We do not wish to cause the creature unnecessary distress but it is difficult to know what to do about it. We might try injecting some carbon into it if we were at all sure which of its several orifices it uses for purposes of assimilation.
However the return of the other creature stimulated it to some activity, so that it raised itself erect again.
Almost all the creatures that now arrived were the type with bifurcated teguments — a number of them being exactly similar in dark blue with metal attachments. Their reaction at the sight of our specimen was much the same as that of the other at first. It was then we discovered how rankly careless they are with their frequencies. Luckily however, all were below danger level.
Like the other they began by feeling their way along the wall of the redoubt. All their minds were and still are full of astonishment. Having discovered the length of the wall, they set about determining the height, and presently there were some moving about on the roof above us.
Nearly all of them were given to stimulating their blunt, upper-most projections where they appear to carry their minds, by friction of their upper limbs. They made use of several metallic implements experimentally but the metal was, of course, far too soft to make any impression on boltik. They seemed as much at a loss to deal with us as we with them.
But not all of them were employed in the same way. One in particular remained close to its artifact, holding a small object before its slot, and making frequencies at it. It was dear from its mind that it was describing what went on —but to whom or to what or why we cannot perceive.
Thinking we might learn something new from an animate specimen of this type, we opened our door. One of them discovered the entrance as it felt along and came in. Podas had a frame ready to prevent it making distressing frequencies and we shut the door again behind.
This seemed to cause some consternation to the others outside. By bringing the new specimen close to the other one, we established fairly conclusively the correctness of Podas' theory of slot-communication in the species. Both struggled to use them but, failing, remained out of communication.
Our attention was diverted from this interesting discovery by the arrival of more artifacts. Some of these contained creatures with webbed teguments. These are now established as the more dangerous. One of them, immediately upon emerging, uttered a frequency which was extremely painful to many of us.
Unfortunately Ankis and Falmus happened to hold just that critical periodicity and disintegrated on the spot. The sharp report of their simultaneous demise startled all the creatures, who began ineffectually to make a search for the source of it.
We cannot learn much from our new specimen yet. Its mind is quite chaotic with alarm. It seems particularly disorganized by the sight of Podas' work on the first specimen. I have already suggested to Podas that he should incinerate this untidy object. I shall now insist...
I have done so. Unfortunately the result does not seem to have had a sedative effect upon the minds of either of our other specimens.
We continue to be greatly puzzled by the creature which never stops emitting noises at its instrument. At first we heard it alone. Now, however, we hear it considerably amplified, issuing from several of the disked artifacts, How can this be? Why should it be? There is no sense in it. The creatures here are observing for themselves the very facts he is communicating. And it is very wearing to us.
A row of the creatures outside is now trying to communicate with our two specimens. They emit very strongly on a harmless though disagreeable frequency without success. Now they are making marks on white surfaces to which our two are responding by signs.
Another artifact with a lensed machine on top has arrived. It is directed at us by a creature standing behind it. It is quite ineffective, and does not trouble us at all.
Still more disked artifacts continue to arrive. All the creatures are puzzled over what to do next. In one small group they are discussing whether they shall bring something — something that disintegrates violently — I do not understand two specimens at the same time. One of the creatures exploring our roof has discovered the farther edge by falling off it. Others have come around to pick it up, so now they are on both sides of us.
Meanwhile, we are still trying to communicate with the specimens. Podas has arranged a battery of ten minds concentrating thought upon them simultaneously. The pressure is terrific — and entirely without effect. They are obtuse coarse hopeless clods as insensitive to thought as they are to sound.
One of the webbed creatures outside has just emitted a frequency which has destroyed three of our party in a twinkling. This is a shocking business. We are going to try our beams again.
They are surprised — but no more. The talking creature has stopped talking. It is holding up its instrument as though to catch our beams. What? Stop! Stop! STOP!
That was dreadful. Somehow our beams were coming back at us. There's a fissure in our wall, cracks in our roof. Half a dozen more of us have disintegrated. I'm sure it was something to do with that talking creature and its instrument — but how? I don't understand. Now it has started talking again.
All the creatures are trying to trace the sounds of the disintegrations. They are very bewildered.
The talking creature has stopped talking — that's better. But the reproduced sound from the disked artifacts has not stopped! How? Oh, it must be amplifying another creature now, the resonances are different. Queer!
It's the sound they make — but it means nothing. I can catch no thought-wave connected with it. It must originate somewhere else. I don't understand ... There, it has stopped now, and a good thing, too.
The— Oh, merciful heaven, what a sound from those reproducers! What excruciation! An appalling sound! Rhythmic, pulsating, piercing, devilish! This is killing us, damn them! It's — oh! — it's shaking us to pieces—
Dreadful... Agonizing ... Oh — oh!
A couple of dozen have gone — Podas with them. Now Eptus—
The whole redoubt is trembling ... That frequency ... It's almost critical... If it goes any higher ...
Too late! The boltik has shattered. It's falling in powder round what's left of us...
Oh! That sound — that awful sound! I can't, oh, what agony! Almost on my frequency...
Now it's — Oh! OH! — OH!