e Satog image above the pit vanished. A clear light sprang up in the
big room. Simultaneously, Halder felt the nightmare immobility draining
from him and the sensation of dreamlike unreality fade from his mind. He
turned to the right, found Kilby's eyes already on him, saw the Rellis
couple sitting beyond her ... Rane, no longer disguised, looking like a
mirror image of Halder.

They were still fastened to their chairs. Halder's gaze shifted back
quickly to the center of the room. Where the pit had been, the flooring
was now level, carrying a massive, polished table. Behind the table sat
a heavily built, white-haired man with a strong face, harsh mouth, in
the formal black and gold robes of a Councilman of the Federation.

"I am Councilman Mavig." The voice was the one that had spoken in the
dark; it came now from the man at the table. "I am in charge of the
operation against the Kalechi agents, and it is my duty to inform them,
after their arrest and examination, of the disposition that must be made
of them."

He hesitated, twisting his mouth thoughtfully, almost as if unwilling to
continue. "You four have been thoroughly examined," he stated at last.
"Most of the work has been done while you were still unconscious. A
final check of your emotional reactions was being made throughout the
stress situation just ended, in which you listened to a replay of a
report on the Kalechi matter. That part is now concluded."

Mavig paused, scowled, cleared his throat. "I find," he went on, "that
some aspects of this affair still strain my credulity! More than half of
your group have been captured by now; the remainder are at large but
under observation. The danger is past. The activities of the Great
Satogs of Kalechi will receive our very close scrutiny for generations
to come. They shall be given no opportunity to repeat such a trick;
nor--after they have been made aware of the measures we are preparing
against them--will they feel the slightest inclination to try it.

"Now, as to yourselves. After we had tracked down the first dozen or so
of you, a startling pattern began to emerge. You were not following
Kalechi's careful instructions. In one way and another--in often very
ingenious ways--you were attempting primarily to establish contact with
one another. When captured and examined while unconscious by the
various interrogation instruments of our psychologists you told us your
reasons for doing this."

Councilman Mavig sh