Gateway - Frederik Pohl Page 0,98

smoke blow out and washed out the taste with a swallow of white lightning. "What kind of weapons?"

"They're like the tunnel diggers, only portable. They'll cut a hole through anything. We lost Sara BellaFanta in the landing; one of them put a hole in her suit. But Tim and I are whacking up her share, so it's two and a half mil apiece."

"Congratulations," I said. "I would have thought the last thing the human race needed was some new ways to kill each other —congratulations." I was reaching for an air of moral superiority and I needed it; because as I turned away, there was Shicky, hanging in air, watching me.

"Want a hit?" I asked, offering him the joint.

He shook his head.

I said, "Shicky, it wasn't up to me. I told them—I didn't tell them not to take you."

"Did you tell them they should?"

"It wasn't up to me," I said. "Hey, listen!" I went on, suddenly seeing an out. "Now that Louise has hit, Sess probably won't want to go. Why don't you take his place?"

He backed away, watching me; only his expression changed. "You don't know?" he asked. "It is true that Sess canceled out, but he has already been replaced."

"By whom?"

"By the person right behind you," said Shicky, and I turned around, and there she was, looking at me, a glass in her hand and an expression I could not read on her face.

"Hello. Rob." said Klara.

I had prepared myself for the party by a number of quick ones in the commissary; I was ninety-percent drunk and ten-percent stoned, but it all whooshed out of me as I looked at her. I put down the drink, handed the joint to someone at random, took her arm, and pulled her out into the tunnel.

"Klara," I said. "Did you get my letters?"

She looked puzzled. "Letters?" She shook her head. "I guess you sent them to Venus? I never got there. I got as far as the rendezvous with the plane-of-the-ecliptic flight, and then I changed my mind. I came right back on the orbiter."

"Oh, Klara."

"Oh, Rob," she mimicked, grinning; that wasn't much fun, because when she smiled I could see where the tooth was missing that I had knocked out. "So what else have we got to say to each other?"

I put my arms around her. "I can say that I love you, and I'm sorry, and I want to make it up to you, and I want to get married and live together and have kids and—"

"Jesus, Rob," she said, pushing me away, gently enough, "when you say something you say a lot, don't you? So hold it for a while. It'll keep."

"But it's been months!"

She laughed. "No fooling, Rob. This is a bad day for Sagittarians to make decisions, especially about love. We'll talk about it another time."

"That crap! Listen, I don't believe in any of that!"

"I do, Rob."

I had an inspiration. "Hey! I bet I can trade with somebody in the first ship! Or, wait a minute, maybe Susie would trade with you—"

She shook her head, still smiling. "I really don't think Susie would like that," she said. "Anyway, they bitched enough about letting me switch with Sess. They'll never stand still for another last minute change."

"I don't care, Klara!"

"Rob," she said, "don't rush me. I did a lot of thinking about you and me. I think we've got something that's worth working for. But I can't say it's all straight in my head yet, and I don't want to push it."

"But, Klara—"

"Leave it at that Rob. I'll be in the first Five, you'll be in the second.

MISSION REPORT

Vessel 3-184, Voyage O19D14O. Crew S. Kotsis, A. McCarthy, K. Metsuoko.

Transit time out 615 days 9 hours. No crew reports from destination. Spherical scan data inconclusive as to destination. No identifiable features.

No summary.

Extract from log: "This is the 281st day out. Metsuoko lost the draw and suicided. Alicia voluntarily suicided 40 days later. We haven't yet reached turnaround, so it's all for nothing. The remaining rations are not going to be enough to support me, even if you include Alicia and Kenny, who are intact in the freezer. So I am putting everything on full automatic and taking the pills. We have all left letters. Please forward them as addressed, if this goddamned ship ever gets back."

Mission Plan filed proposal that a Five with double life-support rations and a one-person crew might be able to complete this mission and return successfully. Proposal tabled on grounds of low priority: no