The night sky held stars and galaxies discharging strange bands of light, mysterious pulses, and more, from many causes and many sources, with mankind ignorant to their nature for thousands of years. Even after their discovery, man pondered their causes, from radio wave discharge to gamma spectrum radiation. Pictures of a galaxy warped by a black hole, shifting light like a funnel, stirred imaginations and made man wonder as to the forces that shape the cosmos. When, beyond myth and superstition, did our species suspect that these marvels may be shaping the fabric of humanity?

Pg 2

It was a lazy, sunny morning in the country. A portion of the fence that separated a four acre home from a neighboring farm had fallen and was lying in the uncut grass generously dotted with clover. Two cows slowly wandered into Forana’s yard and began to graze.

If anyone had been sitting by the swirling hot bath amidst the greenery of the glass domed hot house, they would have been able to visually line up either cow just above the steam-pinked breasts of the twenty-eight year old beauty as she soaked in the swirling, foamy waters of her tub. The mist was therapeutic for the plants and the plants and mist were therapeutic for her. She appreciated how precious a relationship like that was, even if it involved no higher life forms than shrubbery for her to relate to.

After Forana bathed and ate, she threw a bag of her things into the back pocket of her tribrid, a vehicle that used a synthetic gasoline powered engine, regenerative powered electrical motor, and a hydrogen powered system for the vehicle’s electrical applications not related to powering the wheels. Some would call it quaint, some would call it ancient, until seeing her supple body slide in the driver’s seat, dark hair and brown eyes gracing flesh that seemed to drip in the essence of womanhood waiting to be impregnated.

Looks can be deceiving. For at least the moment, motherhood was not really on Forana’s mind. She guided her sports car with pleasant speed through turns and let it buzz efficiently on the occasional straights the country roads afforded her.

She arrived at a parking facility for underground transit to the metropolitan area. Forana had little opportunity to telecommute. Hers was a people job.

The technology had changed, but a train was still a train. There were people who would look at her as though they didn’t know she was whoring for a career, dressing one inch over into provocation for financial reward, not to lure a stranger in the subway. And yet, she could gauge how most mornings would go at work by other people’s reactions there on the platform, whether she nailed the image right or if it just got up and walked away that day.

Pg 3

The trip on the train itself would tell another story. A mood of despair would indicate that the government and the banks were pushing too hard. An air of calm indicated patient hope. An air of smugness suggested the government, banks, or their affiliates had stumbled and taken some lumps. There were no boyscouts. Everybody knew where everybody stood.

At work, a woman was asking a different question.

"Where do they sit?"

Forana gave the question little thought. She said, "I’ve given it a lot of thought: the women with large bottoms should sit next to the men with large stomachs, the women with large breasts should sit next to the men with large noses, and if there is some crossover, you improvise by matching bank account sizes."

The woman, who would have been better suited for the job than Forana had she lacked the character flaw that made her take protocol seriously, asked, "What about bloc or national representation?"

Forana gave her an indignant look before responding.

"Do you think I’m a bigot? Treat this as art. Only we get well paid and our work has no socially redeeming value."

Her subordinate complained, "I used to work for a man."

Forana mused, "Did you?"

Her sub recalled, "It was bad."

Forana said, "I see."

Her sub asked, "Could this be worse?"

Pg 4

Even as the day unwound for Forana, an early moon was making its way above Earth’s horizon. The moon, being what it is at the distance it is from Earth, tends to obscure details of the workings on its surface. Therefore, it could not be a surprise that the activities on the moon at that time were the sole knowledge of the government on Earth and its scientists operating on the moon itself.

If our mind's eye were a camera, we might record something like this, though: a circuit is being laid into a box that is easy to see, then the camera pulls back, making it very small. Then a hand blocks almost all our view until it becomes a blur. Then, two men are seen working over a rectangular box with many small components. Then, next to the men, our mind’s eye sees a large circular device that is about fourteen feet in diameter.

As that evening’s moon floated in the evening sky, there stood two police officers outside of a motel. In a motel room, the sound of breathing and the gentle occasional release of suction from a pair of lips was evident in the dark. Without warning, one of the police officers kicked in the door to that room, while the other shined a light on a naked girl laying on top of a man’s waist, a man who was sitting in bed leaning against the headboard, also naked. One of the officers took a step closer, smiled, and said, "Is this the married couple?"

As the moon began to drift higher in the sky, the evening’s work was just beginning for Saba. He spoke these words to his computer:

Pg 5

"The road to a well governed body requires sacrifices. Not every world can be as Earth, we are our own vessel. Connect. Retrieve test response. Numbers. Reconnect. General release. Next.

We find our strength in our natural tenure of the Solar System. Connect. Retrieve test response. Numbers. Alter.

We find our gift to be in our natural tenure of the realm of God. Connect. Retrieve test response. Numbers. Reconnect. General release. Next.

Other worlds must demonstrate their own diversity without infringing upon Earth or the works Earth has wrought. Connect. Retrieve test response. Numbers. Reconnect. General release. Transfer remaining bulk to department heads. Key in trade, tradition, scientific advance."

Saba paused, grimaced, stretched his legs apart, bent slightly, and put his hands on his knees. Over the years, the circuitry of Earth had been taking him apart one drip at a time. He didn’t know how long he could keep feeding the machine, when he, a man of words, upon becoming emptied of those, would be forced to become a man of action. He could feel everything gently sliding away.

He stood up straight, let his eyes drift for a moment, then began to consider his next move. Louis entered and asked, "How’s work?"

"Livable. I’m painting the picture as diplomatically as possible, but is the Red Lump listening?"

"No."

"What?

"They’re going to build it.

"Alright. Call everybody. We’ll discuss this in person.

"Everybody agrees.

"I want the way it’s done to be agreeable to everyone."

Pg 6

The sun had set, the sky was red, and the moon was high. Out in the woods, surveillance cameras whirred almost inaudibly, hidden in the trees, focused on a cliff overlooking the water of a quarry many hundreds of feet deep. Security in the woods was given the sign and the words "He’s ready." A man in his early thirties, bare naked, then ran off the cliff, yelling and falling fifty feet into the water below. His head bobbed to the surface a few moments later. One of the security personnel congratulated him, saying, "Nice jump, Jeff."

It was only about a minute later, when the meeting was called, that Jeff Pond began to resent his position.

Later, fourteen men were seated with him in the relative comfort of their surroundings, personal status, and nearly oblivious nature towards ethics. Jeff spoke first.

"It cannot be announced. Everything must be unspoken, but implied. Our project should be on and off, enough to unnerve their leaders without proof of Earth involvement. We’ll drop hints by the back door that their project is not wanted, that they have enough problems without giving Earth grievance.

Then it’s on.

We broadcast historicals on how Earth teraformed Mars long ago.

Then it’s off.

Again, on and off. We break them down in morale. We fund Earth friendly politicians, work it both ways. In less than a year their project is on hold…cost, technical difficulties. In two years it’s abandoned altogether for extended greening of Mars as a better environmental improvement in the quality of life. Everything we don’t want is postponed. It never has to happen."

Saba had one of his classical sour expressions. He was blunt.

Pg 7

"We could lay down the law flat out and work the thing from anywhere, as in, ‘You thought you had a problem? We can give you one. Back down.’ I think the direct approach would make things plain, now and later. We’re Earth and that should mean something. Why hide?"

"I won’t let it work that way. Mars can’t beat us, but they can hurt us in too many ways. They might like that."

"Anyone else?

"Don’t ask that question, because it won’t go without my support. It’s not like we couldn’t be direct as things go on, that’s always the last option. Mars already behaves as if it’s independent; we only want what we want, not more fuel to the fire.

"Well, however it gets done, it’s got to happen. If we hide it, we can’t protect it, so it’s vulnerable. It would take more than three years to build another with that range; but O.K., we’ll do it as you say, and you know you owe me on this, Jeff. To be fair, though, either way has risks.

"The universe has its share, Saba."

Pg 8

Holding a job that forced him in the excessive company of machines whose opinions mattered more than the flesh and blood that programmed them brought out a cruel streak in Saba, which was why he was looking forward to his next small project. Saba was a people person. He was eager to lean into the man waiting outside his office.

Jim entered. Saba spoke first.

"I hear you were involved with a minor. It’s a problem, isn’t it?"

"I didn’t teach her anything she didn’t already know."

"Yes, I understand, but abuse feeds on itself, something you shouldn’t be a party to.

"Alright, I screwed her.

"And oral sex.

"Look, this is trivia.

"But not when the girl is a minor.

"Either way, it’s the same in the courts.

"Usually. Do you want to go to court?

"What are you offering?

Pg 9

"What do you mean?

"Look, why am I here? No, I don’t want a year of confinement because some girl came on to me. I have bills to pay and the rest of it.

"You could make some money.

"Uh huh…

"Alright. Can you fly a ship and keep your mouth shut?

"Will it get me off?

"You could get into trouble again.

"What?

"You’ll do what I say?

"Yes.

"Good. We want you to fly something into a bobbing orbit around the surface of the sun. Get it there and launch it.

"A solar probe?

"It pays well if you don’t ask a lot of questions. Your record will show you have been in confinement. That’s all you can tell anyone.

Pg 10

"I’ll still have a record.

"Should we get someone else?

"No. I’ll make the best of it.

"That’s the right attitude.

"Anything else?

"Tell me, was she fun?

"Let me see how the rest of this turns out before I tell you. Fun. Shit."

On Saba’s signal, Tony entered. Saba spoke.

"Tony will get you started, Jim. We’ve got a pilot, Tony."

Tony smiled and said, "Good, come with me."

Jim said, "This is fun, too, right?"

Tony said, "It’s work."

Tony led Jim out of the room as Louis entered from a backroom. Louis smiled widely, and even Saba showed a hint of pleasure on his lips. Louis spoke first.

"Our sweet little thing did well."

"She’ll screw her way to the top, Louis."

Pg 11

"She likes her work. What does she want?

"Bonds. And some allowance for furnishing her place.

"And somebody new to play with.

"She’s got the best of all worlds.

"Really? Not your wife?"

Saba paused at this, but held his emotions in check. He stated plainly, "She’s leaving me."

Louis, who had noted odd looks from Saba when his wife was mentioned the past few weeks was still genuinely surprised.

"Shit! Really?"

"Yes. It will be public knowledge in a short while."

"You don’t let it get in the way, though, do you… I’m amazed.

"It wouldn’t change anything. Well, I’ve got product to get out.

"Hell, take off early. Everyone can cover for the next couple of days.

"No, I can’t do that, I need to feed in at least thirty lines of broadcast to flesh this thing out. Maybe I’ll skip Saturday if I can get enough work done.

Pg 12

"Was it work?"

Saba paused. It wasn’t his work that was eating her up, it was doing that to him. He didn’t try to put his finger on it, it would take mysticism to explain why he was no longer what she desired. She just didn’t. He answered slowly.

"You mean the old girl? She just does what she wants. I don’t know."

As Saba’s mind drifted like a heavy vapor on the image of his wife, she was entertaining in the home the couple had shared for eighteen years. She complained with the determination of a woman who is set on change.

"He wants me to be the one to move out. I’m staying. Let him leave."

Her friend was cautiously sympathetic.

"Your husband has a lot of power. Why do you want to stay?"

"I like the house. If he runs me off, what am I going to do when it comes to money?"

"What will he do?

"Saba would beg me for sex. It wasn’t that I’d hold out on him, but he always had to have it immediately, at the very moment the idea entered his head, and only then. I put up with it for years, but now, that’s how I think of him, as a pushy beggar. What will he do? He’ll find another woman to whine at.

Pg 13

"And money?

"When he moves out, he’s lost. I’ll take an equal share of everything.

"Is there another man?

"No. I’ll let him find another woman before I do that.

"Will he?

"He still talks to me about having sex. When we’re apart, of course he will.

"Is he angry?

"And horny!"

There was a time when Earth was the center of the universe to mankind. Jesus did not overcome a world. He overcame ‘the’ world. Was the world man’s penchant for evil? A metaphor or not, when one spoke of a whole in reference to mankind, there was one world, and Earth was it. That the Earth should even be an obstacle, as a symbol for evil realized, or a source of gravity, or a political or social barrier, there was still only one world worth mentioning. With that in mind, our scene shifts to Mars, a different world for man to inhabit, where the First Popular and his Undersecretary were beginning to unravel a crisis.

Pg 14

"Barry?"

"We’ve got a report of a ship heading to the sun, Doug."

"Which one?

"Something from Earth. Someone requested to fund a solar probe from Mars on the next Earth ship to deploy. They put in a complaint for not being notified or given consideration for their project. It got scrambled. They tried to unscramble and it led to the government.

"Mars?

"Earth.

"Go to the top on this, now, Barry, and request Earth fire the son-of-a-bitch responsible.

"It was scrambled at the top, Doug.

"No.

"Yes.

"What do you mean ‘the top’?

"The head of the biggest bloc on Earth.

Pg 15

"Shit!

"No shit.

"Shit!

"Do you think…

"Do we have any ships nearby?

"Two. Only one armed that can fly there.

"Do they know that?

"It’s not listed as being armed."

Doug Felders, First Popular of the second most powerful world in the solar system, felt the way a very strong man feels when confronted unexpectedly by a man much larger and stronger than himself. All he asked next was a shallow question he half-suspected he knew the answer to. His words were, "What the hell are they doing?"

"We better find out?"

"Send it. We can’t afford to play dead. I think somebody just said no."

"To the filter?"

"What the hell are they doing?"

Pg 16

As a man agile at leading men to his own course, one with confidence among the most dominant of his own sex, it would seem an anomaly that Jeff Pond was very intimidated by women. It is no mystery then that it took him a long fourteen months to ask Forana Lemben to lunch. Focusing on the shallowest of male characteristics of a woman who was anything but, he put his best foot forward.

"How is protocol?"

"Work is fine. How are you?"

"Fine. No, well. Do you mean, really? No, I’m sorry. I was, uh, nothing, really.

"What’s nothing?

"I guess that’s it.

"It is?

"Umm. Can I take you to lunch?

"Oh. Yes.

Pg 17

"Great. That’s really good. Uh, where shall we eat?

"Are you taking me?

"Oh, yes, of course. Anything you’d like.

"Like a promotion?

"Hah, hah. Yes, well, lunch won’t be that good.

"What?

"I’m sorry. Italia-Mex? Indian?

"Indian sounds really good.

"O.K., good, it’s Indian. I’m sorry, I should have asked you sooner.

"Sooner? Today?

"Oh, I, um, nothing. Shall we walk?

"Of course, it’s very close.

"Oh, I was thinking of the other one.

Pg 18

"Really? What can I order?

"Anything you like.

"It has seafood. Are you sure?

"No problem. It’s much the same thing.

"You’re right. You should have asked me sooner. Seafood. This is so nice of you."

As they ate, Jeff had mixed emotions about the meal. He was glad she seemed to be enjoying her food, but every bite she took made him feel left out. He began to synchronize his own eating to hers and slowly he began to relax, feeling they were sharing a common pleasure with each mouthful. As his appetite subsided, she too began to slow down and became willing to talk between each bite. Jeff spoke first.

"I enjoyed the walk. So, really, how’s protocol?"

"Mmph. It’s like splitting hairs. This is really good."

"Good, good. It’s tedious, isn’t it?

"To a fine art, it is tedium. A good job with all the perks, but a real lack of substance. How…

"Yes?

"O.K., you’re young, and you pull all the strings. How did you do it?

Pg 19

"I only head one bloc.

"O.K., I shouldn’t have asked. It sure isn’t protocol.

"That’s alright. I’m guided by an insight into the common paranoia. It doesn’t always show on the numbers.

"Whose paranoia?

"A fictitious individual. A parable of an Earthman. I know what he or she wants done for almost any situation that comes up. My work is predictable and easy for me as long as I have that guide. But, it fools a lot of other people.

"Really? I’m sorry, I shouldn’t talk about your work. This fish is so good.

"Better than a promotion?

"I’m sorry. I was just teasing you. I didn’t want to make you feel uncomfortable.

"Thank you. I was kind of nervous.

"Really? Why?

"I won’t lie. Because you’re very pretty.

"Hah, hah. Common Earthman paranoia."

Pg 20

As Jeff and Forana’s meal on Earth concluded, the gap between them lessened and the future was being paved. Good food better than wine to a hungry woman, good talk better than food to a lonely man… then, morosely, we find the flip side to this off in space, where a man and a woman have rearranged the meaning of lunch.

Debra asked, "Aren’t you going to eat?" Her words had a warm rhythm to them that sweetened the soft hum of the ship.

John felt inspired. He took out a scroll and said, "I have an old wood pulp chart I’d like you to unroll.

Debra was doubtful.

"A chart of what?"

"I’m not sure. Here. Please stand up."

"These are islands on Earth in the Pacific Ocean.

"Oh? Good… please stand sideways.

"What are you writing?

"Poetry.

"Am I your model?

"Yes.

"I’m a poetry model?

Pg 21

"Yes.

"What do I say?

"Nothing, so I can finish.

"Can I move?

"A little, yes."

Debra’s smile lasted all of two minutes. When she noticed John placing the paper in a pocket with evident satisfaction, she began to pout. At last she demanded, "What does it say?"

John replied, "It’s for my wife," then added, "You can keep the chart if you like, Deb."

"I want your dessert, too."

"Yes, good. Thank you for your help."

"You’re not going to let me see it?

"Let me send it to my wife first.

"You aren’t, are you?

"The dessert is very good. The map is an antique.

Pg 22

"You know what you are? A faithful cheater!

"It’s just a poem. You’re married, too, aren’t you? I’ll pose for your poem.

"I don’t write poetry. I don’t want you to pose for anything.

"But you want my dessert.

"You never eat your dessert!

"But, my wife reads my poems.

"Hmm. What does she think of them?

"That they are kind of ridiculous, but, no one but her should see them.

"You lied to me.

"You don’t know that. I lie to all women.

"You mean your wife, too.

"Have some dessert.

"Would you mind if I sit somewhere else?

"I’ve lost another one. Go ahead. Why are you taking my salad, too?"

Pg 23

John reflected quietly over his entrée, like formed water reflecting a petty god trying to justify the indignity of a lost salad. Tim entered the dining area before John’s thoughts could go further.

"Have you had lunch, John?"

"Most of it. What is it?"

"A problem. We need to intercept an Earth ship.

"Why would we do that?

"Political. We don’t know exactly.

"Who is telling me to do this?

"Douglas Felders.

"That’s a mouthful. I’d like to know more.

"Well, the ship is heading right towards the sun. We still can track it, but we might lose it if we’re not careful. Also, they want us to do it because we’re armed."

Like a petty god with a short attention span, the mirror image, John, lost sight of the vision of the disappearing salad, even though it had had some nice cherry tomatoes.

"It’s that bad, is it? What can they do on the sun?"

Pg 24

"I’m having a hard time trying to figure that out. I suppose they could hide something about its surface, but I have no idea how that could affect Mars."

"Maybe it’s a test of our own ship to see if we’re legitimate. We aren’t. Does somebody think that?"

Tim thought about it for a few moments, couldn’t make the connection, and said, "I don’t see that, either."

He continued.

"In all likelihood, Earth is sending another one of a series of solar probes. I don’t know why we would be sent."

"If we weren’t an armed Martian ship, we could be shot down at the sun’s surface and be written off as an equipment failure. If we weren’t here, armed, which Earth theoretically still doesn’t know, Earth could fly any armed ship of theirs that could withstand the temperature and pressure, and act with impunity. If they placed a solar probe, we would probably never find it, if that’s what they wanted to do."

"Why? A solar probe is just a solar probe. Maybe it’s just nerves? The governments of both worlds have been edgy, from what the news reports."

"That usually means something, though, doesn’t it?"

Tim was beginning to grow exhausted talking to John. His superior was a man who minced words like Socrates if you didn’t divert the conversation to what he wanted to talk about. Tim gave in.

"I thought most of it was a quibble over the Martian plan to establish its own planetary filter."

Pg 25

"Yes. The filter. We need one. Earth has had its own for over two hundred years. It use to be quite small, like the kind Mars is proposing to build, if you can call anything that envelops a world and its moons as small. The better they built Earth’s filter, the farther it expanded. It doesn’t even have a specific constant size; it’s not static. Some say it can extend almost as far as Mars when the planets are in proximity."

"You know that’s an exaggeration.

"Well, yes. But, if Mars starts small now, won’t it be improved upon, grow, and interfere with Earth’s system?

"That’s the long range speculation. That could be another hundred or so years down the road.

"But, Earth isn’t happy about it. Earth has been virtually disease free, free of cosmic pollution for some time. They’re nervous about change.

"Mars deserves to enjoy the same quality of life.

"Yes, but could this be what we have to deal with?

"On the sun? There are other political complications besides the filter. What if we get there, it’s an overreaction, and they want to know what we are doing, demand to inspect our ship, which is so loaded with military hardware that a scandal follows and ruins us as well as some heads above?"

John wasn’t buying it. Douglas Felders had given them their mission, a man he knew to be intelligent and realistic. That the order was not fully explained only sharpened his suspicions as to what was behind it. He made it plain that it was an order he had no trouble following.

Pg 26

"Well, this is why were armed, to give Mars some political latitude should Earth provoke our suspicions or abuse our relationship. We’ll see who gets caught with their pants down."

Their trip took time. Tim was distracting himself after having eaten a late meal. This is what he did: He took a spoon and a fork and wedged them together. He then balanced the mated utensils around the lip of a glass, suspended by a toothpick at right angles to the lip, hanging mostly over the outside of the glass. He then brought a flame under toothpick on the inside of the glass and let it burn to the inner edge of the lip. The spoon and fork remained suspended as he took his left thumb and put it up his nose.

It was at this point that John came up behind him and asked, "Doing anything important?"

Tim then took his thumb out of his nose and sat silent for about three seconds. Then he sneezed. The spoon and fork swayed up and down.

John said, "Good, we’re near our destination."

The nearness of the sun’s surface was notorious for flash disruptions of equipment. Magnetic storms were more of a problem than heat or shock. Being a warship, albeit in disguise, the Martian ship was exceptionally well damped against most disturbances. Gravity was fought by two systems feeding off of the sun. The first was the fission/fusion proxy stratosfication system. Basically, its purpose was two-fold. One use was to take the heat of the exploding gasses and convert it into a fission/fusion reaction that would blow back the source of its energy, keeping the ship relatively cool for other systems to support a livable mean temperature. The second purpose was, of course, to counteract some of the sun’s gravity. A second system used magnetic fields to repel from the sun’s surface. Operating both systems simultaneously with wildly fluctuating circumstances was akin to surfing on a board on a tidal wave.

Layers of shielding had to be tuned in to protect the ships visual equipment. If physical equilibrium was difficult, seeing the surroundings was nearly impossible. Pilots called it ‘the fog’.

Pg 27

To detect a ship that didn’t want to be seen was more torturous, still. Ships would use highly reflective solar camouflage to diminish visibility. It was for this reason that the Martian ship deployed ‘shadow board’ which was a form of gamma spectrum holography that would distinguish the position of a solar vessel by determining an increase in the blotting of holographic gamma radiation. The method was imperfect, as the sun was almost as disruptive to this process as ancient radar.

Tim was monitoring the Earth ship. To John, he said, "They haven’t acknowledged our presence with a word or any attack."

John responded, "We are pretty far out of range."

"Not good. They’re releasing, but it’s not a solar probe."

"Copy the internal energy trace."

"It has some elements of a filter."

"Yes, what else?

"A lot of it seems misdirected. Key points of the energy trace are reversed.

"They didn’t! A condenser?

"Why are they being so nonchalant about our presence? It couldn’t be a condenser. If they were going to use that, they’d have an armada protecting it. Let me study the trace more closely.

"No! Follow it and shoot it down before we lose it.

Pg 28

"Alright. Hey, now they’re coming!

"Untie the knot! They don’t know we’re armed.

"Acid or soft fission?

"Soft.

"Got it! It’s unraveled.

"They know we know. Kill their ship.

"I think they’re trying to do us, too! They’re firing at our proxy unit!

"Do the same. We’ll see who burns.

"F section is out! Dislodging. No acid?

"Not here. Too much disturbance.

"Now what? We’ve lost a section, they’re unhit, and now they’re running.

"Hunt that ship down!

"We’ve lost our F section. If they won’t fight, we can’t catch them.

Pg 29

"They’ve got a stupid pilot. They may come back and fight. Keep after them.

"No. They’re off.

"It’s out in the open, now. This won’t get buried.

"We’ve got more dirt on them than they have on us.

"That would be fine for public opinion. What I want to know is what kind of a war it’s going to be.

"We screwed up.

"Exactly."

Pg 30

In Martian twilight dreams are scattered among the islands of life that have forced a world to relent a haughty air for dead things: minerals that had forsaken flowing water, ice that had foregone a dusting of summer pollens from equatorial climes, a sky once bereft of birds and insects. Man, ever mysterious, whose touch meant death to so much life on Earth, breathed into Mars the works of life heaven had shared with man since long ago. A tenuous touch, subjecting man to the whims of man, for if all men are created equal, all men do not see the same design or mold for their soul to be shaped by. And that is a strength or weakness made profound by the touch of woman. That Mars should be a site for hard thoughts is made no more surprising by the fact that the world that breathed it life should seek to undo its own success. Yet, these things did progress one step at a time.

In the executive branch of Mars, the Undersecretary was trying to maintain calm in the evidence of the First Popular’s growing rage. Barry spoke.

"Earth claims no knowledge of any conflict, much less the deployment of a condenser, which they describe as a figment of science fiction. They say our energy trace is a programmer’s fantasy and add that if there were a conflict, it would indicate actions by two hostile factions, something Earth would be no part of, and then go on to ask if Mars is trying to confess to its own guilt in some manner."

Doug couldn’t swallow that much horseshit without seeing blood.

"The bastards plan to do the same thing again!"

Pg 31

"Maybe they just want to smooth it out, Doug, without losing too much face. Establish a dialogue of sorts."

"You don’t believe that.

"I can’t quite believe they did it at all.

"But, you’ve seen the trace.

"I know, I know.

"They still think of Mars as a dependent child, but Earth relies on other worlds, too. They have no right to dictate with threat of force.

"I know, Earth gouges out two thirds of the solar system’s supply of cheap minerals and they always claim everybody else is living off of their resources.

"That’s a good point. We couldn’t respond with an attack on Earth itself, but we might be able to cut their supplies."

Barry stood stunned. The conversation was becoming as unpleasant as recent events. He chose his next words with care.

"Do you mean that? Whatever we could accomplish in that way would only provoke Earth, which isn’t my idea of a good policy."

"Barry, what is Earth’s policy? To turn a beam that gathers cosmic filth on an entire world? Do you know what condensed radio frequencies alone from Centaurus A can do to the biology of a living species? We want to filter out that sort of thing, not have it thrust upon us ten-thousand fold."

Pg 32

"Then it’s war.

"Let’s not call it that. We will institute a blockade to protest Earth’s insensitivity towards the concerns of other cultures, one complaint being that of Earth’s gluttony of mineral resources. We’ll win sympathy on that elsewhere in the solar system.

"And Earth will know what it’s really about.

"I think everybody else will, too. They know we’re at odds about the filter. They just don’t know how far things have gone."

In an office on Mars overlooking a man-made inlet, a man in his early fifties was diligently wasting company time and resources. A younger co-worker, Vera, spoke over his shoulder.

"Well there’s a nice texture."

The man responded, still facing the machine image he was manipulating.

"Do you like it? It has some interesting aerodynamic properties."

"What’s it for?"

"Actually, it works well in air and water. It can skim the outer strata of an atmosphere with good control and achieve a low-energy depletion sub-space orbit, or it can work as a water surface craft.

Pg 33

"Would you market it?

"This is just my hobby, Vera.

"Are you going to make a physical model of it?

"Actually, I’m already working on completing a sailboat design for my son and daughter-in-law."

Having failed her feeble effort of indirectly steering him back to work, she brought up her immediate concern.

"I see. You have a message, Jay."

"I know. I haven’t opened its content out, yet."

"I received a message for you to look at your message.

"Huh!

"I think you better look at it.

"Right, I’m doing that right now.

"How do you get all your work done so easily, Jay?

"This isn’t good.

Pg 34

"Jay?

"I have to go. Oh, the project that’s due in two months that I said was right on schedule? I lied. It’s finished. Key it out. I’ve been activated."

To act in confidence brings a thrill, elation, it is what the average human being requires to behave decisively. Sometimes a person’s confidence can fool them.

Leadership requires, at times, action by the dictates of need, even when confidence is low. As Barry Mench and Douglas Felders spoke, adrenaline was thin, and gloom prevalent.

"If Earth were to send a full fleet…"

"They don’t know that we have so much firepower. They’ll under react."

"They might. They might do nothing. The mineral ships are armed for the most part in and of themselves.

"It’s a good gamble we can enforce a blockade if Earth stays put. Their own ships are laden with workloads in other areas, already.

"If we do make it work, they’ll react eventually. Then what, Doug?

"Then we’ll see what their political fallout is.

"I’m afraid of our own success.

"It sucks, doesn’t it?"

Pg 35

Discussions continued into the deep gloom of a clear Martian day. The sky was pleasant, the view was pleasant from the height of the Martian edifice; the mood was not. Barry spoke.

"We have the coordinates of about eighty-five percent of mineral bearing ships that are Earthbound. We can only intercept about sixty percent of those, and we only have the resources to do this for about four and a half months if we receive no resistance and suffer no major equipment malfunctions."

"It’s the Boston Tea Party."

"Is work still going on with the filter?

"We have some deep thinkers working on compatible filter theory. I don’t expect much from that other than a public relations victory. Conventional thought is that it would take two to three decades to make progress on that and only with a much larger budget than we can afford. But, we do have good people looking at some new possibilities.

"If the problem is really a hundred years away, it still sounds like a reasonable effort."

Barry felt uncomfortable at the thought he wished to express next.

"What if there’s something we don’t know about Earth’s filter?"

"Like what?"

"Doug, what if the problem isn’t a hundred years away. What if Earth’s filter is really much larger than we think?

"We have a pretty good idea of its size.

Pg 36

"As it operates now. What if it has much greater potential, something that has never been used since we announced our own intentions to develop one?

"You mean it’s a turf war, already.

"Isn’t it? Aren’t we already beginning to fight one?

"I’ve had that thought, too.

"Yes?

"We have someone working under cover who might get us some answers."

Twilight. Earth.

"Forana. Are we set for dinner?"

"Jeff, do you remember where we ate the first time you bought me lunch?"

"Of course.

"Do you remember what we didn’t eat?

"Oh. The other Indian restaurant?

"No. But, that’s what we’re having delivered.

Pg 37

"What? Indian? The other restaurant?

"No. Italia-Mex.

"Italia-Mex? Oh, something I said, I remember. Where is it being delivered?

"To your office.

"Oh, I haven’t shown you that, yet. O.K. You’ll like the computer.

"Brand new?

"Brand new.

"Let’s go."

Elsewhere, under the same evening sky, a reunion was made.

"Hi, Jim. Remember me?"

"Laurie? Shit! What do you want?"

"You’re in trouble.

"And you’re the reason!

Pg 38

"No. I mean, I know you screwed up. They want you dead to cover up.

"Who are you that you know all this?

"They wanted me to come on to you again and poison you. I’m in trouble because that’s something I won’t do. Look, I was just trying to make some money, they were just going to get you to do some work for them, but this is way too much for me.

"I appreciate the warning, but I’m not sure I can do anything to leave."

Laurie’s features softened, her eyes grew Bambi-esque, her lips slid outward into a softer pout.

"Look, I know something about these people. If you can stay away from them long enough, you won’t be seen as that much of a threat. It’s politics, and that changes fast."

"How do I do that?"

"Stay with me. I work for them. As far as I know, you’re gone, can’t be found. In three months, it won’t matter.

"Look, if they want me to do something else, you don’t have to get me in bed again. I’m afraid. I’ll do whatever they want.

"You don’t have to do anything except stay out of sight. Do you want to come with me or not?"

Jim Corder, failed pilot of a craft that had attempted to launch a condenser near the sun, a man who had proved the wit to run when he had to, would also show the wit to hide as well.

"Alright," he said.

Pg 39

Call it a computer. An instrument of communication and logical processing. That the computer’s monitor was almost four full walls of liquid undulating glass that would bubble outwards and inwards, never letting gravity draw its protrusions to the ground whenever they formed or receded, that the glass projected complex patterns of light, color, and sound in codes that had evolved beyond the workings of older machines, it never-the-less was just that; a computer. Yet, a creative mind awash in its luminescent technology, a mind such as Forana’s, understood instinctively how to transcend the experience. To Jeff’s delight, she began to undress, letting the lights and harmonic tones bathe her, as Jeff was inspired to do the same. They moved toward one another, and with a delicious ache for the sense of touch, began to caress. Through the other side of the monitor, their images would appear like glittering jelly of no fixed location, wobbling to swelling sounds and a soft chime.

Outside the door to the office, on the floor, boxes of food were left sitting, on top of which was a debit receipt to the party of Forana Lemben, with alphanumeric code following that name.

Emerging from the rubble of a planetary ring, a Martian warship made its first calculated move to disable one of twenty-three mineral ships targeted for immobilization in the vicinity of Uranus. It’s first act was to blind the opposition with a discharge of vapor frost. While temporarily blinding the lead mineral ship, the Martian vessel followed suit by laying a cluster of magnetic sink-hole mines. Two mineral ships hit them, spiraled out of control, and collided. Four other ships were shot with feeder tack which attached to each of the ships’ hulls and weakened their internal power sources, slowing them, increasing their vulnerability.

Two more Martian warships flew out of a point of solar glare where they were further concealed by mirage shadowing. Another Martian warship emerged from behind a civilian space solar collector and communication relay device. All three of these ships fired on the cargo bay of one mineral ship, sending silver and gold spraying out of broken, free falling crates. An order went out to the mineral ships to dump their cargo, and leave. The Martian commander further advised that transit of goods to Earth was suspended by order of the First Popular. For eight minutes after that, all ships sat in their respective positions.

The ship that first attacked with vapor frost, commanded by Jay Corin, was picked as a target by one of the mineral ships. Jay’s first mate yelled, "They’re firing acid!"

Pg 40

An acid deposit hit the ship, sparking through its circuits until it fed into an onboard control unit monitored by a crewman, whom, by touching the panel, shorted out like a machine and then dissolved.

First mate Carl Black yelled again.

"It’s not just acid, it’s got the bug!"

Jay yelled, "Clean it!" and a purple mist quickly filled the cabin.

Returning fire, one mineral ship floundered as the attacking mineral ship retreated. As it became clear how much firepower the Martian warships had, a few mineral ships dumped their cargo as was previously ordered by the Martian contingent. Others ceased fighting and the more than twenty ships remaining hung in space in eerie silence.

As the battle wound down, the dazzling electrical display of computer technology on Earth flowed with the sounds of approaching climax of Forana Lemben and Jeff Pond. Through the miracle of science, their food sitting outside the door was neither too hot, nor too cold, but just…

Pg 41

"Fine."

"I’m sorry, Doug?"

Doug looked at Barry, trying to put a better point on it.

"A fine job. There was some action, but we did well. Most mining ships accepted the reality of the blockade and chose to protest through channels. Not too bad for a world still considered to be an extension of Earth’s domain."

Barry had not relished the Martian victory. Essentially, he couldn’t quite be persuaded that Mars had really won.

"Earth’s lack of a strong response doesn’t seem quite right."

Doug was trying to take what pleasure he could from events.

"Maybe this gives us a chance to negotiate properly. Mars could accept a timetable with limits on its eventual expansion of a filter. We should be able to work this out."

"Earth didn’t send one ship."

"A good start for a diplomatic solution."

"Nothing."

Pg 42

"They don’t need to send any ships. We’re withdrawing ours. It wasn’t a crippling blow to Earth, but it did demonstrate that Mars has a will of its own. This may be the beginning of the evolution of the mind-set Earth carries towards Mars. We’ll get a clearer picture of what Earth thinks when Forana reports."

Barry couldn’t place the name.

"Who?"

"Our spy in Earth’s protocol section. She’s got a good connection, now."

"What is she in it for?

"Not much. Wants to pay down her debt on some Martian property. An island, I think.

"Nice.

"She’s very credible.

"Who’s her connection?

"Jeff Pond. They’re in the sack.

"A good choice.

"Couldn’t ask for more.

Pg 43

"No, I mean, he’s young, she’s not hitting on some old man.

"Her job doesn’t work along that line of reasoning.

"You mean she wouldn’t think that way?

"I don’t know. It’s not the sort of work everybody could do.

"Not well, anyway."

Doug realized that Barry had managed to sour his previous enthusiasm for the results of the blockade. He grumbled, "Why are we talking about this?" and then left for the day.

Forana was hesitant. She asked Jeff, "Why are we spending a weekend on an island?"

Jeff’s controlled, driven, work-ethic face had changed into the beautiful spoiled baby smile of one who at last gets his way.

"I thought you might be tired of always making love in my office."

Forana looked around and stated honestly, "Your island is a pretty impressive property." Disguising a hint of competitiveness, she asked, "How much of it do you own?"

"Almost one fifth of the total acreage and just over a sixth of the shoreline. Why are you smiling?"

Pg 44

"It’s just so beautiful. A fairy tale kingdom."

"It’s nearly twenty acres.

"That’s a lot of land.

"For Earth, yes it is. You must really like it. I haven’t seen you with such a big smile in quite a while. Can your mouth take it?

"Why don’t we go down to the beach tonight and see?

"I’m glad we came. Uh, there’s nobody around in the daytime, either.

"But, I want to surprise you.

"You do."

Twenty acres. Yes, he was a big man on Earth, but when it was paid off, she would have thirty-five acres and the whole island for her own on Mars. It would be a delicious weekend.

Saba showed slight unease. He asked Louis, "Is our little girl keeping an eye on him?"

Louis smiled.

"Screwing him, again, too. What the hell, she’s of age now."

"She had her birthday?"

Pg 45

"It’s on her papers."

Saba smiled, then laughed. Louis continued.

"Our pilot is not going anywhere or saying anything. Fear and pleasure."

"They’re doing better than we are. Lets get the meeting started."

Saba looked at Jeff, lightly tanned and confident, and then at the rest of the congregation. He knew it would be a political test of wills. He spoke.

"Over our heartfelt objections, Mars is still pressing for its own filter, and now they’re stirring up resentment about mining quotas, on top of which, we’ve just lost face in a military showdown we failed to even engage in. Is Mars in command or are we?"

Jeff maintained a poker face. He spoke.

"I still disfavor a public confrontation with Mars."

Saba glanced at the faces of the other bloc leaders and sensed the tide had turned. He dove into Jeff with uncharacteristic frankness.

Pg 46

"I can’t go along with this view, anymore. You don’t have any solutions other than your original idea which failed. Earth could enjoy nearly a three percent reduction in cosmic contamination if we expanded our filter to the full potential that was developed nearly eight months ago. Holding back much longer is going to put us all in political jeopardy. They want to publish the results of their work in technological reviews. Rumors are spreading that we are holding back something better. It’s gotten out of hand in too many ways."

"We still have to negotiate our position at some point."

"You’ve lost support on this. You still control only one bloc, no more than the rest of us.

"If that is the general feeling, as representative of my one bloc, I will not support anything that could endanger Earth’s filter. I also strongly protest any policy of direct confrontation with Mars.

"You don’t support that policy? That’s hypocrisy. You just don’t want to get caught. Well, the policy is no secret to Mars, anymore.

"Mars has withdrawn. They’re afraid. We can negotiate on mineral quotas for an indefinite postponement of a Martian filter.

"It’s not about minerals! See through the fantasy for a moment. The health and stability of our world is what is paramount. The ecology of our species, of all the life that surrounds us, that is the wealth of Earth. It’s what every other populated locale in the solar system envies and wants. No one else is going to have that if it’s at the expense of our own planet. I speak for Earth.

"Your thoughts on protecting this planet are appropriate, but your means for doing so are nothing more than bad judgement. I’m asking for a vote."

Pg 47

Saba thought Jeff was losing his touch. His own instincts, he felt, were in control. He was sure of the outcome on a vote taken now. "Alright," he said. "In favor?"

Hands went up, enough to deal Jeff Pond his first serious loss in upper echelon politics. Saba made a conciliatory gesture.

"You’ve lost. Now at least support our effort. We could use some of your technical staff."

"As I’ve said, I don’t support the policy, and if I did, I still couldn’t support the method."

"You’re splitting hairs."

"I need to leave. Good day."

Jeff met Forana at her home. She had taken two days off after their trip. She was glad to see him, but was readily aware that something had gone wrong.

"Jeff?"

"You know how politicians are always pushing scientists to do the impossible?"

"Did one snap at you?

"No, that’s not it. It’s Saba.

"Is he giving you trouble?

Pg 48

"Other than eroding my support among other bloc leaders, yes.

"That’s pretty bad. How much worse does it get?

"War.

"Uh, oh.

"It gets worse.

"Uh, oh."

There is an interesting series of numbers that begins with one and adds the last two values to derive the next number of a sequence. The first six numbers of the sequence are one, one, two, three, five, eight. The first three prime values of that sequence are two, three, five. An obscure poet once contended that the last sequence divined the cosmos. Two was said to represent energy and matter, three the coordinates of space, and five the cumulative dimensional status of time. Yet, as the days passed, time seemed to have only one unpleasant direction for the world’s population on Mars.

The First Popular of Mars spoke to the Martian Undersecretary.

"If it wasn’t Forana, I’d have trouble believing it."

"She’s reliable, then?"

"I’ve never had any indications to the contrary.

Pg 49

"This is extreme. Is the message itself reliable?

"Aren’t I supposed to be asking you that?

"As certain as we can be, it seems so. This is a lot to swallow, though.

"We have to prepare. What are the expense projections?

"At nearly a quarter percent of the entire annual budget. That in itself would be strategic retaliation from Earth.

"Yes, no less punitive than our short-term blockade.

"We could really be falling for it.

"It would serve us right, wouldn’t it? A false alarm would be the nicest outcome, though.

"Or if the danger is real, Earth stumbled and failed.

"Let’s not get vindictive, Barry. Hah, hah.

"Hah, hah!

"What are we laughing at?

"God. We’re in for it, aren’t we?"

Pg 50

Eleven days passed. Almost. On the evening of the eleventh, a wind started to blow over the red sands of Mars. Then trees that thrived on the remade world began to bend and twist as the sky turned a frosty white. Buildings fashioned in rounded domes and graced with sweeping parabolic curves began to shudder and shake. The man-made waters on Mars lashed spray and grew huge waves in a very atypical fashion. Barry and Doug were monitoring the situation beneath the turbulent ground-level activity where Mars was encountering weather that recalled a time of wild squalls before the world was tamed.

Barry’s doubts were shattered.

"It’s happening, Doug! They’re stretching their damn filter all the way here!"

"How much damage are they doing?"

"I won’t say they’re doing us any good, but we’re holding on pretty well right now.

"If they can make it reach Mars, they should be able to do anything they want to with it.

"They may be at their limits going this far. Or not. The weather is getting worse.

"If Mars was always this close to Earth, we could share the same damn filter."

"Or we could shut ours off, when we had one, if it was too close to Earth’s. Of course, we’d lose eighty-two percent of the biological benefit.

"Are we negotiating among ourselves?

Pg 51

"I didn’t think they could do this much. It’s wild out there. We’re still showing only a little damage.

"What’s a little?

"Estimates are now at one point eight six percent of the annual budget. Sample error at plus or minus point zero four percent.

"Barry, out of curiosity, what are the estimate’s numbers if we hadn’t instituted safety measures?

"Thirty-eight percent of the budget.

"If we get out of this, Forana can have her whole island paid off immediately."

Wind, rain, and hail hammered down mercilessly as trees were uprooted and smaller structures crushed. Most crops were greenhouse enclosed, but there was damage there, too. The level of violence the filter manipulated weather produced increased steadily, until, after an hour and a half into the assault, a loud popping noise was heard. The winds subsided and everything became relatively still.

Doug looked at Barry, waiting. At last he asked, "What happened?"

Pg 52

A mouse of a phone. A lioness of a woman. Saba’s wife spoke with confidence.

"Saba is not in. I have no interest in when he is coming back. Yes. You better call at the office. Goodbye."

In the pleasant sunshine, atop a mountain view, she ambled out onto the deck of her semi-palatial estate with the confidence of an inspired spring morning to boost her spirits. Saba would be leaving completely in two weeks. In fact, everything he owned was out of the house, already.

She looked out into the woods and watched two squirrels chasing around with each other. The clever female squirrel lured the male to a place of her choosing and drew him into loud, squeaky love-making.

Without warning, the deck started to give way and separate from the house. As the structure teetered, she managed to scramble back towards the house and catch onto an exposed beam. She pulled herself up on that and stretched towards the half-open door and dragged herself inside.

The deck crashed down the hill some distance below. Stunned, shaken, then suddenly filled with rage, she screamed out, "Saba!"

The word was given. John informed Tim.

"Earth has attacked Mars. We’re to retaliate."

"How is it to be done?"

Pg 53

"We’re gambling on two of their science outposts on Earth’s moon.

"That’s bad politics.

"They’re military. We have information they built their condenser with the aid of both installations. Our government has submitted documentation of this throughout the solar system. The fact of the attack on Mars is indisputable now that Earth has destroyed its own filter. Public opinion is on our side. Earth’s leaders are going to have to answer to their own citizens.

"Just two outposts, John?"

"We’re out to win a political victory. It’s good politics. We have to shame Earth and keep them from believing that it’s in their interests for an all-out war, Tim.

"We’re not screwing this up."

Earth’s moon was not unarmed, nor were its defenses the crude example found on mineral bearing ships. There was a full-fledged patrol of genuine warships with soft fission weaponry as well as acid. Defenses were much better, as well. Even a limited strike on two targets was not an easy task. Furthermore, an attack had to be quick and effective before the moon defense system could mobilize more forces to the area, or call for nearby Earth based warships for assistance. The psychology of the attack that was to be made was to capitalize on Earth’s confusion, before and after.

Pg 54

Coming over the horizon with false tails like those of comets and holding the image of fiery rocks, Martian warships approached the two lunar bases. Their deceit carried them far enough to clear a range of lunar mountains that bathed in the luminosity of the images they projected.

Sensors hidden within craters detected possible deception, and very quickly, warships were deployed. The six Martian vessels encountered three lunar vessels, all armed to the teeth. Two moon ships attacked with acid, doing little damage.

It was a freak event, a meteor shower a short distance off, that the third lunar ship mistook for more Martian warships. Calling for assistance, it headed into the shower only to have a spray of dust temporarily blind its visual sensory equipment. In the confusion, it scraped a mountain peak and spun helplessly into the moon’s surface, disabled from further combat.

Firing simultaneously soft fission and acid barrages, the Martian ships managed to knock one of the lunar ships out of the sky, which careened wildly and shattered the dome of a glass enclosed lunar lake that served as a moon base water supply. A mist of vapor steam quickly rose over the lake.

The last lunar ship of the three retreated, awaiting reinforcements. The Martian ships followed it tenaciously.

Their initial disguise, no longer useful at close range to their targets, was discarded. Moon base buildings flitted by in their nighttime flight.

The sparkle of a rising sun greeted them as they drew closer to their destination.

Earth’s shadow was overlaid with the ships’ shadows. Four lunar vessels in tight formation were bearing down in their path. Seeing them heartened the fleeing lunar warship, which turned and attacked. Soft fission stripped the hull of one Martian warship which hit the ground hard, kicking up dust that blinded opposing ships equally for a few split seconds. One Martian ship was hit by a sizeable rock on its view-screen that shattered, releasing a puff of water. The pilot laughed out loud and exclaimed, "A lunar geode!" The observation did not protect the ship from a blast of acid which left it crippled and limping in retreat. Reacting more wisely to the gravity of the ongoing situation, the pilot switched on ground level camouflage to disguise the ships skin, as he hugged the lunar surface.

The four remaining Martian warships that could fight switched on fake fur. Fake fur was computer-driven holographic misrepresentations that bombarded the visuals of the computer code-reliant warships. The illusion they projected was a cartoonish image that scrambled real visual data. The defending ships’ computers would try to break the misinformation, and the opposing forces would keep trying to feed in more.

Pg 55

With the lunar ships’ visuals partially fouled, the Martian ships fired heavily, taking down two of the reinforcements to the original lunar warship remaining.

The lunar ships tried audio chaos bombardment to confuse communications between the Martian ships. It was effective in shutting down communication, but less effective in deterring the ships’ pilots. The Martian ships went into a prearranged flight pattern for this, with the two lead ships concealing two trailing ships. Flying close to a lunar greenhouse, the two trailing Martian vessels veered around the back of the structure to attempt a pincer maneuver upon the cluster of lunar warships. One of the lunar ships caught on and circled around to meet them, and in the ensuing dogfight, a Martian ship went down before the second Martian ship brought down the moon vessel.

The remaining two lunar warships made one last bid at an attack that proved ineffective, then ran, calling for more reinforcements. The Martian ships did not pursue, but instead, made their way to the two lunar outposts it was their mission to destroy. They did this successfully, returned to and docked quickly with the crippled Martian warship, and left for their rendezvous point with more of the Martian militia.

News of the Martian raid reached Earth, and Saba called a meeting of the bloc leaders to work through the situation. Saba spoke.

"Now is the time to hold a strong front."

Jeff was having none of it. With his characteristic flair, he quickly dominated the meeting.

"I’ve already released the details of how Earth’s filter was destroyed, and who was responsible, including the vote taken on using it as a weapon against Mars. I’ve admitted my responsibility in the condenser fiasco and have urged Earth’s citizens to back negotiations with Mars."

Pg 56

Saba blurted out, "You bastard!" then added, "I’ll kill you!"

Jeff spoke calmly.

"We’re civilized people here. I won’t make public your foolish outburst."

Another bloc member added wearily, "It will take years to construct another filter."

Jeff responded, "We’ll do it in cooperation with the Martian people."

Pg 57

Having returned to his civilian job, Jay Corin was immersed in a challenge, something very old, from the era of pre-Martian video games. As he played the game, known only as ‘virtual insanity’, he would navigate a character resembling a bug through the electronic image of an Escher stairwell. Finding the right location on the stairwell, the ‘bug’ would then tunnel through to a Van Gogh self-portrait. Upon reaching the healthy ear of Van Gogh’s image, the picture would morph into a psychotic kind of stained glass cat. The cat would begin to shatter into flying fragments as Jay manipulated the bug to hop onto each shard and reassemble the cat before the pieces disappeared. A man, his toy, and then the company of a slightly miffed co-worker. Vera did her best to interrupt him.

"Ancient video games, Jay?"

Jay conversed easily without halting his game play.

"Was my work of any value while I was gone?"

"How did you do it?"

"Then, they made it work?

"Two tiny dual interpolated filters. But, you know, you haven’t done any work in the three weeks since you’ve been back. Do you think you can flash your genius on any odd occasion that suits you, then goof off the rest of the time?

"It solves the problem, doesn’t it?"

Vera changed the subject.

Pg 58

"What were you doing risking your neck in space?"

"You heard, then. I’d already finished the work I needed to do."

"Is this kind of why your wife left you, what was it, twenty-five years ago?

"I told you that, didn’t I? If you can keep it to yourself, she left me over alcohol.

"Jay! There’s medicine.

"I didn’t want to take it at the time.

"I haven’t heard that very often. Sometimes I think intelligence is its own kind of disease.

"It is."

Jim Corder and Laurie Corder were together in bed, celebrating a late honeymoon. Jim spoke softly to his new bride.

"You know, I don’t know how it worked out like this, but I’m glad it did."

"Will you quit rubbing my belly? You’re making me sick."

"I’m sorry. Can I get you anything?

"For somebody so ignorant, you sure had one good trick, didn’t you?

Pg 59

"Maybe it just means fate is with us.

"It’s nature. She’s a lady, you know? She’d have to be. It would take a female to outsmart me.

"At least pregnancy seems to make you more honest.

"Shut up, and come closer. Just leave my belly alone."

Entering the door of a modest home on Mars, John Padroke gave his wife a surprise somewhat better than erotic poetry. She was filled with an emotional flood.

"John! Oh! Linda, come here!"

John grinned.

"Patty."

As they embraced, their daughter, Linda sneaked between them and hugged her father. Patty, losing the struggle for her husband’s affections temporarily to her only child, said, "I can’t believe everything that’s happened."

John asked, "How did everybody hold up?"

Patty thought about it, as if for the first time from an impartial viewpoint.

"We came off pretty good. I had to spend some of our savings to nail everything down, but we’re all supposed to get a good tax break this year to make up for it."

Pg 60

"I heard it was wild."

"Really. And how is Earth’s moon?"

"They told you, huh? I’m sorry, I had to go. It’s over now."

Linda broke into the lull and spoke with childish irritation to her father.

"I found two poems you sent Mommy. Daddy!"

John looked for any hint of displeasure in his wife’s eyes and could detect none. He spoke to the refrigerator, or in that general direction.

"Now I’m in trouble."

Patty followed John’s gaze.

"Yes. Linda, go out and play for awhile. Oh, go over to your friend’s house next door. Here’s some money, you can buy lunch for the two of you."

Linda protested, "Dad just got home!"

Patty gave the look, offered a bribe.

"Come back in an hour and we’ll all do something."

Linda caved, and said, "O.K." and then, "Bye Daddy, I’ll be back soon."

As Linda left, John asked Patty, "What should we do?"

Patty replied, "How about a couple of stanzas?"

Pg 61

A holograph of Doug Felders was being broadcast. Jeff and Forana watched.

"It is not enough that Earth has agreed to work cooperatively on compatible filters. Earth has betrayed the trust of Mars, ignoring the diplomatic means available to resolve peacefully legitimate disputes. Mars has stood too long in the shadow of a world whose self-interest would consume the spirit and resource of the solar system.

A world is not an object to be scorned, but a destiny to be revealed. It is made as a breath of vision to inspire the life it holds, without debt to the pain of another world’s cold desires, its sour lust. It is apparent from all that has transpired, that the path Mars travels must be taken as steps to a source removed from the domination of any will resolved to its own selfish disabilities, its own cynical craft. As chief executive of Mars, I state, without conditional reservation, that Mars is now, and without dispute to the future, an independent body."

Jeff’s features soured.

"Switch him off. Our hands are tied by the poor popular sentiment we have on Earth. We’ve lost our filter for at least eight years, we’ve lost the backing of our people, we’ve lost Mars. What’s left to lose?"

As the full owner of her own island in the equatorial waters of Mars, Forana felt inspired.

"Jeff, I need to go shopping. It may take me a while to get back. Don’t be upset. I’ve ordered you some Indian."

"Indian?"

"Uncommonly good, with or without paranoia."

Pg 62

Forana emerged from the train station and climbed into her tribrid. She only wanted the best of all worlds, and today she felt closer to that than she had ever been. She put it in third and revved it just below the red line. Her mechanic knew better than to overfill the oil. She did her own maintenance.

The construction of a dual filtration system between Mars and Earth was refined to effect partial repair of damaged space which was discovered to be one bioeffectual unit with more biological essence than any single species in the universe. One point of damage translated into damage of the whole unit to some degree. It was determined that space had been made weak by a magnetic technology that was unjudiciously used to rearrange stagnant energy imbedded in space for faster than light travel. Appropriate systems for such transport were eventually designed by the human race as well. The system was further refined to enhance self reparation of the spacial fabric beyond the actual field of inclusion in the dual interpolated filters containment area.