Unconsciously, he had assumed that life in other protected airtight
sublunar areas would be on a similarly low and limited level. Now he
realized that he had had no right to make such an assumption. The Moon
might harbor thousands and tens of thousands of bubbles; some might be
hundreds of miles in scale; some, lower down, nearer the still-warm
volcanic heart of the satellite, might even approach tropical climates
and show little of the semi-monthly seasonal changes. In such places
life might grow in profusion, might compel the kind of battle for
existence as would bring out the evolution of a brain-carrying creature
living on its wits.
And, although he was probably a little farther away from the central
caverns at this moment, he was actually on the outskirts of the linked
bubbles. In such border regions he might indeed encounter rovers and
wanderers from the more prolific areas.
But the problem was now how to find this prowler. There was, he hoped,
only one of them. The creature was probably hanging around somewhere,
even now, keeping an eye on Robin's doings.
Robin got to his feet, looked through his provisions. He found a bit
of rabbit meat, took it out, and skewered it on a cooking stick. He
then knelt inside his cave-refuge and built a fire, using his flint and
steel. Over this fire he hung the bit of meat and set it to roasting.
He carefully began to fan the smoke out of the cave, knowing that
it would carry the new and tongue-tempting odor of cooked meat to
everything in the vicinity.
Robin slipped out of the cave and hid himself in a thick clump of
growth nearby. Cheeky clung to his shoulder, hushed to silence. They
waited.
After a few minutes Robin saw a slight motion in the vegetation at the
other side of the cave entrance. He watched, and a moment later saw a
head thrust itself out, and then a figure emerge and silently stalk to
the cave and look in. It was manlike, walking on two feet and it had
two arms. It was oddly misty, seeming naked and semi-transparent like
the other animal life.
In one hand the creature carried a long stick to which something sharp
and glassy was attached--clearly a type of spear. The creature paused
at the cave mouth, then seeing no one within and unable to resist the
tantalizing curiosity of cooking meat and a small fire, it went inside.
Immediately Robin dashed out of hiding, ran across the small space and
blocked the entrance of the cave with his body. The creature within was
bending over the meat, but on hearing Robin, it turned, and made a wild
dash for the cave mouth.
It collided with Robin. For a moment there was a wild scramble of arms
and legs and then Robin's greatly superior Earth muscles overpowered
the other's and the creature was caught. Robin held it tightly in his
arms, carried it into the cave, and sat it down.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account