Lost and found_ a novel - Alan Dean Foster [72]
To this George could only nod. The K’eremu was correct. It was not worth risking everything they had achieved thus far just to bark up a word of encouragement to Marc, alone in his enclosure. In his mind, the dog knew that the K’eremu’s caution was well considered.
But despite her company, and her illuminating if sometimes caustic conversation, it did nothing to assuage his growing loneliness.
They conducted their observations and study in the form of a widening spiral, commencing their research beneath the approximate center of the grand enclosure and working their way gradually outward. Though not one of the multitude of service mechanicals challenged their presence, or paused long enough to carry out more than the briefest of scrutinies in their direction, the escapees took no chances. Whenever they sensed movement, they stopped whatever they happened to be doing and concealed themselves as best they could from the passing automatons.
It was not difficult to do. The underside of the grand enclosure and its peripheral individual ecozones was a jungle of conduits, servos, conveyance devices, customized life support systems, both optical and hard transmission lines, and much more. Not to mention the elaborate installation that was required to supply individually calibrated food bricks and liquids to captive representatives of dozens of different species. In reference to the latter, Sque went into some detail as to how the sustenance synthesization system worked. George ignored most of the speech. It was not relevant to their immediate situation; his scientific background consisted of rooting through garbage bins to find those bits that were edible; and he was much more interested in finding the critical switch, or circuit breaker, or button, or whatever the appropriate designation was for shutting down the barrier that kept his friends caged up top.
His indifference to her lecture miffed the K’eremu. “Assuming you possess sufficient cerebral folds to be capable of it, how will you ever rise above your present state of scholarly deprivation if you do not make an effort to improve yourself?”
“I’m willing to improve myself.” George spoke as the two of them approached an especially well-lit area boasting unusually high ceilings. “Find me a groomer. I’ll even stand still for a bath.”
Sque made disapproving sounds. “Mere physical modifications mean nothing.”
“Is that so?” The dog pointedly eyed the assortment of adornments that decorated the K’eremu’s epidermis. “Then why don’t you get rid of all that junk jewelry you’ve got stuck all over yourself? You look like an itinerant garage sale.”
Sque stiffened perceptibly. “It is not ‘junk.’ It is not even properly what you call jewelry. My accumulated qus’ta is an affirmation of my individuality; one that is vital to every K’eremu.”
“Uh-huh. Like ‘vote for’ buttons, except yours all say ‘vote for me!’”
“I fail to comprehend any deeper meaning behind your primordial ravings.”
“You think that’s primordial ravings, you should see me when I find a steak bone somebody’s thrown out.” Ears suddenly cocked forward. “Getting pretty light up ahead. Think we should turn back?”
The brief acrimony forgotten, Sque turned her attention to the accessway that loomed in front of them. It was much wider and higher than any they had encountered previously, and far more brightly lit.
“By now we should be beneath the outermost edge of the circular enclosed zone. It may be that we have even progressed beyond its limits.” She edged sideways until she was under the cover of a swooping mass of metal and ceramic. Following, he found himself envying her ability to change direction without having to turn her body.
As it developed, they had gone to cover just in time.
“I hear something,” he whispered to her. A tentacular gesture he had come to recognize showed that she heard it as well.
There were two of them: tall, skin shading from deep purple to lavender on the sucker-lined arm and leg flaps. One wore the same pewter-hued oversuit familiar to George from when he had been