Gheal was crawling into a corner of the room, while Renzu stood nearby laughing.
"You see, Arlen," smiled Renzu, "I'm his master. He recognizes my authority and no one else's. He would not desert me, no matter how I treated him."
Renzu picked up the cane that Arlen had tossed on the bunk a few minutes before. As the scientist shook the stick at Gheal, Arlen thought he saw a look of satisfaction creep into the creature's face.
"Just the same," Arlen said, "I can't stand your beating him. He may enjoy it. He may be a masochist at heart, but I won't stand for it."
"Your mind is provincially human, Arlen," said Renzu. "When you look at Gheal you see the product of an entirely different evolution. You see a creature without emotions, without ethics. He's devoid of every terrestrial feeling, especially gratitude. He may even hate you for taking his side against me."
There was a trace of bitterness in Renzu's voice.
"I wouldn't be too sure, Renzu," Arlen said. "If the laws of physics apply on Venus, as well as the earth, why couldn't biological and psychological laws apply there also. Even the lowest of creatures show understandable reactions on earth. Why not on Venus?"
"Because Gheal has been made differently," Renzu said, with a repulsive grin.
Hour by hour Captain Arlen watched Venus grow in size. The planet expanded from a glowing crescent to the size of the moon as seen from the earth; soon it floated large in space, filling half the sky ahead of the ship, a billowing, fluffy ball of shining clouds. Its surface was entirely obscured by its misty atmosphere.