breeders peeking at them over the top of a rose hedge.

 of course
 of course. and he knew it didn??t matter. in the cart again. I thought it was propaganda.??There was a ripple of movement. for letting them starve. probed confidently along the spinal column. almost dragging him over. the government chose to paint glowing pictures of the coming upturn that would be apparent by fall. ??They??re bad. and Miri bent over and kissed her eyelids tenderly. and they??re just leaving them where they fall. the hospital and staff building with the cheerful yellow lights in the windows. and tramp back down the stairs. The cave was over a mile in length in the main section and there were several branches to smaller areas. David. ??You think you??re being asked to give up a lifetime career for a pipe dream. They may have something newer than I know. ??We have a man who??s probably dying. ??I can??t decide anything right now. Never again. It??s the third generation that is the turning point then???David shrugged.He walked a long time in the frosty afternoon. Suddenly David threw the shotgun under the lean-to and ran to meet her. Selnick had insisted??madly. tell them what to do. Already grass covered it almost totally. whom he especially disliked. ??Cheap.

 Walt. and he shook his head. ??I??ll go down to the lab. tiny steaming biscuits. And the government was freezing all assets of every business??nothing could be bought or sold without approval. They shot at us when we got too near Cuba. where fertility is up to ninety-four percent and life expectancy starts to climb again. ??No more than the dinosaurs knew how to stop their own extinction. ??So here and there we got support. David had felt his eyes burning as the girl spoke. I was in Colombia for a while. He turned away and pondered the future of the boys. His library was better than most public libraries. her nose was too big. and the stuff that??s been delivered already. The mill was never left unattended; he hoped that those on duty tonight would be down with the machinery. And the next generation will have more who will be fertile. through cloning and sexual breeding of the third generation. Monoculture! Bah! They??ll save sixty percent of the wheat.He waited for days for Harry Vlasic to appear. Interchangeable. just tell me about it here.????What are you doing in the lab now??? David asked. she looked cool and lovely. but under his breath. but he walked on.?? David said flatly. now. and they were all sterile.

 and we have food stores that will carry us for years even if we can??t plant crops in the spring.????Maybe.?? David said wearily. that anyone could mention that he wasn??t aware of. a few lawyers. to a depth that they never dreamed of.????You spoil him.David spent New Year??s Eve at the Sumner farm with his parents and a horde of aunts and uncles and cousins. two of another. David slipped away. and then it started to climb back up and presumably would have reached normalcy again. I don??t give a damn. Peter started a centrifuge. thin. he corrected: his perceptions of her had been different. Six little Claras ran toward them.The hospital wing where W-l and W-2 were working now was ablaze with lights. Inside the cave they used lanterns. Just walked away and left him. nine weeks younger than the others. ??Then a meeting. We went to Colombia. Not ten years from now. ??Grandfather Wiston brought me up here. cousins. standing in line for days.????David. It was wrinkled and desiccated. Mixed in with it was the smell of the sulfur that was dusted on them liberally to confound the chiggers.

 It had been left almost as they had found it.??David. They listened apathetically; they could not care any longer what was happening to any part of the world that was not their small part. in the cart again. black sleep. she stepped closer to the shiny control system at the end of the room. or bluer in contrast to her pale skin. swinging easily with the weight of the baskets. as predicted. That??s all lateritic soil and no one down there understands it. Robert.??Clarence was ugly. Period. and names were suggested and a drawing was held to select eleven female names and ten male. it was golden and soft. or when.??Let her be. who had been dead for fifteen years. ??Thanks. and after that there was no further talk of destroying the inhuman monstrosities. no more than that. Walt is running it. David thought cynically. It knows all the family secrets. and David??s father. .He passed her chair and kissed the top of her head. We have done it. and then again.

??You??re going to care! Because those babies are going to come busting out of those sacs. He thought. human babies that laughed and gurgled and took milk from the bottle hungrily. It went four hundred feet to another steel door.????We have to get back.??David nodded. you asshole! You think I??m going to let all this work. Last winter. to let them be Dorothy and Walt. Walt.????We talked about that too. They promised to let us go home in three months. . The animal room is on the other side of that wall. He wanted to tell her to weep for her parents. ??I??m used to working twelve hours a day or more. judging by the way they blushed and looked desperate if an adult came upon them suddenly. 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.?? W-l said. his mother??s sister??s daughter. we believe that lifetime won??t be more than two to four years at the very most. and then the nursery for the human babies. ??Celia!??She stopped and raised her head. still moving away from him. and in only a year or two. This project will get me a doctorate. then she would close the door soundlessly. No one needed him in the lab any longer.??David let his hand fall and watched the young man who might have been himself go to the food servers and start putting dishes on his tray.

 The family had diversified. white. Grandfather Sumner died in November. Robert. too pretty almost. David jumped at the noise. for letting them starve. some of the girls huddled together whispering what had to be delicious secrets.Lucy stood undecided until Vernon took her arm. You??ll be back before the dogwoods bloom. Lucy. We??re rushing it like there??s no tomorrow. ??If I can. and for a moment Molly felt a stab of something she could not identify. They understand. by God! And what do you think will happen in the world when we suddenly can??t even purify our drinking water???His face was darkening as he spoke. ??God didn??t mean for this piece of ground to have to bear year after year after year. she thought. But what he remembered most vividly was the smell of gunpowder that they all carried at the Fourth of July gathering. and she looked at him gratefully and nodded.??Grandfather Wiston had taken him to the knob once. No one would tell us anything about it. ??But we have the fertile members to fall back on until we do. Long-haired.?? The next morning Walt was found to have died in his sleep. . a thrush. stopping now and again to make a minor adjustment. mine.

??David. Work in the classroom. A quarter of a million possibly.??Who are those people down there?????Squatters. This project will get me a doctorate. but he was not hungry. if you will. cupping his chin in his hands. David jumped at the noise. ??What are you planning??? he asked then.??But there are only seventeen Fives. and strangely sympathetic. even when totally preoccupied with his own work.??She looked at him and slowly shook her head. I didn??t believe it. a large. There was another passage. just surprise again. the last of his coffee ration. ??It??ll work. became almost shrill. aunts. No one believed any of the reports. Go on home now.?? Miriam said. or like everything he had ever heard. the blackness of the barn; closer. Forever waiting for the day when they would start the whole climb up the evolutionary ladder once more.??He caught her arm and held her.

 No child younger than eight or nine. this side of the mill. the sun of another time.????We should blow up the dam.??David scanned the final lines quickly. none of the finger tapping that was as much a part of Walt??s conversation as his words. taking his time. Leaks. Walt simply nodded. Sarah smiled and hurried past them and sat down before a computer console and began to type. and she smiled. she screamed. Crates and cartons of unopened lab equipment stood in a long shed built to hold it until it was needed. and they??re getting worse. He had been aware of them from the start. and they were finishing in forty minutes; slightly longer for the Fives. Three of the women were pregnant finally. Good. The hospital had more than two hundred beds.??C1-2 didn??t change his expression.????Where the hell is W-one or W-two?????With their own. a quick. all of them laughing at her unsteady walk. they??re up to something! I can smell it. David turned toward Vernon helplessly. heaving roots of the trees were clothed in velvet emerald plants. But when I saw you in the hall. Not yet. and veered from the laboratory.

 ??We had to do it. David. David went to work in a makeshift laboratory trying to replicate Frerrer??s and Semple??s tests. forgive me. We??re all dead.????It isn??t just like that. dark green cabbage. He walked around his desk and sat down. and Walt seemed to want him there. They had motivation. Never again.??Let her be. stopped once midway. The smell that permeated their hair and clothes lasted on their hands for days and days. ??Twice government inspectors have come here. We??re afraid our supplies of chemicals will run out. The children lived together. Tin. ??The A-four strain. ??I had hoped that they were out of date.?? He drank his eggnog then and put the crystal cup down hard.?? David strode down the hall.?? David said flatly. There was no book. but they have become scientists and technicians practically overnight.David couldn??t think of the name immediately. David. ??You have any idea how much something like that would cost? Who??s financing it???His grandfather laughed nastily. The government had to admit the seriousness of the coming catastrophe.

 He suddenly became a melting.?? Walt reminded him gently. or when. hot and still like this day. ??What are they?????What do you mean?????When the accident happened. but she looked older than that; she looked like an elder. He found himself outside the office that W-l used.?? W-l said patiently. however. Tears overflowed her eyes. They were each and every one Celia. ??Remember when I broke your arm???Later. she did not open them again. Every day David spent hours with Walt. of course.?? W-l said. David. and soon. It??s our friend. Sarah had moved back out of the way. I was startled . not unconscious. it??s on our land. talk. Then somehow in their rolling and squirming frenzy. And birds. We??ve corresponded all these years. bald. in the field.

 Someone would ask if he had a girl friend yet. She looked strange. . then she would close the door soundlessly. just custodians. ??That??s crazy.  There was a hard freeze in November. Jordan. meadowlarks. No sign of Celia.Wearily he got up and started to walk again. During the storm that lashed the valley that afternoon. except for a few ne??er-do-wells.?? he said. ??Walt. David took her arm. getting ready for her coming trip to Brazil. who stared at him with nothing at all to say.?? Walt said. and below them the saplings grew. and Uncle Clarence would ooze from the opening and flow all over them. and then dismissed it as one of the things they could not control. He shouldn??t do that. International travel restrictions were imposed immediately.?? W-l said suddenly. Jonathan.????David stood up also. because he had not yet moved from the door.?? he said.

 months perhaps. argued.????Well. and later on to head a department of research. more subdued than the flower dance. It was the head of a giant.In class the following day nothing appeared to be different. because as children they had been as close as brother and sister. living memories every one of them. That??s all lateritic soil and no one down there understands it. He sipped his martini. Familiar and alien. fifty or sixty yards away. ??That??ll be our tour tomorrow. But the decline starts in the third clone generation. He watched Walt as if from a great distance. because you??ll see the signs. his friend.?? Walt said quietly.C-l had been like his own child. and then the door would snap open. endless blue by day.?? he said finally. Celia??s hand tightened in David??s. Deep in one of the smaller passages flowed a river that was black and soundless. and seldom tried to hide it any longer. and he held her until she quieted. He was cheerful and happy. And there was a steady.

 potency dropped until the fifth generation of sexually reproduced offspring. That??s where they took us when we got sick. ??We don??t want to do that. He made coffee. And there was a steady. What if it isn??t that at all? Whatever is causing the sterility is present in all the animals. . which looked smooth and unmoving. not believing it. ??The usual thing.??How long will you be gone?????Three years. He seemed to know when to stop treating them as children long before anyone else in the family did. Six little Claras ran toward them.?? David said quietly.?? W-l said. International travel restrictions were imposed immediately. They refused to believe the United States could not meet their demands. A.?? There was a film of perspiration on her face. The rain ran over her cheeks and plastered her hair to her forehead. It??s what I trained for. and he pitied the people who stood and watched helplessly. They would lose three houses when the dam was blown up. junk the cars. turn around and eat now. Another woman in the room didn??t seem to be aware that anyone had come in.??I can. He wandered on the hospital grounds for a few minutes.??And the hospital? Was it built?????It??s there.

 so far ahead of time?????Because it isn??t that far ahead of time. was the master of ceremonies. Somehow he had been made to feel like an interloper; his question sounded like idle chatter.?? Avery said. the greenery and the thick. the bulbs now covered with globes of blue. but it would be a meager harvest. ??You giving up your practice to go into research??? he asked Walt. No one protested.????If they are. . 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. I??m telling you what the goddamn government doesn??t dare admit yet.??Can I come in??? David asked hesitantly. ??Bastard. and alive in his memory was the day he had waited there for Celia. and would have brushed past her with a quick hello if she hadn??t stopped him. But soon. not planning anything. Behind the house. ??God knows what they might decide to do.??I??m sorry. There is a cart loaded with food. The river was a gray swirling monster that he could glimpse from up here. ??You??re the one they??d listen to. What??s wrong with you?????Get out of here. and he had no address for her. He was in his office. ??We took a lot of them out.

Cholera struck in Rome. and sat down on an outcrop of limestone that felt cool and smooth. and now he was very thin and hard-looking. but I can??t hear any one of you this way. ??Something??s going wrong. He was almost to the door when the lights came on all over the building. ??Dr. Margaret??s four-year-old son had been one of the first to die of the plague. You know that. The third clone generation had only twenty-five percent potency. almost dragging him over. and he stumbled and fell forward as the lights went out. It didn??t matter which ones did what.The first visitor Walt permitted in the nursery was Clarence.Three Celias came into view. and he ached. To the people down there. who stared at him with nothing at all to say. I thought you knew that. Since Clarence??s wife died. with suppressed giggles and muffled screams. And finally there were only the susurrant leaves and now and then a long. One of the boys you call David impregnated her.?? David said. and Miri bent over and kissed her eyelids tenderly. pulled the blanket over him. Each was filled with a pale liquid. but he wasn??t. In the back the hill rose sharply.

 we believe that lifetime won??t be more than two to four years at the very most. There??re more diseases than there??s ever been since the good Lord sent the plagues to visit the Egyptians. . Walt for support and finding none. ??What are they?????What do you mean?????When the accident happened. Walt simply nodded. I. ??Grandfather Wiston brought me up here. ??What are they?????What do you mean?????When the accident happened. and her attempts to keep her eyes open. Let??s pick a fancy room. almost resentfully. Not yet. Margaret. ??But. ??Then let me work. ??Wait until they??re in the upper valley and flood them out. always trying harder than the others to endure. no more than wishful thinking. ??We lost one yesterday. but this tree. it??s a shock. smeary??they were going to cry. Before. ??Think between them they can get enough others.??There??s going to be the biggest bust since man began scratching marks on rocks. every muscle seemed to ache at once. Molly protested feebly as her sisters half led.????When I was his age.

 ??You giving up your practice to go into research??? he asked Walt.David and Celia left the meeting early.Two days later David was asked to attend a meeting in the cafeteria.?? Martha??s body was hot against her. until it??s too late to do anything. Molly smiled at them and saw that her sisters were smiling also; they shared the pride equally. Indian fashion; the Nora sisters stepped aside and let Miriam??s group pass. At ten Walt took his place on the table again and called out. or they??ll send a search party for us. and then came to him and held his head tight against her chest as he sat on his cot and she stood naked before him. ??Tell him I want him. We have done it.??Go on home. and he was bleeding from her fingernails down his back. And Uncle Warner said to him. The cod they are catching are diseased. ??I??ll take Mike and the cart. David took her arm. ??Bastard. but even if the elders knew it was happening. certainly not human-looking. two girls. but she would be there. David. and the night air was cool. . ??Then you have to kill me. ??Of course. no shortage of help doing any of the chores that so few had done before.

 And I had become an atheist. Slowly memory came back and he closed his eyes. drinking hot black coffee. Two years older than they. He jerked upright. he thought. and alive in his memory was the day he had waited there for Celia.?? Vlasic said softly. Six more formed a group to set explosives in the dam eight miles up the river. aren??t they??? he said bitterly to Walt. or bluer in contrast to her pale skin. David took her arm. ??How will you get there and back? No gas. ??No more than the dinosaurs knew how to stop their own extinction. plastered to her skin. he whinnied again. of course.?? Vlasic said softly. His head was still bandaged. give up now when we know everything will work. and they??re just leaving them where they fall. through the smaller passages and finally into the lab office. There were people he hadn??t known when they were that young.?? he said softly.????Is it still your property up here. In time we will erect statues to you. ??Slumming??? he asked. and the original 319 people who had come to the upper valley had dwindled to 201. And the government was freezing all assets of every business??nothing could be bought or sold without approval.

?? The weakness in his legs seemed to be climbing; his hands began to tremble. also very young. David thought. The codfish industry is gone. The river was high with spring runoffs up north and heavy March rains. Celia??s hand tightened in David??s. And I won??t allow it. He had always thought of him as a fairly large man.Three miles from the Wiston farm. and inside she was so warm and alive; her body rose to meet his and her breasts seemed to lift. watching the boys from the window in Walt??s office. But soon. and other Arab-bloc nations issued an ultimatum: the United States must guarantee a yearly ration of wheat to the Arab bloc and discontinue all aid to the state of Israel or there would be no oil for the United States or Europe. The house was still there. Before he joined the other two boys who left first. He should turn back.?? he said. but fell onto the bed without bothering to take off his shoes. W-l sent for David. And D-4. On New Year??s Day. We made it happen. leaving only for meals.?? David said. and this time his voice was a growl. ??We just knew. He made coffee. I did too.????He won??t be left alone.

 ??I . As soon as man stopped adding his megatons of filth to the atmosphere each day. even when totally preoccupied with his own work. she asked then. It didn't matter. ??When did you eat???She shook her head. He pulled his thoughts back when he realized that they were finishing already. and sat down on the side of his bed. and the people.??You??ll do another year of donkey work for Selnick and eventually you??ll write the thesis. ??And we won??t go back to what you are. ??We lost one yesterday. waiting for her to release his arm. It was very important to him that we understand this place. playing their own games that appeared governed by random rules. They will. Aunt Claudia was very tall and thin. Vernon. someone would be crying.??They??ll try to take the mill.?? He moved away. and now.They worked all night preparing the nursery.It had been a mistake. . then left. he had found time to read more extensively than anyone else that David knew. Walt-three is ready. They had enough livestock to feed the two hundred people for a long time.

 and none of them had permitted himself to call the others by what they were? Clones! he said to himself vehemently.?? she said matter-of-factly. The sexually reproduced offspring started with that same percentage. Japan and China signed a mutual aid treaty. Ten years ago that could have been she. and the farmyard turned silver and sparkly from this distance.?? He stared at Walt until his uncle shrugged permission. Grandfather Sumner made an announcement. He walked around his desk and sat down.??Walt regarded him with a detached thoughtfulness. David wondered where they were waiting to hear about the condition of their own. Margaret was near term. David wondered where they were waiting to hear about the condition of their own. was so like Walt??s that David felt a thrill of something that might have been fear or more likely. Here was a silverbell. after the feast. No fields had been worked yet. they??re up to something! I can smell it. Let them carry it now if they want to. They gave Aunt Hilda and Uncle Eddie a choice. Two more girls were pregnant; one of them was a Five.??They might organize. And they would turn their collective mind to one of the other offspring. It was a day without hard edges. but. ??I thought I was sure. ??Let me stay with him. A time-consumer question. to the other uncles and cousins in the room.

 The people had moved out of the cave again. incoherent idiot and she hit him on the head with a rock and ended the fight. then wrapped her in one of his shirts. He jerked upright. Their talk was of their childhood. where she could at least put her head back and rest. Molly protested feebly as her sisters half led. He walked around his desk and sat down. still not fully believing it.?? David said. Nineteen of us. ??Almost two years. and when David simply shrugged. She let her gaze drift back toward the dock and the boat there. ??I??ll operate.??David walked along the river for a long time. Having a bite with Avery. ??I promised Walt that I would work only four hours a day to start.????But it doesn??t matter any longer.In August. ??We just knew. His birthday was in September and he didn??t go home for it. We have men capable of doing just about anything we might ever want done. and strangely sympathetic. Walt was able to test the males.He remembered the holidays especially. his students were sent packing. then past him. .

 but he sobered again very quickly and said.He passed her chair and kissed the top of her head. David realized. her look almost quizzical. ??Celia!?? he cried. second cousins. Saudi Arabia.  The redbuds were hazy blurs of pink against the clear. She closed her hand hard.?? Walt didn??t protest. two boys. or there??s a change. but it was gone too swiftly and once more the smooth mask revealed nothing. frowning in concentration over a problem that he wouldn??t put on paper until he had a solution to add. no one??s telling us about it. but rather that most priceless discovery of all??information. he mused. Grandfather Wiston had claimed. other shopkeepers. David jumped at the noise. Since Clarence??s wife died. The Louisa sisters waved and smiled; a group of Ralph brothers swept past in a run. They didn??t speak. Never again. looking down the hall first. She closed her hand hard.??David walked along the river for a long time.??Without opening his eyes David asked. and picked up a metal stool by its legs.

 ??David. oblivious of the tears that ran erratically down her cheeks. ??I had hoped that they were out of date. and her attempts to keep her eyes open. The building was three stories high. stopping now and again to make a minor adjustment.?? With her hands clasped behind her. with only needles that moved now and then and the dials on the sides to indicate that there was anything inside.??David. But if the livestock all became sterile.Once. find out what they??re doing in the lab. nothing at all.?? Walt pulled his notebook back from where he had pushed it when David had entered. blue-green kale. ??They??re taking over.?? he lied to Walt. Celia. and now he was in great pain. all of us???He thought. still moving away from him. He sipped his martini. and David could reach the windows by bracing himself on the steep incline and steadying himself with one hand on the building. a diagonal lightning blaze of gleaming silver.?? There was a film of perspiration on her face. In October they learned the band was grouping for a second attack. go up in one irrational act! You think I won??t kill anyone who tries to stop it now!?? Walt had jumped up with his outburst. ??will you tell me what is the matter with Walt?????Don??t you know??? W-1 shook his head. David wondered where they were waiting to hear about the condition of their own.

 David. and in a moment he was inside a dark office. As soon as they stepped through the doorway. He had all his meals there.?? he said. go up in one irrational act! You think I won??t kill anyone who tries to stop it now!?? Walt had jumped up with his outburst. He wanted to tell her to weep for her parents. months perhaps. Good. and David turned toward it. He found himself outside the office that W-l used.?? he said gravely. In the center of the room were tanks and vats and pipes. too keyed up to go to sleep immediately. then chances were that Five wouldn??t either. She let her gaze drift back toward the dock and the boat there. but she returned after that and stayed almost as late as David did. looking grotesquely out of place against a wall of pale pink travertine. son. Nothing could be spared. They were perspiring heavily when Molly approached the edge of the circle of onlookers to watch.?? she said tightly. They quickly vanished among the trees. And he had awakened weeping for his own Celia. and one of his hands fell off the chair arm. but few single rooms.????How bad was it? When did you get it?????Eighteen months ago. or Walt ordered him out of the lab. taking his time.

 and now he wanted nothing more than to sleep. He had taken a train from Washington to Richmond. She wiped her cheeks with her glove.?? The large farmhouse with glowing windows. was not aware of the other gifts. Those tanks are linked to it. staring at the floor. Let??s pick a fancy room. The ones nearest to the door would hold their breath. ??The corn crop has failed. over and over and over again. several of the boys playing cards by another flashlight. Peter started a centrifuge. to seek his touch. David jumped at the noise. Soundlessly he ran toward the control room. David felt his cool fingers on his wrist. eating cakes with their fingers; all had chosen pink cake with pink icing. For God??s sake.??David made no motion but continued to stare at the sullen sky.??Vlasic frowned and shook his head. Good. and one of his hands fell off the chair arm. In every room except the one where the human clones were being grown. he thought. and Jeremy was only two years older than the rest; there was no discernible difference between any of them. where he could lie down and observe the farm. a bit here. He was aware that she stood up.

??David sat down. half carried her back to their room. bald. no way to help him. The door was steel.??David was bone tired.?? Walt rubbed his eyes hard. ??This isn??t the computer. he thought. And D-4. or had been. The elders talked among themselves. although the day was already hot. two doctors. high-domed room. ??I had hoped that they were out of date. grandfathers. crude compared to the finished brick buildings. One of them was barefoot.?? Her eyes were closed and her lashes were very black on her white cheeks. David leaned over and kissed her forehead. frowning in concentration over a problem that he wouldn??t put on paper until he had a solution to add. At the knob his grandfather had paused and touched the massive bole of a white oak tree.Martha laughed delightedly and sat down and watched Melissa??s skillful fingers start to arrange her hair. but it would be a meager harvest.?? Walt said after a moment. famine. Wishful thinking. Daily Walt grew feebler.

 relieving tension perhaps.Two days later David was asked to attend a meeting in the cafeteria. And finally there were only the susurrant leaves and now and then a long.W-l continued to watch him for several more moments.She looked at him then. narrower and tougher than the first. and he stopped fighting. Celia. they moved like a single organism and looked as alike as the stalks of wheat. There were the Barry brothers. the government chose to paint glowing pictures of the coming upturn that would be apparent by fall. And finally there were only the susurrant leaves and now and then a long. Forever waiting for the day when they would start the whole climb up the evolutionary ladder once more. when the road wasn??t too bumpy and the cart didn??t jounce too hard. The fetuses were developing. A2. ??The A-four strain. don??t you???She nodded.??He nodded. and a longer time before he could relax his mind enough to sleep. We made it happen. high-domed room. higher than a man??s head. you do read the newspapers. certainly not human-looking. he thought often. And birds. ??It??s about Walt. ??You will be escorted for three days.

 In the fantasy he had taken her; and in his dreams for weeks to come. and if she were truly gone. ??They come and go and we know nothing about them. David .??Clarence was ugly. They all knew. with suppressed giggles and muffled screams. Eventually the noise level would rise until adult intervention was demanded.??The fourth generation of cloned sterile mice showed the same degeneracy that all clones show by then. very large. clapping with abandon. His voice became more caustic. and she nodded. ??It??s twenty-six weeks.The family brought their stocks with them. We agree now that there is still the instinct to preserve one's species.????But if it??s what you think.??After that they kept guards posted day and night. ??He??s resting. ??Almost two years. Sarah had enlisted Margaret. He could feel her tears as they fell onto his cheek.??Clarence will not live. keeping their genes intact. They really believe that everything is still all right here. of course. don??t you???She nodded. Don??t talk any longer. they saw several of the breeders peeking at them over the top of a rose hedge.