urned back to the table, and Mara. He looked at her curiously.

"What were you doing with him, anyway? You usually keep to yourself."

The girl smiled wryly. She had deep black hair which fell to her
shoulders in soft waves. Most of the women here grew their hair down to
their waists, in exaggerated imitation of inner-world styles, but Mara
had more taste than that. Her eyes were a clear brown, and they met his
directly. "He was in a sharp mood, so I came along as peacemaker. You
don't seem to have needed me."

"You helped, at that; thanks. Was that true about the governorship?"

"Of course. Manning seldom brags, you should know that. He's a very
capable man, in some ways."

Rynason frowned. "He could be a lot more useful on this survey if he'd
use his talents on tightening up the survey itself. He's forcing a
premature report, and it isn't going to be worth much."

"Is that what's really bothering you?" she asked.

He tried to focus on her through the haze of the noisy bar. "Of course
it is. That, and his whole attitude toward these people."

"The Hirlaji? Are they people to you?"

He shrugged. "What are people? Humans? Or reasoning beings you can talk
to, communicate with?"

"I should think people would be reasoning beings you could relate to,"
she said softly. "Not just intellectually, but emotionally too. You have
to be able to understand them to communicate that way--that's what makes
people."

Rynason was silent, trying to integrate that into the fog in his head.
The raucous noise of the bar had faded into an underwater murmur around
him, lost somewhere where he could not see.

Finally, he said, "That's the trouble with them, the Hirlaji. I can't
really understand them. It's like there's really no contact, not even
through the interpreter." He stared into his drink. "I wish to hell we
had some straight telepathers here; they might work with the Hirlaji,
since they're telepathic anyway. I'd like to make a direct link myself."

After a moment he felt Mara's hand on his arm, and realized that he had
almost fallen asleep on the table.

"You'd better go on back to your quarters," she said.

He sat up, shaking his head to clear it. "No, but really--what do you
think of that idea? What if I had a telepather, and I could link minds
with Horng? Straight linkage, no interpreter in the middle. I could get
right at that race memory myself!"

"I think you need some sleep," she said. She seemed worried. "You'r