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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..3e072e6 --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #51380 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/51380) diff --git a/old/51380-h.zip b/old/51380-h.zip Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 1d63669..0000000 --- a/old/51380-h.zip +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/51380-h/51380-h.htm b/old/51380-h/51380-h.htm deleted file mode 100644 index 9367e24..0000000 --- a/old/51380-h/51380-h.htm +++ /dev/null @@ -1,1287 +0,0 @@ -<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN" - "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd"> -<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en"> - <head> - <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;charset=us-ascii" /> - <meta http-equiv="Content-Style-Type" content="text/css" /> - <title> - The Project Gutenberg eBook of Time in the Round, by Fritz Leiber. - </title> - <link rel="coverpage" href="images/cover.jpg" /> - - <style type="text/css"> - -body { - margin-left: 10%; - margin-right: 10%; -} - - h1,h2 { - text-align: center; /* all headings centered */ - clear: both; -} - -p { - margin-top: .51em; - text-align: justify; - margin-bottom: .49em; -} - -hr { - width: 33%; - margin-top: 2em; - margin-bottom: 2em; - margin-left: 33.5%; - margin-right: 33.5%; - clear: both; -} - -hr.chap {width: 65%; margin-left: 17.5%; margin-right: 17.5%;} -hr.tb {width: 45%; margin-left: 27.5%; margin-right: 27.5%;} - -.center {text-align: center;} - -.right {text-align: right;} - -.caption {font-weight: bold;} - -/* Images */ -.figcenter { - margin: auto; - text-align: center; -} - -div.titlepage { - text-align: center; - page-break-before: always; - page-break-after: always; -} - -div.titlepage p { - text-align: center; - text-indent: 0em; - font-weight: bold; - line-height: 1.5; - margin-top: 3em; -} - -.ph1, .ph2, .ph3, .ph4 { text-align: center; text-indent: 0em; font-weight: bold; } -.ph1 { font-size: xx-large; margin: .67em auto; } -.ph2 { font-size: x-large; margin: .75em auto; } -.ph3 { font-size: large; margin: .83em auto; } -.ph4 { font-size: medium; margin: 1.12em auto; } - - - </style> - </head> -<body> - - -<pre> - -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Time In the Round, by Fritz Leiber - -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/license - - -Title: Time In the Round - -Author: Fritz Leiber - -Release Date: March 6, 2016 [EBook #51380] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ASCII - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK TIME IN THE ROUND *** - - - - -Produced by Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - - - - - -</pre> - - -<div class="figcenter"> - <img src="images/cover.jpg" width="388" height="500" alt=""/> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<div class="titlepage"> -<h1>TIME IN THE ROUND</h1> - -<p>By FRITZ LEIBER</p> - -<p>Illustrated by DILLON</p> - -<p>[Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from<br /> -Galaxy Science Fiction May 1957.<br /> -Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that<br /> -the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.]</p> - -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p class="ph3"><i>Poor Butcher suffered more than any dictator<br /> -in history: everybody gave in to him because<br /> -he was so puny and they were so impregnable!</i></p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p>From the other end of the Avenue of Wisdom that led across the Peace -Park, a gray, hairless, heavily built dog was barking soundlessly at -the towering crystal glory of the Time Theater. For a moment, the -effect was almost frightening: a silent picture of the beginning of -civilization challenging the end of it. Then a small boy caught up -with the dog and it rolled over enthusiastically at his feet and the -scene was normal again.</p> - -<p>The small boy, however, seemed definitely pre-civilization. He studied -the dog coldly and then inserted a thin metal tube under its eyelid and -poked. The dog wagged its stumpy tail. The boy frowned, tightened his -grip on the tube and jabbed hard. The dog's tail thumped the cushiony -pavement and the four paws beat the air. The boy shortened his grip -and suddenly jabbed the dog several times in the stomach. The stiff -tube rebounded from the gray, hairless hide. The dog's face split in an -upside-down grin, revealing formidable ivory fangs across which a long -black tongue lolled.</p> - -<p>The boy regarded the tongue speculatively and pocketed the metal tube -with a grimace of utter disgust. He did not look up when someone -called: "Hi, Butch! Sic 'em, Darter, sic 'em!"</p> - -<p>A larger small boy and a somewhat older one were approaching across the -luxurious, neatly cropped grass, preceded by a hurtling shape that, -except for a black hide, was a replica of Butch's gray dog.</p> - -<p>Butch shrugged his shoulders resignedly and said in a bored voice: -"Kill 'em, Brute."</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>The gray dog hurled itself on Darter. Jaws gaped to get a hold on necks -so short and thick as to be mere courtesy terms. They whirled like a -fanged merry-go-round. Three more dogs, one white, one slate blue and -one pink, hurried up and tried to climb aboard.</p> - -<p>Butch yawned.</p> - -<p>"What's the matter?" inquired Darter's master. "I thought you liked dog -fights, Butch."</p> - -<p>"I do like dog fights," Butch said somberly, without looking around. "I -don't like uninj fights. They're just a pretend, like everything else. -Nobody gets hurt. And look here, Joggy—and you, too, Hal—when you -talk to me, don't just say Butch. It's the Butcher, see?"</p> - -<p>"That's not exactly a functional name," Hal observed with the -judiciousness of budding maturity, while Joggy said agreeably: "All -right, Butcher, I suppose you'd like to have lived way back when people -were hurting each other all the time so the blood came out?"</p> - -<p>"I certainly would," the Butcher replied. As Joggy and Hal turned back -skeptically to watch the fight, he took out the metal tube, screwed -up his face in a dreadful frown and jabbed himself in the hand. He -squeaked with pain and whisked the tube out of sight.</p> - -<p>"A kid can't do anything any more," he announced dramatically. "Can't -break anything except the breakables they give him to break on purpose. -Can't get dirty except in the dirt-pen—and they graduate him from that -when he's two. Can't even be bitten by an uninj—it's contraprogrammed."</p> - -<p>"Where'd you ever get so fixated on dirt?" Hal asked in a gentle voice -acquired from a robot adolescer.</p> - -<p>"I've been reading a book about a kid called Huckleberry Finn," the -Butcher replied airily. "A swell book. That guy got dirtier than -anything." His eyes became dreamy. "He even ate out of a garbage pail."</p> - -<p>"What's a garbage pail?"</p> - -<p>"I don't know, but it sounds great."</p> - -<p>The battling uninjes careened into them. Brute had Darter by the ear -and was whirling him around hilariously.</p> - -<p>"Aw, <i>quit</i> it, Brute," the Butcher said in annoyance.</p> - -<p>Brute obediently loosed his hold and returned to his master, paying no -attention to his adversary's efforts to renew the fight.</p> - -<p>The Butcher looked Brute squarely in the eyes. "You're making too much -of a rumpus," he said. "I want to think."</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>He kicked Brute in the face. The dog squirmed joyously at his feet.</p> - -<p>"Look," Joggy said, "you wouldn't hurt an uninj, for instance, would -you?"</p> - -<p>"How can you hurt something that's uninjurable?" the Butcher demanded -scathingly. "An uninj isn't really a dog. It's just a lot of circuits -and a micropack bedded in hyperplastic." He looked at Brute with -guarded wistfulness.</p> - -<p>"I don't know about that," Hal put in. "I've heard an uninj is -programmed with so many genuine canine reactions that it practically -has racial memory."</p> - -<p>"I mean if you <i>could</i> hurt an uninj," Joggy amended.</p> - -<p>"Well, maybe I wouldn't," the Butcher admitted grudgingly. "But shut -up—I want to think."</p> - -<p>"About what?" Hal asked with saintly reasonableness.</p> - -<p>The Butcher achieved a fearful frown. "When I'm World Director," he -said slowly, "I'm going to have warfare again."</p> - -<p>"You think so now," Hal told him. "We all do at your age."</p> - -<p>"We do not," the Butcher retorted. "I bet <i>you</i> didn't."</p> - -<p>"Oh, yes, I was foolish, too," the older boy confessed readily. "All -newborn organisms are self-centered and inconsiderate and ruthless. -They have to be. That's why we have uninjes to work out on, and death -games and fear houses, so that our emotions are cleared for adult -conditioning. And it's just the same with newborn civilizations. Why, -long after atom power and the space drive were discovered, people -kept having wars and revolutions. It took ages to condition them -differently. Of course, you can't appreciate it this year, but Man's -greatest achievement was when he learned to automatically reject all -violent solutions to problems. You'll realize that when you're older."</p> - -<p>"I will not!" the Butcher countered hotly. "I'm not going to be a -sissy." Hal and Joggy blinked at the unfamiliar word. "And what if we -were attacked by bloodthirsty monsters from outside the Solar System?"</p> - -<p>"The Space Fleet would take care of them," Hal replied calmly. "That's -what it's for. Adults aren't conditioned to reject violent solutions to -problems where non-human enemies are concerned. Look at what we did to -viruses."</p> - -<p>"But what if somebody got at us through the Time Bubble?"</p> - -<p>"They can't. It's impossible."</p> - -<p>"Yes, but suppose they did all the same."</p> - -<p>"You've never been inside the Time Theater—you're not old enough -yet—so you just can't know anything about it or about the reasons -why it's impossible," Hal replied with friendly factuality. "The Time -Bubble is just a viewer. You can only look through it, and just into -the past, at that. But you can't travel through it because you can't -change the past. Time traveling is a lot of kid stuff."</p> - -<p>"I don't care," the Butcher asserted obstinately. "I'm still going to -have warfare when I'm World Director."</p> - -<p>"They'll condition you out of the idea," Hal assured him.</p> - -<p>"They will not. I won't let 'em."</p> - -<p>"It doesn't matter what you think now," Hal said with finality. "You'll -have an altogether different opinion when you're six."</p> - -<p>"Well, what if I will?" the Butcher snapped back. "You don't have to -keep <i>telling</i> me about it, do you?"</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>The others were silent. Joggy began to bounce up and down abstractedly -on the resilient pavement. Hal called in his three uninjes and said -in soothing tones: "Joggy and I are going to swim over to the Time -Theater. Want to walk us there, Butch?"</p> - -<p>Butch scowled.</p> - -<p>"How about it, Butch?"</p> - -<p>Still Butch did not seem to hear.</p> - -<p>The older boy shrugged and said: "Oh, well, how about it—Butcher?"</p> - -<p>The Butcher swung around. "They won't let me in the Time Theater. You -said so yourself."</p> - -<p>"You could walk us over there."</p> - -<p>"Well, maybe I will and maybe I won't."</p> - -<p>"While you're deciding, we'll get swimming. Come along, Joggy."</p> - -<p>Still scowling, the Butcher took a white soapy crayon from the bulging -pocket in his silver shorts. Pressed into the pavement, it made a -black mark. He scrawled pensively: KEEP ON THE GRASS.</p> - -<p>He gazed at his handiwork. No, darn it, that was just what grownups -wanted you to do. This grass couldn't be hurt. You couldn't pull it up -or tear it off; it hurt your fingers to try. A rub with the side of the -crayon removed the sign. He thought for a moment, then wrote: KEEP OFF -THE GRASS.</p> - -<p>With an untroubled countenance, he sprang up and hurried after the -others.</p> - -<p>Joggy and the older boy were swimming lazily through the air at -shoulder height. In the pavement directly under each of them was a -wide, saucer-shaped depression which swam along with them. The uninjes -avoided the depressions. Darter was strutting on his hind legs, looking -up inquiringly at his master.</p> - -<p>"Gimme a ride, Hal, gimme a ride!" the Butcher called. The older boy -ignored him. "Aw, gimme a ride, Joggy."</p> - -<p>"Oh, all right." Joggy touched the small box attached to the front of -his broad metal harness and dropped lightly to the ground. The Butcher -climbed on his back. There was a moment of rocking and pitching, during -which each boy accused the other of trying to upset them.</p> - -<p>Then the Butcher got his balance and they began to swim along -securely, though at a level several inches lower. Brute sprang up after -his master and was invisibly rebuffed. He retired baffled, but a few -minutes later, he was amusing himself by furious futile efforts to -climb the hemispherical repulsor field.</p> - -<p>Slowly the little cavalcade of boys and uninjes proceeded down the -Avenue of Wisdom. Hal amused himself by stroking toward a tree. When he -was about four feet from it, he was gently bounced away.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>It was really a more tiring method of transportation than walking -and quite useless against the wind. True, by rocking the repulsor -hemisphere backward, you could get a brief forward push, but it would -be nullified when you rocked forward. A slow swimming stroke was the -simplest way to make progress.</p> - -<p>The general sensation, however, was delightful and levitators were -among the most prized of toys.</p> - -<p>"There's the Theater," Joggy announced.</p> - -<p>"I <i>know</i>," the Butcher said irritably.</p> - -<p>But even he sounded a little solemn and subdued. From the Great Ramp -to the topmost airy finial, the Time Theater was the dream of a god -realized in unearthly substance. It imparted the aura of demigods to -the adults drifting up and down the ramp.</p> - -<p>"My father remembers when there wasn't a Time Theater," Hal said softly -as he scanned the facade's glowing charts and maps. "Say, they're -viewing Earth, somewhere in Scandinavia around zero in the B.C.-A.D. -time scale. It should be interesting."</p> - -<p>"Will it be about Napoleon?" the Butcher asked eagerly. "Or Hitler?" A -red-headed adult heard and smiled and paused to watch. A lock of hair -had fallen down the middle of the Butcher's forehead, and as he sat -Joggy like a charger, he did bear a faint resemblance to one of the -grim little egomaniacs of the Dawn Era.</p> - -<p>"Wrong millennium," Hal said.</p> - -<p>"Tamerlane then?" the Butcher pressed. "He killed cities and piled the -skulls. Blood-bath stuff. Oh, yes, and Tamerlane was a Scand of the -Navies."</p> - -<p>Hal looked puzzled and then quickly erased the expression. "Well, even -if it is about Tamerlane, you can't see it. How about it, Joggy?"</p> - -<p>"They won't let me in, either."</p> - -<p>"Yes, they will. You're five years old now."</p> - -<p>"But I don't feel any older," Joggy replied doubtfully.</p> - -<p>"The feeling comes at six. Don't worry, the usher will notice the -difference."</p> - -<p>Hal and Joggy switched off their levitators and dropped to their -feet. The Butcher came down rather hard, twisting an ankle. He opened -his mouth to cry, then abruptly closed it hard, bearing his pain in -tight-lipped silence like an ancient soldier—like Stalin, maybe, he -thought. The red-headed adult's face twitched in half-humorous sympathy.</p> - -<p>Hal and Joggy mounted the Ramp and entered a twilit corridor which -drank their faint footsteps and returned pulses of light. The Butcher -limped manfully after them, but when he got inside, he forgot his -battle injury.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Hal looked back. "Honestly, the usher will stop you."</p> - -<p>The Butcher shook his head. "I'm going to think my way in. I'm going to -think old."</p> - -<p>"You won't be able to fool the usher, Butcher. You under-fives -simply aren't allowed in the Time Theater. There's a good reason for -it—something dangerous might happen if an under-five got inside."</p> - -<p>"Why?"</p> - -<p>"I don't exactly know, but something."</p> - -<p>"Hah! I bet they're scared we'd go traveling in the Time Bubble and -have some excitement."</p> - -<p>"They are not. I guess they just know you'd get bored and wander away -from your seats and maybe disturb the adults or upset the electronics -or something. But don't worry about it, Butcher. The usher will take -care of you."</p> - -<p>"Shut up—I'm thinking I'm World Director," the Butcher informed them, -contorting his face diabolically.</p> - -<p>Hal spoke to the uninjes, pointing to the side of the corridor. -Obediently four of them lined up.</p> - -<p>But Brute was peering down the corridor toward where it merged into a -deeper darkness. His short legs stiffened, his neckless head seemed to -retreat even further between his powerful shoulders, his lips writhed -back to show his gleaming fangs, and a completely unfamiliar sound -issued from his throat. A choked, grating sound. A growl. The other -uninjes moved uneasily.</p> - -<p>"Do you suppose something's the matter with his circuits?" Joggy -whispered. "Maybe he's getting racial memories from the Scands."</p> - -<p>"Of course not," Hal said irritably.</p> - -<p>"Brute, get over there," the Butcher commanded. Unwillingly, eyes still -fixed on the blackness ahead, Brute obeyed.</p> - -<p>The three boys started on. Hal and Joggy experienced a vaguely -electrical tingling that vanished almost immediately. They looked back. -The Butcher had been stopped by an invisible wall.</p> - -<p>"I told you you couldn't fool the usher," Hal said.</p> - -<p>The Butcher hurled himself forward. The wall gave a little, then -bounced him back with equal force.</p> - -<p>"I bet it'll be a bum time view anyway," the Butcher said, not giving -up, but not trying again. "And I still don't think the usher can tell -how old you are. I bet there's an over-age teacher spying on you -through a hole, and if he doesn't like your looks, he switches on the -usher."</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>But the others had disappeared in the blackness. The Butcher waited and -then sat down beside the uninjes. Brute laid his head on his knee and -growled faintly down the corridor.</p> - -<p>"Take it easy, Brute," the Butcher consoled him. "I don't think -Tamerlane was really a Scand of the Navies anyhow."</p> - -<p>Two chattering girls hardly bigger than himself stepped through the -usher as if it weren't there.</p> - -<p>The Butcher grimly slipped out the metal tube and put it to his lips. -There were two closely spaced faint <i>plops</i> and a large green stain -appeared on the bare back of one girl, while purple fluid dripped from -the close-cropped hair of the other.</p> - -<p>They glared at him and one of them said: "A cub!" But he had his arms -folded and wasn't looking at them.</p> - -<p>Meanwhile, subordinate ushers had guided Hal and Joggy away from the -main entrance to the Time Theater. A sphincter dilated and they found -themselves in a small transparent cubicle from which they could watch -the show without disturbing the adult audience. They unstrapped their -levitators, laid them on the floor and sat down.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<div class="figcenter"> - <img src="images/illus1.jpg" width="388" height="500" alt=""/> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p>The darkened auditorium was circular. Rising from a low central -platform was a huge bubble of light, its lower surface somewhat -flattened. The audience was seated in concentric rows around the -bubble, their keen and compassionate faces dimly revealed by the pale -central glow.</p> - -<p>But it was the scene within the bubble that riveted the attention of -the boys.</p> - -<p>Great brooding trees, the trunks of the nearer ones sliced by the -bubble's surface, formed the background. Through the dark, wet foliage -appeared glimpses of a murky sky, while from the ceiling of the bubble, -a ceaseless rain dripped mournfully. A hooded figure crouched beside a -little fire partly shielded by a gnarled trunk. Squatting round about -were wiry, blue-eyed men with shoulder-length blond hair and full blond -beards. They were clothed in furs and metal-studded leather.</p> - -<p>Here and there were scattered weapons and armor—long swords glistening -with oil to guard them from rust, crudely painted circular shields, and -helmets from which curved the horns of beasts. Back and forth, lean, -wolflike dogs paced with restless monotony.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Sometimes the men seemed to speak together, or one would rise to peer -down the misty forest vistas, but mostly they were motionless. Only -the hooded figure, which they seemed to regard with a mingled wonder -and fear, swayed incessantly to the rhythm of some unheard chant.</p> - -<p>"The Time Bubble has been brought to rest in one of the barbaric -cultures of the Dawn Era," a soft voice explained, so casually that -Joggy looked around for the speaker, until Hal nudged him sharply, -whispering with barely perceptible embarrassment: "Don't do that, -Joggy. It's just the electronic interpreter. It senses our development -and hears our questions and then it automats background and answers. -But it's no more alive than an adolescer or a kinderobot. Got a billion -microtapes, though."</p> - -<p>The interpreter continued: "The skin-clad men we are viewing in Time -in the Round seem to be a group of warriors of the sort who lived -by pillage and rapine. The hooded figure is a most unusual find. We -believe it to be that of a sorcerer who pretended to control the forces -of nature and see into the future."</p> - -<p>Joggy whispered: "How is it that we can't see the audience through the -other side of the bubble? We can see through this side, all right."</p> - -<p>"The bubble only shines light out," Hal told him hurriedly, to show he -knew some things as well as the interpreter. "Nothing, not even light, -can get into the bubble from outside. The audience on the other side of -the bubble sees into it just as we do, only they're seeing the other -way—for instance, they can't see the fire because the tree is in the -way. And instead of seeing us beyond, they see more trees and sky."</p> - -<p>Joggy nodded. "You mean that whatever way you look at the bubble, it's -a kind of hole through time?"</p> - -<p>"That's right." Hal cleared his throat and recited: "The bubble is the -locus of an infinite number of one-way holes, all centering around two -points in space-time, one now and one then. The bubble looks completely -open, but if you tried to step inside, you'd be stopped—and so would -an atom beam. It takes more energy than an atom beam just to maintain -the bubble, let alone maneuver it."</p> - -<p>"I see, I guess," Joggy whispered. "But if the hole works for light, -why can't the people inside the bubble step out of it into our world?"</p> - -<p>"Why—er—you see, Joggy—"</p> - -<p>The interpreter took over. "The holes are one-way for light, but no-way -for matter. If one of the individuals inside the bubble walked toward -you, he would cross-section and disappear. But to the audience on the -opposite side of the bubble, it would be obvious that he had walked -away along the vista down which they are peering."</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>As if to provide an example, a figure suddenly materialized on -their side of the bubble. The wolflike dogs bared their fangs. For -an instant, there was only an eerie, distorted, rapidly growing -silhouette, changing from blood-red to black as the boundary of the -bubble cross-sectioned the intruding figure. Then they recognized the -back of another long-haired warrior and realized that the audience on -the other side of the bubble had probably seen him approaching for some -time.</p> - -<p>He bowed to the hooded figure and handed him a small bag.</p> - -<p>"More atavistic cubs, big and little! Hold still, Cynthia," a new voice -cut in.</p> - -<p>Hal turned and saw that two cold-eyed girls had been ushered into the -cubicle. One was wiping her close-cropped hair with one hand while -mopping a green stain from her friend's back with the other.</p> - -<p>Hal nudged Joggy and whispered: "Butch!"</p> - -<p>But Joggy was still hypnotized by the Time Bubble.</p> - -<p>"Then how is it, Hal," he asked, "that light comes out of the bubble, -if the people don't? What I mean is, if one of the people walks toward -us, he shrinks to a red blot and disappears. Why doesn't the light -coming our way disappear, too?"</p> - -<p>"Well—you see, Joggy, it isn't real light. It's—"</p> - -<p>Once more the interpreter helped him out.</p> - -<p>"The light that comes from the bubble is an isotope. Like atoms of -one element, photons of a single frequency also have isotopes. It's -more than a matter of polarization. One of these isotopes of light -tends to leak futureward through holes in space-time. Most of the -light goes down the vistas visible to the other side of the audience. -But one isotope is diverted through the walls of the bubble into the -Time Theater. Perhaps, because of the intense darkness of the theater, -you haven't realized how dimly lit the scene is. That's because we're -getting only a single isotope of the original light. Incidentally, no -isotopes have been discovered that leak pastward, though attempts are -being made to synthesize them."</p> - -<p>"Oh, explanations!" murmured one of the newly arrived girls. "The cubs -are always angling for them. Apple-polishers!"</p> - -<p>"<i>I</i> like this show," a familiar voice announced serenely. "They cut -anybody yet with those choppers?"</p> - -<p>Hal looked down beside him. "Butch! How did you manage to get in?"</p> - -<p>"I don't see any blood. Where's the bodies?"</p> - -<p>"But how <i>did</i> you get in—Butcher?"</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>The Butcher replied airily: "A red-headed man talked to me and said it -certainly was sad for a future dictator not to be able to enjoy scenes -of carnage in his youth, so I told him I'd been inside the Time Theater -and just come out to get a drink of water and go to the eliminator, but -then my sprained ankle had got worse—I kind of tried to get up and -fell down again—so he picked me up and carried me right through the -usher."</p> - -<p>"Butcher, that wasn't honest," Hal said a little worriedly. "You -tricked him into thinking you were older and his brain waves blanketed -yours, going through the usher. I really <i>have</i> heard it's dangerous -for you under-fives to be in here."</p> - -<p>"The way those cubs beg for babying and get it!" one of the girls -commented. "Talk about sex favoritism!" She and her companion withdrew -to the far end of the cubicle.</p> - -<p>The Butcher grinned at them briefly and concentrated his attention on -the scene in the Time Bubble.</p> - -<p>"Those big dogs—" he began suddenly. "Brute must have smelled 'em."</p> - -<p>"Don't be silly," Hal said. "Smells can't come out of the Time Bubble. -Smells haven't any isotopes and—"</p> - -<p>"I don't care," the Butcher asserted. "I bet somebody'll figure out -someday how to use the bubble for time traveling."</p> - -<p>"You can't travel in a point of view," Hal contradicted, "and that's -all the bubble is. Besides, some scientists think the bubble isn't real -at all, but a—uh—"</p> - -<p>"I believe," the interpreter cut in smoothly, "that you're thinking -of the theory that the Time Bubble operates by hypermemory. Some -scientists would have us believe that all memory is time traveling and -that the basic location of the bubble is not space-time at all, but -ever-present eternity. Some of them go so far as to state that it is -only a mental inability that prevents the Time Bubble from being used -for time traveling—just as it may be a similar disability that keeps -a robot with the same or even more scopeful memories from being a real -man or animal.</p> - -<p>"It is because of this minority theory that under-age individuals and -other beings with impulsive mentalities are barred from the Time -Theater. But do not be alarmed. Even if the minority theory should -prove true—and no evidence for it has ever appeared—there are -automatically operating safeguards to protect the audience from any -harmful consequences of time traveling (almost certainly impossible, -remember) in either direction."</p> - -<p>"Sissies!" was the Butcher's comment.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>"You're rather young to be here, aren't you?" the interpreter inquired.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<div class="figcenter"> - <img src="images/illus2.jpg" width="600" height="237" alt=""/> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p>The Butcher folded his arms and scowled.</p> - -<p>The interpreter hesitated almost humanly, probably snatching through a -quarter-million microtapes. "Well, you wouldn't have got in unless a -qualified adult had certified you as plus-age. Enjoy yourself."</p> - -<p>There was no need for the last injunction. The scene within the bubble -had acquired a gripping interest. The shaggy warriors were taking up -their swords, gathering about the hooded sorcerer. The hood fell back, -revealing a face with hawklike, disturbing eyes that seemed to be -looking straight out of the bubble at the future.</p> - -<p>"This is getting good," the Butcher said, squirming toward the edge of -his seat.</p> - -<p>"Stop being an impulsive mentality," Hal warned him a little nervously.</p> - -<p>"Hah!"</p> - -<p>The sorcerer emptied the small bag on the fire and a thick cloud of -smoke puffed toward the ceiling of the bubble. A clawlike hand waved -wildly. The sorcerer appeared to be expostulating, commanding. The -warriors stared uncomprehendingly, which seemed to exasperate the -sorcerer.</p> - -<p>"That's right," the Butcher approved loudly. "Sock it to 'em!"</p> - -<p>"Butcher!" Hal admonished.</p> - -<p>Suddenly the bubble grew very bright, as if the Sun had just shone -forth in the ancient world, though the rain still dripped down.</p> - -<p>"A viewing anomaly has occurred," the interpreter announced. "It may be -necessary to collapse the Time Bubble for a short period."</p> - -<p>In a frenzy, his ragged robes twisting like smoke, the sorcerer rushed -at one of the warriors, pushing him backward so that in a moment he -must cross-section.</p> - -<p>"Attaboy!" the Butcher encouraged.</p> - -<p>Then the warrior was standing outside the bubble, blinking toward the -shadows, rain dripping from his beard and furs.</p> - -<p>"Oh, <i>boy</i>!" the Butcher cheered in ecstasy.</p> - -<p>"Butcher, you've done it!" Hal said, aghast.</p> - -<p>"I sure did," the Butcher agreed blandly, "but that old guy in the -bubble helped me. Must take two to work it."</p> - -<p>"Keep your seats!" the interpreter said loudly. "We are energizing the -safeguards!"</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>The warriors inside the bubble stared in stupid astonishment after the -one who had disappeared from their view. The sorcerer leaped about, -pushing them in his direction.</p> - -<p>Abrupt light flooded the Time Theater. The warriors who had emerged -from the bubble stiffened themselves, baring their teeth.</p> - -<p>"The safeguards are now energized," the interpreter said.</p> - -<p>A woman in a short golden tunic stood up uncertainly from the front row -of the audience.</p> - -<p>The first warrior looked her up and down, took one hesitant step -forward, then another, then suddenly grabbed her and flung her over his -left shoulder, looking around menacingly and swinging his sword in his -right hand.</p> - -<p>"I repeat, the safeguards have been fully energized! Keep your seats!" -the interpreter enjoined.</p> - -<p>In the cubicle, Hal and Joggy gasped, the two girls squeaked, but the -Butcher yelled a "Hey!" of disapproval, snatched up something from the -floor and darted out through the sphincter.</p> - -<p>Here and there in the audience, other adults stood up. The emerged -warriors formed a ring of swinging swords and questing eyes. Between -their legs their wolfish dogs, emerged with them, crouched and snarled. -Then the warriors began to fan out.</p> - -<p>"There has been an unavoidable delay in energizing the safeguards," the -interpreter said. "Please be patient."</p> - -<p>At that moment, the Butcher entered the main auditorium, brandishing a -levitator above his head and striding purposefully down the aisle. At -his heels, five stocky forms trotted. In a definitely pre-civilization -voice, or at least with pre-civilization volume, he bellowed: "Hey, -you! You quit that!"</p> - -<p>The first warrior looked toward him, gave his left shoulder a shake to -quiet his wriggling captive, gave his right shoulder one to supple his -sword arm, and waited until the dwarfish challenger came into range. -Then his sword swished down in a flashing arc.</p> - -<p>Next moment, the Butcher was on his knees and the warrior was staring -at him open-mouthed. The sword had rebounded from something invisible -an arm's length above the gnomelike creature's head. The warrior backed -a step.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<div class="figcenter"> - <img src="images/illus3.jpg" width="600" height="392" alt=""/> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p>The Butcher stayed down, crouching half behind an aisle seat and -digging for something in his pocket. But he didn't stay quiet. "Sic -'em, Brute!" he shrilled. "Sic 'em, Darter! Sic 'em, Pinkie and Whitie -and Blue!" Then he stopped shouting and raised his hand to his mouth.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Growling quite unmechanically, the five uninjes hurled themselves -forward and closed with the warrior's wolflike dogs. At the first -encounter, Brute and Pinkie were grabbed by the throats, shaken, and -tossed a dozen feet. The warriors snarled approval and advanced. But -then Brute and Pinkie raced back eagerly to the fight—and suddenly the -face of the leading warrior was drenched with scarlet. He blinked and -touched his fingers to it, then looked at his hand in horror.</p> - -<p>The Butcher spared a second to repeat his command to the uninjes. But -already the battle was going against the larger dogs. The latter had -the advantage of weight and could toss the smaller dogs like so many -foxes. But their terrible fangs did no damage, and whenever an uninj -clamped on a throat, that throat was torn out.</p> - -<p>Meanwhile, great bloody stains had appeared on the bodies of all the -warriors. They drew back in a knot, looking at each other fearfully. -That was when the Butcher got to his feet and strode forward, hand -clenching the levitator above his head.</p> - -<p>"Get back where you belong, you big jerks! And drop that lady!"</p> - -<p>The first warrior pointed toward him and hissed something. Immediately, -a half dozen swords were smiting at the Butcher.</p> - -<p>"We are working to energize the safeguards," the interpreter said in -mechanical panic. "Remain patient and in your seats."</p> - -<p>The uninjes leaped into the melee, at first tearing more fur than -flesh. Swords caught them and sent them spinning through the air. They -came yapping back for more. Brute fixed on the first warrior's ankle. -He dropped the woman, stamped unavailingly on the uninj, and let out a -screech.</p> - -<p>Swords were still rebounding from the invisible shield under which the -Butcher crouched, making terrible faces at his attackers. They drew -back, looked again at their bloodstains, goggled at the demon dogs. -At their leader's screech, they broke and plunged back into the Time -Bubble, their leader stumbling limpingly after them. There they wasted -no time on their own ragged sorcerer. Their swords rose and fell, and -no repulsor field stayed them.</p> - -<p>"Brute, come back!" the Butcher yelled.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>The gray uninj let go his hold on the leader's ankle and scampered -out of the Time Bubble, which swiftly dimmed to its original light -intensity and then winked out.</p> - -<p>For once in their very mature lives, all of the adults in the -auditorium began to jabber at each other simultaneously.</p> - -<p>"We are sorry, but the anomaly has made it necessary to collapse the -Time Bubble," the interpreter said. "There will be no viewing until -further announcement. Thank you for your patience."</p> - -<p>Hal and Joggy caught up with the Butcher just as Brute jumped into his -arms and the woman in gold picked him up and hugged him fiercely. The -Butcher started to pull away, then grudgingly submitted.</p> - -<p>"Cubs!" came a small cold voice from behind Hal and Joggy. "Always -playing hero! Say, what's that awful smell, Cynthia? It must have come -from those dirty past men."</p> - -<p>Hal and Joggy were shouting at the Butcher, but he wasn't listening -to them or to the older voices clamoring about "revised theories of -reality" and other important things. He didn't even squirm as Brute -licked his cheek and the woman in gold planted a big kiss practically -on his mouth.</p> - -<p>He smiled dreamily and stroked Brute's muzzle and murmured softly: "We -came, we saw, we conquered, didn't we, Brute?"</p> - - - - - - - -<pre> - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Time In the Round, by Fritz Leiber - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK TIME IN THE ROUND *** - -***** This file should be named 51380-h.htm or 51380-h.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/5/1/3/8/51380/ - -Produced by Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan 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 public domain print editions 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/license - - -Title: Time In the Round - -Author: Fritz Leiber - -Release Date: March 6, 2016 [EBook #51380] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ASCII - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK TIME IN THE ROUND *** - - - - -Produced by Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - - - - - - - - - TIME IN THE ROUND - - By FRITZ LEIBER - - Illustrated by DILLON - - [Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from - Galaxy Science Fiction May 1957. - Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that - the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.] - - - - - Poor Butcher suffered more than any dictator - in history: everybody gave in to him because - he was so puny and they were so impregnable! - - -From the other end of the Avenue of Wisdom that led across the Peace -Park, a gray, hairless, heavily built dog was barking soundlessly at -the towering crystal glory of the Time Theater. For a moment, the -effect was almost frightening: a silent picture of the beginning of -civilization challenging the end of it. Then a small boy caught up -with the dog and it rolled over enthusiastically at his feet and the -scene was normal again. - -The small boy, however, seemed definitely pre-civilization. He studied -the dog coldly and then inserted a thin metal tube under its eyelid and -poked. The dog wagged its stumpy tail. The boy frowned, tightened his -grip on the tube and jabbed hard. The dog's tail thumped the cushiony -pavement and the four paws beat the air. The boy shortened his grip -and suddenly jabbed the dog several times in the stomach. The stiff -tube rebounded from the gray, hairless hide. The dog's face split in an -upside-down grin, revealing formidable ivory fangs across which a long -black tongue lolled. - -The boy regarded the tongue speculatively and pocketed the metal tube -with a grimace of utter disgust. He did not look up when someone -called: "Hi, Butch! Sic 'em, Darter, sic 'em!" - -A larger small boy and a somewhat older one were approaching across the -luxurious, neatly cropped grass, preceded by a hurtling shape that, -except for a black hide, was a replica of Butch's gray dog. - -Butch shrugged his shoulders resignedly and said in a bored voice: -"Kill 'em, Brute." - - * * * * * - -The gray dog hurled itself on Darter. Jaws gaped to get a hold on necks -so short and thick as to be mere courtesy terms. They whirled like a -fanged merry-go-round. Three more dogs, one white, one slate blue and -one pink, hurried up and tried to climb aboard. - -Butch yawned. - -"What's the matter?" inquired Darter's master. "I thought you liked dog -fights, Butch." - -"I do like dog fights," Butch said somberly, without looking around. "I -don't like uninj fights. They're just a pretend, like everything else. -Nobody gets hurt. And look here, Joggy--and you, too, Hal--when you -talk to me, don't just say Butch. It's the Butcher, see?" - -"That's not exactly a functional name," Hal observed with the -judiciousness of budding maturity, while Joggy said agreeably: "All -right, Butcher, I suppose you'd like to have lived way back when people -were hurting each other all the time so the blood came out?" - -"I certainly would," the Butcher replied. As Joggy and Hal turned back -skeptically to watch the fight, he took out the metal tube, screwed -up his face in a dreadful frown and jabbed himself in the hand. He -squeaked with pain and whisked the tube out of sight. - -"A kid can't do anything any more," he announced dramatically. "Can't -break anything except the breakables they give him to break on purpose. -Can't get dirty except in the dirt-pen--and they graduate him from that -when he's two. Can't even be bitten by an uninj--it's contraprogrammed." - -"Where'd you ever get so fixated on dirt?" Hal asked in a gentle voice -acquired from a robot adolescer. - -"I've been reading a book about a kid called Huckleberry Finn," the -Butcher replied airily. "A swell book. That guy got dirtier than -anything." His eyes became dreamy. "He even ate out of a garbage pail." - -"What's a garbage pail?" - -"I don't know, but it sounds great." - -The battling uninjes careened into them. Brute had Darter by the ear -and was whirling him around hilariously. - -"Aw, _quit_ it, Brute," the Butcher said in annoyance. - -Brute obediently loosed his hold and returned to his master, paying no -attention to his adversary's efforts to renew the fight. - -The Butcher looked Brute squarely in the eyes. "You're making too much -of a rumpus," he said. "I want to think." - - * * * * * - -He kicked Brute in the face. The dog squirmed joyously at his feet. - -"Look," Joggy said, "you wouldn't hurt an uninj, for instance, would -you?" - -"How can you hurt something that's uninjurable?" the Butcher demanded -scathingly. "An uninj isn't really a dog. It's just a lot of circuits -and a micropack bedded in hyperplastic." He looked at Brute with -guarded wistfulness. - -"I don't know about that," Hal put in. "I've heard an uninj is -programmed with so many genuine canine reactions that it practically -has racial memory." - -"I mean if you _could_ hurt an uninj," Joggy amended. - -"Well, maybe I wouldn't," the Butcher admitted grudgingly. "But shut -up--I want to think." - -"About what?" Hal asked with saintly reasonableness. - -The Butcher achieved a fearful frown. "When I'm World Director," he -said slowly, "I'm going to have warfare again." - -"You think so now," Hal told him. "We all do at your age." - -"We do not," the Butcher retorted. "I bet _you_ didn't." - -"Oh, yes, I was foolish, too," the older boy confessed readily. "All -newborn organisms are self-centered and inconsiderate and ruthless. -They have to be. That's why we have uninjes to work out on, and death -games and fear houses, so that our emotions are cleared for adult -conditioning. And it's just the same with newborn civilizations. Why, -long after atom power and the space drive were discovered, people -kept having wars and revolutions. It took ages to condition them -differently. Of course, you can't appreciate it this year, but Man's -greatest achievement was when he learned to automatically reject all -violent solutions to problems. You'll realize that when you're older." - -"I will not!" the Butcher countered hotly. "I'm not going to be a -sissy." Hal and Joggy blinked at the unfamiliar word. "And what if we -were attacked by bloodthirsty monsters from outside the Solar System?" - -"The Space Fleet would take care of them," Hal replied calmly. "That's -what it's for. Adults aren't conditioned to reject violent solutions to -problems where non-human enemies are concerned. Look at what we did to -viruses." - -"But what if somebody got at us through the Time Bubble?" - -"They can't. It's impossible." - -"Yes, but suppose they did all the same." - -"You've never been inside the Time Theater--you're not old enough -yet--so you just can't know anything about it or about the reasons -why it's impossible," Hal replied with friendly factuality. "The Time -Bubble is just a viewer. You can only look through it, and just into -the past, at that. But you can't travel through it because you can't -change the past. Time traveling is a lot of kid stuff." - -"I don't care," the Butcher asserted obstinately. "I'm still going to -have warfare when I'm World Director." - -"They'll condition you out of the idea," Hal assured him. - -"They will not. I won't let 'em." - -"It doesn't matter what you think now," Hal said with finality. "You'll -have an altogether different opinion when you're six." - -"Well, what if I will?" the Butcher snapped back. "You don't have to -keep _telling_ me about it, do you?" - - * * * * * - -The others were silent. Joggy began to bounce up and down abstractedly -on the resilient pavement. Hal called in his three uninjes and said -in soothing tones: "Joggy and I are going to swim over to the Time -Theater. Want to walk us there, Butch?" - -Butch scowled. - -"How about it, Butch?" - -Still Butch did not seem to hear. - -The older boy shrugged and said: "Oh, well, how about it--Butcher?" - -The Butcher swung around. "They won't let me in the Time Theater. You -said so yourself." - -"You could walk us over there." - -"Well, maybe I will and maybe I won't." - -"While you're deciding, we'll get swimming. Come along, Joggy." - -Still scowling, the Butcher took a white soapy crayon from the bulging -pocket in his silver shorts. Pressed into the pavement, it made a -black mark. He scrawled pensively: KEEP ON THE GRASS. - -He gazed at his handiwork. No, darn it, that was just what grownups -wanted you to do. This grass couldn't be hurt. You couldn't pull it up -or tear it off; it hurt your fingers to try. A rub with the side of the -crayon removed the sign. He thought for a moment, then wrote: KEEP OFF -THE GRASS. - -With an untroubled countenance, he sprang up and hurried after the -others. - -Joggy and the older boy were swimming lazily through the air at -shoulder height. In the pavement directly under each of them was a -wide, saucer-shaped depression which swam along with them. The uninjes -avoided the depressions. Darter was strutting on his hind legs, looking -up inquiringly at his master. - -"Gimme a ride, Hal, gimme a ride!" the Butcher called. The older boy -ignored him. "Aw, gimme a ride, Joggy." - -"Oh, all right." Joggy touched the small box attached to the front of -his broad metal harness and dropped lightly to the ground. The Butcher -climbed on his back. There was a moment of rocking and pitching, during -which each boy accused the other of trying to upset them. - -Then the Butcher got his balance and they began to swim along -securely, though at a level several inches lower. Brute sprang up after -his master and was invisibly rebuffed. He retired baffled, but a few -minutes later, he was amusing himself by furious futile efforts to -climb the hemispherical repulsor field. - -Slowly the little cavalcade of boys and uninjes proceeded down the -Avenue of Wisdom. Hal amused himself by stroking toward a tree. When he -was about four feet from it, he was gently bounced away. - - * * * * * - -It was really a more tiring method of transportation than walking -and quite useless against the wind. True, by rocking the repulsor -hemisphere backward, you could get a brief forward push, but it would -be nullified when you rocked forward. A slow swimming stroke was the -simplest way to make progress. - -The general sensation, however, was delightful and levitators were -among the most prized of toys. - -"There's the Theater," Joggy announced. - -"I _know_," the Butcher said irritably. - -But even he sounded a little solemn and subdued. From the Great Ramp -to the topmost airy finial, the Time Theater was the dream of a god -realized in unearthly substance. It imparted the aura of demigods to -the adults drifting up and down the ramp. - -"My father remembers when there wasn't a Time Theater," Hal said softly -as he scanned the facade's glowing charts and maps. "Say, they're -viewing Earth, somewhere in Scandinavia around zero in the B.C.-A.D. -time scale. It should be interesting." - -"Will it be about Napoleon?" the Butcher asked eagerly. "Or Hitler?" A -red-headed adult heard and smiled and paused to watch. A lock of hair -had fallen down the middle of the Butcher's forehead, and as he sat -Joggy like a charger, he did bear a faint resemblance to one of the -grim little egomaniacs of the Dawn Era. - -"Wrong millennium," Hal said. - -"Tamerlane then?" the Butcher pressed. "He killed cities and piled the -skulls. Blood-bath stuff. Oh, yes, and Tamerlane was a Scand of the -Navies." - -Hal looked puzzled and then quickly erased the expression. "Well, even -if it is about Tamerlane, you can't see it. How about it, Joggy?" - -"They won't let me in, either." - -"Yes, they will. You're five years old now." - -"But I don't feel any older," Joggy replied doubtfully. - -"The feeling comes at six. Don't worry, the usher will notice the -difference." - -Hal and Joggy switched off their levitators and dropped to their -feet. The Butcher came down rather hard, twisting an ankle. He opened -his mouth to cry, then abruptly closed it hard, bearing his pain in -tight-lipped silence like an ancient soldier--like Stalin, maybe, he -thought. The red-headed adult's face twitched in half-humorous sympathy. - -Hal and Joggy mounted the Ramp and entered a twilit corridor which -drank their faint footsteps and returned pulses of light. The Butcher -limped manfully after them, but when he got inside, he forgot his -battle injury. - - * * * * * - -Hal looked back. "Honestly, the usher will stop you." - -The Butcher shook his head. "I'm going to think my way in. I'm going to -think old." - -"You won't be able to fool the usher, Butcher. You under-fives -simply aren't allowed in the Time Theater. There's a good reason for -it--something dangerous might happen if an under-five got inside." - -"Why?" - -"I don't exactly know, but something." - -"Hah! I bet they're scared we'd go traveling in the Time Bubble and -have some excitement." - -"They are not. I guess they just know you'd get bored and wander away -from your seats and maybe disturb the adults or upset the electronics -or something. But don't worry about it, Butcher. The usher will take -care of you." - -"Shut up--I'm thinking I'm World Director," the Butcher informed them, -contorting his face diabolically. - -Hal spoke to the uninjes, pointing to the side of the corridor. -Obediently four of them lined up. - -But Brute was peering down the corridor toward where it merged into a -deeper darkness. His short legs stiffened, his neckless head seemed to -retreat even further between his powerful shoulders, his lips writhed -back to show his gleaming fangs, and a completely unfamiliar sound -issued from his throat. A choked, grating sound. A growl. The other -uninjes moved uneasily. - -"Do you suppose something's the matter with his circuits?" Joggy -whispered. "Maybe he's getting racial memories from the Scands." - -"Of course not," Hal said irritably. - -"Brute, get over there," the Butcher commanded. Unwillingly, eyes still -fixed on the blackness ahead, Brute obeyed. - -The three boys started on. Hal and Joggy experienced a vaguely -electrical tingling that vanished almost immediately. They looked back. -The Butcher had been stopped by an invisible wall. - -"I told you you couldn't fool the usher," Hal said. - -The Butcher hurled himself forward. The wall gave a little, then -bounced him back with equal force. - -"I bet it'll be a bum time view anyway," the Butcher said, not giving -up, but not trying again. "And I still don't think the usher can tell -how old you are. I bet there's an over-age teacher spying on you -through a hole, and if he doesn't like your looks, he switches on the -usher." - - * * * * * - -But the others had disappeared in the blackness. The Butcher waited and -then sat down beside the uninjes. Brute laid his head on his knee and -growled faintly down the corridor. - -"Take it easy, Brute," the Butcher consoled him. "I don't think -Tamerlane was really a Scand of the Navies anyhow." - -Two chattering girls hardly bigger than himself stepped through the -usher as if it weren't there. - -The Butcher grimly slipped out the metal tube and put it to his lips. -There were two closely spaced faint _plops_ and a large green stain -appeared on the bare back of one girl, while purple fluid dripped from -the close-cropped hair of the other. - -They glared at him and one of them said: "A cub!" But he had his arms -folded and wasn't looking at them. - -Meanwhile, subordinate ushers had guided Hal and Joggy away from the -main entrance to the Time Theater. A sphincter dilated and they found -themselves in a small transparent cubicle from which they could watch -the show without disturbing the adult audience. They unstrapped their -levitators, laid them on the floor and sat down. - -The darkened auditorium was circular. Rising from a low central -platform was a huge bubble of light, its lower surface somewhat -flattened. The audience was seated in concentric rows around the -bubble, their keen and compassionate faces dimly revealed by the pale -central glow. - -But it was the scene within the bubble that riveted the attention of -the boys. - -Great brooding trees, the trunks of the nearer ones sliced by the -bubble's surface, formed the background. Through the dark, wet foliage -appeared glimpses of a murky sky, while from the ceiling of the bubble, -a ceaseless rain dripped mournfully. A hooded figure crouched beside a -little fire partly shielded by a gnarled trunk. Squatting round about -were wiry, blue-eyed men with shoulder-length blond hair and full blond -beards. They were clothed in furs and metal-studded leather. - -Here and there were scattered weapons and armor--long swords glistening -with oil to guard them from rust, crudely painted circular shields, and -helmets from which curved the horns of beasts. Back and forth, lean, -wolflike dogs paced with restless monotony. - - * * * * * - -Sometimes the men seemed to speak together, or one would rise to peer -down the misty forest vistas, but mostly they were motionless. Only -the hooded figure, which they seemed to regard with a mingled wonder -and fear, swayed incessantly to the rhythm of some unheard chant. - -"The Time Bubble has been brought to rest in one of the barbaric -cultures of the Dawn Era," a soft voice explained, so casually that -Joggy looked around for the speaker, until Hal nudged him sharply, -whispering with barely perceptible embarrassment: "Don't do that, -Joggy. It's just the electronic interpreter. It senses our development -and hears our questions and then it automats background and answers. -But it's no more alive than an adolescer or a kinderobot. Got a billion -microtapes, though." - -The interpreter continued: "The skin-clad men we are viewing in Time -in the Round seem to be a group of warriors of the sort who lived -by pillage and rapine. The hooded figure is a most unusual find. We -believe it to be that of a sorcerer who pretended to control the forces -of nature and see into the future." - -Joggy whispered: "How is it that we can't see the audience through the -other side of the bubble? We can see through this side, all right." - -"The bubble only shines light out," Hal told him hurriedly, to show he -knew some things as well as the interpreter. "Nothing, not even light, -can get into the bubble from outside. The audience on the other side of -the bubble sees into it just as we do, only they're seeing the other -way--for instance, they can't see the fire because the tree is in the -way. And instead of seeing us beyond, they see more trees and sky." - -Joggy nodded. "You mean that whatever way you look at the bubble, it's -a kind of hole through time?" - -"That's right." Hal cleared his throat and recited: "The bubble is the -locus of an infinite number of one-way holes, all centering around two -points in space-time, one now and one then. The bubble looks completely -open, but if you tried to step inside, you'd be stopped--and so would -an atom beam. It takes more energy than an atom beam just to maintain -the bubble, let alone maneuver it." - -"I see, I guess," Joggy whispered. "But if the hole works for light, -why can't the people inside the bubble step out of it into our world?" - -"Why--er--you see, Joggy--" - -The interpreter took over. "The holes are one-way for light, but no-way -for matter. If one of the individuals inside the bubble walked toward -you, he would cross-section and disappear. But to the audience on the -opposite side of the bubble, it would be obvious that he had walked -away along the vista down which they are peering." - - * * * * * - -As if to provide an example, a figure suddenly materialized on -their side of the bubble. The wolflike dogs bared their fangs. For -an instant, there was only an eerie, distorted, rapidly growing -silhouette, changing from blood-red to black as the boundary of the -bubble cross-sectioned the intruding figure. Then they recognized the -back of another long-haired warrior and realized that the audience on -the other side of the bubble had probably seen him approaching for some -time. - -He bowed to the hooded figure and handed him a small bag. - -"More atavistic cubs, big and little! Hold still, Cynthia," a new voice -cut in. - -Hal turned and saw that two cold-eyed girls had been ushered into the -cubicle. One was wiping her close-cropped hair with one hand while -mopping a green stain from her friend's back with the other. - -Hal nudged Joggy and whispered: "Butch!" - -But Joggy was still hypnotized by the Time Bubble. - -"Then how is it, Hal," he asked, "that light comes out of the bubble, -if the people don't? What I mean is, if one of the people walks toward -us, he shrinks to a red blot and disappears. Why doesn't the light -coming our way disappear, too?" - -"Well--you see, Joggy, it isn't real light. It's--" - -Once more the interpreter helped him out. - -"The light that comes from the bubble is an isotope. Like atoms of -one element, photons of a single frequency also have isotopes. It's -more than a matter of polarization. One of these isotopes of light -tends to leak futureward through holes in space-time. Most of the -light goes down the vistas visible to the other side of the audience. -But one isotope is diverted through the walls of the bubble into the -Time Theater. Perhaps, because of the intense darkness of the theater, -you haven't realized how dimly lit the scene is. That's because we're -getting only a single isotope of the original light. Incidentally, no -isotopes have been discovered that leak pastward, though attempts are -being made to synthesize them." - -"Oh, explanations!" murmured one of the newly arrived girls. "The cubs -are always angling for them. Apple-polishers!" - -"_I_ like this show," a familiar voice announced serenely. "They cut -anybody yet with those choppers?" - -Hal looked down beside him. "Butch! How did you manage to get in?" - -"I don't see any blood. Where's the bodies?" - -"But how _did_ you get in--Butcher?" - - * * * * * - -The Butcher replied airily: "A red-headed man talked to me and said it -certainly was sad for a future dictator not to be able to enjoy scenes -of carnage in his youth, so I told him I'd been inside the Time Theater -and just come out to get a drink of water and go to the eliminator, but -then my sprained ankle had got worse--I kind of tried to get up and -fell down again--so he picked me up and carried me right through the -usher." - -"Butcher, that wasn't honest," Hal said a little worriedly. "You -tricked him into thinking you were older and his brain waves blanketed -yours, going through the usher. I really _have_ heard it's dangerous -for you under-fives to be in here." - -"The way those cubs beg for babying and get it!" one of the girls -commented. "Talk about sex favoritism!" She and her companion withdrew -to the far end of the cubicle. - -The Butcher grinned at them briefly and concentrated his attention on -the scene in the Time Bubble. - -"Those big dogs--" he began suddenly. "Brute must have smelled 'em." - -"Don't be silly," Hal said. "Smells can't come out of the Time Bubble. -Smells haven't any isotopes and--" - -"I don't care," the Butcher asserted. "I bet somebody'll figure out -someday how to use the bubble for time traveling." - -"You can't travel in a point of view," Hal contradicted, "and that's -all the bubble is. Besides, some scientists think the bubble isn't real -at all, but a--uh--" - -"I believe," the interpreter cut in smoothly, "that you're thinking -of the theory that the Time Bubble operates by hypermemory. Some -scientists would have us believe that all memory is time traveling and -that the basic location of the bubble is not space-time at all, but -ever-present eternity. Some of them go so far as to state that it is -only a mental inability that prevents the Time Bubble from being used -for time traveling--just as it may be a similar disability that keeps -a robot with the same or even more scopeful memories from being a real -man or animal. - -"It is because of this minority theory that under-age individuals and -other beings with impulsive mentalities are barred from the Time -Theater. But do not be alarmed. Even if the minority theory should -prove true--and no evidence for it has ever appeared--there are -automatically operating safeguards to protect the audience from any -harmful consequences of time traveling (almost certainly impossible, -remember) in either direction." - -"Sissies!" was the Butcher's comment. - - * * * * * - -"You're rather young to be here, aren't you?" the interpreter inquired. - -The Butcher folded his arms and scowled. - -The interpreter hesitated almost humanly, probably snatching through a -quarter-million microtapes. "Well, you wouldn't have got in unless a -qualified adult had certified you as plus-age. Enjoy yourself." - -There was no need for the last injunction. The scene within the bubble -had acquired a gripping interest. The shaggy warriors were taking up -their swords, gathering about the hooded sorcerer. The hood fell back, -revealing a face with hawklike, disturbing eyes that seemed to be -looking straight out of the bubble at the future. - -"This is getting good," the Butcher said, squirming toward the edge of -his seat. - -"Stop being an impulsive mentality," Hal warned him a little nervously. - -"Hah!" - -The sorcerer emptied the small bag on the fire and a thick cloud of -smoke puffed toward the ceiling of the bubble. A clawlike hand waved -wildly. The sorcerer appeared to be expostulating, commanding. The -warriors stared uncomprehendingly, which seemed to exasperate the -sorcerer. - -"That's right," the Butcher approved loudly. "Sock it to 'em!" - -"Butcher!" Hal admonished. - -Suddenly the bubble grew very bright, as if the Sun had just shone -forth in the ancient world, though the rain still dripped down. - -"A viewing anomaly has occurred," the interpreter announced. "It may be -necessary to collapse the Time Bubble for a short period." - -In a frenzy, his ragged robes twisting like smoke, the sorcerer rushed -at one of the warriors, pushing him backward so that in a moment he -must cross-section. - -"Attaboy!" the Butcher encouraged. - -Then the warrior was standing outside the bubble, blinking toward the -shadows, rain dripping from his beard and furs. - -"Oh, _boy_!" the Butcher cheered in ecstasy. - -"Butcher, you've done it!" Hal said, aghast. - -"I sure did," the Butcher agreed blandly, "but that old guy in the -bubble helped me. Must take two to work it." - -"Keep your seats!" the interpreter said loudly. "We are energizing the -safeguards!" - - * * * * * - -The warriors inside the bubble stared in stupid astonishment after the -one who had disappeared from their view. The sorcerer leaped about, -pushing them in his direction. - -Abrupt light flooded the Time Theater. The warriors who had emerged -from the bubble stiffened themselves, baring their teeth. - -"The safeguards are now energized," the interpreter said. - -A woman in a short golden tunic stood up uncertainly from the front row -of the audience. - -The first warrior looked her up and down, took one hesitant step -forward, then another, then suddenly grabbed her and flung her over his -left shoulder, looking around menacingly and swinging his sword in his -right hand. - -"I repeat, the safeguards have been fully energized! Keep your seats!" -the interpreter enjoined. - -In the cubicle, Hal and Joggy gasped, the two girls squeaked, but the -Butcher yelled a "Hey!" of disapproval, snatched up something from the -floor and darted out through the sphincter. - -Here and there in the audience, other adults stood up. The emerged -warriors formed a ring of swinging swords and questing eyes. Between -their legs their wolfish dogs, emerged with them, crouched and snarled. -Then the warriors began to fan out. - -"There has been an unavoidable delay in energizing the safeguards," the -interpreter said. "Please be patient." - -At that moment, the Butcher entered the main auditorium, brandishing a -levitator above his head and striding purposefully down the aisle. At -his heels, five stocky forms trotted. In a definitely pre-civilization -voice, or at least with pre-civilization volume, he bellowed: "Hey, -you! You quit that!" - -The first warrior looked toward him, gave his left shoulder a shake to -quiet his wriggling captive, gave his right shoulder one to supple his -sword arm, and waited until the dwarfish challenger came into range. -Then his sword swished down in a flashing arc. - -Next moment, the Butcher was on his knees and the warrior was staring -at him open-mouthed. The sword had rebounded from something invisible -an arm's length above the gnomelike creature's head. The warrior backed -a step. - -The Butcher stayed down, crouching half behind an aisle seat and -digging for something in his pocket. But he didn't stay quiet. "Sic -'em, Brute!" he shrilled. "Sic 'em, Darter! Sic 'em, Pinkie and Whitie -and Blue!" Then he stopped shouting and raised his hand to his mouth. - - * * * * * - -Growling quite unmechanically, the five uninjes hurled themselves -forward and closed with the warrior's wolflike dogs. At the first -encounter, Brute and Pinkie were grabbed by the throats, shaken, and -tossed a dozen feet. The warriors snarled approval and advanced. But -then Brute and Pinkie raced back eagerly to the fight--and suddenly the -face of the leading warrior was drenched with scarlet. He blinked and -touched his fingers to it, then looked at his hand in horror. - -The Butcher spared a second to repeat his command to the uninjes. But -already the battle was going against the larger dogs. The latter had -the advantage of weight and could toss the smaller dogs like so many -foxes. But their terrible fangs did no damage, and whenever an uninj -clamped on a throat, that throat was torn out. - -Meanwhile, great bloody stains had appeared on the bodies of all the -warriors. They drew back in a knot, looking at each other fearfully. -That was when the Butcher got to his feet and strode forward, hand -clenching the levitator above his head. - -"Get back where you belong, you big jerks! And drop that lady!" - -The first warrior pointed toward him and hissed something. Immediately, -a half dozen swords were smiting at the Butcher. - -"We are working to energize the safeguards," the interpreter said in -mechanical panic. "Remain patient and in your seats." - -The uninjes leaped into the melee, at first tearing more fur than -flesh. Swords caught them and sent them spinning through the air. They -came yapping back for more. Brute fixed on the first warrior's ankle. -He dropped the woman, stamped unavailingly on the uninj, and let out a -screech. - -Swords were still rebounding from the invisible shield under which the -Butcher crouched, making terrible faces at his attackers. They drew -back, looked again at their bloodstains, goggled at the demon dogs. -At their leader's screech, they broke and plunged back into the Time -Bubble, their leader stumbling limpingly after them. There they wasted -no time on their own ragged sorcerer. Their swords rose and fell, and -no repulsor field stayed them. - -"Brute, come back!" the Butcher yelled. - - * * * * * - -The gray uninj let go his hold on the leader's ankle and scampered -out of the Time Bubble, which swiftly dimmed to its original light -intensity and then winked out. - -For once in their very mature lives, all of the adults in the -auditorium began to jabber at each other simultaneously. - -"We are sorry, but the anomaly has made it necessary to collapse the -Time Bubble," the interpreter said. "There will be no viewing until -further announcement. Thank you for your patience." - -Hal and Joggy caught up with the Butcher just as Brute jumped into his -arms and the woman in gold picked him up and hugged him fiercely. The -Butcher started to pull away, then grudgingly submitted. - -"Cubs!" came a small cold voice from behind Hal and Joggy. "Always -playing hero! Say, what's that awful smell, Cynthia? It must have come -from those dirty past men." - -Hal and Joggy were shouting at the Butcher, but he wasn't listening -to them or to the older voices clamoring about "revised theories of -reality" and other important things. He didn't even squirm as Brute -licked his cheek and the woman in gold planted a big kiss practically -on his mouth. - -He smiled dreamily and stroked Brute's muzzle and murmured softly: "We -came, we saw, we conquered, didn't we, Brute?" - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Time In the Round, by Fritz Leiber - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK TIME IN THE ROUND *** - -***** This file should be named 51380.txt or 51380.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/5/1/3/8/51380/ - -Produced by Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan 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 public domain print editions 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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