THE POWER OF "THE THOUGHT"
But it seemed, or must have to any being of it as it moved now, that the Thought was a thought. With the time opened to the limit, and a touch of the space control, it across the Universe at a such as no other thing was of.
One star—it to a disc, enormous—overpowering—then they were through it! The their into the space-coils and the time field, and the ship to and in space as the of a star, and a ship's space for a of time so as to be measurement. Then the ship was gone—and it a star, the center of which had been into another space forever, as the counteracting, of the was for a moment, and only its own space, and upon itself, to into a sea of flames. Planets it formed, we know, by a such as can when only this man-made accident happens.
But the ship on, its great discharged, but still more than need be.
It was minutes to Talso where it had been hours with the Ancient Mariner, but now they with the speed of Thought!
Talso too was the of a battle, and more of a than Ortol had been, for here where more powerful had been active, the Thessians had been more vengeful. All their ships here. And the great screen that had up here had already fallen. Great had opened in it, as two great forts, and a thousand ships, some of the spaces, some little cruisers, had their on the machines. It had for hours, thanks to the that Talso had in their power-distribution stations, but in the end had fallen, but not many of their largest had been defended, and the people of the others had broadcast.
True, they might be, a would them and all life save under the screens, but if the Thessians once their rays, without entering the atmosphere, the screen would once more be able to hold.
No had the Thessian out of this atmosphere, but of more bomb had Thett respect for Talso. But Talso's own screen had stopped their bombs. They only send their as high as the screen. They did not have Arcot's power to maintain the without a screen.
At last the screen had fallen, and the Thessian ships, a once made, were able to move, and that always under them, though if it once were closed, they would again have the to open it.
Exploding had twice such and as to come near it, but the Thessian had a ring of ships about the hole, and opened a of that to the planet.
Like some the up mountains, oceans, and land. Tremendous opened in lines as it along. Unprotected into of and and that as the touched, and were gone. Protected cities, their screens under the as the ships moved on, unheeding, safe on of safety the destruction. Here in the air, where would be so plentiful, Thett did not try to the screens, for the air would the defenders.
Finally, as Thett's had planned, they came to one of the ray-screen that was still its of to the above. Every available was on that station, and, designed as it was for protecting part of a world, the station was itself protected, but slowly, slowly as its already their emission, the of more and more toward the station, as, like some stream, the Thessian played upon it it back. A retreat, and faster, as the from the red of normal defense to the higher and of failing, less complete defense, the of retreated.
Then, with a of light, and a as the up, the station was gone. It had failed.
Instantly the ring of ships as the great screen was by the of this support. Wider was the path of now as the moved on.
But high, high in the sky, out of of the eye, was a spot that was in a ship. It was forward, and in moments it was visible. Then, as another city vanished, it was above the Thessian fleet.
Their were through a that was larger. A second station had gone with that city. But, as by magic, the closed up, and their off with a that them. The was so now that not the of where their touched. The close was off only radio! In they looked for this new station of such power that their did not affect it. A world had been their unsuccessfully. What single station do this, if the many of the world not? There was but one they of, and they now to search for the ship they must be there.
"No this time; just clean, energy," Arcot.
It was clean, and it was burning. In an one of the was a of that so it was purest white, then away, lifeless, and no longer relux.
The other had its screen up, though its power, designed to the attack of a of intergalactic, matter-driven, ships but an under the power of a million suns, in one of energy. The energy of the itself, though it was, the material it to as it it at a close to that of light into space. With little of the after into lux, and under the ray.
A of and energy replaced the molecular, and the ships into a as as the from which came all matter.
Sweeping energy, so that the of the ships did not against it, ship after ship, till the that turned, and, than the through space, than light, for their base.
"That was fight; energy against energy," said Arcot delightedly, for his new toy, which of and on the energy of a universe, was nicely, "and as I said, Stel Felso Theu, at the of this war, the Power wins, always. And in our here, I have five hundred thousand power plants, each at the of of a second, this ship.
"Your world will be safe now, and we will for our last ally, Sirius." The ship turned, and from the view of the of Talso below, as it sped, than light, across a to another civilization.
Knowing their was lost, in the knowledge that nothing to them that in one ship, the Thought, the Thessians had but one now, to do all the in their power leaving.
Already their tremendous, and transports were with their hundreds of thousands from that for the far-off Island of Space from which they had come. Their were in all the of the allies, and those other of our that they could. Those other worlds, many of which were out Arcot had no knowledge of them, were only when the call for to protect the mother was sent out.
But Sirius was them. And its planets, now by the Sirian, Terrestrial and Venerian and great screens as well as a matter-bomb stations, were none the less. For the old Sixth of Negra, the Third here, had fallen. Slipping in on the night of the planet, all power off, and so sending no till it actually through the screen, a small of had entered. Falling still under gravity, they had been missed by the till they had to so small a distance, that no or men of our have stopped, but only their iron permitted them to the they used to with the planet. Then swiftly, they had the great screen by on the sides, where the screen projectors were not mounted. Designed to protect above, they had no armor, and the Sixth was opened to attack.
Two and one-half billion people their painlessly and as played on the planet.
Arcot soon after this catastrophe. The Thessians left almost immediately, after the of three hundred or more ships. One hundred and fifty were found. The were so by the which them, that no be found, and no count made.
But as those ships to their base, Arcot, with the of his ship, was able to watch them, and them; for, under normal conditions, by space in the same manner that they did he was able to see them flee, and follow.
Light year after light year they toward the base. They it in two hours, and Arcot saw them from a to the worlds. There were twelve worlds, each larger than Jupiter of Sol, and larger than Stwall of Talso's sun, Renl.
"I think," said Arcot as he stopped the ship at a third of a light year, "that we had best those planets. We may kill many men, and non-combatants, but they have killed many of our races, and it is necessary. There are, no doubt, other worlds of this Universe here that we do not know of that have the of Thett, and if we can such trouble to them by these worlds, and the of our their mother world into them, they will call off those other fleets. I have been to Thett's ships as we them here, and for the part of the way I was, for I was out of their time-rate, so that they were visible only by the ultra-violet, which would have put in their infra-red, and, no photo-electric will work on of such low energy. When at last I was sure of the sun for which they were heading, I let them see us, and they know we are aware of their base, and that we can them.
"I will one of these worlds, and a as it for their home nebula. Gradually, as they run, I will into invisibility, and they will not know that I have here to complete the work, but will think I am still following. Probably they will to some other in an to me off, but they will most send a ship to call the here to the defense of Thett.
"I think that is the best plan. Do you agree?"
"Arcot," asked Morey slowly, "if this to settle another Universe, what would that of their own?"
"Hmmm—that it was either by their own or that another the parts they did not, and that the other was stronger," Arcot. "The idea in their minds has always been a single world, single as their home, however."
"And single cannot in this Space," Morey, to the that in the from which all in this Universe and all others came, no of less than thousands of millions of times that of a sun and continue.
"We can only investigate—and that they do not the whole system, for I am that, as the idea may be, there is one that we cannot to have visiting us, and it is going to be in one way or another. I will have a with their and if they will not be peaceful—the Thought can or make a Universe! But I think that a second part of that Universe, for times we have read in their minds the of the 'Mighty Warless Ones of Venone.'"
"And how do you plan to so large a as these are?" asked Morey, the screen.
"Watch and see!" said Arcot.
They toward the sun, and as it expanded, came into view. Moving slower on the time control, Arcot the ship toward a at a of 300,000,000 miles from its primary, the sun of this system.
Arcot into step with the as it moved about in its orbit, and the speed carefully.
"What's the speed, Morey?" asked Arcot.
"About twelve and a miles second," the Morey.
"Excellent, my dear Watson," Arcot. "And now my dear friend know the of ordinary air?"
"Why, about one-third of a mile a second, average."
"And if that as a whole should stop moving, and the be the entire energy, what would their be? And what temperature would that represent?" asked Arcot.
"Good—Why, they would have to have the same energy as as they now have as a whole, and that would be an in motion of 12.5 miles a second—giving about—about—about—twelve thousand centigrade!" Morey in surprise. "That would put it in the blue-white region!"
"Perfect. Now watch." Arcot the he had removed, and once more took charge. He was very from the planet, as go, and they not see his ship. But he wanted to be seen. So he moved closer, and off to the of the planet, then moved to the night side, but in the light. In seconds, a was out attempting to him.
Surrounding the ship with a of matter, they him, he set to work.
Directly in the of the planet, a appeared, and to a cup, directly in the path of the planet.
Arcot was energy into the making of that at such a that space was now about them. The them, which had not registered previously, was now, and had moved over to three. Three sols—and was still climbing. It stopped when ten were reached. Ten times the energy of our sun was into that condensation, and it quickly.
The Thessians had the now. It was less than ten minutes away from their planet, and now great numbers of ships of all started up from the planet, out like from a vessel.
Majestically the great world moved on in its toward the thin of and toughness. Already Thessian were at that with of all types, and the little of light, and remained. The on the Thought were no longer registering. The was built, and now Arcot had all the power of the ship it there. Any attempt to move it or it, and all the energy of the Universe would to its defense!
The of the the wall. Instantly, as the pressure of that of air touched it, the fought, and into a of energy. It was now, and the that sun-powers ran steadily, up the scale. But the men were not the meter; they were the of Man stopping a world in its course! Turning a world from its path!
But the suddenly, and the world was a of light. The solid had the cup, 110,000 miles in diameter. It was silent, as a world its energy against the of a universe. Soundless—and as hopeless. Its was nothing, its energy against the energy of five hundred thousand suns—as as those of the Thessian on the of the Thought.
What use is there to attempt of that as 2,500,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 of and metal and against a of energy, and inconceivable. The crumpled, and wide. A thousand pieces, and there was a about it, and the whole mass, but a toy, as it was from this in space, and as it was in this ship, was in that same, immovable, of energy.
The ship was as and noiseless, as without of as when it its way through empty space. But the and twirled, and great of energy about it.
The world, tiny, was against a that stopped it, but the into equal and opposite energy, so that was not to the twelve thousand Morey had but nearer twenty-four thousand degrees. It was over in less than an hour, and a broken, of in space. It would now, toward the sun, and it would, it was and the sun moved, take an about that sun. Eventually, perhaps, it would out the four planets, or it would be as it came the Roches limit of that sun. But the was now a sun, and not so very small, at that.
And from every of the was an of ships, great and small, and they all set panic-stricken across the in the same direction. They had the power of the Thought, and did not any longer its right to this system.
