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will be able to instruct them..
Mention of that very personable female-mode nurse had excited his Hudlar
mind-partner, so Conway had to spend a few seconds telling it to behave
itself.
But when he tried to return his mind to what he had been about to say,
memories
of his extremely aged but alert great-grandmother and, at the time, only
friend welled up in his mind. That touched off a sudden, intensely strong
feeling of sorrow from Khone over the loss of parental physical contact, which
was so necessary for the maintenance of mental coherency in Cogleskan society,
and which occurred at a very early age. He felt with Khone the past loss of
that love and warmth and the expectation of future loss when its offspring
would be born and remain close all too briefly before it departed. And
strangely, although Khone s presence had been reacting against nearly all of
the material being thrown up by Conway and his other mind-partners, the little
Cogleskan was able to consider the sight and sounds and memories of Conway s
incredibly old and fragile first friend without the slightest hint of
distress.
This was important, he knew, because there were indications that the
Gogleskan s mind was not entirely repelled by the thought of the geriatric
FROBs, either. A bridge was being built between Khone and the other species,
and
Conway began blinking rapidly because his tear ducts seemed suddenly to have
developed a leak.
He felt Murchison s hand squeezing his arm as she said urgently, What s
wrong?
Conway, O Mara said, sounding concerned, are you still with us?
Sorry, my mind went off at a tangent, he said, clearing his throat. I m all
right. In fact, I feel very well indeed.
I see, O Mara said. But I would like to discuss the reasons for and the
content of your tangential thinking at a more convenient time. Continue.
In common with elderly members of the majority of the intelligent species,
Conway resumed, the very old Hudlars have a close affinity with the very
young, and a great deal of benefit can be derived from this relationship by
both parties if they are placed together. The aged entities are at the stage
loosely described as second childhood, when the memories and feelings of their
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own younger days are thrown into prominence, and they have nothing much to do
with their remaining time. The children would have an adult playmate who
understands them, who enjoys their company, and who is not, like the younger
adults and parents, perhaps too deeply concerned with the day-to-day business
of life to have enough time to spend with them.
Provided the geriatric amputee idea is acceptable to them, he continued, I
think they would be prime candidates for pediatric nursing training. The less
elderly, whose mental age would be significantly greater, could be trained as
teachers of older children and preadolescents. They might also be usefully
engaged in supervising automated production processes, or on watch-keeping
duty on the weather control stations, or as- Enough! O Mara said, holding up
one hand. He went on caustically. Leave me something to do, Conway, to
justify my existence. At least, your uncharacteristic behavior of a few
minutes ago is no longer a mystery. The childhood material in your psych file
and your suggestion regarding the geriatric Hudlars fully explain your
temporary loss of control.
Regarding your original question, O Mara went on, I cannot give you a quick
answer, but I shall call up my Hudlar material at once and start work on it.
You ve given me too much to think about for me to be able to go back to sleep
now.
I m sorry, Conway said, but the Chief Psychologist s face had already gone
from the screen.
And I m sorry for the delay as well, he said to Thornnastor. But now at
last we can talk about the Protector...
He broke off as the blue Vacate light began flashing on their table,
indicating that they had remained for longer than was necessary to consume the
food which had been ordered, and that they should move away so as to release
the table for other would-be diners, of which there was a large number
waiting.
Your office or mine? Thornnastor said.
CHAPTER 19
First contact with the species known as the Protectors of the Unborn had been
made by Rhabwar when the ambulance ship had answered a distress signal from a
vessel which had been transporting two members of that species under
restraint.
It discovered that the Protectors had broken free, and while they had been
killing the ship s crew, one of them had died as well.
The surviving Protector had delivered itself of its Unborn shortly before it,
too, died. That newly born Protector was the patient who, after more than a
year s sojourn in Sector General, was about to give birth in its turn. The
body of its parent had been thoroughly investigated by Pathology and had
furnished information which might enable them to deliver the Unborn without it
suffering complete obliteration of the higher functions of its mind.
...The primary purpose of the forthcoming operation is to save the mind of
the Unborn, he repeated, looking around the crowded observation gallery
before he returned his attention to the ward below, where the furiously
battling
Protector was engaging its life-support system and two Hudlar attendants in
total war. The problems are physical, surgical, and endocrinological, and
Diagnostician Thornnastor and I have discussed little else for the past two
days. And now, for the benefit of the support and after-care team members who
have just joined us, as well as for the observers and the others who will be
studying the recordings later, I shall briefly summarize the available
information on this case.
The adult, nonintelligent Protector is physiological classification
FSOJ, Conway went on. As you can see, it is a large, immensely strong being
with a heavy, slitted carapace from which protrude four thick tentacles, a
heavy, serrated tail, and a head. The tentacles terminate in a cluster of
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sharp, bony projections so that they resemble spiked clubs. The main features
of the head are the well-protected, recessed eyes, the upper and lower
mandibles, and teeth which are capable of deforming all but the strongest
metal alloys.
Flip it over, please, Conway said to the two Hudlars working on the patient
with thin steel bars. And hit it harder! You won t hurt it and will, in fact,
maintain it in optimum condition prior to the birth. To the observers he went
on. The four stubby legs also have osseous projections which enable these
limbs to be used as weapons as well. While the underside is not armored, as is
the carapace, this area is rarely open to attack, and is covered by a thick
tegument which apparently gives sufficient protection. In the center of the
area you can see a thin, longitudinal fissure which opens into the birth
canal. It will not open, however, until a few minutes before the event.
But first, the evolutionary and environmental background...
The Protectors had evolved on a world of shallow, steaming sea and swampy
jungles where the line of demarcation between animal and vegetable life, so
far as physical mobility and aggression were concerned, was difficult to
define. To survive there at all, a life-form had to fight hard and move fast,
and the dominant species on that hellish world had earned its place by
fighting and moving and reproducing their kind with a greater potential for
survival than any of the others.
At an early stage in their evolution the utter savagery of their environment
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