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Clinging to the ceiling by six pipe stem legs was a tiny, enormous, fragile,
beautiful, disgustingly insectile creature that reminded him of his worst
nightmares the amphibious cllels he used to hunt at the bottom of his private
lake for breakfast, and many other things including a perfectly ordinary GLNO
Cinrusskin like himself. It was beginning to quiver slightly in reaction to
the emotional radiation he was producing. All of him knew that the GLNOs from
Cinruss were empaths.
Fighting his way to the surface of a maelstrom of alien thoughts, memories and
impressions Conway decided that it was time to go to work. Prilicla was
immediately available for the first test of his idea. He began searching for
and bringing up the GLNO memories and experiences, sifting through a welter of
alien data for the type of information which is not consciously remembered but
is constantly in use-data on the Cinrusskin language.
No, not the Cinrusskin language, he reminded himself sharply, his language. He
had to think and feel and listen like a GLNO. Gradually he began to do it...
And it was not pleasant.
He was a Cinrusskin, a member of a fragile, low-gravity, insect race of
empaths. The handsome, delicately marked exoskeleton and the youthful,
iridescent sheen of Prilicla's not quite atrophied wings were now things which
he could properly appreciate, and the way Prilicla's mandibles quivered in
sudden concern at his distress. For Conway was a member of an empathic race,
all the memories and experience of his GLNO life were those of a normally
happy and healthy empath, but now he was an empath no more. He could see
Prilicla, but the faculty which let him share the other's emotions, and subtly
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colored every word, gesture and expression so that for two Cinrusskins to be
within visual range was to be unalloyed pleasure for both, was missing. He
could remember having empathetic contact, remember having it all his life, but
now he was little more than a deaf mute.
His human brain did not possess the empathetic faculty, and it was not
bestowed by filling his mind with memories of having had it.
Prilicla made a series of clicking, buzzing sounds. Conway, who had never
spoken with the GLNO other than by means of the toneless and emotion-filtering
process of Translation, heard it say "I'm sorry" in a voice full of concern
and pity.
In return Conway tried to make the soft trill and click which was
Prilicla's name, the true sound of the Earth-human word "Prilicla" being only
a clumsy approximation. On the fifth attempt he succeeded in making something
which was close to the sound he wanted.
"That is very good, friend Conway," Prilicla said warmly. "I had not
considered this idea of yours possible. Can you understand me?"
Conway sought the word-sounds he needed, then carefully began to form them.
"Thank you," he said, "and yes."
They tried more difficult phrases then, technical words to put across obtuse
medical and physiological details. Sometimes Conway was able to do it,
sometimes not. His was at best only the crudest of pidgin Cinrus skin, but he
persevered. Then suddenly there was an interruption.
"O'Mara here," said a voice from his room communicator. "You should be awake
now so here is the latest position, Doctor. We are still under attack, but
this has eased off somewhat since more volunteer e-ts arrived to reinforce us.
These are Melfans, some more Tralthans and a force of Illensan chlorine-
breathers. So you're going to have PVSJs to worry about, too. Then inside the
hospital..
There followed a detailed breakdown of casualties and available staff into
species, location and numbers, with further data on problems peculiar to each
section and their degree of urgency.
..... It's for you to decide where to start," O'Mara went on, "and the sooner
the better. But in case you are still feeling confused I'll repeat-"
"No need," said Conway, "I got it."
"Good. How do you feel?"
"Awful. Horrible. And very peculiar."
"That," said O'Mara dryly, "is in all respects a normal reaction. Off."
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