"I'd not give it," he said simply. And then he turned to her with a cryptic smile. "So my future and the future of Sol are really at stake?"
"Yes," she replied.
"Then you are a threat."
Rhinegallis smiled at him. "Is one a threat that does not permit the child to play with fire?" she said coolly.
"May I point out that I am not a child," he said crossly.
"Ros nile ver tan si vol klys," she said in her own tongue. "And if you know what I said you'd know what you studied last night."
"When a child is deprived of matches, he is told why—in many cases he is shown mildly what happens. So go ahead, Rhinegallis, treat me as a child—and tell me, Rhinegallis, why I must not play with the Lawson Radiation."
"It is dangerous," she replied.
"In my lifetime," he said, "I have been responsible for the direction of many children. I have yet to turn away a curious—honestly curious—child. Mankind is always curious—providing we know why."
"It is dangerous," she repeated.