"A. E. van Vogt - The Battle of forever" - читать интересную книгу автора (Van Vogt A E)

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MODYUN WAS feeling quite cynical by the time the speaker,
having finished his talk on the new light that had been cast
on man's history, asked for questions.
There were several questions of the foolish kindтАФpeople
did not quite seem to know what to make of the information
that had been imparted. Languidly, Modyun indicated
thought and had attention.
"Are you sure you're not describing some old-style mythol-
ogy?" he asked.
"We can't be sure, of course," was the cautious reply, "but
we think not."
"The picture you give of our remote ancestors," Modyun
persisted, "is one that considerably strains my credulity."
"Ours, also, at first," was the answer. "But the context and
immensity of detail obtained provides verisimilitude."
"It would seem, then, that our ancestors fought like ani-
mals, with a sustained savagery which almost suggests that
they were capable of genuine physical activity."
"That is most certainly what we have discovered."
"And like our animals, they actually walked on their own
legs and did not have to be supported by artificial aids?"
"Exactly," said the speaker.
Modyun was sarcastic. "I envision somebody's delusion."
Faint, agreeing smiles registered on dozens of faces.
"I presume," Modyun continued, "they conceived and bore
their own children."
"Oh, yes," was the reply. "A process of copulation impreg-
nated the female, who thereupon gestated for a period and
then delivered."
All present shuddered as this act was visualized.
"Disgusting," a woman murmured.
Another person said, "I'm afraid this is beginning to be a
little hard to accept. Next thing, you'll be telling us that they
ate their own food."
"Exactly," said the speaker. "Passed it through the alimen-
tary canal, had a method of individual personal digestion,
and passed on the excreta into a dung receiver."
There were a few more questions, but those present were
now fairly alienated; the speaker, Doda, perceived this
through the still-open thought-channel amplifiers by which he
was connected to his "audience." Observing that Modyun was
one of the still connected, Doda indicated in a private
thought: "For some reason, I anticipated that you would be
more interested in these discoveries than the others."
Modyun was amused. "I have a body two feet long, and a
head fourteen inches in diameter. What way could I be inter-
ested in a precontrol human with eight feet of muscle and
bone, capable of supporting his head himself? I perceive you