the post on handicap haven wasn't pleasant; it wasn't an experience a normal human would desire. it did have advantages—advancement came in sizes directly proportional to the disagreeableness of the place.

ten months to go on a year's assignment. if cameron could survive that period with nothing to mar his administration, he was in line for better positions. a suicide or any other kind of unpleasantness that would focus the attention of the outside world on the forgotten asteroid was definitely unwelcome.

he flipped on the telecom. "rocket dome. get me the pilot."

when the robot finally answered, it wasn't encouraging. "i'm sorry. there is no answer."

"then trace him," he snapped. "if he's not in the rocket dome, he's in the main dome. i want you to get him at once."

a few seconds of silence followed. "there is no record of the pilot leaving the rocket dome."

his heart skipped; with an effort he spoke carefully. "scan the whole area. understand? you've got to find him."

"scanning is not possible. the system is out of operation in that area."

"all right," he said, starting to shake. "send out repair robots." they were efficient in the sense they always did the work they were set to do, but not in terms of speed.

"the robots were dispatched as soon as scanning failed to work. are there any other instructions?"

he thought about that. he needed help, plenty of it. vogel? he'd be ready and willing, but that would leave the gravity-generating setup unprotected. better do without him.

who else? the sour old nurse who'd signed up because she wanted quick credits toward retirement? or the sweet young thing who had bravely volunteered because someone ought to help those poor unfortunate men? not the women, of course. she had a bad habit of fainting when she saw blood. probably that was why she couldn't get a position in a regular planetary hospital.

that was all, except the robots, who weren't much help in a case like this. that and the rocket pilot. for some reason he wasn't available.

the damned place was under-manned. always had been. nobody wanted to come except the mildly psychotic, the inefficient and lazy, or, conceivably, an ambitious young doctor like himself. mentally, cameron berated the last category. if anything serious happened here, such a doctor might end his career bandaging scratches at a children's playground.

"instructions," he said. "yes. leave word in gravity-generating for vogel. tell him to throw everything he's got around the units. watch them."

"is that all?"

"not quite. send six general purpose robots. i'll pick them up at the entrance to the rocket dome."

"repair robots are already in that area. will they do as well?"

"they will not. i want geepees for another reason." they wouldn't be much help, true, but the best he could manage.