YESTERDAY'S REVENGE by H. L. NICHOLS [Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from Comet January 41. Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.] War! Years and decades of slaughter and hate and retrogression, of men against men, machines against machines, machines against men, in an ever quickening tempo of destruction. The World War, the War of the Wings, the War of the Rockets, the Pacifist War, the World Revolution drowning in the sea of its own blood, and at last peace, the Peace of Fear. And in this Peace cities rose again on the surface of the earth, roads found new ways across the blasted continents, great ships again safely plied the seas, the skies were burdened with commerce and everywhere the mighty deserts slowly shrank before the verdancy of nature and the genius of man. But the ground was soaked with blood of the lost generations marching in endless columns to their sacrifice to hate. The vibrations of the hate were in the very ground beneath the cities. There was bitter hate in the hearts of the men who toiled to build the forms of civilization without its spirit, urged on by the lash, the torture chamber and the purge. And the focus of all this hatred was the Master, Protector of the Peace, betrayer and dictator of a world. Once he had been the idol of the war-weary millions as he sent the robots of the Pacifist Democrats to victory after brilliant victory; as the regimented subjects of the brigand nations had broken their chains to fight under the banners of the great League of Scientists who promised peace and freedom and security; and as the League itself gave him complete control over the mighty armaments contrived for man's salvation. By the time the last stubborn flame-fort had surrendered, he stood upon a dazzling pinnacle of glory such as men had only dreamed before, and he would not descend to be again a man among men. He refused to return his dread powers to the League. When they insisted, he imprisoned them, and they escaped to raise his armies and all peoples against him, shouting the war cries of freedom, so that the whole world seemed to batter against his citadel like a sea of thunder and flame. Yet he alone controlled the robots, and the robots went forth bringing darkness to the sky and fire to the earth. The armies of the people were defeated and scattered, only to fight again from buried strongholds and mountain fastnesses. Then again and again the robots went forth, until the continents were shattered deserts and the underground cities great smoking craters open to the sky.