The Keeper
by H. Beam Piper
The bad guys have stolen his treasure, and Raud travels with his deer gun and his big dog, Brave, to catch the thieves before they reach Starfolk. It meant little for men to have negatron pistols, Raud was the Protector... Old people talk about a time years ago when hundreds of starships could be seen in the night sky, but now the world is old, poor and forgotten. Rayud, the protector, is surprised that one day a local man named Vahra Farg's son brings two men from another world to his home. It seems that people are scientists who have heard of the great crown that Raud was tasked with preserving and want to see it.
