Blade grinned and shook his head, then got down on his knees and began selecting items out of the pile on the floor. Eventually he picked out the clothing, the emergency rations and canteen, the knives-definitely the knives-the rope, and a light haversack to carry them all. Everything Lord Leighton had put in on the White Knight's principle of guarding against the bites of sharks was discarded. By the time he had finished, the load was down to less than thirty pounds, and Lord Leighton was beginning to fidget.

«Are you ready, Richard?»

«Any time you are, sir.»

«Good.» Leighton pressed the desk button again. «Initiate main sequence and prepare the transfer chamber.» Then he rose and led the way out into the corridor.

Nothing had changed in the main computer room. The computer consoles still loomed gigantic above the men passing among them. They seemed to crowd out against the walls and up against the roof of the underground chamber. Their sullen gray crackled finish was still as immaculate as ever. Leighton was an unashamed fanatic about cleanliness.

Finally they reached the innermost chamber. Here the rubber-padded chair stood in its glass booth. It was waiting for Blade to sit down in it and be hurled, hopefully equipment and all, into Dimension X.

This time, however, there was a change in the long-established routine of preparing Blade for his trip. He still went into the changing room, still stripped naked, still smeared himself all over with a black foul-smelling grease to prevent electrical burns. He still pulled on a loincloth. But when he stepped out of the changing room, Leighton was waiting for him with a complex harness of leather straps. It was somewhat like the webbing harness blade had used during his military service, and he had no trouble getting it on. When he had done so, Leighton attached the haversack to the chest strap and hooked the boots on the belt. Then he stepped back and surveyed his work.