Tee stepped out of the hangar and surveyed the twin suns. The pale binaries sat stolidly on the horizon, forty degrees apart. Their mingled light washed down dimly on the single continent of the planet, Aurora.
He started, as a man walked around the corner of the hangar. The man looked at Tee searchingly for a moment, then asked, "Anything troubling you, Tee?"
"Why ... why, no, Mr. Jenner. You just startled me, that's all."
"Well, how's everything coming?"
"Right on schedule. We'll be ready for the final test by the end of the week."
"By the way," asked Jenner, speculatively, "how come you ordered the ship stocked and provisioned, for the test?"
"Why ... why I think she should be tested under exactly the same conditions as she'll encounter in actual use."
"We could have done it a lot cheaper by just using ballast," said Jenner. "After this, I want to personally see any voucher for over a hundred credits before it's cleared."
"Yes, sir, but I just didn't want to bother you with details."
"An expenditure of over two thousand credits isn't just detail; but let it pass. It's already done. Anyway, on the drawing board she's the fastest thing in the galaxy." He smiled. "If she lives up to expectations, she'll make your ship look like an old freighter. We've got four million sunk in her so far, so she'd better check out roj."