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She crowded close to hiency hatch Immediately, he heard the sentry circuit’s hum, then a deep male voice: "Post Nine clear"

A tiny screen above the circuit speaker gloith red numerals: 2:29

"The hatch," she said

There was no way to avoid it; he had felt her wild strength He undogged the hatch and she thrust past hi right Her body was a silver blur in the un was in his hand without thinking about it and he cooked a Hooded Dasher that was only a step behind her She did not turn

His hands were shaking as he resealed the hatch

Running the P!

He glanced at the tinal: 2:29 She had said twenty-three minutes That would put her back at the hatch by 2:52

It occurred to him then that the perimeter was just under ten kilometers

It can’t be done! No one can run ten kilometers in twenty-three e to Lab One He unwadded her singlesuit Blood on it, no doubt of that Her naata

He wondered if it was a first or last name

Or a title?

He peered out of the plaz port, looking to the left where she would have to appear if she really did run the periata be?

A voice on the sentry circuit startled him: "Someone’s out there, pretty far out"

Another voice answered: "It’s a woht"

"Who is it?"

"Too far out to identify"

Tho for her topost report the runner But he knew there was notabout The Game from Waela, he had looked into the statistics Fifty-fifty in dayside, yes But nightside, fewer than one in fifty made it

The ti slowness: 2:48 It see to 2:49 The sentries were silent now

Why didn’t the sentries h to answer hihty-Nine!"

"Who the hell is that out there?"

"She’s still too far out to identify"

Tho The as that the lastup on the runner He peered out into the moonshadows

2:50

He spun the hatchdog, opened it a crack NoNot even a de: "Coata Co run at the end!"

So the hatch wide

There she was!

It was like a dance - leaping, dodging Soe and black swerved behind her Thomas took careful aim and burned another Dasher as she sped past hi her stride There was a musky odor of perspiration fro crashed into the barrier as he sealed it

Too late, you fucker!

He turned to see her slipping through the Lab One hatchway, her singlesuit in hand She waved to hiht Then: Ten klicks in twenty-three minutes!

There was a babble of conversation on the sentry circuit

"Anybody knoho that was?"

"Negative Where’d she go?"

"Somewhere over near Lab One dome"

"Sheee-it! That must’ve been the fastest time ever"

Thomas slapped the switch to shut them off, but not before a male voice said: "I’d sure like to have that little honey chasin"

Tho It refused to move, sealed

All that just to put a hashmark above her eyebrow?

N it had to be much more than thedown there in Lab One?

Again, he tried the hatchdog It refused to budge He shook his head and walked slowly back to the autosentry gate where he picked up a servo and rode it to his quarters All the way down he kept wondering:

What the hell’s a Legata?