to a stop.
“All set,” he said. “The big reduction gears aren’t taking
the strain too well, though.”
“Splintering?”
“Yes. I’d go it slow at first.”
Lavon nodded mutely. Without allowing himself to stop,
even for a moment, to consider the consequences of his
words, he called: “Half power.” ,
The ship hunched itself down again and began to move,
very slowly indeed, but more smoothly than before. Over-
head, the sky thinned to complete transparency. The great
light came blasting in. Behind Lavon there was an uneasy stir.
The whiteness grew at the front ports.
Again the ship slowed, straining against the blinding bar-
rier. Lavon swallowed and called for more power. The ship
groaned like something about to die. It was now almost at
a standstill.
“More power,” Lavon ground out.
Once more, with infinite slowness, the ship began to move.
Gently, it tilted upward.
Then it lunged forward and every board and beam in it
began to squall.
“Lavoni Lavon!”
Lavon started sharply at the shout. The voice was coming
at him from one of the megaphones, the one marked for the
port at the rear of the ship.
“Lavoni”
“What is it? Stop your damn yelling.”
“I can see the top of the skyl From the other side, from the
top side! It’s like a big flat sheet of metal. We’re going away
from. it. We’re above the sky, Lavon, we’re above the sky!”
Another violent start swung Lavon around toward the for-
ward port. On the outside of the mica, the water was evap-
orating with shocking swiftness, taking with it strange distor-
tions and patterns made of rainbows.