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But nothing else was as bright as the thing lying on the floor

"A glue bucket?" asked Po

"No," said Sel "It's a giant bug Beetle Ant So like--look at this, Po"

They were close enough now to see that it was six-legged, though thethan walking or grasping The front ones were for grasping and tearing The hind ones, for digging and running

"What do you think? Bipedal?" asked Sel

"Six or four, and bipedal at need" Po nudged it with his foot No response The thing was definitely dead He bent over and flexed and rotated the hind limbs Then the front ones "Climb, craalk, run, all equally well, I think"

"Not a likely evolutionary path," said Sel "Anatomy tends to commit one way or the other"

"Like you said Not evolved, bred"

"For what?"

"Forover onto its belly It was very heavy; it took several tries But now they could see 's back was a solid sheet of gold As sold that the thing h ten kilos at least

Twenty-five, , thick and stubby And its entire exoskeleton thinly gilt, with the back heavily arold

"Do you think these things were old?" asked Po

"Not with that mouth," said Sel "Not with those hands"

"But the gold got inside it somehow To be deposited in the shell"

"I think you're right," said Sel "But this is the adult The harvest I think the fors out of the anics and leave the pure metal behind"