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foolish world anew. Show me your adventures, for else I will grow bored!”
    DuQuesne shuddered theatrically. “And there’s a disaster we don’t want to see!” With an uncharacteristic and surprising show of affection, he suddenly swept them both into a crushing hug. Just as abruptly he pulled away, held Wu out at arm’s length, looking straight into his eyes. “You don’t know what this means to me, Wu. Thanks.”
    Ariane was still recovering from the hug as Wu said, “After that, I think I do. You’ve gotten soft, DuQuesne!” The emerald-auric eyes sparkled, and one dipped in a wink. “I think I like it! Now let’s go—I want to hear all about this ‘Arena’ place and why you need a simple warrior like me.”
    DuQuesne snorted, looking a bit embarrassed and much happier. “You’re just about as much a ‘simple warrior’ as I’m an ordinary power engineer, Wu, so let’s not overdo the modesty.” He led them out.
    “Marc,” she said, glancing back, “weren’t there…any others in this ward?”
    “Four more,” he answered quietly, the smile fading but not gone. “Don’t worry. That’s why Davison left. He’ll be moving them now.”
    “Why moving them?” Wu was curious. “Why not wake them up too?”
    “They all had their reasons to stay in their worlds, just like you, Wu. Before I try to drag ’em all out, I want to know I’ve got a place for them, like I do for you. And as for moving them? Safety.” DuQuesne saw the confused expression, shook his head. “I’ll explain, once we’re out of here.” He smiled again. “It’ll be okay, Wu. For the first time in years…I think things are finally going to work out all right.”

Chapter 3.
    Simon jolted awake from the doze he’d been in, the restraints on Holy Grail ’s copilot seat keeping him from catapulting through the air. What…
    “We have a detection, Simon,” his AISage Mio said, her projection materializing nearby. “Displaying now.”
    Simon didn’t question her assertion, but for his own peace of mind—or lack thereof—he checked the readings himself. The results did not comfort him. No doubt about it. But the location makes no sense.
    “What is it, Simon?”
    He saw Gabrielle poking her head through the interior doorway of Holy Grail with a concerned look on her face. He opened the commlink and let her see the display. “You see the triple peak, there? That’s a spacetime disruption which can’t really have any other explanation other than the activation of a Sandrisson Drive.”
    “Something came in, or went out?”
    “Out, I’m sure. There’s no sign of anything there now, but examining the minimal data I have for the region indicates there was a small vessel in that area previously.”
    Gabrielle looked puzzled. “Minimal data? Where was it? Ain’t too many places you could go that don’t have telescopic records.”
    “Ahh, but this was far to zenith—very far out of the plane of the solar system. Far enough that normally we don’t monitor the area much at all.”
    “That far up, so to speak?”
    “Yes. Which is one of the things that worries me. To do that without being noticed earlier, the ship would have had to depart somewhere around two, two and a half weeks ago—no more than a month after our arrival.”
    Gabrielle looked serious, and the other AISages materialized at the same moment.
    “INDEED A MOST INTERESTING PROBLEM, YOUTH,” Mentor thundered, in the manner of the fictional character Ariane had designed her AISage to operate, and then in reduced volume continued, “From even the fragmentary data you have, it is a matter of only moderate difficulty to extract some useful parameters for the departed vessel. It was small—my Visualization gives a ninety-six point two percent probability that it was one passenger with a considerable mass of supplies of unknown type. It departed from, and was presumably constructed at, L-5 Shipyards. Data from the last trans-system update indicates that