logical, one exception to any rule invalidates that rule.” She glanced at the clock. “It’s
time to go now.”
Walking slowly along the corridor, DuQuesne said, ” `Insanely logical’ is right. I knew
that there was a lot more to this than just an experiment, but I had no idea it was to put
new and younger blood into an entire race. But with mothers such as you have in mind-
”
“Mothers?” She broke in. “You already know, then?”
“Of course. I am sufficiently familiar with your specialty to know what a top-bracket
biologist can do and how you intend to do it. With mothers of your class some of our
sons may make genius grade, but what’s to keep them alive?”
“We will.” Sennlloy’s voice and mien became of a sudden grim. “This fourth-dimension
device that Tammon is going to give you was developed only a few weeks ago, since
we left Llurdiax. The Llurdi know nothing whatever of it. When we get back to our own
galaxy with it, either the Llurdi will grant us our full freedom or we will kill every Llurdi
alive. And being insanely logical, they’ll grant it without a fight: without even an
argument, Sancil burn their teeth, wings, and tails!”
DuQuesne did not tell the girl how interested he was in the Llurdi; especially in Llanzlan
Klazmon the Fifteenth. Instead, “That makes a weird kind of sense, at that,” he said.
“Tell me more about these Llurdi,” and she told him about them all the rest of the way to
the dining hall.
They went through an archway, stepped aside, and looked around. Three or four
hundred people were in the hall already, and more were streaming in from all sides.
Some were eating, in couples or in groups of various numbers, at tables of various
sizes. Dress varied from nothing at all up to several spectaculars as flamboyant as
Sennlloy’s own. Informal, semi-formal, and formal; and the people themselves were
alike in only one respect-that of physical perfection. DuQuesne had never seen
anything like it and said so; and Sennlloy explained, concluding:
“So, you see, we eight hundred are the very pick of two hundred forty-one planets;
which makes this an ideal primary situation. The reason I wanted you to look around
carefully is that perhaps I should not be the only Prime Operative.” She paused: it was
quite evident that she was not at all in favor of the idea.
“Why not?” DuQuesne wasn’t in favor of it, either; even though he couldn’t begin to
understand either her attitude or her behavior. How could any woman possibly be as
deeply in love with one man as Sennlloy very evidently was, and yet act as she was
acting toward such a complete stranger as himself? It baffled him completely, but he’d
still play along-especially since he was suffering no pain at all. “It won’t make any
difference in the long run, will it?”
“Of course not. I just thought maybe you would relish diversity,” Senalloy said.
“You can unthink it. I wouldn’t. There’s no tomcat blood in me-and remember what I
said?”
“Do you think I don’t? But you’ve seen some really beautiful women now. Much prettier
than I am.”
“You know what they call that technique in English? `Fishing’,” grinned DuQuesne.
“Prettier or not, Milady,. you top them all by a country mile.”
“I know about fishing. I was fishing a little, perhaps.” She laughed happily and hugged
his arm against her firm breast. “But it did get you to say it again, and it means ever so
much more, now that you’ve seen the competition.”
She steered him to a table for two against a wall, where he seated her meticulously-a
gesture that, while evidently new to her, was evidently liked.
“You order,” she said, handing him the helmet. “You invited me, you know.”
“But I don’t know what you like to eat.”
“Oh, I like almost everything, really; and if there should be anything I don’t like I won’t
eat it. Okay?”
“Okay,” and DuQuesne proceeded to set the table with fine linen and translucent china
and sterling silver and sparkling cut glass.
The first course was a thin, clear soup; which Sennlloy liked. She also liked the crisp
lettuce with Roquefort dressing; the medium rare roast beef with mushroom sauce and
the asparagus in butter and the baked Idaho potato stuffed with sour cream; and she
especially enjoyed the fruits-and-nuts-filled Nesselrode ice cream. She did not,
however, like his corrosively strong, black, unsweetened coffee at all. Wrinkling her
nose, she sniffed at it, then took a tiny sip, which she let flow back into the cup.
“How can you possibly drink such vile stuff as that?” she demanded, and replaced it
with a tall glass of fizzy, viscous concoction that looked like eggnog and reeked of
something that was halfway between almond and lemon.
After dinner-DuQuesne wanted to smoke, but since no one else was doing anything of
the kind he could and would get along without it as long as he was aboard the
Mallidaxian-they milled about with the milling .throng. She introduced him right and left
and showed him off generally; especially to over a hundred stunning young women,
with whom she discussed the “project” in American English with a completely
uninhibited frankness that made DuQuesne blush more than once.
After something over an hour of this the crowd broke up; and as the two left the hall
Sennlloy said, “Ha! We’re free now, my Vance, to go about our business!”
Arms tightly around each other, savoring each contact and each motion, they walked
slowly and in silence to Sennlloy’s room.
Three Mallidaxian days later, DuQuesne took his leave. Of Senalloy last, of course. She
put her arms around him and rubbed her cheek against his. “Good-by, friend Vance. I
have enjoyed our association tremendously. Scarcely ever before has work been such
pleasure. So much so that I feel guilty of selfishness.”
“You needn’t, Milady. That was exactly the way I wanted it, remember?”
“I remember with joy; and I have wondered why.”
“Because you are the only one of your class aboard this ship,” DuQuesne said.
“You said that, but still-well, I am the only Allondaxian aboard, which may account for
our great compatibility. And there should be, as there has been, something more than
the purely physical involved.”
DuQuesne was very glad she had said that; it gave him one last chance to explore.
“Definitely,” he agreed. “Liking, respect, appreciation, admiration-you’re a tremendous
lot of woman, Milady Sennlloy. But not love. Naturally.”
“Of course not. I have my love and my work and my planet; you have yours; it would be
terrible for either of us or any of ours to be hurt.
“Our rememberings of each other should be and will be most pleasant. Good-by, friend
Vance; may All Powerful Llenderllon guard you and aid you as you Seek.”
15 DU QUESNE’S ASSASSINS
Not even Marc DuQuesne was able-quite!-to put his rather astonishing, and totally
pleasurable, experiences with the Jelmi-and with one Jelin in particular!-out of his mind
without a second’s hesitation. In another man, his mood as he set a minimum-time
course and began to speed back to Earth, might have been called nostalgic . . . even
sentimental.
But as the parsecs fled by his thoughts hardened. And just in time; for some very hard
things indeed had to be done.
First and foremost, his deal with Seaton was utterly, irrevocably and permanently o$.
He no longer needed it. With the information he had received from the Jelmi, he had no
further reason to worry about Seaton’s offensive capabilities.
Of course, there was no reason for Seaton to know that. Or not until it was entirely too
late to do Seaton any good. Let Seaton go on dawdling toward this Galaxy DW-427LU.
Seaton would be traveling at only normal max; DuQuesne would have time to make his
arrangements, transact his business and act while Seaton was still on the way.
He did not intend to go to Earth, only to within working distance of it. Even so, he had a
certain amount of time to spend. He spent it, all of it, in studying and operating the new
device, which was called by the Jehn a name which Sennlloy had told him
corresponded roughly to “quad.”
And immediately he ran headlong into trouble.
To DuQuesne’s keen disappointment, the confounded thing was both more and less
useful than he had hoped. More: Its range was enormous, much more than he had
expected. Less:-well, it simply didn’t do any of the normal things that any machine could
be made to do. And he could not tell why. He had received too much knowledge too
fast; it took time to nail down all the details.
He could send himself anywhere, but he could not bring himself back. He had to be at
the controls. Remote control wouldn’t work and he couldn’t find out why not. The thing –