Brace waddled down the short companionway and stepped into the port. A moment later, the other port opened and Brace exhaled sharply when he saw the thin-faced man he'd met in the bar standing before him. His feet shifted uneasily in the sand under the Captain's unflinching gaze.
"Well!" Brace bellowed.
"I want to talk to you, Captain Brace."
In answer, Brace jabbed the closing button.
"Or shall I talk to the S.P.?" the thin-faced man shouted through the closing crack.
Brace jabbed the opener and stood impassively as the portal swung wide.
"That's better," the man on the ground said, smiling.
Brace's paw reached down and jerked him into the portal by the front of his tunic. They stood there as the portal closed, face to face, Brace's eyes burning into the livid terror of the other man.
"You aren't going to talk to anybody," Brace muttered, throwing him into the companionway.
"I got friends who are watching!" the little man yelped. He slithered away. "It won't do any good to kill me!"