A QUARTER OF A MILLION LIGHT YEARS
"Our civilization," Zezdon Afthen, "is on the knowledge of the mind. We cannot have criminals, for the man who plots is surely out by his thoughts. We cannot have politicians and rulers.
"It is a peaceful civilization. The Ancient Masters and War with a aversion. But they did not make our cowards, peaceful intelligence. Now we must for our homes, and my will mightily. But we need weapons.
"But my has little to do with our race. I will tell the of our and of the Ancient Ones later when the time is more auspicious.
"Four months ago, our powerful from space. That only that a new, had appeared a billion miles of our world. The it as from the third of our system. Zezdon Fentes, with my aid, set up some special apparatus, which would up and make them visible. We had used this to see not only what an enemy looked upon, but also what he saw in that thing, the of the mind, the of the past and the future. But while the thought-amplification device was powerful, the new were hard to from each other.
"It was done finally, when all but one man slept. That one we were to to. After that we him at any time. He was the commander. We saw him the ship, we saw the ship, saw it over the barren, surface of that world. We saw other men come in and go out. They were men. Short, squat, men. Their arms were and stocky. But their was enormous, unbelievable. We saw them solid of as thick as my arm. With perfect ease!
"Their were active, but they were evil, evil. Nothing that did not them counted. At one time our dead, and we that the had us, but we saw what a little later. The second in had killed him.
"We saw them the world, their way across it, suits, yet, for all the of that world, about like balls, and jumping where they wanted. Their would drive out like pistons, and they up and through the air.
"They were while they those examinations, and slept at night.
"Then one night there was a conference. We saw then what they intended. Before we had to them. Now we were that we had failed.
"We saw their ship (in the of the second in command) and sail out into space, and toward our world. The world larger, but it was sketched in, for they did not know our world well. Their did not have great power as your electric have.
"We saw them the planet. We saw them plan to any people they with a which was as follows: 'the which makes all parts move as one.' We not and not interpret. Thoughts our knowledge have, of course, no meaning, when our them, and them to us."
"The Molecular ray!" Morey in surprise. "They will be an enemy."
"You know it! It is familiar to you! You have it? You can it?" asked Zezdon Afthen excitedly.
"We know it, and can it, if that is all they have."
"They have more—much more I fear," Zezdon Afthen. "At any rate, we saw what they intended. If our world was inhabited, they would every one on it, and then other men of their were to in on their great ships, and settle on that largest of our worlds.
"We had to stop them so we did what we could. We had powerful machines, which would and our thoughts. So we our thought-waves, and in the mind of their leader that it would be wise to land, and learn the of the civilization, and the to be met. Also, as the ship nearer, we him decide on a spot we had prepared for him.
"He that the were not his own. Only the ideas came to him, to from his own mind.
"He landed—and we used our one weapon. It was a thing left to one group of when the Ancient Masters left us to for ourselves. What it was, we knew; we had used it in the fifteen thousand years since the Great Masters had passed—never had to. But now it was out, and great of in a where the ship of the enemy would land. When it landed, we the of the machine on it, and the it swiftly, and a of the beam's was as the was through a small circle in the plane. The machine backward, and though it was so that a amount of labor had been to it there, the push of the pencil of we sent out it against a it as though it were some child's toy. It to for a second, two. In that time two great had been cut in the enemy ship, fifteen across, that ran through the as though a die had cut through the metal of the ship, out a of metal.
"There was a concussion, and a as the air out of the ship. It did not take us long to that the enemy were dead. Their terrible, in the ship. Most of the men we were able to recognize, having them in the mentovisor. But the colors were distorted, and their were peculiar. Indeed, the whole ship strange. The only time that did normal about that thing, when the of it what they were, when the did not out of proportion, out of shape, twisted, was when on a trial we very close to our sun."
Arcot and looked at Morey. Morey nodded. "Probably right. Don't interrupt."
"That you something, I understood, but the themselves were to me. You know the explanation?" asked Zezdon Afthen eagerly.
"We think so. The ship was on a world of size. Those men, their stocky, and arms, their entire and their for the largest of your planets, would that. Their own world was larger—they were to wear pressure on that large world, and jump all over, you said. On so a as their native world to be, the would be so as to space. Geometry, such as yours to be, and such as ours was, be developed, for you assume the of a line, and of an plane surface. These cannot in space, but on small worlds, from the sun's mass, the approach that without to make the error obvious. On so a as their world the space is so that it is at once that no line exists, and that no plane exists. Their would be like ours. When you close to your sun, the was to space into a of the natural on their home planet, then your and the ship met a condition which it more or less normal, not so to you.
"But continue." Arcot looked at Afthen interestedly.
"There were none left in their ship now, and we had been in the hole, that it should not the propulsive machinery. The second was accidental, to the shift of the machine. The machine itself was now, by its own reaction. We that any pencil of powerful to do what we wanted, would tear the machine from its unless with great into the solid rock.
"The second had been to the rear, and had, by ill-luck, cut out a of the apparatus. We not repair that, though we did succeed at last in the great into place. We to cut them, and put them in sections. Our and did not them. Their weight was unbelievable, and yet we succeeded in the into the of the ship. The missing material did not more than a cut, as wide as one of your credit-discs. You the thin piece of metal in them, but not so much as your finger.
"Those we tight with our best steel, a over on each of the cut, and as the metal cooled, it was against the with force. The joints were perfectly airtight.
"The proper were repaired to the possible extent. It was a task, for we must only at what should be together. Much had been done by the air as it left, for it the machines, too, and they were not designed to the air pressure that was on them when the pressure in the ship escaped. Many of the had been open, and these we repair when we had the necessary and their from the remnants, or in the stock rooms.
"Once we the things. This will you what we with. They were the poles—two generators, together in the way. There was a crash when the was thrown, and of electric from one of them. Two men were killed, in an instant, the one might were killed in that of heat. Everything save the metal and clear ten of it was out. And there was a link that gave. The was ruined. One was left, and small generators.
"Eventually, we did the job. We the machine work. And we are here.
"We have come to you, and to ask aid. Your also has a large planet, smaller than the largest of our system, but yet attractive. There are 50,000 in this universe, according to the records of the Invaders. Their world is not of this system. It is the World Thett, sun Antseck, Universe Venone. Where that is, or what it means, we do not know. Perhaps you understand.
"But they your world, and its address, according to their records, was World 3769-8482730-3. This, I believe, means, Universe 3769, sun 8482730, world 3. They have been this now for nearly three centuries. It was close to 200 years ago that they visited your world—two hundred years of your time."
"This is 2129—which makes it about the year 1929-30 that they around here investigating. Why haven't they done anything?" Arcot asked him.
"They waited for an time. They are now, for they visited your world, and were to the progress your people have made. They to make an attack on all worlds to be populated. They had the mistake of one learn too much; they cannot to let it again.
"There are only twenty-one worlds known, and their thousands of have already nearly all the of this universe, and much of the rings. They have a in this universe. Where I do not know. That, alone, was mentioned in the records. But of all peoples, they only your world.
"There is one in the older than yours, but they are a sleeping people. Long ago their decayed. Still, now they are not from you, and it will be the days needed to learn more about them. We have their and can take you there. Their world circles a star—"
"Not any more," laughed Morey grimly. "That's another for the enemy. They had a little jog, and they are wide now. They are for big things, and they are going to do a lot."
"But how do you know these things? You have ships that can go from to planet, I know, but the records of the enemy said you not the of your sun. They alone that secret."
"Another for them," said Morey. "We can—and we can move than your ship, if not than they. The people of the star have moved to a very live star—Sirius, the in our heavens. And they are as much alive now as their new sun. They can move than light, also. We had a little a while back, when their star passed close to ours. They came off second best, and we haven't spoken to them since. But I think we can make valuable there."
For all Morey's manner, he the terrible of this announcement. A which had been able to the of space in the days when Terrestrians were still the airplane—and already they had Jupiter, and planned their colonies! What had come? They had rays, rays, the energy of matter, then—what else had they now? Lux and Relux, the two metals, of light, than anything of in nature, infusible, totally chemically, one a perfect of light and of all in space, the other a perfect of all radiations—save rays. Made into the condition of by the action of special in its from light, were, unfortunately, able to it into perfectly metal, when the value was gone.
They had that. All Earth had, perhaps.
"There was one other of some importance, the others were semi-civilized. They us in a position these and the high races—yours, those of the star, and those of world 3769-37:478:326:894-6. Our science had been two hundred or so years ago.
"This other was at a great from us, than yours, and not as as yours. They cannot to other worlds, save in small ships by fire, which the Thessians have called a 'hopelessly and thing to in.'"
"Rockets," Morey. "Our ship was part rocket."
Zezdon Fentes smiled. "But that is all. We have you warning, and our plea. Can you help us?"
"We cannot answer that. The Interplanetary Council must act. But I am that it will be all we can do to protect our own world if this enemy soon, and I they will. Since they have a in this universe, it is to that all ships did not report to the home world at intervals. That one is missing will soon be discovered, and it will be sought. War will start at once. Three months it took you to us—they should come soon.
"Those men who left will be on their way from the home world from which they came. What do you call your planet, friend?"
"Ortol is our home," Zezdon Inthel.
"At any rate, I can only you that your world will be that will permit your people to themselves and I will you to your home twenty-four hours. Your ship—is it in the system?"
"It on the second of the fourth planet," Zezdon Afthen.
"Signal them, and tell them to land where a of light, red and blue, up from—this point on the map." Arcot pointed out the spot in Vermont where their private and laboratory were.
He to the others, and in rapid-fire English, his plans. "We need the help of these people as much as they need ours. I think Zezdon Fentes will here and help you. The others will go with us to their world. There we shall have of work to do, but on the way we are going to stop at Mars and up that valuable ship of theirs and make a for possible new weapons, their of speed-drive, and their regular space-drive. I'm to make a right now, that I can both. Their regular drive is a drive with lead for the energy, for the heating, and a drive much like ours. Their speed drive is a time apparatus, I'll wager. Time offers an easy of speed. All speed is relative—relative to other bodies, but also to time-speed. But we'll see.
"I'm going to some to the biggest power I can into the of the Ancient Mariner, and pack in a ray-screen. It will be useful. Let's move."
"Our ship," said Zezdon Afthen, "will land in three of your hours."
