Computer indicates conjunctive causation. With the exception of basic life support and non-offensively oriented interior emergency functions, the ship is effectively immobilized."

"Dead, you mean.Kyash! " Ashvenarya swiveled his basket to face the human Commodore. The Zimbabwe was, after all, his command.

"Do you think the shuttles and lifeboats will operate, Moorea?"

"They're all self-contained, of course, sir. But even assuming that whatever has affected the ship has spared them, the bay doors and release mechanisms are shippowered, so ..." Moorea shrugged helplessly. "We can utilize abandonment methods, true, but...."

"No, I'm not ready for that yet either, Commodore. I want no precipitous action here. KK storage cells don't just go stale like honeyfrye, nor do emergency battle power-backup systems for communications and weapons complexes die while their life-support counterparts continue to operate. We are the subjects of a selective attack procedure of unknown power and undeniable effectiveness! ... Lieutenant Hanover!"

"Sir?"

"There ought to be several ways of contacting the other ships of the fleet. We're orbiting tight and close.

Try mirrors, wave handkerchiefs. I'm not particular about how you do it. I've got to know if ours is an isolated case-it's not inconceivable that we are the victims of some local spatial phenomena-or if, as I suspect, everyone else has been hit the same."

"Aye, sir." Hanover left his basket and commenced pulling himself via hand and claw holds to the nearest lock. Since the gravity for the ship was supplied by KK storage power when the vessel was not in supralight space, the ship was in full free-fall. The lock had no purpose now.

"Oh, and Hanover!"

"Admiral?" Hanover exerted pressure on a bar near the lock, floated steady.

"See if you can help the dispensary personnel, Doctor Furman and Surgeon Lee and the others, get organized. They may need some extra help. Authorize whatever they need. Going from .31 gee to no-weight as abruptly as the rest of the ship probably did, there'll be a lot of men who lost more than just breakfast."

"Yes sir." The Lieutenant turned and pushed off, disappearing like a feather down the lock-tube.

"Well, Moorea?" The Admiral's antennae twined in frustration. "No crystals of wisdom to offer?"

"I didn't think the AAnn had anything like this, Ash."

"Don't bet that they do, Pat, don't bet that they do. I dearly hope that, if it's not a natural occurrence, the AAnn are responsible for this. The alternative scares the sugar out of me. And I haven't been that frightened, Pat, in a long, long time."

On board the heavy cruiser Sanderling not too many hundreds of kilometers away, his munificence Baron Riidi WW was expressing similar sentiments, in which Admiral Ashvenarya figured prominently.

Mal's head cleared with surprising speed soon after he opened his eyes. He stared upwards and was confronted with the badly bent roof of the hoveraft. Pushing against the hardpecces behind him, he struggled to a kneeling position. By leaning on the outcropping for support he managed to inch his way to his feet. He stood there, holding on until most of the dizziness had passed. At about that time he became aware thatpecces was not a normal fixture in Replerian hoverafts.

Encrusted with shells and barnacle-like organisms, the sharp spine of the reef projected a good meter and a half through the floor.

There was a moan forward. It was followed by some weak, if highly imaginative, cursing in feminine tones.

"You all right?" he queried.

Kitten tried to swivel the pilot's chair,- failed. The pivot ring was jammed against the supporting metal.

She unstrapped herself, moving with slow, pained gestures, and staggered towards the foreport. It had shattered on impact. Cool seawater lapped gently against the bottom of the sprung doorway. A small crustacean was already inspecting this new addition to the reef.

Except for a slight list to the back and right, the raft was fairly level. Mal took a step forward, nearly toppled. He put out an arm to grab a bar projecting from the near wall and noticed idly that it was stained red in places. Looking down at himself he was surprised to discover that the red came from a broad but shallow gash across the right side of his chest. He'd lost a lot of skin but not much blood. He ripped material from his left sleeve to bind the wound. Fortunately, the bleeding had nearly stopped.

"See anything?"

"We're on a reef," she replied. "Rose's waveskimmer is jammed up in front of us. Part of it seems to be under our bow. Probably what's causing our listing. What's left of the skimmer, anyway. It's in much worse shape than we are-not that this is seaworthy, either. Looks like he took the brunt of the blow.

Bottom's been ripped out."

"Any sign of the monster?"

"Looks like it's lying just under the surface of the water. Right about where the reef ends, which isn't far enough away for my liking. Funny how peaceful this all is. The reef . runs out about another twelve meters past the skimmer and then seems to drop off sharply. From there on as far as I can see the water's black as ink, like you could walk on it."

She left the port and moved back to the doorway. Mal moved up behind her as she stepped gingerly from the raft. Bracing a hand against each side of the doorway, he saw that thepecces itself lay barely ankle deep, even protruding above the water in several places. The Vom claimed his attention almost immediately.

Mal felt as though he were standing in front of an armed SCCAM shell. "It may be intelligent enough, but it sure doesn't seem to notice us."

"We don't know how it perceives things," said Kitten as she picked her way over the uneven, slippery footing. "For all we can tell it might be paying all its attention to us. Waiting to see what the lab animals try next, I guess. Since it could have killed us at will before I don't think it intends to. Yet." She turned.

"You're higher than I am. Any sign of the old bastard?"

Mal leaned out, hooking an arm around the doorway. A brief spell of nausea, then the sea air cleared his head completely. Peering around the front of the uptilted raft, he could see the top of the waveskimmer easily. The bottom of the bigger ship had been shaved off as neatly as though with a laser. It lay tail up, park of its curved bow just under the nose of the hoveraft.

A recognizably human figure was strapped motionless in the foredeck pilot's seat.

"Looks like he wasn't thrown free. Seems to be lightout, though."

"Any sign of the case?"

"Sure is. It's still chained to his right wrist. Appears to be locked firm. All the jerking and wrenching around didn't tear it loose."

"Is he alive?"

"Can't tell. He's sure not preparing violent resistance."

"He'd better be alive. Otherwise it's liable to take us days to figure out how to open that thing. You can bet it's armed or full of acid or something. We haven't got days. What are you doing?"

Mal had carefully edged out around the edge of the doorway. It wasn't a long fall but the surface was sharp and inhospitable. The air cushion around the base of the raft was thoroughly shredded. There was, however, a ridge of metal running the circumference of the ship. The smooth sides of the craft made walking on the centimeters-wide strip difficult, but the captain's bulk belied his agility. He started edging towards the bow, pressed flat against the side of the craft.

From the bow it was only a short hop to the canted deck of the skimmer. He walked over to the motionless dragger, felt the thin wrist. The pulse was strong.

"He's alive, anyway! Can't say I'm as glad as you seem to be."

He moved to the side of the ship. Leaning down, he extended a hand the size of a battle helmet. Kitten paused, then walked over.

"Deck is slippery up here, too," he said. "That little walk was tricky, but faster than trying to improvise a ladder or rope. This is quicker yet."

He enclosed her right hand in his while her left grasped his wrist. She practically flew onto the deck.

"'You're as physically complete as you look," she murmured.

"Apelike, you mean?"

"Let's not, now, hmmm?" She walked over to Rose and spent a couple of minutes examining him while Mal looked on. After a bit she flipped open a small compartment in the side of a belt and selected from a small packet one of several tiny ampules. It was no bigger than the nail of her little finger, but she handled it carefully.

There was a bare spot where the trousers had been ripped away. Gray hairs showed on the tanned leg.

She jammed the ampule hard into the middle of the quadriceps.

"What did you shoot him with?" Mal asked.