"I? Great snail trails, no!" More stifled whistles of amusement escaped the beaked face. "Both Zubb and I are Verpp. Naturalists, as it happens." "You certainly _look_ like Qornt." "Oh, not at all--except perhaps to a Terrestrial. The Qornt are sturdily built rascals, all over ten feet in height. And, of course, they do nothing but quarrel. A drone caste, actually." "A caste? You mean they're biologically the same as you?" "Not at all! A Verpp wouldn't think of fertilizing a Qornt." "I mean to say, you are of the same basic stock--descended from a common ancestor, perhaps." "We are all Pud's creatures." "What are the differences between you, then?" "Why, the Qornt are argumentive, boastful, lacking in appreciation for the finer things of life. One dreads to contemplate descending to _their_ level." "Do you know anything about a Note passed to the Terrestrial Ambassador at Smorbrod?" Retief asked. * * * * * The beak twitched. "Smorbrod? I know of no place called Smorbrod." "The outer planet of this system." "Oh, yes. We call it Guzzum. I had heard that some sort of creatures had established a settlement there, but I confess I pay little note to such matters." "We're wasting time, Retief," Magnan said. "We must truss these chaps up, hurry back to the boat and make our escape. You heard what they said." "Are there any Qornt down there at the harbor, where the boats are?" Retief asked. "At Tarroon, you mean? Oh, yes. Planning some adventure." "That would be the invasion of Smorbrod," Magnan said. "And unless we hurry, Retief, we're likely to be caught there with the last of the evacuees!" "How many Qornt would you say there are at Tarroon?" "Oh, a very large number. Perhaps fifteen or twenty." "Fifteen or twenty what?" Magnan looked perplexed. "Fifteen or twenty Qornt." "You mean that there are only fifteen or twenty individual Qornt in all?" Another whistle. "Not at all. I was referring to the local Qornt only. There are more at the other Centers, of course." "And the Qornt are responsible for the ultimatum--unilaterally?" "I suppose so; it sounds like them. A truculent group, you know. And interplanetary relations _are_ rather a hobby of theirs." Zubb moaned and stirred. He sat up slowly, rubbing his head. He spoke to his companion in a shrill alien clatter of consonants. "What did he say?" "Poor Zubb. He blames me for his bruises, since it was my idea to gather you as specimens." "You should have known better than to tackle that fierce-looking creature," Zubb said, pointing his beak at Magnan. "How does it happen that you speak Terrestrial?" Retief asked. "Oh, one picks up all sorts of dialects." "It's quite charming, really," Magnan said. "Such a quaint, archaic accent." "Suppose we went down to Tarroon," Retief asked. "What kind of reception would we get?"