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ial, and let them go out to the other population centers all at once." Back aboard the ship they started preparing a larger quantity of the antibody suspension. Fuzzy had regenerated back to normal weight again, and much to Dal's delight had been splitting off small segments of pink protoplasm in a circle all around him, as though anticipating further demands on his resources. A quick test-run showed that the antibody was also being regenerated. Fuzzy was voraciously hungry, but the material in the second batch was still as powerful as in the first. The doctors were almost ready to go back down, loaded with enough inoculum and syringes to equip themselves and a dozen field workers when Jack suddenly stopped what he was doing and cocked an ear toward the entrance lock. "What's wrong?" Dal said. "Listen a minute." They stopped to listen. "I don't hear anything," Tiger said. Jack nodded. "I know. That's what I mean. They were hollering their heads off when we came back aboard. Why so quiet now?" He crossed over to the viewscreen scanning the field below, and flipped on the switch. For a moment he just stared. Then he said: "Come here a minute. I don't like the looks of this at all." Dal and Tiger crowded up to the screen. "What's the matter?" Tiger said. "I don't see ... _wait a minute!_" "Yes, you'd better look again," Jack said. "What do you think, Dal?" "We'd better get down there fast," Dal said, "and see what's going on. It looks to me like we've got a tiger by the tail...." * * * * * They climbed down the ladder once again, with the antibody flasks and sterile syringes strapped to their backs. But this time the greeting was different from before. The Bruckian spokesman and the others who had not yet been inoculated drew back from them in terror as they stepped to the ground. Before, the people on the field had crowded in eagerly around the ship; now they were standing in silent groups staring at the doctors fearfully and muttering among themselves. But the doctors could see only the inoculated people in the two roped-off areas. Off to the right among the infected Bruckians who had received the antibody there were no new dead--but there was no change for the better, either. The sick creatures drifted about aimlessly, milling like animals in a cage, their faces blank, their jaws slack, hands wandering foolishly. Not one of them had begun reacting normally,
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