"Yes," Tamis nodded. "But they won't bother us."
"You can control them!" Joel said thoughtfully. "Could you direct them
to attack?"
"Attack?" The elder Ganelon looked puzzled. "I don't know. We could
arouse their appetite, lead them to the rebels." He narrowed his
pupilless eyes. "Attack...."
Joel was like a drowning man clutching at a straw. "The ray couldn't
harm the plants. It destroys red blood corpuscles. They'd be
invincible!"
Thorp suddenly smacked a fist into his palm, "By Neptune!" he said,
"it's worth a try. How do you control the brutes? Telepathy?"
Tamis nodded. "They're mindless; that is, they react to external
stimuli. We create the illusion that generates the desired response. It
is as easy to influence a herd as a single tree."
"A conditioned reflex," said another.
The old man said, "But to attack a city with plants--even cannibal
plants...." He shook his head.
"But there would be thousands of them." Joel's voice trembled in
excitement. "Each Ganelon could control a herd. They'd pour down the
streets, create a panic...." He paused. "If you're doubtful, why not
tackle Walt Eriss' headquarters first?"
The old Ganelon looked startled.
Joel said, "There's a herd of the trees here now. Try it. Drive them
into the rebels' camp!"
"But there are only fifty or so trees in the herd. We'd have to call
others...."
"Call them! Call them now."
The old Ganelon bowed his head. Moments slid by. With a sense of terror
Joel was conscious of their passing. What had become of Priscilla? Who
was the mysterious man behind the uprising of the Unfit? Why didn't the
Thinkers act?
"Do something!" Joel burst out savagely. "Don't just stand there! Do
something!"
The elder Ganelon smiled. "Patience, my son. The trees are being
called."
Alpha Centauri B hung just above the treetops, casting long orange rays
across the rebels' camp. Joel and Thorp and Tamis lay side by side in
the shrubbery at the edge of the clearing.
The endless procession of cars still rolled into Eden down the muddied
highway. Another line of cars returned, bringing exhausted men, wounded
men, loot and prisoners.
"Where are the trees?" Joel asked.