Star Trek Read Online Free PDF Page B

tissue.”
    Immediately, the skeleton appeared on the empty bed. It could easily have been mistaken for that of a human, save for the narrower jaw, extreme indentations of the skull at the temple point, longer finger bones, and a rib cage that extended almost to the hip.
    â€œWhat conclusions do you draw from this?” she asked Em. He carefully examined the skeleton, leaning in to peer at it, his hands clasped behind his back.
    â€œNo, no,” said Lense. “A good doctor uses more thanjust his eyes. Touch it.”
    Em was hesitant. “We are not programmed—”
    â€œYou’ll need to learn to exceed your programming here, Emmett. Go ahead. Touch it. Like this. Computer, adjust image to permit removal of individual bones without disturbing the construction.” Lense stepped forward and picked up the skull. She ran her fingers over it, feeling the smooth, slightly oily texture.
    â€œThis is unusual,” she said, caressing the indentations in the skull. She handed it to Emmett. “What do you make of it?”
    â€œPerfectly circular,” he said, emulating her and running his fingers around the holographic skull. “It’s unlikely that this is a natural development.”
    â€œPart of the torture that we think may have been performed?” It was a leading question, but she wanted to push him.
    â€œNo,” he replied with certainty. “The indentations are too old, too well-integrated into the skull structure to have been inflicted upon an adult. These modifications were begun when the patient—” His face fell a little, realizing that there was no “patient” to treat, only a body to examine. “When the, ah, subject was in infancy and the skull was more malleable.”
    â€œGood,” approved Lense. “What else?”
    Em was starting to get as excited as she was about this old-fashioned method of examination. “There are similar stresses in the radius and ulna. They’ve been manipulatedover a long time to draw away from one another. Again, I would say this was begun in infancy. Perhaps for decorative or ritualistic purposes.”
    â€œGood. And the rib cage? What does that indicate?”
    â€œThe extended rib cage indicates the strong likelihood of a multiorgan cardiovascular system, and perhaps other extra organs humans do not possess. And the lengthy fingers indicate that this race is probably quite dexterous.”
    â€œYou catch on quickly,” said Lense. “Computer, add internal organs, except for the brain.”
    Blue light traveled down the skeleton, leaving in its wake an intriguing jumble of soft tissue. Lense nodded to herself. Emmett’s theory of two hearts had been dead-on. There were a few extra organs that they did not recognize. She went through them one by one, removing them and handing them to Em for his comments. The functions of most of them were immediately recognizable, despite the unusual shapes, textures, and colors. All humanoids had hearts, lungs, and organs that performed the functions of kidneys and livers. They might have different shapes and colors, and be located in different parts of the body, but they were always there. She frowned when they examined the digestive system.
    â€œIt’s unusually atrophied for a humanoid of this size,” she said. “What could be the reason for that?”
    Em frowned. “Perhaps this alien has evolved to the point where it does not require fibrous foodstuffs in order to obtain its nutrients.”
    It was a fascinating development, and one Lense had never before encountered, but it had no direct bearing on their real purpose. They could save that for later. Time to look at the brain.
    â€œComputer,” she instructed, “replicate the alien’s brain.”
    It appeared on the table, beside the skull. Lense was shocked. It looked, on first examination, no more complex than that of an average human. She had begun to wonder