The Five Gold Bands

"To speak to one you'd say here was the strangest most unique individual possible-a creature that might take to the wilderness to be alone with his own peculiarities. And then when you see them at one of their shoutings-"

"Or at a public torturing, like the time I was oiler on the Christobel Rocket."

Fay winced. "-then they're all the same and you can think of nothing but the rows and rows and rows of big saucer eyes. That's all you see. Acres of eyes as big as clam-shells. And then you know that they're all the same in their oddness."

"Like a race of crazy people. But no," mused Paddy, "I'd hardly call them mad-"

"It would mean little if you did. They have so few sensibilities in common with the root stock."

"Few? There's not any."

"Oh-there are a few. Curiosity-anger-pride."

"Well, that's true," Paddy conceded. "They're a cowardly crew, some of them, and they have those sex festivals."

Fay shook her head. "You're emphasizing the wrong things. Their fear isn't the fear of Earthers. It's closer to what we'd call prudence. There's nothing of panic or fright in it, nothing glandular. And their sex is no more emotional than scratching an itch. Maybe that's their difference-the fact that their glands and hormones play such minor parts in their personalities."

Paddy clenched his fists, shoved out his chin. "I hate the vermin as I hate flies and I feel no more pangs killing Kotons than killing flies."

"I hardly blame you," said Fay. "They're very cruel."

"I've heard that they eat human beings and with relish."

Fay said mournfully, "And why not? Earthers eat pigs and that's about their attitude."

Paddy gritted his teeth. "They invented the nerve-suit. What more can you say to their discredit?" He ran his fingers through his hair. "I hate taking you out there, Fay, and putting you to the risk."

"I'm no better than you are," she said.

Paddy rose to his feet. "In any case there's only nonsense in frightening ourselves. Maybe we'll have it easy."

Fay read from the last little piece of parchment. " 'The Plain of Thish, where Arma-Geth shows the heroes to the wondering stars. Under my mighty right hand.' Do you know anything about Arma-Geth, Paddy?"

He nodded, turned to stare at the stars ahead. "It's a sort of heroes' memorial in the middle of the plain-'which may not be marred or imprinted on pain of sore death.' "

Fay stared. "And why do you say the last?"

"That's their law. It's a big plain, fifty miles square, I'd say, and as flat as a table. They used a million Armasian and Kudthu and Earther slaves to lay it out level. There's not a hit of gravel the size of a pea to mar the flat. At the center of the plain are the great statues of all the old Sons. And Sam Langtry himself sits at the head of the aisle."

"You sound as if you've been there."

"Oh, not me. There's no one allowed near the plain but the Kotons and few of them. A drunken Shaul woman told me about it once."

Fay said dully, "You make it sound difficult."

"If we had an armed cruiser now," said Paddy, "we might drop smash down beside it, shoot up everything but what we wanted, take off before they could get to us."

Fay shook her head. "Not on Koto. There are five satellite forts covering every square mile on the planet. They'd have your cruiser broken and white-hot before ten seconds had passed."

"Oh, well," said Paddy, "I was just talking-letting my mind loose on wild schemes."

Fay frowned, bit nervously at her lips. "We've got to think of something. With four-fifths of the space-drive in our hands we can't allow ourselves to be captured."

"With or without as far as that goes."

They sat in silence a moment. Then Paddy said, "You'll drop me low and I'll parachute into the very center of Arma-Geth. In the dark I'll get our last sheet and I'll come out on the plain. There you'll drop by and pick me up once more."

"Paddy-are you serious?" Fay asked gently. "Faith and how could I be otherwise? The very thought of the project raises the goose-bumps on my neck."

"Paddy-you're too young to die."

"That I know," Paddy agreed. "That I know." He darted a glance across the gulf toward Mirach. "Especially on the public platforms."

"Just getting near the planet is dangerous," said Fay. "The forts detect anything coming down to Koto that's off the regular lanes. They're not free and easy like the other planets. And if we land at the Montras Field, we'd have to go through that examination again. Except that it probably would be a great deal more thorough."

Paddy pursed his lips. "If luck's with us we could make it past the forts."

"We can't trust to luck," said Fay. "We've got to use our brains."

"It's the old Blackthorn luck," Paddy reminded her. After a moment he added, "Of course it's the Blackthorn brains too, which evens it up."

"Well, use them then!" snapped Fay. "Suppose when I dropped you down you were caught and they tortured everything you knew out of you? All about Delta Trianguli?"

Paddy screwed up his face. "Don't talk so. It takes away my heart for the venture."

"But suppose it happened for a fact? And we lost the four sheets? Then they'd have everything."

Paddy said, "Faith, I believe that if it came to seeing poor Paddy out of the nerve-suit or making sure of the space-drive you'd leave Paddy bellowing there like Bashan's Bull."

She inspected him as if from a distance. "Maybe I would."

Paddy shuddered. "Of all the millions of tender-hearted women in the universe it's you I went and picked out for a shipmate, one like the Hag of Muckish Mountains, who sold her man to the devil for a groat."

Fay said coolly, "Control of space means a great deal to Earth. Right now those sheets are hardly safer than if we had them right here in the cabin. Neither one of us can risk being caught."

Paddy drummed the table with his fingers. "Now if we could only get them safe to the right people on Earth there wouldn't be this conflict and uncertainty and doubt between us."

"There's no conflict and doubt as far as I'm concerned," said Fay with a trace of bravado. "I love my life and I love you- no, now keep away from me, Paddy-but I love Earth and the old continents and oceans and the good Earth people more."

"You're an awful hard woman," said Paddy. "You're one of these fanatics."

She shrugged. "I don't think so at all. You feel the same way if you'd only stop and put it into words."

Paddy was not listening. He rubbed his chin, frowned. "Now I wonder-"

Fay said, "The Langtry ships around Earth are like bees around a honeycomb. Just hoping someone will try to smuggle the sheets to Earth."

"If we could only beam the information in on the space-wave."

"They'd jam us- and if we kept trying too long in one spot they'd triangulate and run us down." She rose and rubbed her hands nervously on the seat of her slacks.

"There's still another chance," said Paddy. "Celestial Express, to Earth Agency."

"Mmmmmmmph. You're out of your mind."

Paddy reached for the Astral Almanac. "Not so fast, not so fast," he muttered. "The Blackthorn brain is a wonderful thing." He licked his finger, turned a page, searched down a column. "Pshaw! No deliveries being made this year."

"Will you stop being cryptic long enough to tell me what you're looking for?"

"Oh," said Paddy, "I thought there might be a comet cutting in from outer space close to Earth. Then we could include the sheets as part of the baggage. But there's nothing listed, nothing for another eight months."

Fay narrowed her eyes thoughtfully, said nothing. Paddy shrugged. "I guess we take our chances. There's still that old Blackthorn luck."

Oyster-white Koto hung below, Koto the twilight-planet.

"It's a frightening place," murmured Fay. "So dim and dark."