,boy ,meets ,dyevitza ,by ,,robert ,f4 ,,young ,illustrated by ,,birmingham ,for the incurable romantics among us1 the power of love to conquer everything cannot be overestimated4 ,and so let us read this gentle1 pleasant1 warm-hearted tale1 knowing as we do that the story it tells is very likely impossible1 but yet hoping1 perhaps1 that it could all end this way4 ,transcriber's ,note3 ,this etext was produced from ,amazing ,stories ,october #aifb4 ,extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the ,u4,s4 copyright on this publication was renewed4 ,a thrilling news bulletin1 dated ,september #aa1 #aiif1 was recently handed to me by an assistant who is too young to remember the star over ,moscow1 and it is toward him and others like him that the following history is directed4 ,if it resembles fiction more than it does fact1 the similarity is wholly intentional1 for it is only through fiction that the past can be brought back to life4 99 99 99 99 99 ,when ,gordon ,andrews first saw the girl1 he took it for granted that she was a ,venusian--a natural enough assumption in view of the fact that he was on ,venus4 ,she was kneeling beside a small brook1 humming a little tune and washing out a pair of stockings1 and so intent was she on her tune and her task that she did not hear him when he stepped out of the forest behind her4 ,her bobbed hair was the color of horse chestnuts1 and her clothing consisted of gray culottes1 a gray blouse1 black leather boots and a small gray kepi4 ,the tune she was humming was a passage from ,tchaikovsky's ,swan ,lake4 ,thus far1 ,gordon had taken ,venus pretty much in his stride4 ,the data supplied by the ,venus probes during the early #fj's1 while obscure with regard to her cloud-cover1 had conclusively disproved former theories to the effect that she lacked a breathable atmosphere and possessed a surface temperature of more than #ajj degrees ,centigrade1 and had prepared him for what he had found--an atmosphere richer in oxygen content than ,earth's1 a comfortable climate1 and a planet-wide sea1 unbroken as yet save for an equatorial land mass no larger than a modest island4 ,the data1 by its very nature1 had also prepared him for the possibility of human life4 ,it had not prepared him1 however1 for a ,venusian maiden on humming terms with ,swan ,lake4 ,small wonder1 then1 that he gasped4 ,the girl dropped her stockings and shot to her feet so fast that she would have toppled into the brook if he hadn't leaped forward and caught her arm4 ,she had a heart-shaped face1 and her eyes were the hue of harebells4 ,at the moment they were filled with alarm4 ,presently1 however1 the alarm went away and recognition took its place4 ,oh1 it's you1 she said1 freeing her arm4 99 99 99 99 99 ,he took an involuntary step backward4 ,me8 he said4 ,yes4 ,captain ,gordon ,andrews1 of the ,united ,states ,space ,force1 is it not8 ,you look quite a lot like your photograph4 ,he could only stare at her4 ,i do8 ,yes4 ,i saw it in one of your materialistic capitalistic magazines4 ,she stood up a little straighter--an act that brought her harebell-blue eyes on a level with the topmost button of his fatigue-alls4 ,i am ,major ,sonya ,mikhailovna1 of the ,soviet ,space ,force1 and my ship is in the next valley4 ,i arrived here yesterday4 ,he got the picture then1 and he felt sick4 ,he should have known from her too-correct1 slightly stilted ,english1 from the military cut of her clothing4 ,he should have known in the first place1 for that matter4 ,it was the same old humiliating story4 ,the manned ,venus shot had been publicized for months before the actual launching1 and he had been written up in every newspaper and magazine in the country4 ,articles had paid homage to his suburban upbringing1 saluted his record at the ,shepard ,space ,academy1 praised his career as an orbital pilot1 romanticized his bachelorhood1 described how he liked his eggs1 and inferred what a good catch he would be4 ,meanwhile1 the ,russians had gone quietly and systematically about their business1 and at the precise psychological moment had pulled their usual unexpected coup4 ,first it had been ,laika1 then ,zrezdochka1 then ,gagarin1 then ,dymov1 the first ,man in the ,moon4 ,now it was ,major ,sonya ,mikhailovna4 ,but why a woman8 ,and why one so seemingly delicate that you marvelled at her ability to withstand the acceleration of take-off8 ,suddenly he got the whole picture1 and he really felt sick4 ,he could see the humiliating headlines--or rather1 their ,english counterparts--in ,pravda3 ,,soviet ,,space ,,girl ,,beats ,,capitalist ,,cosmonaut ,,to ,,venus6 ,,ussr ,,triumph ,,again6 ,i suppose you picked up my ship on your radar while ,i was coming in1 and fixed the time and location of my landing1 he said bitterly4 ,sonya ,mikhailovna nodded4 ,my own arrival-time has already been officially recorded1 but the announcement of my success had to be withheld until ,i could establish your arrival-time and the exact time-difference could be computed4 ,soon now1 the news of our glorious new victory will be released to the world4 99 99 99 99 99 ,she bent down1 retrieved her stockings from the brook and wrung them out4 ,straightening1 she hung them on a low-hanging branch of a nearby tree4 ,they were cotton1 he noticed1 and there was a hole in one of the toes4 ,suddenly she gave a start4 ,following the direction of her gaze1 he gave one too4 ,so did the man and the woman who had just emerged from the forest4 ,since his arrival four hours ago1 ,gordon had been wondering--among a host of other things--whether the ultra-violet rays of the sun could penetrate the planet's thick cloud-cover4 ,he saw now that they not only could1 but did4 ,the man and the woman were unquestionably members of a white-skinned race1 and both possessed suntans so deep and golden that in contrast their dark blue eyes seemed even darker and their bright blond hair even brighter4 ,their white knee-length tunics augmented the effect1 and in co-operation with their handsome faces1 supplied them with a god- and goddess-like aspect4 ,unfortunately this aspect was somewhat marred by their one concession to personal adornment--gleaming neckbands forged from a copper-like metal4 ,as neither native appeared to be armed1 ,gordon saw no cause for alarm1 and after his initial surprise1 he regarded them quite calmly4 ,so did ,sonya ,mikhailovna4 ,this time1 however1 the two ,venusians did not reciprocate4 ,their eyes had grown wide1 and now an unmistakable expression of disbelief settled upon their handsome faces4 ,at length the man touched his own neck and then the woman's2 then he pointed1 almost accusingly1 it seemed1 toward ,gordon and ,sonya1 and demanded something in an unintelligible tongue4 ,gordon proceeded to touch his own neck4 ,next he touched ,sonya's ever so lightly of course4 ,gordon1 he said4 ,sonya4 ,he was rewarded for his perspicacity by two horrified stares and a pair of hoarse gasps4 ,then before he could utter another word1 the two ,venusians turned and vanished into the forest4 ,he stared after them4 ,so did ,sonya ,mikhailovna4 ,did you know1 he asked presently1 that ,venus was inhabited8 ,our scientists suspected that it might be4 ,she shrugged4 ,anyway1 what does it matter now8 ,by your stupid action you destroyed whatever chance we had of establishing friendly relations4 ,gordon felt his face grow hot4 ,when you meet aliens1 the first thing you always do is exchange names with them1 he said4 ,everybody knows that6 ,everybody who reads your stereotyped science fiction knows it1 you mean4 ,and after you find out their names1 you say1 ',take me to your leader1' and their leader turns out to be a big beautiful blond who is stacked4 ,well1 ,i think ,i will be getting back to my ship4 ,i don't see anybody stopping you1 ,gordon said4 ,she gave him a long look4 ,in the roseate radiance of the ,venusian afternoon1 her face had a pink-cheeked little girl aspect4 ,in imperialistic idiom1 that means1 ,i suppose1 that it is a matter of complete indifference to you what ,i do4 ,it sure does1 ,gordon said4 ,well1 ,i'll be seeing you4 99 99 99 99 99 ,leaving her standing by the brook1 he re-entered the forest and struck out over the little hills that rolled back from the littoral like green inland waves to break riotously against the high ridge that encompassed the island's interior4 ,in his initial enthusiasm1 he had wandered farther from his ship than he had meant to1 and he had been about to turn back when he had seen the girl4 ,now he had another reason for returning3 a dark cloud was due to arrive over ,washington in the very near future1 and it was up to him to send out a bad-weather warning4 ,multicolored flowers carpeted virtually every square inch of the forest floor2 finch-like birds of rainbow hues darted overhead1 leaving exquisite wakes of song2 squirrel-like mammals spiraled tree trunks so swiftly that they were barely visible4 ,venus had turned out to be the ,venus of the romantics1 rather than the ,venus of the scientists1 and ,gordon1 who1 for all his scientific training1 was a romantic himself1 found the eventuality exhilarating1 even in his present doldrums4 ,perhaps when man reached ,mars1 he would find blue canals after all1 no matter what the scientists said to the contrary1 and fragile glass cities tinkling in cinnamon-scented winds4 ,the day was nearly done when he reached the cove1 near the shore of which his spaceship stood1 and darkness was upon him by the time he climbed the metal ,jacob's ladder and stepped through the lock4 7,in blithe disregard of learned opinion1 ,venus's rotation period approximated ,earth's2 however1 her cloud-cover brought about an abrupt and early departure of daylight47 ,in his haste1 he did not bother to close the lock1 but headed straight for the radio alcove and beamed the news of his historic meeting with ,major ,sonya ,mikhailovna across the immensities to ,space ,force headquarters at ,new ,canaveral1 appending it with the information that the peoples of ,earth could no longer consider themselves the sole inheritors of the solar system4 ,owing to the distance involved1 over five minutes elapsed before he received a reply4 ,he was informed that the ,,ussr had already released the news of the new space victory and that the ,soviet premier had declared a national holiday in honor of the occasion4 ,new ,canaveral also provided him with an unsolicited thumbnail-biography of ,major ,sonya ,mikhailovna4 ,her father ,ptr1 was a famous ,russian pianist1 she was twenty-three years of age1 unmarried1 spoke six languages fluently1 had a nodding acquaintance with eleven more1 held a doctor's degree in anthropology1 was an accomplished ballerina1 and in the last ,olympic games had won the gold medal in the gymnastics competition4 ,she had been chosen for the ,venus shot from a group of one hundred trained women volunteers1 and the rank of major had been bestowed upon her in honor of her service to her country4 ,also-- ,gordon heard the footsteps then1 and whirled around4 ,but the three ,venusians who had crowded into the little control room were upon him before he could draw his pistol4 ,they relieved him of it quickly and tossed it to one side2 then two of them held him while the third covered his nose and mouth with a wet cloth that reeked of a cloying perfume4 ,he blacked out in a matter of seconds4 99 99 99 99 99 ,a new day was dawning when he climbed out of the deep well of drug-induced unconsciousness and opened his eyes4 ,his wrists and ankles were bound1 and he was lying on a stretcher fashioned of lashed-together saplings4 ,it was being carried by two gold-skinned ,venusians1 one of whom was the male member of the couple who had come upon him and ,sonya the previous afternoon4 ,he raised his head4 ,apparently the perfume he had inhaled possessed only part of the properties of chloroform--in any event1 he felt no ill effects4 ,turning his head1 he discovered that his captors consisted of about two dozen natives1 all told1 and that every one of them wore a metal collar4 ,half of them were women1 and one of the women was the one he and ,sonya had seen the day before4 ,there was another stretcher just behind his own4 ,sonya ,mikhailovna's face was hidden1 but he could see her horse-chestnut colored hair4 ,are you all right8 he called4 ,she did not answer4 ,clearly their captors had used the same drug on her that they had used on him1 and she was still under its influence4 ,a number of other things were also clear3 the two original ,venusians had been part of a larger group--an excursion party1 perhaps--and after vanishing into the forest1 they had rejoined the main body and reported his and ,sonya's presence4 ,the decision to capture them must have been made shortly afterward4 ,the trees thinned out on ,gordon's right1 providing him with a glimpse of distant blue-misted hills and gray-blue sea and bringing home the realization that he was being borne along the lofty inland ridge that circled the island's interior4 ,for the first time since he had opened his eyes1 fear touched him4 ,in less than two months1 ,venus would approach to within thirty million miles of ,earth--the distance which the ,space ,force technicians had used in computing his return trajectory and in estimating the amount of fuel he would need4 ,in all probability1 ,sonya's return trajectory and fuel-supply had been similarly computed and estimated1 and if so1 she was in the same boat he was4 ,if they were kept captive for any length of time1 they might not be able to return to ,earth for another year1 and while it was conceivable that they might be able to live off the land after their supplies gave out1 it was far from likely4 ,maybe1 though1 eating wouldn't be a problem4 ,dead people are as unable to eat as they are unable to tell tales4 99 99 99 99 99 ,the trees thinned out again--on his left1 this time--and he saw a bowl-shaped valley far below4 ,there were green fields and blue lakes1 and scattered clusters of white buildings4 ,villages1 no doubt4 ,they weren't large enough to have registered on his viewscope during his orbit1 but they were large enough to register on his retina now4 ,the faint trail which the ,venusians had been following began zigzagging down the side of the ridge1 and the going became more difficult4 ,they kept glancing uneasily at the sky as though they momentarily expected it to fall down upon them4 ,gordon could discern no cause for their concern2 as far as he could see1 the sky was the same hazy pink it had been yesterday--but then1 he was not a ,venusian and consequently knew nothing about such matters4 ,at the foot of the ridge1 the procession was joined by other natives1 indicating that a courier had been sent ahead to herald its approach4 ,all of the new-comers wore metal collars1 and all of them looked at ,gordon and ,sonya briefly1 then quickly glanced away4 ,sonya1 ,gordon saw1 turning his head1 had awakened1 and was regarding her surroundings with eyes that seemed to have even more harebell-blue in them than before4 ,are you all right8 he called again4 ,yes1 she said1 after a pause4 ,i am all right4 ,one of the nearer villages proved to be their captors' destination1 and after passing between several neatly laid-out fields1 the principal crop of which appeared to be a ,venusian form of sweetcorn1 the procession started down a narrow thoroughfare in the direction of a large circular stone building surmounted by a steeple-like chimney from which smoke arose in a tenuous blue-white column4 ,the buildings on either side of the street were plain to the point of bleakness1 the faades featureless save for oval windows and narrow doorways4 ,villagers were everywhere1 and all of them1 men and women alike1 sported metal collars4 ,children1 however1 were noticeably absent1 though once ,gordon caught sight of a round1 wide-eyed face in one of the oval windows4 ,he had to look fast to see it1 though1 because an instant later a woman appeared and yanked the child back out of sight4 ,he was more bewildered than ever4 ,obviously1 judging from their reactions1 the ,venusians considered him and ,sonya to be guilty of some manner of immoral crime2 but the only crime they had committed that he could think of was trespassing--and certainly trespassing couldn't be construed as immoral4 ,what in the world had they done then8 ,the procession had reached the large circular structure and was filing through its vaulted entrance4 ,terraced tiers of stone benches encircled a small1 flagstone-paved arena in the center of which were two altar-like stone blocks1 placed about five feet apart4 ,just behind the blocks stood a primitive forge1 and beside the forge stood an even more primitive anvil4 ,a gold-skinned blacksmith was busily operating a pair of crude bellows4 ,gordon and ,sonya were placed on the blocks and strapped down by means of leather thongs4 ,the tiers of benches filled rapidly1 and an air of expectation rapidly permeated the smoky atmosphere4 ,gordon began to sweat--a reaction due partly1 but not wholly1 to the heat thrown off by the forge4 ,sonya's face was white4 ,he tried to think of something reassuring to say to her1 but for the life of him he couldn't4 ,quite by accident1 his eyes met hers1 and to his consternation her cheeks changed from white to pink1 and she turned abruptly away4 99 99 99 99 99 ,the audience began to chant1 and presently a man of noble mien appeared1 bearing two strips of copper-like metal4 ,he handed them to the blacksmith and then stepped back and took up a position equidistant from each block1 after which he proceeded to look sternly down first into ,gordon's face and then into ,sonya's4 ,gordon couldn't see what the blacksmith was doing in the meantime1 but judging from the sounds the man was making1 he was busily occupied4 ,bellows wheezed and coals crackled1 and metal clanged on metal as though a ,venusian tarnhelm was in the works4 ,gordon knew perfectly well1 however1 that one wasn't and he wasn't particularly surprised when1 a little while later1 a water-soaked cloth was wrapped around his neck and was followed by one of the two metal strips4 ,steam rose from the wet cloth as the blacksmith held the two ends of the strip together until they fused1 and even more steam arose when he tempered the resultant seam with a container of water4 ,the job completed to his satisfaction1 he removed the cloth and let the still-warm collar settle against ,gordon's neck4 ,the other strip was similarly fused around ,sonya's neck1 after which the man of noble mein went into action4 ,raising his hand in a signal for the audience to cease its chanting1 he launched a long sonorous speech1 part of which he directed at ,gordon and part of which he directed at ,sonya4 ,after a ringing peroration1 during which he seemed to threaten each of them1 he produced a pinch of white powder and sprinkled some of it over each of their heads4 ,finally he drew a long double-edge knife4 ,well this is it1 ,gordon thought4 ,but it wasn't4 ,the man of noble mein merely used the knife to cut their bonds2 then1 after untying the thongs that secured them to the stone blocks1 he raised both arms in a gesture for them to stand up4 ,gordon massaged his legs before putting his weight on them1 and ,sonya followed the same precaution4 ,he could hardly believe that they were still alive1 but seemingly they were4 ,and healthy too--if the pinkness of ,soyna's cheeks was an accurate criterion4 ,the man of noble mein nodded his noble head in the direction of the entrance1 and they accompanied him outside4 ,gordon did a doubletake when they stepped into the street4 ,it was strewn with freshly picked flowers of every hue and description and lined by little children waving green twigs that resembled olive branches4 ,he came to a staring stop4 ,won't someone please tell me what's coming off8 he said4 ,sonya stopped beside him4 ,don't you really know8 she asked1 her eyes fixed on a flower at her feet that was almost as red as her face had become4 ,i know we're the focal point of some kind of ceremony--but what kind of a ceremony is it8 ,slowly ,sonya raised her eyes4 ,it's a wedding ceremony1 she said4 ,they--they married us4 99 99 99 99 99 ,the flower-carpet stretched all the way to the outskirts of the village1 and so did the two lines of little children4 ,gordon stumbled along at ,sonya's side1 hopeful that he would wake up any second in the bachelor's barracks at ,new ,canaveral4 ,but the street stubbornly refused to dissipate1 and so did the little children and the man of noble mein4 ,as for ,sonya1 much less than dissipating1 she took on added detail1 and the metal collar around her neck seemed to throw off flame after lambent flame1 and each one was brighter than its predecessor4 ,the man of noble mein escorted them outside the village1 then turned his back on them as though they no longer existed and returned the way he had come4 ,after his passage1 the little children broke ranks and began playing in the flowers4 ,gordon faced ,sonya4 ,now maybe you'll tell me why they married us1 he said4 ,i will tell you on the way back to our ships4 ,she did not speak again till they reached the top of the ridge4 ,then1 after she got her breath back1 she said4 ,they married us because1 underneath their demigod exteriors1 they are nothing more than bronze-age puritans4 ,yesterday1 when the man and woman saw us standing together by the brook1 they were bewildered because neither of us was wearing what to them is a universal symbol of marriage--a metal collar--and when you touched me they were shocked4 ,you see1 in their society1 no man and woman can be alone together unless they are married1 and it is unthinkable for a man to touch a woman unless she is his wife1 or some immediate member of his family4 ,we could have been brother and sister1 ,gordon pointed out4 ,do ,i look like your sister8 ,he had to admit that she didn't4 ,anyway1 ,sonya went on1 their trailing us to different houses must have convinced them and the rest of their party that we are not4 ,in the eyes of the ,venusians1 you see1 our spaceships are just that4 ,houses4 ,odd one1 perhaps1 by their architectural standards1 but houses just the same4 ,how else could a simple bronze-age culture interpret them8 99 99 99 99 99 ,gordon ducked beneath a blossom-laden bough4 ,how did you know they're puritans8 ,i didn't--at first4 ,i merely assumed1 from their reactions to us1 that they must be4 ,and then ,i got to thinking about how neither the sun nor the moon can be seen through the cloud-cover1 and it occurred to me that their concept of one god must have come much earlier in their civilization than would have been the case on earth1 owing to the fact that there could have been no intermediate phase of sun- or moon-worship4 ,perhaps1 somewhere along the line1 they had a ,christ whose teachings they misinterpreted1 and no doubt they have a version of ,genesis similar to the ,judaeo-,christian one--except that in theirs1 the problem of creating the sun and the moon and the stars never arose4 ,anyway1 now that they have married us1 they are no longer interested in us4 ,all that concerned them was our moral welfare4444 ,it seems to be growing dark4 ,it can't be1 ,gordon said4 ,it's only a little past noon4 ,which reminds me--,i skipped breakfast1 and supper too4 ,he pulled two concentrated food biscuits out of his fatigue-all pockets4 ,i suggest that we stop for lunch4 ,they sat down side by side beneath a tree with blue blossoms shaped like ,dutchman's-breeches hanging from its boughs4 ,they were halfway down the opposite slope of the ridge now1 but ,sonya's ship was still many hours away1 and his was an hour farther yet4 ,they ate silently for a while4 ,then1 ,there is one thing that puzzles me1 ,sonya said4 ,yes8 ,why did they marry us so soon8 ,why was there such a need for haste8 ,you made it clear enough4 ,they misinterpreted our behavior and were shocked out of their self-righteous puritanical skins4 ,she shook her head4 ,shocked1 yes--but not enough to have rushed us through a ceremony that under ordinary circumstances would have required days of preparation4 ,there must have been another reason4 ,suddenly she glanced up through the foliage at the sky4 ,it is growing dark4 ,there was no longer any denying the fact4 ,the roseate radiance of the youthful afternoon had transmuted to a sort of gray murk2 moreover1 the air had grown appreciably colder4 ,gordon stood up4 ,i think we'd better be on our way1 he said4 ,it's going to rain4 99 99 99 99 99 ,a good three hours passed1 however1 before he felt the first drop4 ,he and ,sonya were in the hills now1 and the ridge was far behind them4 ,the rain was gentle1 but it was persistent too1 and both of them were soaked before another hour had gone by4 ,we will go to my ship1 ,sonya said1 brushing back a rain-wet strand of horse-chestnut colored hair from her forehead4 ,it is much closer than yours4 ,somehow her offering him shelter in a ,soviet ship did not strike him as being in the least incongruous4 ,and when1 a moment later1 he slipped his arm around her waist1 that didn't seem incongruous either4 ,and when she permitted it to remain there1 even that didn't seem incongruous4 ,for some crazy mixed-up reason life seemed singularly devoid of incongruities all of a sudden4 ,and amazingly forthright and simple4 ,the rain was extremely penetrating--so penetrating1 in fact1 that it penetrated his skin as well as his clothing4 ,and it had a curious lulling effect4 ,no1 that wasn't the word4 ,a curious soporific effect4 ,no1 that wasn't the word1 either4 ,well what word was it1 then8 ,he couldn't call it to mind till after they reached ,sonya's ship and were standing at the base of the ,jacob's ladder4 ,by then it was too late4 ,by then he was gazing softly down into her eyes and she was gazing softly up into his1 and the world was well on its way toward being well lost4 ,he tried to force himself to step back and regard the situation with the cold and objective eye of a scientist1 to evaluate this strange and wondrous quality that fell in the form of rain and to tie it in with the ,venusians' motivation in marrying him and ,sonya posthaste4 ,in vain4 ,all he could think of was the tune she had been humming by the brook and the hole he had seen in one of her cheap cotton stockings4 ,and then she was in his arms and he was kissing her rain-wet lips1 and ,washington and ,moscow were forgotten place-names on a map that had no more meaning than the paper it was printed on4 ,the rain continued to fall4 ,softly2 gently4 ,insistently4 ,it sang soft songs in the leaves4 ,it murmured2 it whispered4 ,it laughed4 99 99 99 99 99 ,it did not cease till morning4 ,after starting back to his ship1 ,gordon mentally rehearsed the report which he and ,sonya had agreed to send to their respective headquarters4 ,it described briefly how they had been captured and released1 but discreetly made no reference either to the wedding ceremony or to the rain4 ,they had unanimously agreed that the situation was complicated enough without complicating it further4 ,he had gone less than half a mile when his collar began to press against his throat4 ,thereafter the pressure increased with every step he took1 till finally he came to a semi-strangled stop4 ,it was as though he had reached the end of an invisible leash4 ,the pressure lessened after he backed up a few paces1 went away altogether after he backed up a dozen more4 ,there was only one explanation4 ,the metal from which his and ,sonya's collars--as well as those of the ,venusians--had been forged1 possessed magnetic properties unknown to terrestrial metals1 and the attraction between objects fashioned from it grew progressively stronger as the square of the distance between them increased4 ,either the ,venusians had disciplined this attraction so that it was limited to objects fashioned from the same stock1 or the ore from which the metal was processed was naturally subdivided into small magnetically independent veins4 ,gordon did not know which was the case1 but there was one thing he did know2 when the ,venusians married you1 they meant business4 ,he began retracing his steps back to ,sonya's ship4 ,halfway there1 he saw her running toward him4 ,her white face told him that her collar had been giving her a hard time too1 and that she had arrived at a conclusion similar to his own4 ,gordon1 what are we going to do8 she gasped when she came up to him4 ,we'll get them off someway1 he reassured her4 ,come on--,i've got the necessary tools in my ship4 ,he tried all morning before he gave up4 ,the collars were impervious to his best shears1 and his hardest file failed to scratch their surface4 ,using his acetylene torch was out of the question4 99 99 99 99 99 ,he sat disconsolately down on the ground several feet from one of the landing jacks4 ,sonya sat down beside him4 ,we won't be able to go back at all now1 she said4 ,neither your ship nor mine can carry us both1 and there's no way we can occupy more than one of them at a time4 ,gordon sighed4 ,i suppose we could radio for help1 he said presently4 ,but if we did we'd have to tell them everything that happened4 ,i'm afraid they'd be sort of skeptical about the rain4 ,of course1 we could leave that part out--but ,i'm afraid they'd be skeptical about the collars too4 ,in fact1 ,i don't think they'd even believe us4 ,they'd simply jump to the conclusion that we've fal--that we don't want to return and would order us back on the double the minute maximum juxtaposition occurred4 ,no1 if we radio for help1 we've got to have a good concrete reason for doing so--one that they'll be able to understand and believe4 ,sonya managed a wan smile4 ,i--,i can just see myself standing before the ,council of ,ministers1 blaming what happened on the rain1 she said4 ,gordon laughed1 ,and ,i can just see myself standing before a congressional investigating committee1 explaining about the collars4 ,he began to feel better4 ,a situation that could lend itself to humor could not be wholly hopeless4 ,here's what we'll do for now1 he went on4 ,we'll radio back the report we agreed upon1 and then we'll go on with our work as though nothing is wrong4 ,sometimes problems solve themselves2 but just in case this one shouldn't1 and we can't go back1 we'll build a cabin so we'll have some place to live4 ,sonya's eyes sparked like a little girl's4 ,let's build it by that little brook1 she said4 ,where--where we first met4 ,fine1 ,gordon said4 99 99 99 99 99 ,during the ensuing weeks1 they spent their mornings gathering data and their afternoons working on the cabin4 ,they took time out to analyze a sample of rain water1 but it evinced no unusual qualities4 ,gordon was not surprised4 ,shortly after landing1 he had tested a sample of ,venusian water for drinking purposes1 and with the same result4 ,clearly1 the quality that had undermined their inhibitions originated in the cloud-cover1 and evaporated soon after it reached the ground4 ,after the cabin was finished1 they began going on afternoon-hikes into the hills1 tramping through idyllic woods1 talking and laughing1 exclaiming now and then at unexpected patterns of flowers1 starting at sudden rainbow-flights of birds4 ,they saw but few ,venusians1 and the few they did see ignored them4 ,one afternoon they found a fern-bordered pool beneath a white-skirted waterfall1 and after that they came there every day to swim4 ,sonya's skin darkened to a deep gold1 and looking at her1 ,gordon sometimes found it hard to breathe4 ,every so often the sky darkened1 and rain fell2 but the rain was superfluous now4 ,and as for the invisible magnetic chain that bound them together1 that had been supplanted by another invisible chain that was ten times as strong4 ,and yet the original one still remained1 and the problem it represented grew more and more acute as their scheduled departure-times approached4 ,they desperately needed a good practical reason to give their respective governments for not returning to ,earth--and quite providentially at the very last moment 7though it seemed anything but providential at the time7 they discovered that they had one4 ,or rather1 ,sonya did4 ,on the morning of the day she was scheduled to undergo the rigors of acceleration1 she regarded ,gordon shyly across the little breakfast table he had built4 ,i--,i am going to have a baby1 she said4 99 99 99 99 99 ,the news1 when it arrived in ,moscow1 had something of the impact of a hydrogen bomb1 and when it leaked through a hitherto unsuspected crevice in the ,kremlin1 there was a sort of chain-reaction throughout the entire ,soviet ,union4 ,it was at this point in his political career that the ,soviet premier discovered a universal truth3 people the world over1 whether they be communistic or capitalistic1 have a very large soft spot in their hearts when it comes to babies4 ,that spring1 ,venus outshone herself1 and hung in the evening sky over ,moscow somewhat in the manner of the star over ,bethlehem4 ,the premier had a haunted look on his face when he appeared before the ,council of ,ministers4 ,he was not alone4 ,the ,ministers had haunted looks on their faces too4 ,what did you do when you had to cope with a forthcoming space baby who would be half capitalist and half communist and who was already adored by the whole world8 ,the premier did not know4 ,but there was one thing he did know3 in the last analysis1 any party is the people1 and while you can con the people into believing that black bread is white bread and that caraway seeds are caviar1 you cannot con them into believing that a child conceived on the ,planet of ,love by a ,russian girl and an ,american boy is anything other than a harbinger of peace4 ,so in the long run1 what the premier did was the only thing he could have done4 ,he arranged a summit meeting with the president of the ,united ,states and the prime minister of ,great ,britain1 and for the first time in history1 the ,east and the ,west really got together4 ,the threat of war could not1 of course1 be totally eliminated at such short notice2 but a number of aggravations that could precipitate a war could be eliminated--and were4 ,this accomplished1 the three leaders drew up plans for a super three-man spaceship to be built posthaste by the best engineers the three nations could supply1 and unanimously agreed that the pilot would be ,english1 the obstetrician1 ,russian1 and the nurse1 ,american4 ,it has been said that after the meeting the ,soviet premier and the president of the ,united ,states got together and began thinking up names4 ,this is extremely doubtful4 ,anyway1 if they did1 they were wasting their time1 for ,sonya ,mikhailovna and ,gordon ,andrews had already taken care of the matter4 ,the name they chose is well-known today--except1 perhaps1 by those for whom this history has been recorded4 ,which brings us back to the aforementioned news bulletin4 ,in common with most news bulletins1 it has about as much poetry in it as an old shoe1 but its message shines forth with a radiance that excels even the radiance cast by the star over ,moscow4 ,geneva1 ,switzerland1 ,september #aa1 #aiif--,the young ,russo-,american ambassador-at-large1 ,ptr ,gordonovitch ,andrews1 announced this morning that his peace plan has been accepted by all major and minor powers1 and that the war that has threatened mankind for the past half century can no longer occur4 ,,the ,,end