?I had heard it was important.?
?Very. I should begin to move in a few more days. I?ll still need people around.?
?Anyone in particular??
?Did you choose the people who?ve been sitting with me?other than the Rinaldis, I mean??
?Tate and I did.?
?You did a good job. Will they all immigrate to Mars, do you think??
?That?s not why we chose them.?
?Will they immigrate??
After a while she nodded. ?They will. So will a few others.?
?Send me the others?if you don?t think my looks now will scare them.?
?They?ve all seen Oankali before.?
Did she mean to insult him? he wondered. She spoke in such a strange tone. Bitterness and something else. She stood up.
?Wait,? he said.
She paused, not changing expression.
?My perception isn?t what it will be eventually. I don?t know what?s wrong.?
She stared at him with unmistakable hostility. ?I was thinking that so many people have suffered and died,? she said. ?So many have become
unsalvageable. So many more will be lost.? She stopped, breathed deeply. ?Why did the Oankali cause this? Why didn?t they offer us Mars years ago??
?They would never offer you Mars. I offer you Mars.?
?Why? ?
?Because I?m part of you. Because I say you should have one more chance to breed yourselves out of your genetic Contradiction. ?
?And what do the Oankali say??
?That you can?t grow out of it, can?t resolve it in favor of intelligence. That hierarchical behavior selects for hierarchical behavior, whether it should or not. That not even Mars will be enough of a challenge to change you.? He paused. ?That to give you a new world and let you procreate again would
would be like breeding intelligent beings for the sole purpose of having them kill one another.?
?That wouldn?t be our purpose,? she protested.
He thought about that for a moment, wondered what he should say. The truth or nothing. The truth. ?Yori, Human purpose isn?t what you say it is or what I say it is. It?s what your biology says it is?what your genes say it is.?
?Do you believe that??
?
yes.?
?Then why??
?Chance exists. Mutation. Unexpected effects of the new environment. Things no one has thought of. The Oankali can make mistakes.?
?Can we??
He only looked at her.
?Why are the Oankali letting you do this??
?I want to do it. Other constructs-think I should. Some will help me. Even those who don?t think I should understand why I want to. The Oankali accept this. There was a consensus. The Oankali won?t help, except to teach. They won?t set foot on Mars once we?ve begun. They won?t transport you.? He tried to think of a way to make her understand. ?To them, what I?m doing is terrible. The only thing that would be more terrible would be to murder you all with my own hands.?
?Not reasonable,? she whispered.
?You can?t see and read genetic structure the way they do. It isn?t like reading words on a page. They feel it and know it. They
There?s no English word for what they do. To say they know is completely inadequate. I was made to perceive this before I was ready. I understand it now as I couldn?t then.?
?And you?ll still help us.?
?I?ll still help. I have to.?
She left him. The expression of hostility was gone from her face when she looked back at him before closing the wooden door. She looked confused, yet hopeful.
?I?ll send someone to you,? she said, and closed the door.
