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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d7b82bc --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,4 @@ +*.txt text eol=lf +*.htm text eol=lf +*.html text eol=lf +*.md text eol=lf diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..b95eb10 --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #50103 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/50103) diff --git a/old/50103-0.txt b/old/50103-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index b68a7da..0000000 --- a/old/50103-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,1130 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Dwindling Years, by Lester Del Rey - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world 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. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - - - -Title: The Dwindling Years - -Author: Lester Del Rey - -Illustrator: Ashman - -Release Date: October 1, 2015 [EBook #50103] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE DWINDLING YEARS *** - - - - -Produced by Greg Weeks, Carolyn Jablonski, Adam Buchbinder -and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at -http://www.pgdp.net - - - - - - - - - - The - - Dwindling - - Years - - - _He didn’t expect to - be last—but neither - did he anticipate the - horror of being the - first!_ - - - By LESTER DEL REY - - Illustrated by JOHNS - - -[Illustration] - - -NEARLY TWO hundred years of habit carried the chairman of Exodus -Corporation through the morning ritual of crossing the executive floor. -Giles made the expected comments, smiled the proper smiles and greeted -his staff by the right names, but it was purely automatic. Somehow, -thinking had grown difficult in the mornings recently. - -Inside his private office, he dropped all pretense and slumped into the -padding of his chair, gasping for breath and feeling his heart hammering -in his chest. He’d been a fool to come to work, he realized. But with -the Procyon shuttle arriving yesterday, there was no telling what might -turn up. Besides, that fool of a medicist had sworn the shot would cure -any allergy or asthma. - -Giles heard his secretary come in, but it wasn’t until the smell of the -coffee reached his nose that he looked up. She handed him a filled cup -and set the carafe down on the age-polished surface of the big desk. She -watched solicitously as he drank. - -“That bad, Arthur?” she asked. - -“Just a little tired,” he told her, refilling the cup. She’d made the -coffee stronger than usual and it seemed to cut through some of the -thickness in his head. “I guess I’m getting old, Amanda.” - -She smiled dutifully at the time-worn joke, but he knew she wasn’t -fooled. She’d cycled to middle age four times in her job and she -probably knew him better than he knew himself—which wouldn’t be hard, he -thought. He’d hardly recognized the stranger in the mirror as he tried -to shave. His normal thinness had looked almost gaunt and there were -hollows in his face and circles under his eyes. Even his hair had seemed -thinner, though that, of course, was impossible. - -“Anything urgent on the Procyon shuttle?” he asked as she continue -staring at him with worried eyes. - - * * * * * - -SHE JERKED her gaze away guiltily and turned to the incoming basket. -“Mostly drugs for experimenting. A personal letter for you, relayed from -some place I never heard of. And one of the super-light missiles! They -found it drifting half a light-year out and captured it. Jordan’s got a -report on it and he’s going crazy. But if you don’t feel well—” - -“I’m all right!” he told her sharply. Then he steadied himself and -managed to smile. “Thanks for the coffee, Amanda.” - -She accepted dismissal reluctantly. When she was gone, he sat gazing at -the report from Jordan at Research. - -For eighty years now, they’d been sending out the little ships that -vanished at greater than the speed of light, equipped with every -conceivable device to make them return automatically after taking -pictures of wherever they arrived. So far, none had ever returned or -been located. This was the first hope they’d found that the century-long -trips between stars in the ponderous shuttles might be ended and he -should have been filled with excitement at Jordan’s hasty preliminary -report. - -He leafed through it. The little ship apparently had been picked up by -accident when it almost collided with a Sirius-local ship. Scientists -there had puzzled over it, reset it and sent it back. The two white rats -on it had still been alive. - -Giles dropped the report wearily and picked up the personal message that -had come on the shuttle. He fingered the microstrip inside while he -drank another coffee, and finally pulled out the microviewer. There were -three frames to the message, he saw with some surprise. - -He didn’t need to see the signature on the first projection. Only his -youngest son would have sent an elaborate tercentenary greeting -verse—one that would arrive ninety years too late! Harry had been born -just before Earth passed the drastic birth limitation act and his mother -had spoiled him. He’d even tried to avoid the compulsory emigration -draft and stay on with his mother. It had been the bitter quarrels over -that which had finally broken Giles’ fifth marriage. - -Oddly enough, the message in the next frame showed none of that. Harry -had nothing but praise for the solar system where he’d been sent. He -barely mentioned being married on the way or his dozen children, but -filled most of the frame with glowing description and a plea for his -father to join him there! - - * * * * * - -GILES SNORTED and turned to the third frame, which showed a group -picture of the family in some sort of vehicle, against the background of -an alien but attractive world. - -He had no desire to spend ninety years cooped up with a bunch of callow -young emigrants, even in one of the improved Exodus shuttles. And even -if Exodus ever got the super-light drive working, there was no reason he -should give up his work. The discovery that men could live practically -forever had put an end to most family ties; sentiment wore thin in half -a century—which wasn’t much time now, though it had once seemed long -enough. - -Strange how the years seemed to get shorter as their number increased. -There’d been a song once—something about the years dwindling down. He -groped for the lines and couldn’t remember. Drat it! Now he’d probably -lie awake most of the night again, trying to recall them. - -The outside line buzzed musically, flashing Research’s number. Giles -grunted in irritation. He wasn’t ready to face Jordan yet. But he -shrugged and pressed the button. - -The intense face that looked from the screen was frowning as Jordan’s -eyes seemed to sweep around the room. He was still young—one of the few -under a hundred who’d escaped deportation because of special ability—and -patience was still foreign to him. - -Then the frown vanished as an expression of shock replaced it, and Giles -felt a sinking sensation. If he looked _that_ bad— - -But Jordan wasn’t looking at him; the man’s interest lay in the -projected picture from Harry, across the desk from the communicator. - -“Antigravity!” His voice was unbelieving as he turned his head to face -the older man. “What world is that?” - -Giles forced his attention on the picture again and this time he noticed -the vehicle shown. It was enough like an old model Earth conveyance to -pass casual inspection, but it floated wheellessly above the ground. -Faint blur lines indicated it had been moving when the picture was -taken. - -“One of my sons—” Giles started to answer. “I could find the star’s -designation....” - -Jordan cursed harshly. “So we can send a message on the shuttle, begging -for their secret in a couple of hundred years! While a hundred other -worlds make a thousand major discoveries they don’t bother reporting! -Can’t the Council see _anything_?” - -Giles had heard it all before. Earth was becoming a backwater world; no -real progress had been made in two centuries; the young men were sent -out as soon as their first fifty years of education were finished, and -the older men were too conservative for really new thinking. There was a -measure of truth in it, unfortunately. - -“They’ll slow up when their populations fill,” Giles repeated his old -answers. “We’re still ahead in medicine and we’ll get the other -discoveries eventually, without interrupting the work of making the -Earth fit for our longevity. We can wait. We’ll have to.” - - * * * * * - -THE YOUNGER man stared at him with the strange puzzled look Giles had -seen too often lately. “Damn it, haven’t you read my report? We know the -super-light drive works! That missile reached Sirius in less than ten -days. We can have the secret of this antigravity in less than a year! -We—” - -“Wait a minute.” Giles felt the thickness pushing back at his mind and -tried to fight it off. He’d only skimmed the report, but this made no -sense. “You mean you can calibrate your guiding devices accurately -enough to get a missile where you want it and back?” - -“_What?_” Jordan’s voice rattled the speaker. “Of course not! It took -two accidents to get the thing back to us—and with a half-light-year -miss that delayed it about twenty years before the Procyon shuttle heard -its signal. Pre-setting a course may take centuries, if we can ever -master it. Even with Sirius expecting the missiles and ready to -cooperate. I mean the big ship. We’ve had it drafted for building long -enough; now we can finish it in three months. We know the drive works. -We know it’s fast enough to reach Procyon in two weeks. We even know -life can stand the trip. The rats were unharmed.” - -Giles shook his head at what the other was proposing, only partly -believing it. “Rats don’t have minds that could show any real damage -such as the loss of power to rejuvenate. We can’t put human pilots into -a ship with our drive until we’ve tested it more thoroughly, Bill, even -if they could correct for errors on arrival. Maybe if we put in stronger -signaling transmitters....” - -“Yeah. Maybe in two centuries we’d have a through route charted to -Sirius. And we still wouldn’t have proved it safe for human pilots. Mr. -Giles, we’ve got to have the big ship. All we need is _one_ volunteer!” - -It occurred to Giles then that the man had been too fired with the idea -to think. He leaned back, shaking his head again wearily. “All right, -Bill. Find me one volunteer. Or how about you? Do you really want to -risk losing the rest of your life rather than waiting a couple more -centuries until we know it’s safe? If you do, I’ll order the big ship.” - -Jordan opened his mouth and for a second Giles’ heart caught in a flux -of emotions as the man’s offer hovered on his lips. Then the engineer -shut his mouth slowly. The belligerence ran out of him. - -He looked sick, for he had no answer. - - * * * * * - -NO SANE man would risk a chance for near eternity against such a -relatively short wait. Heroism had belonged to those who knew their days -were numbered, anyhow. - -“Forget it, Bill,” Giles advised. “It may take longer, but eventually -we’ll find a way. With time enough, we’re bound to. And when we do, the -ship will be ready.” - -The engineer nodded miserably and clicked off. Giles turned from the -blank screen to stare out of the windows, while his hand came up to -twist at the lock of hair over his forehead. Eternity! They had to plan -and build for it. They couldn’t risk that plan for short-term benefits. -Usually it was too easy to realize that, and the sight of the solid, -time-enduring buildings outside should have given him a sense of -security. - -Today, though, nothing seemed to help. He felt choked, imprisoned, -somehow lost; the city beyond the window blurred as he studied it, and -he swung the chair back so violently that his hand jerked painfully on -the forelock he’d been twisting. - -Then he was staring unbelievingly at the single white hair that was -twisted with the dark ones between his fingers. - -Like an automaton, he bent forward, his other hand groping for the -mirror that should be in one of the drawers. The dull pain in his chest -sharpened and his breath was hoarse in his throat, but he hardly noticed -as he found the mirror and brought it up. His eyes focused reluctantly. -There were other white strands in his dark hair. - -The mirror crashed to the floor as he staggered out of the office. - -It was only two blocks to Giles’ residence club, but he had to stop -twice to catch his breath and fight against the pain that clawed at his -chest. When he reached the wood-paneled lobby, he was barely able to -stand. - -Dubbins was at his side almost at once, with a hand under his arm to -guide him toward his suite. - -“Let me help you, sir,” Dubbins suggested, in the tones Giles hadn’t -heard since the man had been his valet, back when it was still possible -to find personal servants. Now he managed the club on a level of -quasi-equality with the members. For the moment, though, he’d slipped -back into the old ways. - - * * * * * - -GILES FOUND himself lying on his couch, partially undressed, with the -pillows just right and a long drink in his hand. The alcohol combined -with the reaction from his panic to leave him almost himself again. -After all, there was nothing to worry about; Earth’s doctors could cure -anything. - -“I guess you’d better call Dr. Vincenti,” he decided. Vincenti was a -member and would probably be the quickest to get. - -Dubbins shook his head. “Dr. Vincenti isn’t with us, sir. He left a year -ago to visit a son in the Centauri system. There’s a Dr. Cobb whose -reputation is very good, sir.” - -Giles puzzled over it doubtfully. Vincenti had been an oddly morose man -the last few times he’d seen him, but that could hardly explain his -taking a twenty-year shuttle trip for such a slim reason. It was no -concern of his, though. “Dr. Cobb, then,” he said. - -Giles heard the other man’s voice on the study phone, too low for the -words to be distinguishable. He finished the drink, feeling still -better, and was sitting up when Dubbins came back. - -“Dr. Cobb wants you to come to his office at once, sir,” he said, -dropping to his knee to help Giles with his shoes. “I’d be pleased to -drive you there.” - -Giles frowned. He’d expected Cobb to come to him. Then he grimaced at -his own thoughts. Dubbins’ manners must have carried him back into the -past; doctors didn’t go in for home visits now—they preferred to see -their patients in the laboratories that housed their offices. If this -kept on, he’d be missing the old days when he’d had a mansion and -counted his wealth in possessions, instead of the treasures he could -build inside himself for the future ahead. He was getting positively -childish! - -Yet he relished the feeling of having Dubbins drive his car. More than -anything else, he’d loved being driven. Even after chauffeurs were a -thing of the past, Harry had driven him around. Now he’d taken to -walking, as so many others had, for even with modern safety measures so -strict, there was always a small chance of some accident and nobody had -any desire to spend the long future as a cripple. - -“I’ll wait for you, sir,” Dubbins offered as they stopped beside the -low, massive medical building. - -It was almost too much consideration. Giles nodded, got out and headed -down the hall uncertainly. Just how bad did he look? Well, he’d soon -find out. - -He located the directory and finally found the right office, its -reception room wall covered with all the degrees Dr. Cobb had picked up -in some three hundred years of practice. Giles felt better, realizing it -wouldn’t be one of the younger men. - - * * * * * - -COBB APPEARED himself, before the nurse could take over, and led Giles -into a room with an old-fashioned desk and chairs that almost concealed -the cabinets of equipment beyond. - -He listened as Giles stumbled out his story. Halfway through, the nurse -took a blood sample with one of the little mosquito needles and the -machinery behind the doctor began working on it. - -“Your friend told me about the gray hair, of course,” Cobb said. At -Giles’ look, he smiled faintly. “Surely you didn’t think people could -miss that in this day and age? Let’s see it.” - -He inspected it and began making tests. Some were older than Giles could -remember—knee reflex, blood pressure, pulse and fluoroscope. Others -involved complicated little gadgets that ran over his body, while meters -bobbed and wiggled. The blood check came through and Cobb studied it, to -go back and make further inspections of his own. - -At last he nodded slowly. “Hyper-catabolism, of course. I thought it -might be. How long since you had your last rejuvenation? And who gave -it?” - -“About ten years ago,” Giles answered. He found his identity card and -passed it over, while the doctor studied it. “My sixteenth.” - -It wasn’t going right. He could feel it. Some of the panic symptoms were -returning; the pulse in his neck was pounding and his breath was growing -difficult. Sweat ran down his sides from his armpit and he wiped his -palms against his coat. - -“Any particular emotional strain when you were treated—some major upset -in your life?” Cobb asked. - -Giles thought as carefully as he could, but he remembered nothing like -that. “You mean—it didn’t take? But I never had any trouble, Doctor. I -was one of the first million cases, when a lot of people couldn’t -rejuvenate at all, and I had no trouble even then.” - -Cobb considered it, hesitated as if making up his mind to be frank -against his better judgment. “I can’t see any other explanation. You’ve -got a slight case of angina—nothing serious, but quite definite—as well -as other signs of aging. I’m afraid the treatment didn’t take fully. It -might have been some unconscious block on your part, some infection not -diagnosed at the time, or even a fault in the treatment. That’s pretty -rare, but we can’t neglect the possibility.” - - * * * * * - -HE STUDIED his charts again and then smiled. “So we’ll give you another -treatment. Any reason you can’t begin immediately?” - -Giles remembered that Dubbins was waiting for him, but this was more -important. It hadn’t been a joke about his growing old, after all. But -now, in a few days, he’d be his old—no, of course not—his young self -again! - -They went down the hall to another office, where Giles waited outside -while Cobb conferred with another doctor and technician, with much -waving of charts. He resented every second of it. It was as if the -almost forgotten specter of age stood beside him, counting the seconds. -But at last they were through and he was led into the quiet rejuvenation -room, where the clamps were adjusted about his head and the earpieces -were fitted. The drugs were shot painlessly into his arm and the -light-pulser was adjusted to his brain-wave pattern. - -It had been nothing like this his first time. Then it had required -months of mental training, followed by crude mechanical and drug -hypnosis for other months. Somewhere in every human brain lay the memory -of what his cells had been like when he was young. Or perhaps it lay in -the cells themselves, with the brain as only a linkage to it. They’d -discovered that, and the fact that the mind could effect physical -changes in the body. Even such things as cancer could be willed out of -existence—provided the brain could be reached far below the conscious -level and forced to operate. - -There had been impossible faith cures for millenia—cataracts removed -from blinded eyes within minutes, even—but finding the mechanism in the -brain that worked those miracles had taken an incredible amount of study -and finding a means of bringing it under control had taken even longer. - -Now they did it with dozens of mechanical aids in addition to the -hypnotic instructions—and did it usually in a single sitting, with the -full transformation of the body taking less than a week after the -treatment! - -But with all the equipment, it wasn’t impossible for a mistake to -happen. It had been no fault of his ... he was sure of that ... his mind -was easy to reach ... he could relax so easily.... - -He came out of it without even a headache, while they were removing the -probes, but the fatigue on the operator’s face told him it had been a -long and difficult job. He stretched experimentally, with the eternal -unconscious expectation that he would find himself suddenly young again. -But that, of course, was ridiculous. It took days for the mind to work -on all the cells and to repair the damage of time. - - * * * * * - -COBB LED him back to the first office, where he was given an injection -of some kind and another sample of his blood was taken, while the -earlier tests were repeated. But finally the doctor nodded. - -“That’s all for now, Mr. Giles. You might drop in tomorrow morning, -after I’ve had a chance to complete my study of all this. We’ll know by -then whether you’ll need more treatment. Ten o’clock okay?” - -“But I’ll be all right?” - -Cobb smiled the automatic reassurance of his profession. “We haven’t -lost a patient in two hundred years, to my knowledge.” - -“Thanks,” said Giles. “Ten o’clock is fine.” - -Dubbins was still waiting, reading a paper whose headlined feature -carried a glowing account of the discovery of the super-light missile -and what it might mean. He took a quick look at Giles and pointed to it. -“Great work, Mr. Giles. Maybe we’ll all get to see some of those other -worlds yet.” Then he studied Giles more carefully. “Everything’s in good -shape now, sir?” - -“The doctor says everything’s going to be fine,” Giles answered. - -It was then he realized for the first time that Cobb had said no such -thing. A statement that lightning had never struck a house was no -guarantee that it never would. It was an evasion meant to give such an -impression. - -The worry nagged at him all the way back. Word had already gone around -the club that he’d had some kind of attack and there were endless -questions that kept it on his mind. And even when it had been covered -and recovered, he could still sense the glances of the others, as if he -were Vincenti in one of the man’s more morose moods. - -He found a single table in the dining room and picked his way through -the meal, listening to the conversation about him only when it was -necessary because someone called across to him. Ordinarily, he was quick -to support the idea of clubs in place of private families. A man here -could choose his group and grow into them. Yet he wasn’t swallowed by -them, as he might be by a family. Giles had been living here for nearly -a century now and he’d never regretted it. But tonight his own group -irritated him. - -He puzzled over it, finding no real reason. Certainly they weren’t -forcing themselves on him. He remembered once when he’d had a cold, -before they finally licked that; Harry had been a complete nuisance, -running around with various nostrums, giving him no peace. Constant -questions about how he felt, constant little looks of worry—until he’d -been ready to yell at the boy. In fact, he had. - -Funny, he couldn’t picture really losing his temper here. Families did -odd things to a man. - - * * * * * - -HE LISTENED to a few of the discussions after the dinner, but he’d heard -them all before, except for one about the super-speed drive, and there -he had no wish to talk until he could study the final report. He gave up -at last and went to his own suite. What he needed was a good night’s -sleep after a little relaxation. - -Even that failed him, though. He’d developed one of the finest chess -collections in the world, but tonight it held no interest. And when he -drew out his tools and tried working on the delicate, lovely jade for -the set he was carving his hands seemed to be all thumbs. None of the -other interests he’d developed through the years helped to add to the -richness of living now. - -He gave it up and went to bed—to have the fragment of that song pop into -his head. Now there was no escaping it. Something about the years—or was -it days—dwindling down to something or other. - -Could they really dwindle down? Suppose he couldn’t rejuvenate all the -way? He knew that there were some people who didn’t respond as well as -others. Sol Graves, for instance. He’d been fifty when he finally -learned how to work with the doctors and they could only bring him back -to about thirty, instead of the normal early twenties. Would that reduce -the slice of eternity that rejuvenation meant? And what had happened to -Sol? - -Or suppose it wasn’t rejuvenation, after all; suppose something had gone -wrong with him permanently? - -He fought that off, but he couldn’t escape the nagging doubts at the -doctor’s words. - -He got up once to stare at himself in the mirror. Ten hours had gone by -and there should have been some signs of improvement. He couldn’t be -sure, though, whether there were or not. - -He looked no better the next morning when he finally dragged himself up -from the little sleep he’d managed to get. The hollows were still there -and the circles under his eyes. He searched for the gray in his hair, -but the traitorous strands had been removed at the doctor’s office and -he could find no new ones. - -He looked into the dining room and then went by hastily. He wanted no -solicitous glances this morning. Drat it, maybe he should move out. -Maybe trying family life again would give him some new interests. Amanda -probably would be willing to marry him; she’d hinted at a date once. - -He stopped, shocked by the awareness that he hadn’t been out with a -woman for.... - -He couldn’t remember how long it had been. Nor why. - -“In the spring, a young man’s fancy,” he quoted to himself, and then -shuddered. - -It hadn’t been that kind of spring for him—not this rejuvenation nor the -last, nor the one before that. - - * * * * * - -GILES TRIED to stop scaring himself and partially succeeded, until he -reached the doctor’s office. Then it was no longer necessary to frighten -himself. The wrongness was too strong, no matter how professional Cobb’s -smile! - -He didn’t hear the preliminary words. He watched the smile vanish as the -stack of reports came out. There was no nurse here now. The machines -were quiet—and all the doors were shut. - -Giles shook his head, interrupting the doctor’s technical jargon. Now -that he knew there was reason for his fear, it seemed to vanish, leaving -a coldness that numbed him. - -“I’d rather know the whole truth,” he said. His voice sounded dead in -his ears. “The worst first. The rejuvenation...?” - -Cobb sighed and yet seemed relieved. “Failed.” He stopped, and his hands -touched the reports on his desk. “Completely,” he added in a low, -defeated tone. - -“But I thought that was impossible!” - -“So did I. I wouldn’t believe it even yet—but now I find it isn’t the -first case. I spent the night at Medical Center going up the ranks until -I found men who really know about it. And now I wish I hadn’t.” His -voice ran down and he gathered himself together by an effort. “It’s a -shock to me, too, Mr. Giles. But—well, to simplify it, no memory is -perfect—even cellular memory. It loses a little each time. And the -effect is cumulative. It’s like an asymptotic curve—the further it goes, -the steeper the curve. And—well, you’ve passed too far.” - -He faced away from Giles, dropping the reports into a drawer and locking -it. “I wasn’t supposed to tell you, of course. It’s going to be tough -enough when they’re ready to let people know. But you aren’t the first -and you won’t be the last, if that’s any consolation. We’ve got a longer -time scale than we used to have—but it’s in centuries, not in eons. For -everybody, not just you.” - -It was no consolation. Giles nodded mechanically. “I won’t talk, of -course. How—how long?” - -Cobb spread his hands unhappily. “Thirty years, maybe. But we can make -them better. Geriatric knowledge is still on record. We can fix the -heart and all the rest. You’ll be in good physical condition, better -than your grandfather—” - -“And then....” Giles couldn’t pronounce the words. He’d grown old and -he’d grow older. And eventually he’d die! - -An immortal man had suddenly found death hovering on his trail. The -years had dwindled and gone, and only a few were left. - -He stood up, holding out his hand. “Thank you, Doctor,” he said, and was -surprised to find he meant it. The man had done all he could and had at -least saved him the suspense of growing doubt and horrible eventual -discovery. - - * * * * * - -OUTSIDE ON the street, he looked up at the Sun and then at the buildings -built to last for thousands of years. Their eternity was no longer a -part of him. - -Even his car would outlast him. - -He climbed into it, still partly numbed, and began driving mechanically, -no longer wondering about the dangers that might possibly arise. Those -wouldn’t matter much now. For a man who had thought of living almost -forever, thirty years was too short a time to count. - -He was passing near the club and started to slow. Then he went on -without stopping. He wanted no chance to have them asking questions he -couldn’t answer. It was none of their business. Dubbins had been -kind—but now Giles wanted no kindness. - -The street led to the office and he drove on. What else was there for -him? There, at least, he could still fill his time with work—work that -might even be useful. In the future, men would need the super-light -drive if they were to span much more of the Universe than now. And he -could speed up the work in some ways still, even if he could never see -its finish. - -It would be cold comfort but it was something. And he might keep busy -enough to forget sometimes that the years were gone for him. - -Automatic habit carried him through the office again, to Amanda’s desk, -where her worry was still riding her. He managed a grin and somehow the -right words came to his lips. “I saw the doctor, Amanda, so you can stop -figuring ways to get me there.” - -She smiled back suddenly, without feigning it. “Then you’re all right?” - -“As all right as I’ll ever be,” he told her. “They tell me I’m just -growing old.” - -This time her laugh was heartier. He caught himself before he could echo -her mirth in a different voice and went inside where she had the coffee -waiting for him. - -Oddly, it still tasted good to him. - -The projection was off, he saw, wondering whether he’d left it on or -not. He snapped the switch and saw the screen light up, with the people -still in the odd, wheelless vehicle on the alien planet. - - * * * * * - -FOR A long moment, he stared at the picture without thinking, and then -bent closer. Harry’s face hadn’t changed much. Giles had almost -forgotten it, but there was still the same grin there. And his -grandchildren had a touch of it, too. And of their grandfather’s nose, -he thought. Funny, he’d never seen even pictures of his other -grandchildren. Family ties melted away too fast for interstellar travel. - -Yet there seemed to be no slackening of them in Harry’s case, and -somehow it looked like a family, rather than a mere group. A very -pleasant family in a very pleasant world. - -He read Harry’s note again, with its praise for the planet and its -invitation. He wondered if Dr. Vincenti had received an invitation like -that, before he left. Or had he even been one of those to whom the same -report had been delivered by some doctor? It didn’t matter, but it would -explain things, at least. - -Twenty years to Centaurus, while the years dwindled down— - -Then abruptly the line finished itself. “The years dwindle down to a -precious few....” he remembered. “A precious few.” - -Those dwindling years had been precious once. He unexpectedly recalled -his own grandfather holding him on an old knee and slipping him candy -that was forbidden. The years seemed precious to the old man then. - -Amanda’s voice came abruptly over the intercom. “Jordan wants to talk to -you,” she said, and the irritation was sharp in her voice. “He won’t -take no!” - -Giles shrugged and reached for the projector, to cut it off. Then, on -impulse, he set it back to the picture, studying the group again as he -switched on Jordan’s wire. - -But he didn’t wait for the hot words about whatever was the trouble. - -“Bill,” he said, “start getting the big ship into production. I’ve found -a volunteer.” - -He’d been driven to it, he knew, as he watched the man’s amazed face -snap from the screen. From the first suspicion of his trouble, something -inside him had been forcing him to make this decision. And maybe it -would do no good. Maybe the ship would fail. But thirty years was a -number a man could risk. - -If he made it, though.... - -Well, he’d see those grandchildren of his this year—and Harry. Maybe -he’d even tell Harry the truth, once they got done celebrating the -reunion. And there’d be other grandchildren. With the ship, he’d have -time enough to look them up. Plenty of time! - -Thirty years was a long time, when he stopped to think of it. - - —LESTER DEL REY - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - Transcriber’s Note - - -Italicized phrases are presented by surrounding the text with -_underscores_. - -This etext was produced from Galaxy January 1956. Extensive research did -not uncover any evidence that the U.S. copyright on this publication was -renewed. - -The cover belongs to the entire publication, and does not particularly -relate to this etext. - -Minor changes in presentation have been made from the layout of the -original paper publication. - -Punctuation has been normalized. Variations in hyphenation have been -retained as they were in the original publication. The following assumed -printer's errors were corrected: - -possitively —> positively - -He’d developed one the finest —> He’d developed one of the finest - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Dwindling Years, by Lester Del Rey - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE DWINDLING YEARS *** - -***** This file should be named 50103-0.txt or 50103-0.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/5/0/1/0/50103/ - -Produced by Greg Weeks, Carolyn Jablonski, Adam Buchbinder -and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at -http://www.pgdp.net - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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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. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - - - -Title: The Dwindling Years - -Author: Lester Del Rey - -Illustrator: Ashman - -Release Date: October 1, 2015 [EBook #50103] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE DWINDLING YEARS *** - - - - -Produced by Greg Weeks, Carolyn Jablonski, Adam Buchbinder -and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at -http://www.pgdp.net - - - - - - -</pre> - - -<div class='figcenter id001'> -<img src='images/cover.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -</div> -<div class='pbb'> - <hr class='pb c000' /> -</div> - -<div> - <h1 class='c001'><b><span class='xxlarge'>The</span></b> <br /> <br /> <b><span class='xxlarge'>Dwindling</span></b> <br /> <br /> <b><span class='xxlarge'>Years</span></b></h1> -</div> - -<p class='c002'><b><i>He didn’t expect to be last—but -neither did he anticipate -the horror of being the first!</i></b></p> - -<div class='nf-center-c1'> -<div class='nf-center c003'> - <div><span class='large'><b>By LESTER DEL REY</b></span></div> - <div class='c000'><span class='large'><b>Illustrated by JOHNS</b></span></div> - </div> -</div> - -<div class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/ill-031.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -</div> - -<p class='drop-capa0_3_0_6 c004'>NEARLY TWO hundred -years of habit carried the -chairman of Exodus Corporation -through the morning ritual -of crossing the executive -floor. Giles made the expected -comments, smiled the proper -smiles and greeted his staff by -the right names, but it was purely -automatic. Somehow, thinking -had grown difficult in the mornings -recently.</p> - -<p class='c005'>Inside his private office, he -dropped all pretense and slumped -into the padding of his chair, gasping -for breath and feeling his -heart hammering in his chest. -He’d been a fool to come to work, -he realized. But with the Procyon -shuttle arriving yesterday, there -was no telling what might turn -up. Besides, that fool of a medicist -had sworn the shot would -cure any allergy or asthma.</p> - -<p class='c005'>Giles heard his secretary come -in, but it wasn’t until the smell -of the coffee reached his nose -that he looked up. She handed -him a filled cup and set the carafe -down on the age-polished surface -of the big desk. She watched -solicitously as he drank.</p> - -<p class='c005'>“That bad, Arthur?” she asked.</p> - -<p class='c005'>“Just a little tired,” he told -her, refilling the cup. She’d made -the coffee stronger than usual -and it seemed to cut through -some of the thickness in his head. -“I guess I’m getting old, Amanda.”</p> - -<p class='c005'>She smiled dutifully at the -time-worn joke, but he knew she -wasn’t fooled. She’d cycled to -middle age four times in her -job and she probably knew him -better than he knew himself—which -wouldn’t be hard, he -thought. He’d hardly recognized -the stranger in the mirror as he -tried to shave. His normal thinness -had looked almost gaunt -and there were hollows in his -face and circles under his eyes. -Even his hair had seemed thinner, -though that, of course, was -impossible.</p> - -<p class='c005'>“Anything urgent on the Procyon -shuttle?” he asked as she -continue staring at him with worried -eyes.</p> - -<hr class='c006' /> - -<p class='drop-capa0_3_0_6 c007'>SHE JERKED her gaze away -guiltily and turned to the incoming -basket. “Mostly drugs for -experimenting. A personal letter -for you, relayed from some place -I never heard of. And one of the -super-light missiles! They found -it drifting half a light-year out -and captured it. Jordan’s got a -report on it and he’s going crazy. -But if you don’t feel well—”</p> - -<p class='c005'>“I’m all right!” he told her -sharply. Then he steadied himself -and managed to smile. “Thanks -for the coffee, Amanda.”</p> - -<p class='c005'>She accepted dismissal reluctantly. -When she was gone, he -sat gazing at the report from Jordan -at Research.</p> - -<p class='c005'>For eighty years now, they’d -been sending out the little ships -that vanished at greater than the -speed of light, equipped with -every conceivable device to make -them return automatically after -taking pictures of wherever they -arrived. So far, none had ever returned -or been located. This was -the first hope they’d found that -the century-long trips between -stars in the ponderous shuttles -might be ended and he should -have been filled with excitement -at Jordan’s hasty preliminary report.</p> - -<p class='c005'>He leafed through it. The little -ship apparently had been picked -up by accident when it almost -collided with a Sirius-local ship. -Scientists there had puzzled over -it, reset it and sent it back. The -two white rats on it had still been -alive.</p> - -<p class='c005'>Giles dropped the report wearily -and picked up the personal -message that had come on the -shuttle. He fingered the microstrip -inside while he drank another -coffee, and finally pulled -out the microviewer. There were -three frames to the message, he -saw with some surprise.</p> - -<p class='c005'>He didn’t need to see the signature -on the first projection. -Only his youngest son would have -sent an elaborate tercentenary -greeting verse—one that would -arrive ninety years too late! Harry -had been born just before Earth -passed the drastic birth limitation -act and his mother had -spoiled him. He’d even tried to -avoid the compulsory emigration -draft and stay on with his mother. -It had been the bitter quarrels -over that which had finally -broken Giles’ fifth marriage.</p> - -<p class='c005'>Oddly enough, the message in -the next frame showed none of -that. Harry had nothing but -praise for the solar system where -he’d been sent. He barely mentioned -being married on the way -or his dozen children, but filled -most of the frame with glowing -description and a plea for his -father to join him there!</p> - -<hr class='c006' /> - -<p class='drop-capa0_2_0_6 c007'>GILES SNORTED and turned -to the third frame, which -showed a group picture of the -family in some sort of vehicle, -against the background of an alien -but attractive world.</p> - -<p class='c005'>He had no desire to spend -ninety years cooped up with a -bunch of callow young emigrants, -even in one of the improved Exodus -shuttles. And even if Exodus -ever got the super-light -drive working, there was no reason -he should give up his work. -The discovery that men could -live practically forever had put -an end to most family ties; sentiment -wore thin in half a century—which -wasn’t much time -now, though it had once seemed -long enough.</p> - -<p class='c005'>Strange how the years seemed -to get shorter as their number increased. -There’d been a song -once—something about the years -dwindling down. He groped for -the lines and couldn’t remember. -Drat it! Now he’d probably lie -awake most of the night again, -trying to recall them.</p> - -<p class='c005'>The outside line buzzed musically, -flashing Research’s number. -Giles grunted in irritation. He -wasn’t ready to face Jordan yet. -But he shrugged and pressed the -button.</p> - -<p class='c005'>The intense face that looked -from the screen was frowning as -Jordan’s eyes seemed to sweep -around the room. He was still -young—one of the few under -a hundred who’d escaped deportation -because of special ability—and -patience was still foreign to -him.</p> - -<p class='c005'>Then the frown vanished as -an expression of shock replaced -it, and Giles felt a sinking sensation. -If he looked <i>that</i> bad—</p> - -<p class='c005'>But Jordan wasn’t looking at -him; the man’s interest lay in the -projected picture from Harry, across -the desk from the communicator.</p> - -<p class='c005'>“Antigravity!” His voice was -unbelieving as he turned his head -to face the older man. “What -world is that?”</p> - -<p class='c005'>Giles forced his attention on -the picture again and this time -he noticed the vehicle shown. It -was enough like an old model -Earth conveyance to pass casual -inspection, but it floated wheellessly -above the ground. Faint -blur lines indicated it had been -moving when the picture was -taken.</p> - -<p class='c005'>“One of my sons—” Giles -started to answer. “I could find -the star’s designation....”</p> - -<p class='c005'>Jordan cursed harshly. “So we -can send a message on the shuttle, -begging for their secret in a -couple of hundred years! While -a hundred other worlds make a -thousand major discoveries they -don’t bother reporting! Can’t the -Council see <i>anything</i>?”</p> - -<p class='c005'>Giles had heard it all before. -Earth was becoming a backwater -world; no real progress had been -made in two centuries; the young -men were sent out as soon as -their first fifty years of education -were finished, and the older men -were too conservative for really -new thinking. There was a measure -of truth in it, unfortunately.</p> - -<p class='c005'>“They’ll slow up when their -populations fill,” Giles repeated -his old answers. “We’re still ahead -in medicine and we’ll get the -other discoveries eventually, without -interrupting the work of making -the Earth fit for our longevity. -We can wait. We’ll have to.”</p> - -<hr class='c006' /> - -<p class='drop-capa0_3_0_6 c007'>THE YOUNGER man stared -at him with the strange puzzled -look Giles had seen too often -lately. “Damn it, haven’t you read -my report? We know the super-light -drive works! That missile -reached Sirius in less than ten -days. We can have the secret of -this antigravity in less than a -year! We—”</p> - -<p class='c005'>“Wait a minute.” Giles felt the -thickness pushing back at his -mind and tried to fight it off. He’d -only skimmed the report, but this -made no sense. “You mean you -can calibrate your guiding devices -accurately enough to get a -missile where you want it and -back?”</p> - -<p class='c005'>“<i>What?</i>” Jordan’s voice rattled -the speaker. “Of course not! It -took two accidents to get the -thing back to us—and with a -half-light-year miss that delayed -it about twenty years before the -Procyon shuttle heard its signal. -Pre-setting a course may take -centuries, if we can ever master -it. Even with Sirius expecting the -missiles and ready to cooperate. -I mean the big ship. We’ve had it -drafted for building long enough; -now we can finish it in three -months. We know the drive works. -We know it’s fast enough to reach -Procyon in two weeks. We even -know life can stand the trip. The -rats were unharmed.”</p> - -<p class='c005'>Giles shook his head at what -the other was proposing, only -partly believing it. “Rats don’t -have minds that could show any -real damage such as the loss of -power to rejuvenate. We can’t put -human pilots into a ship with our -drive until we’ve tested it more -thoroughly, Bill, even if they -could correct for errors on arrival. -Maybe if we put in stronger signaling -transmitters....”</p> - -<p class='c005'>“Yeah. Maybe in two centuries -we’d have a through route charted -to Sirius. And we still wouldn’t -have proved it safe for human -pilots. Mr. Giles, we’ve got to -have the big ship. All we need is -<i>one</i> volunteer!”</p> - -<p class='c005'>It occurred to Giles then that -the man had been too fired with -the idea to think. He leaned back, -shaking his head again wearily. -“All right, Bill. Find me one volunteer. -Or how about you? Do -you really want to risk losing the -rest of your life rather than waiting -a couple more centuries until -we know it’s safe? If you do, I’ll -order the big ship.”</p> - -<p class='c005'>Jordan opened his mouth and -for a second Giles’ heart caught -in a flux of emotions as the -man’s offer hovered on his lips. -Then the engineer shut his mouth -slowly. The belligerence ran out -of him.</p> - -<p class='c005'>He looked sick, for he had no -answer.</p> - -<hr class='c006' /> - -<p class='drop-capa0_3_0_6 c007'>NO SANE man would risk a -chance for near eternity -against such a relatively short -wait. Heroism had belonged to -those who knew their days were -numbered, anyhow.</p> - -<p class='c005'>“Forget it, Bill,” Giles advised. -“It may take longer, but eventually -we’ll find a way. With time -enough, we’re bound to. And -when we do, the ship will be -ready.”</p> - -<p class='c005'>The engineer nodded miserably -and clicked off. Giles turned -from the blank screen to stare -out of the windows, while his -hand came up to twist at the lock -of hair over his forehead. Eternity! -They had to plan and build -for it. They couldn’t risk that -plan for short-term benefits. Usually -it was too easy to realize that, -and the sight of the solid, time-enduring -buildings outside should -have given him a sense of security.</p> - -<p class='c005'>Today, though, nothing seemed -to help. He felt choked, imprisoned, -somehow lost; the city beyond -the window blurred as he -studied it, and he swung the chair -back so violently that his hand -jerked painfully on the forelock -he’d been twisting.</p> - -<p class='c005'>Then he was staring unbelievingly -at the single white hair that -was twisted with the dark ones -between his fingers.</p> - -<p class='c005'>Like an automaton, he bent -forward, his other hand groping -for the mirror that should be in -one of the drawers. The dull pain -in his chest sharpened and his -breath was hoarse in his throat, -but he hardly noticed as he found -the mirror and brought it up. His -eyes focused reluctantly. There -were other white strands in his -dark hair.</p> - -<p class='c005'>The mirror crashed to the floor -as he staggered out of the office.</p> - -<p class='c005'>It was only two blocks to Giles’ -residence club, but he had to -stop twice to catch his breath -and fight against the pain that -clawed at his chest. When he -reached the wood-paneled lobby, -he was barely able to stand.</p> - -<p class='c005'>Dubbins was at his side almost -at once, with a hand under -his arm to guide him toward his -suite.</p> - -<p class='c005'>“Let me help you, sir,” Dubbins -suggested, in the tones -Giles hadn’t heard since the man -had been his valet, back when -it was still possible to find personal -servants. Now he managed -the club on a level of quasi-equality -with the members. For the -moment, though, he’d slipped -back into the old ways.</p> - -<hr class='c006' /> - -<p class='drop-capa0_2_0_6 c007'>GILES FOUND himself lying -on his couch, partially undressed, -with the pillows just right -and a long drink in his hand. The -alcohol combined with the reaction -from his panic to leave him -almost himself again. After all, -there was nothing to worry about; -Earth’s doctors could cure anything.</p> - -<p class='c005'>“I guess you’d better call Dr. -Vincenti,” he decided. Vincenti -was a member and would probably -be the quickest to get.</p> - -<p class='c005'>Dubbins shook his head. “Dr. -Vincenti isn’t with us, sir. He -left a year ago to visit a son in -the Centauri system. There’s a -Dr. Cobb whose reputation is -very good, sir.”</p> - -<p class='c005'>Giles puzzled over it doubtfully. -Vincenti had been an oddly -morose man the last few times -he’d seen him, but that could -hardly explain his taking a twenty-year -shuttle trip for such a -slim reason. It was no concern of -his, though. “Dr. Cobb, then,” he -said.</p> - -<p class='c005'>Giles heard the other man’s -voice on the study phone, too low -for the words to be distinguishable. -He finished the drink, feeling -still better, and was sitting -up when Dubbins came back.</p> - -<p class='c005'>“Dr. Cobb wants you to come -to his office at once, sir,” he said, -dropping to his knee to help -Giles with his shoes. “I’d be -pleased to drive you there.”</p> - -<p class='c005'>Giles frowned. He’d expected -Cobb to come to him. Then he -grimaced at his own thoughts. -Dubbins’ manners must have carried -him back into the past; doctors -didn’t go in for home visits -now—they preferred to see their -patients in the laboratories that -housed their offices. If this kept -on, he’d be missing the old days -when he’d had a mansion and -counted his wealth in possessions, -instead of the treasures he could -build inside himself for the future -ahead. He was getting positively -childish!</p> - -<p class='c005'>Yet he relished the feeling of -having Dubbins drive his car. -More than anything else, he’d -loved being driven. Even after -chauffeurs were a thing of the -past, Harry had driven him -around. Now he’d taken to walking, -as so many others had, for -even with modern safety measures -so strict, there was always -a small chance of some accident -and nobody had any desire to -spend the long future as a cripple.</p> - -<p class='c005'>“I’ll wait for you, sir,” Dubbins -offered as they stopped beside -the low, massive medical building.</p> - -<p class='c005'>It was almost too much consideration. -Giles nodded, got out -and headed down the hall uncertainly. -Just how bad did he -look? Well, he’d soon find out.</p> - -<p class='c005'>He located the directory and -finally found the right office, its -reception room wall covered -with all the degrees Dr. Cobb had -picked up in some three hundred -years of practice. Giles felt -better, realizing it wouldn’t be -one of the younger men.</p> - -<hr class='c006' /> - -<p class='drop-capa0_3_0_6 c007'>COBB APPEARED himself, -before the nurse could take -over, and led Giles into a room -with an old-fashioned desk and -chairs that almost concealed the -cabinets of equipment beyond.</p> - -<p class='c005'>He listened as Giles stumbled -out his story. Halfway through, -the nurse took a blood sample -with one of the little mosquito -needles and the machinery behind -the doctor began working on -it.</p> - -<p class='c005'>“Your friend told me about the -gray hair, of course,” Cobb said. -At Giles’ look, he smiled faintly. -“Surely you didn’t think people -could miss that in this day and -age? Let’s see it.”</p> - -<p class='c005'>He inspected it and began -making tests. Some were older -than Giles could remember—knee -reflex, blood pressure, pulse -and fluoroscope. Others involved -complicated little gadgets that -ran over his body, while meters -bobbed and wiggled. The blood -check came through and Cobb -studied it, to go back and make -further inspections of his own.</p> - -<p class='c005'>At last he nodded slowly. -“Hyper-catabolism, of course. I -thought it might be. How long -since you had your last rejuvenation? -And who gave it?”</p> - -<p class='c005'>“About ten years ago,” Giles -answered. He found his identity -card and passed it over, while -the doctor studied it. “My sixteenth.”</p> - -<p class='c005'>It wasn’t going right. He could -feel it. Some of the panic symptoms -were returning; the pulse in -his neck was pounding and his -breath was growing difficult. -Sweat ran down his sides from -his armpit and he wiped his palms -against his coat.</p> - -<p class='c005'>“Any particular emotional -strain when you were treated—some -major upset in your life?” -Cobb asked.</p> - -<p class='c005'>Giles thought as carefully as -he could, but he remembered -nothing like that. “You mean—it -didn’t take? But I never had -any trouble, Doctor. I was one of -the first million cases, when a -lot of people couldn’t rejuvenate -at all, and I had no trouble even -then.”</p> - -<p class='c005'>Cobb considered it, hesitated as -if making up his mind to be frank -against his better judgment. “I -can’t see any other explanation. -You’ve got a slight case of angina—nothing -serious, but quite definite—as -well as other signs -of aging. I’m afraid the treatment -didn’t take fully. It might have -been some unconscious block -on your part, some infection not -diagnosed at the time, or even a -fault in the treatment. That’s -pretty rare, but we can’t neglect -the possibility.”</p> - -<hr class='c006' /> - -<p class='drop-capa0_3_0_6 c007'>HE STUDIED his charts again -and then smiled. “So we’ll -give you another treatment. Any -reason you can’t begin immediately?”</p> - -<p class='c005'>Giles remembered that Dubbins -was waiting for him, but this -was more important. It hadn’t -been a joke about his growing old, -after all. But now, in a few days, -he’d be his old—no, of course -not—his young self again!</p> - -<p class='c005'>They went down the hall to -another office, where Giles waited -outside while Cobb conferred -with another doctor and technician, -with much waving of charts. -He resented every second of it. -It was as if the almost forgotten -specter of age stood beside him, -counting the seconds. But at last -they were through and he was led -into the quiet rejuvenation room, -where the clamps were adjusted -about his head and the earpieces -were fitted. The drugs were shot -painlessly into his arm and the -light-pulser was adjusted to his -brain-wave pattern.</p> - -<p class='c005'>It had been nothing like this his -first time. Then it had required -months of mental training, followed -by crude mechanical and -drug hypnosis for other months. -Somewhere in every human brain -lay the memory of what his cells -had been like when he was young. -Or perhaps it lay in the cells -themselves, with the brain as only -a linkage to it. They’d discovered -that, and the fact that the mind -could effect physical changes in -the body. Even such things as -cancer could be willed out of existence—provided -the brain -could be reached far below the -conscious level and forced to -operate.</p> - -<p class='c005'>There had been impossible -faith cures for millenia—cataracts -removed from blinded eyes -within minutes, even—but finding -the mechanism in the brain -that worked those miracles had -taken an incredible amount of -study and finding a means of -bringing it under control had -taken even longer.</p> - -<p class='c005'>Now they did it with dozens of -mechanical aids in addition to -the hypnotic instructions—and -did it usually in a single sitting, -with the full transformation of -the body taking less than a week -after the treatment!</p> - -<p class='c005'>But with all the equipment, it -wasn’t impossible for a mistake -to happen. It had been no fault of -his ... he was sure of that ... his -mind was easy to reach ... he -could relax so easily....</p> - -<p class='c005'>He came out of it without -even a headache, while they were -removing the probes, but the -fatigue on the operator’s face told -him it had been a long and difficult -job. He stretched experimentally, -with the eternal unconscious -expectation that he would -find himself suddenly young -again. But that, of course, was ridiculous. -It took days for the mind -to work on all the cells and to -repair the damage of time.</p> - -<hr class='c006' /> - -<p class='drop-capa0_3_0_6 c007'>COBB LED him back to the -first office, where he was given -an injection of some kind and -another sample of his blood was -taken, while the earlier tests were -repeated. But finally the doctor -nodded.</p> - -<p class='c005'>“That’s all for now, Mr. Giles. -You might drop in tomorrow -morning, after I’ve had a chance -to complete my study of all this. -We’ll know by then whether you’ll -need more treatment. Ten o’clock -okay?”</p> - -<p class='c005'>“But I’ll be all right?”</p> - -<p class='c005'>Cobb smiled the automatic reassurance -of his profession. “We -haven’t lost a patient in two hundred -years, to my knowledge.”</p> - -<p class='c005'>“Thanks,” said Giles. “Ten -o’clock is fine.”</p> - -<p class='c005'>Dubbins was still waiting, reading -a paper whose headlined feature -carried a glowing account of -the discovery of the super-light -missile and what it might mean. -He took a quick look at Giles and -pointed to it. “Great work, Mr. -Giles. Maybe we’ll all get to see -some of those other worlds yet.” -Then he studied Giles more carefully. -“Everything’s in good shape -now, sir?”</p> - -<p class='c005'>“The doctor says everything’s -going to be fine,” Giles answered.</p> - -<p class='c005'>It was then he realized for the -first time that Cobb had said no -such thing. A statement that -lightning had never struck a -house was no guarantee that it -never would. It was an evasion -meant to give such an impression.</p> - -<p class='c005'>The worry nagged at him all -the way back. Word had already -gone around the club that he’d -had some kind of attack and -there were endless questions that -kept it on his mind. And even -when it had been covered and -recovered, he could still sense the -glances of the others, as if he -were Vincenti in one of the man’s -more morose moods.</p> - -<p class='c005'>He found a single table in the -dining room and picked his way -through the meal, listening to -the conversation about him only -when it was necessary because -someone called across to him. -Ordinarily, he was quick to support -the idea of clubs in place -of private families. A man here -could choose his group and grow -into them. Yet he wasn’t swallowed -by them, as he might be by -a family. Giles had been living -here for nearly a century now and -he’d never regretted it. But tonight -his own group irritated him.</p> - -<p class='c005'>He puzzled over it, finding no -real reason. Certainly they weren’t -forcing themselves on him. He -remembered once when he’d had -a cold, before they finally licked -that; Harry had been a complete -nuisance, running around with -various nostrums, giving him no -peace. Constant questions about -how he felt, constant little looks -of worry—until he’d been ready -to yell at the boy. In fact, he -had.</p> - -<p class='c005'>Funny, he couldn’t picture really -losing his temper here. Families -did odd things to a man.</p> - -<hr class='c006' /> - -<p class='drop-capa0_3_0_6 c007'>HE LISTENED to a few of -the discussions after the dinner, -but he’d heard them all before, -except for one about the -super-speed drive, and there he -had no wish to talk until he could -study the final report. He gave up -at last and went to his own suite. -What he needed was a good -night’s sleep after a little relaxation.</p> - -<p class='c005'>Even that failed him, though. -He’d developed one of the finest -chess collections in the world, but -tonight it held no interest. And -when he drew out his tools and -tried working on the delicate, -lovely jade for the set he was -carving his hands seemed to be -all thumbs. None of the other interests -he’d developed through -the years helped to add to the -richness of living now.</p> - -<p class='c005'>He gave it up and went to bed—to -have the fragment of that -song pop into his head. Now there -was no escaping it. Something -about the years—or was it days—dwindling -down to something -or other.</p> - -<p class='c005'>Could they really dwindle -down? Suppose he couldn’t rejuvenate -all the way? He knew -that there were some people who -didn’t respond as well as others. -Sol Graves, for instance. He’d -been fifty when he finally learned -how to work with the doctors and -they could only bring him back to -about thirty, instead of the normal -early twenties. Would that -reduce the slice of eternity that -rejuvenation meant? And what -had happened to Sol?</p> - -<p class='c005'>Or suppose it wasn’t rejuvenation, -after all; suppose something -had gone wrong with him -permanently?</p> - -<p class='c005'>He fought that off, but he -couldn’t escape the nagging -doubts at the doctor’s words.</p> - -<p class='c005'>He got up once to stare at himself -in the mirror. Ten hours had -gone by and there should have -been some signs of improvement. -He couldn’t be sure, though, -whether there were or not.</p> - -<p class='c005'>He looked no better the next -morning when he finally dragged -himself up from the little sleep -he’d managed to get. The hollows -were still there and the circles -under his eyes. He searched for -the gray in his hair, but the traitorous -strands had been removed -at the doctor’s office and he could -find no new ones.</p> - -<p class='c005'>He looked into the dining room -and then went by hastily. He -wanted no solicitous glances this -morning. Drat it, maybe he -should move out. Maybe trying -family life again would give him -some new interests. Amanda probably -would be willing to marry -him; she’d hinted at a date once.</p> - -<p class='c005'>He stopped, shocked by the -awareness that he hadn’t been out -with a woman for....</p> - -<p class='c005'>He couldn’t remember how -long it had been. Nor why.</p> - -<p class='c005'>“In the spring, a young man’s -fancy,” he quoted to himself, and -then shuddered.</p> - -<p class='c005'>It hadn’t been that kind of -spring for him—not this rejuvenation -nor the last, nor the one -before that.</p> - -<hr class='c006' /> - -<p class='drop-capa0_2_0_6 c007'>GILES TRIED to stop scaring -himself and partially succeeded, -until he reached the doctor’s -office. Then it was no longer necessary -to frighten himself. The -wrongness was too strong, no matter -how professional Cobb’s smile!</p> - -<p class='c005'>He didn’t hear the preliminary -words. He watched the smile vanish -as the stack of reports came -out. There was no nurse here -now. The machines were quiet—and -all the doors were shut.</p> - -<p class='c005'>Giles shook his head, interrupting -the doctor’s technical jargon. -Now that he knew there was reason -for his fear, it seemed to -vanish, leaving a coldness that -numbed him.</p> - -<p class='c005'>“I’d rather know the whole -truth,” he said. His voice sounded -dead in his ears. “The worst first. -The rejuvenation...?”</p> - -<p class='c005'>Cobb sighed and yet seemed relieved. -“Failed.” He stopped, and -his hands touched the reports on -his desk. “Completely,” he added -in a low, defeated tone.</p> - -<p class='c005'>“But I thought that was impossible!”</p> - -<p class='c005'>“So did I. I wouldn’t believe -it even yet—but now I find it -isn’t the first case. I spent the -night at Medical Center going up -the ranks until I found men who -really know about it. And now I -wish I hadn’t.” His voice ran -down and he gathered himself together -by an effort. “It’s a shock -to me, too, Mr. Giles. But—well, -to simplify it, no memory is perfect—even -cellular memory. It -loses a little each time. And the -effect is cumulative. It’s like an -asymptotic curve—the further it -goes, the steeper the curve. And—well, -you’ve passed too far.”</p> - -<p class='c005'>He faced away from Giles, -dropping the reports into a -drawer and locking it. “I wasn’t -supposed to tell you, of course. -It’s going to be tough enough -when they’re ready to let people -know. But you aren’t the first and -you won’t be the last, if that’s any -consolation. We’ve got a longer -time scale than we used to have—but -it’s in centuries, not in -eons. For everybody, not just -you.”</p> - -<p class='c005'>It was no consolation. Giles -nodded mechanically. “I won’t -talk, of course. How—how long?”</p> - -<p class='c005'>Cobb spread his hands unhappily. -“Thirty years, maybe. But -we can make them better. Geriatric -knowledge is still on record. -We can fix the heart and all the -rest. You’ll be in good physical -condition, better than your grandfather—”</p> - -<p class='c005'>“And then....” Giles couldn’t -pronounce the words. He’d grown -old and he’d grow older. And -eventually he’d die!</p> - -<p class='c005'>An immortal man had suddenly -found death hovering on his -trail. The years had dwindled and -gone, and only a few were left.</p> - -<p class='c005'>He stood up, holding out his -hand. “Thank you, Doctor,” he -said, and was surprised to find -he meant it. The man had done -all he could and had at least -saved him the suspense of growing -doubt and horrible eventual -discovery.</p> - -<hr class='c006' /> - -<p class='drop-capa0_3_0_6 c007'>OUTSIDE ON the street, he -looked up at the Sun and -then at the buildings built to last -for thousands of years. Their -eternity was no longer a part of -him.</p> - -<p class='c005'>Even his car would outlast him.</p> - -<p class='c005'>He climbed into it, still partly -numbed, and began driving mechanically, -no longer wondering -about the dangers that might possibly -arise. Those wouldn’t matter -much now. For a man who -had thought of living almost forever, -thirty years was too short -a time to count.</p> - -<p class='c005'>He was passing near the club -and started to slow. Then he -went on without stopping. He -wanted no chance to have them -asking questions he couldn’t answer. -It was none of their business. -Dubbins had been kind—but -now Giles wanted no kindness.</p> - -<p class='c005'>The street led to the office -and he drove on. What else was -there for him? There, at least, he -could still fill his time with work—work -that might even be useful. -In the future, men would -need the super-light drive if they -were to span much more of the -Universe than now. And he could -speed up the work in some ways -still, even if he could never see -its finish.</p> - -<p class='c005'>It would be cold comfort but it -was something. And he might -keep busy enough to forget sometimes -that the years were gone -for him.</p> - -<p class='c005'>Automatic habit carried him -through the office again, to Amanda’s -desk, where her worry was -still riding her. He managed a -grin and somehow the right words -came to his lips. “I saw the doctor, -Amanda, so you can stop -figuring ways to get me there.”</p> - -<p class='c005'>She smiled back suddenly, without -feigning it. “Then you’re all -right?”</p> - -<p class='c005'>“As all right as I’ll ever be,” -he told her. “They tell me I’m just -growing old.”</p> - -<p class='c005'>This time her laugh was heartier. -He caught himself before he -could echo her mirth in a different -voice and went inside where she -had the coffee waiting for him.</p> - -<p class='c005'>Oddly, it still tasted good to -him.</p> - -<p class='c005'>The projection was off, he saw, -wondering whether he’d left it on -or not. He snapped the switch and -saw the screen light up, with the -people still in the odd, wheelless -vehicle on the alien planet.</p> - -<hr class='c006' /> - -<p class='drop-capa0_3_0_6 c007'>FOR A long moment, he stared -at the picture without thinking, -and then bent closer. Harry’s -face hadn’t changed much. Giles -had almost forgotten it, but there -was still the same grin there. And -his grandchildren had a touch -of it, too. And of their grandfather’s -nose, he thought. Funny, -he’d never seen even pictures of -his other grandchildren. Family -ties melted away too fast for interstellar -travel.</p> - -<p class='c005'>Yet there seemed to be no -slackening of them in Harry’s -case, and somehow it looked like -a family, rather than a mere -group. A very pleasant family in -a very pleasant world.</p> - -<p class='c005'>He read Harry’s note again, -with its praise for the planet and -its invitation. He wondered if -Dr. Vincenti had received an invitation -like that, before he left. -Or had he even been one of those -to whom the same report had -been delivered by some doctor? -It didn’t matter, but it would explain -things, at least.</p> - -<p class='c005'>Twenty years to Centaurus, -while the years dwindled down—</p> - -<p class='c005'>Then abruptly the line finished -itself. “The years dwindle down -to a precious few....” he remembered. -“A precious few.”</p> - -<p class='c005'>Those dwindling years had -been precious once. He unexpectedly -recalled his own grandfather -holding him on an old -knee and slipping him candy -that was forbidden. The years -seemed precious to the old man -then.</p> - -<p class='c005'>Amanda’s voice came abruptly -over the intercom. “Jordan wants -to talk to you,” she said, and the -irritation was sharp in her voice. -“He won’t take no!”</p> - -<p class='c005'>Giles shrugged and reached for -the projector, to cut it off. Then, -on impulse, he set it back to the -picture, studying the group again -as he switched on Jordan’s wire.</p> - -<p class='c005'>But he didn’t wait for the hot -words about whatever was the -trouble.</p> - -<p class='c005'>“Bill,” he said, “start getting -the big ship into production. I’ve -found a volunteer.”</p> - -<p class='c005'>He’d been driven to it, he knew, -as he watched the man’s amazed -face snap from the screen. From -the first suspicion of his trouble, -something inside him had been -forcing him to make this decision. -And maybe it would do no good. -Maybe the ship would fail. But -thirty years was a number a man -could risk.</p> - -<p class='c005'>If he made it, though....</p> - -<p class='c005'>Well, he’d see those grandchildren -of his this year—and -Harry. Maybe he’d even tell -Harry the truth, once they got -done celebrating the reunion. And -there’d be other grandchildren. -With the ship, he’d have time -enough to look them up. Plenty -of time!</p> - -<p class='c005'>Thirty years was a long time, -when he stopped to think of it.</p> - -<div class='c008'><b>—LESTER DEL REY</b></div> -<div class='pbb'> - <hr class='pb c000' /> -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c009'><b><span class='xlarge'>Transcriber’s Note</span></b></h2> -</div> - -<p class='c010'>This etext was produced from Galaxy January 1956. -Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the -U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.</p> - -<p class='c011'>The cover belongs to the entire publication, -and does not particularly relate to this etext.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Minor changes in presentation have been made -from the layout of the original paper publication.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Punctuation has been normalized. Variations -in hyphenation have been retained as they were in the -original publication. The following assumed printer's -errors were corrected:</p> - -<p class='c011'>possitively —> positively</p> - -<p class='c011'>He’d developed one the finest —> He’d developed one of the finest</p> - - - - - - - - -<pre> - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Dwindling Years, by Lester Del Rey - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE DWINDLING YEARS *** - -***** This file should be named 50103-h.htm or 50103-h.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/5/0/1/0/50103/ - -Produced by Greg Weeks, Carolyn Jablonski, Adam Buchbinder -and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at -http://www.pgdp.net - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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