“Easily. It is your choice, of course, to tell us of your plans or not. But if you do give us some information about what you wish to do at the dam, we might then be able to assist you in other ways.”

Fatigue, and the beating, must have addled my brain. I had accepted their offer of help while ignoring the fact

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“My apologies!” I apologized. “I am beginning to take your hospitality for granted. Which is not fair. Since your ancestors fled from persecution ‘a modicum of intelligence has possessed the human race. Or it has grown up. Or become civilized. While there are exceptions—like the military louts who invaded your peaceful planet—the overwhelming majority of planets are at peace. This peaceful League pays for the maintenance of an organization, the League Navy, which watches trouble spots, contacts rediscovered planets and so forth. Now this begins to get complicated so stay with me. While I am not employed by the Navy, I was given a communication device to contact them from this planet. This device, for reasons too complex to go into, is disguised as a bird. What I want to do is retrieve it from ifs hiding place, then actuate it to let the Navy know where this planet is.”

Stirner frowned in thought before he spoke. “If this Navy group you speak of intends to use violence we cannot help you to summon them.”

“No fear there. The League is sworn to nonviolence. ”

“Then there are no problems. What can we do to help?”

“Guide me to the dam, that’s all. I’ll do the rest. There will be three of us. You, I, and the good doctor Lum. We will need food and water.”

“You forgot me,” Morton said.

“No, I remembered you. You are out of the army—stay out. I either get the bird by stealth or not at all. As virile as I am I don’t look forward to taking on a trigger-happy company of well-trained thugs. Stay here, talk to Sharia, which should not take too much effort. Get information. Find out all you can about what the army is doing. I’ll be back tomorrow night.”

“I will be pleased to discuss Individual Mutualism with you,” Sharia said in a voice that was pure honey. Morton melted instantly and did not even know it when we left.

For all of his gray hairs, Stirner must have been a marathon walker. The doctor matched his pace, while I was riding so high on the drugs that I had the feeling that if I flapped my arms hard enough I could have flown to the dam. We skulked down unpaved roads, then along what appeared to be linear track of some kind, through a tunnel, then through meadows where dark beasts moved aside as we went by. After a few hours of walking like this under a moonless, star-filled sky, the lights of the city were far behind, the dark walls of mountains looming ahead. Stirner called a halt and we sat down on the grass under a tree.

“This will be a good time to drink, eat if you wish, because we will leave our burdens here.”

“Getting close?”

“Very. We will approach the dam through a drainage tunnel that is dry this time of year. This emerges on the riverbank close to the generating station,”

“You are a genius. We will get by the lockouts that way, will be inside their perimeter and hopefully somewhere near the command car. How long until it gets light?”

“We have at least four hours yet. ”

“Wonderful. We take a break. The doctor can slip me a pep pill or two since I am feeling a bit shabby, then we will finish this affair.”

Lum sounded worried. “If you have any more stimulants you may become quite sick after the drugs wear off. ”

“And without the aid of you kind people I certainly would have been quite dead by now. So let’s get the bird so I can call in the Navy. Before something really drastic happens and people get killed.”

We ate and drank, the doctor then concealed our supplies in the tree, gave me an injection, and the march resumed. I was so fall of uppers that I had to fight down the urge ,to whistle and bound ahead of my slower companions. I resisted. Stirner found the gulley we were looking for and led us along it until it ended in a high black opening. I looked at it suspiciously. “Could be dangerous animals in there.”

“Very doubtful,” Stirner said. “The rainy season ended not too long ago. Until then this tunnel was filled with \i7Qfrf”r

“Besides that,” Lum added, “there are no dangerous animals on this continent.”

“Other than the ones I arrived with. Lead on!” We stumbled into the darkness, splashing through invisible puddles, running our fingers along the rough walls of the tunnel to keep from bashing into them. By the time we reached the far end our eyes were so adjusted to the dark that the patch of starry sky ahead almost looked gray.

“Silence now,” Stirner whispered. “They might be very close.”

“Then you two wait in the tunnel out of sight,” I whispered in return. “I’ll makelhis as quick as I can.” When I poked my head carefully out I saw that the tunnel emerged from the bank above the river. Perfect. I could slink along the side of the river to the generating plant. Which I did. The roar of water discharging from the plant growing constantly louder. I kept going as far as I could, until spray was blowing over me, before I climbed the bank and parted the grass carefully to look out.

“Congratulations,” I thought to myself. “You are a genius at night-stalking, Jimmy. “

Not twenty meters away was the command car, parked beside the generating plant. And there._wasn’t a soul in sight. Silent as a ghost I drifted along the building, past a closed door in the wall, and slipped into the car. The booze box was just where I had left it. Neat! I pulled it out and groped inside. It was empty!

At the precise moment that I realized this the door opened behind me and I was bathed in light, Sergeant Blogh was standing in the doorway holding the bird.

“Is this what you are looking for, captain?” he said.

I looked from the bird to the gun in his other hand and could not think of a thing .to say.

Chapter 20

“You’re an escaped criminal, captain.” He was smiling wickedly, enjoying himself. I still had nothing to say. “That’s what was reported. They sent a chopper rushing out here for all of your equipment. Only after the MPs left did I remember how you were always worrying about those canteens. At the time I thought it was just the booze. Since they said you were an ofiworlder spy I began to think different. So I looked close and found this stuffed bird. Before I could turn it in, I heard how you escaped. So I thought I would just keep watch in case you wanted to get it back. Seems I thought right. Now—climb out of there slowly and keep your hands in sight.”

I had no choice. But at least my brain was in gear again after the disconnecting shock of his appearance. “I would like the bird back, sergeant.”

“I’m sure you would. But why should I give it to you?”

“To save lives. With it I can contact the League Navy and end this invasion before someone is killed.”

“I don’t mind killing.” His smile was gone and there was a brutal edge to his voice I had never heard before. “I’m a soldier—and you are a spy. I am going to turn you and your cagaling bird in. This is going to mean a lot to my career.”

“And you put your miserable military career ahead of the lives of harmless, unarmed civilians?”

“You bet your sweet chunk, I do.”

I started to tell him just what I thought of him. But. didn’t. There had to be some way to get to him. “Do you take bribes, sergeant?”

“No.”

“I’m not talking about little bribes. I am talking about the ten thousand credits in League currency that you will receive when this .invasion ends. You have my word on that.”

“A spy’s word? Ten thottsand or ten million—the an-