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.The cables burned too, sizzling across the horizon like a twofold train ofgunpowder ignited with a match.Black oily smoke from the insulation driftedlazily in the light wind after the current had passed.And in the cold arctic night, a group of silent people saw materialized beforetheir eyes a ship that had not been built by human hands.They had not calculated exactly right; the mass of the vessel was too great,and instead of dropping to rest on the area prepared for it, it sprawledacross the transfax platform and crushed it to smithereens.There would be another ready by the time they had to send the vessel back.Noone had time to worry about such small points as these; the main thing, theonly thing, was that their incredible gamble had paid off.For a long moment there was no reaction; then the tension dissolved intoPage 39 ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.htmljubilation, and they clapped one another on the back and laughed out of sheerrelief.Someone remembered to radio Main Base with the good news, and warnthem that the transfax receiver up here was smashed.When Wu received the message, he clambered down from the platform and gaveAnty a thoughtful look."Well, I warned you," he said."It's gone off perfectly so far.""What's this about?" demanded Falconetta, and Wu wryly repeated the warning hehad earlier given to Anty."I don't think Saïd finds his work unpleasant," Falconetta commented."But I'll ask him sometime.Anty, is there any way of getting up to the northnow the transfax is out there?""I'll check," said Anty obligingly, automatically dropping back into hisaccustomed role of newest recruit and errand boy.When he had hurried off, RamSingh raised one fine white eyebrow at his companion."You had a reason for that," he said."You know perfectly well that whether ornot the transfax is functioning at the polar base we can still be sent therewith a little extra power.If Anty had thought for a moment or two, he wouldhave seen that fact himself."Falconetta did not reply directly; instead, she looked at Wu."That's a niceboy you have there, Wu," she said."Why are you being unkind to him? Is itbecause you're jealous?""Jealous? I suppose I am.I haven't tried to do more than give him a fairappraisal of the problems facing him, though.""If he's as capable as he seems, he'll figure them out for himself."Falconetta turned her smoky-yellow eyes speculatively after Anty."He remindsme more than a little of myself, when I was new.He is an original, isn't he?""Yes, that's his born self."Anty was returning, and called out when he was still a dozen paces distant."They're warming up the transfax now for us to get to the northern base.They're passing out protective clothing at the stores hut; Ithink we'd better get some and go right away."A few minutes later they walked through onto the bare, frosty ground, and sawthe alien ship lying like a stranded whale under the harsh floodlights.Theywere only a short distance from the site of the excavation that had revealedthe traces of the Others' first visit to Regis, and Anty found himselfcontrasting the circumstances of the two ships'arrivals.What would the reaction be of the inhuman minds in the enigmatic,almost featureless hull? What were they thinking? Had they any idea where theywere? Perhaps they could tell from the star patterns, if the first ship thatcalled here had made a record of them and passed it on.They waited while Wu made a circuit of the perimeter.A battery of floodlightsillumined each side of the ship, concentrating on the barely visible outlineof the airlocks.The vessel itself was not unlike a human ship; after all, itwas built to the same physical laws, driven by similar methods - there had tobe some identity.Yet there was a difference, andAnty found his pulse quickening as it had done when he dug up the alien-madecathode-ray tube from the permafrozen ground.Now, at last, the long-awaited moment of contact between the races was athand.And thanks to his own idea, it was man who would dictate thecircumstances.Ironical, that when they had devoted so much work tothe cause they believed in - that man and alien should live in peace -when it came to this point they did not dare trust the aliens to act of theirown accord.Ram and Falconetta were discussing in low tones their project for making theirpeaceful intentions known to the Others.Anty wanted desperately to eavesdrop,but respected their obviously deliberate whispering.Page 40 ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.htmlSatisfied, Wu returned from his tour."Well?" he said, addressingRam."Made your mind up?"The old man inclined his white head."I think so," he answered."We are agreedthat it will be best to wait for some action by the aliens before we ourselvesmake any move.They will require some time to adjust to what has happened.""As you will," conceded Wu."In that case, I'll reduce the watch to a rota,and give people a chance to go back to Main Base and rest and relax."He glanced at Anty."How about you? You must be pretty well exhausted by now.""I think I'd prefer to stay and see what happens," Anty ventured."I think he deserves to," Falconetta put in, and Wu, after an instant'shesitation, nodded and walked away.But nothing did happen.Nothing at all.As the hours ticked away, the biochemists began to worry about their carefullyprepared cultures; the technicians began to wonder whether they would havetime enough to duplicate the crew and plant the dummies aboard the ship, themen and women in the logistics section worried about getting the aliensupplies out of the ship to provision the real crew members while they werestranded here on Regis.And Katya, in the detector hut back at Main Base,watched the line indicating the limit of their available power converge on theline indicating the theoretical course of the ship.Six hours went by [ Pobierz caÅ‚ość w formacie PDF ]
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.The cables burned too, sizzling across the horizon like a twofold train ofgunpowder ignited with a match.Black oily smoke from the insulation driftedlazily in the light wind after the current had passed.And in the cold arctic night, a group of silent people saw materialized beforetheir eyes a ship that had not been built by human hands.They had not calculated exactly right; the mass of the vessel was too great,and instead of dropping to rest on the area prepared for it, it sprawledacross the transfax platform and crushed it to smithereens.There would be another ready by the time they had to send the vessel back.Noone had time to worry about such small points as these; the main thing, theonly thing, was that their incredible gamble had paid off.For a long moment there was no reaction; then the tension dissolved intoPage 39 ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.htmljubilation, and they clapped one another on the back and laughed out of sheerrelief.Someone remembered to radio Main Base with the good news, and warnthem that the transfax receiver up here was smashed.When Wu received the message, he clambered down from the platform and gaveAnty a thoughtful look."Well, I warned you," he said."It's gone off perfectly so far.""What's this about?" demanded Falconetta, and Wu wryly repeated the warning hehad earlier given to Anty."I don't think Saïd finds his work unpleasant," Falconetta commented."But I'll ask him sometime.Anty, is there any way of getting up to the northnow the transfax is out there?""I'll check," said Anty obligingly, automatically dropping back into hisaccustomed role of newest recruit and errand boy.When he had hurried off, RamSingh raised one fine white eyebrow at his companion."You had a reason for that," he said."You know perfectly well that whether ornot the transfax is functioning at the polar base we can still be sent therewith a little extra power.If Anty had thought for a moment or two, he wouldhave seen that fact himself."Falconetta did not reply directly; instead, she looked at Wu."That's a niceboy you have there, Wu," she said."Why are you being unkind to him? Is itbecause you're jealous?""Jealous? I suppose I am.I haven't tried to do more than give him a fairappraisal of the problems facing him, though.""If he's as capable as he seems, he'll figure them out for himself."Falconetta turned her smoky-yellow eyes speculatively after Anty."He remindsme more than a little of myself, when I was new.He is an original, isn't he?""Yes, that's his born self."Anty was returning, and called out when he was still a dozen paces distant."They're warming up the transfax now for us to get to the northern base.They're passing out protective clothing at the stores hut; Ithink we'd better get some and go right away."A few minutes later they walked through onto the bare, frosty ground, and sawthe alien ship lying like a stranded whale under the harsh floodlights.Theywere only a short distance from the site of the excavation that had revealedthe traces of the Others' first visit to Regis, and Anty found himselfcontrasting the circumstances of the two ships'arrivals.What would the reaction be of the inhuman minds in the enigmatic,almost featureless hull? What were they thinking? Had they any idea where theywere? Perhaps they could tell from the star patterns, if the first ship thatcalled here had made a record of them and passed it on.They waited while Wu made a circuit of the perimeter.A battery of floodlightsillumined each side of the ship, concentrating on the barely visible outlineof the airlocks.The vessel itself was not unlike a human ship; after all, itwas built to the same physical laws, driven by similar methods - there had tobe some identity.Yet there was a difference, andAnty found his pulse quickening as it had done when he dug up the alien-madecathode-ray tube from the permafrozen ground.Now, at last, the long-awaited moment of contact between the races was athand.And thanks to his own idea, it was man who would dictate thecircumstances.Ironical, that when they had devoted so much work tothe cause they believed in - that man and alien should live in peace -when it came to this point they did not dare trust the aliens to act of theirown accord.Ram and Falconetta were discussing in low tones their project for making theirpeaceful intentions known to the Others.Anty wanted desperately to eavesdrop,but respected their obviously deliberate whispering.Page 40 ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.htmlSatisfied, Wu returned from his tour."Well?" he said, addressingRam."Made your mind up?"The old man inclined his white head."I think so," he answered."We are agreedthat it will be best to wait for some action by the aliens before we ourselvesmake any move.They will require some time to adjust to what has happened.""As you will," conceded Wu."In that case, I'll reduce the watch to a rota,and give people a chance to go back to Main Base and rest and relax."He glanced at Anty."How about you? You must be pretty well exhausted by now.""I think I'd prefer to stay and see what happens," Anty ventured."I think he deserves to," Falconetta put in, and Wu, after an instant'shesitation, nodded and walked away.But nothing did happen.Nothing at all.As the hours ticked away, the biochemists began to worry about their carefullyprepared cultures; the technicians began to wonder whether they would havetime enough to duplicate the crew and plant the dummies aboard the ship, themen and women in the logistics section worried about getting the aliensupplies out of the ship to provision the real crew members while they werestranded here on Regis.And Katya, in the detector hut back at Main Base,watched the line indicating the limit of their available power converge on theline indicating the theoretical course of the ship.Six hours went by [ Pobierz caÅ‚ość w formacie PDF ]