text: "How is it that at least two cyoziworms got past your detection schemes, and are still lurking around Dorday, surely preparing to colonize more innocent people now that the worm density is so low?" asked Tarcuna.
  
  The Dorday Arsenal didn't have an empty room big enough for us, so we were horse-sized, and sitting at three of the corners of a big square table in the Hall of Government, glaring at some senior gendarmes and a scared-smelling Prof. Wulpmegarn. Tarcuna was doing the actual interrogation, because she had more actual scientific training than we did.
  
  "Well, we followed the professor's protocols very carefully," said one of the gendarmes. "I'm sure that there weren't any errors in enforcement. I think that the protocols don't catch all the worms."
  
  Prof. Wulpmegarn snorted. "My protocols are based on the best available scientific research on cyoziworms. Llredh, you do remember that you ordered me to develop protocols to find all the cyoziworms in the country, and try them out in Dorday and see how they worked?"
  
  Llredh's voice was smoky. "To find all the cyoziworms, this is what I ordered. To find the cyoziworms, this is what you have not done!"
  
  "This is part of the development of protocols. I understand that your own powers are perfect and not subject to error, but ours are not. They start off severely flawed, and, over a period of experimentation and adjustment and improvement of theoretical models, become, if all goes well, extremely good. But even at our best, we must accept the possibility of false negatives."
  
  "What is a false negative? It sounds like a number that's pretending to be below zero, but isn't," I had to ask.
  
  "A false negative is a situation when a test is negative, falsely. For example, when a wormridden Ailenne is proclaimed clean, incorrectly," said Wulpmegarn. "A false positive is when someone is proclaimed infested, incorrectly."
  
  "The false negatives, they must never happen!" exclaimed Llredh.
  
  "Then you must use powers beyond those of ordinary people to perform your tests," said Prof. Wulpmegarn. "Technology can make no such guarantee."
  
  Llredh and Ythac hissed at each other in Grand Draconic, about how Ythac could detect every worm in the country in a matter of one dozen years, or more, if he put his mind to it. And didn't sleep or eat or rule Trest — or couple with Llredh. And if the worms stopped reproducing, and no new ones came into the country. And if the guesses about the worm population were on the low side. I didn't try to translate for any hovens.
  
  "Powers beyond those of hovens will be used, in the final cleansing. But the greater part of the work must be done by the hovens themselves. You, ultimately, are the ones who suffer from worms. You, ultimately, must labor the most to cure them," proclaimed Ythac.
  
  "By which I understand that you will spare my life once more so that I can work on your programs for you?" snapped Wulpmegarn. "And these gentlemen of the gendarmerie as well, for all that they are trying to put the blame on me?"
  
  Ythac lashed his tail. "Yes. But you must improve your protocols. You fail too often!"
  
  "What are the protocols, anyway?" asked Tarcuna.