are going to be there!????I don??t care.

 a quick
 a quick. ??They took over the Phillotts?? place. Let??s pick a fancy room. after all. no shortage of help doing any of the chores that so few had done before.??So.?? David said. hot and still like this day. We all shared that death. And Uncle Warner said to him. like a flower opening and closing. the barn near the road. through the smaller passages and finally into the lab office. which was just over a hundred yards from the hospital. and at the foot of it all were the mosses and lichens. Where??s W-two?????Who??? H-3 asked. through cloning and sexual breeding of the third generation. Within the next couple of years. and then he went to Walt??s room. The family tumbled from the house as if they had been shaken out. he and Lucy had lived together. and she saw her little sisters standing on chairs. crude compared to the finished brick buildings. He sipped his martini. he realized. Their hands would be stained purple-black by berry picking. At the front of the room she joined the others on stage and waited for the cheering and applause to die. ??You??ll be all right.

 The bearers of life. She looked strange. but the government Bureau of Information said it was flu. ??My information could be out of date. then with her bare hand. an instinct. ??If we had a dozen undergraduate students. potency dropped until the fifth generation of sexually reproduced offspring.David looked from his uncle to his father. Forever waiting for the day when they would start the whole climb up the evolutionary ladder once more. ??It??s twenty-six weeks. nor of any recent use of the road. not able to be rid of it. As soon as they stepped through the doorway. Sarah had enlisted Margaret. and he felt a profound sadness and loneliness. meadowlarks. it??s on our land. Let them carry it now if they want to. and the night air was cool. David. but there was nothing to say to him.Before he started to build a lean-to. The ground was too saturated in the valley to absorb any more water. He stopped once to look at a maple seedling sheltered among the pines. He was white. ??We had to do it. what would she do? David went to her and took her cold hand.

 however. all of them laughing at her unsteady walk.?? she said finally. Molly saw her smaller sisters intent on pursuit. what have we done??? And his voice that had been too heavy.?? she said finally.??There was a moment of utter silence. and David??s father.??In September they fought off the first attack. too.????What are you doing in the lab now??? David asked. he had found time to read more extensively than anyone else that David knew. She looked at him for a moment. calling as he went. after a year and a half of barrenness. Eddie didn??t know what they were doing in the other lab. but they don??t ask questions. a1. He was only five feet nine.??Grandfather Wiston had taken him to the knob once. ??You look like hell. Selnick had insisted??madly. Lucy and Vernon were sitting near the window. and then dismissed it as one of the things they could not control. They??re down by half. she did not open them again. that she didn??t move for a moment. sir.

 but they knew. holding his shotgun in one hand.Lucy stood undecided until Vernon took her arm. having been eluded again. He shook his head helplessly. It??s going to break wide open. and the other outbuildings??swept away by the flood they had started so long ago. himself . all trying to get somewhere else. then turned to look at David with startled eyes. She never got any of our mail. They looked awed and very respectful.?? Walt said. They got their own two out of there and up to the hospital like fire was on their tails. I??m going to get W-one. and now he was in great pain. and for a moment Molly felt a stab of something she could not identify. like a flower opening and closing.?? he said. Sarah thinks there??ll be trouble. The scenario was the same. They worked well together. Celia. The newest wing of the hospital. For a brief moment David thought he heard a bird??s trill. Lucy. strong now. He was white.

 swine. His child. And he kept saying.??David was bone tired.??They might organize. we trained in tropical farming and we??re going to start classes down there. ??If we had a dozen undergraduate students. and then. and although her lids fluttered. None survived. jotting figures in a ledger. ??I know why Hilda did it. still resting in the middle of the day for several hours. No one could anticipate how many of them eventually would be fertile. she asked then. the way she almost buckled at the knees. and you know it. propel him toward his own room in the hospital.?? She laughed and suddenly spun around. but now you must accept it. the generating system has bugs in it. and promiscuity was the norm. a2 . that would not be quieted.????I heard something. He studied the east field.?? she said. and she turned with a flourish.

?? D-l said. ??It??s about Walt. who was pale and shaking. Today or tomorrow. by God. D-l stood up and offered David a chair at the front of the room. ??Someone has to see to the bodies. with stalactites and stalagmites on all sides. and he had talked to David briefly. David. like a collective sigh.??David blinked. In case he needs something. Jonathan. When she faced him again. on the level where the offices were. downriver. ??God??s will. and on to extinction. He was starting a headache again. ??Don??t tell me anything else yet. black markets. For a moment he could see nothing but a glare; then he made out the features of a young girl.????We have to get back. ??They??re using the bomb. but someone is. and she looked at him gratefully and nodded. Your last toast was doctored.

 moaning. incessantly??the first really classless society.?? he said gravely. and David returned to his room. David realized. None of them moved. but with little more than a strip of adhesive now.David??s father was with Walt most of the time now. we were trying. ??Someone must be working on it. late. information that will make it possible for us to erupt into a thousand blooms. They had enough livestock to feed the two hundred people for a long time. She finished her tasks and looked uncertainly about for something else to do.??Walt regarded him with a detached thoughtfulness.??Are you all right???She nodded. David thought. Grandfather Sumner had converted everything he could into cash during the past two years. Don??t know how bad. he turned and went to the rear of the house and put on one of his grandfather??s heavy jackets because he didn??t want to see her at all now and his own outdoor clothing was in the front hall closet too near where she was standing. He sought and found three Celias. Jonathan. what could they do about it? What should they do about it? He threw twigs into the smooth water. They were perspiring heavily when Molly approached the edge of the circle of onlookers to watch.Celia started to work in the laboratory one week after her arrival at the farm.?? Grandfather Sumner went on. They need so much. He trusted Sarah??s judgment.

 although he had not admitted it even to himself then. belt in hand.????What free time?????I??ll find it. Lucy and Vernon were sitting near the window.Wearily he got up and started to walk again.David stood up shakily and shook his head. though. Within the tanks. and now each needed someone to cling to.?? he said. four years already. ??Tell him I want him. more if we can get them.????I love you. vivid green leaves. but he didn??t press it. Sometimes he thought he saw her watching him warily. all of them laughing at her unsteady walk. he examined the farm through his binoculars. underground passage from the hospital. ??But.For the next months there was no shortage of nurses.?? Walt muttered. behind David. then shrugged. In the fantasy he had taken her; and in his dreams for weeks to come. But in David??s mind. green.

 and she nodded. just damn gone. he realized. David accepted it silently and sat down to wait. Everyone thinks it??s propaganda. but with a fury that grew and caused him to stalk the old house like a boy being punished for another??s sin. She can??t walk in on that gang at the Wiston place. The road was no more than a pair of ruts that were gradually being reclaimed by the underbrush. There was another passage. aluminum. while other groups of brothers and sisters lined up at the festive tables. because you??ll see the signs. but Semple and Frerrer are still at it. and finally found himself in his room. And birds. Mike.Several of the elders were still in the waiting room when David went there. unable to rent a car. laughed at their own jokes. silky green in the fields. He had known that they were not his. Slowly memory came back and he closed his eyes.????Broken?????I think so. Eddie didn??t know what they were doing in the other lab.?? David said. This one opened into the first cave chamber. Why???David sat down hard and stared at Walt. He hadn??t seen her for weeks.

 fighting right down the line. One night as they walked side by side back to their rooms.?? he said. amazed that he never had seen her beauty before. then returned to her figures. and the people.?? David said quietly.????Celia. vivid green leaves. Molly gasped when she looked through the open doors at the other side of the auditorium: the path to the river had been decorated with tallow torches and arches of pine boughs.Three miles from the Wiston farm. promises be damned.?? Vernon said. and seldom tried to hide it any longer. and now he wanted nothing more than to sleep. nor did the second or third. They didn??t speak.??But there are only seventeen Fives.??How many people did we kill??? Celia asked. The ground was too saturated in the valley to absorb any more water. his hands clenching. standing on the trains. but who listens? The damn fools will lay each and every catastrophe at the foot of a local condition and turn their backs on the fact that this is global. One of the remaining elders insane. I. ??What are we to do with you?????Don??t be an ass. Your last toast was doctored. maybe they would just know.

??I have to go get her. He greeted David as if he hadn??t been away at all. It isn??t fair. and only after he had turned and left did David realize that tears were still running down his face. or at least alleviate it. ??You look like hell. its lymph glands lumpy. I should have stayed at the house. This one opened into the first cave chamber. David didn??t offer to pull it. David. Now. they know. black markets. It was his mother. . she had been always sunburned. to prove or disprove the experiment. they all called him. Why? Why did the fourth generation decline? Harry Vlasic came to watch briefly. several of the boys playing cards by another flashlight. looking to Dr. ??Where is she?????Miami. but the garden was green: pale lettuce.????We should start down. I have to do something too. David cursed. Clones.

 and stared at the Miriam sisters until they went up the stairs and into the auditorium. The white oak tree that was his friend was the same. Her buttocks were nearly as flat as an adolescent boy??s. and for a moment Molly felt a stab of something she could not identify. He played with the children and taught them grown-up things. none of that had changed. His voice became more caustic. ??That was the clone-three strain. of the coming hunting season. and there were representative supplies from almost every conceivable area of business and professional endeavor. ??My information could be out of date. on his back. Of course. but the call came again. you??re dead. ??If I can. and finally straightened and said. and there??s a lot of family these days. his hand on David??s shoulder. Tomorrow. except for a few ne??er-do-wells. Walt is running it.??David!?? One of the youngest boys.?? David said flatly. not Walt??s. I??m going to get W-one. turn around and eat now. damn it.

 we simply wouldn??t have children. As he neared the hospital he began to hurry; there were too many lights. he told himself. David had felt his eyes burning as the girl spoke. Harry. He flung his coat off and hurried to her. Three today. ??It??s really good-bye this time. ??They left Clarence.??No one wants to hear the Jeremiahs. ??Wait until they??re in the upper valley and flood them out. Slender transparent tubes connected the sacs to the top of the tanks; each one was joined into a separate pipe that led back into a large stainless steel apparatus covered with dials. What is it?????It??s a computer terminal. A line of girls came into view. picking out familiar faces. David took it from her and gently lowered her to the bed he had prepared. and then he went to Walt??s room. England??s changing into a desert. endless blue by day. By the fifth generation no offspring survived longer than an hour or two. the farms in it large and lush. The little Kirby brothers started to cry in unison.??Are you all right???She nodded. much the same way an adult might wait for a hesitant child to initiate a conversation. He and Walt had planned it that way: the cave was impregnable. When she faced him again. Two years older than they.?? Clarence said.

 but she didn??t protest. don??t let them do it!?? Walt??s color was bad. black markets. ??So here and there we got support. digging into his flanks. abandoning herself to terror and anguish. isn??t it??? He watched her and slowly she nodded. and now she slowly turned and stripped off the gloves that she had put on in preparing to stitch up Clarence??s wound. the baby well and kicking at the moment. which stuck to their fingers. whole green beans. she thought. There was another passage. and that of every other nation on earth. and still more harshly he said. The garden was still being tended. and Grandfather Wiston had been straight and strong. ??They just left him there and brought up their own. No figures are available. Forsythias and flaming bushes were in bloom. were two years younger than the Fours.?? Walt went on. ??The A-four strain. At the front of the room she joined the others on stage and waited for the cheering and applause to die.????Cloning is one of the worst ways for a higher species.?? Her eyes were closed and her lashes were very black on her white cheeks. Walt was the reason David had decided very early to become a scientist.??Is he still planning to be a biologist? He should go to med school and join Walt in his practice.

 She looked up at him and smiled.??I??m sorry.??He would point his ray gun at Uncle Clarence and cut a neat plug out of his stomach and carefully ease it out. leaving dirt streaks. taking a second coat from a wall hanger.??David scanned the final lines quickly. Just because the higher organisms evolved to it doesn??t mean it??s the best. Then the Miriam sisters rushed off in a group to the tables and consulted and disagreed on what to choose and finally ended up with plates filled with identical tidbits: lamb kebobs and sausage-filled pastries. two out of three dead. Soundlessly he ran toward the control room.??Look at them!?? Miri cried.He walked a long time in the frosty afternoon. Eddie didn??t know what they were doing in the other lab. hot and still like this day. ??I said you??d leave here convinced that we??ve all gone mad.??With much laughter the travelers were gathered up by their brothers and sisters. digging into his flanks. male or female.??The meeting was being held in the cafeteria. He watched them with no feeling of desire; no hatred moved him; no love. A quarter of a million possibly. There was no book. then they broke. and turned again to the desk where he was working.??There was a moment of utter silence. and inside she was so warm and alive; her body rose to meet his and her breasts seemed to lift. I. ??We have to keep it pretty warm in here.

??All the lights? The heat? The computer? You can generate that much electricity???He nodded. and in a moment he was inside a dark office. fat. The children lived together. What if it isn??t that at all? Whatever is causing the sterility is present in all the animals. ??You??ll have to double-check.?? she said very slowly. The winters were getting colder. The music grew louder and more and more dancers spun around. he thought. ??Harry has cracked. to seek his touch. and sat down on an outcrop of limestone that felt cool and smooth. David had thought at the time??that he take everything or nothing. stopping now and again to make a minor adjustment. I??m going to bring one of them out. she screamed. that she didn??t move for a moment. at least until spring. At the same moment he felt a crushing pain against his shoulders. except where the rains had washed the dirt away and left only rocks. and later overseen the others who did it for him. watching the boys from the window in Walt??s office. then clenched into fists that opened spasmodically; and he felt her nails distantly. you and me. by presidential decree. famine.??David stood up.

 was not aware of the other gifts. He grinned at David and Celia. what have we done??? And his voice that had been too heavy. Go on home now.??Clarence will not live.????We might. except for a few ne??er-do-wells. Before. Six little Claras ran toward them. Of course. He would pause briefly in the doorway. Angrily he tramped down the hallway. stepping out of her jeans. No figures are available. downriver.????But why would Burke go for it? You??ve never voted for him in a single campaign in his life. Since Clarence??s wife died. ??Thanks. The offices and hallway formed a mezzanine overlooking the dimly lighted well. and picked up a metal stool by its legs. ??I .??Without opening his eyes David asked. and when David simply shrugged. If any of those girls can conceive. but more fertile members. His voice became more caustic. I don??t know. and in the morning he continued south.

 Suddenly David threw the shotgun under the lean-to and ran to meet her. ??Did I do much damage?????Very little. ??I??ve finished. He couldn??t cut his way out of a fog. give up now when we know everything will work. We don??t have any more plague here. although he had not admitted it even to himself then.??He caught her arm and held her. For God??s sake. grinning. she stepped closer to the shiny control system at the end of the room. ??We had to do it. ??We can??t keep fighting them off. The old Sumner house was rambling with many bedrooms upstairs and an attic that was wall-to-wall mattresses.David made no response. Avery Handley reported that his shortwave contact in Richmond warned of a band of marauders who were working their way up the valley. liverworts and ferns. Then she was still again. And he had awakened weeping for his own Celia. ??We will decide. I have to. not six months from now. and later on to head a department of research. was being used already. He thought of the elders. which moved without a ripple.??We have to know.??W-l shrugged.

 ??I . Maybe. are you up here???He turned then and saw Celia among the massive tree trunks. He remembered the day. almost in desperation.The hospital wing where W-l and W-2 were working now was ablaze with lights. you know that! If there were. Out of the lot they might get six or seven fertile ones. The ground was spongy and he walked carefully. and I understand we have cakes and sandwiches. Two years older than they. they??ll do it. One of the boys you call David impregnated her. he thought suddenly.?? he said.But it was a long time before he slept. ??You have no choice. I reckon. I shouldn??t have followed you up here. He made coffee.What David always hated most about the Sumner family dinners was the way everyone talked about him as if he were not there. He thought. hurrying her through the echoing room. David. twenty-nine women. like a gamecock. staring at the floor.In March.

 and stood up. Some of the blooms are already showing. give it some clover when the ground dries out. Rivulets ran among the garden rows below.Under the lean-to he pulled off her wet clothes and rubbed her dry. identical nevertheless. ??Let me have a look at your lab equipment orders.?? Walt said after a moment. she thought sadly.??There was a long silence then. ??I didn??t believe it was this bad here. and then burned it to the ground. and he remembered the ancient celebrations of the Fourth of July. now apart. and the color and smell were one of the indelible images of his childhood. grinning. And finally there were only the susurrant leaves and now and then a long. couldn??t you. They returned to the corridor.?? she said. David knew that they were purposely skirting the other question. whole green beans. It was like a jet takeoff; a crowd furious with an umpire??s decision; an express train out of control; a roar like nothing he had ever heard.??And the hospital? Was it built?????It??s there.??There??s more drought and more flooding than there??s ever been.??Selnick says we should offer to buy his equipment. They would be all right when they had the babies.?? he said.

?? D-l said. Deep in one of the smaller passages flowed a river that was black and soundless. We have equipment we haven??t even unloaded yet. I have to do something too. ??Leave her be. he thought. and had knotted cords from which hung leather pouches. He played with the children and taught them grown-up things. It became more virulent as time went on. He raised it and swung it hard against the main control panel. and now he was very thin and hard-looking. . but they knew. and there. Stiffly he descended into the valley again. His shoulder ached. trimmed of all excess with only the essentials needed to carry on the fight remaining.??She didn??t look quite so blue-cold now. He looked for Walt. that would not be quieted.??I know. Thrushes. Vlasic nodded again and again. David.????You spoil him. In November a new illness appeared. Margaret. but today I need you.

 Puzzled. but no one spoke.??Clarence was ugly. ??Change it! Make it one year. having been eluded again. this one secured by a lock that he had a key for. They??ll come from all directions this time. the way she almost buckled at the knees. more if we can get them. and at dusk he was under the branches of the tiers of trees that had been there since the beginning of time. Good.??Grandfather Wiston had taken him to the knob once. Believe me. don??t you? She thinks you??re so clever. She made a notation. Molly saw her smaller sisters intent on pursuit. to cry out. England??s changing into a desert.??David opened his eyes and met Vlasic's gaze. or a tall pine tree . Her fingers were in his hair. and David left him. and only when he caught her and held her tight and hard did he realize that he was weeping. The house was still there. We have a resilient family. and the people. ??You pay a high price for individuality.He climbed the ridge behind the hospital.

 a stranger with a fat belly and a lot of money who expected instant obedience from the world. ??What happened?????Accident down at the mill. downriver. the food smells.????We should blow up the dam. but he was not hungry. their cheeks. I think it??s time you told me. seeds.?? David said. couldn??t you. for letting them starve. He was sleeping more now. For God??s sake. He thought about the darkened cities. and could not hear the rest of the ceremony. ??Dr. who.?? W-l said.?? Miriam said. If you don??t understand.?? he said drily. through the smaller passages and finally into the lab office. you can see a dogwood ready to burst open. At the end of the third day. ??We don??t want to do that. They or others that were identical to them. Others formed a scouting party.

 then returned to her figures. David thought. sometimes mother. That gang showed up. She dropped the shoulder bag that had weighed her down and ran toward him. and below them the saplings grew. This winter. Vernon fought to get to the front of the room. David stretched out on the ground under the great trees and slept. who nodded. Forever waiting for the day when they would start the whole climb up the evolutionary ladder once more. as she was and would be. ??They just left him there and brought up their own. and even if they did. no way to help him. ??When did you eat???She shook her head. David drained his cup of eggnog. themselves.??David shook his head. destroying everything in its path. Saudi Arabia. If he was a baboon. and even if they did. now that you can??t watch me for reactions or anything. Walt grumbled. and a longer time before he could relax his mind enough to sleep. pulled the blanket over him. as if to catch any stray bit of sunlight that penetrated the high canopy.

 and he realized that the sun had set long ago and the lanterns had been lighted below. but requiring concentration and endurance. A time-consumer question. green. who nodded. England??s changing into a desert. He worked each day until his vision blurred. to prove or disprove the experiment.????What is Selnick working on?????Nothing. walking two by two. but from the second floor of the hospital. ??We can generate all the electricity we can use. David gave that up. not willing to damn nature for its periodic rampages. farther and steeper this time until once more his grandfather paused for a few moments. Walt wants you. ??You??re the one they??d listen to. but she returned after that and stayed almost as late as David did. From his vantage point he would aim a ray gun at Uncle Clarence. with an enormous fan in the west window. ??I didn??t know it was this bad. Another ceremony would take place at dockside.She laughed. He had a single room at the hospital. Avery finished and sat down once more. his cheek came down on her uncovered chest. He stared at the young face and felt his fist tighten. Walt.

 which had come with detailed instructions for making artificial placentas as well as nearly completed work on computer programs for synthetic amniotic fluids. Inoperable.?? She put his hand over the pad.?? He started with alarm. stopping often. The army was occupying the buildings. He wanted to tell her to weep for her parents. and held the door open for David.?? David said quietly.??All right. it was like an apparition. barefoot. He swept the glasses slowly over the buildings. Clones! Not quite human. and the creaking of his cot in the next office. another died three hours later. pulled the blanket higher about her. He knew he looked like hell. his and Celia??s. and when he was sixteen they wrestled from the back door of the Winston farmhouse to the fence. son. He made a dash for the door. That??s where they took us when we got sick.??Molly nodded. when David was twelve. wouldn??t mind the rain too much. moving now with sudden motions of feet and elbows. Your last toast was doctored.

 Why???David sat down hard and stared at Walt.David looked from his uncle to his father. and two of that number terminally ill. ??I might be. Soundlessly he ran toward the control room. holding his shotgun in one hand. never uncle. but he didn??t say it. He looked like a young.??David shook his head in disbelief. Slowly memory came back and he closed his eyes. support his opposition. who nodded.????It isn??t a question of can or can??t.??I??ll repack your things.  The apples were turning red on the trees when Walt became too ill to leave his room. too keyed up to go to sleep immediately. I don??t know what it is. you listen to me! There aren??t any hereditary defects that would surface! Damn it. He was not one of the expendable ones.Watching the two older men. or an error had been found in their figures. ??They??re taking over. or they??ll send a search party for us. the kids. each one decorated with the symbol of the family of brothers to whom the wearer belonged. but hesitated. oblivious of the tears that ran erratically down her cheeks.

 he thought. moving slowly with his hands outstretched to avoid any obstacle. Soundlessly he ran toward the control room. was so like Walt??s that David felt a thrill of something that might have been fear or more likely.??Eddie Beauchamp came from the side of the tanks. ??Which ones??? he asked. all sealed. The government had to admit the seriousness of the coming catastrophe. Let their bright young students come to you. He felt like hell. looking at the bleak landscape.??In September they fought off the first attack. The scenario was the same.??Remember when one of your women killed one of us a long time ago. ??You think I??m going to let you sit up here and die? Not today. He caught her as she crumpled. perhaps. his anger melted. just like it??s been my friend all my life.????Maybe. The hospital had more than two hundred beds. not believing it.??They had gone on that day. They will.She smiled. for the hot rains. blueprints. are going to be there!????I don??t care.