Seed of Stars by Dan Morgan, John Kippax Page B

afterwards? Well, there would be the consolation of Trudi Hoffman's rutting, female-tigress body, with its refuge of passionate oblivion. No love. But then love was too expensive a luxury in any case; surely he had learned that much?
    He rose from the bed and began to put on his duty uniform. Now was the time to act, while the resolution was fresh in his mind.
    She arrived just as he was about to leave the cabin. A light tap on the door, and she was inside, her golden doll-face smiling up at him as she said: "Piet! Piet, love...."
    She moved forward into his arms, and as her body came close to his own, warm, like a small sun, the shadows of doubt and fear melted away and he was once more in the golden dream. Alone he had been helpless and weak, but now, with her in his arms again, he was strong again.
    She giggled with pleasure as he stripped her with hands made clumsy by the urgency of his need, and purred like a cat as he picked her up in his arms and carried her to the bed.
    Afterwards, warm in the afterglow of passion they lay side by side, and she said, as her hands caressed his body: "Soon, very soon now, we shall be free."
    Then she slept, as peaceful as a child. And he looked down at her, ashamed of the cowardice of his solitary doubts, the fabric of their dream once more secure around him.

    Magnus's choice of Joseph Ichiwara as his second in command in this particular operation was based on a number of carefully considered factors. Ichiwara had a well-deserved reputation in Explorations Division for quiet, industrious efficiency. He had a mind like a computer, capable of producing from a vast amount of accumulated knowledge precedents applicable to almost any given situation. Additionally, he performed his duties in such a self-effacing manner that no superior had ever been able to accuse him of being overly ambitious. Magnus, untainted by any similar lack of self-esteem, admired such modesty in a subordinate. But, apart from these considerations, in the matter of Kepler III, Joseph Ichiwara was possessed of one invaluable asset by the accident of his birth; he was a Japanese, with a great knowledge of the cultural and social heritage of his people. Magnus was listening in respectful silence as Ichiwara discoursed on the matter of Japanese hospitality.
    "This attitude is, you will understand, not part of any deliberate effort to conceal," continued Ichiwara. "But rather a matter of politeness and protection for the welfare of the guest. It would be considered very ill-mannered to expose such an illustrious visitor to the more unwholesome aspects of our way of life. Japanese doors have no locks, but it is a point of honor that the guest should be gently guided for his own welfare. Thus, although all doors are open to him, he is normally protected by a body of devoted guides, whose business it is to ensure that those doors lead to the treasures and pleasures of Japanese life, rather than to the discovery of anything that might cause pain or discomfort to the guest."
    Magnus nodded appreciatively. "In other words, my dear Joseph, it seems that if I allow myself to be feted as such a guest when we arrive at Kepler III, then it is highly unlikely that I shall be able to do the job for which I am expressly going there."
    "That is so," said Ichiwara, unable to suppress a frown of disapproval at the directness of his superior's summing up, despite the fact that Magnus was only saying in his own words precisely what he himself had been implying so delicately.
    "Then we must see that I am not feted, but rather treated as what I am, an official of little importance, doing a routine job of work," Magnus said.
    "I hardly think the Keplerians are likely to be persuaded to take that point of view," Ichiwara pointed out "At this most important stage of their history they will consider it necessary to indulge in a certain amount of ceremony, and in that respect they will expect, quite rightly, a certain amount of cooperation from the