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And if Ronald marched blithely there-
Probably the assassin was already there, having circled around while Ronald gathered his courage. To
forge onward now would be to invite a shaft through the eye or a fall into a concealed trap. The Imp
would disappear, and it would be known that the monster had prevailed even over a civilized man.
Thus Speed would have even more power, and it would be long before it became necessary to make
further proof of the reality of the monster. The nightmares would worsen, and more babies would
bawl.
But it was best to make sure his theory was right. Ronald left his boulder and circled quietly around
toward the spot where the chief was supposedly waiting for him. Naturally Speed would be gone.
The chief stood where he had been, unmoved. His entire aspect was of fear. Why should he maintain
that attitude when he thought no one was watching?
Ronald moved away. Now his conjectures about Speed seemed ludicrous. In addition, he still felt the
fear. Why should that be, if he had figured out a valid nonsupernatural origin of his concern?
Cerberus howled again-and again dread overwhelmed Ronald. He fell to the ground and cowered
amid the crackling-dry leaves of the forest floor. No, he had to believe it now: there was indeed a
spell of fear.
He sat up as the howl faded and his terror eased. He was afraid, but he had not given up. First he had
to understand this phenomenon. The creature could project fear; there was now no doubt of that. But
that did not necessarily mean the power of Cerberus was magic. What scientific explanation could
there be?
Ronald's mind began clicking over as it came to grips with this specific problem. What about sonic
waves? Sound, extended above and below the range of human auditory perception. Very low notes
could instill fear; that had been demonstrated. Perhaps they could also curdle milk, or at least make
nursing mothers tense.
But this monster's sounds were audible. Possibly it possessed another mechanism, a second set of
throats; but this seemed unlikely. Why should it bother with audible sound at all?
What about telepathy? Some Galactic species had it; the phenomenon was hardly unknown. Could
that account for the known effects?
Nightmares-certainly! Bad thoughts or moods injected into the vulnerable relaxed minds of sleeping
people. Bad-tasting milk? More likely this was merely the perceptions of the babies being affected.
Mental attitude could change the perception of taste. To appreciate the effect, one had only to imagine
that the pleasant pudding he was eating had been made of crushed grasshoppers.
Oops-some of that glop he had feasted on last night. The mead, for example. Primitives used natural
sources of protein. Grasshopper juice? They would probably smack their lips and think it a great joke
on the Imp. Ronald began to feel ill.
He forced the concept away. His question had been answered. Yes, telepathy was feasible. He should
have thought of it before. The simple, literal projection of fear. Some minds were more receptive than
others, and civilized education would be an excellent counterforce. Chief Speed, for all his
protestations, was a knowledgeable, intelligent man; he was affected less than others of his tribe.
Ronald was affected less yet-but not by much. So the story Speed had told him was true; only the
interpretation made it sensible. Was there really much difference between telepathy and magic?
One element was missing: motive. What did Cerberus stand to gain by projecting fear into a general
populace? Fear could serve as a marvelous defense, but fear projected to creatures who were not
attacking would be counterproductive. As now: Ronald was here to slay the monster, because of the
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superfluous fear it spread-so that fear had become a threat to the monster, rather than a benefit. The
shame of being vulnerable to this emotion had abated, now that he had an honorable explanation for
it, but the emotion itself remained.
Actually, he realized, the fear abated somewhat as he wrestled with this concept. If his attempt to
comprehend Cerberus accomplished that much, success might complete the job. So he should keep
thinking!
Nature did nothing gratuitously. It had to take some form of energy to project that fear-a lot of energy
to cover the broad area of human habitation. Where did Cerberus get that energy? Any prey he hunted
would flee him desperately; so as a hunting device it just didn't make sense.
Could the monster reverse the emotion, summoning prey for ready consumption? Chief Speed had
made no reference to that; it was reasonable to assume that the projection was all negative. If people [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]