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by Maya Kaathryn Bohnhoff
Science Fiction, 66 pages.
Originally Published in Analog Science Fiction and Fact, 1990
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Rhys Llewellyn was both ecstatic and agitated when the surveys returned the information that the largest temperate land mass on the planet Pa-Loana was rich in something the natives called ”foon.”
He was ecstatic because a rich source of foon, known on Earth and its colonies as “super-latex,” was sure to revolutionize the manufacture of all manner of clothing, sports gear, space suits, medical supplies—in short, anything that required a durable, flexible, low-care material.
He was also ecstatic because foon was so plentiful on Pa-Loana; a form of algae, it literally covered the face of the Pa-Loanian waters.
Then, too, the natives inhabiting the largest temperate land mass of Pa-Loana (the Pa-Kai, by name) were friendly folk amenable to selling rights to exploit what, to them, was a nuisance that had to be strained out of their drinking water. This was cause for further ecstasy.
Rhys Llewellyn was agitated because he knew that the Resource Survey Team had returned the same reports to Bristol-Benz and that right now, somewhere in their sumptuous corporate offices, their head Contract Negotiator was studying those reports and feeling both ecstatic and agitated.
From this point on, it would be a space race to determine who got their negotiating team into the tent of the Pa-Kai Tribal Council first. Rhys Llewellyn was determined that it would be Tanaka Enterprises. To that end he and his two assistants arrived at the Tanaka Corporate Travel Park an hour and a half after the reports landed in his terminal.
They spent the bulk of the five day TAS transit taking SubLearn courses in Pa-Kai language and etiquette, going over the Environmental Impact surveys and discussing strategies to use in case Bristol-Benz appeared on the scene before they had a firm deal. This last measure turned out to be unfortunately necessary. Rhys and company arrived at the Pa-Kai Council Tent just in time to join the Council of Chieftains and Elders in greeting the Bristol-Benz negotiators.
The exchange between the Tanaka and Bristol representatives was barely cordial, a thing which the Pa-Kai Eldest noted immediately.
“You are enemies?” he asked Rhys in flute-like tones. His crest of sagittal hair shifted forward in a gesture Rhys knew indicated intense curiosity.
“No,” Rhys assured him carefully, making the “Please do not think that!” face. “We are....” There was no word for competitors in Pa-Kai. “We are grazers of the same field.”
The Eldest nodded sagaciously and herded the two parties of “grazers” into the huge tent. Inside, the negotiators were accorded side-by-side sets of cushions arranged as part of a gigantic circle. The remainder of the circle was occupied by the Chieftains of the Pa-Kai Clans, while directly across from the Human delegation was the raised pallet of the Eldest Chieftain. Just before him on the ground, within a circle of stones, sat a character out of a childhood nightmare.
Dressed in feathered and furred garb that made the garish robes of the Chieftains look drab, the kneeling form sported a rainbow of cloth strips tied to its crest hair and an equally colorful pattern of ornate lines and symbols painted on its camelid face.
“Is that the court jester?” whispered Assistant Negotiator Roderick Halfax in Standard.
Rhys shook his head. “Shaman,” he said.
“He’s certainly... uh... bright.”
“She,” said Rhys. “And she holds a very important place in the Pa-Kai tribal hierarchy. Of all the Clan Shaman, she’s considered to be the greatest. All others are her apprentices.” He indicated the area behind the circle of Chieftains where the Shaman and Elders from each of the nineteen Pa-Kai Clans sat to observe the proceedings.
When all had been seated, the Eldest took his place on the raised pallet. At his bidding, a fruit beverage was served, along with small edibles called tso-tso one dipped in a creamy fruit pulp called gua. Following his lead, Rhys Llewellyn’s two assistants dipped, ate and drank the servings given to them on small woven platters, then nodded, smiled and smacked their lips. The Pa-Kai did likewise and added to the proceedings murmurs of pleasure and musical chatter. Very quickly the entire assemblage was dipping, eating, smacking and chattering.
The only exception to this was the Bristol-Benz delegation, which ate and drank in relative silence, watching the rest of the crowd expressionlessly. After about twenty minutes of socializing, the head B-B negotiator set his speaking frond in the stand before his cushions and pointed his chin at the Eldest.
All chatter ceased abruptly. In her stone circle, the Pa-Kai Shaman executed three pirouettes and dropped to her knees staring up at the Eldest. She made a gesture at the B-B team with the tips of her three fingers, then sat cross-legged on the ground.
According to Rhys’ understanding o -- [End of Preview.]