through
her discovery of the Crusade and her rejection of it, to their
declaration of mutual enmity. Outwardly quiet though that had been, it
had enough of an emotional charge to awaken the Ranger.

A glance at his chrono showed 0405. Too late, the way he felt, to go
back to sleep, so he rose, showered, and dressed. Then he sent a
tentative inquiry. *You awake?*

*Yes.* Hopefully, *Would you care to join me?*

*You bet. I'll be right there.*

He was soon seated in one of the armchairs in her cabin, balancing a
steaming cup of coffee on its arm. Corina still sat at the desk,
sipping at her second glass of milk.

"That was quite an experience," Medart finally said. "Especially that
last meeting with Thark."

"And your feelings when His Majesty pinned your badge on. It is
strange, is it not, how a small piece of metal can mean so much?"

She was skirting the subject, and both knew it, but Medart went along.
Patience now, he felt, would pay off later.

"There's an ancient Terran proverb," he said, "that clothes make the
man. It isn't literally true, of course, and the badge certainly
doesn't have any intrinsic power, but humans are very strongly affected
by symbols. This one," he tapped the badge on his chest, "can trace
its history back to before the Empire, even back before atomic energy.
It's meant official authority in one form or another since at least the
second century pre-atomic, and for centuries before that--maybe
longer--it was believed to be a particularly powerful magical symbol."

Corina nodded, appreciating his intent as well as his explanation. "I
think I understand, though clothes are relatively new to us, and
symbols of that sort affect us far less strongly." She smoothed her
kilt. "What you wear affects the way others act toward you, but does
it not also affect your own feelings?"

Medart nodded, but remained silent as he sensed her growing
comprehension.

"That, then, is why you and the others wish me to face Thark as a
Ranger. The added psychological advantage."

"Yes, partly," Medart said. "You do have the ability--compare yourself
to me when I was tapped, if you still have doubts--and the uniform and
badge will give you the extra edge of confidence you need to use that
ability fully. The other part is the way seeing you as a Ranger will
affect Thark, since his main grievance--aside from our supposed lack of
Talent--is the real lack of high-ranking Irschschan Imperial o