The glass lifted suddenly into the air, swooped about like a bird and landed again on the table with ease.
"Direct manipulation of matter by the mind. But much graver than conjurer's tricks like this one. Sean, and the others on his team, reach deep into the molten heart of the earth with their minds, miles deep, and open a hole to the surface. The magma, liquid rock, is forced through this hole, a solid rod of lava being ejected into the tank out there. Or rather it would be a solid rod if the opening was not opened and closed regularly to cut the rod into the bricks you have already seen. At other times, delving deeper, they tap the molten iron core of our planet and bring the purest iron into our rolling mills. It is a wonder indeed."
He smiled at Giulio and signaled to Sean. "Now, lightly, touch his memories and excise this day."
Giulio jumped to his feet, tried to run, to flee, but blackness fell.
"Chi e lei!" Giulio said to the officer behind the desk, who was industriously studying a computer printout.
"No games, please, this is a busy office," Captain Power told him. "We have your complete record here. You are Dr. Giulio Balietti, an atomic physicist. You were sent here by the CIA to unearth our technical secrets. This is espionage and you could be shot for it… Here, sit down, you're so pale. A glass of water? No? That's better. But we are a kindly people and we are giving you a choice. You may return home now and tell the CIA to leave us alone. Or you may remain here as long as you refrain from further espionage. There is an opening for a lecturer in atomic physics at Trinity College. Just part-time I'm afraid, a few hours a week. Until there is a better position you will have to do other work as well. We have found that academics enjoy peat cutting. Healthy, outdoor occupation, very relaxing when you are used to it. A lot of our older people like to have peat fires of handcut turf and it is not too much of an effort to indulge them. So what do you say?"
What did he say? A memory of Hoboken, the endless gray poverty, the plankton and soy food, the drab existence. Stay, why not, he wasn't being asked to give his word. He could still keep his eyes open, look for the Irish secret, bring it back to the U.S. if he could. His duty was to stay.
"Trinity and the peat bog," he said, firmly.
"Good man. Here, this way, I want you to meet Herr Professor Doktor Schmidt. A physicist also…"
"Nein, you forget, my captain. It is Ivan who is the Physikei. I am simple chemist. Come — Giulio is your name? — we have a good chat and I show you how to use the peat shovel. A most satisfactory tool."
They left, arm in arm, out into the falling rain.
The Day After the End of the World
It wasn't a very big piece of the world, but it was all that was left. Around it in space floated other fragments of the destroyed planet, just chunks of rock and dirt and bits of debris. But the large piece had the best part of a farmhouse on it, with a tree in front, and a patch of grass with a frozen sheep standing on it. The sheep was staring in a very fixed manner. That was all there was. The sheer edge dropped away on all sides, just bare dirt with bits of roots sticking out of it. The man sat on the edge of the world, his legs dangling, and dropped a twig over. It fell swiftly from sight. His name was Frank and the girl, in the swing hanging from the branch of the tree, was named Gwenn.
"It's not like I tried to force you or anything," Frank said, looking very glum. "You know, or be beastly. I was just upset, you should understand that, what with the end of the world and everything. Feeling very lonely. I thought maybe, you know, a little kiss would help me forget. Help us both forget."
"Yes, Frank," Gwenn said and pushed with her foot so she swung a bit.
"So you really had no cause to slap me. We are shipmates after all."
"I said that I was sorry I hit you, Frank. I'm a little upset too, you should understand that. It's not every day that this sort of thing happens."
"No, not every day."
"You shouldn't be angry at me. Can you give me a push?"
"It's not that I'm angry," he said, standing and brushing the bits of frozen grass from the leg of his uniform. "Hurt maybe, depressed really. Struck by the woman I love." He gave the swing an indifferent shove.
"Please don't start that talk again, Frank. It's all over. You just say that because you want to do you-know-what with me. And you know I love someone else."
"Gwenn darling, face facts. You're not going to see Robert again, ever…"
"You can't be sure."
"Believe me, I'm sure. The whole world's blown up, bang, just like that, without warning, and everyone with it. We were in the spaceship on the other side of the moon or we would have blown up too. But Robert's gone with it. He was in Minneapolis and Minneapolis is gone."
"We don't know."
"We know. I don't think Minneapolis had any special dispensation. All we found with the search radar is this chunk of the world. This is the biggest piece that there is."
Gwenn frowned at the thought and put out her leg so the swing topped. "There might be a piece of Minneapolis too…"
"And if Robert is on it he is frozen just like that sheep."
"You're so cruel — you just want to hurt me!"
"No, please." He took her by the shoulders carefully, standing behind her. "I want anything but that. It's just that you must face up to the truth. There's just you and me now. And I love you. I mean that, sincerely."
While he spoke his hands gently caressed her shoulders and moved down her arms, out onto the sweet swell of her breasts. But Gwenn shrugged out of his embrace and jumped to her feet, walking quickly away from him. She looked down at the immobile sheep.
"I wonder if he felt anything?" she asked.
"Who — Robert or the sheep?"
"Oh, you are cruel!"
She stamped her foot in anger — then raised her hand as he moved towards her. Frank growled something indecipherable under his breath and dropped into the swing.
"Let's be realistic," he said. "Let's forget everything that happened on the ship. Forget I made a pass at you, forget that I tried to get you into the sack. Forget it. Let's start fresh. Face the situation that we're in. The two of us alone. I'm Adam and you're Eve…"
"Gwenn."
"I know your name is Gwenn. I mean we're like Adam and Eve and it is up to us to keep the human race going. Do you understand?"
"Yes. You're still trying to seduce me."
"God damn it, it doesn't matter what you think! It's our duty. We may have been spared by divine providence…"
"You told me that you were an atheist."
"Well you said that you go to church. I'm looking at it from your point of view."
"And I'm looking at it from yours. You're oversexed."
"Be happy that I am. We must be fruitful. We owe it to the human race.'"
Gwenn patted the sheep's head, deep in thought. "I don't know," she finally said. "It might be best to end it all right here. We blew up the world, didn't we? That's what you might call pollution on a really impressive scale."
"You can't mean that. We don't know what happened. It could have been an accident…"
"Some accident."
"Well, you know…" Frank jumped from the swing and came towards her. "Forget the human race then.” he pleaded. "Think of you and me. The two of us. The warmth of contact, the end of loneliness, the thrill of the kiss, touch of flesh…"