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now, and Chalmers calmly surveyed the damage to Sentient Sciences.
One of the walls had moved in a dozen meters, cutting floor space almost in half. Chalmers felt an instant
of panic for the terminals behind it, before remembering that they were crated and ready for loading now,
not sitting in vacuum. A whiff of hot metal lingered from the reconstruction, stinging the nose. Personnel
filled every remaining station, with some waiting in line for available space. That crowding would not last
long.
Chalmers could see some stations tuned to surface cameras, watching a familiar ship settle toward the
surface of the moon. It had left nine months before with the first evacuees. He stopped by one monitor to
watch its antigrav plates raise a puff of dust, just before the landing bars deployed and the ship touched
down.
 The beginning of the end, Chalmers said.
Louise jumped in her seat.  Winston, she said, switching the monitor to something else and looking
distinctly embarrassed.
 Don't worry about it. I'll be in my office. Oh, and you'll have my report by this afternoon."
His office was still intact, though the outside smell had penetrated. He settled at his desk to write. He
needed to complete his report on the state of knowledge of the Alulan civilizations, and his
recommendations for study in the last months remaining.
He treated it seriously, adding and revising for hours, though it was really a paperwork formality. Louise
knew almost everything he did about the Alulans. She would be fine as the next the last department
head.
His monitor flashed, notifying him of a staff meeting. Annoyed, he shut it off. It was supposed to ignore
those notices. It had for four months.
Chalmers went back to writing, until a rap on his clear door interrupted him. It was Louise. He hit the
door open button.  Come on, she said,  the meeting."
 Have you forgotten, Louise? I don't go to staff meetings any longer."
 Kachru wants you this time. She won't start without you, so don't keep everybody waiting."
Chalmers submitted to the inevitable.  I suppose our Director can afford to be magnanimous now, he
said as they walked off.  Perhaps there's a small party, in celebration of my departure. Is that the surprise
you're keeping from me?"
 What? No, no."
 Louise, are you quite all right? You've acted nervous all day."
 Well ... I have been meaning to say..."
 Say what? he asked, offering a smile.
Louise got hold of something inside her.  That I wish your group the best of luck on Earth."
 Thank you, Louise. I suppose four months in a sardine-tin spaceship should give us time to plan our
appeal to the Exploration Council. I'll be most high-minded; won't even bring up the secret identity of the
Sphinx. His mouth twisted.  One hopeless cause at a time, right?"
Louise was saved from answering by their arrival at Kachru's office. They sat quickly, under the
Director's silent gaze. Kachru picked up a pad.
 The evacuation ship delivered a message from the United Exploration Council. To quote the most
important paragraph:  You are ordered to evacuate Alula Observation Base One as rapidly as possible.
All precautions to insure against your detection, directly or in later native exploration of the base site,
must strictly be observed." My policy has been confirmed."
There it was: her vindication, as though it was ever in doubt. Chalmers thought it a bit of unseemly
gloating, though she never once glanced at him during her recitation.
 However  Kachru showed a flash of irritation   the method will be altered substantially. Quoting
again:  Personnel will be evacuated on seniority basis. Those with least time on-site will be first to return
to Earth. 
There were murmurs. Chalmers's eyes widened, as he did some quick calculations.
Kachru set the pad down.  This is unexpected indeed, it overturns our plans at the worst moment but
it is also an order. We will follow it. I will have new evacuation lists for you momentarily. She started
giving orders to her terminal.
Louise nudged her neighbor.  I won't need to see that report, Winston. I'm going to be on this ship."
 Yes, Chalmers replied faintly,  and I'm not. He shook the cobwebs from his head.  And most of
our ahem, friends are rather junior. Even more of them may be going home than before."
Kachru was done quickly. She gave pads to the senior staffers, wearing an opaque frown as she handed
one to Chalmers. He scanned it, and surely enough, he was one of the few pro-contact plotters in
Sentient Sciences staying behind.
 You're going to be very busy informing your subordinates, Kachru said,  so I'll let you go now.
Meeting adjourned."
Chalmers held his tongue until he was in the corridor.  How kind of her, he told Louise,  to leave us the
dirty work."
 I'll announce it to the department, if you like."
He thought, as Henry Stark squeezed past them.  No. I'm department head, and apparently staying that
way. It's something I should tell them. He glared back at the office door.  There's something I should tell
the Director as well, but she has the privilege of not listening."
Louise steered him by the arm.  We'll announce it together but quickly, before rumors begin to
spread."
 What, in this facility? Who would ever imagine that?"
* * * *
Midway through the loading of the supply ship, Chalmers went to see Kachru. Given the fact that he was
now staying until the last evacuation, and Louise was technically no longer serving in Sentient Sciences,
Kachru had acquiesced to the need for Chalmers to report to her again.
He found her hard at work making notes on a pad when he entered her office. Her hair looked
grayer no, that wasn't it. It had grown ragged at the temples, the strands thinner.
She looked up.  Hello, Doctor. Is the evacuation going smoothly?"
The eyes shocked him: darkened, sunken, the hatching ground for the wrinkles across her face. She was
about his age, and he was scarcely in his first youth but she looked old. Had the last months been that
hard on her?
Had he been?
 Doctor! Kachru was impatient, and that anger put energy back in her face.  How is the evacuation
going?"
 A-as well as can be expected. Director, I have some ... interesting news."
She put down her stylus.  Interesting? Not good or bad, but interesting?"
It depended on who heard it, Chalmers thought, but settled for saying,  Judge for yourself. Political
tension on Alula, between the Tested and the other two main confederations, has been rather high. The
Idridari and the Chev League have claimed that the Tested space program has sinister military aims.
Some of the independent city-states have echoed those concerns, drifted toward their orbits."
 That I know, Kachru said.  What has changed?"
 The secrecy. The Tested government is finally acknowledging the program publicly. They have denied [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]