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.The eyes did not blink.The features were unstirred by emotions.The organism haddeteriorated into a mere perceiving-machine.Sense-organs that swivelled back and forth ceaselessly,taking in data although how much eventually reached the brain, was recorded and understood, Godknew.Perhaps absolutely none.A familiar personality manifested itself, clipboard in hand."I knew you'd eventually reappear,"Dr.Todt said to Lars, but nevertheless he looked drastically relieved."Did you walk?""Must have," Lars said."You don't remember."Lars said, "Nothing.But I'm tired.""There's a tendency," Dr.Todt said, "for even major psychoses to get walked off, given enoughtime.The Nomadic Solution.It's just that there's not enough time in most cases.As for you, there's notime at all." He turned then to Ricardo Hastings."As to him, what are you going to try first?"Lars studied the huddled old figure."A biopsy.""I don't understand.""I want a tissue-sample taken.I don't care what from, any part of him.""Why?"Lars said, "In addition to a microscopic analysis I want it carbon-dated.How accurate is the newcarbon-17-B dating method?""Down to fractions of a year.Months.""That's what I thought.Okay, there won't be any sketches, trances, any other activity from me,until the carbon dating results are in."Dr.Todt gestured."Who can question the ways of the Immortals?""How long will it take?""We can have the results by three this afternoon.""Good," Lars said."I'll go get a shower, a new pair of shoes and I think a new cloak.To cheermyself up.""The shops are closed.People are warned to stay underground during the emergency.The areastaken now include ""Don't rattle off a list.I heard on the trip here.""Are you honestly not going to go into a trance?" Dr.Todt said."No.There's no need to.Lilo's tried it."Lilo said, "Do you want to see my sketches, Lars?""I'll look at them." He held out his hand and after a moment a pile of sketches was given to him.He leafed briefly through them and saw what he had expected no less, no more.He set them themdown on a nearby table."They are of an elaborate construct," Dr.Todt pointed out. "Of an android," Lilo said hopefully, her eyes fixed on Lars.He said, "They're of him." He pointed at the ancient huddled shape with its ceaselessly revolving,turret-like head."Or rather it.You didn't pick up the contents of its mind.You picked up theanatomical ingredients constituting its biochemical basis.What makes it go.The artificial mechanismthat it is." He added."I'm aware that it's an android, and I know the carbon-dating of the biopsysample will bear this out.What I want to learn is its exact age."After a time Dr.Todt said hoarsely, "Why?""How long," Lars said, "have the aliens been in our midst?""A week.""I doubt," Lars said, "whether an android as perfectly built as this one could be thrown together ina week."Lib said presently, "Then the builder knew if you're right ""Oh, hell," Lars said."I'm right.Look at your own sketches and tell me if they aren't of 'RicardoHastings.' I mean it.Go ahead." He picked up the sketches, presented them to her; she accepted themreflexively and in a numbed, sightless way turned from one to the next, nodding faintly."Who could have built such a successful android?" Dr.Todt said, glancing over Lilo's shoulder."Who has the facilities and the capabilities, not to mention the inspirational talent?"Lars said, "Lanferman Associates.""Anyone else?" Dr.Todt said."Not that I know of." Through KACH, he of course had a fairly accurate concept of Peep-East'sfacilities.They had nothing comparable.Nothing was comparable to Lanferman Associates, whichafter all stretched subsurface from San Francisco to Los Angeles: an economic, industrial organismfive hundred miles long.And making androids which could pass, under close scrutiny, as authentic human beings, was oneof their major enterprises.All at once Ricardo Hastings croaked."If it hadn't been for that accident when that power-surgeoverloaded the "Lars, walking over, interrupted him, abruptly."Are you operating on intrinsic?"The ancient, dim eyes confronted him.But there was no answer; the sunken mouth did not stir,now."Come on," Lars said."Which is it, intrinsic or remote? Are you homeostatic or are you areceptor for instructions coming from an outside point? Frankly, I'd guess you're fully intrinsic.Programmed in advance." To Lilo and Dr.Todt he said, "That explains what you call its 'senility.' Therepetition of certain stereotyped semantic units over and over again."Ricardo Hastings mumbled wetly, "Boy, how we clobbered them.They didn't expect it; thoughtwe were washed up.Our weapons fashion designers, they hadn't come through.The aliens thoughtthey could just walk right in and take over, but we showed them.Too bad you people don't remember;it was before your time." He or it chuckled, sightlessly staring at the floor, its mouth twitching in agrimace of delight."I don't," Lars said, pausing, "buy the idea of the time-travel weapon anyhow.""We got the whole mess of them," Ricardo Hastings mumbled."We warped their goddamsatellites entirely out of this time-vector, a billion years into the future, and they're still there.Heh-heh." His eyes, momentarily, lit with a spark of life."Orbiting a planet that's uninhabited except bymaybe spiders and protozoa.Too bad for them.We caught their ships of the line, too; with the T.W.G.we sent them into the remote past; they're set to invade Earth around the time of the trilobite.Theycan win that easy.Beat the trilobites, club them into submission." Triumphantly, the old veteransnorted. At two-thirty, after a wait which Lars would not have undergone again at any price, the carbon-dating of the tissue taken from the old man's body was brought in by a hospital attendant."What does it show?" Lilo asked, standing up stiffly, her eyes fixed on his face, trying toapprehend his reaction, to share it with him.Lars handed her the single sheet."Read it yourself."Faintly she said, "You tell me.""The microscopic analysis showed it to be indubitably human, not syntho that is, androidtissue.The carbon-17-B dating procedures, applied to the tissue-sample, indicate that the sample isone hundred and ten years to one hundred and fifteen years old.And possibly but not probablyeven older
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Tematy
IndexKraszewski Józef Ignacy Kraków za Łoktka
§ Du Brul Jack Philip Mercer 06 Przepowiednia ognia
Christie Agata Wczesne sprawy Poirota
Eo Goldoni, Carlo Kurioza okazajxo
Roberts Nora Spokojna przystań 03
Eva Rutland Cudowny zbieg okolicznoÂści
Cerulean Sins Hamilton. Tłumaczenie Scarlett
Mikołaj i Aleksandra Massie Robert K
Perez Reverte Arturo Szachownica flamandzka
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