"Campbell!" I would call out of a nightmare. "Campbell, we're about to
land. Is everything set? Check the instruments again, Campbell."
"S-s-sh!" The low hush of Split Campbell's voice would somehow
penetrate my dream.
The voices about me were soft. My dreams echoed the soft female voices
of this new, strange language.
"Campbell, are you there?... Have you forgotten the Code, Campbell?"
"Quiet, Captain."
"Who is it that's swabbing my face? I can't see."
"It's Vauna. She's smiling at you, Captain. Can't you see her?"
"Is this the pretty one we saw through the telescope?"
"One of them."
"And what of the other? There were two together. I remember--"
"Omosla is here too. She's Vauna's attendant. We're all looking after
you, Captain Linden. Did you know I performed an operation to relieve
the pressure on your brain? You must get well, Captain." The words of
Campbell came through insistently.
After a silence that may have lasted for hours or days, I said,
"Campbell, you haven't forgot the EGGWE Code?"
"Of course not, Captain."
"Section Four?"
"Section Four," he repeated in a low voice, as if to pacify me and put
me to sleep. "Conduct of EGGWE agents toward native inhabitants: A, No
agent shall enter into any diplomatic agreement that shall be construed
as binding--"