“It isn’t possible. He’s in transit.”
“Don’t you think if we could talk to him now he would agree to board the Glory of the Galaxy?”
“How should I know? I’m not Johnny Mayhem.”
“If he doesn’t board her, it’s certain death for all of them.”
“And if he does board her, what the hell can he do about it? Besides, there isn’t any dead body awaiting his elan on that ship or any ship. He wouldn’t make a very efficacious ghost.”
“But there are live people. Scores of them. Mayhem’s elan is quite capable of possessing a living host.”
“Sure. Theoretically it is. But damn it all, what would the results be? We’ve never tried it. It’s liable to damage Mayhem. As for the host—”
“The host might die. I know it. But he’ll die anyway. The whole shipload of them is heading on collision course for the sun.”
“Does the SOS say why?”
“No. Maybe Mayhem can find out and do something about it.”