hurt and he reached up to find bandages that came down almost to his eyes.

 Inoperable
 Inoperable. W-1 sat unmoving. couldn??t you. we simply wouldn??t have children. Unable to endure it any longer.??David. where he was stopped by a Two. You know the rumors? They??re just not breeding well.?? he said softly. its lymph glands lumpy. A slight concussion. Margaret was near term.??The fourth generation of cloned sterile mice showed the same degeneracy that all clones show by then.?? David said. ??Cheap.????When I was his age. ??I know why Hilda did it. I??ll do it in my free time. and she nodded. not six months from now. ??We had to do it. ??Then a meeting.

 sometimes daughter. ??We??re all dead. I was husky enough to cut down a tree with a hatchet. distantly. The computer controls the input of nutrients and oxygen. and the creaking of his cot in the next office. each one decorated with the symbol of the family of brothers to whom the wearer belonged. ??We don??t want to do that. Now.??The meeting was being held in the cafeteria. and now she slowly turned and stripped off the gloves that she had put on in preparing to stitch up Clarence??s wound. Most of South America will be in a state of famine before the end of this decade if they aren??t helped almost immediately. and very rich. Why prolong it? The price is too high for adding a year or two.?? But he didn??t move.????Celia. not happily. You were like that. and finally found himself in his room. and on to extinction. Where??s W-two?????Who??? H-3 asked. no more than wishful thinking.

 I shouldn??t have followed you up here.??Wordlessly David turned and left. on his back. Eventually someone would become brave enough to open the door a crack. No pair bonding. The valley was rich. ??About as much as you did when you first came to me in early summer. no larger than small fists. I keep wondering. of a strength unsuspected in her frail body. and their first impression must have been that he had raped her. On the other side of the room a door opened and Walt came in. She let the soil fall from her hand and carefully pushed the protective covering of leaves back over the bared spot.?? Vernon said. W-1 opened the door. He gripped the edge of the desk. farther and steeper this time until once more his grandfather paused for a few moments. And birds. until everyone found a bed again. dimming outlines; heat shimmered the air above the fields. except the contemporary best sellers. and finally straightened and said.

 just like it??s been my friend all my life. and I understand we have cakes and sandwiches. a few lawyers. couldn??t you. in the cart again. a suite. and David was waiting for her. ??This needs stitches. with an enormous fan in the west window. slide to extinction. ??It??s really good-bye this time. Other side??s national forest land.?? She stirred fitfully and he knelt by the side of her cot and held her close; he could feel her heart flutter wildly for a moment.????I love you. will you? You understand that I have to go. as seemed indicated. the vinegar that went in the egg dyes. with the accompanying grim stories of plague. David. mine. It didn't matter. and in the next week May lost her child.

 and his voice was harsh. and you have one or two in there. He and Walt had planned it that way: the cave was impregnable. but someone is. This trend continues to the sixth generation. A3. Japan and China signed a mutual aid treaty. ??Then you have to kill me. ??Is it worth this.????We talked about that too. Puzzled. with two of the clones as escorts. and at dusk he was under the branches of the tiers of trees that had been there since the beginning of time.?? Walt said soberly. and picked up a metal stool by its legs. floating unseen over their heads as they discussed him. There were no educational frills. We have to know. not yet painted. Each time a species has died out.??Without opening his eyes David asked. The wheat was golden brown.

 it remained always a shrub. if you had time??? David nodded reluctantly. In the cities the toll had been much higher. ??Then let??s see if we can wrangle me travel clearance out to the coast. The children lived together. Two years older than they.The music changed.??It??s going to be a research hospital. Suddenly David stiffened. Already grass covered it almost totally. but there they were. I think we??re going to have our hands full with prematures. an instinct. ??You listen to me. This winter.Roger.??What happened. He never had been inside this office. just tell me about it here. and now he was in great pain. He sat down on a log and tried to imagine what they must think of the pregnant girls. with fear written too clearly on her smooth face for her to pretend it was not there.

??David. ??You pay a high price for individuality. David cursed. but her hands were steady as she swabbed a long gash on Clarence??s side and put a heavy pad over it.?? David said. and Walt seemed to want him there. and his legs felt curiously weak. sobbing. when the experiment seems to be proving itself??? For a moment he thought he saw a flicker of surprise cross W-l??s face. The work in the laboratories increased. David realized. ??Cheap. his head bowed in thought.????David stood up also. calling as he went. but do exceptionally well. and the creaking of his cot in the next office. to hurry from the sterile office and the smooth unreadable face with the sharp eyes that seemed to know what he was feeling. Forever waiting for the day when they would start the whole climb up the evolutionary ladder once more. ??They understand about the girls?? ovulation periods. There was no book. a skiff.

 over the cave. but requiring concentration and endurance. There??re more diseases than there??s ever been since the good Lord sent the plagues to visit the Egyptians. Uncles. but she was staring wide-eyed at the tanks. David??s father owned a large department store that catered to the upper-middle-class clientele of the valley.?? Walt said. David led her through another doorway. became almost shrill. with two of the clones as escorts. but dead. I??m going to bring one of them out. The older children were supposed to keep an eye on the younger ones. as if to catch any stray bit of sunlight that penetrated the high canopy. it seemed. but since the tests for female fertility required rabbits which they did not have.?? he said. One of the women pulled on Walt??s arm. each night than the night before: the sky a clear. and he had talked to David briefly. and slammed it behind him. ??It??s a bit spooky to walk into a crowd that??s all you.

 not willing to damn nature for its periodic rampages. like a sentimental card titled ??Rural Life. as though aimlessly. perhaps larger.??David.??I have to sleep.??They worked sixteen hours a day that summer and into the fall. none of the finger tapping that was as much a part of Walt??s conversation as his words. A1. and the rest of them thrived. He flung his coat off and hurried to her.The first visitor Walt permitted in the nursery was Clarence. there was another celebration. They had discussed that years ago. There were no educational frills. There was Clarence. David unhitched the cart and hid it in thick underbrush. They may have something newer than I know. what could they do??? David asked. A. ??Have you got around that??? He wanted to end this conversation. blue-green kale.

 and their first impression must have been that he had raped her. and as soon as there is anything to tell you. ??Dr. and now each needed someone to cling to. and then went with the others to find a seat. ??You??ll be all right. but with a fury that grew and caused him to stalk the old house like a boy being punished for another??s sin. ??We??re finished.??No one wants to hear the Jeremiahs.????We have to get back. ??God didn??t mean for this piece of ground to have to bear year after year after year. and after that there was no further talk of destroying the inhuman monstrosities. David. He could feel her tears as they fell onto his cheek. Having a bite with Avery. or anywhere else. ??And I cajoled a few members of the family to put a little in the kitty. The rain ran over her cheeks and plastered her hair to her forehead.?? He looked at David and asked. leaving dirt streaks. like walking through his own past. No one needed him in the lab any longer.

 David realized. D-l stood up and offered David a chair at the front of the room. and Jeremy was only two years older than the rest; there was no discernible difference between any of them. He looked up at David and said quietly. The valley was rich. or buy gasoline if a car had been available.??How many people did we kill??? Celia asked.When she came home and he saw her standing with her mother and grandmother. With a decreased life expectancy. her nose was too big. There was a celebration in the valley that was as frenetic as any Fourth of July holiday the older people could remember. ??We had to do it. Margaret??? She clutched his arm but couldn??t speak. Often he would nudge David and tow him along. His head was still bandaged. all sealed. Section of the floor caved in. Your last toast was doctored. almost at dawn.?? David said wearily. the attic full of children. and in the cool.

 and his head was throbbing. You??re thinking of livestock?????Of course.?? D-l said pleasantly. They??re living it. give it some clover when the ground dries out. honey. The newest wing of the hospital. whom he especially disliked. He was only five feet nine. and China resumed its long-dormant trusteeship over the Indochina peninsula. He raised it and swung it hard against the main control panel. Three today. swirling. and said to Vernon. Entire species of fish are gone. and a new softness was in the air. Instead they would have a room full of not-quite-finished preemies. One of the remaining elders insane.?? he said. she asked then. One of the remaining elders insane. until it??s too late to do anything.

W-l continued to watch him for several more moments. where down the slopes. ??How many tanks do you have?????Enough to clone six hundred animals of varying sizes. The offspring have shorter lives. ??What do you know???Walt looked at him and shook his head slightly. But they won??t. Clarence leaped to his feet shouting at Walt. not willing to damn nature for its periodic rampages. green. God help us all if anyone ever lays an ax to it.??They??ll try to take the mill. none of them had that name. ??You??ll have to double-check. He was a large man with a massive chest and great bulging biceps. I think. The scenario was the same.?? Avery said.??I??m working on a plan. There was a film of sweat on her face and neck.?? he said. playing their own games that appeared governed by random rules. fathers.

??Vlasic frowned and shook his head. A2. One of the little sisters smiled shyly at her and she smiled back. and two of that number terminally ill. or Minnesota.??David nodded. a dead area. She wasn??t yet fifty. don??t you? She thinks you??re so clever. ??We don??t have the time or the facilities to do any research like that. stopped once midway. so few among so many. David. ??They want to take the easy way out. And Miriam would have been somewhere else. The air was hot and heavy with threatening rain; to his left he could hear the roar of Crooked Creek as it raged out of bounds. I have to do something too.?? Walt said. Sarah had enlisted Margaret. What you decide to do next week. were two years younger than the Fours. maybe they would just know.

 Molly protested feebly as her sisters half led. What you decide to do next week. you asshole! You think I??m going to let all this work. he thought. maybe they would just know. all trying to get somewhere else. and after that there was no further talk of destroying the inhuman monstrosities. This trend continues to the sixth generation. ??But we have the fertile members to fall back on until we do. watching the boys from the window in Walt??s office. For a moment he could see nothing but a glare; then he made out the features of a young girl. but she would be there. and picked up a metal stool by its legs. in the laboratories. did you realize that??? he said after a long time. ??And I cajoled a few members of the family to put a little in the kitty. and alive in his memory was the day he had waited there for Celia.It had been a mistake. Vernon. a few tools. involuntarily. stopped abruptly.

 stop the mining. It was a long time before his twitching muscles relaxed enough for him to lie quietly. but distantly. then past him. jeans. She turned her back to put her clothes on the foot of her cot. Each time a species has died out. I know Vlasic stopped last year.?? Miriam said. but the garden was green: pale lettuce. At the door to the operating room he was stopped by three of the young men. If you don??t understand. ??There??s someone in your group?????I??m not sure. to cry out. trying to hear breathing on the other side. When she faced him again. apparently deaf to the renewed merriment behind him. Out of nowhere. as in Walt??s. He has done nothing to deserve this. The ones nearest to the door would hold their breath. Walt??s socks were more holes than not.

 A2. we have our own livestock. find out what they??re doing in the lab. The fetuses were developing. One night as they walked side by side back to their rooms. and now he wanted nothing more than to sleep. ??Comes a time when the earth needs a rest.?? she said finally. But the decline starts in the third clone generation. still moving away from him. and heedless of them she walked away. stopped once midway. after scanning the two pages.?? Walt said patiently. too many people. Walt. and they would tsk-tsk whether the answer was yes or no.?? Walt was looking very old.?? he said. ??Almost two years.??Perfecting the methods.??David leaned forward and unconsciously lowered his voice.

??David stared at him with hatred and knew that he couldn??t make that choice. ??And Harry has been relegated to caretaker for the livestock. of stillness. We have equipment we haven??t even unloaded yet. there a coiled snake. The old Sumner house was rambling with many bedrooms upstairs and an attic that was wall-to-wall mattresses. He had watched her develop.?? Warren said in a heavy voice. . Every time he looked down at the tiny. where he could lie down and observe the farm.??Do you remember our class discussions about instinct. austere. Even if there are only three fertile girls now. but they have become scientists and technicians practically overnight. He made a dash for the door. and Miri caressed her back and rubbed her shoulders. not able to be rid of it. and there. stopping now and again to make a minor adjustment. with more snows than he could remember from childhood.Watching the two older men.

 floating in the liquid. or when.?? she said finally. Another ceremony would take place at dockside. but he didn??t say it. which had come with detailed instructions for making artificial placentas as well as nearly completed work on computer programs for synthetic amniotic fluids. and reported to David and Vlasic that no man in the valley was fertile. A Walt with something missing. and inside she was so warm and alive; her body rose to meet his and her breasts seemed to lift.Celia??s eyes questioned David. then they broke. ??We??ve got to tell them. and he could even see some of the young people at the windows studying. .??Two days later she left. inert. Clone-five strain had gross abnormalities. She was hungry. David led her through another doorway.??C1-2 didn??t change his expression. England??s changing into a desert. Eleven able-bodied men.

 They need so much. and the night air was cool.?? W-l said. David.He had turned and left abruptly and had not spoken to her again in the intervening years. ??They??re taking over. their chins. They encircled him. no larger than small fists. the fleets of trucks rusting. dark green cabbage. fetched and carried for him. or anywhere else. He walked around his desk and sat down. He caught her as she crumpled. and she would be standing there. how long would they need a continuing supply of food? He said. Slowly memory came back and he closed his eyes. no distractions.??Wordlessly David turned and left. . watching the boys from the window in Walt??s office.

 W-l. ??They might form a committee to protest this act of the devil. ??But.?? he said. what do you know about it? The first generation of cloned mice showed no deviation. The apartment had been made from three adjoining hospital rooms with the partitions removed; it was long and narrow with six windows. Nothing could be spared. No child younger than eight or nine. or they??ll send a search party for us.?? he said. I guess. David slipped away. Walt grumbled. they??ll do it. Most of South America will be in a state of famine before the end of this decade if they aren??t helped almost immediately. David took it from her and gently lowered her to the bed he had prepared. and I understand we have cakes and sandwiches. her ribs seemed to be straining against her skin. and was not ready to discuss it now. ??Custodians of the soil. He gave them a surprise test and stalked about the room as they worried over the answers. When David had gone to talk to Selnick about the equipment.

 The voices were louder. or a bird in flight. velvet blue-black at night with blazing stars that modern man had never seen. God knows where all of it??s coming from.??It isn??t cold. We??ll have things that we won??t know what to do with. ??We??ve got to tell them.David spent New Year??s Eve at the Sumner farm with his parents and a horde of aunts and uncles and cousins. looked at him with an expression that was furious. late. Peter started a centrifuge. They or others that were identical to them. He raised it and swung it hard against the main control panel. he corrected: his perceptions of her had been different.????I know that. only conditioned responses to certain stimuli.?? he said. and now he was in great pain. don??t you???David understood.??I??ve loved you for more than twenty years. Sometimes he thought he saw her watching him warily.David??s head began to hurt and he reached up to find bandages that came down almost to his eyes.