"Yes," said Burke heavily. "It's a fortress. There are weapons we
haven't had time to examine. There are barracks for a garrison of
thousands. But there is no one here. It has been deserted, but not
abandoned, because the transmitter was set up to send out a call when
some occasion arose. It seems to have arisen. There is a big plate
here which may be a star map, with a scale on which light-years may
be represented by inches. I don't know. There are certain bright-red
specks on it. They are moving. There is a machine to watch those
specks. Apparently it actuated the transmitter to make it call to all
the solar system."
Keller suddenly put his finger to his lips. Burke nodded and said
curtly, "I'll report further."
Keller flipped over an odd switch with something of a flourish--after
which he looked embarrassed. The transmitter went dead.
"He's right," said Holmes. "Back home they know we're here, I suspect,
and you've told enough to give them fits. I think we'd better be
careful what we say in the clear."
Burke nodded again. "There'll be calls from Earth shortly and we can
decide whether or not to use code then. Keller, can you trace the leads
to this transmitter and find the receiver that picked up that West
Virginia beam-signal and changed the first broadcast to the second? It
should be as sensitive as this transmitter is powerful."
Keller nodded confidently.
"It'll take thirty-some minutes for that report of mine to reach Earth
and an answer to get back," observed Burke, "if everything works
perfectly and the proper side of Earth is turned this way. I think we
can be sure there's nobody but us in the fortress."
His sensations were peculiar. It was exciting to have found a fortress
in space, of course. It was the sort of thing that might have satisfied
a really dedicated scientist completely. Burke realized the importance
of the discovery, but it was an impersonal accomplishment. It did
not mean, to Burke, that he'd carried out the purpose behind his
coming here. This fortress was linked to a dream about a world with
two moons in its sky and someone or something running breathlessly
behind unearthly swaying foliage. But this place was not the place of
that dream, nor did it fulfill it. Mystery remained, and frustration,
and Burke was left in the state of mind of a savage who has found a
treasure which means much to civilized men, but doesn't make him any
happier because he doesn't want what civilized men can give him.
He grimaced and spoke without elation.
"Let's go back to the ship and get a code message ready for Earth."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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