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+The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Blue Tower, by Evelyn E. Smith
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: The Blue Tower
+
+Author: Evelyn E. Smith
+
+Release Date: October 20, 2007 [EBook #23104]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ASCII
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE BLUE TOWER ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Greg Weeks and the Online Distributed
+Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net
+
+
+
+
+
+
+THE
+
+BLUE
+
+TOWER
+
+
+
+By EVELYN E. SMITH
+
+
+
+_As the vastly advanced guardians
+of mankind, the Belphins knew how
+to make a lesson stick--but whom?_
+
+
+
+Illustrated by DICK FRANCIS
+
+
+
+
+Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from Galaxy, February,
+1958. Extensive research did not reveal any evidence that the U.S.
+copyright on this publication was renewed.
+
+Minor typographical errors have been corrected without note.
+
+
+
+
+Ludovick Eversole sat in the golden sunshine outside his house, writing
+a poem as he watched the street flow gently past him. There were very
+few people on it, for he lived in a slow part of town, and those who
+went in for travel generally preferred streets where the pace was
+quicker.
+
+Moreover, on a sultry spring afternoon like this one, there would be
+few people wandering abroad. Most would be lying on sun-kissed white
+beaches or in sun-drenched parks, or, for those who did not fancy being
+either kissed or drenched by the sun, basking in the comfort of their
+own air-conditioned villas.
+
+Some would, like Ludovick, be writing poems; others composing
+symphonies; still others painting pictures. Those who were without
+creative talent or the inclination to indulge it would be relaxing
+their well-kept golden bodies in whatever surroundings they had chosen
+to spend this particular one of the perfect days that stretched in an
+unbroken line before every member of the human race from the cradle to
+the crematorium.
+
+Only the Belphins were much in evidence. Only the Belphins had duties
+to perform. Only the Belphins worked.
+
+Ludovick stretched his own well-kept golden body and rejoiced in the
+knowing that he was a man and not a Belphin. Immediately afterward,
+he was sorry for the heartless thought. Didn't the Belphins work only
+to serve humanity? How ungrateful, then, it was to gloat over them!
+Besides, he comforted himself, probably, if the truth were known, the
+Belphins _liked_ to work. He hailed a passing Belphin for assurance on
+this point.
+
+Courteous, like all members of his species, the creature leaped from
+the street and listened attentively to the young man's question. "We
+Belphins have but one like and one dislike," he replied. "We like what
+is right and we dislike what is wrong."
+
+"But how can you tell what is right and what is wrong?" Ludovick
+persisted.
+
+"We _know_," the Belphin said, gazing reverently across the city to
+the blue spire of the tower where The Belphin of Belphins dwelt, in
+constant communication with every member of his race at all times,
+or so they said. "That is why we were placed in charge of humanity.
+Someday you, too, may advance to the point where you _know_, and we
+shall return whence we came."
+
+"But _who_ placed you in charge," Ludovick asked, "and whence _did_
+you come?" Fearing he might seem motivated by vulgar curiosity, he
+explained, "I am doing research for an epic poem."
+
+                     *      *      *      *      *
+
+A lifetime spent under their gentle guardianship had made Ludovick
+able to interpret the expression that flitted across this Belphin's
+frontispiece as a sad, sweet smile.
+
+"We come from beyond the stars," he said. Ludovick already knew that;
+he had hoped for something a little more specific. "We were placed in
+power by those who had the right. And the power through which we rule
+is the power of love! Be happy!"
+
+And with that conventional farewell (which also served as a greeting),
+he stepped onto the sidewalk and was borne off. Ludovick looked after
+him pensively for a moment, then shrugged. Why _should_ the Belphins
+surrender their secrets to gratify the idle curiosity of a poet?
+
+Ludovick packed his portable scriptwriter in its case and went to call
+on the girl next door, whom he loved with a deep and intermittently
+requited passion.
+
+As he passed between the tall columns leading into the Flockhart
+courtyard, he noted with regret that there were quite a number of
+Corisande's relatives present, lying about sunning themselves and
+sipping beverages which probably touched the legal limit of
+intoxicatability.
+
+Much as he hated to think harshly of anyone, he did not like Corisande
+Flockhart's relatives. He had never known anybody who had as many
+relatives as she did, and sometimes he suspected they were not all
+related to her. Then he would dismiss the thought as unworthy of him or
+any right-thinking human being. He loved Corisande for herself alone
+and not for her family. Whether they were actually her family or not
+was none of his business.
+
+"Be happy!" he greeted the assemblage cordially, sitting down beside
+Corisande on the tessellated pavement.
+
+"Bah!" said old Osmond Flockhart, Corisande's grandfather. Ludovick was
+sure that, underneath his crustiness, the gnarled patriarch hid a heart
+of gold. Although he had been mining assiduously, the young man had not
+yet been able to strike that vein; however, he did not give up hope,
+for not giving up hope was one of the principles that his wise old
+Belphin teacher had inculcated in him. Other principles were to lead
+the good life and keep healthy.
+
+"Now, Grandfather," Corisande said, "no matter what your politics, that
+does not excuse impoliteness."
+
+Ludovick wished she would not allude so blatantly to politics, because
+he had a lurking notion that Corisande's "family" was, in fact, a band
+of conspirators ... such as still dotted the green and pleasant planet
+and proved by their existence that Man was not advancing anywhere
+within measurable distance of that totality of knowledge implied by
+the Belphin.
+
+You could tell malcontents, even if they did not voice their
+dissatisfactions, by their faces. The vast majority of the human race,
+living good and happy lives, had smooth and pleasant faces. Malcontents'
+faces were lined and sometimes, in extreme cases, furrowed. Everyone
+could easily tell who they were by looking at them, and most people
+avoided them.
+
+                     *      *      *      *      *
+
+It was not that griping was illegal, for the Belphins permitted free
+speech and reasonable conspiracy; it was that such behavior was
+considered ungenteel. Ludovick would never have dreamed of associating
+with this set of neighbors, once he had discovered their tendencies,
+had he not lost his heart to the purple-eyed Corisande at their first
+meeting.
+
+"Politeness, bah!" old Osmond said. "To see a healthy young man
+simply--simply accepting the status quo!"
+
+"If the status quo is a good status quo," Ludovick said uneasily, for
+he did not like to discuss such subjects, "why should I not accept it?
+We have everything we could possibly want. What do we lack?"
+
+"Our freedom," Osmond retorted.
+
+"But we _are_ free," Ludovick said, perplexed. "We can say what we
+like, do what we like, so long as it is consonant with the public
+good."
+
+"Ah, but who determines what is consonant with the public good?"
+
+Ludovick could no longer temporize with truth, even for Corisande's
+sake. "Look here, old man, I have read books. I know about the old days
+before the Belphins came from the stars. Men were destroying themselves
+quickly through wars, or slowly through want. There is none of that any
+more."
+
+"All lies and exaggeration," old Osmond said. "_My_ grandfather told me
+that, when the Belphins took over Earth, they rewrote all the textbooks
+to suit their own purposes. Now nothing but Belphin propaganda is
+taught in the schools."
+
+"But surely some of what they teach about the past must be true,"
+Ludovick insisted. "And today every one of us has enough to eat and
+drink, a place to live, beautiful garments to wear, and all the time in
+the world to utilize as he chooses in all sorts of pleasant activities.
+What is missing?"
+
+"They've taken away our frontiers!"
+
+Behind his back, Corisande made a little filial face at Ludovick.
+
+Ludovick tried to make the old man see reason. "But I'm happy. And
+everybody is happy, except--except a few _killjoys_ like you."
+
+"They certainly did a good job of brainwashing you, boy," Osmond
+sighed. "And of most of the young ones," he added mournfully. "With
+each succeeding generation, more of our heritage is lost." He patted
+the girl's hand. "You're a good girl, Corrie. You don't hold with this
+being cared for like some damn pet poodle."
+
+"Never mind Osmond, Eversole," one of Corisande's alleged uncles
+grinned. "He talks a lot, but of course he doesn't mean a quarter of
+what he says. Come, have some wine."
+
+                     *      *      *      *      *
+
+He handed a glass to Ludovick. Ludovick sipped and coughed. It tasted
+as if it were well above the legal alcohol limit, but he didn't like to
+say anything. They were taking an awful risk, though, doing a thing
+like that. If they got caught, they might receive a public
+scolding--which was, of course, no more than they deserved--but he
+could not bear to think of Corisande exposed to such an ordeal.
+
+"It's only reasonable," the uncle went on, "that older people should
+have a--a thing about being governed by foreigners."
+
+Ludovick smiled and set his nearly full glass down on a plinth. "You
+could hardly call the Belphins foreigners; they've been on Earth longer
+than even the oldest of us."
+
+"You seem to be pretty chummy with 'em," the uncle said, looking
+narrow-eyed at Ludovick.
+
+"No more so than any other loyal citizen," Ludovick replied.
+
+The uncle sat up and wrapped his arms around his thick bare legs. He
+was a powerful, hairy brute of a creature who had not taken advantage
+of the numerous cosmetic techniques offered by the benevolent Belphins.
+"Don't you think it's funny they can breathe our air so easily?"
+
+"Why shouldn't they?" Ludovick bit into an apple that Corisande handed
+him from one of the dishes of fruit and other delicacies strewn about
+the courtyard. "It's excellent air," he continued through a full mouth,
+"especially now that it's all purified. I understand that in the old
+days----"
+
+"Yes," the uncle said, "but don't you think it's a coincidence they
+breathe exactly the same kind of air we do, considering they claim to
+come from another solar system?"
+
+"No coincidence at all," said Ludovick shortly, no longer able to
+pretend he didn't know what the other was getting at. He had heard the
+ugly rumor before. Of course sacrilege was not illegal, but it was in
+bad taste. "Only one combination of elements spawns intelligent life."
+
+"They say," the uncle continued, impervious to Ludovick's unconcealed
+dislike for the subject, "that there's really only one Belphin, who
+lives in the Blue Tower--in a tank or something, because he can't
+breathe our atmosphere--and that the others are a sort of robot he
+sends out to do his work for him."
+
+"Nonsense!" Ludovick was goaded to irritation at last. "How could a
+robot have that delicate play of expression, that subtle economy of
+movement?"
+
+Corisande and the uncle exchanged glances. "But they are absolutely
+blank," the uncle began hesitantly. "Perhaps, with your rich poetic
+imagination...."
+
+"See?" old Osmond remarked with satisfaction. "The kid's brain-washed.
+I told you so."
+
+                     *      *      *      *      *
+
+"Even if The Belphin is a single entity," Ludovick went on, "that
+doesn't necessarily make him less benevolent----"
+
+He was again interrupted by the grandfather. "I won't listen to any
+more of this twaddle. Benevolent, bah! He or she or it or them is or
+are just plain exploiting us! Taking our mineral resources away--I've
+seen 'em loading ore on the spaceships--and----"
+
+"--and exchanging it for other resources from the stars," Ludovick said
+tightly, "without which we could not have the perfectly balanced
+society we have today. Without which we would be, technologically, back
+in the dark ages from which they rescued us."
+
+"It's not the stuff they bring in from outside that runs this technology,"
+the uncle said. "It's some power they've got that we can't seem to figure
+out. Though Lord knows we've tried," he added musingly.
+
+"Of course they have their own source of power," Ludovick informed
+them, smiling to himself, for his old Belphin teacher had taken great
+care to instill a sense of humor into him. "A Belphin was explaining
+that to me only today."
+
+Twenty heads swiveled toward him. He felt uncomfortable, for he was a
+modest young man and did not like to be the cynosure of all eyes.
+
+"Tell us, dear boy," the uncle said, grabbing Ludovick's glass from the
+plinth and filling it, "what exactly did he say?"
+
+"He said the Belphins rule through the power of love."
+
+The glass crashed to the tesserae as the uncle uttered a very unworthy
+word.
+
+"And I suppose it was love that killed Mieczyslaw and George when they
+tried to storm the Blue Tower----" old Osmond began, then halted at the
+looks he was getting from everybody.
+
+Ludovick could no longer pretend his neighbors were a group of eccentrics
+whom he himself was eccentric enough to regard as charming.
+
+"So!" He stood up and wrapped his mantle about him. "I knew you were
+against the government, and, of course, you have a legal right to disagree
+with its policies, but I didn't think you were actual--actual--" he
+dredged a word up out of his schooldays--"_anarchists_."
+
+[Illustration]
+
+He turned to the girl, who was looking thoughtful as she stroked the
+glittering jewel that always hung at her neck. "Corisande, how can you
+stay with these--" he found another word--"these _subversives_?"
+
+She smiled sadly. "Don't forget: they're my family, Ludovick, and I owe
+them dutiful respect, no matter how pig-headed they are." She pressed
+his hand. "But don't give up hope."
+
+That rang a bell inside his brain. "I won't," he vowed, giving her hand
+a return squeeze. "I promise I won't."
+
+                     *      *      *      *      *
+
+Outside the Flockhart villa, he paused, struggling with his inner self.
+It was an unworthy thing to inform upon one's neighbors; on the other
+hand, could he stand idly by and let those neighbors attempt to destroy
+the social order? Deciding that the greater good was the more
+important--and that, moreover, it was the only way of taking Corisande
+away from all this--he went in search of a Belphin. That is, he waited
+until one glided past and called to him to leave the walk.
+
+"I wish to report a conspiracy at No. 7 Mimosa Lane," he said. "The
+girl is innocent, but the others are in it to the hilt."
+
+The Belphin appeared to think for a minute. Then he gave off a smile.
+"Oh, them," he said. "We know. They are harmless."
+
+"Harmless!" Ludovick repeated. "Why, I understand they've already tried
+to--to attack the Blue Tower by _force_!"
+
+"Quite. And failed. For we are protected from hostile forces, as you
+were told earlier, by the power of love."
+
+Ludovick knew, of course, that the Belphin used the word _love_
+metaphorically, that the Tower was protected by a series of highly
+efficient barriers of force to repel attackers--barriers which, he
+realized now, from the sad fate of Mieczyslaw and George, were
+potentially lethal. However, he did not blame the Belphin for being
+so cagy about his race's source of power, not with people like the
+Flockharts running about subverting and whatnot.
+
+"You certainly do have a wonderful intercommunication system," he
+murmured.
+
+"Everything about us is wonderful," the Belphin said noncommittally.
+"That's why we're so good to you people. Be happy!" And he was off.
+
+But Ludovick could not be happy. He wasn't precisely sad yet, but he
+was thoughtful. Of course the Belphins knew better than he did, but
+still.... Perhaps they underestimated the seriousness of the Flockhart
+conspiracy. On the other hand, perhaps it was he who was taking the
+Flockharts too seriously. Maybe he should investigate further before
+doing anything rash.
+
+Later that night, he slipped over to the Flockhart villa and nosed
+about in the courtyard until he found the window behind which the
+family was conspiring. He peered through a chink in the curtains, so
+he could both see and hear.
+
+Corisande was saying, "And so I think there is a lot in what Ludovick
+said...."
+
+Bless her, he thought emotionally. Even in the midst of her plotting,
+she had time to spare a kind word for him. And then it hit him: _she,
+too, was a plotter_.
+
+"You suggest that we try to turn the power of love against the Belphins?"
+the uncle asked ironically.
+
+Corisande gave a rippling laugh as she twirled her glittering pendant.
+"In a manner of speaking," she said. "I have an idea for a secret
+weapon which might do the trick----"
+
+                     *      *      *      *      *
+
+At that moment, Ludovick stumbled over a jug which some careless
+relative had apparently left lying about the courtyard. It crashed to
+the tesserae, spattering Ludovick's legs and sandals with a liquid
+which later proved to be extremely red wine.
+
+"There's someone outside!" the uncle declared, half-rising.
+
+"Nonsense!" Corisande said, putting her hand on his shoulder. "I didn't
+hear anything."
+
+The uncle looked dubious, and Ludovick thought it prudent to withdraw
+at this point. Besides, he had heard enough. Corisande--his Corisande--was
+an integral part of the conspiracy.
+
+He lay down to sleep that night beset by doubts. If he told the
+Belphins about the conspiracy, he would be betraying Corisande. As a
+matter of fact, he now remembered, he _had_ already told them about
+the conspiracy and they hadn't believed him. But supposing he could
+_convince_ them, how could he give Corisande up to them? True, it was
+the right thing to do--but, for the first time in his life, he could
+not bring himself to do what he knew to be right. He was weak, weak--and
+weakness was sinful. His old Belphin teacher had taught him that, too.
+
+As Ludovick writhed restlessly upon his bed, he became aware that
+someone had come into his chamber.
+
+"Ludovick," a soft, beloved voice whispered, "I have come to ask your
+help...." It was so dark, he could not see her; he knew where she was
+only by the glitter of the jewel on her neck-chain as it arced through
+the blackness.
+
+"Corisande...." he breathed.
+
+"Ludovick...." she sighed.
+
+Now that the amenities were over, she resumed, "Against my will, I have
+been involved in the family plot. My uncle has invented a secret weapon
+which he believes will counteract the power of the barriers."
+
+"But I thought you devised it!"
+
+"So it _was_ you in the courtyard. Well, what happened was I wanted to
+gain time, so I said I had a secret weapon of my own invention which I
+had not perfected, but which would cost considerably less than my
+uncle's model. We have to watch the budget, you know, because we can
+hardly expect the Belphins to supply the components for this job.
+Anyhow, I thought that, while my folks were waiting for me to finish
+it, you would have a chance to warn the Belphins."
+
+"Corisande," he murmured, "you are as noble and clever as you are
+beautiful."
+
+                     *      *      *      *      *
+
+Then he caught the full import of her remarks. "_Me!_ But they won't
+pay any attention to me!"
+
+"How do you know?" When he remained silent, she said, "I suppose you've
+already tried to warn them about us."
+
+"I--I said _you_ had nothing to do with the plot."
+
+"That was good of you." She continued in a warmer tone: "How many
+Belphins did you warn, then?"
+
+"Just one. When you tell one something, you tell them all. You know
+that. Everyone knows that."
+
+"That's just theory," she said. "It's never been proven. All we do know
+is that they have some sort of central clearing house of information,
+presumably The Belphin of Belphins. But we don't know that they are
+incapable of thinking or acting individually. We don't really know much
+about them at all; they're very secretive."
+
+"Aloof," he corrected her, "as befits a ruling race. But always
+affable."
+
+"You must warn as many Belphins as you can."
+
+"And if none listens to me?"
+
+"Then," she said dramatically, "you must approach The Belphin of
+Belphins himself."
+
+"But no human being has ever come near him!" he said plaintively. "You
+know that all those who have tried perished. And that can't be a rumor,
+because your grandfather said----"
+
+"But they came to _attack_ The Belphin. You're coming to _warn_ him!
+That makes a big difference. Ludovick...." She took his hands in hers;
+in the darkness, the jewel swung madly on her presumably heaving bosom.
+"This is bigger than both of us. It's for Earth."
+
+He knew it was his patriotic duty to do as she said; still, he had
+enjoyed life so much. "Corisande, wouldn't it be much simpler if we
+just destroyed your uncle's secret weapon?"
+
+"He'd only make another. Don't you see, Ludovick, this is our only
+chance to save the Belphins, to save humanity.... But, of course, I
+don't have the right to send you. I'll go myself."
+
+"No, Corisande," he sighed. "I can't let you go. I'll do it."
+
+                     *      *      *      *      *
+
+Next morning, he set out to warn Belphins. He knew it wasn't much use,
+but it was all he could do. The first half dozen responded in much the
+same way the Belphin he had warned the previous day had done, by
+courteously acknowledging his solicitude and assuring him there was no
+need for alarm; they knew all about the Flockharts and everything would
+be all right.
+
+After that, they started to get increasingly huffy--which would, he
+thought, substantiate the theory that they were all part of one vast
+coordinate network of identity. Especially since each Belphin behaved
+as if Ludovick had been repeatedly annoying _him_.
+
+Finally, they refused to get off the walks when he hailed them--which
+was unheard of, for no Belphin had ever before failed to respond to an
+Earthman's call--and when he started running along the walks after
+them, they ran much faster than he could.
+
+At last he gave up and wandered about the city for hours, speaking to
+neither human nor Belphin, wondering what to do. That is, he knew what
+he had to do; he was wondering _how_ to do it. He would never be able
+to reach The Belphin of Belphins. No human being had ever done it.
+Mieczyslaw and George had died trying to reach him (or it). Even though
+their intentions had been hostile and Ludovick's would be helpful,
+there was little chance he would be allowed to reach The Belphin with
+all the other Belphins against him. What guarantee was there that The
+Belphin would not be against him, too?
+
+And yet he knew that he would have to risk his life; there was no help
+for it. He had never wanted to be a hero, and here he had heroism
+thrust upon him. He knew he could not succeed; equally well, he knew he
+could not turn back, for his Belphin teacher had instructed him in the
+meaning of duty.
+
+It was twilight when he approached the Blue Tower. Commending himself
+to the Infinite Virtue, he entered. The Belphin at the reception desk
+did not give off the customary smiling expression. In fact, he seemed
+to radiate a curiously apprehensive aura.
+
+"Go back, young man," he said. "You're not wanted here."
+
+"I must see The Belphin of Belphins. I must warn him against the
+Flockharts."
+
+"He has been warned," the receptionist told him. "Go home and be
+happy!"
+
+"I don't trust you or your brothers. I must see The Belphin himself."
+
+Suddenly this particular Belphin lost his commanding manners. He began
+to wilt, insofar as so rigidly constructed a creature could go limp.
+"Please, we've done so much for you. Do this for us."
+
+"The Belphin of Belphins did things for us," Ludovick countered. "You
+are all only his followers. How do I know you are _really_ following
+him? How do I know you haven't turned against him?"
+
+Without giving the creature a chance to answer, he strode forward.
+The Belphin attempted to bar his way. Ludovick knew one Belphin was
+a myriad times as strong as a human, so it was out of utter futility
+that he struck.
+
+The Belphin collapsed completely, flying apart in a welter of fragile
+springs and gears. The fact was of some deeper significance, Ludovick
+knew, but he was too numbed by his incredible success to be able to
+think clearly. All he knew was that The Belphin would be able to
+explain things to him.
+
+                     *      *      *      *      *
+
+Bells began to clash and clang. That meant the force barriers had gone
+up. He could see the shimmering insubstance of the first one before
+him. Squaring his shoulders, he charged it ... and walked right through.
+He looked himself up and down. He was alive and entire.
+
+Then the whole thing was a fraud; the barriers were not lethal--or
+perhaps even actual. But what of Mieczyslaw? And George? And countless
+rumored others? He would not let himself even try to think of them. He
+would not let himself even try to think of anything save his duty.
+
+A staircase spiraled up ahead of him. A Belphin was at its foot. Behind
+him, a barrier iridesced.
+
+"Please, young man----" the Belphin began. "You don't understand. Let
+me explain."
+
+But Ludovick destroyed the thing before it could say anything further,
+and he passed right through the barrier. He had to get to the top and
+warn The Belphin of Belphins, whoever or whatever he (or it) was, that
+the Flockharts had a secret weapon which might be able to annihilate it
+(or him). Belphin after Belphin Ludovick destroyed, and barrier after
+barrier he penetrated until he reached the top. At the head of the
+stairs was a vast golden door.
+
+"Go no further, Ludovick Eversole!" a mighty voice roared from within.
+"To open that door is to bring disaster upon your race."
+
+But all Ludovick knew was that he had to get to The Belphin within and
+warn him. He battered down the door; that is, he would have battered
+down the door if it had not turned out to be unlocked. A stream of
+noxious vapor rushed out of the opening, causing him to black out.
+
+When he came to, most of the vapor had dissipated. The Belphin of
+Belphins was already dying of asphyxiation, since it was, in fact, a
+single alien entity who breathed another combination of elements. The
+room at the head of the stairs had been its tank.
+
+"You fool...." it gasped. "Through your muddle-headed integrity ... you
+have destroyed not only me ... but Earth's future. I tried to make ...
+this planet a better place for humanity ... and this is my reward...."
+
+"But I don't understand!" Ludovick wept. "_Why_ did you let me do it?
+Why were Mieczyslaw and George and all the others killed? Why was it
+that I could pass the barriers and they could not?"
+
+"The barriers were triggered ... to respond to hostility.... You meant
+well ... so our defenses ... could not work." Ludovick had to bend low
+to hear the creature's last words: "There is ... Earth proverb ...
+should have warned me ... 'I can protect myself ... against my enemies
+... but who will protect me ... from my friends'...?"
+
+The Belphin of Belphins died in Ludovick's arms. He was the last of his
+race, so far as Earth was concerned, for no more came. If, as they had
+said themselves, some outside power had sent them to take care of the
+human race, then that power had given up the race as a bad job. If they
+were merely exploiting Earth, as the malcontents had kept suggesting,
+apparently it had proven too dangerous or too costly a venture.
+
+                     *      *      *      *      *
+
+Shortly after The Belphin's demise, the Flockharts arrived en masse.
+"We won't need your secret weapons now," Ludovick told them dully. "The
+Belphin of Belphins is dead."
+
+Corisande gave one of the rippling laughs he was to grow to hate so
+much. "Darling, _you_ were my secret weapon all along!" She beamed at
+her "relatives," and it was then he noticed the faint lines of her
+forehead. "I told you I could use the power of love to destroy the
+Belphins!" And then she added gently: "I think there is no doubt who
+is head of 'this family' now."
+
+The uncle gave a strained laugh. "You're going to have a great little
+first lady there, boy," he said to Ludovick.
+
+"First lady?" Ludovick repeated, still absorbed in his grief.
+
+"Yes, I imagine the people will want to make you our first President by
+popular acclaim."
+
+Ludovick looked at him through a haze of tears. "But I killed The
+Belphin. I didn't mean to, but ... they must hate me!"
+
+"Nonsense, my boy; they'll adore you. You'll be a hero!"
+
+Events proved him right. Even those people who had lived in apparent
+content under the Belphins, accepting what they were given and
+seemingly enjoying their carefree lives, now declared themselves to
+have been suffering in silent resentment all along. They hurled flowers
+and adulatory speeches at Ludovick and composed extremely flattering
+songs about him.
+
+Shortly after he was universally acclaimed President, he married
+Corisande. He couldn't escape.
+
+"Why doesn't she become President herself?" he wailed, when the relatives
+came and found him hiding in the ruins of the Blue Tower. The people had
+torn the Tower down as soon as they were sure The Belphin was dead and
+the others thereby rendered inoperant. "It would spare her a lot of
+bother."
+
+"Because she is not The Belphin-slayer," the uncle said, dragging him
+out. "Besides, she loves you. Come on, Ludovick, be a man." So they
+hauled him off to the wedding and, amid much feasting, he was married
+to Corisande.
+
+                     *      *      *      *      *
+
+He never drew another happy breath. In the first place, now that The
+Belphin was dead, all the machinery that had been operated by him
+stopped and no one knew how to fix it. The sidewalks stopped moving,
+the air conditioners stopped conditioning, the food synthesizers
+stopped synthesizing, and so on. And, of course, everybody blamed it
+all on Ludovick--even that year's run of bad weather.
+
+There were famines, riots, plagues, and, after the waves of mob hostility
+had coalesced into national groupings, wars. It was like the old days
+again, precisely as described in the textbooks.
+
+In the second place, Ludovick could never forget that, when Corisande
+had sent him to the Blue Tower, she could not have been sure that her
+secret weapon would work. Love might _not_ have conquered all--in fact,
+it was the more likely hypothesis that it wouldn't--and he would have
+been killed by the first barrier. And no husband likes to think that
+his wife thinks he's expendable; it makes him feel she doesn't really
+love him.
+
+So, in thirtieth year of his reign as Dictator of Earth, Ludovick
+poisoned Corisande--that is, had her poisoned, for by now he had a
+Minister of Assassination to handle such little matters--and married
+a very pretty, very young, very affectionate blonde. He wasn't
+particularly happy with her, either, but at least it was a change.
+
+
+--EVELYN E. SMITH
+
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Blue Tower, by Evelyn E. Smith
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