Authentic Science Fiction Monthly No. 50 — page 46: what you’re looking at

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

IT TAKES TWO Bitterness? § Apprehension? Jarril couldn’t know; but he caught the immediate in- crease in the tension in the little, domed room. “Ben,” the newcomer began without preamble. “Just seen the damnedest sight you ever saw. Looked as though space itself had boiled over. What a mess!” Nobody spoke, and _ the leather-clad man went on speaking. “Bumped into a real life- size battle on the way across. Caught surges of it in ultra- light, and as the old boat’s not as sprightly as she used to be I thought I’d better come out and check. Believe me, I got back into ultra so damned fast I must ‘have used the same warp.” Jarril could follow that all right. This man and his cockleshell had stumbled right into the battle raging out there between the second Terran battlefleet and the Sokkath fleet. “Could you catch any details?” Jarril asked sharply. “You kidding?” The new- comer half turned towards Ben. “Who is this character, anyway?” “Some soldier or other who’s been spreading dark- ness and distortion around. Surely you’ve sensed it?” “That wasn’t called for, Foss,” Claire broke in sud- denly. “Can he help it if he’s been conditioned all wrong ever since childhood ?” Jarril let all this pass by. He was hungry for informa- tion, for the feel of the great game played among the stars, if only from the lips of a civilian who wouldn’t under- stand the smallest fraction of the whole beauty of it. “Never mind all the wise- cracks,” he said, with authori- ty riding his voice. ““Tell me, fellow. Could you describe something of what you saw? _ Even a ten per cent. accurate 45 description ?” “Believe me, brother, I got out of there so fast I nearly hit my backblast going in.” “I'd be interested to hear something about it, Landau, if you feel inclined to talk,” Ben said smoothly. “We—ell,” Landau said, pulling at his leather jacket. “TI did notice that a crowd of conmcloooks.comn