Kieran stared at her. "So what? If they're intelligent—"
"You talk as though it was the simplest thing in the world," she flashed.
"Isn't it? If your Sakae are intelligent and the humans of Sako aren't, then the Sakae have the rights on that world, don't they?"
She looked at him, not saying anything, and again she had that stricken look of one who has tried and failed. Then from up forward, without turning, Webber spoke.
"What do you think now of Vaillant's fine idea, Paula?"
"It can still work," she said, but there was no conviction in her voice.
"If you don't mind," said Kieran, with an edge to his voice, "I'd still like to know what this Sako business has to do with reviving me."
"The Sakae rule the humans on that world," Paula answered. "There are some of us who don't believe they should. In the Council, we're known as the Humanity Party, because we believe that humans should not be ruled by non-humans."
Again, Kieran was distracted from his immediate question—this time by the phrase "Non-human".