ty. And there was plenty of profit in it as well.

So far as the rest of the world might know, Dar Makun and his caravan
had left Kira Barra to cut back to the northern swing. And the turbulent
null had swallowed them without trace.

He turned away. He would have to bring work boats in to the nearby
beach. Their surrogates were already attuned and ready, and one of them
had been equipped with an auxiliary power crystal. He would need that.

As the boats arrived at village piers, the various headmen would merely
follow instructions as given by the boat's surrogates. He would be done
with this operation in a few hours.

* * * * *

The days went on, became weeks, then hands of weeks. Little by little,
Barra changed his attitude toward caravan masters. Once, he had been
cautious about dealing with them, allowing only a chosen few to do
business within his borders.

Now, however, he had found a whole, new source of income. And a new
sense of power had come to him. Caravans were more than welcome at Kira
Barra.

He leaned back on his new chair, enjoying the complete ease with which
it instantly shaped to fit his body. It was precisely like hovering a
short distance above the floor, yet there was no strain of concentration
on some control unit. He allowed himself to relax completely and turned
his attention to the viewer crystal.

It was new, too. The old one of his father's which he had brought to the
new Residence had seemed quite inadequate when the Residence was redone.
This new viewer had been designed for professional use. It was a full
two feet in diameter and could fill thousands of cubic feet with solid
projection.

Animals, trees, pseudomen, all could be brought before him as though
physically present in the study. Too, it was simpler than the old one
and much more accurate in its control. He sighed.

The Estates had prospered. Of course, he had been cautious. Many
caravans had come to Kira Barra and left again, their masters highly
pleased with the fair dealings of the Estates. Several had returned,
time and time again.

There had been others who had come through during times when the null
was in turbulence and it was from these that he had taken his harvest.
He had been particular in his choices, making careful evaluation before
taking any action.

By this time, his operation was faultless--a smooth routine which
admitted of no error. He smiled as he remembered his fumb