Extrone held back the flap of the tent. "Won't you come in?" he asked
without any politeness whatever.
Ri obeyed the order.
The inside of the tent was luxurious. The bed was of bulky feathers,
costly of transport space, the sleep curtains of silken gauze. The
floor, heavy, portable tile blocks, not the hollow kind, were neatly
and smoothly inset into the ground. Hanging from the center, to the
left of the slender, hand-carved center pole, was a chain of crystals.
They tinkled lightly when Extrone dropped the flap. The light was
electric from a portable dynamo. Extrone flipped it on. He crossed to
the bed, sat down.
"You were, I believe, the first ever to kill a farn beast?" he said.
"I.... No, sir. There must have been previous hunters, sir."
* * * * *
Extrone narrowed his eyes. "I see by your eyes that you are
envious--that is the word, isn't it?--of my tent."
Ri looked away from his face.
"Perhaps I'm envious of your reputation as a hunter. You see, I have
never killed a farn beast. In fact, I haven't _seen_ a farn beast."
Ri glanced nervously around the tent, his sharp eyes avoiding Extrone's
glittering ones. "Few people have seen them, sir."
"Oh?" Extrone questioned mildly. "I wouldn't say that. I understand
that the aliens hunt them quite extensively ... on some of their
planets."
"I meant in our system, sir."
"Of course you did," Extrone said, lazily tracing the crease of his
sleeve with his forefinger. "I imagine these are the only farn beasts
in our system."
Ri waited uneasily, not answering.
"Yes," Extrone said, "I imagine they are. It would have been a shame if
you had killed the last one. Don't you think so?"
Ri's hands worried the sides of his outer garment. "Yes, sir. It would
have been."
Extrone pursed his lips. "It wouldn't have been very considerate of you
to--But, still, you gained valuable experience. I'm glad you agreed to
come along as my guide."
"It was an honor, sir."
Extrone's lip twisted in wry amusement. "If I had waited until it was
safe for me to hunt on an alien planet, I would not have been able to
find such an illustrious guide."
"... I'm flattered, sir."
"Of course," Extrone said. "But you should have spoken to me about it,
when you discovered the farn beast in our own system."
"I realize that, sir. That is, I had intended at the first opportunity,
sir...."
"Of course," Extrone said dryly. "Like all of my subjects," he waved
his hand in a broad gesture, "the highest as well as the lowest slave,
know me and love me. I know your intentions were the best."