# Hatcher — Short Fiction character guide

> Hatcher in Short Fiction by Frederik Pohl.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** IV Hatcher

**First appearance:** 0000-asteroid-of-the-damned

## Snapshot

A nonhuman overseer running a desperate experiment on captive aliens, Hatcher alone grasps that the survival of his species may hinge on two mute, powerful specimens.

## Who they are

Hatcher commands a research operation in which every previous subject has died, and he knows better than his helpers that this is no freak show but a matter of life and death. When a newly captured female cries out in pain and the male specimen immediately moves toward her, Hatcher suspects a contact he cannot share or control. His uneasy judgment—keep the male, study the female, fear what others might hear—sets the experiment's early stakes.

## Relationships

### [Herrell McCray](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_18_se/characters/herrell_mccray)

_friendship_

Hatcher and Herrell McCray are close allies, possibly sharing a history of mutual support or shared missions.

### [Herrell McCray](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_18_se/characters/herrell_mccray)

_friendship_

Hatcher and Herrell McCray are close allies, possibly sharing a history of mutual support or shared missions.

### [Herrell McCray](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_18_se/characters/herrell_mccray)

_friendship_

Hatcher and Herrell McCray are close allies, possibly sharing a history of mutual support or shared missions.

## In the story

### [VI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_18_se/chapters/vi)

Mentioned as part of the crew; the narrator rejoins him after returning to the ship.

### [II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_18_se/chapters/ii)

Probe team leader; a three-foot, hard-shelled sphere of jelly with detachable members; tasked with observing and communicating with the Earthman McCray.

### [IV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_18_se/chapters/iv)

The non-human overseer; watches the specimens with fear and excitement, notes the male's paranormal communication, and worries about the female's unshielded thoughts being detected by the Old Ones.

### [V](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_18_se/chapters/v)

Mentioned as one of the beings who kidnapped humans and whose people fled from the Old Ones.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_18_se/characters/hatcher
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_18_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_18_se/characters