Wailing Wall

"Wailing Wall" by Roger D. Aycock is a science fiction story set on Sadr III, a planet where Terran colonists find the human natives in distress due to the long-gone Hymenop aliens' influence. The heart of the story beats with themes of communication and the need for emotional catharsis, focusing on a character named Farrell who wakes up in an alien structure to find natives spiraling toward disaster because they can't share their thoughts and feelings. Robotic counselors once managed their emotional exchanges, but now that the power is off, communication is cut. The novel follows Farrell and his crew as they try to fix the Ringwave generator, discovering that the natives are suffering from isolation, not insanity, and shows the critical value of people sharing their experiences.