"G. David Nordley - The Forest Between the Worlds" - читать интересную книгу автора (Nordley G. David)

ThereтАЩs water if you know where to look and some edible fruit. We can do without the nutritional
supplements for a few days."

Akil nodded.

Jones frowned. "But, Mateo, we havenтАЩt been here long enough to think that everything isnтАЩt dangerous.
SharadaтАЩs given up thinking."

"You think sheтАЩs in over her head?"

"You better believe it. A lot of people do. She claims sheтАЩs gained acceptance by mimicking all this
touching, stroking, and screwing, and she thinks sheтАЩs picking up something at least on some level; she
likens the process to averted visionтАУshe says she now gets feelings about things after she does it, as if the
Forest People are picking up on her chemical language and manipulating her feelings. But when you ask
her what she understands, she canтАЩt translate."

Akil looked her in the eyes. "It sounds like there were all sorts of warning signals that something like this
was going to happen."

She shrugged. "Mateo, a warning has to be exceptional. Alarms that are on all the time are just noise.
Uma Weiss is getting ready to recall her, but I think thatтАЩs more because of the time UmaтАЩs daughter,
Olympia, has been spending with her."

"OlympiaтАЩs what, twelve? YouтАЩre not suggesting . . ."

Jones shook her head. "That would be going too far, even for Sharada. Besides, Olympia would never
go anywhere without her com. But UmaтАЩs getting worried."

Feeling he was getting in over his head, Akil wanted to change the subject and gestured to some long
pointed wood poles leaned against one of the walls in SharadaтАЩs dome. "Those look a lot like spears to
me."

Jones shook her head. "No reports of them ever using them that way. I see them sticking out of vines
here and there, with Forest People using them as perches, to avoid contact with the vine. If you come in
contact with a vine, it starts to envelop you with sap and digest you; thatтАЩs how the forest stays clean."

"So the Forest People sit on the sticks and donтАЩt get enveloped; that sounds intelligent to me."

Jones shrugged. "Look, тАШintelligenceтАЩ is a catch-all for a lot of different talents, and these things might
even be able to do biosynthesis faster and better than we can, but for a race thatтАЩs supposed to be on the
verge of intelligence, the Forest People donтАЩt seem to interact with us as much as parrots or chimpanzees
back home. Of course, IтАЩm more of a biologist than an anthropologist."

Akil shook his head. "I wish we had plausible similicrons."

"In a month or two, we will. We need enough data on behavior and chemistry to fool beings that perceive
right down to the chemical level."

"Like dogs?"