Fantastic Voyage - By Isaac Asimov Page 0,61

kind of chance?"

Grant looked about. "What do the rest of you think?"

Owens said, "I'll follow any course that's set for me, but I'm not going to set it for myself."

Duval said, "I'm not sure."

Michaels said, "And I am sure. I'm against it."

Grant looked briefly at Cora, who sat in silence.

"All right," he said. "The responsibility is mine. We're heading for the inner ear. Set the course, Michaels."

Michaels said, "Look here ..:"

"The decision is made, Michaels. Set the course."

Michaels flushed and then shrugged. "Owens," he said, coldly. "We'll have to make a sharp left turn at the point I am now indicating..."
Chapter 15 : EAR
Carter lifted his coffee cup absently, Drops of liquid slipped off and landed on his pants leg. He noticed that but paid it no attention. "What do you mean, they've veered off."

"I should guess they felt they had spent too much time in the lymph node and didn't want to go through any more of them," said Reid.

"All right. Where are they going instead?"

"I'm not positive yet, but they seem to be headed for the inner ear. I'm not sure that I approve of that."

Carter put down his cup again and shoved it to one side. He had not placed it to his lips. "Why not?" He glanced quickly at the Time Recorder. It read 27.

"It will be difficult.' We'll have to watch out for sound."

"Why?"

"You can figure it out, can't you, Al? The ear reacts to sound. The cochlea vibrates. If the Proteus is anywhere near it, it will vibrate, too, and it may vibrate to destruction."

Carter leaned forward in his seat, staring at Reid's calm face. "Why are they going there, then?"

"I suppose because they think that's the only route that will get them to destination fast enough. Or, on the other hand, they may just be crazy. We have no way of telling since they cannibalized their wireless."

Carter said, "Are they in there yet? In the inner ear, I mean?"

Reid flicked a switch and asked a quick question. He turned back. "Just about."

Do the men down there in the operating room understand about the necessity for silence?"

"I suppose so."
"You suppose so. What good is supposing?"

"They won't be in it long."

"They'll be in it long enough. Listen, you tell those men down there . . . No, too late to take a chance. Get me a piece of paper and call in someone from outside. Anyone. Anyone."

An armed security man came in and saluted.

"Oh, shut up," said Carter, wearily. He didn't return the salute. He had scribbled on the paper in block letters: SILENCE! ABSOLUTE SILENCE WHILE PROTEUS IS IN EAR.

"Take this," he said to the security man. "You go down into the operating room and show it to each man. Make sure he looks at it. If you make any noise I'll kill you. If you say one word, I'll disembowel you first. Do you understand?"

"Yes, sir," he said, but looked confused and alarmed.

"Go ahead. Hurry.-And take off your shoes."

"Sir?"

"Take them off. You walk into that room on stocking feet."

They watched from the observation room, counting the interminable seconds until the stockinged soldier walked into the operating room. From doctor to nurse to doctor he went, holding up the paper and jerking a thumb up toward the control room. Person after person nodded grimly. None budged from his or her spot. For a moment, it seemed a mass paralysis had gripped everyone in the room.

"Obviously they understand," said Reid, "Even without instructions."

"I congratulate them," said Carter, savagely. "Now listen, you get in touch with the various guys at controls. No buzzers must sound, no bells, no gongs, nothing. For that matter, no flashing lights. I don't want anyone to be startled into as much as a grunt."

"They'll be through in a few seconds."

"Maybe," said Carter, "and maybe not. Hop to it."

Reid hopped to it.

The Proteus had entered a wide region of pure liquid. Except for a few antibodies flashing by now and then, there was nothing to be seen except the glitter of the ship's headlights making its way through the yellow-tinged lymph.

A dim sound below the threshold of hearing rubbed over the ship, almost as though it had slid against a washboard. Then again. And again.

Michaels called out, "Owens. Put out the cabin lights, will you?"

The exterior leaped into greater clarity at once. "Do you see that?" Michaels asked.

The others stared. Grant saw nothing at all.

"We're in the cochlear duct," said Michaels. "Inside the little spiral tube in the inner ear that does