“Did he truly shut his eyes?”
“Sometimes he was asked to leave the room while the witnesses rearranged the blocks. Still he was able to find the `sky’ block unerringly. He could see something about that block that we could not.”
I thought about this.
“What good is such an ability to the Empire?”
“That is one of the things we are supposed to be testing on this mission, and we may have found our first example. The two color-sighted members claim our fortification is a different color than the terrain, that the fortification is `steel’ while the rocks around it are `sand.’ According to them, it will be immediately obvious to any color-sighted creature. that comes across it.
Again I lapsed into thoughtful silence.
“Does anyone know,” I asked finally, “if the Insects are color-sighted?”
“Not that I know of. You might ask the Scientists, but I don’t think they even know what to look for.”
“In that case, I feel the matter should take top priority. Pass the word to Hif and Sirk to report to me immediately. Also ask Tzu to join us. Finally, inform Zur to place his Warriors on full alert until I’ve had an opportunity to consult with him.”
“Yes, Commander, but…”
“What?”
“Do you feel it wise to act with so little information?”
“Horc, there are thirteen of us outnumbered by a factor of several million to one by the Enemy. We lack information and we must act immediately, not in spite of that, but because of that. We need some answers and we need them fast. If we don’t get them, we may well have to abandon the fortification.”