The boy tried bravely as the two ships circled the dying star. The tape showed the view from each ship, lternately. Now the viewer could see the black depths of space, empty except for a few distant pinpoints of stars, and the curving crescent of the other duelist’s ship streaking by, a pencil beam of laser light flicking out, bending weirdly in that crazy gravity field, seeking its target. Then the bluish infemo of the star would slide into view, blazing, brilliant, drowning out everything else from sight.
The boy fought well, but finally maneuvered himself too close to the star He could have escaped if he had controlled the ship a little better. Instead, he powerdived straight into its flaming surface. The tri-di executives decided to erase his final screams from the tape before they showed it to the public.
The second challenge came from an Acquatainian merchant, one of the richest men in the Cluster, who had drunk too much at a party and picked a quarrel with Leoh. The Professor went back to the simple physics arena and disposed of him easily.
By the time Leoh (and Hector) returned to the capital, he was the darling of Acquatainian society. They feasted him, they toasted him, they took him to the ballet and opera, they did everything except let him alone to work. Geri was part of Acquatainia’s social leadership, so Hector at least got to see her—but only in crowded, noisyooms.
Odal sat tensely in his room’s only chair and watched Kor’s bullet-shaped head on the viewscreen as the Intelligence Minister said: