"Hey, you two! Where d'you think you're going, anyway?" They waited for him. There was a cross look on his face which Mike immediately resented. "Over there." He pointed toward the black building. "What's it to you?" "Nothing to me, but it'll be double duty to you if you don't get back to the recreation area right away." "There's a lot of time yet. He said we could amuse ourselves, didn't he?" "That doesn't mean walking around wherever you please. It means just what it says--giving your weapons a work-out. I was called away from a good match just to come and find you two. Come on." They turned, fell in at either side of him. "We didn't mean anything wrong," Terry said. "They'll let it go this time because you're new, and because you are who you are. But you guys had better be more careful. That's restricted back there." "What's that? Restricted?" "You should know that!" "What is it?" "Your father never told you anything, did he?" "Sure--course he did. Lots of things. But there's no way he'd know what that place is." * * * * * Jon stopped in mid-stride. "No way he'd know? You crazy?" "Who's crazy?" Terry clenched his fists, stuck his chin out. "Look here--you want a fight or something?" Jon's hand went to the hilt of his sword. Terry unhooked his mace. Mike had his sword half free of its wide scabbard. Jon let his arms drop to his sides. "Come on, wise guy, who's crazy?" Terry glared at him. "You know what'll happen to you if you do anything to a section leader?" "We didn't ask to be here," Mike said. "And we didn't ask to be pushed around, either, or told where we could go and couldn't go. Or be called crazy, either. The whole thing is dumb." "After the games, if you're still alive, I'll report you for that," Jon said. "Still alive? Who you kidding? You talk like there was going to be a war. Grown-ups do that, kids don't." "What do you think you're being trained to use your weapons for?" "That's easy," Terry said. "So we'll know how to use 'em when we're grown ups. It's called UMT or something." "You guys _are_ cr--ah, don't be funny. The games start in three days, then you'll know if you're in a war or not. And frankly, I hope you both end up back there." He turned, started walking. Terry and Mike let their hands fall from their weapons, followed after him. "Nobody's being funny," Mike said. "Suppose we do end up back in that place? So what?" "Listen the hero," Jon said. "You planning on taking on the whole First Quadrant single-handed or something? They sure don't bring you back to life back there, if that's what you think. They just make you a little deader." "Deader?"