MYSTERY EXPLOSION LAYS WASTE SEVERAL MILES OF PASTURE NEAR CITY ... WRECKAGE ... VEGETATION ... EVERYTHING CHANGED TO BE BUOYANT.... PILLSWORTH FORMULA BELIEVED TO HAVE PROVIDED BASIC EXPLOSIVE
MYSTERY EXPLOSION LAYS WASTE SEVERAL MILES OF PASTURE NEAR CITY ... WRECKAGE ... VEGETATION ... EVERYTHING CHANGED TO BE BUOYANT.... PILLSWORTH FORMULA BELIEVED TO HAVE PROVIDED BASIC EXPLOSIVE
Then suddenly a meaningless jumble of lights burst forth upon the atmosphere. It appeared that the sign had been surprised into a fit of exclamatory stuttering. Then the words began to come again.
PILLSWORTH AND UNIDENTIFIED GIRL SIGHTED HERE ON NORTH WEST LEDGE OF BUILDING ... POLICE AND FIRE EQUIPMENT PREPARING RESCUE.
PILLSWORTH AND UNIDENTIFIED GIRL SIGHTED HERE ON NORTH WEST LEDGE OF BUILDING ... POLICE AND FIRE EQUIPMENT PREPARING RESCUE.
"Thank heavens," Toffee said. "We're not going to grow old together up here after all." She moved away from Marc and to the brink of the ledge. As Marc followed her progress he noticed for the first time that it was still night, but as his gaze moved toward the horizon he saw a growing margin of dawn.
"Golly!" Toffee said happily. "You should see all the people down there! And there are some men with a big ladder on a truck. We'll be down from here in no time at all." She patted her drooping butterflies into place. "They've got a search light on the man who's climbing up. He's terribly big. Why don't you stand up and let me lie down for a while? I'd look more helpless."
"Any time you look helpless," Marc said, "I want to see it."
"That may be," Toffee said, "but don't be surprised if I faint gracefully at the proper moment."
Marc moved closer to the ledge. "I wonder if Julie's down there?" he murmured. But even as he said it, he knew she wouldn't be.
At the bottom of the ladder Marc and Toffee were promptly greeted by the two government men, ushered without delay to a limousine, whisked across the city to a large grey building, and taken to an office with large comfortable furniture and sound-proofed walls. While a male secretary wrote it all down, Marc and Toffee tiredly narrated their experiences at the hands of the Blemishes.
"It was dreadful," Toffee said, eyeing the secretary. "I feel faint."
The more talkative of the two government men told them the rest of the story from where they left off.
"There wasn't anything left by the time we got there," he said. "Even the grass was uprooting itself out of the ground and drifting up into space. There was no sign of the Blemish brothers, of course. Definitely criminally insane!"
Marc gazed out the window at the city stretching up around them, and was taken with a tremor of horror.
"There's just one thing puzzling me, Mr. Pillsworth," the government man said. "How is it that you returned to earth? Will all the debris finally return to earth in a few days?"
Marc gazed at them blankly. He had been wondering the same thing himself. He passed a trembling hand over his eyes and shook his head.
"I know," Toffee said mildly. All eyes turned curiously in her direction. She smiled blandly. "You see," she said, charmed with the idea of having so much male attention all at once, "you see, being rather a creature of nature ... but I don't suppose you gentlemen would understand that ... just let it go that I have a special understanding of natural causes and effects that do not occur in the ordinary human being." She nodded toward Marc. "It was the double dosage that brought him back. The original treatment made him give off the impulses which caused him to be buoyant, but the second one, instead of increasing his buoyancy, merely counteracted it. It was a matter of a war between impulses of equal strength and pull. The ones moving outward were met by the ones forcing their way inward. It was what might be called a condition of impasse. Eventually, the two exhausted each other, and so he returned to earth." She smiled beguilingly. "Is that all perfectly clear?"
The government man whistled shrilly and glanced at the ceiling. "If you say so," he muttered.
"Of course," Toffee went on, "the thing that really saved his life was the fact that, in being buoyant, he drifted far enough away from the explosion so that the impulses that reached him were in exact proportion to those he was giving off. It wouldn't happen again in a million years."
The government man gazed at her from the corner of his eyes. "No," he said. "I'm sure it wouldn't." He turned to the secretary. "I hope you got all that on paper."
The young man shook his head. "I was too fascinated," he said. Even as he spoke, his eyes did not leave Toffee's well crossed leg.
The government man cleared his throat.
"Well, anyway, everything is all right now," he said.
He turned to Marc, who was showing increasing evidence of complete collapse. "I hate to do this," he said, "but I'm afraid we'll have to ask you for another favor. This incident, along with the one of the monument and all the attention in the newspapers, has caused a national panic. The people are threatening to do all sorts of things. There have already been several suicides. Anyway, we have to reassure the public at large that your formula is in our hands and safe. The best way to do this, we've decided, is in a public presentation; if the people can see you handing your formula over to us with their own eyes, then they'll have to believe it. It's not the orthodox procedure in such matters, of course, but this is an extreme situation and calls for extreme measures.
"Anyway, we'd like you to go with us to the stadium this afternoon and publicly present your formula to the chief. Every precaution will be taken and you'll have the very best of protection. Will you do it?"
Marc, too far gone for words, merely nodded. He could hold off sleep no longer.
"Fine!" the government man said, and got up. The others followed. "Then we'll leave you here to rest and will call for you at four o'clock. And, you, young lady...?"
The man stopped, stared, turned to his companions. "Where did she go?" he asked in a whisper. "What happened to her?"
"Gosh, I don't know," the secretary said. "But I wish she'd taken me along!"
In hushed bewilderment the men went to the door and quietly left the room. After they had gone, there was only the sound of Marc's exhausted breathing which bore the promise of a good healthy snore.
For a long time Marc lay immersed in the unbroken blackness of complete sleep. And then the darkness lifted, gradually, and a soft light began to glow around him. He gazed up at a sky of unbroken blue, and somehow his spirit lightened. He sat up and looked around. He knew instantly, by the gentle misted slopes and the strange trees, that he had returned to the valley of his mind. He looked around expectantly.
It happened just as he had known it would, on the nearest rise. The mists swirled aside and a shapely leg appeared, leading quickly after it another of its kind and a perfectly formed body. Toffee smiled as she ran toward him.
"I knew you'd turn up sooner or later, you old wretch!" she cried happily. She dropped to the grass beside him. Marc noticed that she once more was wearing the negligible green tunic that she'd had on the first time he'd dreamed of her.
"I wonder how I got back here," Marc said.
"Who cares?" Toffee said happily. "Let's take advantage of it. What's more private than your own thoughts?"
"Now, just a second...."
"Still the same old prude," Toffee said. Then she giggled. "We certainly took the four bit tour through the mill, didn't we?"
"I don't like to think about it," Marc said grimly. "I wish it hadn't happened."
"Nonsense," Toffee said. "You needed trouble and a good adventure. That's what was wrong with you and your life. That's why you dreamed me up. A good upheaval does anybody a lot of good. Even a bottle of medicine has to have a good shaking to be worth anything. That's why it all happened."
"I wonder about Julie," Marc said darkly. "I wonder if she's...?"
"Wait and see," Toffee said. "Don't rush things." A reminiscent look came into her eyes as she gazed off into the distance across the valley. Suddenly she was taken with a fit of laughter.
"What is it?" Marc asked.
"George," Toffee said. "I wonder where he is now." She began to laugh again. "I had a glimpse of his face just before he took off. He was the most surprised ghost that ever moaned at midnight."
"Poor George," Marc said. "I suppose he didn't have a very good time of it. But then neither did any of the rest of us."
"Oh, well," Toffee said. "All that's over with now." She shifted closer to Marc. "Let's get down to the important stuff."
"Hey! Wait a min...?" Marc cried.
But too late. Toffee had already twined her arms about his neck and was kissing him. Finally, she let him go.
"You never change, do you?" Marc said shortly.
"Never," Toffee said. "Isn't it delightful? I know a game that's fun. We take turns...."
"No!" Marc said. "No games!"
"Well, all right," Toffee sighed. "Then I guess we'll just have to go on necking." She made a second dive at him.
"Help!" Marc yelled. "Help!"
Then suddenly both of them froze where they were. The valley had begun to tremble and the darkness was descending rapidly.
"You'll have to go now," Toffee said.
"I know," Marc said. For a moment he just looked at her, hesitant. Then quickly, he leaned forward and kissed her lightly on the lips.
"Thanks," he said. "Thanks for everything."
Toffee smiled gently. "Oh, hell," she said grandly, "that's all right. Just call on me any time."
"Goodbye," Marc said, almost wistfully. "Goodbye, Toffee!"
"So long," Toffee whispered. "Happy landings."
And the little valley fell into darkness.
Marc opened his eyes, fighting the pressure of sleep that still weighted his consciousness. The government man's face, like an affidavit of official duty, appeared over him. Marc struggled to a sitting position and tried to shake the sleep out of his mind with a toss of his head.
"When we were driving over, you asked me to find out about your wife," the man said.
Marc nodded hopefully.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Pillsworth. We haven't been able to reach her. Either here or in Reno. They're still trying, however, and they'll locate her before long, I'm certain." He glanced at his watch. "It's three forty five; we'd better be going to the stadium."
Wearily, Marc got to his feet. He dreaded the affair at the stadium; there was nothing he wanted to do more than start out looking for Julie. Even as tired as he was. It didn't matter where or how, just so long as he was looking for her ... doing something to find her....
"We'd better go," the man said uneasily.
Marc sighed and followed him to the door.
Entering into the center of the stadium, Marc glanced cursorily at the wave upon wave of faces that rippled down the sides of the bleachers. He walked in the center of a group of silent, armed men, the government man at his side. Planes droned overhead, providing a protective barricade, even in the sky. They walked to a platform in the center of the field and mounted it. The government man led him to a seat and then took his place beside him. Marc glanced around.
The platform was fairly bulging with important persons, politically speaking. Every faction and party had apparently done its utmost to get into the act. Most of the men sat in solemn silence, as though in attendance at a funeral. Marc guessed that this was to impress the gathering public with the immense gravity of the occasion. When a band played the anthem, Marc could barely get to his feet, but he managed it with a great effort.
"This won't take too long," the man from the government whispered as they sat down again. "The President was delayed in arriving, so the Chief will say a few words of explanation, and then you step forward and hand him the formula. You can leave after that if you like."
Marc nodded. It did take too long; the Chief turned out to be a large thick-necked man with a ruddy face and unlimited lung power. He explained about the formula and its power, and assured everyone that it was not in foreign hands and that the two persons who had seen it, besides the inventor, of course, had destroyed themselves in its use. The rest was largely political. Everyone yawned quietly, with the possible exception of the Chief's wife.
Marc turned his thoughts toward the sky and a cloud that drifted lazily overhead. It was natural enough that his thoughts turned briefly to George, and the fate of that erstwhile haunt. He gazed far into the heavens, though it was difficult to think of George in the upper regions, even though he had been headed in that direction when last seen. Marc could not imagine to what kind of place in the universe George had returned.
Far beyond the cloud that Marc watched, George sat rigidly upright on a hard piece of atmosphere and shifted uneasily. He glanced at the entity next to him and grinned wryly.
"I'm glad I don't have to go in first," he said glumly.
"What are you up for?" the other entity asked. "When you get to the supreme Council it must be bad."
"Disorderly conduct," George said, "and attempt at falsifying the fate of a mortal down on Earth."
"That's bad," the other said.
"Yeah," George said, "but what gets me down is how they recalled me. They planned it all without letting me know. I tell you it was a nasty jolt to my nervous system when I found out that damned catapult had been aimed right smack at the chambers of the High Council. They probably will banish me to hard labor on one of the planets. You know, digging out those craters for the mortals to stare at through their silly spy glasses. It was a terrible shock."
"How was it on earth?" The other shifted eagerly.
"Well ..." George answered, and a reminiscent look came into his eyes, "there was this little redhead, see...." He smiled secretly, and gazed off into the distance. "I guess," he continued, as though to himself, "on the whole, I'd say it was worth it...."
"Mr. Pillsworth!"
Marc awoke from his reverie and turned around. The government man had taken hold of his sleeve.
"Now you give him your formula."
Marc glanced quickly toward the podium where the Chief was staring back at him expectantly. Stiffly, he rose from his chair and moved forward.
The Chief turned back to the audience.
"Ladies and Gentlemen!" he announced dramatically. "The Pillsworth Formula!"
Suddenly the heavens echoed with a cry from several thousand throats that was almost terrifying in its magnitude. Marc reached into his inside coat pocket, felt for the little black book and found it. Quickly he slipped the pen clasp free and withdrew the book. Then, strangely, he hesitated. Suddenly he wondered if this was the right thing to do. At any rate, it was much too late now. The sooner he handed over the formula, the sooner he could leave and start looking for Julie. He drew his hand from inside his coat and held the book out to the Chief.
It was then that the whole affair took on a new and more sensational aspect than even the politicians on the platform had dared hope for. The Chief in reaching out for the book, neglected to extend his hand far enough, and Marc, thinking that he had taken hold of it, let go of it. Suddenly the book began to fall. But only for an instant. Describing a small loop in mid air, it only started down, before it shot upward. Before anyone realized, or even believed, for that matter, what was happening, the little book had risen high beyond the Chief's grasp and gone soaring rapidly toward the heavens. The cry in the thousands of throats became a gasp of horror.
Marc stood dumbly staring at the black dot in the sky, as it grew smaller and smaller, even in the space of a heart beat. He felt awful in the first moment, and then, all at once, he was assailed with a feeling of great relief. Suddenly, he realized that exactly the right thing had happened to the book and the terrible formula. Smilingly, he turned and looked at the disgruntled expressions about him. The Chief was swiftly turning a lovely green color.
At once Marc realized that he had no further business with these people, or they with him. The world had suddenly become a much brighter and simpler place to live in. Without a word, he turned, walked down the steps of the platform and started across the field toward the exit.
It was just as he neared the exit that the first cheer went up in the stands, and before he got to it, the stadium was screaming from end to end. There was no question that the disposal of the formula had been a great relief to everyone. Marc turned, smiled his agreement to the crowd, and disappeared beneath the stands. Just as he started into the shadows, he saw the figure waiting at the outer doorway.
"Julie!" he cried.
She ran toward him, and there were tears in her eyes. Even before she reached him she had begun to talk.
"I was on my way to Reno," she sobbed. "I felt so awful I didn't look at the papers or listen to the radio ... and then I saw a newspaper in the dining car ... with your picture on it ... I thought I'd go out of my mind ... I left the train ... but there weren't any planes because of the weather ... and ... and ... I just got back...."
Marc just stood staring at her, too happy, too warm inside to speak.
"Please forgive me," Julie said. "I'll give up the clubs ... and ... and everything.... You won't have to spend your time in the basement.... I'll even forget about the redhead, if you'll just take me back.... I thought you were dead!... You will take me back, won't you? Please Marc!"
Marc nodded dumbly.
"Oh, thank you, darling!" Julie smiled. "Thank you!"
Marc took her in his arms and drew her close to him.
"Oh, hell," he grinned, "that's all right. Just call on me any...."
Then suddenly he stopped. He wondered vaguely if he hadn't heard someone else say that before....
THE END