[Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from
Comet May 41.
Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that
the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.]
Long before Rog found the mysterious, shining ball back in themountains, he knew he was far different from the rest of his tribe thatlived along the river. He knew it because he didn't think the same waythey did, and because there was a difference even in their appearance.
Sarak, who was the Old Man of the tribe as well as his sire, and Monah,Rog's mother, were short and heavy and thickly covered with hair. Rogwas taller and straighter, and endowed with much less hair. Too, hisface was much broader through the cheekbones and less heavy-lookingaround the mouth. There was only one other in the tribe who seemed tobe of the same physical cast as Rog, and that was Lo, a young woman whodwelt with her family in Sarak's cave.
Though the stalwart, blond young man took an active part in all thework of the tribe—hunting, skinning, tool-making—there were timeswhen he would detach himself from the rest as though he were a creatureof a higher world viewing a savage orgy.
Such a time was the delirious madness of eating after the lucky killof a giant mammoth. All the able-bodied men of the tribe would aid indragging the great, quiet animal into the clearing beside the river,and then, to the cries of men, women, and children, huge hunks of fleshwould be torn off and devoured by all. The orgy did not cease until noone was able to stand without falling.
But Rog and Lo would stand back in the shadows and watch gravely,gnawing passively on smaller pieces of meat.
The others of the tribe realized that Rog and Lo were somehow differentfrom them. And because of the young man's tremendous strength andbecause he was the son of the Old Man, he was not molested. Butsecretly the slow-thinking men and women classed him with Ta, thehalf-witted boy who sat all day playing with a stick.
None of them, not even the thoughtful Lo, ever stopped to wonder howfar back their ancestors had lived in this spot. Nor did they care. ButRog found himself wondering if life had always been like this, or if ithad once been superior or inferior to their mode of life. Sometimes hewould grow curious enough to wander far down the river, or off into thehills, alone.
It was on one of those excursions, prompted by an increasingdissatisfaction with the life of the tribe, that Rog wandered back fouror five ranges from the cave dwellings. He had just sat down to eatsome of the dried meat he had brought along when his eye was caught bya glint of flashing metal off through the dense woods.
Startled, he leaped up and made his way nearer. Within ten minutes hewas standing aghast, staring at a great, gleaming globe of silver, halfburied in the soft, moldy ground. He was terrified, for an instant, andbroke into panic-stricken flight before this thing that none of theaborigines had ever seen. Then Rog's overpowering curiosity brought himcreeping back.
It was fifty times as tall as he was, just the half of it he couldsee. It sparkled in the sunlight like white fire. Then, down near theground, Rog saw a round cut in the smooth surface. Something told himthis was the way inside the ball, though there was no reason why heshould not have believed it was anything but solid. But there was aninner urge that made him approach gingerly and take hold of the longcross-bar that was set into the door.
Eagerly he pulled at it. Nothing happened. He pushed, twisted, shoved,and still the thing would not budge. Then a gleam of comprehensionflickered in his eyes. He grasped both ends of the ba