I
In the seven centuries that had elapsed since the Second Empire had been
founded on the shattered remnants of the First, the nobles of the
Imperium had come slowly to realize that the empire was not to be judged
by the examples of its predecessor. The First Empire had conquered most
of the known universe by political intrigue and sheer military strength;
it had fallen because that same propensity for political intrigue had
gained over every other strength of the Empire, and the various branches
and sectors of the First Empire had begun to use it against one another.
The Second Empire was politically unlike the First; it tried to balance
a centralized government against the autonomic governments of the
various sectors, and had almost succeeded in doing so.
But, no matter how governed, there are certain essentials which are
needed by any governmental organization.
Without power, neither Civilization nor the Empire could hold itself
together, and His Universal Majesty, the Emperor Carl, well knew it. And
power was linked solidly to one element, one metal, without which
Civilization would collapse as surely as if it had been blasted out of
existence. Without the power metal, no ship could move or even be built;
without it, industry would come to a standstill.
In ancient times, even as far back as the early Greek and Roman
civilizations, the metal had been known, but it had been used, for the
most part, as decoration and in the manufacture of jewelry. Later, it
had been coined as money.
It had always been relatively rare, but now, weight for weight, atom for
atom, it was the most valuable element on Earth. Indeed, the most
valuable in the known universe.
The metal was Element Number Seventy-nine--gold.
To the collective mind of the Empire, gold was the prime object in any
kind of mining exploration. The idea of drilling for petroleum, even if
it had been readily available, or of mining coal or uranium would have
been dismissed as impracticable and even worse than useless.
Throughout the Empire, research laboratories worked tirelessly at the
problem of transmuting commoner elements into Gold-197, but thus far
none of the processes was commercially feasible. There was still, after
thousands of years, only one way to get the power metal: extract it from
the ground.
So it was that, across the great gulf between the worlds, ship after
ship moved in search of the metal that would hold the far-flung colonies
of the Empire together. Every adventurer who could manage to get aboard
was glad to be cooped up on a ship during the long months it took to
cross the empty expanses, was glad to endure the hardships on alien
terrain, on the chance that his efforts might pay off a thousand or ten
thousand fold.
Of these men, a mere handful were successful, and of these one or two
stand well above the rest. And for sheer determination, drive, and
courage, for the will to push on toward his goal, no matter what the
odds, a certain Commander Frank had them all beat.