eror said, "have you given
any thought to the arms you want?"

"Arms? No, sir." It was traditional, Corina knew, for a new Ranger to
use the arms of one who had died--but that tradition had not even
occurred to her.

"May I make a suggestion, then?"

"Of course, Your Majesty."

"I think Steve Tarlac's would be appropriate. Hovan told me Clan
Ch'kara's Speaker for the Lords said our next Ranger would be his
spiritual heir--and now that we've found you, that seems reasonable."

Corina bowed. "I would be honored to bear the Peacelord's arms, sir,
though I do not know if I can live up to his example."

"It won't be easy, but then neither are any of our jobs." Davis grew
sober. "Back to our present situation. So you can plan, Rick and I
are in space now, as you suggested, outside Sol System. Only the
ship's captain and navigator know our location. I've ordered the
defense satellites not to fire on any Irschchan ships. Since you're
sure Thark will be leading the attack, we'll be using Jim's plan: I
want Thark to land and take action against the Palace itself, and to
prevent unnecessary damage, I'm making it as easy for him as I can. As
a ruling noble, he'll have no trouble getting through the Complex's
weather dome, and he'll find the Palace's security screen has somehow
been left off. The Guards have orders not to fire until he takes
hostile action."

"I understand, sir. I may not be able to take him alive for a
Tribunal, though. I may not be able to take him at all."

"It's not necessary to take him alive," Davis replied after a moment's
thought. "A Tribunal isn't essential, it's the evidence that is. If
you can't take him at all--" He was silent for a moment, then said,
"All right. How long will it take if you can handle him?"

"Less than half an hour, certainly; probably no more than fifteen
minutes."

"Considering the size of the Palace," Davis pointed out, "it could take
you longer than that just to find him." He thought for a moment.
"Signal Defsat Five when you land. They'll have their orders, and if
they don't receive a second signal from you within an hour, they'll
blast the Palace and everything for ten kilometers around it. I don't
want that to happen--it'd mean losing four Rangers, as well as a couple
of hundred thousand people, and probably destroy the Complex--but even
that is better than a rebellion that would cost millions or billions of
lives throughout the Empire."

"I wil