"It is the same with me," said Marot with a self-conscious smile.
"I don't know," said Reith, "whether the Terran culture trait of wearing underwear has spread so far from Novo. We'll see."
They canvassed a number of shops. In each, Reith said: "Good afternoon, madam. Do you have underwear for sale?"
Each time, the clerk would roll her eyes, wag her head, and sadly confess: "Ah, no, sir; there's no underwear here."
Alicia giggled. "It looks as if you two will have to risk exposure when the wind catches those kilts."
The Kubitar worked her way out of the harbor under six sweeps manned by the sailors, who then shook out the two big red-and-yellow striped triangular sails. A steady south wind bore the vessel swiftly out into Bajjai Bay, where it overtook and passed a tubby coastal craft.
"When do we reach Damovang?" asked Alicia eagerly, leaning on the rail.
"About mid-morning tomorrow, I think," said Reith.
"Fine! We'll get a good look at Mount Sabushi."
"What mountain is this?" asked Marot.
Reith explained: "Mount Sabushi rises steeply behind Ghulindé of which Damovang is the port. A thousand or so years ago, some ruler with big ideas ordered Mount Sabushi carved into a seated statue of the war god Qondyor, who held the city in his lap. By now the crag's pretty well eroded away and no more than an odd-looking mountain; but it's still one of the sights on the tourist track."
After dinner, the three companions gathered on the fan tail, to watch the red disk of Roqir sink behind the dark horizontal line of the Jazmuriano hinterland. Alicia said: "Aristide, why don't you get that flute thing you bought? You can play while Fergus and I dance."
Reith said: "I thought we'd danced enough at Angur's last night to hold you for a while."
"Don't be an old poop! I want to try out that new Krishnan dance we saw them doing, the one that looked like the Zulu back on Terra. How about it, Aristide?"
"I have not yet mastered this instrument, with its unfamiliar scale ..."
"Oh, that's all right! If you hit a false note, we'll never know the difference."
The last ruddy rays of the setting sun saw Reith and Alicia trying out the steps of the kormez, to the uncertain tune of Marot's chari. The helmsman became so fascinated that Captain Gendu came aft to roar curses at him for letting the ship drift off course.
Reith admitted to himself that, while dancing in general was a chore, with Alicia floating feather-light in his arms, it became a delight. Gazing at her classic features in the light of two moons, he thought: I don't care if she is difficult at times! Nobody else on two planets can be such marvelous fun; and the sheer pleasure of being with her, when she is in one of her sunnier moods, is worth a few pains. I'll ask her to marry me the first night out from Damovang, when Karrirh's at the full. It's taking a chance, of course, but what the hell ...
Then a roll of the ship sent them staggering up against the rail, and Reith's reverie ended in a gust of mutual laughter.
The Kubitar dropped anchor outside the harbor of Damovang to await inspection. Not until early afternoon did the ship make fast to a pier. As the gangboard was lowered into place, a brass-helmed Qiribo officer strode aboard.
"Captain Gendu!" said the one. "Have the goodness to present me to Doctor Ah-lee-shah Dah-eek-man."
"That's her yonder, the Terran wench with the yellow hair," said Gendu.
The soldier came to attention before Alicia, banging his fist against his cuirass in salute. "Doctor Dyckman!" he said loudly. "I, Lieutenant Gilan of the Republican Guard, have the honor to present to you the compliments of President Vizman, and his request that you and your Terran companions attend him at dinner and accept the night's accommodations in the palace."
"Well—ah—that's very kind," said Alicia. She looked at Reith and Marot. "Have you boys any objections?"
"Captain!" Reith called. "When do you plan to sail?"
"Tomorrow ere noon, if not hindered," growled Gendu.
The lieutenant gave a tight-lipped smile. "He shall sail when ye have returned to the ship, and not before."
"It looks okay to me," said Reith, with unspoken misgivings in his voice. Marot nodded agreement.
"You may tell the President," said Alicia regally, "that we shall be delighted to accept his invitation. But how did he know that we should arrive on this ship?"
"The President reads the manifests of all incoming vessels," said Gilan, "and saw your name on the list." The lieutenant saluted again, did an about-face, and marched ashore.
"Oh, dear!" said Alicia. "If only I had some new clothes ..."
"Rubbish, darling!" said Reith. "In that dress the Sainians gave you, you could run for Miss Krishna and win over any conceivable competition."
"You mean Miz Krishna," she said. "They have such a beauty contest on Terra now, for divorcés only."
"Which class does a remarried divorcee fall into?"
"I don't know. Perhaps it depends on whom she remarries. Come on, let's go ashore and walk a bit before we take a nap!"
The day had been a scorcher in Ghulindé. The presidential palace, innocent of Terran cooling technology, offered little relief. Sweating in his substantial Zorian finery, Reith envied the locals, wearing nothing above the ankles but a square of gauze pinned over one shoulder and allowed to flap and gape as it pleased.
At the palace, the three travelers were led through corridors, past pairs of guards who looked them over and let them pass only when the usher leading them identified them. One hall was lined with statues of former queens of Qirib. During the revolution, someone had gone through the hall knocking off the marble heads, and now workmen were cementing the heads back in place and repairing chipped features.
The three Terrans were taken to a large chamber, at one end of which stood a dining table laid for six. Vizman er-Qorf, President of Qirib, greeted them suavely and kissed Alicia's hand. He proved a large, heavy-set Krishnan, older than Reith had anticipated, ponderous of movements and mien.
Vizman introduced his guests to two other Qiribuma: a mature, cigar-smoking female, the Secretary of Commerce; and a small male, presented as Parenj er-Qvansel, leader of the opposition party. They stood about drinking falat while the Krishnans plied the Terrans with questions about their Zorian adventure.
When dinner was announced, Reith found himself across the table from Alicia, who was placed on Vizman's right. Marot sat on the President's left; beside him sat the Secretary of Commerce; then Reith, and finally Parenj, on Alicia's right.
Reith realized vaguely that the food was excellent, but he paid it little heed. For one thing, the Secretary of Commerce, whose name was Kiri, wanted to know all about the economics of guiding Terran tourists. She asked:
"When may we expect you to bring a party of these Ertsuma hither, good Master Reit'?"
"I hope," Reith replied, "to include Ghulindé in the itinerary of the next set."
"Indeed?" Kiri leaned toward Reith, thrusting out a bulbous breast, bared by her exiguous garment. But there was nothing sexy about this female; she was all business. "Tell me, how much spending money would your Terrans carry, and what share thereof can our shopkeepers expect to garner?"
Reith struggled to form an estimate, distracted as he was by the sight of Alicia, wholly occupied with President Vizman. The two were speaking in undertones with their heads together. The small Krishnan politician, the leader of the opposition, tried to carry on a conversation with Marot across the diameter of the table.
Eventually the repast was cleared away and kvad poured. A trio of musicians entered, seated themselves, and began to strum and tweetle. A dancer, clad in a few beads, turned a cartwheel into the chamber and launched into an acrobatic dance. She proved that she could, by muscular control, move each breast in a separate circle. The lamplight sparkled not only on her ornaments but also on the drops of sweat that beaded her face and athletic body.