Missing Link | Page 7

to know." He waved the
gun muzzle. "You will not be that foolish, will you, Orne?"
"No need to be," said Orne. "I've another little lesson to teach you: I
already know where you've hidden the Delphinus."

"Go, boy!" hissed Stetson. "Where is it?"
"Impossible!" barked Tanub.
"It's on your moon," said Orne. "Darkside. It's on a mountain on the
darkside of your moon."
Tanub's eyes dilated, contracted. "You read minds?"
"The I-A has no need to read minds," said Orne. "We rely on superior
mental prowess."
"The marines are on their way," hissed Stetson. "We're coming in to
get you. I'm going to want to know how you guessed that one."
"You are a weak fool like the others," gritted Tanub.
"It's too bad you formed your opinion of us by observing only the low
grades of the R&R," said Orne.
"Easy, boy," hissed Stetson. "Don't pick a fight with him now.
Remember, his race is arboreal. He's probably as strong as an ape."
"I could kill you where you sit!" grated Tanub.
"You write finish for your entire planet if you do," said Orne. "I'm not
alone. There are others listening to every word we say. There's a ship
overhead that could split open your planet with one bomb--wash it with
molten rock. It'd run like the glass you use for your buildings."
"You are lying!"
"We'll make you an offer," said Orne. "We don't really want to
exterminate you. We'll give you limited membership in the Galactic
Federation until you prove you're no menace to us."
"Keep talking," hissed Stetson. "Keep him interested."
"You dare insult me!" growled Tanub.

"You had better believe me," said Orne. "We--"
Stetson's voice interrupted him: "Got it, Orne! They caught the
Delphinus on the ground right where you said it'd be! Blew the tubes
off it. Marines now mopping up."
"It's like this," said Orne. "We already have recaptured the Delphinus."
Tanub's eyes went instinctively skyward. "Except for the captured
armament you still hold, you obviously don't have the weapons to meet
us," continued Orne. "Otherwise, you wouldn't be carrying that rifle off
the Delphinus."
"If you speak the truth, then we shall die bravely," said Tanub.
"No need for you to die," said Orne.
"Better to die than be slaves," said Tanub.
"We don't need slaves," said Orne. "We--"
"I cannot take the chance that you are lying," said Tanub. "I must kill
you now."
* * * * *
Orne's foot rested on the air sled control pedal. He depressed it.
Instantly, the sled shot skyward, heavy G's pressing them down into the
seats. The gun in Tanub's hands was slammed into his lap. He struggled
to raise it. To Orne, the weight was still only about twice that of his
home planet of Chargon. He reached over, took the rifle, found safety
belts, bound Tanub with them. Then he eased off the acceleration.
"We don't need slaves," said Orne. "We have machines to do our work.
We'll send experts in here, teach you people how to exploit your planet,
how to build good transportation facilities, show you how to mine your
minerals, how to--"
"And what do we do in return?" whispered Tanub.

"You could start by teaching us how you make superior glass," said
Orne. "I certainly hope you see things our way. We really don't want to
have to come down there and clean you out. It'd be a shame to have to
blast that city into little pieces."
Tanub wilted. Presently, he said: "Send me back. I will discuss this
with ... our council." He stared at Orne. "You I-A's are too strong. We
did not know."
* * * * *
In the wardroom of Stetson's scout cruiser, the lights were low, the
leather chairs comfortable, the green beige table set with a decanter of
Hochar brandy and two glasses.
Orne lifted his glass, sipped the liquor, smacked his lips. "For a while
there, I thought I'd never be tasting anything like this again."
Stetson took his own glass. "ComGO heard the whole thing over the
general monitor net," he said. "D'you know you've been breveted to
senior field man?"
"Ah, they've already recognized my sterling worth," said Orne.
The wolfish grin took over Stetson's big features. "Senior field men last
about half as long as the juniors," he said. "Mortality's terrific?"
"I might've known," said Orne. He took another sip of the brandy.
Stetson flicked on the switch of a recorder beside him. "O.K. You can
go ahead any time."
"Where do you want me to start?"
"First, how'd you spot right away where they'd hidden the Delphinus?"
"Easy. Tanub's word for his people was Grazzi. Most races call
themselves something meaning The People. But in his tongue that's
Ocheero. Grazzi wasn't on the translated list.