Cimon didn’t seem to be listening. He said, in a low voice, “What does that mean, ‘prognosis is not good’?”
Novee said, abstractedly, “It means that if you’ve got beryllium poisoning, you won’t recover.”
Cimon fell back in his chair, chewing his lip.
Novee said to Mark, “I suppose the symptoms of beryllium poisoning—”
Mark said at once, “I can give you the full list. I don’t understand the words but—”
“Was one of them ‘dyspnea’?”
“Yes.”
Novee sighed and said, “I say that we get back to Earth as quickly as possible and get under medical investigation.”
Cimon said, weakly, “But if we won’t recover, what use is it?”
Novee said, “Medical science has advanced since the days of books printed on paper. Besides, we may not have received the toxic dose. The first settlers survived for over a year of continuous exposure. We’ve had only a month, thanks to Mark Annuncio’s quick and drastic action.”