"Among other things, yes. Too many other things."

"You... mixed human and animal genes...?" says Miles.

"Of course. Why not? It's been done plenty in the other direction. And it worked, or seemed to... until the first ones reached puberty, and we started to see the errors..."

"Were there," Miles asks, restraining with great effort a hysterical laugh that threatens to bubble up from the region of his stomach, "any genuine combat-experienced soldiers on the committee?"

"I assumed the client had those. They supplied the parameters."