y through the air, passed through complete darkness for an
instant, then found himself in a small room. Two men stood facing him,
both of them vaguely familiar. As his mind refocused, Musa recognized
the peddler of amulets, then the herder to whom he had once sold a
sword. They were strangely familiar, but they were in strange costumes.
He stared at them.

"Well, Musa," said the herder. "I see you got into trouble."

Musa blinked. "Who are you?" he demanded. "How do you know of my
affairs?"

The peddler of amulets grinned. "Why, we are old companions, Musa," he
said. "Of course, you have forgotten us, but we never forgot you." He
pointed.

"This is Resident Guardsman Lanko. I am Banasel, also of the Stellar
Guard. Our job is to prevent just such situations as the one you just
found yourself in." His grin faded. "That, and a few other things."

Musa frowned. "Stellar Guard? What is that?"

Lanko studied him for a moment, then crossed the small room. "You knew
once," he tossed over his shoulder, "but you rejected the knowledge, and
it had to be taken from you. Since you'll be working with us for a
while, I think we will have to restore your memories. Perhaps you'll
want to retain them." He removed equipment from a cabinet.

"Some of this will have to be secondhand, since neither Banasel nor
myself have been in the spots shown. But some of it is firsthand."

His hand flicked a switch.

A power unit hummed, and Musa found himself recalling a campsite near
the now destroyed and rebuilt city of Atakar. As the imposed mental
blocks fell away, he remembered who Banasel and Lanko were. And he
realized why he had been drawn to them in the recent past.

Memories of his days of slavery in Atakar flashed before his mind, and
he remembered the part these two had taken in his escape. He recalled
the days of banditry, and the strange visitors, who had brought with
them disturbing knowledge, and strange powers.

He saw the destruction of Atakar, and the capture of the galactic
criminals who had depraved that city. He shared the experiences of his
two companions during their introduction to the advanced culture of the
Galactic Federation, and he saw snatches of their training at Aldebaran
Base. He went with them on some of their missions.

The humming stopped, and he looked up at the two.

"So," Lanko told him, "now you know."

Musa nodded. "I turned something down, didn't I?"

* * * * *