Authentic Science Fiction, December 1951 — page 71: what you’re looking at

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

THE MOON IS HEAVEN 69 to lunge forward, his face streaked with red weals. on you lunge forward yourself. Schnabel had swung round a little at your entrance. That way, you catch him off balance. Your shoulder sends him crashing down on to a bunk and you fall on top of him,. pounding at his face and body. Ina way it’s unfair on him, your having a space helmet on. He can’t do a thing to your face. There’s just no way he can knock you out. He just has to lie there and take a pasting. While you’re doing it, you can imagine the prelude. The things that led up to Reina screaming into her helmet. And the imaginings help you to put more weight behind your punches, You even start to take pleasure in thrashing him, getting: your own back indirectly for all the insults and surli- ness the man has been throwing around since the trip started. Then you find yourself being pulled away from him. Atah’s voice comes across, still calm and quite mild. ‘‘ Better ease up now, Mike. Guess he’s had enough.” When you stand back, you see he’s right. Schnabel doesn’t get up. He just stays on the bunk and groans, And the groans swell in intensity every time he makes a movement. You reckon you’ve made a good job of it. By this time most of the others have their suits off. You and Atah do the same. You catch Reina’s eye. It has a gleam in it that makes your pulse pound. It might be the exertion, but you don’t think so. That gleam tells you a lot you wanted to know. Atah is standing over Schnabel, who has rolled over on to his back and is staring at the roof, gritting his teeth against the groans that outrage his dignity. “* Well, Schnabel, you had that coming, I’m afraid,’’ Atah says. ‘‘ Your behaviour hasn’t been all that co-operative, you'll admit. And this last episode with Reina was the last straw. I only hope you’ve learned a lesson of some kind. If you’re prepared to forget everything and start being properly human again, T guess we could arrange to forget it comicbooks.com