“Here he comes,” Hector said.
The main doors opened. Flanked by two rows of uniformed policemen, in walked Ooal and his two seconds, all in the light blue uniforms of Kerak, Odal was annoyedly brushing something from his tunic.
“Evidently,” Leoh said, “diplomatic immunity didn’t protect Odal entirely from the crowd.”
The introductions, the medical checks, the instructions, the choice of weapon and environment—all seemed to take hours instead of minutes. Until suddenly they were over, and Hector found himself walking alone to his spectator’s seat.
He sat beside Ceri and watched Leoh and Odal enter their booths, watched the meditechs take their stations at the control desks, watched the panel lights rum from amber to green. The duel was on.
The crowd stirred uncertainly. A buzzing murmur filled the room. There was nothing to do now but wait.
Geri leaned close to Hector and asked sweetly, “Did you bring a gun?”
“Huh? A … what for? I mean….”
She whispered, “For Odal. I have a small one in my handbag.”
“But … but….”
“You promised me!” Still in a whisper, but harsher now.
“I know, but not here. There’re … well, there’re too many people here. Someone might get hurt … if shooting starts….”
Geri thought a moment. “Maybe you’re right. Of course, if he kills Professor Leoh in there, he’ll walk right out of here and board a Kerak star ship and we’ll never see him again.”
Hector couldn’t think of a reply, so he just sat there feeling thoroughly miserable.
The two of them remained silent for the rest of the half-hour. At the end of the time limit for the duel, all the lights on the machine went amber. The crowd let out a gust of disappointed-yet-relieved sighs. Hector sprinted to Leoh’s booth while Odal’s seconds marched in time to his.