Vernon L. McCain

“ For our own safety it would seem best, since Rell-like creatures already inhabit him, that we join them. If any place is safe it will be his interior. And there is plenty of moisture within to sustain us. But we must be good parasites,” the interpretive bank warned. “Remember, no undue reproduction no matter how many quarts of moisture seem to be going to waste inside this ‘man’. He may need it himself and if he does not survive the ship might not complete its trip.” ”

“ In the old days a single unit of the group-mind of the Rell would have possessed but a single function and exercised this function perhaps a dozen times during his life. But due to the inexorable shrinkage only the most important problems now could command mind-action and each unit had been forced to forsake specialization for multi-purpose endeavors.
Thus Raeillo/ee13 and his mate Raellu//2 were two of the five thousand units whose task was to multiply in any group-mind action involving mathematical prediction. ”

“ So here he was, 105 pounds of concentrated knowledge and anticipation, itching with the desire for action and also from more basic causes having to do with two months confinement in a small space with a minimum of water.
“Life is most probable at the poles,” the instructor had said. “You won’t be able to stay long so we’ll try to set you down right at the South Pole. You won’t have room to bring back specimens. So keep your eyes open and absorb everything you see. Don’t forget anything. What you bring back in your mind weighs nothing.” ”

“ Without waiting for a suggestion from elsewhere the disciplinary group ordered the entire mind forward.
Perhaps, in time of stress, dormant qualities tend to emerge, Raeillo/ee13 mused. Certainly everyone, himself included, appeared to be exercising speculative qualities. Not that specialization isn’t a marvelous blessing, he hastily added, in case the disciplinary corps might be scanning his bank. But the disciplinary corps itself was as fascinated by the phenomenon ahead as Raeillo/ee13.
Emerging from the infinitely huge upright thing was a mobile being, also infinitely huge. ”

“ Of course the scientists could have constructed another mechanism to press the button and made it a completely robot ship. But despite their frailties and imperfections, human beings have certain advantages. Humans can talk. Machines may see and detect far more than their human creators but all they can do is record. They can neither interpret nor satisfactorily describe.
Brown was present not only to report a human’s reactions to the first Mars flight ”

“ With public support it’ll be a hell of a lot easier squeezing appropriations out of Congress for the next ship and to get public support we need the biggest possible play in the newspapers. If anything is newsworthy on Mars it should be evidence of life ... even plant life. ”

“ The Rell prudently decided to remain where they were for the present.
Captain Leonard Brown, USAF, hunched over the instruments in the cramped control cabin which, being the only available space in the ship, doubled as living quarters. A larger man would have found the arrangement impossible. Brown, being 5' 2" and weighing 105 pounds found it merely intolerable. ”

“ We’ve watched other races die through failure to adapt to change so apparently it is true of Rell-like creatures on this world. But who can say about organisms on another world or of the unprecedented size of this one? Completely different physical laws may apply.”
It was later that afternoon after the Rell had spent much time observing Brown while Brown was busy observing the landscape that the interpretive bank made the triumphant announcement, “We have it! ”

“ Apparently these are sometimes Rell-like creatures, although far larger. He regards them as a great nuisance, but mindless. The big thing, by the way, he calls a ‘ship’ and it is utterly lifeless. We needn’t fear the flame until this creature leaves. ”