The _Killiver_ was sitting in its launching cradle at the far side of the ten-mile-square Grand Port of Kandoris. Roysland didn't bother to take the tubeway; he flashed his credentials and commandeered a surface jeep. Bilford had already taken charge of the crew, but Roysland wasn't worried about _them_; he wanted a look at the ship. The _Killiver_ was swarming with inspectors and special government investigators. Roysland jumped out of the jeep as it slowed near the giant sphere of the ship, and strode toward the ring of guards that surrounded the globe. One of the guards looked up at Roysland's huge frame and said: "May I see your pass, sir?" Roysland pulled out his pass and handed it to the guard. The guard barely glanced at it; then he shook his head. "I'm sorry, sir; this is a general pass. You'll have to get one of the special passes for this ship. The Inspection Division has--" "Where the devil do I get a pass?" Roysland snapped. "You'll have to apply at Inspection," the guard said. "In person," he added. Roysland shook his hand. "I'm not going twelve miles back to Administration. Who's in charge here?" "Inspector Gowlan, sir." "Call him; tell him Roysland Dwyn wants to see him." The guard hesitated for a moment, then spoke softly into the communicator on his wrist. The speaker in his ear buzzed a reply. "He'll be right out," said the guard. A moment later, a dark-haired, average-sized man in a chief inspector's uniform fell through the drop chute from the ship and crossed the open space toward Roysland. "Roysland Dwyn?" he said, holding out his hand. "You're Special Weapons, aren't you? I'm Gowlan." Roysland nodded and gripped the proffered hand in his own great paw. "Glad to know you. I want to get on that ship." The inspector shook his head. "'Fraid not ... not without a special pass. We've got to make damage estimates." "That ship is equipped with _aJ_ projectors," Roysland said. "My gang designed and built them from the ground up; I know more about them than you do. I want to see them--and the rest of the ship. I haven't got time to go gallivanting all over this base getting signatures on a blasted pass." The inspector started to say something, but Roysland cut him off. "You can check with Eckisster, if you want; but hurry it up." Gowlan looked up into Roysland's eyes, hesitated, then spoke into his wrist phone. Less than two minutes later, Roysland was inside the ship. * * * * * The _Killiver_ was in almost perfect shape. The _aJ_ guns appeared to be in perfect operating condition, and the meters showed that three of them had tracked and fired at something that had passed the upper starboard quadrant of the vessel. Roysland checked the recordings, then looked up at Gowlan, who had elected to follow him. "Any sign of the ship they were firing at?"