The _Starduster_, pocked and pitted from innumerable collisions with
dust particles, sped out and out. The close-packed suns of the central
hub lay far behind. Here at the rim of the galaxy the stars lay
scattered, separated by vast distances. A gaunt hollow-eyed figure sat
in the observation bubble staring half-hopefully, half-despairingly at
the unimaginable depths beyond the rim.
* * * * *