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Fantasite, v. 1, issue 4, July 1941

Page 7

7     THE FANTASITE

peculiar to itself and not to be found elsewhere. So, as their vision grew, likewise developed in their minds a childlike spirit of wonder at the miraculous secrets of creation.
From their space ships they had been unable to see much detail, but they had caught occasional glimpses of trickling threadlike roads, rectangular areas of vegetation, and clusters of tiny artificial structures. The inhabitants had not advanced sufficiently to cultivate all of their planet; but the Nolari knew that the importance of a race lay not in its degree of achievement, nor even in its speed of growth---but rather in the direction of that growth. So they flew with great rapidity over the hot ochre desert stretching before them and scanned the wastes in all directions for signs of civilization. At length they approached a group of about a hundred plane-sided structures arranged in fairly regular rows and built (as closer examination proved) of a hard dead vegetable substance. But there were no living creatures to be seen, except a few small prowling animals, from their size unsuited to live in the dwelling-places. Many of the structures had partly fallen to pieces, or even seemed to have been wilfully demoloshed. For a while the visitors investigated the interiors of the queer houses, but they found no traces of the inhabitants---with the possible exception of a number of white, hard, stick-like objects of organic origin, which one of the Nolari later suggested might have been the remains of the internal skeletal framework of one of the beings they sought.
Presently they abandoned the search, left the empty towm, and flew along a paved roadway which ran through the wasteland. At this stage of the exploration it was impossible to guess why the inhabitants had deserted their dwelling-places, but there was sufficient evidence to indicate that they had a moderately high culture. As the visitors sped through the warm, dry air, they saw that the terrain below was becoming less sandy and the vegetation was increasing. Fairly common now were certain tall leafy plants with stiff thick stems and abundant foliage that gave them the appearance of puffs of smoke when seen from a distance. Finally, the visitors perceived far away another collection of dwellings, but much larger than the first. As they drew near, they realized that this must be a major center of life on the continent, for the dwelling-places covered a vast section of the plain. Then they reached the outskirts of the inhabited area, and they saw. The city was in ruins.
Slowly they floated along on outstretched wings, staring down at the universal destruction. The box-like dwellings were smashed and torn and scattered in rubbish, as if a tremendous wind had ripped through them. But no wind on this planet could have demolished the great stone and metal structures in the center of the city, where now only crumbling foundations rose above the sprawling heaps of masonry that littered all the open spaces. Fire had blackened the ruins in many places, but over all the terrible shambles dwelt an incongrous peace and quiet. No smoke or dust arose, and there was no life but the thin slinking forms of occasional animals. The inhabitants were gone.
When the Nolari had surveyed the entire city and found it devoid of the beings they sought, they set out once more on their restless quest. Their ominous suspicions deepened into certainty when they contacted the minds of their associates in other parts of the planet and learned that they too had found only ruined dwellings and no intelligent life. From long experience among the myriad worlds of the galaxy they knew that there were three possible causes for the disappearance of a race: biological senescence and dying out, destruction through some natural calamity such as pestilence or climatic changes, and extermination under the attack of some invading horde from another planet. In this case the evidence of the demolished cities obviously pointed to the last

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7 THE FANTASITE peculiar to itself and not to be found elsewhere. So, as their vision grew, likewise developed in their minds a childlike spirit of wonder at the miraculous secrets of creation. From their space ships they had been unable to see much detail, but they had caught occasional glimpses of trickling threadlike roads, rectangular areas of vegetation, and clusters of tiny artificial structures. The inhabitants had not advanced sufficiently to cultivate all of their planet; but the Nolari knew that the importance of a race lay not in its degree of achievement, nor even in its speed of growth---but rather in the direction of that growth. So they flew with great rapidity over the hot ochre desert stretching before them and scanned the wastes in all directions for signs of civilization. At length they approached a group of about a hundred plane-sided structures arranged in fairly regular rows and built (as closer examination proved) of a hard dead vegetable substance. But there were no living creatures to be seen, except a few small prowling animals, from their size unsuited to live in the dwelling-places. Many of the structures had partly fallen to pieces, or even seemed to have been wilfully demoloshed. For a while the visitors investigated the interiors of the queer houses, but they found no traces of the inhabitants---with the possible exception of a number of white, hard, stick-like objects of organic origin, which one of the Nolari later suggested might have been the remains of the internal skeletal framework of one of the beings they sought. Presently they abandoned the search, left the empty towm, and flew along a paved roadway which ran through the wasteland. At this stage of the exploration it was impossible to guess why the inhabitants had deserted their dwelling-places, but there was sufficient evidence to indicate that they had a moderately high culture. As the visitors sped through the warm, dry air, they saw that the terrain below was becoming less sandy and the vegetation was increasing. Fairly common now were certain tall leafy plants with stiff thick stems and abundant foliage that gave them the appearance of puffs of smoke when seen from a distance. Finally, the visitors perceived far away another collection of dwellings, but much larger than the first. As they drew near, they realized that this must be a major center of life on the continent, for the dwelling-places covered a vast section of the plain. Then they reached the outskirts of the inhabited area, and they saw. The city was in ruins. Slowly they floated along on outstretched wings, staring down at the universal destruction. The box-like dwellings were smashed and torn and scattered in rubbish, as if a tremendous wind had ripped through them. But no wind on this planet could have demolished the great stone and metal structures in the center of the city, where now only crumbling foundations rose above the sprawling heaps of masonry that littered all the open spaces. Fire had blackened the ruins in many places, but over all the terrible shambles dwelt an incongrous peace and quiet. No smoke or dust arose, and there was no life but the thin slinking forms of occasional animals. The inhabitants were gone. When the Nolari had surveyed the entire city and found it devoid of the beings they sought, they set out once more on their restless quest. Their ominous suspicions deepened into certainty when they contacted the minds of their associates in other parts of the planet and learned that they too had found only ruined dwellings and no intelligent life. From long experience among the myriad worlds of the galaxy they knew that there were three possible causes for the disappearance of a race: biological senescence and dying out, destruction through some natural calamity such as pestilence or climatic changes, and extermination under the attack of some invading horde from another planet. In this case the evidence of the demolished cities obviously pointed to the last