Plague Ship | Page 6

by their rivals of the
Companies. The very nature of their roving lives taught them savage lessons--which they
either learned or died.
Dane, glancing down over the Engineer-apprentice's shoulder, saw that Van Rycke's
assumption of confidence had indeed paid off. They had left the trade enclosure of the
Salariki barely three-quarters of an hour ago. But below now stood the bebadged Captain
of the I-S ship and his Cargo-master.
"I want to speak to your Captain--" snarled the Eysie officer.
Ali registered faint amusement, an expression which tended to rouse the worst in the
spectator, as Dane knew of old when that same mocking appraisal had been turned on
him as the rawest of the Queen's crew.
"But does he wish to speak to you?" countered Kamil. "Just stay where you are, Eysie,
until we are sure about that fact."
That was his cue to act as messenger. Dane retreated into the ship and swung up the
ladder to the command section. As he passed Captain Jellico's private cabin he heard the
muffled squall of the commander's unpleasant pet--Queex, the Hoobat--a nightmare
combination of crab, parrot and toad, wearing a blue feather coating and inclined to
scream and spit at all comers. Since Queex would not be howling in that fashion if its
master was present, Dane kept on to the control cabin where he blundered in upon an
executive level conference of Captain, Cargo-master and Astrogator.
"Well?" Jellico's blaster scarred left cheek twitched as he snapped that impatient inquiry
at the messenger.
"Eysie Captain below, sir. With his Cargo-master. They want to see you--"
Jellico's mouth was a straight line, his eyes very hard. By instinct Dane's hand went to the
grip of the sleep rod slung at his belt. When the Old Man put on his fighting face--look
out! Here we go again, he told himself, speculating as to just what type of action lay
before them now.
"Oh, they do, do they!" Jellico began and then throttled down the temper he could put
under iron control when and if it were necessary. "Very well, tell them to stay where they
are. Van, we'll go down--"
For a moment the Cargo-master hesitated, his heavy-lidded eyes looked sleepy, he
seemed almost disinterested in the suggestion. And when he nodded it was with the air of
someone about to perform some boring duty.

"Right, sir." He wriggled his heavy body from behind the small table, resealed his tunic,
and settled his cap with as much precision as if he were about to represent the Queen
before the assembled nobility of Sargol.
Dane hurried down the ladders, coming to a halt beside Ali. It was the turn of the man at
the foot of the ramp to bark an impatient demand:
"Well?" (Was that the theme word of every Captain's vocabulary?)
"You wait," Dane replied with no inclination to give the Eysie officer any courtesy
address. Close to a Terran year aboard the Solar Queen had inoculated him with pride in
his own section of Service. A Free Trader was answerable to his own officers and to no
one else on earth--or among the stars--no matter how much discipline and official
etiquette the Companies used to enhance their power.
He half expected the I-S officers to leave after an answer such as that. For a Company
Captain to be forced to wait upon the convenience of a Free Trader must be galling in the
extreme. And the fact that this one was doing just that was an indication that the Queen's
crew did, perhaps, have the edge of advantage in any coming bargain. In the meantime
the Eysie contingent fumed below while Ali lounged whistling against the exit port,
playing with his sleep rod and Dane studied the grass forest. His boot nudged a packet
just inside the port casing and he glanced inquiringly from it to Ali.
"Cat ransom," the other answered his unspoken question.
So that was it--the fee for Sinbad's return. "What is it today?"
"Sugar--about a tablespoon full," the Engineer-assistant returned, "and two colored
steelos. So far they haven't run up the price on us. I think they're sharing out the spoil
evenly, a new cub brings him back every night."
As did all Terran ships, the Solar Queen carried a cat as an important member of the
regular crew. And the portly Sinbad, before their landing on Sargol, had never presented
any problem. He had done his duty of ridding the ship of unusual and usual pests and
cargo despoilers with dispatch, neatness and energy. And when in port on alien worlds
had never shown any inclination to go a-roving.
But the scents of Sargol had apparently intoxicated him, shearing away his solid dignity
and middle-aged dependability. Now Sinbad flashed out of the Queen at the opening