Across the table, Colonel Robert Bahnz, the new DOD representative, floated impassively. He had said hardly a word, apparently content to leave the talking to Henry Woke, the NASA official who had come up in Pacifica with him. Bahnz stood at a slight angle, which had to take a certain amount of work. Was it his way of showing his contempt for the Tank Farm’s famous gravity, so unlike the free-fall conditions in the government’s shiny little Space Stations?

“So you people have decided to hit us on two fronts at once, Dr. Woke?” Susan spoke softly, but her voice had a cutting edge. “You’re going to attack the Farm’s man-rating, and you’re cutting back on our share of the residual propellants and water.”

Woke was a middle-aged bureaucrat who must have convinced himself long ago that space visits were a route to advancement in NASA. I could tell by his faint green pallor that he was doped up against space sickness.

“Now, Dr. Sorbanes,” he said. “Safety’s been an issue ever since a crewman fell from B Deck two years ago. As a quasi-federal institution, Colombo Station must adhere to man-rating policy. That’s all we are interested in.”

“We’ve had a good safety record for ten years, except for that one incident,” Susan replied. “And Congress gave us exemptions back in ’89, you’ll remember.”

“Yes, but those exemptions expire this year. And I think you’ll find this Congress less willing to take chances with the safety of its citizens in orbit.”

“I don’t see why we have to go the gold-plated route NASA and DOD used in the Space Stations,” Susan said acidly. “All that approach accomplished was to slow you down by a decade, and almost turn the country off on space for good!”

Woke shook his head. “Perhaps, Dr. Sorbanes. Indeed, it’s because NASA has seen the value of the Tank Farm approach that we had last year’s unfortunate misunderstanding regarding tank deliveries. Since Stations Two and Three began operating their own propellant recovery units and aluminum smelters, we’ve found that we need the leftover tanks as much as you do. We’re all going to have to share. That’s what it comes down to.”