Part 31 (1/2)
”Not as ot
And his shi+eld wouldn't make patches for yours”
”Huh? How sure are you of that?”
”I'et bu, hard-boiled hellcat on wheels”
”I'll be daeon and you lay over her like a circus tent What's the answer?”
”Oh? Do I? I'it must be, Clee, that it's sex-based differences We're used to each other, but neither of us has ever felt a Prime of the same sex before, and there must be more difference between Ops and Primes than we realized
Suppose?”
”Could be--I hope But that doesn't change the fact that we aren't ready We haven't got enough data If we start out with this grandiose Galactic Service thing and find only two or three planets Gunthered, we make jackasses of ourselves On the other hand, if we start out with a sanization or none, and find a lot of planets, it'll be one continuous cat-fight On the third hand”
”Three hands, Clee? What are you, an octopussy or an Arpalone?”
”Keep your beautiful trap shut a ot_ to start soht of it that way Hht for a , then
quite a trick But how about this? Suppose we take a fast tour, with you and I taking quick peeks, without the peekees ever knoe've been peeking?”
”That's using the brain, Belle Let's go” Then, out in the Main, ”Jih spots, as far out as you can reach without losing orientation Beta Centauri here is pretty bright, Rigel and Canopus are real lanterns With those three as a grid, you could reach fifteen hundred or two thousand light-years, couldn't you?”
”More than that That many parsecs, at least”
”Good Belle and I want tocheck of Primes and Ops around here We'll need five lobe as you can and still be dead sure of your locations; then sah data How et in the rest of today Six or seven hours, say--eight hours uns, me on Compy Five minutes for you I should be able to lock down the next shot in fiveone minute extra, say, for safety factorthat'd be ten an hour Seventy planets enough?”
”That'll be fine”
”Okay We're practically at Number One now,” and James and Lola donned their scanners, ready for the job
”Miss Flurnoy,” Garlock said, ”you ht tell Mr Entlore that we're”
”Oh, I already have, sir”
”You don't have to co, of course, if you'd rather stay here”
”Stay here, sir? Why, he'd _kill_ ht was a conspiratorial whisper ”Besides, do you think I'd irl, too--of a whole world to see other planets of other suns? Unless, of course, you invite Mr Entlore and Mr Holson along They're both sio, I know, but of course won't admit it”
”You'd be just as well pleased if I didn't?”
”What do you think, sir?”
”We'll be working at top speed and they'd be very et theirs later--after you've licked the cream off the top of the”