Don't be silly, mother, Larak said derisively.

Not in that sense. Rowan, Afra answered her. I suspect Damia was as much a surprise to him as he has been to her.

Hurry, Larak cautioned him. She's returning. And boy, is she exhausted!

Afra suppressed a feeling of annoyance that the curious childhood link between Damia and Larak gave him the edge in sensing Damia's return. He turned his mind to the debate, as decision and strategy were settled in the moment before Damia's capsule landed back on Auriga.

"Larak. I thought I felt you near," she cried happily as she saw her brother, the picture of casual relaxation, perched on the edge of the console.

"Just thought? You usually know," he said, crowing with boyish delight. "This alien sure has got you wrapped up and tied like a present. See how the mighty have fallen."

When Damia flushed, Larak roared with laughter.

"I've got to meet this guy," he said.

"I've always felt that I was building experience and training for one special reason," Damia said, her eyes shining, "and now I know what it is!"

"The whole Sector will know in a moment if you don't lower your 'voice,'" Afra said, sharply, to give Larak a chance to control the shock the boy was feeling as he witnessed Damia's exultation.

Resentfully, Damia dampered her emotional outpouring.

"I suppose you arrived with an appetite like a mule," she said sourly.

Larak's face was a study in innocent hurt.

"I'm a growing boy, and while you're out courting, Afra's getting overworked, and leaner and hungrier."

Damia looked guiltily at Afra.

"You do look tired," she said with concern. "Let's all push over to the house and have dinner. Larak, why are you here?"

"Oh, Dad wants Afra to pinch-hit on Procyon. Two high T's are down with one of the local viruses and traffic is backing up. Say, what's this alien ship like? Crew or full automation for a void trek?"

Her hand poised over the cooking dials, Damia hesitated. She looked at her brother blankly.

"Oh, you men are all alike. Details, details!"

"Well, sure," Larak replied. "But if details like that bore you, they fascinate me. I'll ask him myself."

"You can't reach that far!"

"I planned to hop a ride with you tomorrow."

Damia hesitated, looking for assistance from Afra, who shrugged noncommittally.

"Oh, for glory's sake, Damia. This is no time to be coy," her brother said.

"I'm not being coy!" she exploded. "It's just that… just that…"

"Who're you kidding?" Larak wanted to know, letting his temper rise with hers. "You're gone on this guy, and how do you know he's even anything resembling a man?"

"His is a true mind, brilliant and powerful," she said haughtily.

"That's great for fireside chats, but no damned good in bed."

Damia reddened, half with fury and indignation, and half with sudden virginal embarrassment at her brother's accurate thrust.

"You're insufferable. If it weren't for me, we wouldn't have been warned at all."

"Warned?" Afra leapt on the choice of word. Perhaps she was not as completely bedazzled as they'd thought.

"Of this momentous meeting," she went on, oblivious to the implication. "You've touched him, Afra. Don't you agree?"

"That it's a brilliant mind? Yes," and Afra nodded judiciously.

Damia caught his sour undertone. "Oh, you… you're jealous, that's all." And then she frowned, looking at Afra with sudden suspicion.

"Hey, you're letting my dinner bum," Larak said, pointing.

"And you say that women gossip," Damia exclaimed, quickly lifting two pans from the heat. "It's a mercy nothing is burned."

They ate in strained silence, Larak and Afra concentrating hard to'maintain a convincing surface of thought. They hardly needed to because Damia went off into her own private reverie, ignoring them completely.

"You may be infatuated with this Sodan," Larak said, "but it doesn't affect your cooking. Doesn't even taste scorched."

Too much a woman not to be pleased by even a brother's praise, Damia relaxed.

"He isn't an advance scout for a second invasion force, I gather," Larak addressed Afra.

"No. In the very brief touch I had," Afra replied quickly, "he's been traveling much longer than twenty years."

Larak whistled appreciatively, just as if he didn't know this already.

"Did you take a look around at the details my sweet sister is uninterested in?" he asked.

"No. There were no obvious visual images and I was only concerned with recognition."

"He has eyes," Damia replied loyally. "We've discussed the concept of sight. You must take into consideration that he is also the controller of the ship, and the drain on his energies reaching me and managing his crew and ship must be enormous. It certainly is on me."

"Yeah. You need your beauty sleep—bad," said Larak.

"I'd like to see you do half as well."

"Children! Cut it out!" Afra intervened authoritatively.

Larak and Damia glared at each other, but the long habit of obeying Afra held.

"Both of you, get to bed," he added. "Snarling at each other in the worst example of sibling rivalry I've seen since you returned from Isthia's an opinionated ten-year-old. Makes me wonder how your father dared put you in as Aurigan Prime."

"If there's anything that annoys me more than Larak acting fraternal, it's you, Afra, making like the older generation." She spoke coolly, but her flare of temper had subsided.

Afra shrugged, relieved that his diversion had worked before Larak inadvertently showed Damia why he was probing these particular areas.

"At least, this generation's representative has sense enough to go to bed when he's out on his feet," he muttered. As he passed Larak, the boy winked.

The next morning at breakfast, no one looked as if he had slept well. Afra kept a surface rumble going in his mind to mask both tension and anxiety. Larak delivered a running monologue on his son. Damia was also closely shielding. When they reached the Tower, Damia took the most cursory glance at Station business, and said "I'll take you out now, Larak."

"Fine. Dad wants Afra back at Callisto tonight."

Damia hesitated. "Afra had better come along, then, for a second look around." She looked challengingly at Afra, who shrugged.

This was, however, unexpected luck. Afra had thought he might have to follow Larak and Damia surreptitiously. He switched the boosters up to the top, and signaled Damia and Larak to get into their capsules. While they did so, he called Jeff and the Rowan to stand by, then settled into his own shell, reassured by their sustaining presence in his mind.

Is there any possible chance we're wrong about Sedan's intentions, or the depth of Damia's emotional commitment? pleaded the Rowan.

Less and less, Afra told her, grimly. We'll know soon for certain. Larak needled her last night. She'll have to check to make sure he's wrong.

Then he touched Damia and Larak, and all three went the mere half-light further to the ship and Sodan.

You have rested well and are strong today, was the cool greeting after an instant's welcoming flash.

Damia instinctively covered against the discovery of her co-riders, but the greeting stuck in her mind. There was the hint that Sodan did not wish her so strong, and yet a tinge of relief colored that fleck of thought.

You come nearer to physical contact with us every day, she began.

Us? Sodan queried.

My planet, my people… me.

I'm only interested in you, he replied.

But my people will be interested in you, she parried unable to censor from Afra and Larak the pleasure she felt in his compliment.

There are many people on your planets? he asked.

Planet.

At least, Afra concluded, she remembered to be politically discreet.

Doesn't your sun have several life-supporting satellites?