Robert said, coldly brutal, "You're looking your age, Ninon. Every year
of your fifty-two!"
Ninon snatched out the little beta-gun, then, leveled it and fired. And
watched without remorse as the hungry electrons streamed forth to strike
the young spaceman, turning him into a motionless, glowing figure which
rapidly became misty and wraith-like, at last to disappear, leaving only
a swirl of sparkling haze where he had stood. This too disappeared as
its separate particles drifted to the metallite walls of the space ship,
discharged their energy and ceased to sparkle, leaving only a thin film
of dust over all.
* * * * *
After a while Ninon got up again from the sling and made her way to the
wall. She polished the dust away from a small area of it, trying to make
the spot gleam enough so that she could use it for a mirror. She
polished a long time, until at last she could see a ghostly reflection
of her face in the rubbed spot.
Yes, unquestionably she was younger, more beautiful. Unquestionably Time
was being kind to her, giving her back her youth. She was not sorry that
Robert was gone--there would be many young men, men her own age, when
she got back to Earth. And that would be soon. She must rest more, and
be ready.
The light drive cut off, and the great ship slowly decelerated as it
found its way back into the galaxy from which it had started. Found its
way back into the System which had borne it. Ninon watched through the
port as it slid in past the outer planets. Had they changed? No, she
could not see that they had--only she had changed--until Saturn loomed
up through the port, so close by, it looked, that she might touch it.
But Saturn had no rings. Here was change. She puzzled over it a moment,
frowning then forgot it when she recognized Jupiter again as Saturn fell
behind. Next would be Mars....
But what was this? Not Mars! Not any planet she knew, or had seen
before. Yet there, ahead, was Mars! A new planet, where the asteroids
had been when she left! Was this the same system? Had there been a
mistake in the calculations of the scientists and engineers who had
plotted the course of the ship? Was something wrong?
But no matter--she was still Ninon. She was young and beautiful. And
wherever she landed there would be excitement and rushing about as she
told her story. And men would flock to her. Young, handsome men!
She tottered back to the sling, sank gratefully into the comfort of it,
closed her eyes, and waited.
* * * * *
_The ship landed automatically, lowering itself to the land on a pillar
of rushing flame, needing no help from its passenger. Then the flame
died away--and the ship--and Ninon--rested, quietly, serenely, while the
rocket tubes crackled and cooled. The people outside gathered at a safe
distance from it, waiting until they could come closer and greet the
brave passengers who had voyaged through space from no one knew where._
_There was shouting and laughing and talking, and much speculation._
_"The ship is from Maris, the red planet," someone said._
_And another: "No, no! It is not of this system. See how the hull is
pitted--it has traveled from afar."_
_An old man cried: "It is a demon ship. It has come to destroy us all."_
_A murmur went through the crowd, and some moved farther back for
safety, watching with alert curiosity._
_Then an engineer ventured close, and said, "The workmanship is similar
to that in the space ship we are building, yet not the same. It is
obviously not of our Aerth."_
_And a savant said, "Yes, not of this Aerth. But perhaps it is from a
parallel time stream, where there is a system with planets and peoples
like us."_
_Then a hatch opened in the towering flank of the ship, and a ramp slid
forth and slanted to the ground. The mingled voices of the crowd
attended it. The fearful ones backed farther away. Some stood their
ground. And the braver ones moved closer._
_But no one appeared in the open hatch; no one came down the ramp. At
last the crowd surged forward again._
_Among them were a youth and a girl who stood, hand in hand, at the foot
of the ramp, gazing at it and the ship with shining eyes, then at each
other._
_She said, "I wonder, Robin, what it would be like to travel through far
space on such a ship as that."_
_He squeezed her hand and said, "We'll find out, Nina. Space travel will
come, in our time, they've always said--and there is the proof of it."_
_The girl rested her head against the young man's shoulder. "You'll be
one of the first, won't you, Robin? And you'll take me with you?"_
_He slipped an arm around her. "Of course. You know, Nina, our
scientists say that if one could travel faster than the speed of light
one could live in reverse. So when we get old we'll go out in space,
very, very fast, and we'll grow young again, together!"_
_Then a shout went up from the two men who had gone up the ramp into the
ship to greet whoever was aboard. They came hurrying down, and Robin and
Nina crowded forward to hear what they had to report._
_They were puffing from the rush of their excitement. "There is no one
alive on the ship," they cried. "Only an old, withered, white-haired
lady, lying dead ... and alone. She must have fared long and far to have
lived so long, to be so old in death. Space travel must be pleasant,
indeed. It made her very happy, very, very happy--for there is a smile
on her face."_