then brightened. "Hey, I know Earth thing! You know Earth-human liar Kepigay?"
"Who?" Giyt asked, and the Delt tried the name several times more before Rina said, "Oh, do you mean Ernest Hemingway?"
"Yes. Excellent liar, Kepigay. Greatly enjoy Earth-human lies; Earth humans such excelling liars. You know Kepigay old Earth romance lie, Man Approaching Death in Relationship to Ocean ?"
"I think he means The Old Man and the Sea ," Rina offered. "We had it in American lit in Wichita."
The pilot nodded enthusiastically. "Yes, I had volume also in aboriginal folk lie study. Damn good lie, that one. You see? Same thing here; catch fish too far, sharks eat. Aboriginals have much native lore which persons can learn from, I say always—though not," he added, with one eye wandering over to fix on Dr. Patroosh, "on subject nuclear fusion."
And all the way back to the town their pilot entertained them with stories of his fishing exploits while Dr. Patroosh glowered silently into space. When the pilot let them out on the shore of Crystal Lake, he said cheerfully, "Survive well until dark."
Rina giggled. "I think he means have a nice day."
"Yes, exactly. Do not shoot brain fragments all over house like famous Earth-human liar Kepigay."
They dropped Dr. Patroosh off at the Hagbarth home. Then, in the cart going to their own house, Rina said thoughtfully, "You know what's funny, hon?"
"What?"
"Well, Colly's from California, right? We're from Kansas. Matya comes from a little town on the Jersey shore, Lupe from just outside of Albuquerque, those other guys—"
"What's funny about that? Everybody has to come from someplace."
"Well, sure, Shammy, but they're all from America. Wouldn't you think there'd be some people from South America or Asia or somewhere?"
He thought for a moment, then brightened. "What about Dr. Patroosh? She said she was from some island in the Indian Ocean."
"No, not exactly. She said her grandparents were. She's an American, all right. So I just think it's funny that there isn't anybody from the rest of the world, that's all."
X
The celebrated inventor of the faster-than-light transmission portal, Dr. Fitzhugh Sommermen, remains in a coma after suffering a major stroke. The attack occurred while the scientist was being interviewed on European network television. His physicians have declined to offer any prognosis for his recovery, saying only that he is resting comfortably and that all possible measures are being taken. In a related story, U.S. President Walter P. Garsh interrupted a news conference this morning to deliver a typically outspoken attack on the European reporters who were questioning Dr. Sommermen at the time. "When will they stop badgering this, poor man?" the president demanded. "No one can pretend that it is only scientific curiosity that continues to impel them. They want secrets, and they want them for their own use. Well, they won't get them. These secrets belong to America, and we aren't giving them away."
— EARTH NEWS TRANSMISSION TO TUPELO
Once his wife had called it to his attention, Giyt began to ponder the question himself. It seemed to be true. There weren't any Tupeloyian humans from anywhere on Earth but the U.S.A., and why was that?
The person to ask, of course, was Hoak Hagbarth. The Ex-Earth man shrugged it off. "America's where our funding comes from, right? So I guess that's where they do the recruiting, too. Probably they'll get around to the rest of the world sooner or later. Make sense?" And when Giyt nodded, Hagbarth pressed on. "Listen, Giyt, I need to talk to you about something else. I wanted you to take that trip to the island for a reason. You saw those monsters in Ocean, right?"
"Yes?"
Hagbarth gave a rueful sigh. "Mean-looking bastards, weren't they? I have to admit, every time I take the chopper over there they scare the crap out of me. Can you imagine what would happen if the chopper broke down over Ocean and had to come down in the
"Who?" Giyt asked, and the Delt tried the name several times more before Rina said, "Oh, do you mean Ernest Hemingway?"
"Yes. Excellent liar, Kepigay. Greatly enjoy Earth-human lies; Earth humans such excelling liars. You know Kepigay old Earth romance lie, Man Approaching Death in Relationship to Ocean ?"
"I think he means The Old Man and the Sea ," Rina offered. "We had it in American lit in Wichita."
The pilot nodded enthusiastically. "Yes, I had volume also in aboriginal folk lie study. Damn good lie, that one. You see? Same thing here; catch fish too far, sharks eat. Aboriginals have much native lore which persons can learn from, I say always—though not," he added, with one eye wandering over to fix on Dr. Patroosh, "on subject nuclear fusion."
And all the way back to the town their pilot entertained them with stories of his fishing exploits while Dr. Patroosh glowered silently into space. When the pilot let them out on the shore of Crystal Lake, he said cheerfully, "Survive well until dark."
Rina giggled. "I think he means have a nice day."
"Yes, exactly. Do not shoot brain fragments all over house like famous Earth-human liar Kepigay."
They dropped Dr. Patroosh off at the Hagbarth home. Then, in the cart going to their own house, Rina said thoughtfully, "You know what's funny, hon?"
"What?"
"Well, Colly's from California, right? We're from Kansas. Matya comes from a little town on the Jersey shore, Lupe from just outside of Albuquerque, those other guys—"
"What's funny about that? Everybody has to come from someplace."
"Well, sure, Shammy, but they're all from America. Wouldn't you think there'd be some people from South America or Asia or somewhere?"
He thought for a moment, then brightened. "What about Dr. Patroosh? She said she was from some island in the Indian Ocean."
"No, not exactly. She said her grandparents were. She's an American, all right. So I just think it's funny that there isn't anybody from the rest of the world, that's all."
X
The celebrated inventor of the faster-than-light transmission portal, Dr. Fitzhugh Sommermen, remains in a coma after suffering a major stroke. The attack occurred while the scientist was being interviewed on European network television. His physicians have declined to offer any prognosis for his recovery, saying only that he is resting comfortably and that all possible measures are being taken. In a related story, U.S. President Walter P. Garsh interrupted a news conference this morning to deliver a typically outspoken attack on the European reporters who were questioning Dr. Sommermen at the time. "When will they stop badgering this, poor man?" the president demanded. "No one can pretend that it is only scientific curiosity that continues to impel them. They want secrets, and they want them for their own use. Well, they won't get them. These secrets belong to America, and we aren't giving them away."
— EARTH NEWS TRANSMISSION TO TUPELO
Once his wife had called it to his attention, Giyt began to ponder the question himself. It seemed to be true. There weren't any Tupeloyian humans from anywhere on Earth but the U.S.A., and why was that?
The person to ask, of course, was Hoak Hagbarth. The Ex-Earth man shrugged it off. "America's where our funding comes from, right? So I guess that's where they do the recruiting, too. Probably they'll get around to the rest of the world sooner or later. Make sense?" And when Giyt nodded, Hagbarth pressed on. "Listen, Giyt, I need to talk to you about something else. I wanted you to take that trip to the island for a reason. You saw those monsters in Ocean, right?"
"Yes?"
Hagbarth gave a rueful sigh. "Mean-looking bastards, weren't they? I have to admit, every time I take the chopper over there they scare the crap out of me. Can you imagine what would happen if the chopper broke down over Ocean and had to come down in the
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