Heinlein, Robert A Assignment in Eternity

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himself understood if his only possible interpreter
were in South America? Or whereabouts unknown?
How would he make the Tibetans understand that
there even was an interpreter? Botheration!
Still, he must make a try. What was it Monroe had
said his name was here? Egan no, Igor. That was
it Igor.
"Igor," he said.
The leader cocked her head. "Igor?" she said,
Frost nodded vigorously. "Igor."
126 Robert A. Heinlein
She turned and called out, "Igor!" giving it the
marked gutteral, the liquid "r" that Monroe had
given it. A man came forward. The professor looked
eagerly at him, but he was a stranger, like the rest.
The leader pointed to the man and stated, "Igor."
This is growing complicated, thought Frost, appar-
ently Igor is a common name here too common.
Then he had a sudden idea:
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If Monroe and Helen got through, their badly-
needed chattels might have made them prominent.
"Igor," he said, "Helen Fisher."
The leader was attentive at once, her face alive.
"Elen Feesher?" she repeated.
"Yes, yes Helen Fisher."
She stood quiet, thinking. It was plain that the
words meant something to her. She clapped her
hands together and spoke, commandingly. Two men
stepped forward. She addressed them rapidly for
several moments.
The two men stepped up to Frost, each taking an
arm- They started to lead him away. Frost held back
for a moment and said over his shoulder, "Helen
Fisher?"
" 'Elen Feesher'!" the leader assured him. He had
to be content with that.
Two hours passed, more or less. He had not been
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mistreated and the room in which they had placed
him was comfortable but it was a cell at least the
door was fastened. Perhaps he had said the wrong
thing, perhaps those syllables meant something quite
different here from a simple proper name.
The room in which he found himself was bare and
lighted only by a dim glow from the walls, as had all
of this underground world which he had seen so far.
He was growing tired of the place and was wonder-
ing whether or not it would do any good to set up a
commotion when he heard someone at the door.
The door slid back; he saw the leader, a smile on
ELSEWHEN 127
her rather grim, middle-aged features. She spoke in
her own tongue, then added, "Igor. . . Ellenfeesher."
He followed her.
Glowing passageways, busy squares where he was
subjected to curious stares, an elevator which startled
him by dropping suddenly when he was not aware
that it was an elevator, and finally a capsule-like
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vehicle in which they were sealed airtight and which
went somewhere very fast indeed to judge by the
sudden surge of weight when it started and again
when it stopped through them all he followed his
guide, not understanding and lacking means of in-
quiring. He tried to relax and enjoy the passing
moment, as his companion seemed to bear him no
ill-will, though her manner was brusque that of a
person accustomed to giving orders and not in the
habit of encouraging casual intimacy.
They arrived at a door which she opened and
strode in. Frost followed and was almost knocked off
his feet by a figure which charged into him and
grasped him with both arms. "Doctor! Doctor Frost!"
It was Helen Fisher, dresser in the costume worn
by both sexes here. Behind her. stood Robert or
Igor, his gnome-like face widened with a grin.
He detached Helen's arms gently. "My dear." he
said inanely, "imagine finding you here."
"Imagine finding you here," she retorted. "Why,
professor you're crying!"
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"Oh, no, not at all," he said hastily, and turned to
Monroe. "It's good to see you, too, Robert."
"That goes double for me. Doc," Monroe agreed.
The leader said something to Monroe. He an-
swered her rapidly in their tongue and turned to
Frost. "Doctor, this is my elder sister, Margri, Actoon
Margri Major Margri, you might translate it roughly,"
"She has been very kind to me," said Frost, and
bowed to her, acknowledging the introduction. Margri
clapped her hands smartly together at the waist and
ducked her head, features impassive.
128 Robert A. Heinlein
"She gave the salute of equals," explained Robert- [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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