Authentic Science Fiction Monthly No. 41 — page 69: what you’re looking at

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

AUTHENTIC SCIENCE FICTION they’ll never get the chance to hear it.”’ “But they will, Bax. I want you to transcribe it into your composition.” He stared at her in genuine horror. “TI can’t do that, Zora. I'd be signing my own death warrant. The Secs would arrest me as soon as the first notes got broadcast. Then they’d cut the transmission, and that would be an end to everything.” She $Smiled persuasively, and moved towards him. ““You don’t have to worry about broadcasting Reversionist music, darling, because the Reversionists will be looking after your skin and your interests. You’ve heard of Karl Soliki? This thing was planned by him, and every conceivable detail has been considered. Tomorrow the revolution against Bressler’s technocrat dictatorship begins —and matrix 24, containing the Reversionist music, will be the signal. Let me explain...” Some time later Zora de- _ scended swiftly to street level in the gravity drop tube, and went down the ramp to the . subway, where the velo-tracks conveyed pedestrians to all parts of the city—humanity on high speed conveyor belts. She stepped off at the West Mantan commuting point, and walked swiftly through the chasm-like streets of the city to a resi- dential skyscraper, set back a little off the main highway. Here she ascended by pneu- matic elevator to the fortieth storey, and pressed a button on the door of an apartment. A video monitor lamp flashed momentarily above her eyes, then the door slid silently into the wall. She stepped into the welcoming arms of a tall, dark, and pleasantly ugly man. She said: ‘“‘Hello, Karl. Guess what?” ““T never guess. I always have reliable information.” “Then what’s your reliable information about me?” ‘That you love me.” “Good guess.” He smiled—a little sar- donically—and led her into the lounge, a luxuriously fur- nished room with cold, grey- wash walls, and concealed rose lighting that seemed to add heightened colour to the 68 Comics ooksscon