and that's gotta be the mouth, although it's kind of on the small side. Maybe it doesn't eat much. And of course, your basic telecommunications link, standard on any sentient creature.'
'Is it sick, in trouble, what?'
'Prolly both. Beached, like a sick whale. Very like a whale, only smaller.'
'I wish there was something we could do.'
'Like? I wish we could help, too. But…' Gene raised his arms in despair.
'Maybe if we pushed it back into the ocean.'
'I'd say the thing weighed something on the order of two thousand pounds, avoirdupois. Besides, it's obviously an air breather, or it'd be dead already. Likely has lungs and gills.'
'I still wish we could do something.'
'Aside from comforting it, there's little. But of course, we're assuming ?'
The creature emitted a whistling sound. It started in a high pitch, then descended until it became a rush of air.
'That sounded so sad,' Linda said.
'Yeah.'
'What were you saying?'
'I was going to say that we're only making assumptions here. For all we know, the thing is in the middle of a proper and natural life function, like spawning, or something. Or it's just sunning itself after a swim. Who knows?'
'I think it's sick,' Linda said. 'Goofus knew right off.'
'I'm not going to argue with Goofus. The critter looks terrible enough.'
The whistling sound came again, this time varying in pitch. It wandered up and down the chromatic scale, then settled in the middle registers. The creature started to modulate the sound, and something like a voice began to emerge from all the piping. It was doglike at first, which elicited another woof from Goofus, but then it became less feral and, while not exactly human, began to sound like something that could form words, though none came.
This went on for a long time. Snowclaw grew bored and strolled up the beach, sniffing for quarry. Gene left the strand and went to examine the strange trees that grew inland. They were gnarled bonsai-like little things with pink leaves.
Linda sat and listened. Every once in a while she thought she heard something that sounded like an effort to speak.
Finally, after about a half-hour, she heard, quite clearly, 'Ablomabel.'
She stood up. 'Excuse me?' she said.
'Ablomabel.'
'Could you say that again?'
'Ablomabel?'
'Oh. Okay.' Linda touched her chest. 'Linda.'
'Vinah.'
'Linda.'
'Vin-dah.'
'No, Lin-da… Linda. Linda Barclay.'
'Lin-dah-baleee.'
'Yeah, sort of. Pleased to meet you.'
She coached it along, and at the end of a few minutes she was rewarded with, 'Lin-DAH bar-CLEE.'
'Right. But it's more Lin-da BAR-clee. Never mind how it's spelled. Okay, your name is Ablomabel. What are you?'
'What… are… you?'
'Oh. Are you asking me a question?'
'Ask-ing you a ques-tion.'
'Gee, you're coming along fine. That was a good sentence.'
'Thank you.'
The voice was almost human.
'You want to know about me,' Linda said. 'I'm a human being. I'm from the planet Earth.'
'Ear-r-th.'
'Yes.'
'Ear-r-th. Yes.'
'And I and my friends came here in that craft over there. The one you're communicating with. But I guess you know that.'
The creature said, 'I know. I know. I know everything in computer. I am of it with.'
'Then you know pretty much all there is to know about us. There's a lot of information in that computer.'
'Much data is giving.'
Gene had returned in the middle of the conversation.
'Linda, are you giving bootleg Berlitz courses again?'
'Ablomabel, this is Gene. Gene, Ablomabel.'
'So I am pleased meeting, Gene, you,' the creature said.
'The pleasure is all mine. Tell me, does _Ablomabel' have any meaning in your language?' Gene asked.
'Yes, meaning title of leader of… thought-process-change group?'
'Ah. A scientist? Philosopher?'
'Yes!' the Ablomabel said. 'Meaning much the same, yet different, I am thinking about.'
Linda said, 'Ablomabel, are you feeling ill? What are you doing here?'
The Ablomabel answered, 'There is an ending. I am coming to shore, to home, once again, last time. Then ceasing to function. Ending. Death.'
'That's terrible. Is there anything we can do?'
'There is an ending to all,' the Ablomabel said. 'I am fatigued, weary. Long time with sickness. And old, very old. There is no one left, I fear that. No one reports. I am last, I think. Then, I die, I think. I came here to see again the sun, which dies.'
'That's so awful,' Linda said. 'Are you sure there's nothing we can do?'
'I am sure, thank you, please. But glad is in my mind for meeting my new friends. I will stay longer, not die yet.'
'Oh, please don't die. You must have a lot to tell. Can you tell me, do you live in the sea?'
'Yes, my kind is sea-living.'
'How long has your kind lived in the ocean?'
'Very long time, since when the Yvlem decreed there should be living in the sea again after long time deadness in the sea. Many… years ago, eons, long time.'
Gene asked, 'You obviously have technology, and it seems to be part of you. Are you part machine?'
The Ablomabel answered, 'All living who does, are parts of machines, in part machine, and machine parts. Comprehend this?'
'I think I understand. Cyborgs.'
'Indeed, there are machines who are living as well.'
'So you have robots, cyborgs, but no living things that aren't either one of those?'
'Small organisms, some plants, yes.'
'How long has civilization been on this planet?'
'Many long time. Cannot say with exacting. Since the sun was young.'
'Billions of years,' Gene said. 'That's incredible.'
'Permitted asking you questions?' the Ablomabel said.
'Shoot. I mean, of course. Go ahead.'
'Where is it you are coming from?'
'I think you'll be able to understand this. From another universe.'
'Yes, that has been thought, but nothing done in this matter. Another universe. Your machine. You built
