They were warm enough, dry enough, if they stayed in the air jet. But the storm splashed rain across the bow window, and through the rain came the yellow glow of the burning jungle.

"I wouldn't mind killing a bandit or two," Booce said. "I've been robbed once or twice. It's the scale of the thing that bothers me. There must have been forty citizens in that jungle, not counting children."

Clave jumped toward the fore end of the cabin. After a moment, Jeffer followed. The fore air jet was as dry as the aft.

Clave said, "I'd had enough of that."

"Forty people," Jeffer said. "There just isn't any way to make them stop talking about it."

Clave's voice was'a hoarse whisper. "Persuasive, is he? Nobody but you can be trusted to talk to Kendy,

right? You burned them while they were trying to rescue their citizens!"

"They attacked us."

"With spears. So?"

"What was I supposed to do? They were threatening our citizens!"

Clave sighed. "I'm not blaming you. And if I am, I shouldn't be. But Kendy-" By the flick of his eyes, Clave had remembered that Kendy would hear this. He began pronouncing his words with more care. "Treefeeding Kendy killed them like a hive of honey hornets, because they were in his way. Because they might talk to the wrong people!"

Silence and discomfort. Debby came to join them. "Wet," she said. "What did you do to get it so wet?"

Jeffer didn't answer. To Clave he said, "I felt much worse when I killed Klance the Scientist to steal the CARM. He wasn't expecting it. These citizens were. They were making war."

"Right!" Debby said enthusiastically. "When London Tree raided us, I used to wish we could capture this thing and set their whole tree burning. The bandits aren't the same, but by the State, we finally did it!"

"Don't do it again," Clave said. Jeffer nodded.

Section Three

CIVILIZATION

Chapter Twelve

Customs

Year 384, day 1992, by heliograph:

STATION TWO TO GYRFALCON. SWALLOW REPORTS LARGE INCOMING LOG EAST OF ADMIRALTY. MASTER UNIDENTIFIED. YOU WILL RENDEZVOUS FOR CUSTOMS DUTY IF CONVENIENT. LOCATION OF LOG AT DAY 1990 WAS TWO-NINE-OH DEGREES FLAT, FIVE DEGREES NORTH, TWO-EIGHT-OH KLOMTERS RADIAL. ACKNOWLEDGE.

"RICE, DID THIS JUST COME IN?"

"Yes, sir. I was scraping the hull when I saw the light blinking near the Market. Took the message and came straight in, but I don't know how long the helio was blinking."

Petty Mart Wheeler thought it through. Gyr falcon carried six crew; Swallow, two. The Navy preferred that civilians notice the big armed ships. In the act of paying customs they should remember what they were buying So.

"Where are we?"

"I'll find out, sir." Spacer Rice turned toward the instrument closet.

"No, not you. Bosun Murphy, take our position." This was not an urgent mission. He'd use it as a training exercise.