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one? They had imposed trade limits
to keep the planet's economy the same as it had been during the time that a
single ship's arrival made the history crystals. When the Free Planets had
rebelled against the oppressive Earth Empire, the government had actually
seemed a little reluctant to let the Imperial offices close as the end of
rebellion finally arrived.
And now their indifference was not only costing the planet's inhabitants
their happiness, but might also be harming the planet's ecology. Nobody knew
how much damage the Prophylactans were causing because nobody really fully
understood the workings of the native ecosystem. The 'jacs were mostly
dormant now, enveloped by the parasites. They seemed to have almost no
discharge, and at least this had reduced the reproductive rate of the
Prophylactans to a near halt. The accepted theory was that the discharge was
not just the reproductive matter of the ejaculoids, but was also their food.
Since the jism was no longer free to enter the environment and
photosynthesize before being reabsorbed, the
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