been for a warning from Fletcher, he would have lost his helmet and probably the

head inside it. Murchison observed crossly that the big advantage in dealing

with cadavers was that, regardless of their physiological classifications, they

did not assault the pathologist and leave her normally peachlike skin

pigmentation black and blue. But with Naydrad's long, caterpillarlike body

wrapped around one appendage and both Fletcher and Colonel Okaussie hanging

onto the other limb which threatened the operative field, and with Murchison

steadying the scanner for him while he sat astride the creature like a bareback

horserider, Conway was able to guide his hypo into the correct vein and

discharge its contents before a particularly violent heave pulled the needle

free.

Within a few seconds Prilicla, whose fragile body had no place in this violent

muscular activity announced from its position on the ceiling that the being was

going back to sleep. When they withdrew to turn their attention to its

companion, its movements were already growing weaker.

By the time they had dealt similarly with the other CRLT,

the two creatures had separated. The hollows and protuberances and flaps of

muscle had collapsed and smoothed themselves out, and the raw interface areas

began exuding the clear liquid which congealed into a thin, transparent film.

Gently the tractor and pressor beam men lifted and pushed the two beings back

into their respective hibernation cylinders. Conway signaled for the artificial

gravity to be reduced to zero and, as expected, they were able to replace the

cylinder endplates without trouble. The cargo hold's air pressure was reduced

gradually so that they could check whether the premature opening of the

hibernation compartments had caused a leak. It had not.

"So far so good," Conway said. "Return them to their positions in the coil and

bring in the next two."

The first two had been the occupants of adjoining cylinders and their linking up

had been automatic, a natural process in all respects. But the second two had

been separated by a compartment which had been ruptured by a piece of flying

debris and its occupant killed. The affinity between these two might not be so

strong, Conway thought.

However, they merged as enthusiastically and naturally as had the first two. The

resuscitation process was reversed before they were fully conscious so as to

eliminate the multispecies wrestling match needed to put them into hibernation

again. Prilicla reported a minor variation in the emotional radiation associated

with the initial body contact-^-a feeling, very faint and temporary., of

disappointment. But the two segments of the group entity were compatible and

that particular break in continuity in the coil could be closed up.

Conway felt uneasy. Too much good luck worried him. Something was bothering

Prilicla, too, because he had long since learned to recognize the difference

between the little empath's reaction to its own feelings and those of the beings

around it.

"Friend Conway," Prilicia said, while they were awaiting the arrival of the

third set of CRLTs. "The first two beings were relatively immature and taken

from the forward section of the coil, that is, from the tail segments of this

multiple creature, and the second two came from a position considerably aft of

amidships. Our own deductions, supported by the information on the creatures'

probable planet of origin which

arrived with Tyrell, suggest that the tail segments are immature beings, perhaps

very young adults, and the head segments aft to be composed of the older, more

experienced, and most highly intelligent of the beings since they are

responsible for ship operations and disembarkation following a stern landing."

"Agreed," Conway said, wishing Prilicla would get to the point, no matter how

unpleasant it was, instead of talking all around it.

"Aft of amidships, friend Conway," Prilicla went on, "the CRLTs should be older.

The two who have just left us, judging by their emotional radiation, were even

less mature than the first set."

Conway looked at Murchison, who said defensively, "I don't know why that should

be, I'm sorry. Do the data on their home planet, if it is their home planet,

suggest an answer?"

"I'm pretty sure it was their home planet," Conway replied thoughtfully,

"because there couldn't possibly be another like it. But the data are old and

sparse and predate the assembly and launching from orbit of the coilship, and

we've been too busy since Tyre'll brought back the information to discuss it

properly."

"We have half an hour," Murchison observed, "before the next two CRLTs arrive."

Many centuries before the formation of the Galactic Federation, the Eurils had

ranged interstellar space, driven by a curiosity so intense and at the same time

hampered by a caution so extreme that even the Cinrusskin race to which Prilicla

belonged was considered brave, even foolhardy, by comparison. Physiologically

they were classification MSVK—a low-gravity, tripedal, and vaguely storklike

life-form, whose wings had evolved into twin sets of multidigited manipulators.

They had been and still were the galaxy's prime observers, and they were content

to look and learn and record through their long-range probes and sensors without

making their presence known to the large and dangerously overmuscled specimens,

intelligent or otherwise, who were under study.

During their travels the Eurils had come upon a system whose single,

life-bearing planet pursued a highly eccentric orbit about its primary which

forced its flora and fauna to adapt

to environmental conditions ranging from steaming polar jungles in summer to an

apparently lifeless winter world of ice. Seeing it for the first time in its

frigid, winter mode, the Eurils had been about to dismiss it as being

uninhabitable until their probes showed evidence of a highly technical culture

encased in the winter ice. Closer investigation revealed that the civilization

was current and was awaiting the spring, like every other animal and vegetable

life-form on the planet, to come out of hibernation.

It was not until the polar spring was far advanced that the members of this

hibernating culture were identified as the large, loglike objects which had been

lying in and around the cities under the ice.

"It is clear from this that the overall being is a group entity* which, for

reasons we do not yet understand, must separate into its individual parts before

hibernation can take place," Conway went on. "Since hibernation is natural to

them, the problem of artificially extending it and reversing the process for the

purpose of interstellar migration was, medically speaking, relatively easy to

solve.

"The following year a number of the beings were observed by the Eurils in a

fully conscious state," he continued, "going about their business in small group

gestalts inside heated domes under the winter ice, which indicates that they do

not go into hibernation unless or until it is forced on them. It is

unnecessary, therefore, to duplicate the extremes of temperature of their

planet of origin on their new home since any world closely resembling their

summer environment would suit them. Had this not been so, the near impossibility

of finding another and identical planetary environment to the one they were

trying to leave would have made the migration hopeless from the start. And the

reasons for the CRLT life-form becoming a group entity, initially a small-group

entity, are also becoming clear." Even at the time of the Eurils' visit the

CRLTs, despite their advanced technology, were not having things all their own

way. They lived on an incredibly savage world which had no clear division

between its animal and vegetable predators. In order to have any chance of

survival at all, the young CRLTs had to be born physically well developed and

remain under the

protection of the parent for as long as possible. In the CRLT's case,

parturition was delayed until the offspring was a young adult who had learned

how to survive and how to aid the continued survival of its parent.

Separation took place every winter, when everything went to sleep and there was

no physical threat, and the young one rejoined its parent in the spring to

continue its lessons in survival. The young one, who at this stage was

invariably female, reached physical maturity early and produced a child of its

own. And so it went with the original adult, who had begun to change its sex to

male, trailing a long tail of beings of diminishing degrees of masculinity and

experience behind it as it moved up the chain of the group entity toward the

head.

"The CRLT brain forms part of the central nerve core which during fusion is

linked to the brains of the individuals ahead of and behind it via the

interfaces at each end of the body," Conway went on, "so that an individual

segment learns not only by its own experience but from those of its predecessors

farther up the line. This means that the larger the number of individuals in the

group, the smarter will be its male head and forward segments. Should the head

segment, who is the elder of the group and probably its decision maker, die from

natural or other causes, the male next in line takes over."

Murchison cleared her throat delicately and said, "If anyone wishes at this

juncture to make a general observation regarding the superiority, physical or

intellectual, of the male over the female, be advised that I shall spit in his,

her, or its eye."

Conway smiled and shook his head. He said seriously, "The male head will,

naturally, fertilize a number of young female tail segments of other group

entities, but there is a problem. Surely there would be serious psychological

difficulties, sex-based frustrations, with so many of the intervening segments

neither fully male or female and unable to—"

"There is no problem," Murchison broke in, "if all mentation and, presumably,

the pain and pleasure stimuli are shared by every individual in the group."

"Of course, I'd forgotten that aspect," Conway said. "But there is another.

Think of the length of our survivor. If mentation and experience are shared,

then this could be a very long-

lived and highly intelligent group entity indeed—"

The discussion was cut short at that point by the lock cycling warning. The

third pair of CRLTs had arrived, *

These two had been taken from the sternmost loops of the coilship where the

casualties among the most senior and intelligent CRLTs had been heaviest.

According to Vespasian's tactical computer and the findings of Descartes's

specialists in e-t written languages and numerical systems, fifty-three of the

CRLT hibernation cylinders—and their occupants—had been destroyed as a result of

the collision, and between these two segments there had been seventeen members

of the group entity who had not made it.

The other breaks in the coil were much smaller—the largest missing five segments

and the rest only three or four each. Conway hoped that if the largest gap could

be closed successfully, then the smaller ones should pose fewer problems.

As with the previous two CRLTs, the combination of artificial gravity and

atmospheric pressure triggered the actuators which opened the cylinders and

reversed the hibernation process. Conway had already sited the IV needles which

would put them back to sleep again should they become disorderly, and Prilicla

reported that they were reviving and their emotional radiation indicated that

they were beings who were fully mature, healthy, and highly intelligent. As

consciousness returned they began moving out of their cylinders and toward each

other.

They touched, and jerked apart.

"What?" Conway began. But Prilicla was already answering the question.

"There are feelings of intense discomfort, friend Conway," the empath said,

trembling violently. "Also of confusion, disappointment, and rejection. There

is background emotion, a combination of anxiety and curiosity, which is probably

regarding their present surroundings."

Because he could think of nothing to say, Conway moved to a position directly

between the forward and rear interfaces of the two CRLTs. He did not consider

the position dangerous because, if Prilicla's emotional readings were correct,

they were unlikely to come together. He began examining the two interfaces, both

visually and with his x-ray scanner, and taking measurements. A few minutes

later Murchison joined him, and

Prilicla dropped to hover cautiously a few meters above the area.

"Even with unaided vision you can see that the two interfaces are not

compatible," Conway said worriedly. "There are three areas which cannot be made

to join without surgical intervention. But I am reluctant to start cutting

without having a clearer idea of how to proceed. 1 wish I could obtain the

consent and cooperation of the patients."

"That might be difficult," Colonel Okaussie said. "But I could have my men try

to—"

"Lift them on tractor beams and force another contact," Conway finished for him.

"I need one more attempted joining, at least, with vision recorders catching it

in close-up from the anterior, posterior, and lateral aspects. I also need

Prilicla to monitor their emotional radiation closely during the attempt so that

we will know which particular areas give the most discomfort and are,

therefore, most in need of surgical attention. During surgery, instead of using

an anesthetic, we can return them into hibernation. Yes, Doctor?"

"Have you considered, friend Conway—" began Prilicla, but Conway cut it short.

"Little friend," he said, "I know of old your roundabout manner of expressing

disagreement as well as your feelings regarding the causing of unnecessary

discomfort to patients, and you know that I share those feelings. But much as I

dislike causing pain, in this case it is necessary."

"Doctor Con way," Colonel Okaussie said, with an impatient edge to his tone, "a

few moments ago I had been about to suggest that since the beings are fully

conscious, intelligent, and their visual range is similar to our own, we should

be able to obtain their cooperation by explaining the situation to them

graphically. I think it is worth a try."

"It most certainly is," Conway said. He caught Fletcher's eye and muttered, "Now

why didn't I think of that?"

Descartes's commanding officer smiled and said, "I'll have a projection screen

set up as quickly as possible, Doctor." Conway began assembling the instruments

he would need while Murchison and Naydrad took over the job of measuring the

interfaces and Prilicla hovered above them radiating reassurance to the

patients.

It was a large screen, set between the angle of the*ceiling and the aft wall of

the hold so that the dorsally mounted eyes of both CRLTs would be able to view

it without distortion. Descartes's officers were specialists in e-t

communications and the presentation was short, simple, and very much to the

point. The opening sequence was familiar since it was part of the material the

Fleet Commander had used during his recent briefing to Conway. It showed a

diagrammatic reconstruction of the CRLTs great, coillike interstellar transport

complete with central stem, coil supporting structure, thrusters, and guidance

system moving slowly against a starry backdrop. Suddenly a large meteor appeared

at the edge of the screen, heading directly' for the coilship. It struck, moving

along the inside of the coil and carrying away the thrusters, guidance system,

and all of the central supporting structure for the continuous spiral of

hibernation compartments. The impact shook the coil apart, and the individual

hibernation cylinders, because of the vessel's rotation, went flying off in all

directions like shrapnel from a slow-motion explosion.

Because of the greater rigidity of the structure aft, the shock in this area was

much more severe and the casualties among the hibernating CRLTs were heavy; the

cylinders whose occupants had not survived were shown in red. Then there was a

two-minute shot of the scene as it actually was, with Vespasian, Claudius and

Descartes with a shoal of smaller vessels busy reassembling the coil followed by

a longer sequence, displayed graphically, which showed a modified coilship

coming in to land on a fresh, green world with the two capital ships and

Descartes linked together so as to replace the missing support structure and

thrusters.

The presentation ended by showing the coilship with the missing segments

indicated in throbbing red, then with the red sections removed and the gaps

closed up to make a slightly shorter coil, and the final scene showed the

successful link-up of the first two CRLTs.

As a piece of visual communication it left very little room for

misunderstanding, and Conway did not need Prilicla's em-pathic faculty to tell

him that the message had been under-

stood—the two CRLTs were already moving cautiously toward each other.

"Recorders?" Conway said urgently.

"Running," Murchison said.

Conway held his breath as once again the two massive creatures attempted fusion.

The movements of their stubby, caterpillarlike legs were barely perceptible and

their dorsal appendages were tensely still, making them resemble two enormous,

alien logs being pushed together by the current of an invisible river. When they

were separated by about six inches, the forward face of the rearmost creature

had grown the pattern of bumps and fleshy projections which they had seen during

the first two link-ups, and the rear interface of its companion had twitched

itself into a pattern of fissures and a single deep recess. Around the periphery

of the interface four wide, triangular flaps of muscle tipped with osseus

material, features which had not appeared to be of any importance when examined

on sleeping or dead CRLTs, had grown suddenly to nearly four times their size in

the unconscious state and opened out like fleshy, horn-tipped petals. But with

these two the interfaces did not correspond. They touched, held contact for

perhaps three seconds, then jerked apart.

Before Conway could comment, they were coming together again. This time the

forward creature remained still while the second twisted its forward interface

into a slightly different position to try again, but with the same result.

It was obvious that the contacts were intensely uncomfortable, and the

resultant pain had triggered off the involuntary movement which had jerked them

apart. But the CRLTs were not giving up easily, although it appeared at first as

if they had. They withdrew until their bodies were again inside their

hibernation cylinders, then their stubby legs blurred into motion as they drove

themselves at each other seeking, it seemed, by sheer brute force and bodily

inertia to force a fusion. Conway winced as they came together with a sound like

a loud, multiple slap.

But to no avail. They broke contact to lie a few feet from each other with their

dorsal appendages twitching weakly and air hissing loudly as it rushed in and

out of their breathing orifices. Then slowly they began to move together again.

."They are certainly trying," Murchison said softly.

"Friend Conway," Prilicla said, "the emotional radiation from both creatures has

become more complex. There is deep anxiety but not, I would say, personal fear.

Also a feeling of understanding and great determination, with the determination

predominating. I would say that both entities fully understand the situation and

are desperately anxious to cooperate. But these unsuccessful attempts at fusion

are causing great pain, friend Conway."

It was characteristic of the little empath that it did not mention its own

pain, which was only fractionally less severe than that of the emoting CRLTs.

But the uncontrollable trembling of its pipestem legs and fragile eggshell of a

body spoke more eloquently than words.

"Put them to sleep again," Conway said.

There was silence while the hibernation medication was taking effect, broken

finally by Prilicla who said, "They are losing consciousness, but there is a

marked change in the emotional radiation. They are feeling both anxiety and

hope. I think they are expecting us to solve their problem, friend Conway."

They were all looking at him, but it was Naydrad, whose mobile, silvery fur was

registering its bafflement and concern, who put the question everyone else was

too polite to ask.

"How?"

Conway did not reply at once. He was thinking that two highly intelligent elder

CRLTs from the coilship's stern, following their first abortive attempt at

fusion, would have realized that a link-up was impossible for them. But they had

made two further attempts—one when the rearmost creature had tried to twist

itself and its interface into a new position, and again when it had tried to

achieve fusion by sheer brute force. He was beginning to wonder whether the

recent attempt at communicating with the aliens had been strictly one way.

Until the Descartes linguists could be given the opportunity to learn the CRLTs

language, an accurate exchange of ideas was impossible. But it had already been

shown that pictures were very effective in putting across a message, and they

were all forgetting that actions, like pictures, often spoke louder than words.

Recalling those three unsuccessful attempts at fusion. Con-way wondered if the

two CRLTs had in fact been trying to

demonstrate that the link-up was impossible for them without assistance, but

that by changing the positions and perhaps the dimensions of some of the surface

features on the interfaces and forcing things a little, then a join might be

achieved.

"Friend Conway," Prilicla announced, "is having feelings of optimism."

"Perhaps," Murchison said, "in his own good time, of course, he will explain to

us nonempaths the reason for his optimism."

Ignoring the sarcasm, Conway briefly outlined his recent thinking, although he

personally would have described his feeling as one of forlorn hope rather than

optimism. He went on, "So I believe that the CRLTs were trying to tell us that

surgical intervention is necessary for them to achieve fusion, not brute force.

And it has just occurred to me that there is a precedent for this procedure. One

of the cadavers examined on Rhabwar showed evidence of surgery on its forward

interface and this could mean—"

"But that was a very youthful, although physically mature CRLT," Murchison broke

in, "and the surgery was minor. We agreed that it had probably been performed

for cosmetic reasons."

"I think we were wrong," Conway said. Excitedly he went on, "Consider the

physical organization of this group entity. At the head is the most mature, male

adult and at the tail the most recently born infant, although as we know the

infant grows to physical maturity without separating from the parent. Between

the head and the tail there is a gradual and steady progression from the most

elderly and intelligent male entities down to the increasingly youthful and

female segments which form the tail sections. But Prilicla has reported an

anomaly in this progression. Young CRLTs positioned relatively close to the tail

show evidence of greater physical age and brain development than entities in

the midsections. Until now 1 could see no reason for this anomaly.

"But now let us suppose that this group entity," he continued quickly, "forming

as it does a complete colonization project, has been artificially lengthened.

The extraordinarily large number of individuals in this group entity has always

bothered me, and now there is a simple explanation for it. Let us assume that

there is one head or. more accurately, a fairly large number

of linked elders forming the leading segments, and several tails connected one

behind the other. These would be very youthful tails because it must be much

easier to carry out the surgical modifications on young CRLTs which enable them

to link up. So we have this colonist group entity with intelligence and

experience at its head and linked to a number of young and inexperienced

subgroups forming an artificially lengthened tail. The joins between these

subgroups are surgically assisted and, I feel sure, temporary, because once

established on the target planet they would be able to separate again, and in

time the young heads would grow to full adulthood and the dangers from

inbreeding would be avoided.

"Perhaps the head on this group entity has also been artif-ically extended,"

Conway added, "so as to include elder CRLTs with specialist experience relating

to the colonization project who would be available initially to protect the

younger group entities, and subsequently to teach and train them and pass on the

knowledge of their race's history and science."

Prilicla had flown closer while Conway had been speaking and was hovering a few

inches above the Doctor's head. It said happily, "An ingenious theory, friend

Conway. It fits both the facts as we know them and the type of emotional

radiation received from the beings."

"I agree," Murchison said. "I, too, found difficulty in accepting the extreme

length of this group entity, but the idea of a wise old head acting as guide and

mentor to an as yet unknown number of young tails is much easier to believe.

However, I can't help remembering that it was the head segments which suffered

most of the casualties. Perhaps the head is no longer as wise as it should have

been and an awful lot of vital knowledge has been lost to this multiplegroup

entity."

Colonel Okaussie waited for a moment to see if anyone in the medical team would

speak, then he cleared his throat and said, "Maybe not, ma'am. Most of the head

segments who were killed in the collision were very close to the stern and to

the ship's control and propulsion centres. One could reasonably expect that

these segments were the beings charged with the responsibility for operating the

ship and carrying out the landing maneuvers, functions which are now the

responsibility of the Monitor Corps. It is likely that the scientist and teacher

seg-

ments were positioned a little farther back in the chain and the majority of the

casualties were suffered by the vessel's crew, whose specialist knowledge would

no longer be of vital importance to the colonization project after the vessel

had landed." Before Murchison could reply Naydrad gave an impatient, modulated

growl which translated as "Why don't we stop talking and get on with the job?"

The screen which had been used to communicate with the CRLTs was continuously

displaying distant and close-up views of spacesuited figures of various

physiological classifications busily at work on the final stages of the

coilship's reassembly. Conway could not decide whether Descartes'^ commanding

officer was screening the material to be helpful and informative or as a means

of suggesting, very subtly, that the medical team display a similar degree of

industry. The attempt was a failure in either event, Conway thought, because the

Rhabwar medics were far too busy to look at Okaussie's pictures. They were

concentrating instead on measuring and remeasuring the features on the CRLT

interfaces and charting with their scanners the paths of underlying blood

vessels and the distribution of the nerve ganglia. And with great care and

accuracy they were marking the areas where surgical intervention was possible

without causing either a major hemorrhage or sensory impairment.

It was slow, tedious work and visually not very dramatic. Colonel Okaussie could

be forgiven for thinking that the ambulance ship personnel had gone to sleep on

the job.

"Friend Conway," Prilicla said at one particularly awkward stage, "the physical

differences between these two entities are so marked that I cannot help

wondering if they belong to different subspecies."

All of Con way's attention at that moment was concentrated on what seemed to be

the main sphinctor muscle on the rear interface of the forward CRLT, so that by

the time he was ready to reply Murchison had done it for him.

"In a sense you are right, Doctor Prilicla," she said. "It is a natural result

of their method of reproduction. Think of this forward CRLT when it was the last

and female link in its group-entity chain. In due time it grew to maturity and,

still attached

to its parent, it was fertilized by the male head of another group entity. Its

own infant grew and became mature and in turn produced another, and the process

continued with different male heads adding their individual sets of genes at

every stage. 'The physical connection between any given CRLT and its offspring

is perfect," she continued, "and perfect fusion may even be possible between a

parent and its grandchild or greatgrandchild. But the effect of different males

fertilizing each new endlink in the chain would be cumulative. So it is

understandable when you think about it, Doctor, that the differences between

the fusion interfaces of these two, which were separated by seventeen

intervening segments, are considerable."

"Thank you, friend Murchison," Prilicla said. "My brain seems not to be

functioning properly."

"Probably," Murchison replied in a sympathetic tone, "because your brain is

more than half asleep, like mine." "And mine," Naydrad joined in.

Con way, who had been trying not to think of how long it had been since he had

last eaten or slept, decided that the best way to deal with an impending mutiny

among his overworked medics was to ignore it. He indicated a small area on the

rear interface of the first alien, midway between the central conical depression

and the upper rim of the interface, then pointed to the corresponding area on

the forward face of the second one. He said, "We can safely ignore these

reproductive organs in both creatures, since this kind of link-up is temporary

and physiologically independent of the parent-offspring fusion mechanism. As 1

see it the three areas we must concentrate on are the central conical projection

and its corresponding recess, which are the connecting points for the central

nerve core and our primary concern. Second is this narrow, semirigid tongue with

the fleshy mushroom at its tip which locates with this slit in the other—"

"That connection is also of vital importance," Murchison broke in, "since it

links up the nerve networks controlling the voluntary and involuntary muscles

which move each CRLTs legs and enable the group entity to walk in unison. There

would be small advantage to the group entity if it could share mentation but a

number of its segments were unable to walk." "Friend Murchison," Prilicla said

timidly, "it seems to me that the original nerve impulse from the head segment,

or whichever individual CRLT was responsible for initiating the movement, would

not be sufficiently strong to trigger the ambulatory muscles throughout the

enormous length of this group entity."

"That is true," the pathologist replied. "But there is an organic amplifier,

consisting of a bunching of nerve ganglia situated just above the womb, or the

position where the womb had been in the males, in an area where the surrounding

tissue has a high mineral content and is particularly rich in copper salts. This

biological booster ensures that the ambulatory muscles receive their signals

with undiminished strength throughout the length of the chain."

"Third," Conway said, raising his voice slightly to discourage further

interruptions, "there are these four flaps of muscle which terminate at their

apexes in osseous hooks which locate in these four bone-reinforced orifices in

the second creature. This is the primary mechanism by which the individual

segments are held together nose to tail, and in this instance—"

"It is also the method by which the CRLT female at the end of the line held onto

its developing offspring," Murchison broke in again. "At that stage the

offspring had no choice in the matter. But as it matured, produced its own

offspring, and moved farther up the line I feel sure that voluntary separation

became possible. In fact, separation would be necessary during activities which

did not require the entire group entity for their performance."

"That is most interesting, friend Murchison," Prilicla said. "I should think

that the first time such a voluntary separation took place a certain amount of

psychological trauma would be present. It would be analogous to a coming-of-age

ceremony, perhaps, even though the separation might not be permanent—"

Before Conway could speak, Prilicla fell silent and began trembling in reaction

to the Doctor's feelings of irritation and impatience. He said, "This is all

very interesting, friends, but we do not have the time just now for a general

discussion. In any case, following the type of temporary separation you

mentioned, the young adult would rejoin its original parent segment and not a—I

suppose you could describe it as an ancestor seventeen times removed, which is

the problem currently facing us. And now, if you don't mind, we will concentrate

on this problem and on the surgical procedures necessary to solve it.

"Feel free to interrupt at any time," he added dryly.

But the interruptions were few and pertinent, and very soon it became obvious

even to the watching tractor beamers, Des-cartes's commanding officer, and Fleet

Commander Dermod, whose face appeared briefly but with increasing frequency on

the overhead screen, that the medical team was also working hard.

Because Sector General was the Federation's foremost emergency hospital, the

kind of surgery performed there, whether the patient was Earth-human or

extraterrestrial, tended to be curative rather than cosmetic. It felt very

strange to Conway, and he knew that his feelings were being shared by the other

members of the team, to be operating on a perfectly healthy e-t with the purpose

of simply modifying the size and contours of certain physiological features. But

the operation itself was far from simple.

The greater proportion of the surgical work had to be performed on the second

alien whose forward nerve coupling cone was too wide at its base to be retained

by the sphincter muscle surrounding the corresponding orifice in the first CRLT.

With the semiflexible tongue and groove connection which joined the two beings'

locomotor nerve networks, the solution was much simpler. The deep recess in the

first alien was surgically widened until measurement showed that it would

accommodate the tongue comfortably, after which reinforcing sutures were

inserted to prevent further accidental widening. But the four triangular flaps

with their bony, hooklike extensions posed a completely different and more

difficult problem.

Together the four members formed the principal organic coupling which held the

considerable mass of the second e-t against the first, and they did not fit

because the hooks did not quite reach the apertures meant to receive them.

Elongating the four triangular members was contraindicated since this would have

entailed surgical interference and consequent serious weakening of the muscle

systems concerned, and they could not foresee the effect on the network of blood

vessels which became engorged and extended the members to quadruple their size

when the being returned to consciousness.

Instead they made molds of the four hooks and made artificial ones using a hard,

biologically neutral plastic at the tips and a wide band of thinner, more

flexible material around the bases. The result was a set of hollow, hook-tipped

gloves which, when a little of the original hooks were filed away to make them

fit, were slipped over the original members and secured in position with rivets

and sutures.

Suddenly there was nothing left to do, but hope.

Above the two unconscious CRLTs the vision screen was displaying an overall

picture of their coilship, complete now except for the segments whose occupants

were awaiting surgical attention, and the dense but orderly mass of shipping

moving in and around it. The thought came to Conway, no matter how hard he tried

to avoid it, that the tremendous fleet of Monitor Corps and other units, from

the great capital ships and auxiliaries down to the swarms of scoutships and the

army of specialists in engineering and communications they represented, were

all wasting their time here if this particular operation was not a success.

For this responsibility he had argued long and eloquently with Thornnastor,

O'Mara, and Skempton at Sector General. He must have been mad.

Harshly, he said, "Wake them up."

They watched anxiously as once again the two CRLTs came out of hibernation and

began moving toward each other. They touched once, a brief, exploratory contact,

then they fused. Where there had been two massive, twenty-meter caterpillarlike

creatures there was now one of twice that length.

The join was visible, of course, but one had to look very carefully to see it.

Conway forced himself to wait for ten interminable seconds, and still they had

not pulled away from each other.

"Prilicla?"

"They are feeling pain, friend Conway," the empath replied, trembling slightly.

"It is within bearable limits. There are also feelings of acceptance and

gratitude."

Conway gave a relieved sigh which ended in an enormous, eye-watering yawn. He

rubbed his eyes and said, "Thank you, everyone. Put them back to sleep, check

the sutures, and reseal them in their hibernation cylinders. They will not have

to link up again until after the landing, by which time the wounds should have

healed to a large extent so that the fusion will be more comfortable for them.

As for ourselves, I prescribe eight hours solid sleep before—"

He broke off abruptly as the features of Fleet Commander Dermod appeared on the

screen.

"You appear to have successfully repaired a major break in our alien chain,

Doctor," he said seriously, "but the time taken to do so was not short. There

are many other breaks and we have three days during which a concerted Jump is

possible, Doctor, after which the gravitational distortion effects caused by

that rapidly approaching sun will make an accurate Jump out of the question even

for single ships.

"Should we overrun the three-day deadline," he went on grimly, "single-ship

Jumping within operational safety limits will be possible for an additional

twenty hours. During this twenty-hour period, if the coilship is not to be

abandoned to fall into the sun, it will have to be dismantled into sections

small enough to be accommodated by the hyperspheres of the units available in

the area. This, you will understand, would of necessity be a very hurried

operation and our own accident casualties as well as those of CRLTs would be

heavy?

"What I am saying, Doctor," he ended gravely, "is that if you cannot complete

your organic link-ups within three days, tell me now so that we can begin

dismantling the coilship in a safer and more orderly fashion."

Con way rubbed his eyes and said, "There were seventeen missing segments between

the join which we have just effected, and this makes it the most difficult job

of the lot. The remaining breaks are of two, three, or at most five segments, so

that those linking operations will be correspondingly easier. We know the drill

now and three days should be ample time, barring an unforeseen catastrophe."

"I cannot hold you responsible for one of those, Doctor," the Fleet Commander

said dryly. "Very well. What are your immediate intentions?"

"Right now," Conway said firmly, "we intend to sleep."

Dermod looked vaguely surprised, as if the very concept of sleep was one that

had become alien to him over the past few days, then he nodded grudgingly and

broke contact.

Feeling rested, alert, and much more human—and, of course, more Kelgian and

Cinrusskin—they returned to Descartes's cargo hold to find another two CRLTs

already waiting for them and the remaining segments to be joined clamped to the

outer hull. The Fleet Commander, it was clear, was a man who believed in

maintaining the pressure.

But achieving fusion with these two was remarkably easy. Only two intervening

segments were missing so that the surgery required was minor indeed. The next

pair were more difficult, nevertheless a satisfactory link-up was achieved

within two hours and, with their growing confidence and expertise, this was to

become the average time required for the job. So well did they progress that

they became almost angry with themselves when they were forced to break for

meals or sleep.

Then suddenly they were finished and there was nothing to do but watch the

screen while the last gap in the coil was being closed and hundreds of

spacesuited figures swarmed all over it to give a final check to the sensor

actuators on each hibernation cylinder which would expel their endplates and

initiate resuscitation on landing.

With the exception of Rhabwar and one of Descartes's planetary landers, the

great fleet of scoutships and auxiliaries withdrew to a distance of one and a

half thousand kilometers, which was far enough to relieve the traffic congestion

in the area but close enough for them to return quickly should anything go

wrong.

"I do not foresee anything going seriously wrong at this end," the Fleet

Commander said when the coilship was in one tremendous, spiral piece. "You have

given us enough time, Doctor, to carry out all the necessary pre-Jump

calculations and calibrations. This will be a time-consuming process since our

three vessels, whose hyperspace envelopes will have to be extended to enclose

the coilship, are Jumping in concert. Should a problem arise and we are unable

to make this Jump, the units standing by will move in, dismantle the coilship as

quickly as possible, and Jump away with the pieces and salvage what we can from

this operation.

"There will be enough Monitor Corps medics on these ships to deal with the

expected casualties," he went on, "and for this reason I would like Rhabwar to

leave at once and position itself close to the CRLTs new target planet. If

trouble develops it is much more likely to be at that end."

"I understand," Conway said quietly.

The Fleet Commander nodded. "Thank you, Doctor. From now on this is purely a

transport problem and my responsibility."

Sooner yours than mine, Conway thought grimly as Dermod broke contact.

He was thinking about the Fleet Commander's problem while they were wishing

Colonel Okaussie and the Descartes's tractor beam crew good-by and good luck,

and it remained in his mind after the medical team boarded Rhabwar and the

ambulance ship was heading out to Jump distance from the combined CRLT and

Federation vessels.

Conway understood Dermod's problem all too well and the strong but unspoken

reason why the Fleet Commander wanted the ambulance ship positioned in the

target system. They both knew that the majority of single-ship accidents

occurred because of a premature emergence into normal space when one of the

unfortunate vessel's matched set of hyperdrive generators was out of

synchronization. A single generator pod emerging into normal space while the

rest of the vessel was in the hy-perdimension could tear the ship apart and

leave wreckage strewn across millions of kilometers. Timing, therefore, was

:ritical even on a single ship where only two or perhaps four generators had to

be matched. The Fleet Commander's problem was that Vespasian, Claudius, and

Descartes together with the jnormous coilship of the CRLTs were linked together

by tractor and pressor beams into a single rigid structure.

The Emperor-class cruisers were the largest ships operated by the Monitor Corps,

and each required six generators to move its tremendous mass into and out of

hyperspace, while the survey and cultural contact vessel Descartes needed only

four. I"his meant that sixteen generators in all would be required to perform a

simultaneous Jump and subsequent emergence into normal space. And the problem

was further complicated by the Fact that all of the generators would be

operating under controlled overload conditions because their coombined

hyperspace envelope had to be extended to enclose the : coilship.

As Rhabwar made its Jump into hyperspace Conway was overcome by such an intense,

gnawing anxietty that even Prilicla could not reassure him out of it. He had the

awful feeling that they were about to witness the worst spactdisasaster in

Federation history.

The new home chosen for the CRLIs had been known to the Federation for nearly

two centurie and was listed as a possible colony world for the Chalders.however,

the denizens of Chalderescol Three—a water-breathing life-form resembling an

outsize, tentacled crocodile which combined physical inaction with mental

agility—were not very enthusiastic about it since they already possessed two

colony worlds and their home planet was far from overcrowded So when they

learned of the plight of the CRLT colonists they willlingly relinquished their

claim to a planet which was of marginal interest to them anyway.

It was a warm, pleasant world with a continent, largely desert, encircling its

equator like a wide, ragged belt and two relatively small bands of ocean

separating the equatorial land-mass from the two large continents centred 3 at

each pole; these were green, temperate, and free of icecaps. .

Following exhaustive investigations of tthe cadavers available to them at

Sector General both Murchison and Thornnastor were firmly of the opinion that

this would be an ideal home for the CRLT life-form—moreover it was an

environment which would not force them into periodic hibernation..

The landing area, a large clearing on the shore of a vast, inland sea, had

already been marked with beacons. It awaited only the arrival of the CRLTs—as,

vith mounting anxiety, did the personnel on board Rhabwar. On t the Casualty

Deck Conway and the other members of the medical team each picked a direct

visionport, hoping in some obscure fashion that by watching and worrying hard

they might ensre the safe arrival of the coilship.

It was no surprise, considering the distances involved, that they learned of its

emergence from the Control Room repeaters.

"Trace, sir!" Haslam's voice sounded excitedly. "The bearing is — "

"Are you sure it's them?"

"A single trace that size couldn't be anything else, sir. And yes, the sensors

confirm."

"Very well," the Captain's voice replied, trying unsuccessfully to hide its

relief. "Lock the scope on your radar bearing and give me full magnification.

Dodds, contact astrogation on Vespasian and arrange a rendezvous. Power Room,

stand by."

The rest of the crewmen's conversation was ignored as the medical team crowded

around the Casualty Deck's repeater screen. One look was enough to tell them

that their preparations to receive large numbers of casualties from the expected

emergence accident had been wasted effort, but they did not care because it was

immediately obvious that the concerted Jump had been completely successful.

Centered on the repeater screen was a small, sharp image of the coilship with

its three Monitor Corps vessels spaced along its axis, looking like an exercise

in alien three-dimensional geometry. Vespasian, the stern component, was

already applying thrust, and the three linked ships were beginning to turn

around their longitudinal axes in order to reproduce the original rate of

rotation and centrifugal force conditions ofthe coilship before its accident.

Gradually a voice from Control made itself heard above the sound of the medics'

human and extraterrestrial jubilation.

". . . Rendezvous in four hours thirteen minutes," Haslam was saying. "No

preliminary orbital maneuvering, sir. They intend going straight in."

Rhabwar, in its hypersonic glider configuration, circled the descending coilship

at a distance of three kilometers using its thrusters only when necessary to

maintain the same rate of descent. Rotating slowly and illuminated to near-

incandescent brightness by the system's sun and noontime reflection from the

planet's cloud blanket, it seemed to Conway as if it were boring its way into

the lower reaches of the atmosphere like some gigantic, alien drill. Inside the

enormous, dazzling coil the three Federation ships in their drab service

liveries were virtually invisible except for the flare of Vespasian's thrusters,

which were supporting the weight not only of the coilship but the two vessels

stacked above it. The great alien and Monitor Corps composite continued its

descent until, three kilometers from the surface, tangential thrust was applied

to begin killing its spin.

Vespasian's flare lengthened suddenly and brightened, slowing the descent until

the ship was hovering a meter above the ground. Then simultaneously the

coilship's rotation ceased, Vespasian's stabilizers came to rest on the fused

and blackened soil, and the sternmost segment of the coilship touched down.

For perhaps five seconds nothing happened, then, reacting to the cessation of

spin and the presence of a suitable atmosphere, the sensor-actuators on every

hibernation cylinder performed their function. The endplates which kept the

individual CRLTs apart were ejected to fall like a shower of giant coins to the

ground, and resuscitation of the group entity was initiated. Conway could

imagine the individual CRLTs awakening, stretching, and linking up, the

occupants of close on nine hundred hibernation compartments which had survived

the eighty-seven years past collision. Then he began to worry in case some of

them could not link up and there was an organic log-jam somewhere inside the

coil trapping CRLTs above it...

But within a surprisingly short time the great group entity was leaving its

ship, the leading head segments walking carefully around the fused earth under

Vespasian's stern and toward the vegetation on the edge of the clearing. And,

like an endless, leathery caterpillar the younger segments emerged carrying

equipment and stores and following the tracks of their elders.

When at last the tail was clear of the coilship, the power to the supporting

tractor and pressor beams was gradually reduced so that the towering, open

spiral collapsed slowly onto itself to lie like a great, loose coil of metal

rope on the ground. A few minutes later Vespasian, Claudius, and Descartes took

off and separated, the two capital ships to go into orbit and Descartes to land

again a few kilometers along the shoreline to await formal contact with the CRLT

group entity. Contact would occur, they knew, because the individual CRLTs who

had undergone surgery knew that the beings inside the Federation ships wished

them well and, since the CRLT life-form had shared mentation, the whole group

would be aware of these good intentions.

By this time Rhabwar's lander had also touched down and its medics were on the

surface standing as close as they possibly could to the being who was marching

endlessly past them. Ostensibly they were there to furnish any medical

assistance which might be required. Actually they were simply satisfying their

curiosity regarding a being which must surely have been the strangest life-form

yet encountered.

Conway, as was his wont, was indulging in a bout of postoperative worrying. He

waved, indicating the endless line of dorsal appendages which were either

gathering pieces of edible vegetation or waving back at him, and said, "I

realize that one or more of the head segments must have tried the local

vegetation with no ill effects, and now the whole group entity knows what is

safe to eat, but the procedure seems a bit slapdash to me. And I haven't been

able to spot any of our surgical joins going past. There is bound to be a

certain amount of muscular weakness in those areas, and perhaps an impairment in

sensory communication and—What the blazes is that\"

That was a low, moaning and caterwauling sound which ran up and down the length

of the kilometers-long entity, rising in volume suddenly until it became

deafening. It sounded as if each and every CRLT was suffering intense physical

or mental anguish. But strangely the outpouring of emotional radiation which

must have accompanied it was not bothering Prilicla.

"Do not feel concern," the little empath said. "It is an expression of group

pleasure, gratitude, and relief. They are cheering, friend Conway."

NOTES

Copywrite 1983

THE SECTOR GENERAL SERIES

Hospital Station (1962)

Star Surgeon (1963)

Major Operation (1971)

Ambulance Ship (1979)

Sector General (1983)

Star Healer (1985)

Code Blue-Emergency (1987)

The Genocidal Healer (1992)

The Galactic Gourmet (Tor, 1996)

Final Diagnosis (Tor, 1997)

Mind Changer (br, 1998)

Double Contact (br, 1999)

Species Classification

The Classification System

by Gary Louie

James White's Sector General stories used a unique four letter

classification system that helped describe the species quickly and

effectivly, as one would require when the hospitol is a multi species

enviroment.

Gary Louie was working on a James White concordance. As part of that he

completed a classification system, for the sector general series which

covers all characters up to Final Diagnosis.

This article appeared in the White Papers. Unfortunatly Gary Louie passed

away, before the concordance was completed.

Classification:AACL

Planet:Unknown

Species:Crepellian Pet No Individual Names Known

A non-intelligent pet kept by AMSOs. It has six python-like

ten-tacles which poke though seals in the cloudy plastic of its

suit. The tentacles are each at least twenty feet long and tipped

with a horny substance which must be steel-hard.

Classification:AACP

Planet:Unknown

Species:Name Unknown No Individual Names Known

A race whose remote ancestors were a species of mobile vegetable.

They are slow moving, but the carbon dioxide tanks which they wear

seem to be the only protection they need. AACPs do not eat in the

normal manner but plant themselves in specially prepared soil during

their sleep period, and absorb nutriment in that way.

Classification:AMSL

Planet:Unknown

Species:Creppelian, Crepellian

Individuals:Nurse Towan, Diagnostician Vosan

A species of water breathing octopoids.

Classification:AMSO

Planet:Unknown

Species:Name Unknown

No Individual Names Known

A larger life-form, in the habit of keeping non-intelligent

AACL-type creatures as pets.

Classification:AUGL

Planet:Chalderescol IT

Species:Chaldor, Chalder

Individuals:Patient AUGL-1 13, Patient AUGL-1 16, Patient AUGL-122,

Patient AUGL-126, Patient AUGL-187, Patient AUGL-193, Patient

AUGL-211, Patient AUGL-218, Patient AUGL-22 1, Patient AUGL-233,

Muromeshomon

The denizens of Chalderescol, an armored fish-like species are

water-breathers who can not live in any other medium for more than a

few seconds. A heavily plated and scaled being, slightly re-sembling

a forty-foot long armour-plated crocodile, except that instead of

legs there is an apparently haphazard arrangement of stubby fins,

and a heavy knife-edged tail. A fringe of ribbon-like tentacles

encircles its middle, projecting through some of the only openings

visible in its organic armor. Chaldors have six rows of teeth in an

over-large mouth. The Chalders are one of the frw in-telligent

species whose personal names are used only between mates, members of

the immediate family, or very special friends.

Classification:BLSU

Planet:Groalter

Species:Groalterri

Individual:Hellishomar the Cutter

The Groalterri overall body configuration is that of a squat

octopoid with short, thick tentacular limbs. Its central torso and

head seem disproportionately large. The eight limbs terminate

alternately in four sets of claws (that will with maturity evolve

into manipula-tory digits) and four flat, sharp-edged, osseous

blades. The organ of speech and hearing is centered above the four

heavily lidded eye that are equally spaced around the cranium. A

macrospecies, there is an element of risk involved to any life-form

of more or less nor-mal body mass which approaches it too closely.

Classification:BRLH

Planet:Tarla

Species:Tarlan

Individuals:Surgeon-Captain/Trainee/Padre Lioren, Sedith and

Wrethrin the Healers

Tarlans are an erect quadrupedal life-form with its for short-legs

supporting a tapering, cone-shaped body. Four long, multi-jointed,

medial arms for heavy lifting and handling sprout from waist-level.

Another four that are suited for more delicate work encircle the

base of the neck. Equally spaced around the head are four eyes whose

stalks are capable of independent motion. Tarlans have very large

teeth. An adult Tarlan stands eight feet tall.

Classification:CLCH

Planet:Unknown

Species:Name Unknown

No Individual Names Known

Apparent typographical error for Classification CLHG.

Classification:CLHG

Planet:Drambo

Species:Roller

Individuals:Camsaug, Surreshun

The Rollers resemble animated donuts rolling on their outer edge,

with manipulatory appendages in the form of a fringe ofshort

ten-tacles sprouting from the inner circumference between the series

of gill mouths and eyes. Its visual equipment must operate like a

coeleostat since the contents of its field of vision are constantly

rotating. The Rollers must roll to stay alive-there is an ingenious

method of shifting its center of gravity while keeping itself

upright by partially inflating the section of its body which is on

top at any given moment. The continual rolling causes blood to

circulate-it uses a form of gravity feed system instead of a

muscular pump. The species reproduce hermaphroditically. Each parent

after mating grows twin offspring, one on each side of its bodies

like continu-ous blisters encircling the side walls of a tire.

Injury, disease or the mental confusion immediately following birth

could cause the parent to lose balance, roll on to its side, stop

and die. The points where the children eventually detach themselves

from their par-ents remain very sensitive areas to both generations

and their posi-tions are governed by hereditary factors. The result

is that any close blood relation trying to make mating contact

causes itself and the other being considerable pain. The rollers

really do hate their fa-thers and every other relative. The species

is water-breathing with a warm-blooded oxygen-based metabolism. The

life-support mechanism for the species is physically complicated, to

allow the occupant to roll naturally within it. The concept of

modesty is com-pletely alien to this race. This species does not

know the meaning of sleep. There is no such thing as sleeping,

pretending to be dead or unconsciousness. A Roller is either moving

and alive or still and dead.

Classification:CLSR

Planet:Unknown

Species:Name Unknown

No Individual Names Known

Apparent typographical error for Classification CPSD.

Classification:CPSD

Planet:Unknown

Species:The Blind Ones

No Individual Names Known

These beings are roughly circular, just over a meter in diameter

and, in cross section, a slim oval flattened slightly on the

under-side. In shape they very much resemble their ship, except that

the ship does not have a long, thin horn or sting projecting aft or

a wide, narrow slit on the opposite side which is obviously a mouth.

The upper lip of the mouth is wider and thicker than the lower, and

can be curled over the lower lip, apparently sealing the mout shut.

The beings are covered, on their upper and lower surfaces and around

the rim, by some kind of organic stubble which varies in thickness

from pin-size to the width of a small finger. The stubble on the

underside is much coarser than that on the upper surface, and it is

plain that parts of it are designed for ambulation. The Blind Ones

evolved underground, and have no organs for sight. They formed an

alliance with the Protectors of the Unborn, each species providing

something that other lacked.

Classification:CRLT

Planet:Unknown

Species:Name Unknown

No Individual Names Known

Senior Physician Conway was unable to classi~ this life-form with

complete certainty. The initial analysis was performed on a cadaver,

an independent portion of a larger composite being. The compos-ite

is a warm-blooded oxygen breather with the type of basic me-tabolism

associated with the physiological grouping CRLT. Even a segment is

massive, measuring approximately twenty meters in length and three

meters in diameter, excluding projecting append-ages. Physically it

resembles the DBLF Kelgian life-form, but it is many times larger

and possesses a leathery tegument rather than the silver fur of the

Kelgians. Like the DBLF's it is multipedal, but the manipulatory

appendages are positioned in a single row along the back. There are

twenty-one of these dorsal limbs, all showing evidence of early

evolutionary specialization. Six of them are long, heavy, and

claw-tipped and are obviously evolved for defense since the being is

a herbivore. The other fifteen are in five groups of three, spaced

between the six heavier tentacles, which terminate in four digits,

two of which are opposable. These thinner limbs are ma-nipulatory

appendages originally evolved for gathering and trans-ferring food

to the mouths-three on each flank opening into three stomachs. Two

additional orifices on each side open into a very large and complex

lung. The structure inside these breathing ori-fices suggests that

expelled air could be interrupted and modulated to produce

intelligence-bearing sounds. On the underside are three openings

used for the elimination of wastes. The mechanism of reproduction is

unclear and the specimen shows evidence of p05-sessing both male and

female genitalia on the forward and rear extremities respectively

The brain, if it is a brain, takes the form of a cable of nerve

ganglia with localized swellings in three places, running

longitudinally through the cadaver like a central core. There is

another and much thinner nerve cable running parallel to the thicker

core, but below it and about twenty-five centimeters from the

underside. Positioned close to each extremity are two sets of three

eyes. Two are mounted dorsally and two on each of the forward and

rear flanks. They are recessed but capable of limited extension;

together they give the being complete and continuous vision

vertically and horizontally. The type and positioning of the visual

equipment and appendages suggest that it evolved on a very

unfriendly world. The tentative Classification is an incomplete CRLT

Classification:DBDG

Planets:Earth, Gregory (Colony)

Species:Earth-human, Gregorian

Individuals:Theologian Augustine, Lieutenant Braithwaite,

Sur-geon-Lieutenant Brenner, Corpsman Briggs, Lieutenant Briggs,

Captain Chaplain Bryson, Lieutenant Carrington, Lieutenant Chen,

Major Chiang, Clarke, Lieutenant Clifton, Junior Intern/Senior

PhysicianlDiagnostician-in-Charge of Surgery Peter Conway, Sergeant

Davis, Major/Colonel Jonathan Dermod, Fleet Commander Dermod,

Lieutenant Dodds, Lieutenant Dowling, Major-Captain Fletcher, Fox,

Trainee Hadley, Harmon, Lieuten-ant Haslam, Patient Hewlitt, Tailor

George L Hewlitt, Mrs. George L Hewlitt, Captain Hokasuri, Major

Holyrod, OR Nurse Hudson, Lieutenant-General Lister, MacEwan, Major

Madden, Captain Mallon, Senior Physician/Diagnostician/Patient

Mannen/Man non, Nurse/Pathologist Murchison, Major Nelson,

Mister/Major/Chief Psychologist O'Mara, Captain Sigvard Nyberg,

Doctor Pelling, General Prentiss, Reviora, Lieutenant-Colonel

Simmons, Colonel Skempton, Surgeon-Lieutenant/Major Stillman,

Lieutenant-Sur-geon Sutherland, Corpsman Timmins, Lieutenant

Wainright, Waring, Corpsman/Colonel-Captain Williamson

Probable Individuals:Lieutenant Carmody, Lieutenant Carson, Section

Chief Caxton, Major Colinson, Major Craythorne, Major Edwards,

Doctor Hamilton, Dietician-in-ChiefKW Hardin, Lieu-tenant Harrison,

Lieutenant Hendricks, Kellerman, Colonel Okaussie, Captain Stillson,

Captain Summerfield, TrooperTeirnan, Surgeon-Captain Telford

This species shows their teeth in a silent snarl when displaying

amusement or friendship and make an unpleasant barking sound that

denotes amusement. The sound, called laughing, in most cases a

psychophysical mechanism for the release of minor degrees of

tension. An Earth-human laughs because of sudden relief from worry

or fear, or to express scorn or disbelief or sarcasm, or in

re-sponse to words or a situation that is ridiculous, illogical or

funny, or out of politeness when the situation or words are not

funny but the person responsible is of high rank. The Earth-human

voice is reputed to be one of the most versatile instruments in the

Galaxy. The Earth-human DBDGs are the only race in the Galactic

Fed-eration with a nudity taboo, and one of the very few member

spe-cies with an aversion to making love in public. The Earth-human

DBDGs make up the majority of the Monitor Corps forces.

Classification:DBDG

Planets:Etlan Empire, Central World (Capital), Imperial Etla

(Capital), Etla, Etla the Sick (Colony)

Species:Etlan, Imperial

Individuals:Heraltnor, Imperial Representative Teltrenn

The physiology of the citizens of the Empire is the same as the

population of their colony Etla. The physiological resemblance is so

close to Earth-human DBDGs that no other disguise other than native

language and dress is needed. There are theories about a prehistoric

colonization program by common, star-travelling an-cestors. Attempts

at procreation between Earth-human DBDGs and Etlans have been

unsuccessful.

Classification:DBDG

Planet:Nidia

Species:Nidian

Individuals:Chief of Procurement Creon-Emesh, Senior Physi-cian and

Tutor Cresk-Sar, Surgeon-Lieutenant Dracht-Yur, Lieu-tenant-Colonel

Dragh-Nin, Senior Physician Lesk-Murog, Senior Food Technician

Sarnyagh-Sa, Yoragh-Kar

Probable Individual:Surgeon-Lieutenant Krack-Yar

The Nidians have seven-fingered hands, stand only four feet tall.

They have a thick red fur coat, and look like a very cuddly

teddy-bear.

Classification:DBDG

Planet:Orligia

Species:Orlig, Orligian

Individuals:Grawlya-Ki/Grulyaw~Ki, Surgeon-Lieutenant Krach-Yul,

Major Sachan-Li, Colonel Shech-Rar, Surgeon-Lieutenant Turragh-Mar

Like the neighboring Nidians, Orligians resemble an Earth-hu-man

child's first non-adult friend's teddy bear.

Classification:DBLF

Planet:Ia

Species:Ian (pre-adolescent)

No Individual Narnes Known

The being appears ring-shaped, rather like a large balloon tire.

Overall diameter of the ring is about nine feet, with the thickness

between two and three feet. The tegument is smooth, shiny and grey

in color where it is not covered with a thick, brownish

incrus-tation. The brown stuff, which covers more than half of the

total skin area, looks cancerous, but may be some type of natural

cam-ouflage. There are five pairs of limbs, and no evidence

ofspecial-ization. No visual organs or means of ingestion can be

seen. The being isn't a doughnut, but possesses a fairly normal

anatomy of the DBLF type~a cylindrical, lightly-boned body with

heavy musculature. The being is not ring-shaped, but gives that

impres-sion because for some reason, known best to itself, it has

been try-ing to swallow its tail. Senior Physician Conway, convinced

all along that the patient is undergoing a natural metamorphosis,

observes that the new patient, after the process is complete, is of

classifica-tion GKNM.

Classification:DBLF

Planet:Kelgia

Species:Kelgian

Individuals:Patient Henredth, Senior Physician Karthad, Charge Nurse

Kursedd, Diagnostician Kursedth, Patient Morredeth, Charge Nurse

Naydrad, Fleet Commander Roonardth, Charge Nurse Segroth,

Diagnostician Suggrod, Student Nurse Tarsedth, Diagnostician Towan,

Senior Physician Yarrence

Probable Individual:Charge Nurse Kursenneth

Kelgians are warm-blooded, oxygen-breathing, multipedal, and with a

long, flexible cylindrical body covered overall by highly mobile,

silvery fur. The Kelgian forelimbs have three digits. There are

twenty sets of short, thin, and not heavily muscled walking limbs.

The feet, which have no toe-nails or other terminations, are like

small, hard sponges.The fur moves continually in slow ripples from

the conical head right down to the tail. These are completely

involuntary movements triggered by its emotional reactions to

outside stimuli. The evolutionary reasons for this mechanism are not

clearly understood, not even by the Kelgians themselves, but it is

generally believed that the emotionally expressive fur comple-ments

the Kelgian vocal equipment, which lacks emotional flex-ibility of

tone.The movements of the fur make it absolutely clear to another

Kelgian-what a Kelgian feels about the subject under discussion. As

a result they always say exactly what they mean be-cause what they

think is plainly obvious-at least to another Kelgian.They can not do

otherwise. Kelgians have an intense aver-sion towards any surgical

procedure which would damage or dis-figure its most treasured

possession, its furs. To a Kelgian the re moval of a strip or patch

of fur, which in their species represents ~ means of communication

equal to the spoken word, is a personal tragedy which all too often

results in permanent psychological damage. A Kelgian's fur does not

grow again and one whose pelt is damaged can rarely find a mate

because it is unable to fully display its feelings. Kelgians are

very close to Earth-humans in both basic metabolism and temperament.

Except for the thin-walled, narrow casing which houses the brain,

the DBLF species has no boney structure. Their bodies are composed

of an outer cylinder of mus-culature which, in addition to be being

its primary means of loco-motion, serves to protect the vital organs

within it. To the mind of a being more generously reinforced with

bones, this protection is far from adequate. Another severe

disadvantage in the event of in-jury is its complex and extremely

vulnerable circulation system; the blood-supply network which has to

feed the tremendous bands of muscle encircling its body runs close

under the skin, as does the nerve network that controls the mobile

fur. The thick fur of the pelt gives some protection here, but not

against chunks ofjagged-edged, flying metal. An injury which many

other species would consider superficial could cause a DBLF to bleed

to death in min-utes. Kelgians are herbivorous.

Classification:DBPK

Planet:Dwerla

Species:Dwerlan

No Individual Names Known

A warm-blooded oxygen-breathing herbivore that does not walk

upright. Judging by the shape of the spacesuits, the beings are

flat-tened cylinders about six feet long with four sets of

manipulatory appendages behind a conical section which is probably

the head, and another four locomotor appendages. Apart from the

smaller size and number of appendages, the beings physically

resemble the Kelgian race. The pointed, fox-like head and the thick,

broad-striped coat make it look like a furry, short-legged zebra

with an enormous tail. These beings seem not to possess natural

weapons of offrnce or defense, or any signs of having had any in the

past. Even their limbs are not built for speed, so they can not run

from danger. The set used for walking are too short and are padded,

while the fotward set are more slender, less well-muscled and end in

four highly flexible digits which don't possess so much as a

fingernail among them. There are the fur markings, of course, but it

is rare that a life-form rises to the top of its evolutionary tree

by camou-flage alone, or by being nice and cuddly. The species has

two sexes, male and female, and the reproductive system seems

relatively nor-mal. Both sexes use a water soluble dye to enhance

artificially the bands of color on their body fur~clearly the dyes

are for cosmetic reasons. The immature do not use dyes, but use a

brownish pig-ment on a bare patch above the tail.

Classification:DCNF

Planet:Sommaradva

Species:Sommaradvan

Individual:Trainee Cha Th rat

Four Ambulatory limbs; Four waist-level heavy manipulators; and a

set of manipulators for food provisions and fine work encircling the

neck. This being has two stomachs. Sommaradvan society is stratified

into three levels~serviles, warriors, and rulers~which strictly

govern how an individual acts within the society.

Classification:DCSL

Planet:Cromsag

Species:Cromsaggar

No Individual Names Known

This species has three sets of limbs: two ambulators, two medial

heavy manipulators, and two more at neck level for eating and to

perform more delicate work. It has a cranium covered by thick, blue

fur that continues in a narrow strip along the spine to the

vestigial tail.

Classification:DHCG

Planet:Wemar

Species:Wem

Individuals:First Hunter Creethar, Hunter Druuth, Youth Evemth,

First Cook Remrath, First Teacher Tawsar

The Wem life-form is a warm-blooded, oxygen-breathing species with

an adult body mass just under three times that of an Earth-human

and, since Wermar's surface gravity is one point three eight

standard Gs, a healthy specimen is proportionately well-muscled. It

resembles the rare Earth beast called a kangaroo. The differences

are that the head is larger and fitted with a really ferocious set

of teeth; each of the two short forelimbs terminate in six-fingered

hands possessing two opposable thumbs, and the tail is more massive

and tapered to a wide, flat triangular tip composed of immobile

osseous material enclosed by a thick, muscular sheath. The

flattening at the end of tail serves a threefold purpose: as its

principal natural weapon, as an emergency method of fast locomotion

while hunting or being hunted, and as a means of transporting infant

Wem who are too small to walk. The Wem hunt by adopting an awkward,

almost ri-diculous stance with their forelimbs tightly folded, their

chins touch-ing the ground, and their long legs spread so as to

allow the tail to curve sharply downwards and forwards between the

limbs so that the flat tip is at their center of balance. When the

tail is straight-ened suddenly to full extension, it acts as a

powerful third leg ca-pable of hurling the Wem forward for a

distance of five or six body lengths. If the hunter does not land on

top of its prey, kicking the creature senseless with the feet before

disabling it with a deep bite through the cervical vertebrae and

underlying nerve trunks, it piv-ots rapidly on one leg so that the

flattened edge of the tail strikes its victim like a blunt, organic

axe. While the tail is highly flexible where downward and forward

movement is concerned, it cannot be el-evated above the horizontal

line of the spinal column.The back and upper flanks are, therefore,

the Wem's only body areas that are vul-nerable to attack by natural

enemies, who must also possess the el-ement of surprise if they are

not to become the victim.

Classification:DRVJ

Species:Name Unknown

Individual:Doctor Yeppha

Planet:Unknown

A small, tripedal, fragile being. From the furry dome of its head

there sprout singly and in small clusters, at least twenry eyes.

Classification:DTRC

Species:Rhum

Planet:Unknown

Individual:Crelyarrel

Flat, roughly circular beings, dark gray and wrinkled on one

sur-face, and with a paler, mottled appearance on the other, smooth,

surface. The beings attach to their FGHJ hosts with thick tendrils

growing from the edge of the disk. The tendrils penetrate into their

FGHJ hosts' spinal columns and rear craniums. The DTRCs have their

own special needs that in no way resemble those of their hosts,

whose animal habits and undirected behavior are highly repugnant to

them. It is vital to the DTRCs continued mental well-being that the

masters escape periodically from their hosts to lead their own

lives~usually during the hours of darkness when the tools are no

longer in use and can be quartered where they can not harm

them-selves.

Classification:DTSB

Planet:Traltha

Species:Tralthan

No Individual Names Known

Apparent typographical error for Classification OTSB.

Classification:EGCL

Planet:Duwetz

Species:Dewatti

No Individual Names Known

A warm-blooded, oyxgen-breathing life-form of approximately twice

the body weight of an adult Earth-human. Visually it re-sembles an

outsize snail with a high, conical shell which is pierced around the

tip where its four extensible eyes are located. Equally spaced

around the base of the shell are eight triangular slots from which

project the manipulatory appendages. The carapace rests on a thick,

circular pad of muscle which is the locomotor system. Around the

circumference of the pad are a number of fleshy pro-jections,

hollows and slits associated with its systems of ingestion,

respiration, elimination, reproduction, and nonvisual sensors. The

EGCLs are organic empaths. They are organic transmitters,

reflec-tors and focusers and magnifiers of their own feelings and

those of the beings around them. The faculty has evolved to the

stage where they have no conscious control over the process.

Classification:ELNT

Planet:Melf Four

Species:Melfan

Individuals:Maintenance Technician Dremon, Senior Physician Edanelt,

Diagnostician Ergandhir, Patient Kennonalt, Patient KIetilt,

Maintenance Technician Kiedath, Nurse Lontallet, Senior Physician

Medalont, Senreth

Melfans are large, low slung crab-like crustaceans. The six thin,

bony, tubular, multi-jointed legs project from slits where the bony

carapace and underside join. The legs and all of the body are

ex-oskeletal. The head has large, protruding, vertically-lidded

eyes, enormous mandibles, and pincers projecting forward from the

place where ears should be. Two long, thin and fragile feelers grow

from the sides of the mouth. The species is amphibious.

Classification:EPLA

Planet:Unknown

Species:Name Unknown

Individual:Lonvellin

Apparent typographical error for Classification EPLH.

Classification:EPLH

Planet:Unknown

Species:Name Unknown

Individual:Lonvellin

The being is large, about one thousand pounds mass, and resembles a

giant, upright pear. Five thick, tentacular appendages grow from the

narrow head section and a heavy apron of muscle at its base gives

evidence of a snail-like, although not necessarily slow, method of

locomotion. The being is warm-blooded and has fairly normal gravity

requirements. Five large mouths are situated below the root of each

tentacle, four being plentifully supplied with teeth and the fifth

housing the vocal apparatus. The tentacles themselves show a high

degree of specialization at their extremities: three of them are

plainly manipulatory, one bears the patient's visual equipment, and

the remaining member terminates in a horn-tipped, boney mace. The

head is featureless, being simply an osseous dome housing the brain.

The cranium is pierced at regular intervals for visual, aural and

olfactory sensors. Their life-span, lengthy to begin with, is

ar-tificially extended. Because they have tremendous minds, they

have plenty of time, but they constantly have to fight against

boredom. Because part of the price of such longevity is an

ever-growing fear of death, they need to have their own personal

physicians~no doubt the most efficient practitioners of medicine

known to them-constantly in attendance.

Classification:FGHJ

Planet:Unknown

Species:Name Unknown

No Individual Names Known

The being has six limbs, four legs and two arms, all very heavily

muscled, and is hairless except for a narrow band of stiff bristles

running from the top of the head along the spine to the tail, which

seems to have been surgically shortened at an early age. The body

configuration is a thick cylinder of uniform girth between the fore

and rear legs, but the forward torso narrows towards the shoulders

and is carried erect. The neck is very thick and the head small.

There are two eyes, recessed and looking forward, a mouth with very

large teeth, and other openings that are probably aural or olfactory

sense organs. The legs terminate in large, reddish-brown hooves.

Each hoof has four digits and does not appear particularly

dexterous. This creature serves as a host to beings of

Classification DTRC.

Classification:FGLI

Planet:Traltha

Species:Tralthan

Individuals:Patient Cossunallen, Crajarron, Chief Dietitian

Gurronsevas, Patient Horrantor, Senior Physician Hossantir,

Surriltor, Senior Diagnostician-in-Charge of Pathology Thorn-nastor

A massive entity with an osseous dome housing its brain, six

el-ephantine feet connected to its triple massive shoulders, and

four extensible eyes on an immobile head. Its six stubby legs

normally give the Tralthan species such a stable base they

frequently go to sleep standing up. Even healthy Tralthans have

great difficulty get-ting up again if they fall onto their sides.

Tralthans must not be rolled onto their backs under normal gravity

conditions since this causes organic displacement which would

increase their respira-tory difficulties. Standard gravity at Sector

General is just over half Tralthan normal. Tralthans are

vegetarians.

Classification:FOKT

Planet:Goglesk

Species:Gogleskan

Individuals:Healer '(hone and child

The Gogleskan FOKT resembles a large, dumpy cactuslike plant whose

spikes and hair are richly colored in a pattern which seems less

random the more you look at it. A faint smell comes from the entity,

a combination of musk and peppermint. The mass of un-ruly hair and

spikes covering its erect, ovoid body are less irregular in their

size and placing than is at first apparent. The body hair has

mobility, though not the high degree of flexibility and rapid

mo-bility of the Kelgian fur, and the spikes, some of which are

extremely flexible and grouped together to form a digital cluster,

give evi-dence of specialization. The other spikes are longer and

stiffer, and some of them seem to be partially atrophied, as if they

were evolved for natural defense, but the reason for their presence

has long since gone. There are also a number of long, pale tendrils

lying amid the multicolored hair covering the cranial area, used for

contact telepa-thy. Its voice seems to come from a number of small,

vertical breath-ing orifices which encircles its waist. The being

sits on a flat, mus-cular pad, and it has legs as well. These

members are stubby and concertina-like, and when the four of them

are in use they increase the height of the being by several inches.

The being al50 has two additional eyes at the back of its

head~obviously this species has had to be very watchful in

prehistoric times.

Classification:FROB

Planet:Hudlar

Species:Hudlar, Hudlarian

Individuals:Patient FROB-3, Patient FROB-lO, Patient FROB-18,

Patient FROB-43, Patient FROB-1 132, Trainee FROB-61, Trainee

FROB-73, Senior Physician Garoth, Infant Patient Metiglesh

Hudlars are blocky, pear-shaped beings whose home planet pulls four

Earth gravities and has a high-density atmosphere so rich in

suspended animal and vegetable nutrients that it resembles thick

soup. Although the FROB life-form is warm-blooded and techni-cally

an oxygen-breather, it can go for long periods without air if its

food supply, which it absorbs directly through its thick but highly

porous tegument, is adequate. Hudlars are massive six legged

be-ings. Each leg is an immensely strong tapering tentacle, which

ter-minates in a cluster of flexible digits, curled inward so that

the weight is born on heavy knuckles and the fingers remain clear of

the floor. The two lidless, recessed eyes are protected by hard,

trans-parent and featureless casings. Hudlars communicate using a

speak-mg membrane, which grows like a cock's comb from the top of

the head. The speaking membrane also serves as a sound sensor. The

skin resembles a seamless covering of flexible armor in appearance

and texture. Food is ingested through organs of absorption that

cover both flanks and the wastes are eliminated by a similar

mecha-nism on the underside. Both systems are under voluntary

control. Because of the physiological necessity for avoiding further

sexual contact with its life-mate, a gravid Hudlar female changes

gradu-ally into male mode and, concurrently, its life-mate slowly

becomes female. A Hudlar year after partuition the changes to both

are com-plete.The Hudlar FROBs are acknowledged to be, physically,

stron-gest life-forms of the Galactic Federation and to have the

least-pervious body tegument. Contact with chlorine is instantly

lethal to them. Hudlar blood is yellow and circulates under great

pres-sure and pulse rate. Hudlars consider their names to be their

most private and personal possession, and do not give or use their

names in the presence of anyone who is not a member of the family or

a close friend.

Classification:FSOJ

Planet:Unknown

Species:Protectors of the Unborn

No Individual Names Known

The Protector of the Unborn is a large, immensely strong life-form

that resembles aTralthan, but is less massive with stubbier legs

pro-jecting from a hemispherical carapace flared out slightly around

the lower edges. The deployment of the legs and tentacles is

simi-lar to the Hudlar FROB life-form, but the carapace is a thicker

ELNT Melfan shell without markings, and the FSOJ is plainly not

herbivorous. From openings high on the carapace sprout four

ten-tacles. Two different types of tentacles have been observed on

dif-ferent beings: long and particularly thin tentacles which

terminate in flat, spear-like tips with serrated boney edges, and

thick tentacles terminating in a cluster ofsharp, bony projections

which make them resemble spiked clubs. The four stubby legs also

have osseous pro-jections which enable them to be used as weapons as

well. Midway between two of the tentacle openings there is a larger

gap in the carapace from which protrudes a head, all mouth and

teeth. The large upper and lower mandibles are capable of deforming

all but the strongest metal alloys. A little space is reserved for

two well-protected eyes at the bottom of deep, boney craters. A

serrated tail also protrudes from the heavily slitted carapace.

While the under-side is not armored, as is the carapace, this area

is rarely open to attack, and it is covered by a thick tegument

which apparently gives sufficient protection. In the center of this

area is a thin, longitudi-nal fissure which opens into the birth

canal. It will not open, how-ever, until a few minutes before giving

birth. The FSOJ brain is not in its skull, but deep inside the torso

with the rest of the other vital organs. It is positioned just under

the womb and surrounding the beginning of the birth canal. As a

result, the brain is compressed as the embryo grows. If it is a

difficult birth, the parent's brain is destroyed and junior comes

out fighting, with a convenient food supply available until it can

kill something for itself Senior Physi-cians Conway's first

impression was that the entity was little more than an organic

killing machine. Considering the fact that it is warm-blooded and

oxygen-breathing, and its appendages show no evidence of the ability

to manipulate tools or materials, Patholo-gist Murchison tentatively

classified it as FSOJ and probably non-intelligent. The Unborn young

of the bisexual FSOJ is retained in the womb until it is well-grown

and fully equipped to survive. The Unborn is an intelligent and

telepathic being, but loses these fac-ulties at birth.

Classification:GKNM

Planet:Ia

Species:Ian (adult)

Individual:Patient Makolli

The metamorphosed form of the adolescent DBLF life-form. The species

created a colony in this galaxy, coming from an adjoining one. The

race is oxygen-breathing and oviparous, having a long, rod-like but

flexible body, and possessing four insectile legs, ma-nipulators,

the usual sense organs, and three tremendous sets of wings. The

life-form looks something like a large dragonfly.

Classification:GLNO

Planet:Cinruss

Species:Cinrusskin

Individual:Senior Physician Prilicla

Cinrusskins are enormous, incredibly fragile flying insects, with a

tubular exoskeletal body. Six sucker-tipped pencil-thin legs, four

even more delicately fashioned, tiny, precise manipulators, and four

sets ofwide, iridescent, and almost transparent wings project form

the body. The head is a convoluted eggshell, so finely structured

that the sensory and manipulatory organs that it supports seem ready

to fall off at the first sudden movement. The eyes are large and

triple-lidded. The Cinrusskin are the Federation's only empathic

race. Cinruss has a dense atmosphere and one-eighth gravity.

Cinrusskins are sexless.

Classification:LSVO

Planet:Nallaji

Species:Nallajim

Individuals:Kytili, Senior Physician Seldal

The species has a birdlike, fragile, low-gravity physiology, with

three legs, two not-quite-atrophied wings, and no hands at all. When

LSVOs eat, they are sickened by anything which doesn't look like

bird seed.

Classification:MSVK

Planet:Euril

Species:Eurils

No Individual Names Known

Fragile, tn-pedal, stork-like beings from a low gravity world. The

MSVK environment has dim lighting and a opaque fog for an

at-mosphere. The race is driven by an intense curiosity and hampered

by extreme caution. They are the galaxy's prime observers, and are

content to look and learn and record through their long-probes and

sensors without making their presence known. MSVKs have a low

tolerance to radiation.

Classification:OTSB

Planet:Traltha

Species:Tralthan

No Individual Names Known

Tralthan Surgeons are really two beings instead of one, a

combina-tion of FGLI and OTSB.The OTSB is a nearly mindless symbiont

which lives with its FGLI host. At first glance the OTSB looks like

a furry ball sprouting a long ponytail, but a closer look shows that

the ponytail is composed of scores of fine manipulators, most of

which incorporate sensitive visual organs. A cluster of wire-thin,

eye- and sucker-tipped tentacles sends infinitely detailed visual

in-formation to its giant host and receives instructions from the

host. The Tralthan combinations are the best surgeons the Galaxy has

ever known. Not all Tralthans choose to link up with a symbiote, but

FGLI medics wear them like a badge of office.

Classification:PVGJ

Planet:Unknown

Species:Name Unknown

Individual:Doctor Fremvessith

Apparent typographical error for Classification PVSJ.

Classification:PVSJ

Planet:Illensa

Species:Illensan

Individuals:Senior Physician Gilvesh, Charge Nurse Hredlichi,

Diagnostician Lachlichi, Charge Nurse Leethveeschi

Probable Individual:Charge Nurse Lentilatsar

Illensans are chlorine breathers with shapeless spiny bodies and

dry, rustling membranes joining the upper and lower appendages. The

body resembles a haphazard collection of oily, yellow-green,

un-healthy vegetation. The two stubby legs are covered by what look

like oily blisters. Their loose protective suits are transparent

except for the faint yellow fog of chlorine contained within. The

Illensans are generally held to be the most visually repulsive

beings in the Federation, as well as the most vain regarding their

own physical appearance. Illensans suffer digestive upsets if they

exercise after meals. Contact with water is instantly lethal to

chlorine-breathers. PVSJs are not physiologically suited to the use

of stairs and have very sensitive hearing.

Classification:QCQL

Planet:Unknown

Species:Name Unknown

No Individual Names Known

Apparent typographical error for Classification QLCL. Senior

Phy-sician Mannen did not know there was any such beastie, but

Ma-jor O'Mara had a tape. There were two casualties of this

classifica-tion at Sector General. The operations were suit jobs,

since the gunk that the QCQLs breath would kill anything that walks,

crawls or flies, excluding them.

Classification:QLCL

Planet:Unknown

Species:Name Unknown

No Individual Names Known

Recent, and very enthusiastic, members of the Federation, this

species had never been to Sector General until the war with the

Empire. Then a small ward was prepared to receive possible QLCL

casualties. The ward was filled with the horribly corrosive fog the

QLCLs used for an atmosphere, and the lighting was stepped up to the

harsh, actinic blue which the they consider restful.

Classification:SNLU

Planet:Unknown

Species:Name: Vosan

Individual:Diagnostician Semlic

The SNLU life form requires a refrigerated life-support system for

its ultra-low-temperature environment while on the Chlorine and

Oxygen levels. A frigid-blooded methane-breather, it is most

com-fortable in an environment only a few degrees above absolute

zero. The SNLUs have a complex mineral and liquid crystalline

struc-ture. The species evolved on the perpetually dark worlds which

detached from their original solar systems and now drift through the

interstellar spaces. Physically they are quite small, averaging

one-third the body mass of a being like a Kelgian. In order to allow

contact with other, warmer, species, the SN LUs are required to wear

a large, complex, highly refrigerated life-support and sensor

trans-lation system, which requires frequent power recharge. The

scales covering the SNLU's eight-limbed, starfish-shaped body shine

coldly through the methane mist like multihued diamonds, mak-ing it

resemble some wondrous, heraldic beast. The SNLUs live and work in

the almost total silence of beings with a hypersensitiv-ity to

audible vibrations. These fragile, crystalline, methane-based

life-forms would decompose at temperatures in excess of eighteen

degrees above absolute zero and be instantly cremated if the

tem-perature rose above minus one-twenty on the temperature scale in

use in the Federation.

Classification:SRJH

Planet:Drambo

Species:Healers or Physicians or Protectors

No Individual Names Known

The Drambon Physicians are glorified leucocytes to the Drambon

Strata Creatures, treating the many independent organisms living in

and around those immense living carpets. The stupid, slow moving

Drambon Physicians stay close to the most active and dan-gerous

stretches of the Drambon shoreline. They resemble jelly-fish, so

transparent that only their internal organs are visible. A

leech-like form of life, the SRJHs seem comfortable in either air or

water. Their reactions in the presence of severe illness or injury

are instinctive. Using their spines or stings, they practice their

profes-sion by withdrawing the blood of their patients and pun fying

it of any infection or toxic substances before returning it to the

patients' bodies. (The process repairs simple physical damage as

well.) How-ever, not all the withdrawn blood is returned. It has not

been es-tablished whether it is physiologically impossible for the

SRJH to return it all or whether the Physician retains a few ounces

as pay-ment for services rendered. A Physicians can kill as well as

cure. It can barely touch a beast, causing a predator to go into a

muscular spasm so violent that parts of its skeleton pop through the

skin. There is no evidence that they communicate verbally, visually,

tac-tually, telepathically, by smell or by any other system known to

Sector General. The quality of their emotional radiation suggests

that they do not communicate at all in the accepted sense. The

Physicians are simply aware ofother beings and objects around them

and, by using their eyes and a mechanism similar to the empathic

faculty, they are able to identi~ friend and foe.

Classification:SRTT

Planet:Unknown

Species:Name Unknown

No Individual Names Known

This physiological type is amoebic, possessing the ability to

extrude any limbs, sensory organs or protective tegument necessary

to the environment in which it finds itself. It is so fantastically

adaptable that it is difficult to imagine how one of these beings

could ever fall sick in the first place.

Classification:TLTU

Planet:Threcald 5

Species:Name Unknown

Individual:TLTU Diagnostician

A TLTU doctor breathes superheated steam and has pressure and

gravity requirements three times greater than the environment of the

oxygen levels. The local protection needed by a TLTU doctor is a

great, clanking juggernaut which hisses continually as if it is

about to spring a leak. The large protective suit resembles a

spheri-cal pressure boiler bristling with remote handling devices

and mounted on caterpillar treads, and has to be avoided at all

costs. The large size is needed to allow for heaters to render the

occupant comfortable, and surface insulation and refrigerators to

keep the vicinity habitable by other life-forms. The small TLTU

life-form inhabits a heavy-gravity, watery planet with edible

minerals, which circles very close to its parent sun. The TLTU's

blood consists of superheated liquid metal. TLTU patients are

transported in their protective spheres anchored to stretcher

carriers. These spheres emit a high-pitched, shuddering whine as

their generators labor to main-tain the internal temperature at a

comfortable, for their occupants, five hundred degrees.

Classification:TOBS

Planet:Fotawn

Species:Name Unknown

Individual:Trainee/Doctor Danalta

This being can extrude any limbs, sense organs, or protective

tegu-ment necessary to the environment or situation in which it

finds it-self. It evolved on a planet with a highly eccentric orbit,

and with climatic changes so severe that an incredible degree of

physical adapt-ability was necessary for survival. It became

dominant on its world, and developed intelligence and a

civilization, not by competing in the matter of natural weapons but

by refining and perfecting its adap-tive capability. When it is

faced by natural enemies, the options are flight, protective

mimicry, or the assumption of a shape frightening to the attacker.

The speed and accuracy of the mimicry, particularly in the almost

perfect reproduction ofbehavior patterns, suggests that the entity

may be a receptive empath. The empathic faculty is under voluntary

control, so that the level of emotional radiation reaching its

receptors can be reduced, or even cut off at will, should it become

too distressing. With such effective means of self-protection

avail-able, the species is impervious to physical damage other than

by com-plete annihilation or application of ultrahigh

temperatures.The con-cept of curative surgery would be a strange one

indeed to members of that race. They do not require mechanisms for

self-protection, so they are likely to be advanced in the

philosophical sciences but back-ward in developing technology. When

not trying to look like some-thing else, TOBSs take the

configuration of a large, dark-green, uneven ball.

Classification:TRLH

Planet:Unknown

Species:Name Unknown

No Individual Names Known

The TRLH casualty was an ally of the Empire during that war.

Classification was aided by the fact that the patient's spacesuit

was transparent as well as flexible. The atmosphere the being

breathes is as exotic as that of the QCQLs, but can be reproduced.

The TRLH has a thin carapace which covers its back and curves down

and inwards to protect the central area of its underside. Four

thick, single-jointed legs project from the uncovered sections. It

has a large but lightly boned head, four manipulatory appendages,

two recessed but extensible eyes, and two mouths.

Classification:VTXM

Planet:Telf

Species:Telfi, Telphi

Individual:Astrogator-part Cheixic

A group-mind species whose small beetle-like bodies live by the

direct conversion of various combinations and intensities of hard

radiation. Mthough individually the beings are quite stupid, the

gestalt entities are highly intelligent. The Telfi operate in groups

as contact telepaths to pool their mental and physical abilities.

The Telfi have a spoken language as well as the telepathic faculty

used between individuals, especially members of a family gestalt.

An-other variant of the species resembles a large, terrestrial

lizard, just under five feet long from the bulbous head to vestigial

tail, with an extra set of fore-limbs growing from the base of the

neck. The only visible features are two tiny, lidless eyes and the

mouth. The four stubby walking limbs can be bent double to lie flat

against the body while the two, longer forward manipulators can

stretch forward and cross so as to allow the chin to rest on the

crossover point. The skin of a dead Telfi is pale gray with a

mottled and veined effect that resembles unpolished marble. The

color is a symptom of ad-vanced radiation starvation and a lethal

failure of the absorption mechanism. A healthy Telfi reflects no

light at all, looking like liz-ard-shaped black holes. A

healthyTelfi's temperature is below room temperature. Investigating

their ultra-hot metabolism closely is to risk radiation poisoning.

There is a fallacy among non-medics that the Telfi cannot be closely

approached or touched without the use of remotely controlled

manipulators. To live they must absorb the radiation normally

provided by their natural environment but when, for clinical

reasons, the radiation is withdrawn for several days and they are

week from their equivalent of hunger, their ra-dioactive emissions

drop to a harmless level.

Classification:VUXG

Planet:Unknown

Species:Name Unknown

Individual:Dr. Arretapec

The VUXG resembles nothing so much as a withered prune float-mg in a

spherical gob of syrup. The species has telepathic, teleportive,

and~sort of~precognitive abilities. The precognitive ability does

not appear to be of much use because it does not work with

individuals but only with populations, and so far in the fu-ture and

in such a haphazard manner that it is practically useless.

Classification:Unknown

Planet:Drambo

Species:Farmer Fish

No Individual Names Known

The large-headed Farmer Fish are responsible for cultivating and

protecting benign growth and destroying all other growth in the

Drambon Strata Creature. Farmer Fish have stubby arms sprout-ing

from the base of their enlarged heads.

Classification:Unknown

Planet:Drambo

Species:Strata Creatures

No Individual Names Known

The largest creature on the planet Drambo~so large that at a

scoutship's suborbital velocity of six thousand plus miles per hour

it takes just over nine minutes to travel from one side of the

pa-tient to the other. The creature is so vast that it has many

indepen-dent parts performing specialized functions, such as the eye

plants, air renewal plants, Farmer Fish, Thought Controlled Tools,

and vegetable teeth. The parts can communicate via a mineral-rich

sap. The creature uses water instead of blood as its working fluid.

It is not clear if the entire creature is an animal or a plant,

there being components of both in its immense expanse. There is only

one intelligent Strata Creature on Drambo, and it is being treated

for radiation poisoning.

Classification:Unknown

Planet:Drambo

Species:Thought Controlled Tools

No Individual Names Known

Under the mental control of its user, a "tool" can assume any

use-ful shape imagined. At Sector General, one appeared as a Hudlar

type six scalpel, a medium-sized box spanner, a metallic sphere, a

miniature bust of Beethoven, a set of Tralthan dentures, and a

Hudlar food sprayer, among other things. The tools belong to the

only sentient Strata Creature on Drambo, and were used to attack the

medical and military forces attempting to treat the Strata Crea-ture

for radiation poisoning.

Classification:Unknown

Planet:Dutha

Species:Duthan

Individuals:Patient Bowab, His Excellency the Lord Scrennagle of

Dutha

Duthans have a centaur-like body. The torso from the waist up

resembles that of an Earth-human, but the musculature of the arms,

shoulders and chest are subtly different. The hands are five-digi

ted, each comprised of three fingers and two opposable thumbs. The

head is carried erect above a very thick neck, which seems

dispro-portionately small.The face is dominated by two large, soft,

brown eyes that somehow make the slits, pro tuberan ces, and fleshy

petals which comprise the other features visually acceptable.

Classification:Unknowm

Planet:Keran

Species:Keranni

No Individual Names Known

No description given.

Classification:Unknown

Planet:Unknown

Species:Kreglinni

No Individual Names Known

No description given.

Classification:Various

Planet:Meatball

Species:CLCH/CLHG Drambon Rollers, Drambon Farmer Fish, Drambon

Strata Creatures, Drambon Thought Controlled Tools, SRJH Drambon

Healers or Physicians or Protectors

The planet was originally named by the crew of Descartes, but the

name was considered derogatory by one of the native intelligent

species. The planet is now referred to as Drambo.