Conway made it to the shelter of the portable lock just as a fortunate combination of circumstances left the alien floating helpless in the middle of the compartment, spinning slowly and bearing a remarkable resemblance to one of the old-time space stations. But it was drifting toward one of the walls again, and he had to get things organized before it started bouncing around a second time.
Ignoring O’Mara for the moment, Conway said quickly, “We’ll need a fine-mesh net, size five, a plastic envelope to go over it, and a set of pumps. In its present state we can expect no cooperation from the being. When it is under restraint and encased in the envelope we can pump in its own air, which should keep it going until it reaches the tender. By that time Kursedd should be ready for it. But hurry with that net!”
How a high-pressure life-form could display such violent activity in what must be to it extremely rarified air was something Conway could not understand.
“Kursedd, how is the analysis going?” he asked suddenly.
The answer was so long in coming that Conway had almost decided that the nurse had broken contact, but eventually the slow, necessarily emotionless voice replied, “It is complete. The composition of the air in the survivor’s compartment is such that, if you were to take off your helmet, Doctor, you could breathe it yourself.”
And that, thought Conway, stunned, was the wildest contradiction of all. Kursedd must be equally flabbergasted, he knew. Suddenly he laughed, thinking of what the nurse’s fur must be doing now…
IV
Six hours later, after struggling furiously for every minute of the way, the survivor had been transferred to Ward 31 OB, a small observation room with theater off the main DBLF Surgical ward. By now Conway wasn’t sure whether he wanted to restore the alien to health or murder it, and judging by the comments, during the transfer, of Kursedd and the Corpsmen, they were similarly confused. Conway made a preliminary examination as thorough as possible considering the restraining net-and finished off by taking blood and skin samples. These he sent to Pathology, plastered with red Most Urgent labels. Kursedd took them up personally rather than commit them to the pneumo tube, because the pathological staff were notoriously color blind where priority labels were concerned. Finally he ordered X rays to be taken, left Kursedd to keep the patient under observation, then went to see O’Mara.
When he had finished, O’Mara said, “The hardest part is over now. But I expect you want to follow through on this case?”
“I. . . I don’t think so,” Conway replied.
O’Mara frowned heavily. “If you don’t want to go on with it, say so. I don’t approve of dithering.”
Conway breathed through his nose, then slowly and with exaggerated distinctness said, “I want to continue with the case. The doubt which I expressed was not due to an inability to make up my mind on this point, but was with regard to your mistaken assumption that the hardest part is over. It isn’t. I have made a preliminary examination and when the results of the tests are in I intend making a more detailed one tomorrow. When I do so, I would like to have present, if it is possible, Doctors Mannon and Prilicla, Colonel Skempton and yourself.”
O’Mara’s eyebrows went up. He said, “An odd selection of talent, Doctor. Mind telling me what you need us for?”
Conway shook his head. “I’d rather not, just yet.”
“Very well, we’ll be there,” O’Mara said with forced gentleness. “And I apologize for suggesting that you were a ditherer, when all you did was mumble and yawn in my face so much that I could only make out one word in three. Now go away and get some sleep, Doctor, before I brain you with something.”
It was only then that Conway realized how tired he was. His gait on the way to his room must be closer to a weary shuffle, he thought, than an unhurried, confident tread.
Next morning Conway spent two hours with his patient before calling for the consultation he had requested from O’Mara. Everything which he had discovered, and that wasn’t a great deal, made it plain that nothing constructive could be done for the being without bringing in some highly specialized help.