“There are thousands of intelligent species, living on thousands of worlds. Many thousands,” said Devi-en.

“And they all have nuclear wars?”

“All who have reached a certain stage of technology. All but us. We were different. We lacked competitiveness. We had the cooperative instinct.”

“You mean you know that nuclear wars will happen and you do nothing about it?”

“We do” said Devi-en, pained. “Of course, we do. We try to help. In the early history of my people, when we first developed space travel, we did not understand large-primates. They repelled our attempts at friendship, and we stopped trying. Then we found worlds in radioactive ruins. Finally, we found one world actually in the process of a nuclear war. We were horrified but could do nothing. Slowly, we learned. We are ready, now, at every world we discover to be at the nuclear stage. We are ready with decontamination equipment and eugenic analyzers.”

“What are eugenic analyzers?”

Devi-en had manufactured the phrase by analogy with what he knew of the wild one’s language. Now he said, carefully, “We direct matings and sterilizations to remove, as far as possible, the competitive element in the remnant of the survivors.”

For a moment, he thought the creature would grow violent again.

Instead, the other said in a monotone. “You make them docile, you mean, like these things?” Once again he indicated the Mauvs.

“No. No. These are different. We simply make it possible for the remnants to be content with a peaceful, nonexpanding, nonaggressive society under our guidance. Without this, they destroyed themselves, you see, and without it, they would destroy themselves again.”

“What do you get out of it?”

Devi-en stared at the creature dubiously. Was it really necessary to explain the basic pleasure of life? He said, “Don’t you enjoy helping someone?”