Latest / Dueling Machine / 01 - Dueling Machine by Ben Bova

Transcript

01 - Dueling Machine by Ben Bova · Dueling Machine

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: The Dueling Machine by Ben Bova and Myron R. Lewis
• 0:05
  Speaker 1: Part one. This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings
• 0:12
  Speaker 1: are in the public domain. For more information or to volunteer,
• 0:18
  Speaker 1: please visit LibriVox dot org. Reading by Greg Marguerite. The
• 0:26
  Speaker 1: Dueling Machine by Ben Bova and Myron R. Lewis Part one.
• 0:37
  Speaker 1: The trouble with great ideas is that someone is sure
• 0:41
  Speaker 1: to expend enormous effort and ingenuity figuring out how to
• 0:44
  Speaker 1: louse them up. Dulac rode the slide to the upper
• 0:51
  Speaker 1: pedestrian level, stepped off, and walked over to the railing.
• 0:55
  Speaker 1: The city stretched out all around him, broad avenues thronged
• 0:58
  Speaker 1: with busy people, pedestrian walks, vehicle thoroughfares, aircars gliding between
• 1:03
  Speaker 1: the gleaming towering buildings. And somewhere in this vast city
• 1:08
  Speaker 1: was the man he must kill, the man who would
• 1:11
  Speaker 1: kill him. Perhaps it all seemed so real, the noise
• 1:17
  Speaker 1: of the streets, the odors of the perfumed trees lining
• 1:19
  Speaker 1: the walks, even the warmth of the reddish sun on
• 1:22
  Speaker 1: his back as he scanned the scene before him. It
• 1:26
  Speaker 1: is an illusion. Dulac reminded himself, a clever man made hallucination,
• 1:31
  Speaker 1: a figment of my own imagination, amplified by a machine,
• 1:35
  Speaker 1: but it seemed so very real. Real or not. He
• 1:40
  Speaker 1: had to find Odal before the sun set, find him,
• 1:43
  Speaker 1: and kill him. Those were the terms of the duel.
• 1:46
  Speaker 1: He fingered the stubby cylindrical stat wind in his tunic pocket.
• 1:50
  Speaker 1: That was the weapon. He had chosen, his weapon, his
• 1:53
  Speaker 1: own invention, and this was the environment he had picked.
• 1:57
  Speaker 1: His city, busy, noisy, crowded, the metropolis Dulac had known
• 2:02
  Speaker 1: and loved since childhood. Dulac turned and glanced at the sun.
• 2:08
  Speaker 1: It was halfway down toward the horizon. He judged he
• 2:11
  Speaker 1: had about three hours to find o'dall. When he did
• 2:15
  Speaker 1: kill or be killed, of course, no one is actually hurt.
• 2:20
  Speaker 1: That is the beauty of the machine. It allows one
• 2:23
  Speaker 1: to settle a score, to work out aggressive feelings without
• 2:26
  Speaker 1: either mental or physical harm. Dulac shrugged. He was a
• 2:31
  Speaker 1: roundish figure, moon faced, slightly stooped shoulders. He had work
• 2:35
  Speaker 1: to do, unpleasant work for a civilized man. But the
• 2:39
  Speaker 1: future of the Aquitine Cluster and the entire alliance of
• 2:43
  Speaker 1: neighboring star systems could well depend on the outcome of
• 2:46
  Speaker 1: this electronically synthesized dream. He turned and walked down the
• 2:50
  Speaker 1: elevated avenue, marveling at the sharp sensation of hardness that
• 2:54
  Speaker 1: met each footstep on the paving. Children dashed by and
• 2:58
  Speaker 1: rushed up to a toy shop window. Men of commerce
• 3:02
  Speaker 1: strode along purposefully, but without missing a chance to eye
• 3:06
  Speaker 1: the girls sauntering by. I must have a marvelous imagination,
• 3:11
  Speaker 1: Dulac thought, smiling to himself. Then he thought of o'dall,
• 3:15
  Speaker 1: the blond, icy professional he was pitted against. O'dall was
• 3:20
  Speaker 1: an expert at all the weapons, a man of strength
• 3:23
  Speaker 1: and cool precision, an a motionless tool in the hands
• 3:26
  Speaker 1: of a ruthless politician. But how expert could he be
• 3:31
  Speaker 1: with a stat wand when the first time he saw
• 3:33
  Speaker 1: one was the moment before the duel began. And how
• 3:36
  Speaker 1: well acquainted could he be with the metropolis when he
• 3:39
  Speaker 1: had spent most of his life in the military camps
• 3:41
  Speaker 1: on the dreary planets of Karak, sixty light years from Aquitania.
• 3:47
  Speaker 1: No o'dall would be lost and helpless in this situation.
• 3:51
  Speaker 1: He would attempt to hide among the throngs of people.
• 3:54
  Speaker 1: All Dulac had to do was to find him. The
• 3:58
  Speaker 1: terms of the duel restricted both men to the pedestrian
• 4:00
  Speaker 1: walks of the commercial quarter of the city. Dulac knew
• 4:04
  Speaker 1: this area intimately, and he began a methodical hunt through
• 4:07
  Speaker 1: the crowds for the tall, fair haired, blue eyed odall,
• 4:11
  Speaker 1: and he saw him. After only a few minutes of
• 4:14
  Speaker 1: walking down the major thoroughfare, he spotted his opponent strolling
• 4:18
  Speaker 1: calmly along a crosswalk at a level below. Dulac hurried
• 4:22
  Speaker 1: down the next ramp, worked his way through the crowd
• 4:25
  Speaker 1: and saw the man again, Tall and blonde, unmistakable. Dulac
• 4:30
  Speaker 1: edged along behind him, quietly, easily, no disturbance, no pushing,
• 4:35
  Speaker 1: plenty of time. They walked along the street for a
• 4:39
  Speaker 1: quarter hour, while the distance between them slowly shrank from
• 4:42
  Speaker 1: fifty feet to five. Finally, Dulac was directly behind him,
• 4:46
  Speaker 1: within arm's reach. He grasped the stat wand and pulled
• 4:50
  Speaker 1: it from his tunic. With one quick motion, he touched
• 4:53
  Speaker 1: it to the base of the man's skull and started
• 4:55
  Speaker 1: to thumb the button that would release the killing bolt
• 4:58
  Speaker 1: of energy. The man turned suddenly, it wasn't o'dall. Dulac
• 5:04
  Speaker 1: jerked back in surprise. It couldn't be. He had seen
• 5:07
  Speaker 1: his face. It was o'dall, and yet this man was
• 5:10
  Speaker 1: definitely a stranger. He stared at Dulac as the Duelist
• 5:15
  Speaker 1: backed away a few steps, then turned and walked quickly
• 5:18
  Speaker 1: from the place. A mistake, Dulac told himself, you were
• 5:23
  Speaker 1: over anxious, a good thing. This is a hallucination, or
• 5:26
  Speaker 1: else the auto police would be taking you in by now.
• 5:30
  Speaker 1: And yet he had been so certain that it was o'dall.
• 5:34
  Speaker 1: A chill shuddered through him. He looked up, and there
• 5:38
  Speaker 1: was his antagonist on the thoroughfare above, at the precise
• 5:41
  Speaker 1: spot where he himself had been a few minutes earlier.
• 5:44
  Speaker 1: Their eyes met, and o'dall's lips parted in a cold smile.
• 5:49
  Speaker 1: Dulac hurried up the ramp. O'dall was gone by the
• 5:52
  Speaker 1: time he reached the upper level. He could not have
• 5:55
  Speaker 1: gotten far, Dulac reasoned, slowly, but very surely. Dulac hallucination
• 6:00
  Speaker 1: turned into a nightmare. He spotted o'donll in the crowd,
• 6:04
  Speaker 1: only to have him melt away. He saw him again,
• 6:07
  Speaker 1: lolling in a small park, but when he got closer,
• 6:10
  Speaker 1: the man turned out to be another stranger. He felt
• 6:13
  Speaker 1: the chill of the duellist's ice blue eyes on him
• 6:16
  Speaker 1: again and again. But when he turned to find his
• 6:19
  Speaker 1: antagonist and no one was there but the impersonal crowd,
• 6:23
  Speaker 1: o'dall's face appeared again and again. Dulac struggled through the
• 6:27
  Speaker 1: throngs to find his opponent, only to have him vanish.
• 6:31
  Speaker 1: The crowd seemed to be filled with tall blond men
• 6:34
  Speaker 1: criss crossing before Dulac's dismayed eyes. The shadows lengthened, the
• 6:39
  Speaker 1: sun was setting. Dulac could feel his heart pounding within
• 6:43
  Speaker 1: him and perspiration pouring from every square inch of his skin.
• 6:47
  Speaker 1: There he is definitely positively him. Dulac pushed through the
• 6:52
  Speaker 1: homeward bound crowds toward the figure of a tall blond
• 6:55
  Speaker 1: man leaning against the safety railing of the city's main thoroughfare.
• 6:59
  Speaker 1: It was Odall, the damned, Smiling confident o'dall. Dulac pulled
• 7:05
  Speaker 1: the wand from his tunic and battled across the surging
• 7:08
  Speaker 1: crowd to the spot where o'dall stood, motionless, hands in
• 7:11
  Speaker 1: pockets watching him. Dulac came within arm's reach. Time, gentlemen,
• 7:17
  Speaker 1: time is up. The duel is ended. High above the
• 7:21
  Speaker 1: floor of the antiseptic white chamber that housed the dueling
• 7:25
  Speaker 1: machine was a narrow gallery. Before the machine had been installed,
• 7:29
  Speaker 1: the chamber had been a lecture hall in Aquitania's largest university.
• 7:33
  Speaker 1: Now the rows of students seats the lecturers Dais and
• 7:37
  Speaker 1: Rostrum were gone. The chamber held only this machine. The
• 7:42
  Speaker 1: grotesque collection of consoles, control desks, power units, association circuits,
• 7:47
  Speaker 1: and booths where the two antagonists sat in the gallery
• 7:52
  Speaker 1: empty during ordinary duels, sat a privileged handful of newsmen.
• 7:57
  Speaker 1: Time limit is up. One of them said, Dulac did
• 8:00
  Speaker 1: get him, Yes, but he didn't get Dulac either. The
• 8:04
  Speaker 1: first one shrugged. The important thing is that now Dulac
• 8:08
  Speaker 1: has to fight Odal on his terms. Dulac couldn't win
• 8:12
  Speaker 1: with his own choice of weapons and situations. So wait,
• 8:16
  Speaker 1: they're coming out. Down on the floor below, Dulac and
• 8:21
  Speaker 1: his opponent emerged from their enclosed booths. One of the
• 8:24
  Speaker 1: newsmen whistled softly. Look at Dulac's face, it's positively gray.
• 8:30
  Speaker 1: I've never seen the Prime minister so shaken. And take
• 8:34
  Speaker 1: a look at Canus's hired assassin. The newsmen turned toward Odal,
• 8:39
  Speaker 1: who stood before his booth quietly chatting with his seconds. Hm,
• 8:45
  Speaker 1: there's a bucket of frozen ammonia for you. He's enjoying this.
• 8:50
  Speaker 1: One of the newsmen stood up. I've got a deadline
• 8:54
  Speaker 1: to meet. Save my seat. He made his way past
• 8:58
  Speaker 1: the guarded door, down the rampway circling the outer walls
• 9:01
  Speaker 1: of the building to the portable tri dye transmitting unit
• 9:04
  Speaker 1: that the Aquitanian government had permitted for the newsmen on
• 9:07
  Speaker 1: the campus grounds outside the former lecture hall. The newsman
• 9:12
  Speaker 1: huddled with his technicians for a few minutes, then stepped
• 9:14
  Speaker 1: before the transmitter. Emil Dulac, prime Minister of the Aquitaine
• 9:19
  Speaker 1: Cluster and acknowledged leader of the coalition against Chancellor Kanus
• 9:23
  Speaker 1: of the Karrak Worlds, has failed in the first part
• 9:26
  Speaker 1: of his psychonic duel against Major par Odall of Karak.
• 9:30
  Speaker 1: The two antagonists are now undergoing the routine medical and
• 9:33
  Speaker 1: psychological checks before renewing their duel. By the time the
• 9:38
  Speaker 1: newsman returned to his gallery seat, the duel was almost
• 9:41
  Speaker 1: ready to begin. Tulac stood in the midst of a
• 9:44
  Speaker 1: group of advisers before the looming impersonality of the machine
• 9:49
  Speaker 1: you need not go through with the next face of
• 9:52
  Speaker 1: the duel. Immediately, his Minister of Defense was saying, wait
• 9:56
  Speaker 1: until tomorrow, rest and calm yourself. Dulac's round face puckered
• 10:01
  Speaker 1: into a frown. He cocked an eye at the Chief
• 10:04
  Speaker 1: Medtech hovering at the edge of the little group. The
• 10:07
  Speaker 1: med tech, one of the staff that ran the dueling machine,
• 10:11
  Speaker 1: pointed out, the Prime Minister has passed the examinations. He
• 10:16
  Speaker 1: is capable within the agreed upon rules of the contest
• 10:19
  Speaker 1: of resuming, but he has the option of retiring for
• 10:23
  Speaker 1: the day, does he not If Major o'doll agrees, Dulac
• 10:29
  Speaker 1: shook his head impatiently, No, I shall go through with
• 10:33
  Speaker 1: it now, But the Prime Minister's face suddenly hardened. His
• 10:38
  Speaker 1: advisers lapsed into a respectful silence. The Chief med tech
• 10:43
  Speaker 1: ushered Dulac back into his booth on the other side
• 10:46
  Speaker 1: of the room. Odal glanced at the Aquitanians, grinned humorlessly,
• 10:50
  Speaker 1: and strode to his own booth. Dulac sat and tried
• 10:54
  Speaker 1: to blank out his mind while the medtech's adjusted the
• 10:57
  Speaker 1: neuro contacts to his head and torso. They finished at
• 11:01
  Speaker 1: last and withdrew. He was alone in the booth, now
• 11:04
  Speaker 1: looking at the dead white walls, completely bare except for
• 11:08
  Speaker 1: the view screen before his eyes. The screen finally began
• 11:11
  Speaker 1: to glow slightly, then brightened into a series of shifting colors.
• 11:16
  Speaker 1: The colors merged and changed, swirled across his field of view.
• 11:21
  Speaker 1: Dulac felt himself being drawn into them, gradually, compellingly, completely
• 11:25
  Speaker 1: immersed in them. The mists slowly vanished, and Dulac found
• 11:30
  Speaker 1: himself standing on an immense and totally barren plane. Not
• 11:34
  Speaker 1: a tree, not a blade of grass, nothing but bare,
• 11:38
  Speaker 1: rocky ground, stretching in all directions to the horizon and
• 11:42
  Speaker 1: disturbingly harsh yellow sky. He looked down and at his
• 11:46
  Speaker 1: feet saw the weapon that Odall had chosen, a primitive club.
• 11:52
  Speaker 1: With a sense of dread, Dulac picked up the club
• 11:55
  Speaker 1: and hefted it in his hand. He scanned the plane, nothing,
• 12:00
  Speaker 1: no hills or trees or bushes to hide in, no
• 12:03
  Speaker 1: place to run to, and off on the horizon he
• 12:06
  Speaker 1: could see a tall, lithe figure holding a similar club,
• 12:10
  Speaker 1: walking slowly and deliberately toward him. The press gallery was
• 12:14
  Speaker 1: practically empty. The duel had more than an hour to run,
• 12:18
  Speaker 1: and most of the newsmen were outside broadcasting their hastily
• 12:21
  Speaker 1: drawn guesses about Dulac's failure to win with his own
• 12:24
  Speaker 1: choice of weapon and environment. Then a curious thing happened
• 12:30
  Speaker 1: on the master control panel the dueling machine. A single
• 12:34
  Speaker 1: light flashed red. The medtech blinked at it in surprise,
• 12:38
  Speaker 1: then pressed a series of buttons on his board. More
• 12:41
  Speaker 1: red lights appeared. The chief medtech rushed to the board
• 12:45
  Speaker 1: and flipped a single switch. One of the newsmen turned
• 12:48
  Speaker 1: to his partner, what's going on down there? I think
• 12:53
  Speaker 1: it's all over. Yes, Look they're opening up the booths.
• 12:57
  Speaker 1: Somebody must have scored a victory. They watched an tently
• 13:00
  Speaker 1: while the other newsmen quickly filed back into the gallery.
• 13:04
  Speaker 1: There's o'dall. He looks happy. Guess that means good, Lord,
• 13:09
  Speaker 1: look at Dulac. Chapter two. Doctor Leo was lecturing at
• 13:18
  Speaker 1: the Karna Regional University when the news of Dulux duel
• 13:22
  Speaker 1: reached him. An assistant professor perpetrated the unthinkable breach of
• 13:26
  Speaker 1: interrupting the lecture to whisper the news in his ear.
• 13:30
  Speaker 1: Leo nodded grimly, hurriedly finished his lecture, and then accompanied
• 13:34
  Speaker 1: the assistant professor to the university President's office. They stood
• 13:39
  Speaker 1: in silence as the slideway whisked them through the strolling
• 13:42
  Speaker 1: students and blossoming greenery of the quietly busy campus. Leo
• 13:47
  Speaker 1: remained wrapped in his thoughts as they entered the administration
• 13:50
  Speaker 1: building and rode the lift tube. Finally, as they stepped
• 13:54
  Speaker 1: through the president's doorway, Leo asked the assistant professor, you
• 13:59
  Speaker 1: say he was in a state of catatonic shock when
• 14:01
  Speaker 1: they removed him from the machine. He still is, the
• 14:05
  Speaker 1: president answered, from his desk, completely withdrawn from the real world.
• 14:10
  Speaker 1: Cannot speak, hear, or even see a living vegetable. Leo
• 14:15
  Speaker 1: plopped down on the nearest chair and ran a hand
• 14:18
  Speaker 1: across his fleshy face. He was balding and jolly, but
• 14:23
  Speaker 1: his face was creased from a smile that was almost habitual,
• 14:26
  Speaker 1: and his eyes were active and alert. I don't understand it,
• 14:31
  Speaker 1: he admitted, Nothing like this has ever happened in the
• 14:33
  Speaker 1: dueling machine before. The university president shrugged. I don't understand
• 14:39
  Speaker 1: it either, but this is your business, he put a
• 14:43
  Speaker 1: slight emphasis on the last word, unconsciously. Perhaps well, at
• 14:49
  Speaker 1: least this will not reflect on the university. That is
• 14:51
  Speaker 1: why I formed Psychotronics as a separate business enterprise. Then
• 14:55
  Speaker 1: he added, with a grin, the money was, of course,
• 14:59
  Speaker 1: only a secondary consideration. The President managed to smile. Of course,
• 15:07
  Speaker 1: I suppose the Aquitanians want to see me, Leo asked academically.
• 15:12
  Speaker 1: They're on the tri Diye now waiting for you. They're
• 15:16
  Speaker 1: holding a transmission frequency open over eight hundred parsecs. Leo
• 15:20
  Speaker 1: looked impressed. I must be an important man. You are
• 15:25
  Speaker 1: the inventor of the dueling machine and the head of
• 15:28
  Speaker 1: Psychotronics Inc. You're the only man who can tell them
• 15:31
  Speaker 1: what went wrong. Well, I suppose I shouldn't keep them waiting.
• 15:37
  Speaker 1: You can take the call here, the President said, starting
• 15:39
  Speaker 1: to get from his chair. No, no, stay there at
• 15:43
  Speaker 1: your desk. Leo insisted. There's no reason for you to
• 15:46
  Speaker 1: leave for you either, he said to the assistant professor.
• 15:50
  Speaker 1: The President touched a button on his desk communicator. The
• 15:54
  Speaker 1: far wall of the office glowed momentarily, then seemed to dissolve.
• 15:58
  Speaker 1: They were looking into another office, this one on Aquitania.
• 16:02
  Speaker 1: It was crowded with nervous looking men in business clothes
• 16:06
  Speaker 1: and military uniforms. Gentlemen, Doctor Leo said several of the
• 16:12
  Speaker 1: Aquitanians tried to answer him at once. After a few
• 16:16
  Speaker 1: seconds of talking together, they all looked toward one of
• 16:18
  Speaker 1: their members, a tall, purposeful, shrewd faced civilian who bore
• 16:22
  Speaker 1: a neatly trimmed black beard. I am Fernd Mason, the
• 16:28
  Speaker 1: acting Prime Minister of Aquitania. You realize, of course, the
• 16:32
  Speaker 1: crisis that has been precipitated in my government because of
• 16:35
  Speaker 1: this duel, Leo blinked. I realized that apparently there has
• 16:40
  Speaker 1: been some difficulty with the dueling machine installed on the
• 16:43
  Speaker 1: governing planet of your star cluster. Political crises are not
• 16:48
  Speaker 1: my field, but your dueling machine has incapacitated the prime Minister.
• 16:53
  Speaker 1: One of the generals bellowed, and at this particular moment,
• 16:58
  Speaker 1: the Defense minister added, in the midst of our difficulties
• 17:01
  Speaker 1: with the caract worlds, if the Prime Minister is not gentlemen,
• 17:06
  Speaker 1: Leo objected, I cannot make sense of your story if
• 17:10
  Speaker 1: you all speak at once. Massan gestured them to silence
• 17:16
  Speaker 1: the dueling machine, Leo said, adopting a slightly professorial tone
• 17:20
  Speaker 1: is nothing more than a psychonic device for alleviating human
• 17:24
  Speaker 1: aggressions in hostilities. It allows for two men to share
• 17:28
  Speaker 1: a dream world created by one of them. There is
• 17:31
  Speaker 1: a nearly complete feedback between the two. Within certain limits,
• 17:35
  Speaker 1: two men can do anything they wish within their dream world.
• 17:39
  Speaker 1: This allows men to settle grievances with violence in the
• 17:42
  Speaker 1: safety of their own imaginations. If the machine is operated properly,
• 17:47
  Speaker 1: no physical or mental harm can be done to the participants.
• 17:50
  Speaker 1: They can alleviate their tensions safely, without damage of any
• 17:55
  Speaker 1: sort to any one, and without hurting society. Your own
• 17:59
  Speaker 1: government tests did one of the machines and approved its
• 18:01
  Speaker 1: use on Aquitania more than three years ago. I see
• 18:05
  Speaker 1: several of you who were among those to whom I
• 18:07
  Speaker 1: personally demonstrated the device. Dueling machines are in use through
• 18:12
  Speaker 1: wide portions of the galaxy, and I am certain that
• 18:15
  Speaker 1: many of you have used the machine. You have General,
• 18:18
  Speaker 1: I'm sure the General blustered that has nothing to do
• 18:23
  Speaker 1: with the matter at hand. Admittedly, Leo conceded, but I
• 18:28
  Speaker 1: do not understand how a therapeutic machine can possibly become
• 18:32
  Speaker 1: entangled in a political crisis. Massan said, allow me to explain.
• 18:38
  Speaker 1: Our government has been conducting extremely delicate negotiations with the
• 18:42
  Speaker 1: stellar governments of our neighboring territories. These negotiations concerned the
• 18:47
  Speaker 1: rearmament of the Karak worlds. You have heard of Canus
• 18:52
  Speaker 1: of Karak. I recall the name vaguely, Leo said. He's
• 18:58
  Speaker 1: a political leader of some sort, of the worst sort.
• 19:02
  Speaker 1: He has acquired complete dictatorship of the Karak worlds and
• 19:06
  Speaker 1: is now attempting to rearm them for war. This is
• 19:09
  Speaker 1: in direct countervention of the Treaty of Aquitania, signed only
• 19:12
  Speaker 1: thirty Terran years ago. I see, the treaty was signed
• 19:17
  Speaker 1: at the end of the Aquitane Karak War. Wasn't it
• 19:20
  Speaker 1: a war that we won? The General pointed out, And
• 19:25
  Speaker 1: now the Karak worlds want to rearm and try again,
• 19:29
  Speaker 1: Leo said, precisely. Leo shrugged. Why not call in the
• 19:35
  Speaker 1: star Watch? This is their type of police activity. And
• 19:39
  Speaker 1: what has all this to do with the dueling machine,
• 19:42
  Speaker 1: Massan explained patiently. The Aquitaine cluster has never become a
• 19:48
  Speaker 1: full fledged member of the Terran Commonwealth. Our neighboring territories
• 19:52
  Speaker 1: are likewise unaffiliated. Therefore, the star Watch can intervene only
• 19:57
  Speaker 1: if all parties concerned agree to intervene, unless, of course,
• 20:01
  Speaker 1: there is an actual military emergency. The Karak worlds, of course,
• 20:06
  Speaker 1: are completely isolationist, unbound by any laws except those of force.
• 20:11
  Speaker 1: Leo shook his head. As for the dueling machine, Massan
• 20:16
  Speaker 1: went on, Keeness of Karak has turned it into a
• 20:19
  Speaker 1: political weapon. But that's impossible. Your government passed strict laws
• 20:24
  Speaker 1: concerning the use of the machine. I recommended them, and
• 20:27
  Speaker 1: I was in your council chambers when the laws were passed.
• 20:30
  Speaker 1: The machine may be used only for personal grievance. It
• 20:33
  Speaker 1: is strictly outside the realm of politics. Massan shook his
• 20:37
  Speaker 1: head sadly, Sir, laws are one thing, the people are another,
• 20:43
  Speaker 1: and politics consists of people, not words on paper. I
• 20:49
  Speaker 1: don't understand, Leo said. Massan explained a little more than
• 20:54
  Speaker 1: one Terran year ago, Keenis picked a quarrel with a
• 20:58
  Speaker 1: neighboring star group, the Federation. He wanted an especially favorable
• 21:03
  Speaker 1: trade arrangement with them. Their Minister of Trade objected most strenuously.
• 21:08
  Speaker 1: One of Karak's negotiators, a certain major o'dall, got into
• 21:12
  Speaker 1: a personal argument with the minister. Before anyone knew what
• 21:15
  Speaker 1: had happened, they had challenged each other to a duel.
• 21:18
  Speaker 1: O'dall won, the duel, and the minister resigned his post.
• 21:22
  Speaker 1: He said that he could no longer effectively fight against
• 21:25
  Speaker 1: the will of Odall and his group. He was psychologically
• 21:29
  Speaker 1: incapable of it. Two weeks later he was dead, apparently
• 21:33
  Speaker 1: a suicide, although I have doubts. That's extremely interesting, Leo said.
• 21:42
  Speaker 1: Three days ago, Massan continued the same Major Odall engaged
• 21:46
  Speaker 1: Prime Minister Dulac in a bitter personal argument. O'dall is
• 21:51
  Speaker 1: now a military attache of the Karak embassy. Here he
• 21:54
  Speaker 1: accused the Prime Minister of cowardice before a large group
• 21:57
  Speaker 1: of an embassy party. The Prime Minister had no alternative
• 22:01
  Speaker 1: but to challenge him. And now and now Dulac is
• 22:05
  Speaker 1: in a state of shock, and your government is tottering.
• 22:09
  Speaker 1: Massan's back stiffened. Our government shall not fail, nor shall
• 22:14
  Speaker 1: the Aquitane cluster acquiesce to the rearmament of the Karak worlds.
• 22:18
  Speaker 1: But his voice lowered. Without Dulac, I fear that our
• 22:23
  Speaker 1: neighboring governments will give in to Kanus's demands and allow
• 22:26
  Speaker 1: him to re arm alone. We are powerless to stop him.
• 22:31
  Speaker 1: Rearmament itself might not be so bad, Leo mused. If
• 22:36
  Speaker 1: you can keep the Karak worlds from using their weapons.
• 22:39
  Speaker 1: Perhaps the star Watch might Kanes could strike a blow
• 22:43
  Speaker 1: and conquer a star system before the star Watch could
• 22:45
  Speaker 1: be summoned and arrive to stop him. Once Kharak is armed,
• 22:49
  Speaker 1: this entire area of the galaxy is in peril. In fact,
• 22:53
  Speaker 1: the entire galaxy is endangered, and he's using the dueling
• 22:59
  Speaker 1: machine to further his ambitions. Leo said, well, gentlemen, it
• 23:04
  Speaker 1: seems I have no alternative but to travel to the
• 23:06
  Speaker 1: Aquitane cluster. The dueling machine is my responsibility, and if
• 23:10
  Speaker 1: there is something wrong with it or the use of it,
• 23:13
  Speaker 1: I will do my best to correct the situation. That
• 23:17
  Speaker 1: is all we ask. Massan said, thank you. The Aquitanian
• 23:22
  Speaker 1: scene faded away, and the three men in the university
• 23:25
  Speaker 1: president's office found themselves looking at a solid wall once again. Well,
• 23:31
  Speaker 1: doctor Leo said, turning to the president, it seems that
• 23:34
  Speaker 1: I must request an indefinite leave of absence. The president frowned,
• 23:39
  Speaker 1: and it seems that I must grant your request, even
• 23:42
  Speaker 1: though the year is only half finished. I regret the necessity,
• 23:46
  Speaker 1: Leo said. Then, with a broad grin, he added, my
• 23:50
  Speaker 1: assistant professor here can handle my courses for the remainder
• 23:53
  Speaker 1: of the year very easily. Perhaps he will even be
• 23:56
  Speaker 1: able to deliver his lectures without being interrupted. The assistant
• 24:00
  Speaker 1: professor turned red. Now, then Leo muttered, mostly to himself,
• 24:05
  Speaker 1: who is this Canus? And why is he trying to
• 24:08
  Speaker 1: turn the Karak worlds into an arsenal? Chapter three. Chancellor Canus,
• 24:17
  Speaker 1: the supreme leader of the Karak world, stood at the
• 24:19
  Speaker 1: edge of the balcony and looked across the wild, tumbling
• 24:22
  Speaker 1: gorge to the rugged mountains beyond. These are the forces
• 24:27
  Speaker 1: that muled men's actions, he said to his small audience
• 24:31
  Speaker 1: of officials and advisers, the howling winds, the mighty mountains,
• 24:35
  Speaker 1: the open sky, and the dark powers of the clouds.
• 24:39
  Speaker 1: The men nodded and made murmurs of agreement. Just as
• 24:43
  Speaker 1: the mountains thrust up from the pettiness of the lands below,
• 24:47
  Speaker 1: so shall we rise above the common walk of men,
• 24:51
  Speaker 1: Canus said, Just as a thunderstorm terrifies them, we will
• 24:55
  Speaker 1: make them bend to our will. We will destroy the past,
• 25:00
  Speaker 1: said one of the ministers, and avenge the memory of defeat.
• 25:05
  Speaker 1: Caanus added, he turned and looked at the little group
• 25:08
  Speaker 1: of men. Canus was the smallest man on the balcony, short,
• 25:13
  Speaker 1: spare sallow faced, but he possessed piercing dark eyes and
• 25:17
  Speaker 1: a strong voice that commanded attention. He walked through the
• 25:21
  Speaker 1: knot of men and stopped before a tall, lean, blond
• 25:24
  Speaker 1: youth in light blue military uniform. And you, Major, o'dall,
• 25:29
  Speaker 1: will be a primary instrument in the first steps of conquest.
• 25:33
  Speaker 1: O'dall bowed stiffly. I only hope to serve my leader
• 25:37
  Speaker 1: and my worlds. You shall, and you already have, Caanus said, beaming. Already,
• 25:44
  Speaker 1: the Aquitanians are thrashing about like a snake whose head
• 25:47
  Speaker 1: has been cut off. Without dulac, they have no head,
• 25:51
  Speaker 1: no brain to direct them. For your part in this triumph,
• 25:55
  Speaker 1: Canus snapped his fingers, and one of his advisers quickly
• 25:58
  Speaker 1: stepped to his side and handed him a small ebony box.
• 26:02
  Speaker 1: I present you with this token of the esteem of
• 26:04
  Speaker 1: the Karak worlds and of my personal high regard. He
• 26:09
  Speaker 1: handed the box to Odall, who opened it and took
• 26:12
  Speaker 1: out a small jeweled pin, the star of Karak. Canus announced,
• 26:18
  Speaker 1: this is the first time it has been awarded to
• 26:20
  Speaker 1: anyone except a warrior on the battlefield. But then we
• 26:23
  Speaker 1: have turned their so called civilized machine into our own battlefield. Eh.
• 26:29
  Speaker 1: O'Dell grinned, Yes, sir, we have. Thank you very much, sir.
• 26:34
  Speaker 1: This is the supreme moment of my life to date,
• 26:38
  Speaker 1: major only to date. There will be other moments, even
• 26:42
  Speaker 1: higher ones. Come, let's go inside. We have many plans
• 26:46
  Speaker 1: to discuss, more duels, more triumphs. They all filed into
• 26:51
  Speaker 1: Canus's huge, elaborate office. The leader walked across the plushly
• 26:55
  Speaker 1: ornate room and sat at the elevated desk, while his
• 26:58
  Speaker 1: followers arranged themselves and the chairs and couches placed about
• 27:02
  Speaker 1: the floor. O'dall remained standing near the doorway. Canis let
• 27:07
  Speaker 1: his fingers flick across a small control board set into
• 27:10
  Speaker 1: his desktop, and a tri dimensional star map glowed into existence.
• 27:14
  Speaker 1: On the far wall. At its center were the eleven
• 27:17
  Speaker 1: stars that harbored the Karak worlds. Around them stood neighboring stars,
• 27:22
  Speaker 1: color coded to show their political groupings. Off to one
• 27:26
  Speaker 1: side of the map was the Aquitaine Cluster, a rich
• 27:29
  Speaker 1: mass of stars, wealthy, powerful, the most important political and
• 27:33
  Speaker 1: economic power in this section of the galaxy until yesterday's duel,
• 27:39
  Speaker 1: Canus began one of his inevitable harangues objectives political and military.
• 27:44
  Speaker 1: Already the Karak worlds were unified under his dominant will.
• 27:48
  Speaker 1: The people would follow wherever he led. Already the political
• 27:52
  Speaker 1: alliances built up by the Aquitanian diplomacy since the last
• 27:55
  Speaker 1: war were tottering. Now that Dulac was out of the picture,
• 28:00
  Speaker 1: now was the time to strike a political blow here
• 28:03
  Speaker 1: at the Zarno Confederacy to bring them in their armaments
• 28:06
  Speaker 1: industries into line with Karak. Then more political strikes to
• 28:11
  Speaker 1: isolate the Aquitane cluster from its allies and to build
• 28:14
  Speaker 1: up the subservient states for Karak. Then finally, the military
• 28:19
  Speaker 1: blow against the Aquitanians, A sudden strike, a quick, decisive
• 28:24
  Speaker 1: series of blows, and the Aquitanians will collapse like a
• 28:27
  Speaker 1: house of paper before the star Watch can interfere. We
• 28:30
  Speaker 1: will be masters of the cluster. Then, with the resources
• 28:33
  Speaker 1: of Aquitania to draw on, we can challenge any force
• 28:36
  Speaker 1: in the galaxy, even the Terran Commonwealth itself. The men
• 28:41
  Speaker 1: in the room nodded their ascent. They've heard this story
• 28:45
  Speaker 1: many many times, o'dall thought to himself. This was the
• 28:49
  Speaker 1: first time he had been privileged to listen to it.
• 28:52
  Speaker 1: If you closed your eyes or looked only at the
• 28:55
  Speaker 1: star map. The plans sounded bizarre, extreme, even impossible. But
• 29:00
  Speaker 1: if you watched Kanis and let those piercing, almost hypnotic
• 29:04
  Speaker 1: eyes fasten on yours, then the leader's wildest dreams sounded
• 29:08
  Speaker 1: not only exciting but inevitable. Odall leaned a shoulder against
• 29:13
  Speaker 1: the paneled wall and scanned the other men in the room.
• 29:17
  Speaker 1: There was Fat Greeber, the Vice Chancellor, fighting desperately to
• 29:21
  Speaker 1: stay awake after drinking too much wine during the luncheon
• 29:24
  Speaker 1: and afterward, and Modall, sitting on the couch next to him,
• 29:28
  Speaker 1: was bright eyed and alert, thinking only of how much
• 29:31
  Speaker 1: money and power would come to him as Chief of
• 29:33
  Speaker 1: Industries once the rearmament program began. In earnest. Sitting alone
• 29:38
  Speaker 1: on another couch was Kor the quiet One, the head
• 29:42
  Speaker 1: of Intelligence and technically Odall's superior silent corp, whose few
• 29:47
  Speaker 1: words were usually charged with terror for those whom he
• 29:50
  Speaker 1: spoke against. Marshal Lugal looked bored when Caanus spoke of politics,
• 29:56
  Speaker 1: but his face changed when military matters came up. The
• 29:59
  Speaker 1: more Marshall lived for only one purpose, to avenge his armies,
• 30:03
  Speaker 1: humiliating defeat in the war against the Aquitanians thirty turning
• 30:07
  Speaker 1: years ago. What he didn't realize, O Doll thought, smiling
• 30:11
  Speaker 1: to himself, was that as soon as he had reorganized
• 30:14
  Speaker 1: the army and re equipped it, Caanus planned to retire
• 30:17
  Speaker 1: him and place younger men in charge, men whose only
• 30:20
  Speaker 1: loyalty was not to the army, not even to the
• 30:23
  Speaker 1: Carak worlds in their people, but to the Chancellor himself.
• 30:28
  Speaker 1: Eagerly following every syllable, every gesture of the leader was
• 30:32
  Speaker 1: little Tinth. Born to the nobility, trained in the arts,
• 30:36
  Speaker 1: a student of philosophy, Tinth had deserted his heritage and
• 30:40
  Speaker 1: joined the forces of Canus. His reward had been the
• 30:43
  Speaker 1: Ministry of Education. Many teachers had suffered under him. And
• 30:48
  Speaker 1: finally there was Ramis, the Minister of intergovernmental Affairs, a
• 30:53
  Speaker 1: professional diplomat and one of the few men in government
• 30:55
  Speaker 1: before Caanus's sweep to power to survive this law. It
• 31:00
  Speaker 1: was clear that Ramas hated the Chancellor, but he served
• 31:03
  Speaker 1: the Karak world's well. The Diplomatic Corps was flawless in
• 31:07
  Speaker 1: their handling of intercomfernmental affairs. It was only a matter
• 31:11
  Speaker 1: of time. Odal knew before one of them, Ramis or
• 31:14
  Speaker 1: Canus killed the other. The rest of Caanus's audience consisted
• 31:19
  Speaker 1: of political hacks, rough necks turned body guards, and a
• 31:22
  Speaker 1: few other hangers on who had been with Canus since
• 31:25
  Speaker 1: the days when he held his political monologs in cellars
• 31:28
  Speaker 1: and haunted the alleys to avoid the police. Canus had
• 31:33
  Speaker 1: come a long way from the blackness of oblivion to
• 31:35
  Speaker 1: the dazzling heights of the Chancellor's rural estate. Money, power, glory, revenge, patriotism.
• 31:43
  Speaker 1: Each man in the room listening to Canus had his
• 31:46
  Speaker 1: reasons for following the Chancellor, and my reasons, o'dall asked himself,
• 31:53
  Speaker 1: why do I follow him? Can I see into my
• 31:56
  Speaker 1: own mind as easily as I see into theirs? There
• 32:00
  Speaker 1: was duty, of course, Odall was a soldier, and Canus
• 32:04
  Speaker 1: was the duly elected leader of the government. Once elected,
• 32:07
  Speaker 1: though he had dissolved the government and solidified his powers
• 32:10
  Speaker 1: as absolute dictator of the Karak worlds, there was gain
• 32:14
  Speaker 1: to be had by performing well under Canus. Regardless of
• 32:18
  Speaker 1: his political ambitions and personal tyrannies. Canus rewarded well when
• 32:23
  Speaker 1: he was pleased the medal the Star of Karak carried
• 32:27
  Speaker 1: with it an annual pension that would nicely accommodate a
• 32:29
  Speaker 1: family if I had one, Odall thought sardonically. There was
• 32:35
  Speaker 1: power of sorts, also, working the dueling machine in his
• 32:39
  Speaker 1: special way, hammering a man into nothingness, finding the weaknesses
• 32:44
  Speaker 1: in his personality and exploiting them, pitting his mind against others,
• 32:48
  Speaker 1: turning sneering towers of pride like Dulac into helpless whipped dogs.
• 32:53
  Speaker 1: That was power, and it was a power that did
• 32:56
  Speaker 1: not go unnoticed. In the cities of the Kharrak worlds.
• 33:00
  Speaker 1: Already Odall was easily recognized on the streets. Women especially
• 33:04
  Speaker 1: seem to be attracted to it. Now, the most important
• 33:08
  Speaker 1: factor Canus was saying, and I cannot stress it over much,
• 33:12
  Speaker 1: is to build up an aura of invincibility. This is
• 33:16
  Speaker 1: why your work is so important, Major o'dall. You must
• 33:19
  Speaker 1: be invincible, because to day you represent the collective will
• 33:24
  Speaker 1: of the Karak worlds. To day you are the instrument
• 33:27
  Speaker 1: of my own will, and you must triumph at every turn.
• 33:31
  Speaker 1: The fate of your people, of your government, of your
• 33:34
  Speaker 1: Chancellor rests squarely on your shoulders. Each time you step
• 33:37
  Speaker 1: into a dueling machine, you have borne that responsibility. Well,
• 33:41
  Speaker 1: Major can you carry it even further, I can, Sir
• 33:46
  Speaker 1: Odall answered crisply, and I will canus beamed at him good,
• 33:52
  Speaker 1: because your next duel and those that follow it, will
• 33:55
  Speaker 1: be to the death. Chapter four. It took the starship
• 34:04
  Speaker 1: two weeks to make the journey from Karny to the
• 34:06
  Speaker 1: Aquitaine cluster. Doctor Leo spent the time checking over the
• 34:10
  Speaker 1: Aquitanian dueling machine by direct tride beam. The Aquitanian government
• 34:16
  Speaker 1: gave him all the technicians, time and money he needed
• 34:19
  Speaker 1: for the task. Leo spent as much of his spare
• 34:22
  Speaker 1: time as possible with the other passengers of the ship.
• 34:26
  Speaker 1: He was gregarious, a fine conversationalist, and had a nicely
• 34:30
  Speaker 1: balanced sense of humor. Particularly, he was a favorite of
• 34:34
  Speaker 1: the younger women, since he had reached the age where
• 34:36
  Speaker 1: he could flatter them with his attention without making them
• 34:39
  Speaker 1: feel endangered. But still, there were long hours when he
• 34:43
  Speaker 1: was alone in his stateroom with nothing but his memories.
• 34:47
  Speaker 1: At times like these, it was impossible not to think
• 34:50
  Speaker 1: back over the road he had been following. Albert Robertus Leo,
• 34:55
  Speaker 1: pH d. Professor of physics, Professor of electronics, Master of
• 35:00
  Speaker 1: computer technology, inventor of the interstellar tri die communication system,
• 35:05
  Speaker 1: and more recently student of psychology, professor of psychophysiology, a
• 35:11
  Speaker 1: founder of psychonics, inc. Inventor of the dueling machine. During
• 35:16
  Speaker 1: his earlier years, when the supreme confidence of youth was
• 35:18
  Speaker 1: still with him, Leo had envisioned himself as helping mankind
• 35:22
  Speaker 1: to spread his colonies and civilizations throughout the galaxy. The
• 35:26
  Speaker 1: bitter years of galactic war had ended in his childhood,
• 35:30
  Speaker 1: and now human societies throughout the Milky Way were linked
• 35:33
  Speaker 1: together in greater or lesser degree of union into a
• 35:37
  Speaker 1: more or less peaceful coalition of star groups. There were
• 35:42
  Speaker 1: two great motivating forces at work on those human societies
• 35:46
  Speaker 1: spread across the stars, and these forces worked toward opposite goals.
• 35:51
  Speaker 1: On the one hand, was the urge to explore to
• 35:53
  Speaker 1: reach new stars, new planets, to expand the frontiers of
• 35:57
  Speaker 1: man's civilizations and found new colonies new nations. Pitted against
• 36:02
  Speaker 1: this drive to expand was an equally powerful force, the
• 36:06
  Speaker 1: realization that technology had finally put an end to physical
• 36:10
  Speaker 1: labor and almost to poverty itself on all the civilized
• 36:14
  Speaker 1: worlds of man. The urge to move off to the
• 36:17
  Speaker 1: frontier was penned in and buried alive under the enervating
• 36:21
  Speaker 1: comforts of civilization. The result was inescapable. The civilized worlds
• 36:26
  Speaker 1: became constantly more crowded as time wore on. They became
• 36:30
  Speaker 1: jam packed islands of humanity sprinkled thinly across the sea
• 36:35
  Speaker 1: of space that was still full of unpopulated islands. The
• 36:39
  Speaker 1: expense and difficulty of interstellar travel was often cited as
• 36:43
  Speaker 1: an excuse. The starships were expensive, their power demands were frightful.
• 36:48
  Speaker 1: Only the most determined and the best financed groups of
• 36:51
  Speaker 1: colonists could afford them. The rest of mankind accepted the
• 36:55
  Speaker 1: ease and safety of civilization, lived in the bulging cities
• 36:59
  Speaker 1: of the teeming planets. Their lives were circumscribed by their
• 37:03
  Speaker 1: neighbors and by their governments. Constantly more people crowding into
• 37:08
  Speaker 1: a fixed living space meant constantly less freedom. The freedom
• 37:12
  Speaker 1: to dream, to run, free to procreate all became state owned,
• 37:17
  Speaker 1: state controlled monopolies. And Leo had contributed to this situation.
• 37:23
  Speaker 1: He had contributed his thoughts and his work. He had
• 37:26
  Speaker 1: contributed often and regularly. The interstellar communications system was only
• 37:32
  Speaker 1: one outstanding achievement in a long career of achievements. Leo
• 37:37
  Speaker 1: had been nearly at the voluntary retirement age for scientists
• 37:40
  Speaker 1: when he realized what he and his fellow scientists had done.
• 37:44
  Speaker 1: Their efforts to make life richer and more rewarding for
• 37:47
  Speaker 1: mankind had made life only less strenuous and more rigid.
• 37:52
  Speaker 1: And with every increase in comfort, Leo discovered, came a
• 37:55
  Speaker 1: corresponding increase in neuroses, in crimes of violence, in mental aberrations,
• 38:02
  Speaker 1: Senseless wars of pride broke out between star groups for
• 38:05
  Speaker 1: the first time in generations. Outwardly, the peace of the
• 38:09
  Speaker 1: galaxy was assured, but beneath the glossy surface of the
• 38:13
  Speaker 1: Terran Commonwealth there smoldered the beginnings of a volcano. Police
• 38:18
  Speaker 1: actions fought by the Star Watch were increasing ominously petty,
• 38:23
  Speaker 1: wars between once stable peoples were flaring up steadily. Once
• 38:28
  Speaker 1: Leo realized the part he had played in this increasingly
• 38:31
  Speaker 1: tragic drama, he was confronted with two emotions, a deep
• 38:35
  Speaker 1: sense of guilt, both personal and professional, and countering this,
• 38:39
  Speaker 1: a determination to do something, anything, to restore at least
• 38:43
  Speaker 1: some balance to man's collective mentality. Leo stepped out of
• 38:48
  Speaker 1: physics and electronics and entered the field of psychology. Instead
• 38:51
  Speaker 1: of retiring, he applied for a beginner's status In his
• 38:55
  Speaker 1: new position. It had taken considerable bending and straining of
• 38:59
  Speaker 1: the Commonwealth rule rules, but for a man of Leo's stature,
• 39:02
  Speaker 1: the rules could be flexed somewhat. Leo became a student
• 39:06
  Speaker 1: once again, then a researcher, and finally a professor of psychophysiology.
• 39:12
  Speaker 1: Out of this came the dueling machine, a combination of
• 39:16
  Speaker 1: electro encephalograph and autocomputer, a dream machine that amplified a
• 39:20
  Speaker 1: man's imagination until he could engulf himself into a world
• 39:24
  Speaker 1: of his own making. Leo envisioned it as a device
• 39:27
  Speaker 1: to enable men to rid themselves of hostility and tensions safely.
• 39:32
  Speaker 1: Through his efforts and those of his colleagues, dueling machines
• 39:35
  Speaker 1: were quickly becoming accepted devices for settling disputes. When two
• 39:40
  Speaker 1: men had a severe difference of opinion deep enough to
• 39:43
  Speaker 1: warrant legal action, they could go to the dueling machine
• 39:47
  Speaker 1: instead of the courts. Instead of sitting helplessly and watching
• 39:50
  Speaker 1: the macin nations of the law grind impersonally through their differences,
• 39:55
  Speaker 1: the two antagonists could allow their imaginations free reign in
• 39:59
  Speaker 1: the dueling machine. They could settle their differences personally, as
• 40:03
  Speaker 1: violently as they wished, without hurting themselves or anyone else.
• 40:08
  Speaker 1: On most civilized worlds, the results of properly monitored duels
• 40:11
  Speaker 1: were accepted as legally binding. The tensions of civilized life
• 40:16
  Speaker 1: could be escaped, albeit temporarily, in the dueling machine. This
• 40:21
  Speaker 1: was a powerful tool, much too powerful to allow it
• 40:24
  Speaker 1: to be used indiscriminately. Therefore, Leo safeguarded his invention by
• 40:29
  Speaker 1: forming a private company, Psychonic Zinc, And securing an exclusive
• 40:33
  Speaker 1: license from the Terran Commonwealth to manufacture, sell, install, and
• 40:38
  Speaker 1: maintain the machines. His customers were government, health and legal agencies.
• 40:43
  Speaker 1: His responsibilities were legally to the Commonwealth, morally to all mankind,
• 40:49
  Speaker 1: and finally to his own restless conscience. The dueling machines succeeded.
• 40:54
  Speaker 1: They worked as well and often better than Leo had anticipated,
• 40:59
  Speaker 1: but he knew that they were only a stop gap,
• 41:01
  Speaker 1: only a temporarily shoring of a constantly eroding dam. What
• 41:06
  Speaker 1: was needed, really needed, was some method of exploding the
• 41:09
  Speaker 1: status quo, some means of convincing people to reach out
• 41:13
  Speaker 1: for those unoccupied, unexplored stars that filled the galaxy. Some
• 41:18
  Speaker 1: way of convincing men that they should leave the comforts
• 41:21
  Speaker 1: of civilization for the excitement of colonization. Leo had been
• 41:25
  Speaker 1: searching for that method when the news of Dulac's duel
• 41:28
  Speaker 1: against Odal reached him. Now he was speeding across parsecs
• 41:32
  Speaker 1: of space, praying to himself that the dueling machine had
• 41:35
  Speaker 1: not failed. The two weak flight ended, the starship took
• 41:40
  Speaker 1: up a parking orbit around the capital planet of Aquitaine Cluster.
• 41:44
  Speaker 1: The passengers transshipped to the surface. Doctor Leo was met
• 41:48
  Speaker 1: at the landing disc by an official delegation headed by Massan,
• 41:52
  Speaker 1: the acting Prime Minister. They exchanged formal greetings there at
• 41:57
  Speaker 1: the base of the ship while the other passengers hurried.
• 42:01
  Speaker 1: As Leo and Massan, surrounded by the other members of
• 42:04
  Speaker 1: the delegation, rode the slideway to the port's administration building.
• 42:08
  Speaker 1: Leo commented, as you probably know, I have checked through
• 42:12
  Speaker 1: your dueling machine quite thoroughly via try Die for the
• 42:16
  Speaker 1: past two weeks. I can find nothing wrong with it.
• 42:20
  Speaker 1: Massan shrugged, Perhaps you should have checked then the machine
• 42:24
  Speaker 1: on Zarno. The Zarno Confederation their dueling machine. Yes, this morning,
• 42:32
  Speaker 1: Kanus's hired assassin killed a man in it. He won
• 42:36
  Speaker 1: another duel. Leo said, you do not understand Massan said grimly.
• 42:43
  Speaker 1: Major O'dall's opponent, an industrialist who had spoken out against Kanus,
• 42:47
  Speaker 1: was actually killed in the dueling machine The Man is Dead,
• 42:55
  Speaker 1: Chapter five. One of the advantages of being Commander in
• 43:00
  Speaker 1: Chief of the star Watch, the old man thought to himself,
• 43:03
  Speaker 1: is that you can visit any planet in the Commonwealth.
• 43:07
  Speaker 1: He stood at the top of the hill and looked
• 43:09
  Speaker 1: out over the green table land of Kenya. This was
• 43:12
  Speaker 1: the land of his birth. Earth was his homeworld. The
• 43:16
  Speaker 1: star Watch's official headquarters may be in the heart of
• 43:19
  Speaker 1: a globular cluster of stars near the center of the galaxy,
• 43:22
  Speaker 1: but Earth was the place the commander wanted to see most.
• 43:25
  Speaker 1: As he grew older and wearier, an aide who had
• 43:29
  Speaker 1: been following the commander at a respectful distance, suddenly intruded
• 43:32
  Speaker 1: himself into the old man's reverie. Sir, a message for you.
• 43:37
  Speaker 1: The commander scowled at the young officer. I gave orders
• 43:41
  Speaker 1: that I was not to be disturbed. The officer, slim
• 43:45
  Speaker 1: and stiff in his black and silver uniform, replied, your
• 43:49
  Speaker 1: chief of staff has passed the message on to you, Sir.
• 43:52
  Speaker 1: It's from doctor Leo of car In a university, Personal
• 43:56
  Speaker 1: and urgent, Sir. The old man grumbled to himself, but nodded.
• 44:01
  Speaker 1: The aid placed a small crystalline sphere on the grass
• 44:04
  Speaker 1: before him. The air above the sphere started to vibrate
• 44:07
  Speaker 1: and glow, Sir Harold, Spencer here, the commander said. The
• 44:13
  Speaker 1: bubbling air seemed to draw in on itself and take
• 44:16
  Speaker 1: solid form. Doctor Leo sat at a desk chair and
• 44:19
  Speaker 1: looked up at the standing commander Harold. It's a pleasure
• 44:24
  Speaker 1: to see you once again. Spencer's stern eyes softened and
• 44:28
  Speaker 1: his beefy face broke into a well creased smile. Albert,
• 44:32
  Speaker 1: you ancient scoundrel. What do you mean by interrupting my
• 44:35
  Speaker 1: first visit home in fifteen years. It won't be a
• 44:39
  Speaker 1: long interruption, Leo said. You told my chief of staff
• 44:43
  Speaker 1: that it was urgent, Sir Harold groused. It is, but
• 44:47
  Speaker 1: it's not the sort of problem that requires much action
• 44:49
  Speaker 1: on your part. Yet. You are familiar with recent political
• 44:53
  Speaker 1: developments on the Karak worlds, Spencer snorted, I know that
• 44:58
  Speaker 1: a barbarian named Kanes has established himself as a dictator,
• 45:02
  Speaker 1: He's a trouble maker. I've been talking to the Commonwealth
• 45:05
  Speaker 1: Council about the advisability of quashing him before he causes grief.
• 45:08
  Speaker 1: But you know the Council first wait until the flames
• 45:12
  Speaker 1: have sprung up, then thrash about and demand that the
• 45:15
  Speaker 1: star Watch do something. Leo grinned. You're as irascible as ever.
• 45:21
  Speaker 1: My personality is not the subject of this rather expensive discussion.
• 45:26
  Speaker 1: What about Kanus and what are you doing getting yourself
• 45:29
  Speaker 1: involved in politics? About to change your profession again? No,
• 45:34
  Speaker 1: not at all, Leo answered, laughing. Then, more seriously, it
• 45:38
  Speaker 1: seems as though Kanus has discovered some method of using
• 45:41
  Speaker 1: the dueling machines to achieve political advantages over his neighbors.
• 45:45
  Speaker 1: What Leo explained the circumstances of o'dall's duels with the
• 45:50
  Speaker 1: Aquitanian prime minister and the Zarno industrialist. Du Lac is
• 45:55
  Speaker 1: completely incapacitated and the other poor fellow is dead. Spencer's
• 46:00
  Speaker 1: face darkened into a thundercloud. You were right to call me.
• 46:04
  Speaker 1: This is a situation that could easily become intolerable, I agree,
• 46:09
  Speaker 1: Leo said. But evidently Caanus has not broken any laws
• 46:13
  Speaker 1: or interstellar agreements. All that meets the eye is a
• 46:16
  Speaker 1: disturbing pair of accidents, both of them accruing to Caanus's benefit.
• 46:22
  Speaker 1: Do you believe they were accidents? Certainly not. The dueling
• 46:26
  Speaker 1: machine cannot cause physical or mental harm unless someone has
• 46:30
  Speaker 1: tampered with it in some way. That is my thought too.
• 46:34
  Speaker 1: Spencer was silent for a moment, weighing the matter in
• 46:37
  Speaker 1: his mind. Very well. The star Watch cannot act officially,
• 46:41
  Speaker 1: but there is nothing to prevent me from dispatching an
• 46:43
  Speaker 1: officer to the Aquitaine Cluster on detached duty to serve
• 46:47
  Speaker 1: as a liaison between us good. I think that will
• 46:51
  Speaker 1: be the most effective method of handling the situation at present.
• 46:55
  Speaker 1: It will be done, Sir Harold pronounced his aid, made
• 46:59
  Speaker 1: a mental note of it. Thank you very much, Leo said,
• 47:02
  Speaker 1: Now go back to enjoying your vacation. Vacation, This is
• 47:07
  Speaker 1: no vacation, Spencer rumbled. I happen to be celebrating my birthday,
• 47:13
  Speaker 1: so well, congratulations, I try not to remember mine. Leo said,
• 47:20
  Speaker 1: then you must be older than I, Spencer replied, allowing
• 47:22
  Speaker 1: only the faintest hint of a smile to appear. I
• 47:26
  Speaker 1: suppose it's possible, but not very likely, eh. They laughed
• 47:32
  Speaker 1: together and said goodbye. The star Watch commander tramped through
• 47:36
  Speaker 1: the hills until sunset, enjoying the sight of the grasslands
• 47:39
  Speaker 1: and distant purple mountains he had known in his childhood.
• 47:42
  Speaker 1: As dusk closed in, he told his aid he was
• 47:45
  Speaker 1: ready to leave. The aid pressed a stud on his belt,
• 47:49
  Speaker 1: and a two place aircar skimmed silently from the far
• 47:52
  Speaker 1: side of the hills and hovered beside them. Spencer climbed
• 47:56
  Speaker 1: in laboriously, while the aid remained discreetly at his side.
• 48:00
  Speaker 1: While the commander settled his bulk into his seat, The
• 48:03
  Speaker 1: aid hurried around the car and hopped into his place.
• 48:06
  Speaker 1: The car glided off towards Spencer's personal planet ship, waiting
• 48:10
  Speaker 1: for him at a nearby field. Don't forget to assign
• 48:14
  Speaker 1: an officer to doctor Leo, the commander muttered to his aid.
• 48:18
  Speaker 1: Then he turned and watched the unmatchable beauty of an
• 48:21
  Speaker 1: earthly sunset. The aid did not forget the assignment. That night,
• 48:27
  Speaker 1: as Sir Harold's ship spiraled out to a rendezvous with
• 48:30
  Speaker 1: a starship, the aid dictated the necessary order into an
• 48:33
  Speaker 1: auto dispatcher that immediately beamed it to the star Watch's
• 48:37
  Speaker 1: nearest communications center on Mars. The order was scanned and
• 48:41
  Speaker 1: rooted automatically, and finally beamed to the star Watch unit
• 48:45
  Speaker 1: commandant in charge of the area closest to the Aquitaine
• 48:48
  Speaker 1: cluster on the sixth planet circling the star Perseus Alpha.
• 48:53
  Speaker 1: Here again the order was processed automatically and rooted through
• 48:56
  Speaker 1: the local headquarters to the personnel files. The automated files
• 49:01
  Speaker 1: selected three microcard dossiers that matched the requirements of the order.
• 49:06
  Speaker 1: The three microcards and the order itself appeared simultaneously on
• 49:10
  Speaker 1: the desktop viewer of the star Watch personnel officer. He
• 49:13
  Speaker 1: looked at the order, then read the dossiers. He flipped
• 49:17
  Speaker 1: a button that gave him an updated status report on
• 49:20
  Speaker 1: each of the three men in question. One was due
• 49:23
  Speaker 1: ford leave after an extensive period of duty. The second
• 49:27
  Speaker 1: was the son of a personal friend of the local commandant.
• 49:30
  Speaker 1: The third had just arrived a few weeks ago, fresh
• 49:33
  Speaker 1: from the star Watch Academy on Mars. The personnel officer
• 49:37
  Speaker 1: selected the third man, routed his dossier and Sir Harold's
• 49:41
  Speaker 1: order back into the automatic processing system, and returned to
• 49:45
  Speaker 1: the film of Primitive Dancing Girls. He had been watching
• 49:48
  Speaker 1: before this matter of decision had arrived at his desk,
• 49:56
  Speaker 1: and of Part one of The Dueling Machine Dean by
• 50:01
  Speaker 1: Ben Bova and Myron R. Lewis