d to knock out Mark, but the Roman twisted his
arm and kept him from getting in a good punch.

Erich didn't make a move to mix into either fight, which is my little
commandant all over. Using his fists on anybody but me is beneath him.

* * * * *

Then Sid made his choice, but there was no way for me to tell what it
was, for, as he reached for the Minor Maintainer, Kaby contemptuously
snatched it away from his hands and gave him a knee in the belly that
doubled me up in sympathy and sent him sprawling on his knees toward the
fighters. On the return, Kaby gave Lili, who'd started to grab too, an
effortless backhand smash that set her down on the divan.

Erich's face lit up like an electric sign and he kept his eyes fixed on
Kaby.

She crouched a little, carrying her weight on the balls of her feet and
firmly cradling the Minor Maintainer in her left arm, like a basketball
captain planning an offensive. Then she waved her free hand decisively
to the right. I didn't get it, but Erich did and Mark too, for Erich
jumped for the Refresher sector and Mark let go of Bruce and followed
him, ducking around Sevensee's arms, who was coming back into the fight
on which side I don't know. Illy un-whipped from Beau and copied Erich
and Mark with one big spring.

Then Kaby twisted a dial as far as it would go and Bruce, Beau, Sevensee
and poor Siddy were slammed down and pinned to the floor by about eight
gravities.

It should have been lighter near us--I hoped it was, but you couldn't
tell from watching Siddy; he went flat on his face, spread-eagled, one
hand stretched toward me so close, I could have touched it (but not let
go!), and his mouth was open against the floor and he was gasping
through a corner of it and I could see his spine trying to sink through
his belly. Bruce just managed to get his head and one shoulder up a bit,
and they all made me think of a Dore illustration of the _Inferno_ where
the cream of the damned are frozen up to their necks in ice in the
innermost circle of Hell.

The gravity didn't catch me, although I could feel it in my left arm. I
was mostly in the Refresher sector, but I dropped down flat too, partly
out of a crazy compassion I have, but mostly because I didn't want to
take a chance of having Kaby knock me down.

Erich, Mark and Illy had got clear and they headed toward us. Maud
picked the moment to make her play; she hadn't much choice of times, if
she wan