This World Is Taboo

ned to scare easily, where blueskins might be involved. Its children were trained to react explosively when the word blueskin was uttered in their hearing, and its adults tended to s

ough. He'd made a completely conscientious survey of the ship he'd volunteered

e men in the ship had caught it (but they certainly hadn't died of it), and if there had been blueskins on Orede to communicate it (for which there was no evidence), and

lled with steam and chlorine. The combination would sterilize and even partly eat away his spacesuit, a

vestigating ship while the suit was flung outside by a man in another spacesuit, handling

neral considered that he'd persuaded the

red to frenzy those people who believed that all blueskins should be exterminated as a pious act. They'd appeared on eve

an anti-blueskin crusade. They confidently demanded such a rain of fusion bombs on Dara that no blueskin, no animal, no shred of vege

for the Interstellar Medical Service. And Calhoun furiously demanded a chance to deny it by broadcast, and h

d

had come. The landing-grid locked on, raised the small spacecraft until Weald was a great shining ball below it, and then somehow sc

ce very grim. He said savagely, "Get

e everything living in the ship felt the customary sensations of dizziness

irm and fixed. A ship in overdrive feels exactly as if it were buried deep in the core of a planet. There is no vibration. There is no sign o

from sounding like a grave. The reel played and the speakers gave off minute creakings, and meaningless hum

not only a physical affair. There is mental health, also. When mental health goes a civilization can be destroyed more surely and more terribly than by any imaginable war or plague

mmed themselves into a cargo spaceship which could not furnish them with air to breathe, and to

oun dourly, "that I'

ng it, and watched the coffeemaker with bright, interested eyes. He'd even tried to imitate Calhou

his long tail coiled reflectively about a chair leg.

id Calhoun. "I m

hrilled M

k of things was different than the control compartment. The difference was part of the means by whic

urpose. But none of them should cause Murgatroyd to stare fixedly and fa

to him. As a Med Service man, he was duty-bound to be impartial. To be impa

s afterward. And they had other reasons for hating the people they'd treated badly. It was entirely reasonable for

ere would be no danger of any report favorable to Dara ever being presented anywhere. If so, such a stowaw

where it would be handy. He filled a small cup for Murgatro

in door, standing aside lest

said sardonically. "C

g pause. Calhou

e," he said more sardonically still.

re discovery. He was prepared to shoot quite ruthlessly, because he was on duty and the Med Service did

ound made Calhoun start. The door of the cabin slid slowly aside. A gi

y. She moistened her lips. "You didn't see me! I w

ion. Murgatroyd told me this time. May I prese

ind legs and offered a skinny, furry paw

e. "It might relax the tension a little. And do you wa

vely. He said, "Chee-chee!" in the shrillest o

said Calhou

y. "Just that I-I need to get to Orede, and you'

heading for Orede as soon as it can be assembled and armed. But

vered a

nning a

. "In that case I'

"I'll-I'll die first! I'l

e was a tiny blaster in it. But it

t out the

ke another when her threat was not to kill him but to disable the ship. Women are rarely assassins, and when they are they don't use energy weapons.

"Besides, you'd get deadly bored if we were stuck in

whatever, felt it necessar

-chee

own and have a cup of coffee." To the girl he said, "I'll ta

sweetheart

shook

dy dead. But not all. And there's been no check of what men were in the ship and what men weren't. You wouldn't go to Ored

little, but s

t under

eep people from getting sick or dying. Sometimes we even try to keep them from getting killed. It's our profession. We practise it even on our own beh

anything I've said!

'll probably tell us something more beli

terd

ng?" asked Calhoun politely. "Or wo

do it,"

e extracted from storage and warmed or chilled, as the case might be, and served at dialed-for intervals. There was also

up the planet Orede. He was headed there, but he'd had no reason to infor

tched with highly amiable interest.

nformation. He was specifically after the Med Service history of all the planets in this se

ich had wiped out three-quarters of the population of an inhabited planet! It had hap

sonably complete identification and study of the agent. It hadn't been made. There was probably some other emergency at the time, and it slip

ch to occupy himself during overdrive travel from one planet to another. Calhoun made use of those resources. H

scovery, she said

n look

es

exactly how

's a cabin. When you're sleepy, use it. Murgatroyd and I can make out quite well out here. When you're hungry, you now know

ared a

believe what

un, but didn't add

he police were after me. I had to get

ok his

et. You don't have to, so why tell me anything? I suggest that you get some sleep. Incidentally, there's no lock on the cabin door beca

but then she went into the other cabin and closed herself in.

limbed up into Calhoun's lap, with complete assurance of welcome.

he conditioning she'd have had, there'd be only one place she'd dread worse tha

He liked to pretend that he carr

he said wit

r personal advantage. Whatever she thinks she'd doing, it'

rgatroyd in an

ave a suspicion that somebody's been shooting them. Lots of them. Do you agre

led himself still more com

he said

tion. Presently he looked up the normal rate of increase, with other data, among herd

Terran life-forms could play the devil with alien ecological systems-very much to humanity's benefit. Familiar microorganisms and a

to pack themselves frantically aboard a cargo ship which couldn't possibl

ew as a dozen head of cattle, turned loose on a suitable planet, would have increased to herds

sight to be seen outside, with no evidence at all that it was not buried in the heart of

control room. Murgatroyd regarded her with great interest. Calhoun nod

eakfast?" she as

I have," he told

a very good portrayal of a man who will respond politely when s

e, she asked, "When

tly, as if he were thi

pened there? I mean, to mak

with the authorities on Weald. I don't think

blueskins?" a

round and looked

much by what you pretend isn't, as by what

ou think they

were usually marked. Their skin had little scar pits here and there. At one time, back on Earth, it w

were pock-marked. It was no distinction. But if he didn't have the markings, they'd mention that!" He paused. "Tho

think they

n," said Calhoun. "Maybe Pithecanthropus had a mon

g that day. He continued to busy himself with those activiti

elieve the blueskins planned for the ship with the d

said C

hy

So that would be no good. And plague-stricken living men wouldn't try to conceal that they had the plague. They might ask for help, but they'd know they'd

to blueskins?" she

word blueskin you should say it uncomfortably, as if it were a word no refined person liked to pronounce. You don'

nite ideas about her, by now. He carefully kept them tentative, but no girl born and raised on Weald would willingly go to Orede, with all of Weald believing that a shipload

the girl said very carefully, "You've been very kind. I'd like to

aised his

to know," she added regretfully. "I think y

, though they are-the people of Dara have made at least one space ship since Weald threatened them with extermination. There is probably a new food shortage on D

snatched out the tiny blaster in her po

!" she cried desper

Nothing happened. Before she could realize that she hadn't turned off t

I'll give this back to you when we

hands. Then sh

en I tried

irmed every one. Now, when we land on Orede I'm going to get you to try to put me in touch with your friends. It's goin

s' control board an

s to breakhour

e amiable little creatures. During the days in overdrive, Calhoun had paid less

y moments ago there had been bitter emotion in the air. Murgatroyd had fled to his cubbyhol

ed plaintively.

If we aren't blasted as we try to land, we should be able to

was hopeless