Then just as the foremost of the flock of stsho rounded the curve of the tube toward the airlock, they stopped dead in their tracks and exclaimed in startlement, refusing to budge as the back ranks crowded up against them.
A totally naked stsho was walking down the tube, bearing the Preciousness in gtsta hands, as inane and as happy an expression on gtsta face as she had ever seen on a stsho.
“No’shto-shti-stlen!” gtsta exclaimed delightedly. “Blessed be the receiver of the gift, blessed be the bearer of young, blessed be you, O most excellent of excellences!”
No’shto-shti-stlen—it was gtst— came and took the Preciousness in gtst arms, and bowed and bowed-there being nothing the captain, walled away from the proceedings by a phalanx of murmuring and bobbing stsho, could do to object to the situation.
Gtstathen walked, naked as the day gtsta was born, through the yielding wall of stsho, and past them … since the stsho did not stop gtsta, it hardly seemed safe for a hani captain to do so: she held Fala with a press of her hand, as gtsta walked blithely past them and on down the yellow-ribbed shadow of the rampway.
“Better open the outer gate again,” Hilfy said to Tiar. “Gtsta wants to go out there, and we’ve got no right to argue.”
“But—“ cried No’shto-shti-stlen, standing the other side of the parted stsho, “but, Holiness, who have I married?”
Gtstaswung about, walking backwards, and waved gtsta spindly arms. “Tlisi-tlas-tin and Dlimas-lyi, my Dlima-lyen-lyi, my egg, my loveliest, most favored, most blessed—“
Gtstawas out of sight, then, warbling something to gteraself, and the stsho around them were apparently congratulating No’shto-shti-stlen, No’shto-shti-stlen bowing and bowing, and holding the Preciousness.
It was time to get the whole party out of this tube, Hilfy said to herself, to get them somewhere safe, like the passenger quarters, if that was tasteful … at this point a hani was definitely out of her social depth and proceeding on guess and luck.
She worked her way through the crowd with a great deal of bowing and apologies for tasteless dutiful necessities… “Including your excellencies’ personal safety. Please urge everyone toward the ship, please make some decorous haste. There are infelicitous persons outside and the gate is open.” Tarras and Fala, thank the gods, had taken up guard at the rear and one of them had disappeared, probably to see if gtsta was clear of the gate. Evidently gtsta was. She heard it shut.
“We’re sealed,” Tiar said, breathing a sigh, and looked around to her crewmates. Who were congratulating each other, and probably not listening.
She gave her attention back to the dockside camera hook-up, which was operating, of a sudden, stsho officials having seemingly decided that it should. There was not a notable lot going on, except a completely naked stsho who was walking around and around the object that, reacting with the station’s oxygen, had expanded into a pillar of lace.
Gtstaseemed delighted with it. Gtsta ran ringers over it, gtsta examined it high and low and from every angle. Eventually another couple of stsho showed up, fully dressed, bowing repeatedly, and likewise admiring the accident.
Not a sign of Haisi and his crew. Not a transmission out of Ha’domaren, which was at dock, tightly sealed.
Of a sudden, though, they were getting real station information, real system information. She contacted her opposite number aboard Tiraskhti, and found herself in direct communication with Vikktakkht.
“Things are quiet right now,” she said, “hakkikt. We have the oji, we have No’shto-shti-stlen, the Llyene stsho are apparently aboard, and I haven’t heard from my captain yet, but I think they’re making some sort of contact with the stsho we have aboard.”
“We have station output. Is this truthful?”
“I think it is, hakkikt. I’ve no way to be sure that’s the case, we’re not in direct communication with station authorities.”
“Most probably you have them aboard. “
“Yes, hakkikt.”
“Kkkt. Amusing. I wonder if Ana-kehnandian has a notion of calling in his forces… or what those ships out there will do as soon as the wavefront reaches them, I will offer him safe passage—for the next several hours. Advise your captain to abide by this. “