Political fiction; Science fiction; Space travelers -- Fiction
"I can get you a sensatia-tape," whispered the boy when they had
entered. He nudged Craig wickedly. "You know what they're like?"
"Yeah," Craig said disgustedly. Traffic in the illicit mental-image
tapes was known as far into space as lonely men had penetrated.
Intergalactic considered them as great a menace to mental and moral
stability as the hectopiates. Craig wearily got the man out of the
room, took a PON pill, and eased himself into the bed.
It had been a weird day and he had not liked it. There was no telling
how long it would take him to shake his--sea legs, the psychologist
had called it. One thing was sure: Terra aggressively went after its
strangers.
* * * * *
Ushered into the room by a sullen and silent secretary, Craig found
himself facing a semi-circular table at which were seated five
uniformed men. The center man, obviously their superior, rose to greet
him. He wore the familiar smile Craig had come to know so well and
hate so much. The man was somewhat over forty years old, short, stout,
entirely unpleasant and puffy.
"Mr. Craig, I believe," he greeted Craig. Since it seemed to be more
of a statement than a question, Craig did not answer. He took up a
position of more or less military attention at the center of the curved
table.
"You _are_ Robert Craig," insisted the man.
"Yes, I'm Robert Craig," he answered, somewhat surprised.
The stout man seated himself with a sigh and began to sort through some
papers on the table before him. The other four men continued to stare
at Craig silently, until he began to feel uncomfortable and hostile. He
stiffened his position of attention defiantly.
"You may relax, Mr. Craig," said the first man without looking up. "You
aren't nervous, are you?"
"No," Craig said, trying to smile. "This is the first time I've been
here and...." He let the sentence trail off, hoping for a sympathetic
response. But he did not get it.
"Flight Officer, eh?" said the man. Then, looking up, he added,
"Somewhat unusual to find a vigorous young man like yourself abandoning
the space service for a Terran job, isn't it?"
"I don't know. Is it?"
"Leaving something behind out there, Mr. Craig?"
"No, nothing," Craig snapped.
The other man glared at him a full minute. Craig met the stare and
realized the considerable power behind the weak face.
"You don't like this sort of affair, do you, Mr. Craig?"
Craig was forced to look away. "I'm afraid I don't see the necessity,"
he answered in a controlled voice. "I served the Intergalactic Service
well. My records prove that."
"Granted," said his questioner bluntly. "You are a Terran, are you not,
Mr. Craig?"
"I should think that would be obvious," Craig said, matching the blunt
tone.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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