of the bio-feedback regimes. Rapid physical and mental decline followed, each reinforcing the other. Most people chose to visit the Euth Club as soon as they realized what was happening. An unfortunate few, afraid of the unknowns of death, rode the roller-coaster all the way down.
Larsen finally broke the silence. "You know, Bey, I've never seen old age before. Can you imagine what it must have been like when half the world was old? Losing hair and teeth and eyesight and hearing." He shuddered. "A couple of hundred years ago, I suppose it was all like that. How could they stand it? Why didn't they become insane?"
Wolf looked at him closely. With a difficult time coming at Central Hospital, he had to be sure that Larsen was up to it.
"They had a different attitude in those days, John," he said. "Aging used to be considered as normal, not as a degenerative disease. In fact, some of the signs used to be thought of as assets—proof of experience. Imagine living a couple of hundred years before that, if you really want to scare yourself. Life expectancy in the thirties—and no anesthetics, no decent pain-killers, and no decent surgery."
"Sure, but somehow you can't really think of it. You only really know it when you see it for yourself. It's like being told that in the old days people lived their whole lives blind, or with a congenital heart defect, or missing a limb. You don't question it, but you can't imagine what it must have been like."
They moved on, and finally Wolf spoke again.
"Not just physical problems, either. If your body and appearance were fixed at birth, think how many emotional and sexual problems you might have."
The outline of Central Hospital was looming again before them. They left the slideways and stood together in front of the massive granite columns bordering the main entrance. Each time they entered, it seemed that old fears were stirred. Both men had taken the humanity-tests here, although of course they had been too young to have any memory of it. This time it was Larsen who finally took Wolf by the arm and moved them forward.
"Come on, Bey," he said, "They won't test us again. But I'm not sure you'd pass if they did. A lot of people in Form Control say part of you isn't human. Where did you get the knack of sniffing out the forbidden forms the way you do? They all ask me, and I never have a good answer."
Wolf looked hard at Larsen, before he at last relaxed and laughed. "They could do it as well as I can if they used the same methods and worked at it as hard. I look for peculiarities—in the way people look, or the way they sound and dress and move and smell—anything that doesn't fit. After a few years it gets to be subconscious evaluation. I sometimes couldn't tell you what the giveaway was on a forbidden form. I'd have to give it a lot of thought, after the fact."
They were through the great studded doors. The same receptionist was on duty. He greeted them cheerfully.
"You two seem to have caught Doctor Capman's fancy. He gave me this code for you. You can use it anywhere in the hospital—he said you would need it when you got here."
He smiled and handed an eight-digit dial-code to Wolf, who looked at Larsen in surprise.
"John, did you call and say we were coming?"
"No. Did you?"
"Of course not. So how the devil did he—?"
Wolf broke off and walked quickly to a wall query-point. He entered the code and a brief message at once flashed onto the viewing screen. 'Mr. Wolf and Mr. Larsen are to be given access to all units of the hospital. All staff are requested to cooperate fully with Office of Form Control investigations. By order of the Director, Robert Capman.'
Larsen frowned in bewilderment. "He can't have known we'd be here. We only decided it half an hour ago."
Wolf was already walking towards the elevator. "Believe it or not, John, he knew. We'll find out how some other time. Come on."
As they were about to enter the elevator, they were met by Doctor Morris, who burst at
Larsen finally broke the silence. "You know, Bey, I've never seen old age before. Can you imagine what it must have been like when half the world was old? Losing hair and teeth and eyesight and hearing." He shuddered. "A couple of hundred years ago, I suppose it was all like that. How could they stand it? Why didn't they become insane?"
Wolf looked at him closely. With a difficult time coming at Central Hospital, he had to be sure that Larsen was up to it.
"They had a different attitude in those days, John," he said. "Aging used to be considered as normal, not as a degenerative disease. In fact, some of the signs used to be thought of as assets—proof of experience. Imagine living a couple of hundred years before that, if you really want to scare yourself. Life expectancy in the thirties—and no anesthetics, no decent pain-killers, and no decent surgery."
"Sure, but somehow you can't really think of it. You only really know it when you see it for yourself. It's like being told that in the old days people lived their whole lives blind, or with a congenital heart defect, or missing a limb. You don't question it, but you can't imagine what it must have been like."
They moved on, and finally Wolf spoke again.
"Not just physical problems, either. If your body and appearance were fixed at birth, think how many emotional and sexual problems you might have."
The outline of Central Hospital was looming again before them. They left the slideways and stood together in front of the massive granite columns bordering the main entrance. Each time they entered, it seemed that old fears were stirred. Both men had taken the humanity-tests here, although of course they had been too young to have any memory of it. This time it was Larsen who finally took Wolf by the arm and moved them forward.
"Come on, Bey," he said, "They won't test us again. But I'm not sure you'd pass if they did. A lot of people in Form Control say part of you isn't human. Where did you get the knack of sniffing out the forbidden forms the way you do? They all ask me, and I never have a good answer."
Wolf looked hard at Larsen, before he at last relaxed and laughed. "They could do it as well as I can if they used the same methods and worked at it as hard. I look for peculiarities—in the way people look, or the way they sound and dress and move and smell—anything that doesn't fit. After a few years it gets to be subconscious evaluation. I sometimes couldn't tell you what the giveaway was on a forbidden form. I'd have to give it a lot of thought, after the fact."
They were through the great studded doors. The same receptionist was on duty. He greeted them cheerfully.
"You two seem to have caught Doctor Capman's fancy. He gave me this code for you. You can use it anywhere in the hospital—he said you would need it when you got here."
He smiled and handed an eight-digit dial-code to Wolf, who looked at Larsen in surprise.
"John, did you call and say we were coming?"
"No. Did you?"
"Of course not. So how the devil did he—?"
Wolf broke off and walked quickly to a wall query-point. He entered the code and a brief message at once flashed onto the viewing screen. 'Mr. Wolf and Mr. Larsen are to be given access to all units of the hospital. All staff are requested to cooperate fully with Office of Form Control investigations. By order of the Director, Robert Capman.'
Larsen frowned in bewilderment. "He can't have known we'd be here. We only decided it half an hour ago."
Wolf was already walking towards the elevator. "Believe it or not, John, he knew. We'll find out how some other time. Come on."
As they were about to enter the elevator, they were met by Doctor Morris, who burst at
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