"What do we do now?" Magnan asked.
"We gamble. How much money do you have in your pockets?"
"Why ... a few credits." Magnan handed the money to Retief. "But what about the man Zorn?"
"A purple cutaway is conspicuous enough, without ignoring the tables,"
Retief said. "We"ve got a hundred credits between us. We"ll get to Zorn in due course, I hope."
"Your pleasure, gents," a bullet-headed man said, eyeing the colorful evening clothes of the diplomats. "You"ll be wantin" to try your luck at the Zoop tower, I"d guess. A game for real sporting gents."
"Why ... ah ..." Magnan said.
"What"s a zoop tower?" Retief asked.
"Out-of-towners, hey?" The bullet-headed man shifted his dope-stick to the other corner of his mouth. "Zoop is a great little game. Two teams of players buy into the pot. Each player takes a lever; the object is to make the ball drop from the top of the tower into your net. Okay?"
"What"s the ante?"
"I got a hundred-credit pot workin" now, gents."
Retief nodded. "We"ll try it."
The shill led the way to an eight-foot tower mounted on gimbals. Two perspiring men in trade-cla.s.s pullovers gripped two of the levers that controlled the tilt of the tower. A white ball lay in a hollow in the thick gla.s.s platform at the top. From the center, an intricate pattern of grooves led out to the edge of the gla.s.s. Retief and Magnan took chairs before the two free levers.
"When the light goes on, gents, work the lever to jack the tower. You got three gears. Takes a good arm to work top gear. That"s this b.u.t.ton here. The little k.n.o.b controls what way you"re goin". May the best team win. I"ll take the hundred credits now."
Retief handed over the money. A red light flashed on, and Retief tried the lever.
It moved easily, with a ratcheting sound. The tower trembled, slowly tilted toward the two perspiring workmen pumping frantically at their levers. Magnan started slowly, accelerated as he saw the direction the tower was taking.
"Faster, Retief," he said. "They"re winning."
"This is against the clock, gents," the bullet-headed man said. "If n.o.body wins when the light goes off, the house takes all."
"Crank it over to the left," Retief said.
"I"m getting tired."
"Shift to a lower gear."
The tower leaned. The ball stirred, rolled into a concentric channel.
Retief shifted to middle gear, worked the lever. The tower creaked to a stop, started back upright.
"There isn"t any lower gear," Magnan gasped. One of the two on the other side of the tower shifted to middle gear; the other followed suit. They worked harder now, heaving against the stiff levers. The tower quivered, moved slowly toward their side.
"I"m exhausted," Magnan gasped. He dropped the lever, lolled back in the chair, gulping air. Retief shifted position, took Magnan"s lever with his left hand.
"Shift it to middle gear," Retief said. Magnan gulped, punched the b.u.t.ton and slumped back, panting.
"My arm," he said. "I"ve injured myself."
The two men in pullovers conferred hurriedly as they cranked their levers; then one punched a b.u.t.ton and the other reached across, using his left arm to help.
"They"ve shifted to high," Magnan said. "Give up, it"s hopeless."
"Shift me to high," Retief said. "Both b.u.t.tons!"
Magnan complied. Retief"s shoulders bulged. He brought one lever down, then the other, alternately, slowly at first, then faster. The tower jerked, tilted toward him, farther.... The ball rolled in the channel, found an outlet--
Abruptly, both Retief"s levers froze.
The tower trembled, wavered and moved back. Retief heaved. One lever folded at the base, bent down and snapped off short. Retief braced his feet, took the other lever with both hands and pulled.
There was a rasp of metal friction, and a loud tw.a.n.g. The lever came free, a length of broken cable flopping into view. The tower fell over as the two on the other side scrambled aside.
"Hey!" Bullet-head yelled. "You wrecked my equipment!"
Retief got up and faced him.
"Does Zorn know you"ve got your tower rigged for suckers?"
"You tryin" to call me a cheat or something?"
The crowd had fallen back, ringing the two men. Bullet-head glanced around. With a lightning motion, he plucked a knife from somewhere.
"That"ll be five hundred credits for the equipment," he said. "n.o.body calls Kippy a cheat."
Retief picked up the broken lever.
"Don"t make me hit you with this, you cheap chiseler."
Kippy looked at the bar.
"Comin" in here," he said indignantly, looking to the crowd for support.
"Bustin" up my rig, callin" names...."
"I want a hundred credits," Retief said. "Now."
"Highway robbery!" Kippy yelled.
"Better pay up," somebody called.
"Hit him, mister," someone else said.