"Well—there just wasn't."
"For you. Not necessarily for Sleth Forander. Obviously, the stimulus was there, or he would not have reacted in this manner. You engineers are so forgetful sometimes that your normalcy can't always be imposed over another individual's quite different normalcy. It may be quite normal for a Ragalian to react with panic in such surroundings as you imposed. The stimulus may be quite adequate."
"That would, mean there would be nothing we could do about it!"
"What do you want to do?"
"Sell him a hundred standard H-62's."
Nat shook his head again. "You'd probably have to induce a major basic change in the Ragalian character, from what you've told me."
"I'll do that, if I have to! But I still say it's neurotic to get the screeming meemies just because you're on top of a spaceship instead of the bottom."
"Maybe. I'll give you a hand, if you want me to. Perhaps we can find out just what the nature of the reaction is, and its stimulus."
"No." George rolled up the charts and started for the door. "I think I can handle this myself. It's strictly a problem in engineering, and I think I've got all data I need. I'll let you know if I need help."
It was neurotic anyway you looked at it, he told himself as he went toward the main offices again. There was no element of rationality in the Ragalian's reaction. Of course, Nat had a point. Exactly who could define rationality for a given species or even an individual?
Well, in this case it could be done by the guy that wanted to sell a hundred 62's. It had to be done if they were going to be sold. And they had to be sold if Wilkinson Spacecraft was to have its present chance for survival.
He stopped on the way and picked up the reports prepared by his engineering staff in his absence. A quick glance told him it was what they'd expected.
Hugh and Mark were waiting when he reached Hugh's office. He slapped the reports on the desk and sat down. "Removal of the control room to the keel plate and moving the engines and quarters to the nose would cost us an eighty-nine percent re-design of the thrust skeleton," he said. "That means approximately the same percentage of new dies and jigs. It means design of an entirely new thrust channel and sufficient research to find a lining material that will permit living quarters on the other side of it. Complete redesign of control structures is called for—"
"There's no need of going on," said Hugh. "What's the cost figure?"
"Two point twelve."
"And Monarch and Apex can do it for one-six."
"I guess that lets us out," said
