You'll understand that I'm upset."
"But you are wrong. Dr. Seldon was of the opinion that you would be arrested this morning."
"What!"
"It is unfortunate, but true.
The Commission has been more and more hostile to his activities.
New members joining the group have been interfered with to an increasing extent.
The graphs showed that for our purposes, matters might best be brought to a climax now.
The Commission of itself was moving somewhat slowly so Dr. Seldon visited you yesterday for the purpose of forcing their hand.
No other reason."
Gaal caught his breath,
"I resent -"
"Please.
It was necessary.
You were not picked for any personal reasons.
You must realize that Dr. Seldon's plans, which are laid out with the developed mathematics of over eighteen years include all eventualities with significant probabilities.
This is one of them.
I've been sent here for no other purpose than to assure you that you need not fear.
It will end well; almost certainly so for the project; and with reasonable probability for you."
"What are the figures?" demanded Gaal.
"For the project, over 99.9%."
"And for myself?"
"I am instructed that this probability is 77.2%."
"Then I've got better than one chance in five of being sentenced to prison or to death."
"The last is under one per cent."
"Indeed.
Calculations upon one man mean nothing.
You send Dr. Seldon to me."
"Unfortunately, I cannot. Dr. Seldon is himself arrested."
The door was thrown open before the rising Gaal could do more than utter the beginning of a cry.
A guard entered, walked to the table, picked up the recorder, looked upon all sides of it and put it in his pocket.
Avakim said quietly, "I will need that instrument."
"We will supply you with one, Counsellor, that does not cast a static field."
"My interview is done, in that case." Gaal watched him leave and was alone. 6.
The trial (Gaal supposed it to be one, though it bore little resemblance legalistically to the elaborate trial techniques Gaal had read of) had not lasted long.
It was in its third day.
Yet already, Gaal could no longer stretch his memory back far enough to embrace its beginning.
He himself had been but little pecked at.
The heavy guns were trained on Dr. Seldon himself.
Hari Seldon, however, sat there unperturbed.
To Gaal, he was the only spot of stability remaining in the world.
The audience was small and drawn exclusively from among the Barons of the Empire.
Press and public were excluded and it was doubtful that any significant number of outsiders even knew that a trial of Seldon was being conducted.
The atmosphere was one of unrelieved hostility toward the defendants.
Five of the Commission of Public Safety sat behind the raised desk.
They wore scarlet and gold uniforms and the shining, close-fitting plastic caps that were the sign of their judicial function.
In the center was the Chief Commissioner Linge Chen.
Gaal had never before seen so great a Lord and he watched him with fascination.
Chen, throughout the trial, rarely said a word.
He made it quite clear that much speech was beneath his dignity.
The Commission's Advocate consulted his notes and the examination continued, with Seldon still on the stand: