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was no sign of those past ravages now; it was a busy and seemingly prosperous city.
    Within a day I had my interview with the Party official in charge here. I was sure he would never have agreed to see me if I hadn't come with the highest recommendation; as it was, he was unable to refuse, lest he be summarily removed from office. At this point I no longer remember his name, and in any event it's not important; I will simply call him Comrade Ivan, and re-create the essence of our conversation as accurately as is feasible.
    Ivan was the ranking person in Kraine, and could have resided in the capital city, but preferred this port city. He curtly presented the statistics of trade and output, showing how things had improved recently and how quotas were being fulfilled. It looked good enough on the surface—but I had done my homework.
    “This fifty million tons of wheat,” I inquired. “Is this export or import?”
    He frowned. “Import,” he said somewhat reluctantly. “We are the chief port city for this region, and do much business with other planets.”
    “But shouldn't the USR be a net exporter of grain?” I asked.
    He harrumphed. "Well, in the majority of years it is, and of course Kraine itself has generated a surplus.
    But we got a very good price—"
    “A surplus for the USR as a whole?”
    “For Kraine. We supply grain to other—”
    “Because Kraine is the major harvest region of this planet,” I said. “Why, then, are you importing grain on such a scale?”
    “There have been adverse conditions recently,” he admitted. “But our five-year plan—”
    “Is running calamitously below expectation,” I said. “The fact is, Ivan, your administration is a disaster.”
    “Not mine!” he cried. “I do not make policy! I only follow directives. I am doing as well as is possible in my circumstance.”
    My reading of him confirmed his belief in this. He was basically a good man, a Party appointee but not stupid. He had to defend the status quo, because he would be removed if he did not, but he was really not to blame for its shortcomings. This was why I had selected him for my first approach, though he was not the ranking official of the Party structure, merely of this region.
    “Ivan, I have been assigned the task of doubling the wheat harvest in two years,” I said.
    He choked, trying not to laugh. “Best of fortune, Comrade Tyrant!” he wheezed.
    “I do not intend to rely on fortune, Comrade. I intend to deliver.”
    He shook his head. “The legends of the Tyrant of Jupiter are great indeed! But this is not Jupiter. There are elements here that will foil any attempt to—”
    “What elements?” I asked sharply.
    He became nervous. “Merely factors that—”
    “Listen, Ivan, I am not any secret agent of the Party attempting to trap you into an unpatriotic utterance. I am the Tyrant, acting under direct authority of Chairman Khukov. I rank you, and I mean to have your complete cooperation. Do you need time to verify this?”
    “No, Comrade Tyrant,” he said grimly.
    “Then tell me directly what you deem to be the prime causes of the underperformance of this region with regard to farming. I will not condemn you for those.”
    He grimaced. “Tyrant, you can have me removed from office now, but after you depart, there will be other influences. You put me in a very difficult position.”
    I had encountered this sort of thing when tackling the Pirates of the Belt. Those who supported me did not dare to do so openly, because they would be killed after I left. I had handled that by eradicating the enemy pirates.
    “I will protect you from those other influences,” I said.
    “This is impossible, Comrade! They—”
    “Such as the nomenklatura. When I depart this region, none will remain in power.”
    Ivan was shaken. “You can do that?”
    “That is what I came to do.”
    He stared at me. “The harvest—is only a ruse?”
    “I intend to do that too. The two go together.”
    He shook his