reach the Earth for about fifteen years more."

Commodore Hogan faced Admiral Meldrum. "I consider this to be rank insolence and insubordination. This man was entrusted with a billion-dollar spacecraft, the first and so far the only one of its kind. It took five years of hard work to build it and another three years to fit it out for its maiden trip. This Captain Enright went out with the hopes and prayers of all mankind, but instead of following orders he apparently went gallivanting all over the galaxy. I presume that his idea was that his very return would cause us to forget his absence for a year and a half. I—" Commodore Hogan whirled and faced Billy Enright. "Captain," he asked acidly, "did you take off as ordered?"

"I did."

"And you did go into deep space on course?"

"I did."

"And you approached this star, found this hoped-for planet, landed, and—er—then was captured by some tribe of savages who kept you prisoner?"

"Hardly. I did not reach my destination star and so I still do not know whether it has any planets."

"You were unavoidably detained?"

"You can put it that way."

"Suppose you tell us in what manner, before I ask that a formal charge of absent without official leave be logged against you."

Captain Enright nodded. "I took off under normal rocket take-off procedure, dropping my first stage after nine minutes. At the start of the second stage, the mass-nullifying field was turned on, which brought my velocity up to the estimated constant velocity of sixty-three light years per hour. Once my velocity reached its constant, I turned off the reaction motor to conserve fuel for my return, leaving only the tiniest trickle of power running from an auxiliary rocket to maintain speed. I made observations and recorded them as directed.

"Then," said Billy Enright, "when I was out about fifteen minutes, I caught sight of a teardrop shaped spacecraft closing in from one side and catching up from behind. It was painted in bright enamel in panels. From the pointed tail there came a faint halo of pale blue light. It caught up with me as though I were 

 Prev. P 7/9 next