Vesa and he’s bound to feel resentment against the rich. Why shouldn’t he take what
they have if he can? They have more than enough, and his family is starving.
The Head nodded gravely. “Everything you’re saying is right. What do you propose be
done about it?” “The people have to be dispersed,” Jules said with determination. “They
can’t go on living jammed together like that. Garst was actually providing Chandakha with
a safety valve, though I doubt whether he thought of it in those terms. By perpetually
bleeding off the worst members of Chandakha’s society, he kept the planet from erupting
into uncontrolled violence. Now there is no such outlet. If we want to avoid having
Chandakha blow up in our faces, we’ll have to disperse the population, reduce its
density.
“But the other continents on the planet are uninhabitable.
Yvette now felt it was her turn to speak. “There are other planets, some very sparsely
settled as yet, where the Chandakhari’s knowledge of agriculture could be invaluable. I
would suggest sponsoring a series of cash grants to encourage the citizens of
Chandakha to move elsewhere. Many of them are desperate enough to accept such an
offer.
“Ah yes,” the Head smiled, “but now we run into a question of money-money to
encourage them to leave Chandakha, money to transport them elsewhere, money to help
the emigres relocate on their new planet. Where, pray tell, is all this money going to
come from?.
“Simple,” Yvette explained. “Vesa has more than enough coming in; they scarcely know
what to do with it all. And now that the murderers are out of the way, there’ll be more
money there than ever. The Emperor could authorize the Duke of Chandakha to levy a
special tax for the purpose, to be paid by all the merchants of Vesa. In the long run it
would be a small price for them to pay for security.
The Head’s smile broadened immensely. “I really do like the way you two think-especially
since your thoughts parallel my own so nicely. Just yesterday morning I sent the Emperor
a note detailing a plan almost identical to the one you just suggested.
Jules looked startled. “You did?.
“Yes, occasionally this old man has an idea or two himself,” laughed the Head with a
twinkle in his eye. “After all, it’s not enough for us to detect trouble after it’s brewing. The
Service is ultimately responsible for the total security of the Empire, and that includes
finding the danger zones before they flare up; that way, remedying the problem is usually
much simpler. I admit we failed the first time on Chandakha, which is why I’m doubly
anxious to avoid repeating the mistake.
“Do you think the Emperor will follow your advice?” Yvette asked.
“Bill knows me pretty well by now, and he knows I don’t make such recommendations
lightly. I can almost guarantee he’ll act as we suggest. He was already agreeing to my
suggestion for the new Marchioness of Vesa.
“Yes, that was something I was wondering myself. What about Gindri?” Jules asked.
The Head sighed. “Gindri Lohlatt was a very weak woman, completely dominated by
Garst. She knew what was going on, but had no inclination to stop it as long as she got
everything she wanted. She’ll be hauled up before a High Court of Justice, and
condemnation by her peers is inevitable. I suspect they’ll vote to banish her to Gastonia
rather than have her executed-it’s a sentence equivalent to death in any case, since her
heart will never be able to stand the strain of an Earth-normal gravity like Gastonia’s. In
any event, that leaves the title open, since she has no heirs. I recommended to His
Majesty that he appoint Marask Kantana as the new Marchioness of Vesa, and he
agreed.
“Of course,” Yvette smiled. “She’s the perfect choice.” “Yes,” said the Grand Duke of
Sector Four, “I thought so, too. But she turned it down.
“What?” Jules and Yvette exclaimed, practically in unison.
“She thought she could be of more use to the Empire by continuing in SOTE-and I have
to admit, I was sorry at the thought of losing her. Since she felt so strongly about the
subject, the Emperor agreed to grant her request. He’s now studying the various other
political nominees who have come forward.
“Kantana’s damned good,” Jules commented. “I think it’s a shame for her to get stuck on
a backwater planet like Chandakha.
“So do I, so I dug out her records. Do you know she’d never been given the
thousand-point test? She rose to her position as Chief entirely through the ranks, starting
out as an ordinary field agent-and since Chandakha is such a comparatively minor world,
nobody paid her any attention. I ordered the situation rectified immediately and
discovered, not much to my surprise, that her score is nine ninety-six.
Jules gave out a low whistle. The thousand-point test was an examination of the total
person, both physically and mentally. Currently Jules was the only thousand pointer alive,
with his sister only a point below him. For Kantana to rank so highly was a considerable
compliment.
“Yes indeed.” The Head was amused by Jules’ reaction. “As soon as her wrap-up on
Vesa is complete, I’m having her reassigned as a special executive assistant to myself.
She’s going to be in charge of visiting as many planets as she can and spotting potential
trouble zones like Chandakha before they ignite.
“I know she’ll do an outstanding job,” Yvette said. “She may even eliminate the need for
us altogether.” Their boss shook his head. “There are some thirteen hundred planets in
our Empire. Good as Kantana is, she can’t be everywhere at once. No, my friends, as
long as there is human greed and corruption, there will always be a need of your very
special services.
And, as usual, he was right.