"Well, I don't know, Miss Haer. I mean, Dr. Haer. Kind of gloomier,
like. Shucks, I've seen this here town on Telly a dozen times."
"And seeing is believing," Joe muttered cynically. "It looks as though
we have a reception committee." He looked at Nadine. "Are we supposed
to know each other?"
She shrugged and made a moue. "It would be somewhat strange if we
didn't, seeing that we flew over in the same aircraft, and were the
only passengers to come this far."
He nodded and as the plane came to a halt, helped her from her chair,
even as the plane's ladder slipped out and touched to the ground.
Joe grunted and said, as though to himself, "You realize that for all
practical purposes there hasn't been any improvement in aircraft for a
generation?"
Nadine looked at him from the side of her eyes, even as they
descended. "That's what I keep telling you, Joe. We've become
ossified. When a society, afraid of change, adopts a policy of
maintaining the _status quo_ at any cost, progress is arrested.
Progress _means_ change."
He grinned at her. "Sure, sure, sure. Please, no more lectures,
teacher. Let what's already in my head stew a while."
* * * * *
On the ground, Nadine was met by one contingent from the Embassy and
from the Sov-world authorities, and Joe and Max by another. Joe became
occupied, hardly more than noticing that she had been whisked away in
a hoverlimousine, ornately bedecked with official flags and stars.
Joe, no longer holding military rank, in spite of his mission, was in
mufti, and restrained himself from returning the salute when greeted
by two fresh young lieutenants from the Embassy and a be-medaled
lieutenant colonel in Sov-world uniform, whose tight-waisted tunic
reminded Joe of that worn by Colonel Lajos Arpad, the military attache
Joe had come across twice in West-world fracases, and who Frank
Hodgson had branded an espionage agent. Joe swore again, inwardly,
that these Hungarian officers must wear girdles under their uniforms,
and wondered vaguely if they did so in combat.
The lieutenants, who could have been twins, so alike were they in
size, bright smiling faces, uniform and words of welcome, saluted Joe,
shook hands, and then turned to introduce him to the Sov-world
officer.
One of them said, "Major Mauser, may we present you to Lieutenant Bela
Kossuth of the Pink Army?"
They were, evidently using Joe's old title of rank, as if he were
retired rather than dismissed from the Category Military. It meant
little to Joe Mauser. The Sov officer clicked his heels, bowed from
the waist, extended his hand to be shaken. His waist might be pinched
in like that of a girl of the Nineteenth Century, but his hand was dry
and firm.
"The fame of Joseph Mauser has penetrated to the Proletarian
Paradise," he said, his voice conveying sincerity.