"We've changed rates," the robot clerk replied, beaming. "It was a bargain before, but just listen to the revised offer. We pay you, on a per diem basis--subjective, of course. When you arrive, you actually have a bank account waiting for you." Per diem, subjective--the time that _seemed_ to elapse when the rocket was traveling near the speed of light. It wasn't as good as the robot made it sound. "Never mind that," said Jadiver. "I'll take it if it's going far." "Going far!" echoed the clerk. A policeman sauntered by outside, just looking, but that was enough. "I said I'd take it," Jadiver repeated in a loud voice. The clerk deflated. "I wish I could go with you," it explained wistfully. It reached under the counter and pulled out a perforated tape. "This will get you on the ship, and it also constitutes the contract. Just present it at the other end and collect your money. You can send for your baggage after you're on board." Jadiver opened his mouth and then closed it. His baggage was intangible, mostly experience, not much of it pleasant. "I'll do that," he said. The clerk came out from behind the counter and watched Jadiver leave. Lights from the rocketport glittered in its robot eyes. * * * * * Jadiver paced about the ship. It was not enough to be on it, for the police could still trace him. And if they did, they could get him off. It was not only himself, there was his unknown friend. They had ways to learn about that. He passed a vision port on his way through the ship. It was night, but it didn't seem so on the vast, brightly lighted concrete plain. A strange vehicle streaked across the surface of the rocketport in defiance of all regulations and common sense. It was coming his way. It dodged in and out of rockets landing and taking off, escaping blazing destruction with last minute, intricate maneuvers. The driver had complete control of the vehicle and was fantastically skillful. It was a strange machine. Jadiver had never seen anything quite like it. As far as he knew, it resembled nothing the police used. It didn't halt outside the ship. The loading ramp was down and the machine came up without hesitation. The entrance was too narrow and the vehicle would never get through--that seemed evident. An instant later, he was not so sure. The ship quivered and groaned and vibrations ran throughout the structure. He leaned over the railing and looked down. The machine was inside, dented and scraped. "Captain," bellowed a voice from the vehicle. It was an authoritative voice and it puzzled Jadiver. The captain came running, either in response to the command or to find out how much damage had been done in the crash and why. "Take off, Captain," said the voice. "Take off at once." The captain sputtered. "I give orders here. I'll take off when I get ready." "You're ready when the ship reaches a certain mass. As soon as I came on board, you attained it. Check your mass gauges, Captain."