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His fear of the Devagas was due to the fact that he and an associate had provided the hierarchy with a very large quantity of contraband materials. The nature of the materials indicated the Devagas were constructing a major fortified outpost on a world either airless or with poisonous atmosphere. Pluly's associate had since been murdered. Pluly believed he was next in line to be silenced.
So Balmordan and a select group of his gunmen had attended Pluly's party on Pluly's yacht. They had been allowed to force their way into the sealed level and were there caught in a black-light trap. The gunmen had been killed. Balmordan had been questioned. The questioning revealed that the Devagas had found Doctor Fayle and the 112-113 unit, almost immediately after Fayle's disappearance.
"In a way," Lyad said, "Pilli brings us to that matter of business I mentioned this afternoon." The group's eyes shifted over to her. She smiled. "We have good scientists on Tranest," she said, "as Pilli, I think, demonstrates." She nodded at Balmordan. "There are good scientists in the Devagas Union.
"Now I," Lyad told the company, "shall be more honest. The information released in those seminars is of no value whatever. He" she nodded at the Devagas scientist "and I are going to Manon with the same goal in mind. That is to obtain plasmoids for our government laboratories." Balmordan smiled amiably. Trigger asked. "How do you intend to obtain them?"
The Ermetyne's amber eyes switched to Trigger. "Shall I?" she asked. Trigger nodded. And a specific human being. The Devagas already had established that this human being must be Trigger Argee. "What?" Mantelish's thick white eyebrows shot up. "113-A we can understand it is afraid of being in some way brought back under control. But why Trigger?"
She'd sooner lose Tranest than risk having that happen. She'll be good." "Yeah, probably," he said thoughtfully. "About that substation would you feel more comfortable if we went after the bunch round the Devagas dome first and got us an escort for the trip?" "Sure," Trigger said. "But that would just about kill any chances of doing anything personally, wouldn't it?" "I'm afraid so.
But that's not very likely, after all." "Couldn't be helped anyway," Trigger said. "No. If we knock ourselves out on this job, somebody besides Lyad's Tranest squadron and the Devagas has to know just where the station is." He shook his head. "That Lyad! I figured she'd know how to run the transmitters, so I gave her the chance.
Within a few weeks it was parked on Luscious, where it devoted itself to the minor creative experimentation which presently was to puzzle Professor Mantelish. The Devagas meanwhile toiled prodigiously to complete the constructions which were to be a central feature in the new alliance.
So could the top ranks of the Devagas hierarchy. Lyad, at the moment, could not. She did know that Trigger Argee's importance was associated directly with that of plasmoid 113-A. This information had been obtained from a Devagas operator, now dead. Not Balmordan. The operator had been in charge of the attempted pickup on Evalee.
"The worst part of that," he went on, "is that it would be completely obvious. The Council's right when it worries about fumbles here. Tranest and the Devagas know the thing is in there. If the Federation can't produce it, both those outfits have the Council over a barrel. Or we could be setting the Hub up for fifty years of fighting among the member worlds, sometime in the next few hours."
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