Page 35 - Demo

Natch!21most of them did, except maybe the interns, that the Homps hadrun amok over their previous ecosystem designs. One right afteranother had fallen to their insatiable appetites and unheedingtechnology. Now that they were rightfully chastised, those thatsurvived had been forced to adapt to a climate far warmer thananything any of their ancestors had endured, even in the FarNorth, which up until recently had been nearly as ice-covered asthe Far South. Most of the surviving Homps (now technicallyHomo arcturus) spent their summers underground, venturingabove only in the early mornings and evenings to gather whatthey could.%u201cPull out the last sheet in your packets,%u201d Nate held up a yellowsheet and tried to regain control of the meeting, %u201cBetty and Ihave made assignments for Phase 1. We have Lucky, Chance, andJinx scheduled for a preliminary reconnoiter. Take pictures,especially along the coastlines, bring back the latest geographicprojections, and get soil samples. Will and Gad, we%u2019d like you tomake a more exhaustive field study at the end of the month, butbetween now and then immerse yourselves in the background.Let%u2019s begin to assess potential thematic categories.%u201d%u201cDestiny and Fate,%u201d Betty cut in, %u201cwhile they%u2019re doing fieldassessments, we%u2019d like you two to go back to the early records.You%u2019ll probably have to go down to the lower levels. Amity canfind out which floor the Way Back When Archives for the FarSouth are on. We want to have a better understanding of whatwas there before all the ice. Share what you find with Will andGad to inform the categories. And lastly, Thena and Whimsy, youcan start pulling together visual references. Color, shape, size,texture, longevity, herbivore, carnivore%u2014the usual elementsapply. Stay broad in this first phase. We have a large land massand extensive coastline with a varied topography. Don%u2019t bediscouraged by the ice and moonscape that have been there forso long. Things are likely to change quickly. We want to be ready