He picked up his distorter from the rack beside him and pointed it ahead of the boat. The sapphire glowed.
There was a sudden, violent thrashing in the foliage on the bank. The slender creature reared into the air, tooth-studded jaws gaping wide.
It rose above the foliage, emitting a hissing bellow. Then it curled into a ball and hung suspended in the air for an instant before it dropped back into the shrubbery with a wet plop.
Barra put the jewel-tipped rod back in its hanger.
“I don’t like those nuisances,” he explained. “They can kill a slave if he gets careless. And they annoy the stock.” He tilted his head forward.
“There’s the herd,” he went on, “at the other end of this open water. I’ll run up close and you can look them over if you wish.”
Makun looked around, then shrugged. “Not necessary. I’ll go ahead from here. Won’t take me too long.”
He lifted himself into the air and darted toward one of the huge saurians. Barra watched as he slowed and drifted close to the brute’s head, then hovered.
A faint impression of satisfaction radiated from his mind as he drifted along the length of the creature. He went to another, then to another.
At last, he returned to the boat.