"Of course, deserts can be crossed, and mountains can be climbed, but our three boys fixed it so it would be fatal for any native to try it. Then, each of the two contestants set to work to build up the war potential of his part of the continent. "In the meantime, Genro was acting as referee. He's been checking the progress of the two contestants, and making sure that neither of them sneaks into the territory of the other to upset something, or commits any other breach of rules." Banasel slid off his bench. "Atmosphere of mutual trust, I see." "Precisely." "Where do the Kondaran priests come in?" "Oh, those two aren't going to confine the final stage of their game to the one continent. That's just the starting point--the home base. And what they're doing now is just the opening of the game. The end game will decide control of the entire planet. Sira Nal's just getting off to an early start, that's all." "This is legitimate, according to their rules?" "I guess so. According to Kir's tapes, he thinks it's a clever maneuver. 'Sound move' is the way he expressed it." Lanko stood and walked over to the reproducer set. "That all came from the tapes, of course." "How much more has Kir told you?" "As little as possible." * * * * * Banasel looked toward the prisoner. "Why not cooeperate? You're due for Aldebaran anyway. And a little help now would make it easier for you and your partners later." Genro Kir's lip curled. "As I told your friend, I don't have to lower myself to work with a bunch of low-grade primitives." "See what I mean?" Lanko slanted an eyebrow at Banasel. "But I think our friend here will help us some, anyway. That 'sound move' he recorded is almost sure to catch us one of the players." "Oh?" "Sure. What's the whole foundation of this cult of Kondaro?" "Why, they navigate ships. They keep strict security on their methods. They enforce that security by terrorism. They claim that no one else can successfully cross the Great Sea, and it seems to be a proven fact that they're right. So, they collect from seamen, traders, and shipowners." "That's right. And they claim that only they can overcome the spells and actions of the sea demons, which try to destroy any ship that sails the sea. First, though, they navigate ships. They guarantee to get 'em across the sea and back. Right?" Banasel nodded. "Suppose they start losing ships? Suppose that from now on, no ship returns to port?" Lanko walked over to the control console. "Hey, wait a minute. I know these priests are a bunch of pirates--or some of them are, at any rate. But we can't--"