Astounding Science Fiction (British Edition) — page 13: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

THE GULF BETWEEN 11 humans serve in exactly the same manner as machines. There is no dif- ference once the human has been conditioned into obedience.” Knight switched the subject a- bruptly, feeling that the talk of Center was not going far enough toward causing Cullin to reveal his business in Punta Azul. “I see that Premier Dovorski is doing a good job of apply- ing that philosophy to the Russo- Asians,” he remarked. “He’s really making robots out of the people.” “So I’ve heard,” Cullin said making no other comment but his eyes suddenly more watchful. “IT suppose there will be war again within ten years.”’ Knight idly swirled the beer in his glass. “We'll be out- numbered four to one, but maybe we can have the Computer give us some- thing that will even the odds.” Cullin hesitated, then said: “I hear rumors that you have both a spaceship and a disintegrator ray on the drawing board. The disintegretor ray should even the odds, if it’s as good as the rumors say. Of course, I suppose these rumors usually exaggerate the true facts?”’ “I suppose.” Knight ignored the question. “Sometimes we deliberately create rumors to throw Dovorski’s spies off on false leads, too. One was caught in Center yesterday. He made the mistake of trying to shoot it out with the Center police, but he lived long enough to talk a little.” Suspicion blazed in Cullin’s eyes, and there was menace in the way he silently waited for Knight to continue. “We didn’t think he would know the identity of the head of the Russo- Asian spy ring, but we asked him, anyway, Knight said, still swirling his beer, Cullin stared at him and waited, as a rattlesnake might wait, poised to strike. The bulge of his hand in his coat pocket showed that his finger was on the trigger and Knight could hear the sound of his own breathing in the silence. A fly droned loudly across the room and out the door, while Carlos’ low humming made an incongruously melodious back- _ ground to the deadly tension. He ceased swirling the beer in his glass and looked Cullin full in the eyes, grinning mockingly at him. “He gave us a name, Cullin.” “So you were leading me on?” Cullin hissed. “‘You’ve just written out your own death warrant—fool! You're going with me!” “And espionage is the new field where your abilities are appreciated and rewarded?” Knight shook his head with feigned sympathy. “You really had no reason to give yourself away. I came down here on a suspicion of ‘fishermen’ who hire boats from the Mexicans at regular intervals. I wouldn’t have connected you with it if you hadn’t been so curious about the Computer, and then naive enough to fall into my crude little trap. I told you the spy gave us a name—he did. He told us his own name, then he died.” “T'm afraid your cleverness has backfired on you, Knight, but enjoy it while you can. You can go to the beach with me and prolong your life for a little while, or you can take it here and now—which?” “I’m not too fond of the idea of taking it either place, but I wouldn’t want to mess up Carlos’ floor.” Knight swirled the war beer again and held it up to the light. “Flat. The Greeks had an expression for everything, didn’t they?” he asked, smiling, then said something swiftly in a foreign tongue. Cullin reacted as quickly as a cat, the pistol out of his pocket and hard against Knight’s stomach, his head jerking around to watch Carlos. EComichookssco im