list."
Phil frowned. "But if it can duplicate any manufactured object--"
"It can. At an average expense around fifty times higher than it wouldtake to make an ordinary reproduction without it. A duplicator's no useunless you want a reproduction that's absolutely indistinguishable fromthe model."
"I see." Phil was silent a moment. "After sixty years--"
"Don't worry, Phil," Jackson said. "It's in perfect working condition.We checked that on a number of samples."
"How do you know the copies were really indistinguishable?"
Celia said impatiently, "Because that's the way the thing works. Whenthe Geest gun passed through the model plate, it was analyzed down toits last little molecule. The duplicate is now being built up from thatanalysis. Every fraction of every element used in the original will showup again exactly. Why do you think the stuff's so expensive?"
* * *
Phil grinned. "All right, I'm convinced. How do we get rid of theinscription?"
"The gadget will handle that," Jackson said. "Crack that edge off, treatthe cracked surface to match the wear of the rest." He smiled. "Makes anEarth forger's life look easy, doesn't it?"
"It is till they hook you," Celia said shortly. She finished her drink,set it on the table, added, "We've a few questions, too, Phil."
"The original gun," Jackson said. "Mind you, there's no slightest reasonto expect an investigation. But after this starts rolling, our neckswill be out just a little until we've got rid of that particular bit ofincriminating evidence."
Phil pursed his lips. "I wouldn't worry about it. Nobody but Beulah everlooks at Uncle William's collection of oddities. Most of it's completetrash. And probably only she and you and I know there's a Geest gunamong the things--William's cronies all passed away before he did. Butif the gun disappeared now, Beulah would miss it. And that--since Earthgovernment's made it illegal to possess Geest artifacts--_might_ createattention."
Jackson fingered his chin thoughtfully, said, "Of course, there'salways a way to make sure Beulah didn't kick up a fuss."
Phil hesitated. "Dr. Fitzsimmons gives Beulah another three months atthe most," he said. "If she can stay out of the hospital for even thenext eight weeks, he'll consider it some kind of miracle. That should beearly enough to take care of the gun."
"It should be," Jackson said. "However, if there does happen to be aninvestigation before that time--"
Phil looked at him, said evenly, "We'd do whatever was necessary. Itwouldn't be very agreeable, but my neck's out just as far as yours."
Celia laughed. "That's the reason we can all feel pretty safe," sheobserved. "Every last one of us is completely selfish--and there's nomore dependable kind of person than that."
Jackson flushed a little, glanced at Phil, smiled. Phil shrugged. MajorWayne Jackson, native son, Fort Roye's second in command, was scheduledfor the number one spot and a string of promotions via the transfer ofthe current commander, Colonel Thayer. Their Earthside associates wouldarrange for that as soon as the decision to turn Fort Roye into a ClassA military base was reached. Phil himself could get by with theguaranteed retention of the CLU presidency, and a membership moving upyear by year to the half million mark and beyond--he could get by very,very comfortably, in fact. While Celia Adams would develop a discreetlyfirm hold on every upcoming minor racket, facilitated by iron-cladprotection and an enforced lack of all competitors.
"We're all thinking of Roye's future, Celia," Phil said amiably, "eachin his own way. And the future looks pretty bright. In fact, the onlypossible stumbling block I can still see is right here on Roye, and it'sHonest Silas Thayer. If our colonel covers up the Geest gun findtomorrow--"
Jackson grinned, shook his head. "Leave that to me, my boy--and to ourvery distinguished visitors from Earth. Commissioner Sanford hasarranged to be in Thayer's company on Territorial Office business allday tomorrow. Science Officer Vaughn is dizzy with delight becauseRonald Black and most of the newsgathering troop will inspect hisdiggings in the ruins in the morning, with the promise of giving histheories about the vanished natives of Roye a nice spread on Earth.Black will happen to ask me to accompany the party. Between Black andSanford--and myself--Colonel Silas Thayer won't have a chance tosuppress the discovery of a Geest gun on Roye until the military has hada chance to look into it fully. And the only one he can possibly blamefor that will be Science Officer Norm Vaughn--for whom, I'll admit, Ifeel just a little bit sorry!"
* * * * *
First Lieutenant Norman Vaughn was an intense and frustrated young manwhose unusually thick contact lenses and wide mouth gave him someresemblance to a melancholy frog. He suspected, correctly, that a goodScience Officer would not have been transferred from Earth to Roye whichwas a planet deficient in scientific problems of any magnitude, andwhere requisitions for research purposes were infrequently andgrudgingly granted.
The great spiraled ruin on the peninsula of Fort Roye had been Vaughn'sone solace. Several similar deserted structures were known to be on theplanet, but this was by far in the best condition and no doubt the mostrecently built. To him, if to no one else, it became clear that theconstruction had been carried out with conscious plan and purpose, andhe gradually amassed great piles of notes to back up his theory that thevanished builders were of near-human intelligence. Unfortunately, theirbodies appeared to have lacked hard and durable parts, since nothingthat could be construed as their remains was found; and what LieutenantVaughn regarded as undeniable artifacts, on the level of very earlyMan's work, looked to others like chance shards and lumps of the tough,shell-like material of which the ruins were composed.
Therefore, while Vaughn was--as Jackson had pointed out--really dizzywith delight when Ronald Black, that giant of Earth's news media, firstindicated an interest in the ruins and his theories about them, thisfeeling soon became mixed with acute anxiety. For such a chance surelywould not come again if the visitors remained unconvinced by what heshowed them, and what--actually--did he have to show? In the morning,when the party set out, Vaughn was in a noticeably nervous frame ofmind.
Two hours later, he burst into the anteroom of the base commander'soffice in Fort Roye, where the warrant on duty almost failed torecognize him. Lieutenant Vaughn's eyes glittered through their thicklenses; his face was red and he was grinning from ear to ear. He poundedpast the startled warrant, pulled open the door to the inner officewhere Colonel Thayer sat with the visiting Territorial Commissioner, andplunged inside.
"Sir," the warrant heard him quaver breathlessly, "I have the proof--theundeniable proof! They _were_ intelligent beings. They did _not_ die ofdisease. They were exterminated in war! They were ... but see foryourself!" There was a thud as he dropped something on the polishedtable top between the commissioner and Colonel Thayer. "_That_ was dugup just now--among their own artifacts!"
Silas Thayer was on his feet, sucking in his breath for the blast thatwould hurl his blundering Science Officer back out of the office. Whathalted him was an odd, choked exclamation from Commissioner Sanford. Thecolonel's gaze flicked over to the visitor, then followed Sanford'sstare to the object on the table.
For an instant, Colonel Thayer froze.
Vaughn was bubbling on. "And, sir, I ..."
"Shut up!" Thayer snapped. He continued immediately, "You say this wasfound in the diggings in the ruins?"
"Yes, sir--just now! It's ..."
Lieutenant Vaughn checked himself under the colonel's stare, somedawning comprehension of the enormous irregularities he'd committedshowing in his flushed face. He licked his lips uncertainly.
"You will excuse me for a moment, sir," Thayer said to CommissionerSanford. He picked the Geest gun up gingerly by its unmistakably curvedshaft, took it over to the office safe, laid it inside and relocked thesafe. He then left the office.
* * *
In an adjoining room, Thayer rapped out Major Wayne Jackson's codenumber on a communicator. He heard a faint click as Jacks
on's wristspeaker switched on, and said quickly, "Wayne, are you in a position tospeak?"
"I am at the moment," Jackson's voice replied cautiously.
Colonel Thayer said, "Norm Vaughn just crashed in here with something heclaims was found in the diggings. Sanford saw it, and obviouslyrecognized it. We might be able to keep him quiet. But now somequestions. Was that item actually dug up just now?"
"Apparently it was," Jackson said. "I didn't see it happen--I wastalking to Black at the moment. But there are over