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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..503935b --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #66732 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/66732) diff --git a/old/66732-0.txt b/old/66732-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index ab76049..0000000 --- a/old/66732-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,837 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook of Mystery at Mesa Flat, by Ivar Jorgensen - -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 -will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before -using this eBook. - -Title: Mystery at Mesa Flat - -Author: Ivar Jorgensen - -Release Date: November 14, 2021 [eBook #66732] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -Produced by: Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed - Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - -*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MYSTERY AT MESA FLAT *** - - - - - MYSTERY AT MESA FLAT - - By Ivar Jorgensen - - A small desert town didn't seem a likely - place to encounter murder--especially one that - had been planned on a world light years away! - - [Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from - Imagination Stories of Science and Fantasy - June 1956 - Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that - the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.] - - -The murder was committed ten minutes before the Otarkian ship lifted -for the long trip back to the mother-planet. It was discovered ten -minutes after blast off. The killer--a great lout of an upper-hillman, -signed on the last moment to fill a sudden vacancy--bragged of the kill -to his sergeant. - -Bragged grinning. "He was crouched behind a rock peeking out at the -ship. I came behind him--very quiet. I broke his neck and--and did -other things. He never knew what happened." - -The guard was rushed immediately before the Commander--into the dread -Presence. The Commander's eyes were terrible but his voice remained -soft. "You know by what a slim thread our invasion plans hang?" - -"Yes, Commander." - -"You know that utter secrecy has been our key from the start?" - -"Yes, Commander." - -"I just wanted to make sure before I execute you in the name of the -Supreme Otarkian Council." - -"Yes, Commander." - -The Commander drew his gun and aimed accurately. The guard died bravely. - -And that was that. - -But there was worry. The Commander consulted with the Second. "It would -be wise to return." - -The Second calculated time. "It would be high noon back there before we -could set down." - -"We could wait for darkness." - -"True." - -"But fifteen hours of daylight would have elapsed." - -"It is a lonely place." - -"But if a trap were set." - -The Second considered. "When the body is discovered--what will it -reveal? Nothing definite. No chain of logic could point to us." - -The Commander frowned. "But success depends so completely upon secrecy. -If the experiment is successful--" - -"It will be, sir." - -"I hope so. Hold your course for home...." - - * * * * * - -The body of Mack Styles was found at two o'clock that afternoon. By Tom -Brazier and Frank Brooks, in a secluded spot on the Arizona desert. -After he hadn't reported in they had gone out in a jeep to check up. -They saw Mack's jeep nosing up out of a pocket as though peering at a -white alkali flat just beyond. - -They rounded the pocket and found Mack and both of them got suddenly -sick and strove to hide their shock from each other. - -Brazier said, "Jesus!" The word was both a curse and a prayer. - -"What could have hit him?" - -"Look at his legs. Broken--mangled. Like through a machine!" - -"A gorilla could do that." - -Brazier forebore the obvious retort and walked out onto the alkali -flat. He stopped in its center and turned slowly, his eyes searching. -They found nothing. He went to the edge of the flat and began circling -it slowly. In four places there were marks in the dust. The marks -formed the four corners of a huge square. Something might have set -down there but you couldn't be sure. Probably dust-marks left by the -swirling wind-devils that danced across the desert like miniature -cyclones. - -"There's a town over there." - -Tom Brazier looked up quickly. Frank Brooks had come to stand by his -side and was pointing off through a declivity in the rocks. - -"Damned if there isn't. Ever see it before?" - -"I think so. Isn't it the same town that lies about two miles off the -Notched Butte road? The direction's about right." - -"Uh-huh." - -They were Security men from the camp forty miles southwest; Brazier -the senior, gave the orders. As they started back, toward the jeep, he -said, "Call in and make the report." - -"We aren't waiting?" - -"No. We'll move on to that town." - -"But we looked it over a week ago." - -Tom Brazier frowned. "I know, but--" - -"But what?" - -"There's something funny about that town--something wrong." - -"I couldn't see anything wrong with it." - -Tom Brazier's eyes were vague. "I had it checked." - -This surprised Brooks. "You didn't mention it before." - -"No. Nothing to mention, really. Something I can't quite put my finger -on." - -"Looks like a pretty old settlement." - -"It is. It began as a mining town back in 1890. Some silver veins out -in the hills. They ran out though and the place became a ghost town -shortly afterwards." - -"A short life and happy one." - -"Short, anyhow. After the silver piddled out they all left except -one or two old sand fleas. Since then it became a stop-over place for -casuals." - -"But there must be forty or fifty people there now. Where did they come -from?" - -"Drifted in the last few years I suppose." - -"If you have any suspicions, we ought to check. Even if they can't be -from outer space." - -"I took a spot check," Brazier said grimly. "The old coot who runs the -hotel came originally from El Paso. A couple of the old uranium hunters -rang true on background." There was a pause as they climbed the slope. -Then Brazier's frown deepened. "But it isn't the people--they're not -what bothers me." - -"Then what?" - -Brazier's voice was sharp. "I don't know, damn it!" - -Brooks was surprised. "All right--all right. Don't bite me about it. -I'll send the message...." - - * * * * * - -They were silent as Brooks turned the jeep and nosed it over the broken -country toward the village. Silent, but each occupied with his own grim -thoughts; thoughts concerning things the nation had not been told; that -the flying saucer joke was no longer that but a very serious matter. -Certain facts had come to light and had been discussed in high-level -conference and they added up to good reason for panic. Creatures from -outer space _were_ hovering over the planet. They were hostile and they -wanted to take Earth over. - -All the revelations were not catastrophic however if considered -comparatively. Fortunately, the aliens, while advanced and of superior -intelligence, had physical characteristics that set them apart. They -could not put down and lose themselves among the planet's population. -Also, they did not appear able to overwhelm with superior weapons. -Still, they were vicious, crafty, and their coming could mean the end -of Terran freedom. - -Brooks rolled the jeep past a tilted sign reading, '_Mesa Flats--Pop. -21_'. The lettering, very old, was almost obliterated. - -Another ancient sign hanging over one of the false fronts said, -_Elkhorn Hotel_. Brooks pulled up and the two Security men climbed out. -Two ancient desert specimens sat in tilted-back chairs on the porch. -One of them stirred enough ambition to turn his head. The other went on -chewing tobacco and stared out across the desert. - -Inside an equally leather-faced oldster presided behind the desk. He -said, "Howdy, men," and extended a battered pencil across the register. - -Tom Brazier signed. Frank Brooks looked about, trying to find something -wrong. Failing in this he tried to conjure up the uneasy feeling that -something might be wrong. He failed again. He said, "How long have you -been running this place, Pop?" - -"Nigh onto ten years now. And the name's Frank Sibley, son. Never did -get me a wife so o'course I ain't nobody's pop." - -Frank Brooks grinned but as there was no rancor in the oldster's tone -he didn't apologize. - -"How is the food in the restaurant?" Tom Brazier asked. - -"Fair to middlin'. _Frijoles_ and beans. Ain't nobody can spoil -_frijoles_ and beans." - -"That's what you think," Brooks said. - -"Stayin' long?" - -"A couple of days, maybe," Brazier told him. "Thought we might scout -the hills. If the area looks right we might bring in some small uranium -equipment." - -"Good luck. Your room's to the head of the stairs--second door on the -right." - -"Thanks." - -They went out and moved slowly down the street. There were people but -they seemed used to strangers. There were desert-worn women, sun -blackened children, leather-faced men. - -The two Security men had been silent. Now Frank Brooks spoke suddenly. -"If you're thinking about Quislings or traitors, Tom, it just doesn't -make sense. These people aren't intelligent enough. An invader would go -where--" - -"I'm not thinking about that. Let's eat." - -They went into the restaurant and were served by a fat woman who -waddled back and forth from the kitchen, wedging herself through the -doorway each time. The food was acceptable, exactly what could be -expected in a place like this. - -Outside again, Tom Brazier stopped suddenly in the middle of the hot -street. - -"What's wrong?" Brooks added. - -"Damn it! Damn it all to hell! I don't know! And I should know! I came -back here to find out and I still know something's wrong but I can't -spot it." - -Frank Brooks was concerned. "Tom, are you sure you're not just all -tightened up about this whole deal?" - -"No, I'm not. Look here--didn't you ever go through a place and -remember it later as being--well, not quite right? Something you -missed, maybe?" - -"I'm afraid I'm not the sensitive type but I get what you mean. Then -again, though, it _might_ be an illusion of some kind. You might have -the place mixed up subconsciously with another place of this kind -you've seen." - -"Maybe. Let's take a walk around the whole town--look at it from all -angles." - - * * * * * - -They walked. They climbed into the jeep and rode the slopes and -the _arroyos_. No one paid any attention to them. No one bothered -them. They spent the day and returned to town and ate again in the -bleak little restaurant. The same woman pushed endlessly through the -too-narrow doorway. When they went to their room the lamp cast such an -unsatisfactory light that they put it out and went to bed. - -This arrangement satisfied Frank Brooks completely. He was bone tired -and sound asleep as soon as he hit the bed. - -But not for long. He was awakened almost immediately, it seemed, by a -prodding hand. He rolled over. "Whazza mat--?" - -"I've got it!" - -"You got what?" - -Tom Brazier did not appear to hear him. Brazier stood tensely beside -the bed holding the lighted lamp. His eyes were bright and hard. - -"They couldn't have been left here alone--without some kind of -guidance--some means of command. There has to be something. Get your -clothes on." - -Brooks was out of bed dragging at his pants. "Okay, okay. If you're -going nuts, I might as well go with you. But what the hell will we be -looking for?" - -"I don't know. Some kind of a machine maybe." - -They were in the hall moving quietly through the darkness. "Anything -like that would probably be in a cellar or basement somewhere wouldn't -it?" - -"You'd think so. Under the biggest building I imagine." - -"That's right here--the hotel." - -"Let's look for a door." - -They hunted quietly, making the sparest use of the pocket flashes they -carried clipped in their breast pockets. But they found no cellar door, -no basement entrance, and ascertained, finally, that the building stood -on solid ground. - -"We'll have to check the other ones," Brazier said. - -They found what they were looking for under the restaurant. They broke -in through the back door and found a trap behind the counter. Brazier -lifted it. - -A soft blue glow lit the narrow stairway and they went downward into -a steel-walled room in the center of which stood a shining machine. -Though inanimate, the bright metal monster seemed to possess a life -force. Electrical impulses chuckled and muttered behind the glowing -bulbs and dials that created mysterious profiles on its surface. - -"Well I'll be damned!" Frank Brooks muttered. "You figured it was here. -We looked for it--and found it! Now what I want to know is--" - -"We've got to make a report. Let's just hope we get out of here alive." - -Brooks felt no great concern on this score. He was sure they had not -been seen. He closed the trap and followed Tom Brazier out the back -door. And stopped short. - -They were all there--the inhabitants of Mesa Flat--the young, the old, -the men and the women. They stood in a quiet semicircle around the rear -of the building. There was no indignation upon their faces, no anger -in the group, no fury in the desert town. Only a silence that chilled -Frank Brooks; quiet, set faces; bodies that began moving slowly forward -tightening the semicircle. - -Frank Brooks saw Tom Brazier's hand go under his coat and Brooks still -couldn't believe it. _Not shoot them down._ - -Brazier fired point blank at the nearest man. - -In a seeming daze, Frank Brooks stared. Two slugs, dead center in the -chest, but the man came on. Shuddered slightly from the impact. But -came on. - -Then Brazier was bellowing, "For crisake! Don't stand there! Defend -yourself!" and Frank Brooks came out of his daze and was also -firing--at people who kept coming on until it was all nothing but a -nightmare. - -Brazier's target was now reaching forth a pair of steady arms, reaching -with hands that would grip and kill. - -Brazier fired desperately. "They've got to be vulnerable somewhere!" he -yelled. "Somewhere you wouldn't expect." - -He found the spot by chance. A desert rat's hands were upon him when -his gun exploded for what would have had to be the last time. The slug -went downward. The desert rat stopped, then crumpled slowly to the -ground. - -"The left thigh," Brazier cried. "That's where the control is. Shoot -for their left thighs!" - -Brooks stopped the fat woman from the restaurant as her hands tightened -on his throat. He shook his head to clear his brain and found Brazier -had blasted a path through the solid mass in front. - -"Run!" Brazier shouted. "The hell with the jeep! Just run!" - -They ran.... - - * * * * * - -They dissected one of the bodies at the camp; standing around in a -silent group; stunned by the complete reality of the thing. - -"It even has a kind of blood." The Commanding Officer said. "The -analysis will be interesting." - -Frank Brooks pointed at the body. "That's not actually flesh? Not skin -or bones?" - -"Yes, and no," the Commanding officer said. "They're synthetics but -possibly as good as our own." - -"Putting the control unit in the leg was a master touch," Tom Brazier -said. - -The Commanding Officer, noting the tight faces about him, laid down -his scalpel and said, "This throws a grave light on the situation of -course, but it isn't as bad as it seems. In fact, the discovery turns -the tide in our favor. Obviously they came down some years ago and -did away with the residents of Mesa Flat when there was possibly only -a handful of people in the village. These they recreated in the form -of androids through a process we are not familiar with and then began -adding to the population by feeding in more androids. Maybe there were -more than just a few natives in the beginning because our spot check -caught four authentic backgrounds." - -"But if they can create human beings--" Frank Brooks said. - -"The main thing is they evidently cannot destroy us by frontal assault. -Thus this attempt at infiltration. Obviously the project is in its -experimental stage. And knowing what to look for, we can take it from -here." - -The commanding Officer smiled at Frank Brooks and Tom Brazier. "Good -work, you two." - -"But I had nothing to do with it, sir," Frank Brooks said. "The -meeting's adjourned...." - - * * * * * - -Outside, Frank Brooks turned on his partner. "I had no right to any of -the credit. Why didn't you let me say it?" - -"You said it," Brazier grinned. - -"Besides--it was a team job." - -"Like hell! I don't even know what tipped you off. You had no reason -to jump out of bed in the middle of the night and go hunting for that -machine. Or did you?" - -"Remember when I said there was something wrong with that town?" - -"I remember, but--" - -"Figure it out. The original life of the town was only a few months, -so up to that time it had a right to be without one." - -"Without one what?" - -"But with a continuous population for ten years, it certainly should -have had one." - -"One _what_, damn it?" - -"A graveyard." - -Brooks mouth dropped open. "Say--that's right. There wasn't a tombstone -anywhere around!" - -Tom Brazier was grinning. "So the superintelligent aliens defeated -themselves by being too meticulously careful. They destroyed the bodies -of the natives they killed and tripped themselves up." - -"When all they had to do to really camouflage the layout was to bury -them." - -"They ought to give you a medal, man!" Frank Brooks said fervently. - -"I'll settle for a cup of coffee. Come on." - -*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MYSTERY AT MESA FLAT *** - -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. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part -of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm -concept and trademark. 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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 <a href="https://www.gutenberg.org">www.gutenberg.org</a>. If you -are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the -country where you are located before using this eBook. -</div> - -<p style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:1em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Title: Mystery at Mesa Flat</p> - -<div style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:1em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Author: Ivar Jorgensen</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'>Release Date: November 14, 2021 [eBook #66732]</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'>Language: English</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'>Character set encoding: UTF-8</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Produced by: Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net</div> - -<div style='margin-top:2em; margin-bottom:4em'>*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MYSTERY AT MESA FLAT ***</div> - -<div class="titlepage"> - -<h1>MYSTERY AT MESA FLAT</h1> - -<h2>By Ivar Jorgensen</h2> - -<p>A small desert town didn't seem a likely<br /> -place to encounter murder—especially one that<br /> -had been planned on a world light years away!</p> - -<p>[Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from<br /> -Imagination Stories of Science and Fantasy<br /> -June 1956<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>The murder was committed ten minutes before the Otarkian ship lifted -for the long trip back to the mother-planet. It was discovered ten -minutes after blast off. The killer—a great lout of an upper-hillman, -signed on the last moment to fill a sudden vacancy—bragged of the kill -to his sergeant.</p> - -<p>Bragged grinning. "He was crouched behind a rock peeking out at the -ship. I came behind him—very quiet. I broke his neck and—and did -other things. He never knew what happened."</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<div class="figcenter"> - <img src="images/illus.jpg" alt=""/> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p>The guard was rushed immediately before the Commander—into the dread -Presence. The Commander's eyes were terrible but his voice remained -soft. "You know by what a slim thread our invasion plans hang?"</p> - -<p>"Yes, Commander."</p> - -<p>"You know that utter secrecy has been our key from the start?"</p> - -<p>"Yes, Commander."</p> - -<p>"I just wanted to make sure before I execute you in the name of the -Supreme Otarkian Council."</p> - -<p>"Yes, Commander."</p> - -<p>The Commander drew his gun and aimed accurately. The guard died bravely.</p> - -<p>And that was that.</p> - -<p>But there was worry. The Commander consulted with the Second. "It would -be wise to return."</p> - -<p>The Second calculated time. "It would be high noon back there before we -could set down."</p> - -<p>"We could wait for darkness."</p> - -<p>"True."</p> - -<p>"But fifteen hours of daylight would have elapsed."</p> - -<p>"It is a lonely place."</p> - -<p>"But if a trap were set."</p> - -<p>The Second considered. "When the body is discovered—what will it -reveal? Nothing definite. No chain of logic could point to us."</p> - -<p>The Commander frowned. "But success depends so completely upon secrecy. -If the experiment is successful—"</p> - -<p>"It will be, sir."</p> - -<p>"I hope so. Hold your course for home...."</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>The body of Mack Styles was found at two o'clock that afternoon. By Tom -Brazier and Frank Brooks, in a secluded spot on the Arizona desert. -After he hadn't reported in they had gone out in a jeep to check up. -They saw Mack's jeep nosing up out of a pocket as though peering at a -white alkali flat just beyond.</p> - -<p>They rounded the pocket and found Mack and both of them got suddenly -sick and strove to hide their shock from each other.</p> - -<p>Brazier said, "Jesus!" The word was both a curse and a prayer.</p> - -<p>"What could have hit him?"</p> - -<p>"Look at his legs. Broken—mangled. Like through a machine!"</p> - -<p>"A gorilla could do that."</p> - -<p>Brazier forebore the obvious retort and walked out onto the alkali -flat. He stopped in its center and turned slowly, his eyes searching. -They found nothing. He went to the edge of the flat and began circling -it slowly. In four places there were marks in the dust. The marks -formed the four corners of a huge square. Something might have set -down there but you couldn't be sure. Probably dust-marks left by the -swirling wind-devils that danced across the desert like miniature -cyclones.</p> - -<p>"There's a town over there."</p> - -<p>Tom Brazier looked up quickly. Frank Brooks had come to stand by his -side and was pointing off through a declivity in the rocks.</p> - -<p>"Damned if there isn't. Ever see it before?"</p> - -<p>"I think so. Isn't it the same town that lies about two miles off the -Notched Butte road? The direction's about right."</p> - -<p>"Uh-huh."</p> - -<p>They were Security men from the camp forty miles southwest; Brazier -the senior, gave the orders. As they started back, toward the jeep, he -said, "Call in and make the report."</p> - -<p>"We aren't waiting?"</p> - -<p>"No. We'll move on to that town."</p> - -<p>"But we looked it over a week ago."</p> - -<p>Tom Brazier frowned. "I know, but—"</p> - -<p>"But what?"</p> - -<p>"There's something funny about that town—something wrong."</p> - -<p>"I couldn't see anything wrong with it."</p> - -<p>Tom Brazier's eyes were vague. "I had it checked."</p> - -<p>This surprised Brooks. "You didn't mention it before."</p> - -<p>"No. Nothing to mention, really. Something I can't quite put my finger -on."</p> - -<p>"Looks like a pretty old settlement."</p> - -<p>"It is. It began as a mining town back in 1890. Some silver veins out -in the hills. They ran out though and the place became a ghost town -shortly afterwards."</p> - -<p>"A short life and happy one."</p> - -<p>"Short, anyhow. After the silver piddled out they all left except -one or two old sand fleas. Since then it became a stop-over place for -casuals."</p> - -<p>"But there must be forty or fifty people there now. Where did they come -from?"</p> - -<p>"Drifted in the last few years I suppose."</p> - -<p>"If you have any suspicions, we ought to check. Even if they can't be -from outer space."</p> - -<p>"I took a spot check," Brazier said grimly. "The old coot who runs the -hotel came originally from El Paso. A couple of the old uranium hunters -rang true on background." There was a pause as they climbed the slope. -Then Brazier's frown deepened. "But it isn't the people—they're not -what bothers me."</p> - -<p>"Then what?"</p> - -<p>Brazier's voice was sharp. "I don't know, damn it!"</p> - -<p>Brooks was surprised. "All right—all right. Don't bite me about it. -I'll send the message...."</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>They were silent as Brooks turned the jeep and nosed it over the broken -country toward the village. Silent, but each occupied with his own grim -thoughts; thoughts concerning things the nation had not been told; that -the flying saucer joke was no longer that but a very serious matter. -Certain facts had come to light and had been discussed in high-level -conference and they added up to good reason for panic. Creatures from -outer space <i>were</i> hovering over the planet. They were hostile and they -wanted to take Earth over.</p> - -<p>All the revelations were not catastrophic however if considered -comparatively. Fortunately, the aliens, while advanced and of superior -intelligence, had physical characteristics that set them apart. They -could not put down and lose themselves among the planet's population. -Also, they did not appear able to overwhelm with superior weapons. -Still, they were vicious, crafty, and their coming could mean the end -of Terran freedom.</p> - -<p>Brooks rolled the jeep past a tilted sign reading, '<i>Mesa Flats—Pop. -21</i>'. The lettering, very old, was almost obliterated.</p> - -<p>Another ancient sign hanging over one of the false fronts said, -<i>Elkhorn Hotel</i>. Brooks pulled up and the two Security men climbed out. -Two ancient desert specimens sat in tilted-back chairs on the porch. -One of them stirred enough ambition to turn his head. The other went on -chewing tobacco and stared out across the desert.</p> - -<p>Inside an equally leather-faced oldster presided behind the desk. He -said, "Howdy, men," and extended a battered pencil across the register.</p> - -<p>Tom Brazier signed. Frank Brooks looked about, trying to find something -wrong. Failing in this he tried to conjure up the uneasy feeling that -something might be wrong. He failed again. He said, "How long have you -been running this place, Pop?"</p> - -<p>"Nigh onto ten years now. And the name's Frank Sibley, son. Never did -get me a wife so o'course I ain't nobody's pop."</p> - -<p>Frank Brooks grinned but as there was no rancor in the oldster's tone -he didn't apologize.</p> - -<p>"How is the food in the restaurant?" Tom Brazier asked.</p> - -<p>"Fair to middlin'. <i>Frijoles</i> and beans. Ain't nobody can spoil -<i>frijoles</i> and beans."</p> - -<p>"That's what you think," Brooks said.</p> - -<p>"Stayin' long?"</p> - -<p>"A couple of days, maybe," Brazier told him. "Thought we might scout -the hills. If the area looks right we might bring in some small uranium -equipment."</p> - -<p>"Good luck. Your room's to the head of the stairs—second door on the -right."</p> - -<p>"Thanks."</p> - -<p>They went out and moved slowly down the street. There were people but -they seemed used to strangers. There were desert-worn women, sun -blackened children, leather-faced men.</p> - -<p>The two Security men had been silent. Now Frank Brooks spoke suddenly. -"If you're thinking about Quislings or traitors, Tom, it just doesn't -make sense. These people aren't intelligent enough. An invader would go -where—"</p> - -<p>"I'm not thinking about that. Let's eat."</p> - -<p>They went into the restaurant and were served by a fat woman who -waddled back and forth from the kitchen, wedging herself through the -doorway each time. The food was acceptable, exactly what could be -expected in a place like this.</p> - -<p>Outside again, Tom Brazier stopped suddenly in the middle of the hot -street.</p> - -<p>"What's wrong?" Brooks added.</p> - -<p>"Damn it! Damn it all to hell! I don't know! And I should know! I came -back here to find out and I still know something's wrong but I can't -spot it."</p> - -<p>Frank Brooks was concerned. "Tom, are you sure you're not just all -tightened up about this whole deal?"</p> - -<p>"No, I'm not. Look here—didn't you ever go through a place and -remember it later as being—well, not quite right? Something you -missed, maybe?"</p> - -<p>"I'm afraid I'm not the sensitive type but I get what you mean. Then -again, though, it <i>might</i> be an illusion of some kind. You might have -the place mixed up subconsciously with another place of this kind -you've seen."</p> - -<p>"Maybe. Let's take a walk around the whole town—look at it from all -angles."</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>They walked. They climbed into the jeep and rode the slopes and -the <i>arroyos</i>. No one paid any attention to them. No one bothered -them. They spent the day and returned to town and ate again in the -bleak little restaurant. The same woman pushed endlessly through the -too-narrow doorway. When they went to their room the lamp cast such an -unsatisfactory light that they put it out and went to bed.</p> - -<p>This arrangement satisfied Frank Brooks completely. He was bone tired -and sound asleep as soon as he hit the bed.</p> - -<p>But not for long. He was awakened almost immediately, it seemed, by a -prodding hand. He rolled over. "Whazza mat—?"</p> - -<p>"I've got it!"</p> - -<p>"You got what?"</p> - -<p>Tom Brazier did not appear to hear him. Brazier stood tensely beside -the bed holding the lighted lamp. His eyes were bright and hard.</p> - -<p>"They couldn't have been left here alone—without some kind of -guidance—some means of command. There has to be something. Get your -clothes on."</p> - -<p>Brooks was out of bed dragging at his pants. "Okay, okay. If you're -going nuts, I might as well go with you. But what the hell will we be -looking for?"</p> - -<p>"I don't know. Some kind of a machine maybe."</p> - -<p>They were in the hall moving quietly through the darkness. "Anything -like that would probably be in a cellar or basement somewhere wouldn't -it?"</p> - -<p>"You'd think so. Under the biggest building I imagine."</p> - -<p>"That's right here—the hotel."</p> - -<p>"Let's look for a door."</p> - -<p>They hunted quietly, making the sparest use of the pocket flashes they -carried clipped in their breast pockets. But they found no cellar door, -no basement entrance, and ascertained, finally, that the building stood -on solid ground.</p> - -<p>"We'll have to check the other ones," Brazier said.</p> - -<p>They found what they were looking for under the restaurant. They broke -in through the back door and found a trap behind the counter. Brazier -lifted it.</p> - -<p>A soft blue glow lit the narrow stairway and they went downward into -a steel-walled room in the center of which stood a shining machine. -Though inanimate, the bright metal monster seemed to possess a life -force. Electrical impulses chuckled and muttered behind the glowing -bulbs and dials that created mysterious profiles on its surface.</p> - -<p>"Well I'll be damned!" Frank Brooks muttered. "You figured it was here. -We looked for it—and found it! Now what I want to know is—"</p> - -<p>"We've got to make a report. Let's just hope we get out of here alive."</p> - -<p>Brooks felt no great concern on this score. He was sure they had not -been seen. He closed the trap and followed Tom Brazier out the back -door. And stopped short.</p> - -<p>They were all there—the inhabitants of Mesa Flat—the young, the old, -the men and the women. They stood in a quiet semicircle around the rear -of the building. There was no indignation upon their faces, no anger -in the group, no fury in the desert town. Only a silence that chilled -Frank Brooks; quiet, set faces; bodies that began moving slowly forward -tightening the semicircle.</p> - -<p>Frank Brooks saw Tom Brazier's hand go under his coat and Brooks still -couldn't believe it. <i>Not shoot them down.</i></p> - -<p>Brazier fired point blank at the nearest man.</p> - -<p>In a seeming daze, Frank Brooks stared. Two slugs, dead center in the -chest, but the man came on. Shuddered slightly from the impact. But -came on.</p> - -<p>Then Brazier was bellowing, "For crisake! Don't stand there! Defend -yourself!" and Frank Brooks came out of his daze and was also -firing—at people who kept coming on until it was all nothing but a -nightmare.</p> - -<p>Brazier's target was now reaching forth a pair of steady arms, reaching -with hands that would grip and kill.</p> - -<p>Brazier fired desperately. "They've got to be vulnerable somewhere!" he -yelled. "Somewhere you wouldn't expect."</p> - -<p>He found the spot by chance. A desert rat's hands were upon him when -his gun exploded for what would have had to be the last time. The slug -went downward. The desert rat stopped, then crumpled slowly to the -ground.</p> - -<p>"The left thigh," Brazier cried. "That's where the control is. Shoot -for their left thighs!"</p> - -<p>Brooks stopped the fat woman from the restaurant as her hands tightened -on his throat. He shook his head to clear his brain and found Brazier -had blasted a path through the solid mass in front.</p> - -<p>"Run!" Brazier shouted. "The hell with the jeep! Just run!"</p> - -<p>They ran....</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>They dissected one of the bodies at the camp; standing around in a -silent group; stunned by the complete reality of the thing.</p> - -<p>"It even has a kind of blood." The Commanding Officer said. "The -analysis will be interesting."</p> - -<p>Frank Brooks pointed at the body. "That's not actually flesh? Not skin -or bones?"</p> - -<p>"Yes, and no," the Commanding officer said. "They're synthetics but -possibly as good as our own."</p> - -<p>"Putting the control unit in the leg was a master touch," Tom Brazier -said.</p> - -<p>The Commanding Officer, noting the tight faces about him, laid down -his scalpel and said, "This throws a grave light on the situation of -course, but it isn't as bad as it seems. In fact, the discovery turns -the tide in our favor. Obviously they came down some years ago and -did away with the residents of Mesa Flat when there was possibly only -a handful of people in the village. These they recreated in the form -of androids through a process we are not familiar with and then began -adding to the population by feeding in more androids. Maybe there were -more than just a few natives in the beginning because our spot check -caught four authentic backgrounds."</p> - -<p>"But if they can create human beings—" Frank Brooks said.</p> - -<p>"The main thing is they evidently cannot destroy us by frontal assault. -Thus this attempt at infiltration. Obviously the project is in its -experimental stage. And knowing what to look for, we can take it from -here."</p> - -<p>The commanding Officer smiled at Frank Brooks and Tom Brazier. "Good -work, you two."</p> - -<p>"But I had nothing to do with it, sir," Frank Brooks said. "The -meeting's adjourned...."</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Outside, Frank Brooks turned on his partner. "I had no right to any of -the credit. Why didn't you let me say it?"</p> - -<p>"You said it," Brazier grinned.</p> - -<p>"Besides—it was a team job."</p> - -<p>"Like hell! I don't even know what tipped you off. You had no reason -to jump out of bed in the middle of the night and go hunting for that -machine. Or did you?"</p> - -<p>"Remember when I said there was something wrong with that town?"</p> - -<p>"I remember, but—"</p> - -<p>"Figure it out. The original life of the town was only a few months, -so up to that time it had a right to be without one."</p> - -<p>"Without one what?"</p> - -<p>"But with a continuous population for ten years, it certainly should -have had one."</p> - -<p>"One <i>what</i>, damn it?"</p> - -<p>"A graveyard."</p> - -<p>Brooks mouth dropped open. "Say—that's right. There wasn't a tombstone -anywhere around!"</p> - -<p>Tom Brazier was grinning. "So the superintelligent aliens defeated -themselves by being too meticulously careful. They destroyed the bodies -of the natives they killed and tripped themselves up."</p> - -<p>"When all they had to do to really camouflage the layout was to bury -them."</p> - -<p>"They ought to give you a medal, man!" Frank Brooks said fervently.</p> - -<p>"I'll settle for a cup of coffee. Come on."</p> - -<div style='display:block; margin-top:4em'>*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MYSTERY AT MESA FLAT ***</div> -<div style='text-align:left'> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -Updated editions will replace the previous one—the old editions will -be renamed. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -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. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part -of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project -Gutenberg™ electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG™ -concept and trademark. 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