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The spire apparently was the strange monolith that he had described before. It stood out from the rest of the sharp peaks because of the odd-shaped, donut-like structure which surrounded the point. He continued with his description. supply or storage areas ... (sadly) which are now empty. : Are there others with you? (His voice had a somber tone.) Only those on the ship. We're here to resupply and to check on the welfare of the scientists on this planet. They're colonists from the planet we're from. Our regular routes are on established trade routes. This is off the "beaten path," so to say, in an isolated part ofthis galaxy. This is an isolated testing, mining and scientific colony here for scientific purposes only and not mainly for colonization. : Doyouknow how long they have beenon this planet? Time doesn't correlate to earth years, but it has been ... seven chronometers, although I can't explain what chronometers are. They have been colonizing and testing for seven. : Is that a longperiodof time? For being on a planet, yes. Has it beena while sinceyou have been to this planetto resuppy ? We come approximately every two chronometers. : Did these people volunteer to do this work? Yes, all the work is voluntary. There is no conscription. Although Iwas interested in obtaining the story and finding out the reason for Phil's sadness, my curiosity took over and I asked for a physical description of the people on the ship. He said they were small in stature with large bald heads, light-skinned and not very an: ae muscular. D: Are they physically like humans with a circulatory system, or are they different? P: They are similar, yes. They have two arms and two legs, and eyes and ears and a mouth, but they have no nose. There is no need for a nose. This was part of the evolution. The mouth is but a mere slit and its only purpose is for drawing air. There is no tongue or vocal cords for speaking because the entire process of communication is telepathic. 10 The Keepers of the Garden P: There are some shacks or huts to the immediate right which were