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

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

THE STORM li Maltby hesitated, then tensed his mind, and held her there beside the section of ship that had been the main bridge of the Star Cluster. The long metal shape lay half buried in the marshy ground of the great valley, its lower end jutting down into the shimmering deep yellowish black waters of a sluggish river. Maltby paused a few feet from the tall, slim woman, and, still holding her unaware of him, examined once again the environ- ment that was to be their life. The fine spray of dark rain that had dogged his exploration walk was retreating over the yellow rim of valley to the “west.” ‘As he waiched, a small yellow sun burst out from behind a curtain of dark, ocherous clouds and glared at him brilliantly. Below it an expanse of jungle glinted strangely brown and yellow. Everywhere was that dark-brown and in- tense, almost liquid yellow. Maltby sighed—and turned his attention to the woman, willed her not to see him as he walked around in front of her. He had given a great deal of thought to the Right Honourable Gloria Cecily during his walk. Basically, of course, the problem of a man and a woman who were destined to live the rest of their lives together, alone, on a remote planet, was very simple. Par- ticularly in view of the fact that one of the two had been conditioned to be in love with the other. 3 Maltby smiled grimly. He could appreciate the artificial origin of that love. But that didn’t dispose of the profound fact of it. The conditioning machine had struck to his very core. Unfortunately, it had not touched her at all; and two days of being alone with her had brought out one reality: The Lady Laurr of Noble Laurr was not even remotely thinking of yielding herself to the normal requirements of the situation. It was time that she was made aware, not because an early solution was necessary or even desirable, but because she had to realize that the problem existed. He stepped forward and took her in his arms. She was a tall, graceful woman; she fitted into his embrace as if she belonged there; and, because his control of her made her return the kiss, its warmth had an effect beyond his intention. He had intended to free her mind in the middle of the kiss. He didn’t. When he finally released her, it was only a physical release. Her mind was still com- pletely under his domination. There was a metal chair that had been set just outside one of the doors. Maltby walked over, sank into it and stared up at the grand captain. He felt shaken. The flame of desire that had leaped through him was a telling tribute to the conditioning he had undergone. But it was entirely beyond his previous analysis of the intensity of his own feelings. He had thought he was in full control of himself, and he wasn’t. Somehow, the sar- donicism, the half detachment, the objec- tivity, which he had fancied was the keynote of his own reaction to this situation, didn’t apply at all. The -conditioning machine thorough. | He loved this woman with such a violence that the mere touch of her was enough to disconnect his will from operations im- mediately following. His heart grew quieter; he studied her with a semblance of detachment. She was lovely in a handsome fashion; had been though almost all robot women of the Dellian race were better-looking. Her lips, while medium _ full, were somehow a trifle cruel; and there was a quality in her eyes that accentuated that cruelty. we There were built-up emotions in this woman that would not surrender easily to the idea of being marooned for life on an unknown planet. It was something he would have to think over. Until then— Maltby sighed. And released her from the three-dimensional hypnotic spell that his two minds had imposed on her. He had taken the precaution of turning her away from him. He watched heft curiously as she stood, back to him, for a moment, very still. Then she walked over to a little knob of trees above the springy, soggy marsh land. She climbed up it and gazed in the direc- tion from which he had come a few minutes before. Evidently looking for him. She turned finally, shaded her face against the yellow brightness of the sinking sun, came down from the hillock and saw him. She stopped; her eyes narrowed. She walked over slowly. She said with an odd edge in her voice: oO comiclbooks (©