by James A. Cox
Union chaps with El Hassan propaganda? Quite a fewof them are from Libya, Tunisia and Egypt. In short, they're Africansand susceptible to El Hassan's dream."
"Good man. Take over the details, Jack," Homer said. He went back tohis work with Isobel.
Jimmy Peters entered with some papers in hand. He said, seriously,"The temperature is rising in the Reunited Nations--and everywhereelse, for that matter. Damascus and Cairo have been gettingincreasingly belligerent. Homer, it looks as though the Arab Union isgetting ready to go out on a limb. Weeks have passed since ColonelIbrahim first took Tamanrasset and the Reunited Nations, the UnitedStates, the Soviet Complex and all others interested in North Africa,have failed to do anything. Everybody, evidently, afraid ofprecipitating something that couldn't be ended."
All eyes went to Homer Crawford who ran a black hand back over hishair in weariness. "I know," he said. "Something is about to blow.Dave has sent some of his best men into Tamanrasset to pick up gossipin the souks. Morale was dragging bottom among the legionnaires just acouple of days ago. Now they seem to have a new lease."
"In spite of the sabotage our people have been committing?" Isobelsaid.
"That's falling off somewhat," Cliff said. "At first our moreenthusiastic followers were able to pull everything from heavingMolotov Cocktails into tanks, to pouring sugar in hover-jeep gastanks, but the legionnaires have both smartened up and gotten verytough."
"Good," Dave Moroka said now.
They looked at him.
"Atrocities," he said. "In order to guard against sabotage, thelegionnaires will be taking measures that will antagonize the peoplein Tamanrasset. They'll shoot a couple of teenage kids, or something,then they'll have a city-wide mess on their hands."
Isobel said unhappily, "It seems a nasty way to win a war."
Dave grunted his contempt of her opinion. "There is no way of winninga war other than a nasty one."
Bey came in, yawning hugely. His energy was inconceivable to theothers. So far as was known, he hadn't slept, other than sitting erectin a moving vehicle, for the past four days. He said to Homer, "FredOstrander has been bending my ear for the past hour or so. Do you wantto talk to him?"
"About what?" Homer said.
"I don't know. He has a lot of questions. I think he's beginning tosuspect--just _suspect_, understand--that possibly the whole bunch ofus aren't receiving our daily instructions from either Moscow orPeking."
Dave and Cliff both laughed.
Homer sighed and said, "Show him in. He's the only thing we have inthe way of a contact with the United States of the Americas and sooneror later we're going to have to make our peace with both them and theSoviet Complex. In fact, what we're probably going to have to do isplay one against the other, getting grants, loans, economicassistance--"
"Technicians, teachers, arms," Bey continued the list.
Kenny Ballalou looked at him and snorted. "Arms! If there's anythingthis part of the world doesn't need it's more arms. In fact, that goesfor the rest of the world, too. In the old days when the great nationswere first beginning to attempt to line up the neutrals they sent aidto such countries by the billions--and most of it in arms. Howridiculous can you get? Putting arms in the hands of most of thegovernments of that time was like handing a loaded pistol to anidiot."
Bey hung his head in mock humility. "I bow before your wisdom," hesaid. He left the room to get Ostrander.
* * * * *
The C.I.A. man had lost a fraction of his belligerence, but none ofhis arrogance and natty appearance. Homer wondered vaguely how theother managed to remain so spruce in the inadequate desert camp.
Jack Peters said, "What did you wish to ask El Hassan? I willtranslate."
"Never mind that, Jack," Homer said. "We'll get tougher about usingour official language when we've gone a little further in buildingour new government." He said to Ostrander, "What can I do for you?Obviously, my time, is limited."
Fredric Ostrander said, "I've been gathering material for reports tomy superiors. I've been doing a good deal of questioning, and,frankly, even prying around."
Cliff grunted.
Ostrander went on. "I've also read the various press releases,manifestoes and so forth that your assistants have been compiling."
"We know," Homer said. "We haven't put any obstacles in your way. Wehaven't any particular secrets, Mr. Ostrander."
"You disguise the fact that you are an American," the C.I.A. man saidaccusingly.
Homer said slowly, "Only because El Hassan _is not_ an American, Mr.Ostrander. He is an African with African solutions to Africanproblems. That is what he must be if he is to accomplish his task."
Ostrander seemed to switch subjects. "See here, Crawford, the StateDepartment is not completely opposed to the goal of uniting NorthAfrica. It would solve many problems, both African and international."
Kenny Ballalou laughed softly. "You mean, you're on our side?"
Ostrander turned to him, for once not incensed at being needled."Possibly more than you'd think," he rapped. He turned back again toHomer Crawford. "The question becomes, why do you think that _you_ arethe man for the job? Who gave _you_ the go-ahead?"
Bey, who had settled down into a folding camp chair, now came to hisfeet, his tired face angry.
But Homer waved him to silence. "Hold it," he said. Then to Ostrander."It doesn't work that way. It's not something you decide to do becauseyou're thirsty for power, or greedy for money. You're pushed into it.Do you think Washington, a retired Virginian planter wrapped up in hisestate and his family, wanted to spend years leading the revolutionaryarmies through the wilderness that was America in those days? He wasthrust into the job, there was no one else more competent to take it.Men make the times, Ostrander, but the times also make the men. Lookat Lenin and Trotsky. Three months before the October Revolution,Lenin wrote that he never expected to see in his lifetime theBolsheviks come to power. Within those months he was at the head ofgovernment and Trotsky, a former bookworm who had never fired a gun inhis life, was head of the Red Army and being proclaimed a militarygenius."
Ostrander was scowling at him, but his face was thoughtful.
Homer said quietly, "It's not always an easy thing, to have power thrustinto your hands. Not always a desirable thing." His voice went quieterstill. "Only a short time ago it led me to the necessity of ...killing ... my best friend."
"And mine," Isobel said softly, almost under her breath.
Dave Moroka said, "Abe Baker," before he caught himself.
Kenny Ballalou looked at him strangely. "Did you know Abe?"
The South African recovered. "I've heard several of you mention himfrom time to time. He was a commie, wasn't he?"
"Yes," Homer said without inflection. "And a man. He saved my life onmore than one occasion. As long as we worked together with only Africain mind, there was no conflict. But Abe had a further, and, to him,greater alliance."
He turned his attention back to the C.I.A. man. "A man does what hemust do," he finished simply. "I did not ask to become El Hassan."
Ostrander said, "Your motivation is possibly beside the point. Thething is that the battle for men's minds continues and your program,eventually, must align with the West."
"And get clobbered in the stampeding around between the two greatpowers," Kenny said dryly.
"You've got to take your stand," Ostrander said. "I'd rather die underthe neutron bomb, than spend the rest of my life on my knees under aSoviet Complex government. Wouldn't you?" His eyes went from one ofthem to the other, defiantly.
Homer said slowly. "No, even though that was the only alternative,which is unlikely. Not if it meant finishing off the whole human raceat the same time." He shook his head. "If it were only me, it might bedifferent. But if it was a matter of nuclear war the whole race mightwell end. Given such circumstances, I'd be proud to remain on myknees the rest of my life. You see, Ostrander, you make the mistake ofthinking the Soviet socio-economic system is a permanent thing. Itis
n't. It's changing daily, even as our own socio-economic system is.Even if the Soviet Complex were to dominate the whole world, it wouldbe but a temporary phase in man's history. Their regime, in its time,right or wrong, will go under in man's march to whatever his destinymight be. Some day it will be only a memory, and so will thesocio-economic systems of the West. No institutions are less permanentthan politico-economic ones."
"I don't agree with you," Ostrander snapped.
"Obviously," Homer