not have the strength to move farther, and I suspect there were strong
psychological reasons for remaining close to their ship. Their physical
condition, the high temperatures, and the indications of malnutrition
observed, which we mistakenly assumed to be due to enforced starvation, were
symptoms of the disease. The state of deep unconsciousness may also have been a
symptom, or possibly some kind of hibernation mode which they adopt when injured
or otherwise distressed and assistance is likely to be delayed, and which slows
the metabolic rate and reduces bleeding.”
Fletcher was readying his cutting torch and looking baffled. He said, “Disease
and injuries caused by escaping from the wreck I can believe. But what about the
missing limbs and—”
“Dodds, sir,” Rhobwar’s astrogator broke in. “I’m afraid the midnight drop in
wind strength will not affect your area. There are local weather disturbances.
Three large thorn patches have reached the stern and sections of the peripheral
growth are entering the food storage deck. A lot of hull plating is missing
there. Once they open that concentrated store of food they’ll probably lose
interest in anything else.” His optimism sounded forced.
Murchison said, “We’re not completely sure that it was a disease that caused the
trouble, Captain. From the analysis of the stomach contents of the cadaver from
the dormitory deck.
the indications are that it was a severe gastrointestinal infection caused by a
bug native to their home planet, and the symptom which led us to suspect
malnutrition was total regurgitation of stomach contents in all of the other
cases. The casualty from the dormitory had been knocked unconscious before the
process was complete and was asphyxiated shortly afterward so that involuntary
regurgitation did not take place. But it is also possible that the ship’s own
food supply was contaminated and that caused the trouble.”
Conway wondered if it was possible for a mobile omnivorous vegetable to get
food poisoning, and if it would take effect in time to save them from the
thorns. He rather doubted it.
“Thank you, Ma’am,” Fletcher said, and went on, “About the missing limbs?”
“There are no missing limbs. Captain,” she replied. “Or perhaps the crew are all
missing the same organ, their head. The large number of the other injuries
concealed the truth at first, but there are no missing limbs, and there is no
criminal.”
Fletcher looked at Conway, too polite to express his disbelief to the
pathologist in words, and the Doctor took over the explanation. But he had to
work as he talked because he and Murchison were faced with the long, difficult
job of transferring the big alien from its cupola to the litter.
It was hard to imagine the set of environmental circumstances which had caused
such an essentially helpless life-form to evolve, become dominant, and in time
achieve a culture capable of star travel, Conway said, but these gross,
limbless, and all too obviously immobile creatures had done just that. It was a
host-symbiote, they now knew, who had developed multiple symbiotes specialized
so as to act as short-and long-range manipulators and sensors. Its stumps and
the areas which on the casualties had been mistaken for amputation sites were
the interfaces which joined the host creature to its symbiotes when physical
activity became necessary or the host required sustenance.
It was likely that a strong mental as well as physical bond existed between the
host Captain and its crew, but continuous contact was not needed because in and
around the wreck there had been three times the number of crew members as there
OC-V-/ I \jr\ \3CINCnMI_
I I I
were organic connectors on the host. It was also probable that the host entity
did not sleep and provided continual, nonphys-ical support to its symbiotes.
This was borne out by the type of emotional radiation being picked up on Rhabwar
by Prili-cla—confusion and feelings of loss. The host Captain’s telepathic or
empathic faculty did not reach as far as the ambulance ship’s orbit.
“The smallest, DCLG life-form is independently intelligent and performs the
finer, more intricate manipulative operations,” Murchison joined in, clarifying
the situation in her own mind as well as for the Captain, who had disappeared