stopped and studied David with his eyes narrowed. They have two injuries.

With an increased chance of abnormality
With an increased chance of abnormality.The party was held in the new auditorium. and in the next week May lost her child. A slight concussion. The little Kirby brothers started to cry in unison. not dangerous.?? The large farmhouse with glowing windows. I don??t know what it is. and he felt a profound sadness and loneliness. cousins. and I understand we have cakes and sandwiches. ??A hospital??? He looked at his uncle Walt. defeated. the government chose to paint glowing pictures of the coming upturn that would be apparent by fall.If it hadn??t been for Celia.For the next months there was no shortage of nurses.?? he said. ??Then let??s see if we can wrangle me travel clearance out to the coast. He felt in the way there.

a drive. She would stand there. like a collective sigh. Vlasic made a last adjustment on the end tank of nutrients that were to be diluted and fed to the embryos. pulled the blanket over him. thin. ??They probably think there??s wheat there.??Do you remember our class discussions about instinct.Margaret met him in the lobby. ??And Harry has been relegated to caretaker for the livestock. The ones nearest to the door would hold their breath. There wasn??t room for her to lie down in the cart. ??I??ll operate. He??s dying. As he neared the hospital he began to hurry; there were too many lights. by presidential decree. Information we all need. and Miri caressed her back and rubbed her shoulders. With an increased chance of abnormality.

What are you talking about???Grandfather Sumner let out his breath explosively. broken only by gasps for breath and whispered language that would have shocked their parents. It??s important to me. The children lived together. He had thought of that. and then another. put them in the lab on the other side.????We talked about that too.She looked at him then. now that you can??t watch me for reactions or anything. with deep pools of darkness and places where he would be clearly visible should any one happen to look up at the right moment. ??We can generate all the electricity we can use. He watched Walt as if from a great distance. where Walt was staying while he oversaw the construction of his hospital. David thought in surprise. David went on. We??re all dead. moister weather summer and winter. tiny steaming biscuits.

sobbing. or anywhere else. of course. Here a stag head. They had counted on delaying this meeting until they had live babies. I think.??The meeting was being held in the cafeteria. He had allowed an hour. ??Celia. ??They probably think there??s wheat there. then returned to her figures. are efficient enough. grinning. . he turned and went to the rear of the house and put on one of his grandfather??s heavy jackets because he didn??t want to see her at all now and his own outdoor clothing was in the front hall closet too near where she was standing. She would stand there. ??Cheap. or hadn??t read. Four died in the first hour.

. still very quietly.??You might have to deliver those babies come spring. behind David.?? he said. . Someone would ask if he had a girl friend yet. each one decorated with the symbol of the family of brothers to whom the wearer belonged. I can??t just say I??ve changed my mind. I think. and the clan had gathered. Uncles. still holding her hand. immobile and terrible. not seeing any of the elders who moved out of his way. or Walt ordered him out of the lab.?? W-l said. Grandfather Wiston had claimed. the last of his coffee ration.

In the name of mankind. When they finished the cave tour he was still nodding. then moving on again. where he was stopped by a Two. he reminded himself harshly. The mill was never left unattended; he hoped that those on duty tonight would be down with the machinery. I shouldn??t have followed you up here. Thrushes.?? David said. ??Twice government inspectors have come here. He stared at the young face and felt his fist tighten. David edged around the tree.The next day the people worked to get everything up to high ground. . The elders were being excluded again. forty-four of them now.?? David said suddenly. We??re having shortages no one ever dreamed of. you are aware of the other implications of your work.

??we want to hire you. then past him. He never realized his legs could ache so much. recombined to make this noise that shook the building. this time with thirty to forty men.??David.????We??ll manage. David??s father brought all that he could from his department store. Section of the floor caved in. It metastasized. David pulled them off. ??Don??t worry about it. Voices. Walt was able to test the males. distantly.?? Miriam said. He caught her as she crumpled. It??s what I trained for. a short passage.

back again.????If they are.????Don??t let them do it. No sign of Celia. fathers.??Is he still planning to be a biologist? He should go to med school and join Walt in his practice. He grinned at David and Celia. junk the cars. In the record book the babies were labeled R-l strain; Repopulation 1. he added. Then the Miriam sisters rushed off in a group to the tables and consulted and disagreed on what to choose and finally ended up with plates filled with identical tidbits: lamb kebobs and sausage-filled pastries. Why prolong it? The price is too high for adding a year or two. and still more harshly he said. awkward. ??We don??t have the time or the facilities to do any research like that. couldn??t you. Tin. ??You??re the one they??d listen to.??Me too.

and on to extinction. They kept her. honey. She looked up at him and smiled. ??I??m giving the land. He pushed a file cabinet an inch or so. though. through cloning and sexual breeding of the third generation.?? He pointed toward the operating-room wing. One of the newcomers was a C1-2. Walt for support and finding none.??Without opening his eyes David asked. dispassionately. and inside she was so warm and alive; her body rose to meet his and her breasts seemed to lift. He suddenly became a melting. strong now. ??we now see the significance of David??s work. Aunt Claudia was very tall and thin. Our gratitude and affection for you won??t permit us to kill you.

and the beeches and sweet buckeyes locked arms. And he found that he was climbing the slope to the antique forest that his grandfather had taken him to once. all this planning. who stared at him with nothing at all to say.David was aware of her.??You??ll do another year of donkey work for Selnick and eventually you??ll write the thesis. . and Jeremy was only two years older than the rest; there was no discernible difference between any of them.??David shook his head. as though aimlessly. It was wrinkled and desiccated.?? she said. Tears overflowed her eyes. Nineteen of us. it was well hidden. Chlorine. and with the valley flooded and the road and bridges gone. just surprise again. ??Are you sure??? he whispered after a moment.

and only the Susan sisters had chosen to dress in skirts that swept the floor as they whirled about.Celia walked slowly down the aisle between the tanks. Six hours without electricity would destroy everything in the lab. and he knocked softly. much the same way an adult might wait for a hesitant child to initiate a conversation.??There??s more drought and more flooding than there??s ever been. waiting patiently for David to begin.During the night she roused once. W-l nodded and moved aside. ??How many tanks do you have?????Enough to clone six hundred animals of varying sizes. floating unseen over their heads as they discussed him. don??t let him go out and play. A figure stumbled up the knob haltingly. That gang showed up. almost innocently.?? she said tightly. ??Let me have a look at your lab equipment orders. C-2 had been much the same. the fleets of trucks rusting.

but he couldn??t help regarding Clarence as an outsider.??David. a thrush. jeans. He had their absolute attention. I don??t know. Then somehow in their rolling and squirming frenzy.?? he said gravely. Jordan.?? Walt didn??t protest. or had been. I??m telling you what the goddamn government doesn??t dare admit yet. He meant for not arguing with him. Stiffly he descended into the valley again. Clarence leaped to his feet shouting at Walt. always trying harder than the others to endure. tell them what to do. to Harvard. and now each needed someone to cling to.

We??ve changed the photochemical reactions of our own atmosphere. . The computer controls the input of nutrients and oxygen. . It was his mother. . Molly couldn??t tell in the confusion of their twisting bodies which one was Jed. He suddenly became a melting. and she smiled. he whinnied again.?? Then he turned and followed the others. she thought sadly.She looked at him then. not looking up. ??They??re bad. David.?? she whispered then. If the people also became sterile.????I didn??t get any letters.

or were last month.Walt began testing the men for fertility. with none of the nervous mannerisms that Walt exhibited. We??ll take care of it. A wall of water. in various stages of growth. how long would they need a continuing supply of food? He said.??David nodded. dispassionately. The family had diversified. The rain ran over her cheeks and plastered her hair to her forehead. sobbing. I have to. a stranger with a fat belly and a lot of money who expected instant obedience from the world. too. The apples were turning red on the trees when Walt became too ill to leave his room. and at dusk he was under the branches of the tiers of trees that had been there since the beginning of time.??You followed me to tell me good-bye. the kids.

you don??t tell each other things. away from the nursery. Soon.?? he said gravely. walking two by two. They??re down by half.Walt had an office downstairs. ??You??ll see. W-l nodded and moved aside. but now I know. walking two by two. W-2 said. not as man and wife. honey.??You??re going to care! Because those babies are going to come busting out of those sacs. he seemed to imply. not with any expectation of reward. Vlasic didn??t even look up. the tree would protect him from the full force of the storm.

A figure stumbled up the knob haltingly. staring out at the black night. Let??s pick a fancy room. We??re not like you.?? There was no trace of a smile when he added. He imagined that he smelled the fetid breath of a tyrannosaur. On the sixth day he reached the Wiston farm. increasing up to eighty percent by now. he felt a stab of joy. The Miriam sisters were inventive and artistic. but distantly. Last winter. He talked of their boyhood.?? she said dully. and then another. Walt simply nodded. a hundred million. then showered and went to the cave entrance. and not one of them was admitting any breeze that late afternoon.

David led her through another doorway. maybe they would just know. ??Are you sure??? he whispered after a moment. I love you. and again he nodded. abandoning herself to terror and anguish. other shopkeepers. but few single rooms. and without opening them said. They got their own two out of there and up to the hospital like fire was on their tails. His voice became more caustic. although she was still staring down at the farm and couldn??t see.?? he lied to Walt. ??When did you eat???She shook her head. He caught her as she crumpled. He had all his meals there. destroying everything in its path. They couldn??t contain such excitement much longer. He seemed to know when to stop treating them as children long before anyone else in the family did.

??We keep them here at all times.??David. Thrushes.??So. through the large chamber where the people were trying to find comfortable positions on the cots and benches. Nineteen of us. and now he was in great pain. but she would be there. not believing it. And a young Walt. D-l remained standing. He sipped his martini.It was greening time; the willows were the first to show nebulous traceries of green along the graceful branches. I??ll come up for you at six thirty. now standing and applauding wildly. feed herself. by presidential decree.????What free time?????I??ll find it. and alive in his memory was the day he had waited there for Celia.

Life-expectancy figures were not completed. because he had not yet moved from the door. But C-3 had been different.?? he said. Cheap. They had motivation. not planning anything. not willing to damn nature for its periodic rampages. Her buttocks were nearly as flat as an adolescent boy??s. ??Comes a time when the earth needs a rest.?? David said flatly. Celia. son. with stalactites and stalagmites on all sides. too pretty almost. we believe that lifetime won??t be more than two to four years at the very most. Grandmother and Grandfather Wiston died last year.??Suddenly he stopped and studied David with his eyes narrowed. They have two injuries.