddenly to life and trying to pull away from Rick.

The guard realized his error—too late.

Rick released Gedge and was through the door in one long bound. “Don’t even twitch, sonny!” he said darkly, leveling his blaster at the startled guard.

The others swarmed through the doors after him, Hosato roughly dragging Gedge with them. Rick relieved the guard of his blaster as Sasha turned her attention to the man in the jumpsuit.

“I’ll ask once,” she announced. “Who or what are you?”

“I’m a… a taxi driver. That’s all!” the man stammered. “I—. I’ve got a ship standing by to fly some bigwigs to a conference on Theta. I’m nobody important. Really!”

Sasha laughed mirthlessly. “Nobody important. Hey, Hosato. It looks like you win. We’ve got a ship.”

“It’s about time we got lucky,” Hosato growled. “Where is it?”

A shrill beeping interrupted them. A communications light was flashing on the wall panel.

“Answer it!” Rick ordered, gesturing at the guard with his blaster.

The man licked his lips nervously, then complied. “Spaceport!” he said into the speaker.

“Seal the spaceport,” came a voice over the speaker. “Possible sabotage attempt in progress. They’ve got the chief as a hostage.”

The guard’s eyes darted to the group in front of him before replying. “Code Victor acknowledged.”

Rick sprang forward to shove him away from the panel, but it was too late. There wasn’t a member of their party that doubted the fact the guard’s signal had pinpointed their location.

“That tears it,” Hosato snarled. “Sasha. Is there any way they can stop our takeoff?”

“Only through the doors there,” she answered briskly.

“Well, we’ll just have to see how good their security system really is. You. Where is your ship and what kind is it?”

“Pad Eight,” the man responded. “It’s a Starblazer II. I Luxury Cruiser.”

“You’d better not be lying,” Sasha snarled.

“It’s there. So help me God. I don’t want any trouble.” The man seemed genuinely terror-struck.

“I can fly it,” Rick volunteered.

“Okay, check it out, fast!” Hosato ordered.

“Cover him, James,” Rick snapped, indicating the guard, and was gone, sprinting down the corridor.

“Gedge!” Hosato said, turning to the security chief. “Fm letting you go—”

“Wait a minute!” Sasha interrupted.

“Shut up, Sasha. Do you hear me, Gedge. I’m letting you go. The men we killed got in the way, but I don’t kill people for convenience. Listen to me, Gedge. Convince those bastards about what’s going on at Mc-. Crae. We weren’t lying. Convince them, Gedge, or on my family’s honor I’ll come back here and kill you, and all the guards in the galaxy won’t be able to stop me!”

“It’s here!” came Rick’s call from down the corridor.

“All right, get him out of here,” Hosato ordered, shoving Gedge into the arms of the waiting security guard. “And move it, before I change my mind. You. The pilot. You too. Move it!”

The pilot needed no additional urging as he hastily followed the others through the doors.

Hosato slammed his hand against the door controls, and they hissed shut, sealing the spaceport against their pursuers.

“Let’s get out of here,” he said, starting down the corridor after Rick.

“Hosato,” Sasha said, overtaking him. “Sometime we’re going to have a few words about letting Gedge go.”

“It’s the only chance we have of convincing Raven-steel—”

They both spun at the sound of blasters behind them. The hounds were trying to burn their way through the airlocks.