: I had always figured the Hindmost Creche and the Great Mother to be the same
: thing (via metonymy as you say), and to be essentially the Hive Queen of
: the Pfhor. Their literal mother, laying the eggs that they hatch from, her
: dwelling thus being their nursery or creche. Of course a galaxy-spanning
: empire of organisms couldn't all hatch from one mother... which is why
: there isn't just one mother, and there isn't just one creche. There is a
: whole hierarchy of them, with the Great Mother at the top of that
: hierarchy, and her creche thus the hindmost in the sense you have
: described, as used in Niven's Puppeteers and in the real world.
I actually really like that idea. Nice one, Forrest.
I would like to add something, though. If the Great Mother is at the top of the Hindmost Creche, her offspring would be the sort of 'aristocracy' of the Pfhor, perhaps even the Imperial or Command rank in the Pfhor hierarchy (see 'The Pfhor' on the Marathon Story Page).
There would probably be other 'Mothers' in the Hindmost Creche, giving birth to lesser-ranking offspring. Why are Fighters and Troopers (who appear to be of a different species than the Enforcers) so numerous? Because there are more 'Mothers' giving birth to the Fighter/Trooper race than there are 'Mothers' giving birth to Enforcers.
Just a thought.
Vale,
Perseus
