Sci Fiction Classics Volume 3

by Vol 3 (v1. 2) (epub)

  His companion almost put a hasty hand on the Undersecretary's auxiliary arm. "We are still in doubt about that here. We have not run many tests yet. They might have greater potential than we know." The Ambassador made a weak gesture of apology.

  Undersecretary Navbe waved him away in an offended manner. "Certainly, certainly. Keep your ambassadorial pride. I myself look for signs of genius in my pets. You are free to do the same."

  Instead of the accepted answer, the Ambassador raised a primary arm slowly and remained rigidly silent. He then bowed with maddening propriety to the lengthening shadows.

  The Undersecretary closed the screen, stepping back with a gesture of regret. It was a great pity that he had to be so very isolated. And the Ambassador was just as bad as the others of his status. He would be tolerant to absurdity of the locals, then become unyielding and moralistic with the others of his kind. Navbe had seen it often in his post and bitterly rued having to deal with such perversity.

  But the Ambassador was speaking. "… for the Papi, in this instance. You will want to observe them while you are here, Undersecretary."

  Privately the Janif Undersecretary thought this a lamentable state of affairs. "Of course. I look forward to it," he said.

  "This is quite a unique place," continued the Ambassador, warming to his subject.

  They all are, thought Navbe.

  "We've found not only that the Papi have a highly developed social order, but that they surgically alter their young to fulfill specific cultural functions." Here the Ambassador hesitated.

  "Oh?" Navbe managed the illusion of polite interest.

  "Yes. They can make truly amazing changes. Each of the modifications has a definite place in the culture, although a couple are odd, dependent creatures."

  "They can actually do this?" Navbe asked lazily.

  "It appears so," answered the Ambassador cautiously.

  "Before or after birth? How?" Under his meticulous exterior, Navbe felt a deep elation. Perhaps his temporary exile would not be as terrible as he had feared it might be. There could be great solace here after a few special arrangements.

  "I am sorry to say that we have not yet discovered their reproductive mechanism. They are probably ovoviviparous." He moved uncomfortably, knowing how far he had stepped beyond the bounds of allowable ceremony. It was also a blot to his record that he knew so little about the people he lived with.

  At this Klin Navbe all but laughed. So there was a mystery, was there? That made for a challenge. And this sniveling diplomat had not found it out. "Probably?" He was scornful, but not so much as to discourage the Ambassador from talking. As all others of his status, Navbe despised the Representative status. Yet there was a chance that his host knew the reason for his temporary exile, and he dared not put himself in a compromising position with such a person.

  "As I have told you, we cannot do the tests. We lack the full authorization to do so. I do not know how we shall function if we are not properly authorized."

  "Precisely." What was this fool's familial name? Lesh? Yes, Ambassador Lesh. He wanted the authority to proceed with tests, and Navbe could give him that authorization. Plans blossomed in his mind.

  It was perhaps fortunate that the Meditation Bell rang the summons to the Third Cycle just then; it provided cover for the awkwardness between the two officials. Their Janif formality asserted itself, and they strode silently down the hall together.

  When they had completed their ritual exercises, Navbe put Ambassador Lesh at his ease with that age-old question beloved of off-planet Janif officialdom: "How did you come to serve on Papill, Ambassador?" And he masked his boredom at the too-familiar tale of a diplomat's career.

  In the long twilight the two Janif sat together on the terrace listening to the distant Night Song of the Papi. In the valley below Ambassador Lesh's estates the waning light shifted, slid, and was gone, and the soft white fogs followed the shadows to wrap the valley in sleep. On the ridges the tasseled, angular trees sighed in the wind, their hard thin leaves clicking endlessly above the fog.

  "A beautiful place, Lesh, even with just the two stars. It is like a children's story." Navbe watched the valley's soft change, dreaming absently of violated children and the strange Papi, intense pleasure hidden in the formal set of his face. He had picked a flower and was stroking it with the extending sensors of his thumbs. "You are to be envied, Ambassador—to be surrounded by all this loveliness."

  "I have thought so myself," said the Ambassador in an unbecoming burst of familiarity.

  Navbe ignored the solecism. "And the Papi are such pretty people. So delicate. Not like those creatures on Tlala or Isnine. You have beauty here, and tractable natives."

  The Ambassador, lulled by the Undersecretary's flow of remarkable condescensions and innocuous questions, was betrayed into elaborating on the Papi. "They are a gentle people. It is of great importance to them that they bring delight to their neighbors. It is unfortunate that they do not recognize the laxness of their social order, but their errors are charming. They have made almost a religion of their kindness. Over the years I have observed their spirit of self-sacrifice." He became aware of his blunder. "But it is nearly impossible to take advantage of them. They know their own order." His confusion led him to a further mistake, and he showed his primary hands as he shifted position.

  Irritated, Navbe wondered how many more insults he would have to endure at the hands of Ambassador Lesh. He savagely desired to humiliate his host, but he wanted information more, so he forced himself to respond with calculated ease: "Certainly, to see the Papi is to want to protect them from abuse. They must be greatly in your debt."

  "Not at all," Lesh said hastily, looking wretched.

  Navbe flung back both pair of arms in his best offensive manner. "You must not fear me, Ambassador Lesh. Surely you know the Judiciate would not have allowed me to come here if they had found any real basis to the scandal. But such talk, especially about High officials, is dangerous. I have willingly elected to leave Jan to come here in order to allow the tale to be forgotten."

  The Ambassador twitched uncertainly. He had heard tales of the Undersecretary's strange perversions but was loath to ask about them. Even to admit he had heard the rumors would be more shame than he would deliberately bring on himself.

  "Come, come, you must not be afraid. You have heard something of me caught alone with the children of Sub-council Hariv. No, you needn't deny it. The grosser strata, disobeying every Janif law, have repeated the story, elaborating and embellishing it, if the versions I have heard are indicative. That I have been allowed to see the children is true, and I am fully aware of the honor done me in this, but how, in a High House, would I have obtained that access to the completely sequestered offspring of such an official? Only think of the obstacles and be reasonable." It had been difficult to get to them, but Navbe was well aware that the task was not as difficult as the public had been led to believe.

  The Ambassador knew about the guarding of High children, and he wavered. "They did speak of bribes and extortion …" It was a terrible breach of courtesy even to mention it, but he was too deeply involved to deny his knowledge.

  The Undersecretary bit out a laugh. "What man of Sub-council Hariv's stature would have such servants around him? He would never tolerate so low a status to enter his House. How do high status servants behave? Bribes are out of the question." That much, at least, was correct.

  "I hadn't considered …"

  Navbe remembered how very long it had taken for him to find his accomplice, one who shared his need to use the young bodies for cruel pleasure. How delicate the maneuvering had been, and how quickly the problem had been solved when he had discovered the night handservant to be addicted to Unjy. Then it had been easy. All the careful searching, the obtuse questioning, the days of painstaking effort had been worth it. He could recall the tearing of the flesh when his antlers touched it, the smell of the soft inner tissues when he fingered them …

  "Yes, I had
not thought of that. With such talk rife in the lower strata, the honor of high status servants would be impugned. It is no wonder you chose to disassociate yourself from such improper conduct."

  "So you see," Navbe said expansively if vaguely.

  The Ambassador was painfully relieved. He settled back in the soft cushions and offered the Undersecretary another dish of Merui. Navbe accepted it with a skilled blend of humility and contempt.

  All the Papi that waited at the gates looked uniformly young to Navbe. They all had the serene, childlike faces and downy antlers that marked Janif children, made more attractive by huge violet eyes. Their clothes were a soft, clinging fabric that Navbe longed to fondle.

  "We bring you the morning, you who are new among us," the Papi said in chorus. "We have come to welcome the new Janif visitor and to beg him to visit us in our houses."

  The Ambassador stole a warning look at the Undersecretary, but Navbe was far too careful to be so carelessly trapped. "It will give me much honor to walk with you one sundown," he said with a slight bow in the proper ritual intonation.

  The soft garments moved in the wind, and the Papi were outlined in their clothes, naked to Navbe. His thumb sensors stirred urgently. "It is close to the First Meal, and I wish you nourishment."

  The Papi were obviously happy with him. They rustled among themselves, whispering in their chantlike speech.

  Then a Papi, whom Ambassador Lesh had identified as the local leader, came forward with his offering of three finely wrought platters. Each was covered with squares of the fascinating cloth. "A gift for you," he said to the Janif with an acceptable show of respect. "It is our delight to bring these few things to you, in the hopes they might please you."

  Navbe had studied this part of the ritual the night before and was able to respond without noticeable hesitation. "Here are three rare things; but the light in the valley and the mist ensnared in a tree are rarer." He touched each of the platters without removing the cloths. "I will value the gifts as they are valued by the givers."

  The Papi and Ambassador Lesh regarded him with approval, although Lesh's look was tinged with relief. "You will be welcome among us at any sundown," said the Papi spokesman. "I am known as Nara-Lim. This one is Tsu-Lim and this one is Ser-Tas." He did not introduce the others, to Navbe's delight. Apparently only the platter-bearers had that distinction. Navbe approved of that, the recognition of status. Ambassador Lesh had told him that Lim and Tas were thought to be titles, which revealed the extent to which he had deluded himself about the Papi's intelligence potential. Titles among those who lived as the Papi did would be ludicrous.

  The platter-bearers put their offerings on the steps, then went ceremoniously to the rear of the group. Nara-Lim touched each of the platters and then he, too, went to the rear of the group.

  "I am honored by Nara-Lim and his generous companions." And Navbe turned, walking slowly up the steps at the gateway.

  Behind him, the gentle, fragile Papi waited until the gates were closed before they left the Ambassador's estates.

  "That was well done," Lesh said, forgetting himself.

  "I wish to make my stay as pleasant as possible," Navbe informed his host with a sarcastic laugh. As he spoke he was thinking of ways to obtain a Papi for his own use. Seeing those lovely animals at the gates that day had awakened his need again and had strengthened his resolve to have one. He knew that his position was an advantage but could not find the best means of using it.

  "Make no doubt, Undersecretary; they will want you to visit them." Ambassador Lesh stopped at the terrace. "Will you take your meal now?"

  "It is customary," Navbe said witheringly.

  "Must this be with the Janif meats, or will the local ones do? We have the Janif available, but during the day I have tried to run this establishment on native foodstuffs …"

  "Your economy is no doubt admired. Serve what you wish. If I am to go to their homes, I should learn what to expect." He saw Lesh's embarrassment and was pleased.

  Nara-Lim looked expectantly at his guest, hesitating as he held the door to his house open to the Janif. "Undersecretary? What am I to have the pleasure of doing for you?" He bowed low.

  Klin Navbe opened both sets of hands in obsequious display, hoping to disarm the Papi with this extraordinary courtesy. "I have come as a student, Nara-Lim. I desire to learn more of the life of your people." He knew that these natives were stupid and trusting. This approach would be the most likely to succeed. Any species of low technology that flattered itself with the illusion of intelligence was easy to convince of your interest.

  "We are delighted." Nara-Lim opened the door wider.

  "I wish also to thank you for the cloth, the stone work, and the herbs you presented to me. I am impressed."

  "It is enough that you value them. If you enjoy our poor offerings, they are made rich."

  Navbe moved closer. "You must tell me how to proceed, since your ways are not the ways of the Janif." Cynically Navbe watched the approval in the old Papi's eyes. These little people were incapable of understanding insults.

  "Certainly. It will be an honor to this house." He stepped aside to let the Janif Undersecretary enter.

  After a long and boring afternoon, Navbe was allowed to leave, promising to return when he could, thanking his host in the most effusive terms.

  Then, when he stood in the door, he turned back, as if suddenly aware of a new question. "I have just thought … But it would be too great a favor. I must not ask it."

  "What were you thinking of?" Nara-Lim asked eagerly, his wide Papi eyes alight and his soft clothes quivering. "The Janif have not shown so much curiosity about us until now. We are certainly ready to fulfill any reasonable request."

  With this encouragement Navbe put on a display of reluctance, sneering privately at the naiveté of the creatures. As if any Janif could be so concerned with Papi. "You told me of the … did you call them companions? … Yes? Companions."

  "Yes?"

  "They are adapted for the pleasure of the owner, is that not correct? Do I choose the words badly?" Navbe paused as if uncertain as to how to continue. "I thought that I might arrange to buy one, if that is the usual transaction … You see, I would then have one of you with me, to instruct me and tell me what I need to know of your world and your ways. I am right that the companion is always with its … master?"

  Nara-Lim looked chagrined. "I should have suggested it to you. You must forgive my manners. It would naturally have been offered to you if I had thought your interest was so great."

  Realizing that his boredom had shown, Navbe made a show of confusions. "I will confess that when I first asked you, it was idle speculation, but your talk has shown me that Papill has much to offer those of us from Jan." It was the first honest statement he had made, and it pleased him to think that Nara-Lim would hear it as a compliment. Such foolish creatures deserved to be prostituted.

  "Then I will arrange for a companion for you. Perhaps you will be kind enough to call here one day soon."

  "In three days, then?" Here Navbe held his breath.

  "Of course," was the answer as Nara-Lim bowed. "I will select a companion for you, one known for grace and docility and boasting much beauty." He paused, looking up to the sky. "There will be heavy mists tonight. You will want to return to the Ambassador's estates quickly. It is dangerous to be abroad in the mists. Even Papi have been lost quite hopelessly in them."

  "Your concern flatters me," Navbe said, touching the homing device that would guide him unfailingly back to the estates. "I will leave you now."

  "Your interest in Papill is a great honor to our people. Your companion will be here in three days." He kept his deep bow even as he closed the door against the approaching night.

  As he strode back along the mountain path in the steadily thickening fog, Klin Navbe gloated to himself. Success was so easy with fools, and the Papi were certainly fools. They thought themselves possessed of tradition, when all they had was a stagnated culture of de
caying bloodlines. What an opportunity this presented to him! It would be ridiculous to waste it.

  Ambassador Lesh met him by the terrace. "You were out?" he asked shrilly. "Where were you?" In his fear he forgot to use Navbe's title.

  "I went to see Nara-Lim. For what little concern it is of yours." He paused for this to sink in, then: "I will require room to accommodate a Papi servant. Nara-Lim is providing me with a companion."

  "A companion," Lesh repeated blankly. He had a sudden picture of those most special Papi with Undersecretary Navbe and was afraid.

  "It will arrive here in three days. I assume you can be ready."

  Lesh's primary arms twitched. "I can." He thought for a moment. "We can move you and your companion into the Terrace House." Ordinarily such a thing would be unthinkable, but Lesh no longer wanted to be involved in the affairs of the Undersecretary any more than protocol made necessary.

  "That should be satisfactory. I rely on you to arrange it for me in time for my companion's arrival." And with that he went past the Ambassador into the house, his robes hissing derisively.

  The companion looked up at Navbe with huge, adoring eyes. It was specially dressed for the occasion, wrapped in innumerable layers of tissue-fine cloth. It regarded Navbe with awe and a little ill-concealed fear.

  "This is most kind of you, Nara-Lim," Navbe said without looking at him. "I will treasure this, you may be sure." He reached out to touch the slender sprouting antlers. "Remarkable."

  Nara-Lim looked pleased and murmured some words that Navbe didn't hear.

  "Yes, I will certainly treasure this." Inwardly he was still reeling from the first sight of the companion. Of all the Papi he had seen, this was the most childlike; a small figure without any of the grosser features of most of the natives. He had been told that they were made so, but did not realize until now that the change would be so impressive. Formed like a Janif child, with limpid eyes and soft antlers that were downy to the touch. He would have to be careful at first, make no moves to reveal his intent.