September let him stand like that for nearly an hour.  Then he moved to join him.

"Not easy, feller-me-lad?"

"No, Skua.  Not easy."

"Better this way, though," the giant said cheerily.  "Money's not everything.  She would have gotten tougher before sweeter as the years roll down.  There's a universe full of fledglings waiting to try their wings who are a good deal softer."

"Skua."

"What is it, lad?"

"Shut up."  He walked away, moving rapidly down the port corridor, hands jammed deep into his pockets.  After a shrug, September followed, keeping the disstance between them constant.  There was a dark muddy wall raised around the young salesman, and it could only be taken down from within.

Sir Hunnar and his two squires were waiting patiently for them outside the shuttleport building.  September had tried to argue them into coming inside to watch the liftoff of the shuttle from closer range.  But the Tran had elected to forgo that pleasure, since it meant enduring the unbearably high temperatures inside.

"We saw it rise from out here, Ethan," the Tran knight said.  "It was bigger than the skyboat you came to us in."  A note of childlike wonder crept into his voice.  "Does it truly chivan to a ship bigger still?"

"Much bigger, Hunnar."  Ethan was reminded by the Trans curious, open stare of the reason for his remaining here.  One of those reasons, anyhow.  "Let's find a place in town and have a tankard of reedle."  At least  the super pseudomead would salve his throat, if not his confused conscience.

The tavern they located had been smuggled in among more respectable looking two- and three-story structures on a narrow lane.  It did not serve reedle, but they found an ample supply of nontoxic intoxicants.  Most were derived from varieties of the omni-present pika-pina or pika-pedan, a few from other plant life.  All filled Ethan with an equally warm glow.

"How are we to proceed to form this necessary confederation, friend Ethan?"  Suaxus-dal-Jagger sounded thoroughly discouraged, and the expedition hadn't begun.  "We know nothing of this country.  No one from Wannome or Sofold has ever been this far from home."

"So many satch," murmured his counterpart Budjir.

"That can be to our advantage."  September hunched over the table.  "The other states we will visit will know nothing of Sofold, but it's possible they will have heard of Arsudun, and consequently, of the humanx station here.

"We've already seen indications that there're entirely too many local goods goin' off-planet to have come from Arsudun alone.  That means the Arsudunites are trading with the surrounding states.  What better way for them to make themselves look big and important than to constantly claim extratrannish wizards - that's us - for allies?

"So how are they likely to react, when we show up and tell them they'd better confederatefor their own good?"