Authentic Science Fiction Monthly, No. 51 — page 33: what you’re looking at

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

AUTHENTIC SCIENCE FICTION filling in time and no more. It counted for nothing; it was isolated, and would lead to nothing. He had been to Stellar Park only a few times before, and that had been some years ago, when he had gone along reluctantly with some rowdy friends. Even then he had not enjoyed the noise and excite- ment and boisterousness of the pleasure grounds. Now, standing beside Deborah, he - looked with distaste at the signs glowing in the sky, in- visibly strung across the heavens: the enticements of the Sensation Cave, the Underwater Adventure, and all the cheap shows and booths. “You take life seriously, don’t you?” said Deborah gently. He turned to reply, to re- pudiate the implied reproach, but the words were snatched from his lips and blown away by a sudden gust of diffused music that seemed to rise from the very ground at their feet. The air throbbed with the 32 latest complex vibrachords, twitching at the nerves and blotting out coherent thought. In the middle of the up- roar he looked into Deborah’s eyes and saw sadness welling up in them once more. He realised that her defiant cheerfulness was only a pose : she, like himself, wanted to forget, and had been looking forward to this day as some- thing that would wipe out the past just for a little while. Warren = said_~— quickly: “Shall we try the Under- water?” At once she nodded. They made their way through the surging crowds towards the edge of the sea and the gaudy booths shaped like whales and coral reefs. Warren changed quickly in his booth into the sleek trunks and helmet, and fitted the small propulsion unit on his shoulders. Then he went out to the jetty to wait for Deborah. He looked down into the green water that shaded away to deep blue a hundred yards from the comicloooks.conn