Rembrandt said once more, "Shall we go see the inside of the base?"

"Yes, by all means," said Snieff, looking around apprehensively. "Come, Barky-stay close to me!"

"Woof!" said Barky, the Environmental Dog, lifting a hind leg to give his ear a vigorous scratch.

"A slots system?" Ernie sat up, an eager expression on his face. "Y'know, if he's really got one, that's like money in the bank. People have been looking for a way to cut the house odds in slots for centuries . ."

"Ernie, we're talking about Victor Phule, the arms dealer," said Lola. "This is a man who already has more money in the bank than most small planetary governments. He's the last person in the galaxy to need a system for beating slots."

"Hey, maybe he's like, diversifying," said Ernie. He took a sip of his cold beer, and added, "You know, in case the old mans business goes through some hard times. I hear wars are a bit scarce nowadays..."

"Right, and the food business might hit a patch of real hard times, too," said Lola, scornfully. "Whatever reason Victor Phule has for playing those slots, it's not because he needs the money-or the exercise, either. If we can figure out his game, there's a good chance we can get in on it"

"What if he's just having fun?" asked Ernie. "You know, even a rich guy must like to let his hair down and stop pinching every last penny. Some guys tool around in space yachts, some play the rocket races-maybe the old boy gets his splats out by throwing five scragoonchies into a slot and pulling the handle. Hey, he can afford it"

"It's such a dumb idea, it might even be right," admitted Lola. She paced back and forth in her stocking feet, thinking out loud. "But we can't ignore the chance that he's up to something bigger, Ernie. Besides, he's the closest person on the station to the guy we're supposed to be snatching. He could be the whole key to our getting off of Lorelei Station with our hides intact, not to mention coming out ahead of the game. It's worth our time and effort to scope out whatever it is he's doing, and look for a way to turn it to our own advantage."

"I'll buy into that, I guess," said Ernie. He spread his hands apart, palms up, and said, "Thing is, how are you gonna find out what he's doing? You already asked him flat out, and you don't wanna believe the answer he gave you.

So what've ya got that's better?"

"I don't know-yet" Lola peered out the window of their modestly priced room. The view was nothing special; another block of workers' living quarters like theirs. Then again, nobody came to Lorelei expecting to see natural beauty, unless the showgirls in the casinos fit that description (some did). Lola drummed her fingers on the plastiglas, then turned to Ernie, and said, "Victor Phule is the real thing.

Even a small fraction of his money could put us on Easy Street But we can't afford any mistakes. The one thing I don't want to do is alert him-or more likely his bodyguards-that somebody's keeping an eye him. So I need you to do some of the spy work. You think you're up to it?"

"Sure, sure," said Ernie, stretching. "You know me..."

"That's why I'm worried," said Lola. She walked over and put her hand on Ernie's head. "This bodyguard isn't some third-rate musclehead." said Lola. "I don't know where he came from, but he's very smooth, and very professional. He's likely to remember my face a good long time. So I've got to be really careful where and when I pop up."

"I get the picture, babes," said Ernie. "What you want me to do is peek over the old boy's shoulder, try to figure out his system, but keep the guard from noticing. Nothin' to it..."

"Wrong!" said Lola, and she smacked her hand on top of his head. "You couldn't fool this guard if he spotted you six dry martinis and a fake beard. I'm sorry, Ernie, he's just way out of your class. And nearly out of mine, I think. But I've got a plan..."

"Yeah, sure," said Ernie, rubbing his head where she'd hit him. "Your last brilliant plan blew up in our face, with nothing to show until for it until we got sent back here to finish the job right-at our own expense. What kind of dope do you think lam?"

"A smarter one because of what's already happened," said Lola. "And so am 1 Listen to this..." Ernie listened, skeptically at first, pointing out objections to Lola's plan. But gradually he, began to nod, then enthusiastically to offer suggestions of his own. Finally, after nearly an hour, he said. "All right you win. It's worth a try, especially considering we got nothin' else to try."

"Good," said Lola. "Now; here's what I want you to do first..."

The shuttle was already on the ground, and the dust of its landing mostly settled, when Gears guided the Legion hoverjeep over a low hill and came into sight of it. There were a couple of men at work unloading large cases of equipment from an open hatchway, and another stood studying a map under the shade of the shuttle. The afternoon sun was beating down fiercely, without a trace of cloud in the sky.

Lieutenant Armstrong stood up in the passenger seat and waved. "Hello the shuttle!" he called. Phule had chosen him to greet the hunting expedition while he and Lieutenant Rembrandt escorted the AEIOU inspectors on a tour of the Legion base.

The landing party turned and stared as Gears brought the hoverjeep down a short distance away from where they stood. As it touched down, Armstrong leapt out and strode over to the newcomers. "I'm Lieutenant Armstrong, Omega Company," he said, extending a hand. "Welcome to Zenobia!" One of the hunters, a stocky man with short gray hair in a vaguely military style, stepped forward and took Armstrong's hand in a crusher grip.

"A pleasure to meet you, Lieutenant," he said. His voice was an incongruous combination of rasp and drawl. "I'm L. P. Asho. We hear tell there's some mighty good hunting hereabouts. Looking forward to seeing what kind of wild and wooly critters you all have for us to shoot."

"Wild is no problem, Mr. Asho," said Armstrong. "But I don't think you'll find very much in the way of wooly on Zenobia. The animals here tend to have mostly scales..."

"Bar har! Fellow's got a good sense of humor," said Asho. "Here, let me introduce you to the other fellers, this is Austen Tay-Shun-he's a big-ass lawyer, but he ain't all that bad, y'git to know him. And over there's good ol' Euston O'Better. You prob'ly heard of him, on account he's the richest son of a gun on Tejaz."

"Uh, pleased to meet you all," said Armstrong, shaking the men's hands as they were offered to him. Asho's description notwithstanding, Tay-Shnn was a small, wiry man with penetrating eyes. He gave Armstrong a steady look, and said, "Interestin' country here. You don't suppose there's any chance we could hire one of the natives for a guide, do you?"

"I suppose it's possible," said Armstrong. "To tell the truth, we haven't really had contact with any of them other than the military. I think they've put us out here in part to isolate us from their civilian population." He tried to remember if he'd even set eyes on a Zenobian other than those in Flight Leftenant Qual's unit. To the best of his knowledge, he hadn't. Was that also intentional on the Zenobians' part? He wasn't sure.

"Not very friendly of 'em, I'd say," drawled Asho. "Well, if we can't get a native, we'll just do the best we can without. How soon can we light out for the killin' grounds?"

"Fairly soon, I'd think," said Armstrong. "Captain Jester wants to schedule a briefing as soon as convenient with you, and then we can get you to the designated hunting areas."

"Briefing?" Austen Tay-Shun interrupted. "What, does your captain think private citizens are subject to military discipline?"

Armstrong cleared his throat. "Mr. Tay-Shun, Zenobia is an inhabited planet, with its own laws and government. ... The Zenobian government retains the right to decide which off-world visitors may visit their world and under what conditions. By inviting, the Space Legion to operate here, they have effectively given us the right to bring in what personnel we consider necessary. Now, at the request of your friends in the State Department, Captain Jester has persuaded the Zenobians to permit you to hunt the local animals in designated areas, provided you follow certain rules. I think you'll agree that knowing what the rules are will make it a lot easier to follow them. So this briefing is simply an opportunity for the captain to ten you what's expected of you and to answer any questions you may have about Zenobia."