In the Courts of the Crimson Kings (44 page)

“And this is not the only gate upon this planet,” she said meditatively.

“At least one other; I wonder where the hell that one goes? Wasn’t
that
a surprise. Maybe Earth didn’t get the best of it after all.
Theirs
just leads to the inside of a habitable sphere. Claustrophobic, if you ask me.”

“A very
large
sphere,” she pointed out.

“What’s a thousand billion times the surface area of Earth?” he said.

“A very
large
sphere,” she said.

“Well, yes, but it’s the
principle
of the thing.”

She thought about that for a moment and then squeezed his hand. “I believe your sense of humor will distort my mind, over time,” she said.

“Good,” he replied. A sly look. “I wonder what parareproductive coitus would be like upon this—”

“Vow’da.”

“Yes, Vow’da.”

“I do not think my added weight will discommode you even amidst vigorous intromission,” she said solemnly. “But we must make the experiment. A course of experiments, rather. The matter is worthy of serious and earnest study from all possible angles of approach.”

A signal lamp flashed from the ground as the
Tollamune Rebirth
came nearer and began to slant down through the air. Ground crew waited there, as did the contingent of the Sword of the Dynasty and the rest of the pioneers as well. Teyud read the message.

“Notaj sa-Soj . . . Commanding . . . Base One . . . I . . . express . . . obedience . . . to . . . the . . . Dynasty . . . and . . . note . . . that . . . the . . . hexapodal . . . animals . . . are . . . exceptionally . . . tasty . . . when . . . roasted . . . with . . . a . . . crust . . . of . . .
narwak
. . . several . . . are . . . in . . . preparation . . . suggest . . . you . . . dock . . . soon. Ah, Notaj maintains his pose of whimsical irreverence.”

“A man after my own heart,” Jeremy said.

Teyud turned toward him and smiled again, touching him lightly on the cheek.

“This echoes my sentiments, but I direct them toward you,” she said.

They kissed as the
Tollamune Rebirth
was drawn downward to the soil of the new world.