Alan Dean Foster by Taken 02 The Light-Years Beneath My Feet

Author:Taken 02, The Light-Years Beneath My Feet
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Published: 2011-09-10T20:40:42+00:00

"Well, what do you think?"

The waterfall at whose base they had gathered was not high, but it was noisy, which was what Walker was after. As always, their appearance garnered the usual stares from passing Niyyuu. None approached the foreign visitors to the nature park, however. Visiting aliens were accorded the same privileges as locals. That extended to privacy.

And if common courtesy was not sufficient to discourage infringement, Braouk's intimidating presence was sufficient to keep the otherwise intrigued at a distance.

Espying a shallow sandbar, Sque slid gratefully into the water. She remained there with only the upper half of her body breaking the surface, forcing her companions to settle themselves around her. No one minded the proximity to the manicured cataract that over the centuries had undergone a transformation from wild torrent to well-mannered cascade. Though carefully maintained native vegetation, lush and vibrant, flourished throughout the park, Walker would have traded every gaudy frond and twisted fiber of alien exoticism for one glimpse of a solitary daisy.

They had not come to enjoy the scenery, however, but to discuss their immediate future. One that Walker's proposal promised to perturb appreciably.

"Is taking a chance, that could seriously unsettle, existing relationship." Himself larger than many of the surrounding growths, Braouk's initial response to Walker's plan reflected his natural caution. "We have fashioned a comfortable arrangement with the Niyyuu. Involving ourselves in a scheme such as you propose, Marc, could damage that irreparably."

Walker had anticipated numerous possible objections to his proposal. Braouk's was one of them. "How? All decisions will be made by Saluu-hir-lek, all orders will be issued by him, and he'll be the one to execute and follow through on every action." He smiled knowingly. "That's so he can also claim all the credit. No problem there. We're not looking to get credit out of this. Our objective is to strengthen one important ally to the point where he'll be able to demand instead of request the kind of assistance we've been asking for."

As a relaxed George dog-paddled nearby, Sque focused her laserlike attention on the human. "It is apparent you have given this as much thought of which you are capable. I confess that I am more intrigued than I expected to be. But our moody Tuuqalian makes a point. Suppose that events do not proceed in the fashion desired. Our hosts are not so developed that their base desires have completely atrophied. This society still understands revenge, for example."

Ignoring the fact that he was soaking his pants, Walker waded into the water and crouched down close to her. There was a time when such proximity to a four-foot-high tentacled nightmare like the K'eremu would have sent him screaming. Time and close acquaintance had long since altered both his view and his reaction.

"In that case, what's the worst that could happen? The Niyyuu know we still have friends among the Sessrimathe. They'd probably just expel us, send us back to Seremathenn. In that case, we'd be no worse off than we were before we made the decision to come here.

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