This chapter opens with a soliloquy by Hiroshi. Hiroshi tells us that he and his crew have come to observe a placenta, a specimen of the parasitic nematode that he has created. He says that he is sorry to say that when they ask for his help, he is the one who asks for it, but he reminds them that it may be difficult to accept, but that they should never forget that they are studying gauna, a type of nematode that is not native to humans. They will come back another time, he says, and he looks forward to his continued relationship with his firm. He compares the placenta to a human body, and says that it is "nothing if not human". He tells the crew that he will never be able to control the body of his own again, as it is a "sidonian nematode" . He explains that at this size, the nematode can transcribe up to human brains or ai, and that it can control the brain of an invaded host and take over the body in Hiroshi's place. He adds that the 107 objects that are seen in the distance from the ship are gauna. They never know how many gaunas they will take, and it is not clear how many pilots have been killed by the nematodes. He continues, saying that he cannot even chase off the fly using mind-transmission, because it only yields