“If you don’t mind, Mr. Erickson, may I ask you a question before you go?”
“Certainly,” the reporter blinked. “What would you like to know?”
“Solely to satisfy my own curiosity, I’d like to know what you intend to say in your article.”
A shiver of apprehension ran down Erickson’s spine. The alienness of his surroundings came back to him with a rush, as did the distance he had to cover to reach his ship and safety. Taking a deep breath, he turned and faced the blank viewscreen directly.
“I’m going to try to tell your story as I see it,” he said carefully. “It’s the story of a forceful man with a dream, a dream that went awry and carried him with it.”
He paused for a moment, but there was no rebuttal from the screen.
“The man had an incredible sense of loyalty and obligation,” he continued haltingly, ” a sense of loyalty so strong, it blinded him to everything else in the universe and in his mind. First he was loyal to his friends, then to the planets, and finally to the fleet… the business he had built. At each step, his sense of obligation was so strong, so single-minded, that it was beyond the comprehension of everyone who came in contact with him. There were people all along the way who might have swayed him from his course, but they couldn’t understand what was happening, and instead of helping, actually speeded him on his way with their actions. It’s the story of a man who gave so much of himself that now there’s nothing human left-just the image he built with the aid of those who supported or opposed him. That’s the story I intend to write, sir… assuming, of course, I’m allowed to leave the ship with my notes, mind, and body intact.”