The Moderator said, "It's time that this nonsense stopped. We've
allowed you to retain the cylinder in order to observe your reactions.
Look around you!"
Saxon spun around.
Materializing like gray wraiths, a dozen figures were taking substance
behind him. They were all armed with shining cylinders.
"Drop it!" commanded the Moderator.
Saxon's weapon clanged against the pavement.
* * * * *
Ileth suppressed a scream, swayed, half fainting. Saxon caught her
before she fell. The girl recovered, flung her arms about his neck.
"You can't do it!" she stormed at the Elders. "You can't. I love him. I
don't care what he is, I love him, I tell you!"
"Take them away!" the Moderator said imperiously.
The wraiths had grown solid. They began to close in.
Saxon's spine stiffened. He said, "Wait a moment!" in a breathless
voice. "Have you overlooked the five sets of plans for Villainowski's
stellar drive? The ones that were stolen from Government's Research
Building?"
The Moderator's face went gray. For the second time Saxon intercepted a
thought flowing between the seven old men.
A fear thought! Pure funk!
Saxon's heart leaped like an arrow as the realization burst on him
that the seven old men were terrified of the humanoids. They were so
badly frightened that for a moment their guard had relaxed and the fear
thought had escaped past their mental barriers.
If only there was a way to exploit their fear. He felt hope surging
back through his veins.
"Already," he shouted, "General Atomic must be manufacturing the ships.
And you can't stop it. The secret of stellar travel is loose among the
humanoids!"
"We know of the loss of the plans. General Atomic _is_ laying the keels
of thousands of the new-type ships. But that doesn't affect your fate
in the least."
"Doesn't it?" said Saxon harshly. "I'm the only Varkan who can compete
with the humanoids. I'm the only one who's been conditioned to the
speed of their reflexes."
"You're a dangerous anti-social!" the Moderator snapped. "Your
auto-reactions approach the humanoid level because you're still a child
with a child's adaptiveness. When you mature you'll appreciate the
difference. We wouldn't dare use you even if you could do anything. If
worst comes to worst we can destroy our experiment!"
Saxon laughed at him. "And how many generations of humanoids would have
passed away before you could wipe out a culture that's spread to all
the planets of its solar system? Why, they'll be swarming over Vark
from pole to pole before you can prepare to repel them."
The Moderator winced, tried to interrupt, but Saxon was inexorable.
"You might have been able to destroy them while you had them isolated
in their own Solar System. But they're free now. Free to expand through
the Galaxy!"
Saxon paused. The idea sprouting some time ago had begun to bear
fruit. He pushed it resolutely out of his mind lest they intercept it.