"But Head, I consider it my patriotic duty to point out that..."
Godhisavatta crossed his arms over his chest and stared hard at the underling, who (though much the more impressive in physical stature and bearing) allowed himself to droop and take on a somehow bedraggled appearance under the gaze of his superior.
Godhisavatta said, "My man, if you know what is good for you, you will do your job without comment - or I'll see to it that there will be no pension when you retire, which will be soon if I hear any more on a subject that does not concern you."
In a low voice, Sobhaddartha said, "Yes, sir." Then, with a suspicious degree of subservience in his voice, he added, "Is it within the range of my duties, sir, to report that a second ship is in range of our screens?"
"Consider it reported," Godhisavatta said irritably, returning to his work.
"With," said Sobhaddartha even more humbly, "characteristics very similar to the one I just sent through."
Godhisavatta placed his hands on the desk and lifted himself to his feet. "A second one?"
Sobhaddartha smiled inwardly. That sanguinary person born of an irregular union (he was referring to the Head) had clearly not dreamed of two ships. He said, "Apparently, sir! I will now return to my post and await orders and I hope, sir..."
"Yes?"
Sobhaddartha could not resist, pension-risk notwithstanding. "And I hope, sir, we didn't send the wrong one through."
The Far Star moved rapidly across the face of Sayshell Planet and Pelorat watched with fascination. The cloud layer was thinner and more scattered than upon Terminus and, precisely as the map showed, the land surfaces were more compact and extensive-including broader desert areas, to judge by the rusty color of much of the continental expanse.
There were no signs of anything living. It seemed a world of sterile desert, gray plain, of endless wrinkles that might have represented mountainous areas, and, of course, of ocean.
"It looks lifeless," muttered Pelorat.
"You don't expect to see any life-signs at this height," said Trevize. "As we get lower, you'll see the land turn green in patches. Before that, in fact, you'll see the twinkling landscape on the nightside. Human beings have a penchant for lighting their worlds when darkness falls; I've never heard of a world that's an exception to that rule. In other words, the first sign of life you'll see will not only be human but technological."
Pelorat said thoughtfully, "Human beings are diurnal in nature, after all. It seems to me that among the very first tasks of a developing technology would be the conversion of night to day. In fact, if a world lacked technology and developed one, you ought to be able to follow the progress of technological development by the increase in light upon the darkened surface. How long would it take, do you suppose, to go from uniform darkness to uniform light?"
Trevize laughed. "You have odd thoughts, but I suppose that comes from being a mythologist. I don't think a world would ever achieve a uniform glow. Night light would follow the pattern of population density, so that the continents would spark in knots and strings. Even Trantor at its height, when it was one huge structure, let light escape that structure only at scattered points."
The land turned green as Trevize had predicted and, on the last circling of the globe, he pointed out markings that he said were cities. "It's not a very urban world. I've never been in the Sayshell Union before, but according to the information the computer gives me, they tend to cling to the past. Technology, in the eyes of all the Galaxy, has been associated with the Foundation, and wherever the Foundation is unpopular, there is a tendency to cling to the past, except, of course, as far as weapons of war are concerned. I assure you Sayshell is quite modern in that respect."
"Dear me, Golan, this is not going to be unpleasant, is it? We are Foundationers, after all, and being in enemy territory..."
"It's not enemy territory, Janov. They'll be perfectly polite, never fear. The Foundation just isn't popular, that's all. Sayshell is not part of the Foundation Federation. Therefore, because they're proud of their independence and because they don't like to remember that they are much weaker than the Foundation and remain independent only because we're willing to let them remain so, they indulge in the luxury of disliking us." -
"I fear it will still be unpleasant, then," said Pelorat despondently. "Not at all," said Trevize. "Come on, Janov. I'm talking about the official attitude of the Sayshellian government. The individual people on the planet are just people, and if we're pleasant and don't act as though we're Lords of the Galaxy, they'll be pleasant, too. We're not coming to Sayshell in order to establish Foundation mastery. We're just tourists, asking the kind of questions about Sayshell that any tourist would ask.
"And we can have a little legitimate relaxation, too, if the situation permits. There's nothing wrong with staying here a few days and experiencing what they have to offer. They may have an interesting culture, interesting scenery, interesting food, and - if all else fails - interesting women. We have money to spend."
Pelorat frowned, "Oh, my dear chap."
"Come on," said Trevize. "You're not that old. Wouldn't you be interested?"
"I don't say there wasn't a time when I played that role properly, but surely this isn't the time for it. We have a mission. We want to reach Gaia. I have nothing against a good time - I really don't - but if we start involving ourselves, it might be difficult to pull free." He shook his head and said mildly, "I think you feared that I might have too good a time at the Galactic Library on Trantor and would be unable to pull free. Surely, what the Library is to me, an attractive dark-eyed damsel - or five or six - might be to you."