to make it." And I'm still not so
sure , he thought grimly, even while he wadded his spare coat to put behind the injured man's head and Heather encouraged him to swallow some soup. No, please, there have been too many deaths . But he knew this would make no difference. On Earth only the old died, as a rule. Here--well, it was different. Damn different.
"Don't waste your breath talking. Save your strength and we'll tell you everything," he said.
The night fell, still miraculously clear and free of fog or rain. Even on the heights, no fog closed in,and Rafe, setting up Camilla's telescope and other instruments on the flat place of their camp, saw for thefirst time the stars rise over the peaks, clear and brilliant but very far away. He did not know a Cepheidvariable from a constellation, so much of what she was trying to do was incomprehensible to him; butwith a carefully shielded light--not to spoil the dark-adaptation of her eyes--he wrote down carefulstrings of figures and co-ordinates as she gave them. After what seemed hours of this, she sighed andstretched cramped muscles.
"That's all I can do for now; I can take more readings just before dawn. Still no sign of rain?"
"None, thank goodness."
Around them the scent from the flowers on the lower slopes was sweet and intoxicating, asquick-blooming shrubs, vivified by two days of heat and dryness, burst and opened all around. Theunfamiliar scents were a little dizzying. Over the mountain floated a great gleaming moon, with a paleiridescent glow; then, following it by
48
only a few moments, another, this one with pale violet lustre.
"Look at the moon," she whispered.
"Which moon?" Rafe smiled in the darkness. "Earthmen get used to saying, the moon; I suppose
some day someone will give them names..."
They sat on the soft dry grass, watching the moons swing free of the mountains and rise. Rafequoted softly, "If the stars shone only one night in a thousand years, how men would look and wonderand adore."
She nodded. "Even after ten days, I find I miss them."
Rationally Rafe knew that it was madness to sit here in the dark. If nothing else, birds or beasts ofprey--perhaps the banshee-screamer from the heights they had heard last night--might be abroad in thedark. He said so, finally, and Camilla, like the breaking of a spell, started and said, "You're right. I mustwake well before dawn."
Rafe was somehow reluctant to go into the stuffy darkness of the shelter-tent. He said, "In the old
days it used to be believed it was dangerous to sleep in the moonlight--that's where the word lunatic
Page 36
came from. Would it be four times as dangerous to sleep under four moons, I wonder?"
"No, but it would be--lunatic," Camilla said, laughing gently. He stopped, took her shoulders in a gentle grip and for a moment the girl, biting back a tart remark, thought in a mixture of fear and anticipation that he would bend down and kiss her; but then he turned away and said, "Who wants to be sane? Good night, Camilla. See you an hour before sunrise," and strode away, leaving her to go before him into the shelter.
A clear night, over the planet of the four moons. Banshees prowled on the heights, freezing theirwarm blooded prey with their screams, blundering toward them by the heat of their blood, but nevercoming below the snow-line; on a snowless night, anything on rock or grass was safe. Above the valleys,great birds of prey swung; beasts still unknown to the Earthmen prowled in the depths of the deep forest,living and dying, and trees unheard crashed to the ground. Under the moonlight, in the unaccustomed heatand dryness of a warm wind blowing away from the glaciated ridges, flowers bloomed and opened, andshed their perfume and pollen. Night-blooming
49
and strange, with a deep and intoxicating scent... .
The red sun rose clear and cloudless, a brilliant sunrise with the sun like a giant ruby in a clear garnetsky. Rafe and Camilla, who had been at the
sure , he thought grimly, even while he wadded his spare coat to put behind the injured man's head and Heather encouraged him to swallow some soup. No, please, there have been too many deaths . But he knew this would make no difference. On Earth only the old died, as a rule. Here--well, it was different. Damn different.
"Don't waste your breath talking. Save your strength and we'll tell you everything," he said.
The night fell, still miraculously clear and free of fog or rain. Even on the heights, no fog closed in,and Rafe, setting up Camilla's telescope and other instruments on the flat place of their camp, saw for thefirst time the stars rise over the peaks, clear and brilliant but very far away. He did not know a Cepheidvariable from a constellation, so much of what she was trying to do was incomprehensible to him; butwith a carefully shielded light--not to spoil the dark-adaptation of her eyes--he wrote down carefulstrings of figures and co-ordinates as she gave them. After what seemed hours of this, she sighed andstretched cramped muscles.
"That's all I can do for now; I can take more readings just before dawn. Still no sign of rain?"
"None, thank goodness."
Around them the scent from the flowers on the lower slopes was sweet and intoxicating, asquick-blooming shrubs, vivified by two days of heat and dryness, burst and opened all around. Theunfamiliar scents were a little dizzying. Over the mountain floated a great gleaming moon, with a paleiridescent glow; then, following it by
48
only a few moments, another, this one with pale violet lustre.
"Look at the moon," she whispered.
"Which moon?" Rafe smiled in the darkness. "Earthmen get used to saying, the moon; I suppose
some day someone will give them names..."
They sat on the soft dry grass, watching the moons swing free of the mountains and rise. Rafequoted softly, "If the stars shone only one night in a thousand years, how men would look and wonderand adore."
She nodded. "Even after ten days, I find I miss them."
Rationally Rafe knew that it was madness to sit here in the dark. If nothing else, birds or beasts ofprey--perhaps the banshee-screamer from the heights they had heard last night--might be abroad in thedark. He said so, finally, and Camilla, like the breaking of a spell, started and said, "You're right. I mustwake well before dawn."
Rafe was somehow reluctant to go into the stuffy darkness of the shelter-tent. He said, "In the old
days it used to be believed it was dangerous to sleep in the moonlight--that's where the word lunatic
Page 36
came from. Would it be four times as dangerous to sleep under four moons, I wonder?"
"No, but it would be--lunatic," Camilla said, laughing gently. He stopped, took her shoulders in a gentle grip and for a moment the girl, biting back a tart remark, thought in a mixture of fear and anticipation that he would bend down and kiss her; but then he turned away and said, "Who wants to be sane? Good night, Camilla. See you an hour before sunrise," and strode away, leaving her to go before him into the shelter.
A clear night, over the planet of the four moons. Banshees prowled on the heights, freezing theirwarm blooded prey with their screams, blundering toward them by the heat of their blood, but nevercoming below the snow-line; on a snowless night, anything on rock or grass was safe. Above the valleys,great birds of prey swung; beasts still unknown to the Earthmen prowled in the depths of the deep forest,living and dying, and trees unheard crashed to the ground. Under the moonlight, in the unaccustomed heatand dryness of a warm wind blowing away from the glaciated ridges, flowers bloomed and opened, andshed their perfume and pollen. Night-blooming
49
and strange, with a deep and intoxicating scent... .
The red sun rose clear and cloudless, a brilliant sunrise with the sun like a giant ruby in a clear garnetsky. Rafe and Camilla, who had been at the
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