Prtglm clicked and clattered, even shocked once in surprise but it regarded Rojer without blinking.
With a very slight movement of its head, it also examined Gil and Kat who respectfully presented uncovered poll eyes to the KTTS captain.
`Rijor,’ and Rojer did not worry about misplaced vowel sounds: the fact that Prtglm would use his name at all was sufficient notice. `You are Tower?’ RJR IS TOWER TYPE SENDER RECEIVER NOW. Which
was true. Adding a title of any kind to his name,
at his obvious age, would have arrogance beyond excuse in the eyes of such a prestigious `Dini.
YOU ARE ABLE TO SEND PROBE TO HIVE SHIP, AROUND HIVE SHIP FOR PERFECT SCAN?
RJR IS ABLE, HONOURED PRTLGM.
`Well, lad, that would certainly help a great deal in deciding what to do next,’ Captain Osullivan said suavely. `We’ve got to know a lot about that system and which ever worlds the Hivers are using.’ `I can send something that light and little-‘ and Rojer pointed to the lumpy, metre-long, quarter-of-a-metre-wide probe, `-anywhere you want it to go.
And it won’t leave ion trails.’ The briefing that followed was as heady an experience for Rojer as finding that first match of Hive ship pieces.
`We’ll have to make certain there’re no sensor devices or mines outside or just inside the heliopause first,’ Captain Osullivan said, `before we let you go inside.’ `No such devices are used by Hives,’ Captain Prtglm said and then flicked its forearms open in a gesture that meant it knew that its reassurance was insufficient for its human colleagues, and they’d complete that search first.
By the time the squadron reached the heliopause, Captain Osullivan admitted there were no early warning buoys. `But there was no harm, and no delay, in making certain of it.’ Once inside the heliopause, they examined the astrogator’s diagram of this solar system. It was so far from Earth and the Nine Star League that it hadn’t even a number on human charts: the `Dini ident was a long series of consonants and `Dini numerals which were shortened to Xh-33. It had ten planets, having no asteroid belt where a fifth planet would have been in Earth’s system.
When the `Dini engineering contingent produced a round dozen of the plastic probe lumps, Rojer said that he was quite able to handle several in the air at one time.
`A juggler, are you, kid?’ Commander Metrios asked, mildly sceptical.
From the beverage counter in the ready room, Rojer `lifted’ four mugs and three glasses, two saucers and a knife, a fork and a spoon and had the cups gyrating like compass points, the glasses were circling the room – well above everyone’s heads – while the two saucers made a obvious strip path around both groups as the knife, fork and spoon dipped into either mug or g!ass at random. This sort of juggling had been a favorite pastime at home for him and his siblings as good practice for Tower work. He didn’t mention that his parents would have scolded him for showing off in such a childish fashion or that the probes would take a lot more concentration – plus generator gestalt but as soon as he’d figured he’d made his point, he neatly returned everything to its original position.
`A most accomplished juggler you are, kid,’ Commander Metrios said.
`How much difference is there from that exhibition to handling the probes, Mr Lyon?’ the captain asked.
`To be honest, sir, I’d better stick to no more than three at a time.’ `Even so, we’ll cover a lot of ground in a much shorter time than if we had to wait for the probe to get there by… ah… ordinary transport methods, Osullivan said. `When you’re ready, Mr Lyon.’ Commander Metrios still radiated a certain amount of scepticism as he led Rojer to the bridge station where a couch had been placed for his use during gestalt. With the ship in flight, the generators were humming nicely. It took Rojer only a moment to lift them to the requisite power to `port the three probes: a second each to lob them on the parabolic courses about their target planets.