ex-merchanter and surly outcast with a nickname of NG (no good). She gradually makes a place for herself and even manages to get the reluctant NG tentatively readmitted back into shipboard society. Things get complicated when she is forced to reveal her past, especially since Loki is currently hunting a Mazianni ship. Long overdue for a major overhaul, Loki limps into Thule, hooks up to the sole starship fuel pump and takes on all the available fuel. While there, the ship they were searching for (Keu's India) shows up. The Mazianni ship had been harried and hunted by Alliance and Union forces to the point that it was blocked from its regular supply bases and is desperately low on fuel. Keu needs to take the precious pump and fuel intact, so he can not just blow Loki up. Instead, he sends boarding parties of armored marines, but Bet and Fitch between them manage to hold them off. Then the Alliance warship Norway arrives to close the trap and administer the coup de grâce. Bet's actions during the battle prove to her crewmates that she can be trusted; she has found a (relatively) safe haven. Characters Thule Station personnel Don Ely – Thule Registry, befriends Yeager Nan Jodree – Thule Registry Loki crew Wolfe – captain Fitch – first officer (mainday) Orsini – first officer (alterday) Ramey (NG) – systems engineer Elizabeth Yeager (Bet) – ex-Africa tac-squad sergeant References Sources Cherryh, C. J. Rimrunners, Warner Aspect, 1989. External links Rimrunners at Worlds Without End 1989 American novels 1989 science fiction novels Science fiction novels by C. J. Cherryh Military science fiction novels Alliance–Union universe Novels set in the future Hugo Award-winning works Books with cover art by Don Maitz