Bren had done his best, he really had. They had had several meetings at which nearly everyone had been able to attend and he had demonstrated with diagrams and plans carefully attuned to atevi sensibilities. The words just weren't there in Ragi. It had taken some neat footwork around the numbers when the question of why two teams had been raised but by suggesting the umpires as a third, the moment had passed. He cursed the university for suggesting it. Even on a neutral island the possibilities of cricket were fraught.

Now there was no way back. The sun had unhelpfully shone. No dark menacing clouds hovered. A herd of crazed mechieti had not run amok over the wicket. Tabini and the Dowager were coming out to open the batting. The Mospheiran eleven had been a little surprised by the atevi method of winning the toss but had agreed to field good naturedly enough.

Tabini arrived at the wicket with much bowing and a small exchange of gifts with the opening bowler. Bren taking his place behind the wicket took Tabini's outer robe and noticed something. he walked briskly over. "Nand-dowager," he swallowed delicately, "you seem to have forgotten to bring a bat?" Ilisidi bristled "Nonsense!" she declared "at my age you cannot carry all these things around! I have my cane. that will have to do!" Bren sighed and went back to his place. The Mospheiran bowlers had been briefed. No-one was to be bowled while the score was an even number. Tabini flicked the first ball away for a single. The dowager had been afforded a runner and took her own sweet time about getting to the other end. she took guard as the bowler let go a gentle full toss. Bren closed his eyes and started to pray. There was a sharp crack. Hearing no accompanying cry of pain Bren opened an eye, the ball was just striking the fence somewhere behind him. The dowager straightened slowly and brandished her cane. "a three, Bren-paidhi" she called "this is fun!"

Over the next hour the bowlers got progressively quicker and more devious. The Dowager proved equal to fast bowling and had scored a very respectable 43 before deciding that she was ready for drinks. As the staff struggled from the hastily erected pavilion under the load of three tables and a complete tea service it came to Bren that things could only get worse. A lot worse.

Tabini played and missed, there was a clatter of interrupted woodwork and a muted cry from the bowler which might have been owasii'ii? (a word of some crudity in Ragi he recalled but not as irredeemably obscene as Ou'azaaat)

Bren felt the flickering beginnings of a headache and walked to where the Lord of the Western Association was regarding his shattered stumps. A voice buzzed in Bren’s ear, at least the score was auspicious. Bren took a deep breath "Aiji-ma.." he began. "Out!" Tabini cut him off with a roar of laughter "Bren-Ji I like this game" still laughing he took his coat and flicked back his braid before marching off to a comfortable chair on the boundary.

Tano came in next. He was the sort of batsman people flock to see at test matches not for the elegance of their technique or the subtlety of their strokeplay but because they are totally lacking in style altogether. Tano's response to every variation of the bowlers art was to make a roundhouse swing in the hope of hitting the ball out of the ground. With the true grace of Baji-Naji he was smiled upon and managed to hit the ball for six three times before being comprehensively stumped. They had only picked him for his bowling.

Jago came in to steady the side and the score progressed beyond a hundred. The Mospheiran bowler was quite crafty and was denying the Dowager a run. Jago looked at Bren" Are you unwell Paidhi?" she asked "only you have been jumping up and down for some moments past?" "you're on Nelson " explained Bren pointing at the scoreboard where the score of 111 was prominently displayed. "Its is an ancient curse that if everyone does not lift their feet when the ball is bowled the batsman will get out..." he went on. "Nand Bren" said Jago pretending to be shocked " I am sure the Aiji-dowager would be offended to hear that you were trying to protect her from so minor an affliction." Next ball Bren kept his feet down, The bowler curled the ball through the gate and bowled the dowager and Jago went off in a sulk to the far edge of the crease. Bren came to the conclusion that he was somehow in the doghouse and considerable apologies would be needed later. He thanked all the gods he could remember that this was a limited over match...

...As the sun rose to its zenith and crept beyond the heat grew. Even beneath the broad brim of his traditional floppy hat Bren felt the glare strike up from the ground like a solid force. The sweat trickled down beneath the brocade collar of the official umpiring coat and he longed to loosen his cravat.

It was difficult to stay alert although the Mospheiran umpire, an elderly gnarled man so dark as to appear like a miniature atevi, seemed to be perfectly at ease. Bren remembered that this individual had been there before the rest of the team to welcome them. maybe he had some official duty which allowed him to remain on the island and allow him to become acclimatized. The man seemed vaguely familiar.

Jago was out caught at deep third man while impetuously attempting to hook. Algini had replaced the dowager and was now joined by Cenedi. The score ticked over steadily. At 210 Algini got an inside edge which removed his leg stump and was replaced by Banichi, the first atevi player to ask Bren for a guard. Once happy with middle-and-leg Banichi’s first shot was an elegant square cut which whipped the ball past the despairing hands of gully, zipped across the outfield, disturbed a small group of roosting witi'ikin near the boundary and rattled the pickets beyond. Banichi it seemed had found time of nights to study the coaching manual for he now unleashed a glorious sequence of sweeps, cover drives and late cuts which clearly impressed the Mospheiran players. when some half hour later Banichi got to his half century the applause was genuine and prolonged. Shortly afterwards the allotted overs came to an end and the innings was over. "Lunch" declared the elderly umpire sweeping off the bails.

Bren hurried to the serving table but Jago had already helped herself to a pointed bowl of salad and gone off to sit with Banichi in a manner which argued that business was being discussed. Bren shrugged took his plate and sat on the grass. Lord Geigi came strolling by. It occurred to Bren not for the first time that Lord Geigi had an uncanny knack for passing by even on an island 190 miles from Mogari to which he had not been invited. Bren sometimes bet with himself as to where he would encounter Geigi next, on the station maybe as surely 8 miles of vacuum would be little obstacle to the old schemer.

And now the Mospheirans were coming out to bat....

The atevi came out from lunch and had a quick team conference at the end of which Tabini, as was rightful, went about setting a field. The Mospheiran opener took guard. Bren surveyed the scene Tabini had set 3 slips, a leg slip, short cover, silly mid-on, silly point, short extra cover and twelfth man. The boundary was a little exposed thought Bren and turned to speak to Algini expecting him to be nearby but discovering him turning into a long run-up. "Nadi," said Bren "what are you doing. You have set all close catchers as if for a spin bowler but you are shaping up for fast bowing. Somebody will get hurt!" "I tried to tell them so Nand' Bren" said Algini miserably but they told me it was great dishonour for members of the guild to stand far off from danger. They insisted.."

After a couple of diplomatic suggestions the fielders went to more orthodox positions for Algini, 2 slips, gully, cover point, square leg, mid on and mid off, long leg and third man.

The game began while Algini and Cenedi were reasonable fast bowlers and made good use of their extra height to the point at which Bren had to issue warnings for short pitched balls and the batsman swapped caps for helmets and armguards. All the same the Mospheirans were seasoned players and skill began to take the score along so as to begin to make a match of it. The first hundred was rattled off without loss. Then the second for the openers wicket caught by Bindanda who was on as a substitute for the Dowager who was a little frail to be in the field but had curled up with Babsidi as a backrest on the boundary where she shouted regular exhortations to the others to jump, dive and catch as often as possible. For Bren she reserved a special torture by drinking frequently from a large glass of iced juice with which she toasted him whenever she caught his eye.

Tabini put himself on to stem the flow of runs and such was his mastery of chinamen, googlies and yorkers that he was able to do so while surprising a couple of wickets with the slower ball. as the final allotted over came up the scores were nearly even and at the last ball a hurried single meant the match was tied.

But what was this...? Tabini and the Mospheiran skipper were conferring and came marching up to Bren. "Now Paidhi" said Tabini in a manner which brooked no denials "it is the turn of the Umpires team to bat!"