Furiously, he thought of the attacks he had made in similar manner, in this same area. He still could remember the horrified expression on one shipowner's face just before his ship broke to bits under him. They wouldn't get him, though. They couldn't. He would blast them out of his path. Just as he had blasted the presumptuous natives who opposed him. Thumbing the hand weapon to full blast, he centered it on the faint shimmer ahead, and squeezed the trigger. Let the meddlers look out for themselves. * * * * * Banasel winced a little as the fireball spread, then rose skyward, to form a large cloud. "You could have relaxed," he protested. "The blast wouldn't have jolted our screen too much, and you could have gotten him again." "I know." Lanko flicked off the gunnery switches and leaned back, rubbing his head. "There was a possibility, and I fully intended to relax. But the decision time was short, and frankly, those thoughts of his overrode me for just too long. That boy was dangerous!" He turned to Genro Kir, who was looking with horrified fascination at the still growing cloud in the screen. "It's unfortunate. We'll try to get your other partner alive." "You destroyed him!" Kir looked a little sick. "No. We didn't destroy him. He should have known better than to fire into a tractor. I'll have to admit, I did slip a little. I assumed he was the usual type of drone. I didn't recognize the full extent of his aberration." Lanko got out of his chair, and crossed the room, to confront the prisoner. "Look, Kir. I don't know whether your other partner's like that one or not. But I think it's about time you helped a little. If you had given us clues to Sira Nal's personality and probable location, we might have been able to take precautions. He might be with us now. Or, do you enjoy seeing your friends turn themselves into flaming clouds of smoke?" "You mean I ... I'm responsible ... for that?" "Partially. You helped them. You refused any assistance in their capture. And you knew they were going to be captured, one way or another." Kir directed a horrified look at the screen. "What can I do?" "Get in contact with Koree Buron. Tell him what happened here. Tell him, too, that we're looking for him, and that there is a Sector Guardsman due to join us within a few hours. Explain to him that there will be direction-finders on him very soon, and that any effort he may make to use his body shield, his weapons, or even his thought-radiations, will be noted, and will lead to him. "Once you establish contact, we will ride in, if you wish. And we can assure him that he'll be either hunted down promptly, or he will have to assume and accept the role of a native--and a very inconspicuous, uninfluential native, at that.