wouldn't call them dreams, though. To him, they were the very essence of horror. He admitted only to himself that they were nightmares. He moved through the reddened corridor to the washroom where he slipped out of his soaked nightclothes to take a quick shower. Showers sometimes helped him, too, but not as much as drinking once did.
      The shower door opened. Shelly stared at him for a moment before shutting the door with an "Excuse me. I didn't hear the water running."
      "No problem," Richard replied, getting almost as good a look as she got.
      He left the shower cubicle a few moments later, getting dressed quickly while Shelly was in an adjacent shower. He made his way to the Ready Room. Inside it, Chief Dickson was already present. Dickson glanced up at him, noticing that he went to another table to sit and eat a light meal.
      "Aren't you even interested in what the alert is for?" Isaac asked.
      "You'll tell us sooner or later, anyway. I can wait until the others arrive," Richard answered.
      Isaac asked, "What's your problem, man? When I first took over this team, you were nothing but dependable and caring. Then you got worse in your drinking. Maybe you were still dependable, since you still seemed to care about everything. I guess that made your drinking bearable to me for a while. That is, it did until I realized that someday you could cause a disaster within the team when lives were at stake. I couldn't risk that. Now you don't seem to care about anything and you look like hell. I almost wish you drank again."
      "You're wrong about one thing. I was already drinking heavily when you took over. You just never noticed. You're also wrong concerning whether I care about what I'm doing or not. I do care or I wouldn't be here. So, stuff it and get off my case. My personal life is mine, not yours," Richard replied.
      "Sure it is, until you cause problems in the team. Then it's my worry, too. You need help, Richard. You ought to see a doctor. Maybe a doctor can help you. Maybe you have something physically wrong with you that they can treat."
      The Chief stopped talking when Shelly entered the room. She sat down across from him without glancing at Richard over at the next table.
      "What's the assignment?" she asked.
      "We have a freighter going to Mars with a shipment of animals. Some of them got loose on board. They have some injured crew members who need medical treatment. We'll also help them round up the animals," Isaac answered.
      "What kinds of animals?" she asked.
      "Some non-poisonous snakes and lizards to help balance out the ecology. Mars is still working on balancing its ecology," Dickson answered.
      "Well, if they're not poisonous, then how did anyone get hurt?" she asked.
      "They thought it was a bright idea to turn off their artificial gravity. They figured they could outmaneuver the animals and round them up that way. They were wrong. The animals adapted to it like swimming in water. From what I understand, most of the injuries are broken arms and legs. The crew members got those when they smacked into bulkheads and crates after missing the animals they were chasing," Dickson answered.
***
"I'm glad they had nets on board," Richard said.
   "Me, too. There's another one!" exclaimed Clarke.
   "I see him. Chase him toward me. I'm ready," Laumer said.
***
"I tell you that snake is poisonous. Someone screwed up," Shelly said.
      Isaac replied, "Shelly, the shipment is not poisonous. United Nations laws forbid export of poisonous wildlife. No one wants that kind of wildlife on a newly terraformed world. Not the colonists and not
      The shower door opened. Shelly stared at him for a moment before shutting the door with an "Excuse me. I didn't hear the water running."
      "No problem," Richard replied, getting almost as good a look as she got.
      He left the shower cubicle a few moments later, getting dressed quickly while Shelly was in an adjacent shower. He made his way to the Ready Room. Inside it, Chief Dickson was already present. Dickson glanced up at him, noticing that he went to another table to sit and eat a light meal.
      "Aren't you even interested in what the alert is for?" Isaac asked.
      "You'll tell us sooner or later, anyway. I can wait until the others arrive," Richard answered.
      Isaac asked, "What's your problem, man? When I first took over this team, you were nothing but dependable and caring. Then you got worse in your drinking. Maybe you were still dependable, since you still seemed to care about everything. I guess that made your drinking bearable to me for a while. That is, it did until I realized that someday you could cause a disaster within the team when lives were at stake. I couldn't risk that. Now you don't seem to care about anything and you look like hell. I almost wish you drank again."
      "You're wrong about one thing. I was already drinking heavily when you took over. You just never noticed. You're also wrong concerning whether I care about what I'm doing or not. I do care or I wouldn't be here. So, stuff it and get off my case. My personal life is mine, not yours," Richard replied.
      "Sure it is, until you cause problems in the team. Then it's my worry, too. You need help, Richard. You ought to see a doctor. Maybe a doctor can help you. Maybe you have something physically wrong with you that they can treat."
      The Chief stopped talking when Shelly entered the room. She sat down across from him without glancing at Richard over at the next table.
      "What's the assignment?" she asked.
      "We have a freighter going to Mars with a shipment of animals. Some of them got loose on board. They have some injured crew members who need medical treatment. We'll also help them round up the animals," Isaac answered.
      "What kinds of animals?" she asked.
      "Some non-poisonous snakes and lizards to help balance out the ecology. Mars is still working on balancing its ecology," Dickson answered.
      "Well, if they're not poisonous, then how did anyone get hurt?" she asked.
      "They thought it was a bright idea to turn off their artificial gravity. They figured they could outmaneuver the animals and round them up that way. They were wrong. The animals adapted to it like swimming in water. From what I understand, most of the injuries are broken arms and legs. The crew members got those when they smacked into bulkheads and crates after missing the animals they were chasing," Dickson answered.
***
"I'm glad they had nets on board," Richard said.
   "Me, too. There's another one!" exclaimed Clarke.
   "I see him. Chase him toward me. I'm ready," Laumer said.
***
"I tell you that snake is poisonous. Someone screwed up," Shelly said.
      Isaac replied, "Shelly, the shipment is not poisonous. United Nations laws forbid export of poisonous wildlife. No one wants that kind of wildlife on a newly terraformed world. Not the colonists and not
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