on. In their dim
glow Brion could just make out the other man's hawklike profile.
When he moved, Brion saw that his figure was cruelly shortened.
Either accident or a mutated gene had warped his spine, hunching him
forward in eternally bent supplication. Warped bodies were rare--his
was the first Brion had ever seen. He wondered what series of events
had kept him from medical attention all his life. This might explain
the bitterness and pain in the man's voice.

"Did the mighty brains on Nyjord bother to tell you that they have
chopped another day off the deadline?" the man asked. "That this
world is about to come to an end?"

"Yes, I know," Brion said. "That's why I'm asking your group for
help. Our time is running out too fast."

The man didn't answer; he merely grunted and gave his full attention
to the radar pings and glowing screen. The electronic senses reached
out as he made a check on all the search frequencies to see if they
were being followed.

"Where are we going?" Brion asked.

"Out into the desert." The driver made a vague wave of his hand.
"Headquarters of the army. Since the whole thing will be blown up in
another day, I guess I can tell you it's the only camp we have. All
the cars, men and weapons are based there. And Hys. He's the man in
charge. Tomorrow it will be all gone--along with this cursed planet.
What's your business with us?"

"Shouldn't I be telling Hys that?"

"Suit yourself." Satisfied with the instrument search, the driver
kicked the car to life again and churned on across the desert. "But
we're a volunteer army and we have no secrets from each other. Just
from the fools at home who are going to kill this world." There was
a bitterness in his words that he made no attempt to conceal. "They
fought among themselves and put off a firm decision so long that now
they are forced to commit murder."

"From what I had heard, I thought that it was the other way around.
They call your Nyjord army terrorists."

"We are. Because we are an army and we're at war. The idealists at
home only understood that when it was too late. If they had backed
us in the beginning we would have blown open every black castle on
Dis, searched until we found those bombs. But that would have meant
wanton destruction and death. They wouldn't consider that. Now they
are going to kill everyone, destroy everything." He flicked on the
panel lights just long enough to take a compass bearing, and Brion
saw the tortu