to Daria, had
been unavoidable. Neither side could be blamed.

The news summaries reported that the Empire was winning as steadily as
ever. It was the casualty reports that bothered Tarlac. The Imperial
losses were lighter than predicted, and he knew few individuals in the
Empire well enough to feel more than mild regret at their deaths; but
the increasingly heavy Traiti casualties upset him with their sheer
numbers.

More, some of them hit him very personally. The loss of people from
Ch'kara, even people he'd never met, left a void. They were a loss to
the entire clan, and it wasn't balanced by the birth of a son to one of
the n'ka'ruhar on Norvis--though Tarlac did share the clan's joy at
that event.

The losses couldn't intensify his need to end the war, though. Nothing
could; it was already the central fact of his existence. So, aside
from paying attention to the news summaries and the necessities of
life, Tarlac spent all his time on the concentrated study that might
keep him alive through the Ordeal.

All the same, it was a welcome break when, just before dinner the
evening of his tenth day on Homeworld, Hovan informed him that school
was over and invited him to join one of the fighters' discussion groups
after eating.

Tarlac pushed himself away from the study unit and stood, stretching
luxuriously. "That sounds good, and I could sure use the change. Have
you decided when I'm supposed to go out?"

"Tomorrow, or if you prefer, the next day."

"Okay. Tomorrow, then. I still don't care to waste time."

"I thought you would not. I arranged for a null-grav car for
midmorning; I will take you to the test area myself." He smiled a
little. "Before we leave, you will have to make a decision. Now that
you know all the dangers, you must choose whether to remain in the test
area for the full two ten-days, or attempt to walk out. The Ordeal
requires that you survive, nothing more."

"Mmm." Tarlac frowned. "Staying put's safer, but if I'm lucky,
walking out should only take five or ten days. That's ten, maybe
fifteen days saved--I'll take the chance. And I'll bet you expected
that, too."

Hovan's smile widened. "I did. It means you will carry a locator
beacon as well as your knife, timed to go off in twenty days. If you
are not back here by then, we will come for you."

"Yeah, okay. You know me pretty well, don't you? Let's eat."

He slept that night as if he had nothing hanging over him