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Far from it. The three plants I ve checked have " jrdes ranging from about nine
seconds to nearly a
Organic electric oscillators, Singh murmured. Elegant, indeed.
Elegant and a half, Sanderson agreed. Not to mention potentially useful, if we
can figure out the mechanism.
Well, pick out a good sampling and bring them aboard, Tenzing told him. Do
bear in mind, though, that we ve only got the one lockbox lab per planet, and you ll
be poking around down there for two more weeks. You fill the lab to the ceiling and
those of us who have to work in there will spend the next two months cursing your
ancestry.
Sanderson murmured slightly reluctant-sounding agreement, and Roman
suppressed a smile. Just like kids in a toy store, he thought.
Captain? Marlowe said abruptly. I ve got something.
His tone& Got it, Roman acknowledged, keying for scanner repeater. An
infrared view of the landing area taken from Amity s belly cameras& and in the
woods beyond the prairie, circled by flashing markers
Dr. Sanderson? hold it a minute, he called toward the intercom. You ve got
what looks like three large animals approaching from almost due west.
The background conversation abruptly vanished. Confirmed, Captain, Garin
said a moment later, his voice taut. Still no visual contact, but we ve got them on
scanner. Bearing& directly toward us.
He paused, and in the silence the snik of needle guns being put on full automatic
was clearly audible. Alert status is still yellow, Garin, Roman reminded the guard
leader. Let s not panic until we see what we ve got here.
Acknowledged, sir, Garin said, his voice tight but under control.
The animals have picked up speed, Marlowe reported. About a minute to
visual contact.
Across the bridge, Roman heard the hiss of exhaled breath. Comment,
Commander? he invited, keeping his attention on the view from Garin s camera.
Shouldn t we be getting them out of there? Ferrol asked, his voice tighter even
than Garin s. At least have them get into the lander where they ll be safe?
It s too late for that, Kennedy spoke up. Her tone, Roman noted, seemed more
interested than worried. They re too spread out for everyone to get back in time.
Besides, if they have to fight, they ll do better out in the open where they have a
clear field of fire.
If the Tampies let them shoot, Ferrol growled.
That s enough, Roman said, punching for a tactical display. The landscape
below appeared, with the lander and each of the eight humans and two Tampies
marked with colored crosses. Garin and the other three guards, he saw, had
deployed themselves in a rough semicircle facing the point where the three
approaching animals would emerge from the woods. Well-trained, armed with
probably the deadliest small arms in the Cordonale s arsenal, Roman had little doubt
that they could cut the approaching animals to ribbons if it became necessary.
Which meant the big question would be whether it was necessary& and whether
the Tampies would see it the same way he did.
Ells, the analysis table s instruments are going crazy, Peyton spoke up. I think
it s picking up the animals electric fields.
Can t be, Sanderson said, his voice frowning. Those instruments are
short-range they re not designed to scan anywhere but the table.
I know that, Peyton snapped. So argue with the instruments, not me.
Perhaps, Llos-tlaa suggested, Gga-r can confirm this with his sensor
equipment.
Don t bother me, Tampy, Garin bit out, and in his camera view Roman could
see the tip of the other s needle gun. I ve got more important things to worry about
at the moment.
Do it, Garin, Roman ordered. If those animals are radiating strongly enough to
be picked up by the analysis table, it s something worth knowing.
For a second the muzzle remained where it was. Then, abruptly, it dropped from
view. Yes, Captain, Garin said, the words coming through obviously clenched
teeth. Checking now& no, there s nothing there. Must be a malfunction in the
table.
It is not a malfunction, Peyton insisted. Check again, especially at the
high-frequency end fifty hertz and up. There s not all that much power to it, I
don t think. Directional, maybe, or else it s the high ion concentration that lets it
penetrate this far.
She d barely finished her sentence when there was a sudden crackle of displaced
branches from the forest; and even as Garin snapped his needle gun up again the
bushes ahead were shoved violently aside and three creatures stepped out onto the
plain.
If the small animal that Garin had gunned down earlier had been a rabbit, these
new ones were huge dogs. Dogs with hairless, elephantine skin and flat muzzles; with
large paws whose curved feline claws were visible even two hundred meters away;
with long shark-like mouths full of white teeth.
And even as the landing party froze in silence, the dog in the center took a step
forward, paused& and changed.
Slower than the rabbit had, and far more awesome because of that. The chest and
flank elongated as first the front legs and then the rear stretched to half-again their
original length. The extended legs seemed to thicken, as if new muscle was reforming
there, and the belly flattened. The wrinkled skin, stretched over all the expansion,
smoothed out, becoming sleek and shimmery. The muzzle remained the same, but
the sides of the head swelled outward, in an odd way that reminded Roman of a bird
fluffing out its feathers. The whole operation took perhaps ten seconds& and at the
end of it the dog had become a wolf.
A wolf the size of a large grizzly bear. Rearing up briefly on its hind legs, it raised
its head as if uttering a soundless cry. Then, bringing the front paws back down
again, it swung its head around slowly, studying the invaders of its world. Its eyes
fell on Peyton and Ttra-m, still standing beside the analysis table and the dead
rabbit awaiting their study. It raised its head again, uttered its soundless cry& And
started toward them.
Chapter 6
Aim for its legs, Garin snapped, the muzzle of his needle gun tracking the
wolf-creature as it loped forward. We ll try to cut it down without killing it, if we
can.
Do not shoot, Llos-tlaa spoke up.
Rehfeldt, switch to explosive; backup aim at the head, Garin continued,
ignoring the Tampy s protest. Boschelli, Wehrmann oh, hell , he interrupted
himself as the two remaining dog-creatures started into wolf transformations of their
own.
Gga-r Llos-tlaa tried again.
Shut up, Garin snarled. That tears it explosive needles, full-auto; legs first,
then heads. On my mark
Do not shoot!
Roman jerked in his chair, swearing under his breath, his ears ringing with the
sheer intensity of emotion in the Tampy scream. Not grief and frustration this time,
but desperate urgency and an almost overwhelming sense of righteous anger. Hold
your fire, Garin, he ordered when he d found his voice again. The wolf-creatures
had covered perhaps a quarter of the distance to Peyton and Ttra-m now, and were
coming on at the same casual lope, completely oblivious to both the Tampy scream
and the lethal armament pointed their direction. Llos-tlaa, why shouldn t they
shoot?
Cause the scitte-head bastards would rather roll over and die than bruise any of
their precious woodland chummies, Garin bit out before the Tampy could answer.
Llos-tlaa? answer me.
There is no need for killing, Rro-maa, Llos-tlaa said, his voice pitched normally
but trembling right on the edge of another scream. Ppey-taa and Ttra-m must
move away from the table, but then the creatures will not attack.
Bull scitte, Garin said. Guards, on three: one
I said hold your fire! Roman snapped. Peyton, Ttra-m do as Llos-tlaa
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