"But—but—" Tom tried to stammer an explanation.
"I couldn't have done it alone," explained Kit. He looked at Strong and their eyes met. Understanding flowed between them.
"Very well," said Strong, fighting to control himself. "If no one makes a complaint against you, we'll let it pass."
"Thanks, Steve," said Kit.
"You should have known better, Kit," said Strong. "The Solar Guard is supposed to be neutral throughout the entire race and do nothing but judge it."
"I know, Steve," said Kit. "But someone dumped impure reactant into my—"
"What?" It was the first time Strong had heard of it and he listened intently as the cadets and Sid told him the whole story.
"Why didn't you make a complaint?" demanded Strong finally. "We'd have given you more time to get squared away."
"It's not important," said Kit. "I won a place in the finals and now the boys and Sid have helped me clean it out."
Strong nodded. "All right. I guess one seems to balance out the other. Forget it." He smiled. "And excuse me for jumping like that and thinking that you would do anything—er—" He hesitated.