The Defenders By PHILIP K. DICK Illustrated by EMSH _No weapon has ever been frightful enough to put a stop to war--perhaps because we never before had any that thought for themselves!_ [Illustration] Taylor sat back in his chair reading the morning newspaper. The warmkitchen and the smell of coffee blended with the comfort of not havingto go to work. This was his Rest Period, the first for a long time, andhe was glad of it. He folded the second section back, sighing withcontentment. "What is it?" Mary said, from the stove. "They pasted Moscow again last night. " Taylor nodded his head inapproval. "Gave it a real pounding. One of those R-H bombs. It's abouttime. " He nodded again, feeling the full comfort of the kitchen, the presenceof his plump, attractive wife, the breakfast dishes and coffee. This wasrelaxation. And the war news was good, good and satisfying. He couldfeel a justifiable glow at the news, a sense of pride and personalaccomplishment. After all, he was an integral part of the war program, not just another factory worker lugging a cart of scrap, but atechnician, one of those who designed and planned the nerve-trunk of thewar. "It says they have the new subs almost perfected. Wait until they get_those_ going. " He smacked his lips with anticipation. "When they startshelling from underwater, the Soviets are sure going to be surprised. " "They're doing a wonderful job, " Mary agreed vaguely. "Do you know whatwe saw today? Our team is getting a leady to show to the schoolchildren. I saw the leady, but only for a moment. It's good for thechildren to see what their contributions are going for, don't youthink?" She looked around at him. "A leady, " Taylor murmured. He put the newspaper slowly down. "Well, make sure it's decontaminated properly. We don't want to take anychances. " "Oh, they always bathe them when they're brought down from the surface, "Mary said. "They wouldn't think of letting them down without the bath. Would they?" She hesitated, thinking back. "Don, you know, it makes meremember--" He nodded. "I know. " * * * * * He knew what she was thinking. Once in the very first weeks of the war, before everyone had been evacuated from the surface, they had seen ahospital train discharging the wounded, people who had been showeredwith sleet. He remembered the way they had looked, the expression ontheir faces, or as much of their faces as was left. It had not been apleasant sight. There had been a lot of that at first, in the early days before thetransfer to undersurface was complete. There had been a lot, and ithadn't been very difficult to come across it. Taylor looked up at his wife. She was thinking too much about it, thelast few months. They all were. "Forget it, " he said. "It's all in the past. There isn't anybody upthere now but the leadys, and they don't mind. " "But just the same, I hope they're careful when they let one of themdown here. If one were still hot--" He laughed, pushing himself away from the table. "Forget it. This is awonderful moment; I'll be home for the next two shifts. Nothing to dobut sit around and take things easy. Maybe we can take in a show. Okay?" "A show? Do we have to? I don't like to look at all the destruction, theruins. Sometimes I see some place I remember, like San Francisco. Theyshowed a shot of San Francisco, the bridge broken and fallen in thewater, and I got upset. I don't like to watch. " "But don't you want to know what's going on? No human beings are gettinghurt, you know. " "But it's so awful!" Her face was set and strained. "Please, no, Don. " Don Taylor picked up his newspaper sullenly. "All right, but thereisn't a hell of a lot else to do. And don't forget, _their_ cities aregetting it even worse. " She nodded. Taylor turned the rough, thin sheets of newspaper. His goodmood had soured on him. Why did she have to fret all the time? They werepretty well off, as things went. You couldn't expect to have everythingperfect, living undersurface, with an artificial sun and artificialfood. Naturally it was a strain, not seeing the sky or being able to goany place or see anything other than metal walls, great roaringfactories, the plant-yards, barracks. But it was better than being onsurface. And some day it would end and they could return. Nobody_wanted_ to live this way, but it was necessary. He turned the page angrily and the poor paper ripped. Damn it, the paperwas getting worse quality all the time, bad print, yellow tint-- Well, they needed everything for the war program. He ought to know that. Wasn't he one of the planners? He excused himself and went into the other room. The bed was stillunmade. They had better get it in shape before the seventh hourinspection. There was a one unit fine-- The vidphone rang. He halted. Who would it be? He went over and clickedit on. "Taylor?" the face said, forming into place. It was an old face, grayand grim. "This is Moss. I'm sorry to bother you during Rest Period, butthis thing has come up. " He rattled papers. "I want you to hurry overhere. " Taylor stiffened. "What is it? There's no chance it could wait?" Thecalm gray eyes were studying him, expressionless, unjudging. "If youwant me to come down to the lab, " Taylor grumbled, "I suppose I can. I'll get my uniform--" "No. Come as you are. And not to the lab. Meet me at second stage assoon as possible. It'll take you about a half hour, using the fast carup. I'll see you there. " The picture broke and Moss disappeared. * * * * * "What was it?" Mary said, at the door. "Moss. He wants me for something. " "I knew this would happen. " "Well, you didn't want to do anything, anyhow. What does it matter?" Hisvoice was bitter. "It's all the same, every day. I'll bring you backsomething. I'm going up to second stage. Maybe I'll be close enough tothe surface to--" "Don't! Don't bring me anything! Not from the surface!" "All right, I won't. But of all the irrational nonsense--" She watched him put on his boots without answering. * * * * * Moss nodded and Taylor fell in step with him, as the older man strodealong. A series of loads were going up to the surface, blind carsclanking like ore-trucks up the ramp, disappearing through the stagetrap above them. Taylor watched the cars, heavy with tubular machineryof some sort, weapons new to him. Workers were everywhere, in the darkgray uniforms of the labor corps, loading, lifting, shouting back andforth. The stage was deafening with noise. "We'll go up a way, " Moss said, "where we can talk. This is no place togive you details. " They took an escalator up. The commercial lift fell behind them, andwith it most of the crashing and booming. Soon they emerged on anobservation platform, suspended on the side of the Tube, the vast tunnelleading to the surface, not more than half a mile above them now. "My God!" Taylor said, looking down the Tube involuntarily. "It's a longway down. " Moss laughed. "Don't look. " They opened a door and entered an office. Behind the desk, an officerwas sitting, an officer of Internal Security. He looked up. "I'll be right with you, Moss. " He gazed at Taylor studying him. "You'rea little ahead of time. " "This is Commander Franks, " Moss said to Taylor. "He was the first tomake the discovery. I was notified last night. " He tapped a parcel hecarried. "I was let in because of this. " Franks frowned at him and stood up. "We're going up to first stage. Wecan discuss it there. " "First stage?" Taylor repeated nervously. The three of them went down aside passage to a small lift. "I've never been up there. Is it allright? It's not radioactive, is it?" "You're like everyone else, " Franks said. "Old women afraid of burglars. No radiation leaks down to first stage. There's lead and rock, and whatcomes down the Tube is bathed. " "What's the nature of the problem?" Taylor asked. "I'd like to knowsomething about it. " "In a moment. " They entered the lift and ascended. When they stepped out, they were ina hall of soldiers, weapons and uniforms everywhere. Taylor blinked insurprise. So this was first stage, the closest undersurface level to thetop! After this stage there was only rock, lead and rock, and the greattubes leading up like the burrows of earthworms. Lead and rock, andabove that, where the tubes opened, the great expanse that no livingbeing had seen for eight years, the vast, endless ruin that had oncebeen Man's home, the place where he had lived, eight years ago. Now the surface was a lethal desert of slag and rolling clouds. Endlessclouds drifted back and forth, blotting out the red Sun. Occasionallysomething metallic stirred, moving through the remains of a city, threading its way across the tortured terrain of the countryside. Aleady, a surface robot, immune to radiation, constructed with feverishhaste in the last months before the cold war became literally hot. Leadys, crawling along the ground, moving over the oceans or through theskies in slender, blackened craft, creatures that could exist where no_life_ could remain, metal and plastic figures that waged a war Man hadconceived, but which he could not fight himself. Human beings hadinvented war, invented and manufactured the weapons, even invented theplayers, the fighters, the actors of the war. But they themselves couldnot venture forth, could not wage it themselves. In all the world--inRussia, in Europe, America, Africa--no living human being remained. Theywere under the surface, in the deep shelters that had been carefullyplanned and built, even as the first bombs began to fall. It was a brilliant idea and the only idea that could have worked. Upabove, on the ruined, blasted surface of what had once been a livingplanet, the leady crawled and scurried, and fought Man's war. Andundersurface, in the depths of the planet, human beings toiled endlesslyto produce the weapons to continue the fight, month by month, year byyear. * * * * * "First stage, " Taylor said. A strange ache went through him. "Almost tothe surface. " "But not quite, " Moss said. Franks led them through the soldiers, over to one side, near the lip ofthe Tube. "In a few minutes, a lift will bring something down to us from thesurface, " he explained. "You see, Taylor, every once in a while Securityexamines and interrogates a surface leady, one that has been above for atime, to find out certain things. A vidcall is sent up and contact ismade with a field headquarters. We need this direct interview; we can'tdepend on vidscreen contact alone. The leadys are doing a good job, butwe want to make certain that everything is going the way we want it. " Franks faced Taylor and Moss and continued: "The lift will bring down aleady from the surface, one of the A-class leadys. There's anexamination chamber in the next room, with a lead wall in the center, sothe interviewing officers won't be exposed to radiation. We find thiseasier than bathing the leady. It is going right back up; it has a jobto get back to. "Two days ago, an A-class leady was brought down and interrogated. Iconducted the session myself. We were interested in a new weapon theSoviets have been using, an automatic mine that pursues anything thatmoves. Military had sent instructions up that the mine be observed andreported in detail. "This A-class leady was brought down with information. We learned a fewfacts from it, obtained the usual roll of film and reports, and thensent it back up. It was going out of the chamber, back to the lift, whena curious thing happened. At the time, I thought--" Franks broke off. A red light was flashing. "That down lift is coming. " He nodded to some soldiers. "Let's enter thechamber. The leady will be along in a moment. " "An A-class leady, " Taylor said. "I've seen them on the showscreens, making their reports. " "It's quite an experience, " Moss said. "They're almost human. " * * * * * They entered the chamber and seated themselves behind the lead wall. After a time, a signal was flashed, and Franks made a motion with hishands. The door beyond the wall opened. Taylor peered through his view slot. Hesaw something advancing slowly, a slender metallic figure moving on atread, its arm grips at rest by its sides. The figure halted and scannedthe lead wall. It stood, waiting. "We are interested in learning something, " Franks said. "Before Iquestion you, do you have anything to report on surface conditions?" "No. The war continues. " The leady's voice was automatic and toneless. "We are a little short of fast pursuit craft, the single-seat type. Wecould use also some--" "That has all been noted. What I want to ask you is this. Our contactwith you has been through vidscreen only. We must rely on indirectevidence, since none of us goes above. We can only infer what is goingon. We never see anything ourselves. We have to take it all secondhand. Some top leaders are beginning to think there's too much room forerror. " "Error?" the leady asked. "In what way? Our reports are checkedcarefully before they're sent down. We maintain constant contact withyou; everything of value is reported. Any new weapons which the enemy isseen to employ--" "I realize that, " Franks grunted behind his peep slot. "But perhaps weshould see it all for ourselves. Is it possible that there might be alarge enough radiation-free area for a human party to ascend to thesurface? If a few of us were to come up in lead-lined suits, would we beable to survive long enough to observe conditions and watch things?" The machine hesitated before answering. "I doubt it. You can check airsamples, of course, and decide for yourselves. But in the eight yearssince you left, things have continually worsened. You cannot have anyreal idea of conditions up there. It has become difficult for any movingobject to survive for long. There are many kinds of projectilessensitive to movement. The new mine not only reacts to motion, butcontinues to pursue the object indefinitely, until it finally reachesit. And the radiation is everywhere. " "I see. " Franks turned to Moss, his eyes narrowed oddly. "Well, that waswhat I wanted to know. You may go. " The machine moved back toward its exit. It paused. "Each month theamount of lethal particles in the atmosphere increases. The tempo of thewar is gradually--" "I understand. " Franks rose. He held out his hand and Moss passed himthe package. "One thing before you leave. I want you to examine a newtype of metal shield material. I'll pass you a sample with the tong. " Franks put the package in the toothed grip and revolved the tong so thathe held the other end. The package swung down to the leady, which tookit. They watched it unwrap the package and take the metal plate in itshands. The leady turned the metal over and over. Suddenly it became rigid. "All right, " Franks said. He put his shoulder against the wall and a section slid aside. Taylorgasped--Franks and Moss were hurrying up to the leady! "Good God!" Taylor said. "But it's radioactive!" * * * * * The leady stood unmoving, still holding the metal. Soldiers appeared inthe chamber. They surrounded the leady and ran a counter across itcarefully. "Okay, sir, " one of them said to Franks. "It's as cold as a long winterevening. " "Good. I was sure, but I didn't want to take any chances. " "You see, " Moss said to Taylor, "this leady isn't hot at all. Yet itcame directly from the surface, without even being bathed. " "But what does it mean?" Taylor asked blankly. "It may be an accident, " Franks said. "There's always the possibilitythat a given object might escape being exposed above. But this is thesecond time it's happened that we know of. There may be others. " "The second time?" "The previous interview was when we noticed it. The leady was not hot. It was cold, too, like this one. " Moss took back the metal plate from the leady's hands. He pressed thesurface carefully and returned it to the stiff, unprotesting fingers. "We shorted it out with this, so we could get close enough for athorough check. It'll come back on in a second now. We had better getbehind the wall again. " They walked back and the lead wall swung closed behind them. Thesoldiers left the chamber. "Two periods from now, " Franks said softly, "an initial investigatingparty will be ready to go surface-side. We're going up the Tube insuits, up to the top--the first human party to leave undersurface ineight years. " "It may mean nothing, " Moss said, "but I doubt it. Something's going on, something strange. The leady told us no life could exist above withoutbeing roasted. The story doesn't fit. " Taylor nodded. He stared through the peep slot at the immobile metalfigure. Already the leady was beginning to stir. It was bent in severalplaces, dented and twisted, and its finish was blackened and charred. Itwas a leady that had been up there a long time; it had seen war anddestruction, ruin so vast that no human being could imagine the extent. It had crawled and slunk in a world of radiation and death, a worldwhere no life could exist. And Taylor had touched it! "You're going with us, " Franks said suddenly. "I want you along. I thinkthe three of us will go. " * * * * * Mary faced him with a sick and frightened expression. "I know it. You'regoing to the surface. Aren't you?" She followed him into the kitchen. Taylor sat down, looking away fromher. "It's a classified project, " he evaded. "I can't tell you anything aboutit. " "You don't have to tell me. I know. I knew it the moment you came in. There was something on your face, something I haven't seen there for along, long time. It was an old look. " She came toward him. "But how can they send you to the surface?" Shetook his face in her shaking hands, making him look at her. There was astrange hunger in her eyes. "Nobody can live up there. Look, look atthis!" She grabbed up a newspaper and held it in front of him. "Look at this photograph. America, Europe, Asia, Africa--nothing butruins. We've seen it every day on the showscreens. All destroyed, poisoned. And they're sending you up. Why? No living thing can get by upthere, not even a weed, or grass. They've wrecked the surface, haven'tthey? _Haven't they?_" Taylor stood up. "It's an order. I know nothing about it. I was told toreport to join a scout party. That's all I know. " He stood for a long time, staring ahead. Slowly, he reached for thenewspaper and held it up to the light. "It looks real, " he murmured. "Ruins, deadness, slag. It's convincing. All the reports, photographs, films, even air samples. Yet we haven'tseen it for ourselves, not after the first months ... " "What are you talking about?" "Nothing. " He put the paper down. "I'm leaving early after the nextSleep Period. Let's turn in. " Mary turned away, her face hard and harsh. "Do what you want. We mightjust as well all go up and get killed at once, instead of dying slowlydown here, like vermin in the ground. " He had not realized how resentful she was. Were they all like that? Howabout the workers toiling in the factories, day and night, endlessly?The pale, stooped men and women, plodding back and forth to work, blinking in the colorless light, eating synthetics-- "You shouldn't be so bitter, " he said. Mary smiled a little. "I'm bitter because I know you'll never comeback. " She turned away. "I'll never see you again, once you go upthere. " He was shocked. "What? How can you say a thing like that?" She did not answer. * * * * * He awakened with the public newscaster screeching in his ears, shoutingoutside the building. "Special news bulletin! Surface forces report enormous Soviet attackwith new weapons! Retreat of key groups! All work units report tofactories at once!" Taylor blinked, rubbing his eyes. He jumped out of bed and hurried tothe vidphone. A moment later he was put through to Moss. "Listen, " he said. "What about this new attack? Is the project off?" Hecould see Moss's desk, covered with reports and papers. "No, " Moss said. "We're going right ahead. Get over here at once. " "But--" "Don't argue with me. " Moss held up a handful of surface bulletins, crumpling them savagely. "This is a fake. Come on!" He broke off. Taylor dressed furiously, his mind in a daze. Half an hour later, he leaped from a fast car and hurried up the stairsinto the Synthetics Building. The corridors were full of men and womenrushing in every direction. He entered Moss's office. "There you are, " Moss said, getting up immediately. "Franks is waitingfor us at the outgoing station. " They went in a Security Car, the siren screaming. Workers scattered outof their way. "What about the attack?" Taylor asked. Moss braced his shoulders. "We're certain that we've forced their hand. We've brought the issue to a head. " They pulled up at the station link of the Tube and leaped out. A momentlater they were moving up at high speed toward the first stage. They emerged into a bewildering scene of activity. Soldiers werefastening on lead suits, talking excitedly to each other, shouting backand forth. Guns were being given out, instructions passed. Taylor studied one of the soldiers. He was armed with the dreaded Benderpistol, the new snub-nosed hand weapon that was just beginning to comefrom the assembly line. Some of the soldiers looked a little frightened. "I hope we're not making a mistake, " Moss said, noticing his gaze. Franks came toward them. "Here's the program. The three of us are goingup first, alone. The soldiers will follow in fifteen minutes. " "What are we going to tell the leadys?" Taylor worriedly asked. "We'llhave to tell them something. " "We want to observe the new Soviet attack. " Franks smiled ironically. "Since it seems to be so serious, we should be there in person towitness it. " "And then what?" Taylor said. "That'll be up to them. Let's go. " * * * * * In a small car, they went swiftly up the Tube, carried by anti-gravbeams from below. Taylor glanced down from time to time. It was a longway back, and getting longer each moment. He sweated nervously insidehis suit, gripping his Bender pistol with inexpert fingers. Why had they chosen him? Chance, pure chance. Moss had asked him to comealong as a Department member. Then Franks had picked him out on the spurof the moment. And now they were rushing toward the surface, faster andfaster. A deep fear, instilled in him for eight years, throbbed in his mind. Radiation, certain death, a world blasted and lethal-- Up and up the car went. Taylor gripped the sides and closed his eyes. Each moment they were closer, the first living creatures to go above thefirst stage, up the Tube past the lead and rock, up to the surface. Thephobic horror shook him in waves. It was death; they all knew that. Hadn't they seen it in the films a thousand times? The cities, the sleetcoming down, the rolling clouds-- "It won't be much longer, " Franks said. "We're almost there. The surfacetower is not expecting us. I gave orders that no signal was to be sent. " The car shot up, rushing furiously. Taylor's head spun; he hung on, hiseyes shut. Up and up.... The car stopped. He opened his eyes. They were in a vast room, fluorescent-lit, a cavern filled withequipment and machinery, endless mounds of material piled in row afterrow. Among the stacks, leadys were working silently, pushing trucks andhandcarts. "Leadys, " Moss said. His face was pale. "Then we're really on thesurface. " The leadys were going back and forth with equipment moving the vaststores of guns and spare parts, ammunition and supplies that had beenbrought to the surface. And this was the receiving station for only oneTube; there were many others, scattered throughout the continent. Taylor looked nervously around him. They were really there, aboveground, on the surface. This was where the war was. "Come on, " Franks said. "A B-class guard is coming our way. " * * * * * They stepped out of the car. A leady was approaching them rapidly. Itcoasted up in front of them and stopped, scanning them with itshand-weapon raised. "This is Security, " Franks said. "Have an A-class sent to me at once. " The leady hesitated. Other B-class guards were coming, scooting acrossthe floor, alert and alarmed. Moss peered around. "Obey!" Franks said in a loud, commanding voice. "You've been ordered!" The leady moved uncertainly away from them. At the end of the building, a door slid back. Two A-class leadys appeared, coming slowly towardthem. Each had a green stripe across its front. "From the Surface Council, " Franks whispered tensely. "This is aboveground, all right. Get set. " The two leadys approached warily. Without speaking, they stopped closeby the men, looking them up and down. "I'm Franks of Security. We came from undersurface in order to--" "This in incredible, " one of the leadys interrupted him coldly. "Youknow you can't live up here. The whole surface is lethal to you. Youcan't possibly remain on the surface. " "These suits will protect us, " Franks said. "In any case, it's not yourresponsibility. What I want is an immediate Council meeting so I canacquaint myself with conditions, with the situation here. Can that bearranged?" "You human beings can't survive up here. And the new Soviet attack isdirected at this area. It is in considerable danger. " "We know that. Please assemble the Council. " Franks looked around him atthe vast room, lit by recessed lamps in the ceiling. An uncertainquality came into his voice. "Is it night or day right now?" "Night, " one of the A-class leadys said, after a pause. "Dawn is comingin about two hours. " Franks nodded. "We'll remain at least two hours, then. As a concessionto our sentimentality, would you please show us some place where we canobserve the Sun as it comes up? We would appreciate it. " A stir went through the leadys. "It is an unpleasant sight, " one of the leadys said. "You've seen thephotographs; you know what you'll witness. Clouds of drifting particlesblot out the light, slag heaps are everywhere, the whole land isdestroyed. For you it will be a staggering sight, much worse thanpictures and film can convey. " "However it may be, we'll stay long enough to see it. Will you give theorder to the Council?" * * * * * "Come this way. " Reluctantly, the two leadys coasted toward the wall ofthe warehouse. The three men trudged after them, their heavy shoesringing against the concrete. At the wall, the two leadys paused. "This is the entrance to the Council Chamber. There are windows in theChamber Room, but it is still dark outside, of course. You'll seenothing right now, but in two hours--" "Open the door, " Franks said. The door slid back. They went slowly inside. The room was small, a neatroom with a round table in the center, chairs ringing it. The three ofthem sat down silently, and the two leadys followed after them, takingtheir places. "The other Council Members are on their way. They have already beennotified and are coming as quickly as they can. Again I urge you to goback down. " The leady surveyed the three human beings. "There is no wayyou can meet the conditions up here. Even we survive with some trouble, ourselves. How can you expect to do it?" The leader approached Franks. "This astonishes and perplexes us, " it said. "Of course we must do whatyou tell us, but allow me to point out that if you remain here--" "We know, " Franks said impatiently. "However, we intend to remain, atleast until sunrise. " "If you insist. " There was silence. The leadys seemed to be conferring with each other, although the three men heard no sound. "For your own good, " the leader said at last, "you must go back down. Wehave discussed this, and it seems to us that you are doing the wrongthing for your own good. " "We are human beings, " Franks said sharply. "Don't you understand? We'remen, not machines. " "That is precisely why you must go back. This room is radioactive; allsurface areas are. We calculate that your suits will not protect you forover fifty more minutes. Therefore--" The leadys moved abruptly toward the men, wheeling in a circle, forminga solid row. The men stood up, Taylor reaching awkwardly for his weapon, his fingers numb and stupid. The men stood facing the silent metalfigures. "We must insist, " the leader said, its voice without emotion. "We musttake you back to the Tube and send you down on the next car. I am sorry, but it is necessary. " "What'll we do?" Moss said nervously to Franks. He touched his gun. "Shall we blast them?" Franks shook his head. "All right, " he said to the leader. "We'll goback. " * * * * * He moved toward the door, motioning Taylor and Moss to follow him. Theylooked at him in surprise, but they came with him. The leadys followedthem out into the great warehouse. Slowly they moved toward the Tubeentrance, none of them speaking. [Illustration] At the lip, Franks turned. "We are going back because we have no choice. There are three of us and about a dozen of you. However, if--" "Here comes the car, " Taylor said. There was a grating sound from the Tube. D-class leadys moved toward theedge to receive it. "I am sorry, " the leader said, "but it is for your protection. We arewatching over you, literally. You must stay below and let us conduct thewar. In a sense, it has come to be _our_ war. We must fight it as we seefit. " The car rose to the surface. Twelve soldiers, armed with Bender pistols, stepped from it andsurrounded the three men. Moss breathed a sigh of relief. "Well, this does change things. It cameoff just right. " The leader moved back, away from the soldiers. It studied themintently, glancing from one to the next, apparently trying to make upits mind. At last it made a sign to the other leadys. They coasted asideand a corridor was opened up toward the warehouse. "Even now, " the leader said, "we could send you back by force. But it isevident that this is not really an observation party at all. Thesesoldiers show that you have much more in mind; this was all carefullyprepared. " "Very carefully, " Franks said. They closed in. "How much more, we can only guess. I must admit that we were takenunprepared. We failed utterly to meet the situation. Now force would beabsurd, because neither side can afford to injure the other; we, becauseof the restrictions placed on us regarding human life, you because thewar demands--" The soldiers fired, quick and in fright. Moss dropped to one knee, firing up. The leader dissolved in a cloud of particles. On all sidesD- and B-class leadys were rushing up, some with weapons, some withmetal slats. The room was in confusion. Off in the distance a siren wasscreaming. Franks and Taylor were cut off from the others, separatedfrom the soldiers by a wall of metal bodies. "They can't fire back, " Franks said calmly. "This is another bluff. They've tried to bluff us all the way. " He fired into the face of aleady. The leady dissolved. "They can only try to frighten us. Rememberthat. " * * * * * They went on firing and leady after leady vanished. The room reeked withthe smell of burning metal, the stink of fused plastic and steel. Taylorhad been knocked down. He was struggling to find his gun, reachingwildly among metal legs, groping frantically to find it. His fingersstrained, a handle swam in front of him. Suddenly something came down onhis arm, a metal foot. He cried out. Then it was over. The leadys were moving away, gathering together off toone side. Only four of the Surface Council remained. The others wereradioactive particles in the air. D-class leadys were already restoringorder, gathering up partly destroyed metal figures and bits and removingthem. Franks breathed a shuddering sigh. "All right, " he said. "You can take us back to the windows. It won't belong now. " The leadys separated, and the human group, Moss and Franks and Taylorand the soldiers, walked slowly across the room, toward the door. Theyentered the Council Chamber. Already a faint touch of gray mitigated theblackness of the windows. "Take us outside, " Franks said impatiently. "We'll see it directly, notin here. " A door slid open. A chill blast of cold morning air rushed in, chillingthem even through their lead suits. The men glanced at each otheruneasily. "Come on, " Franks said. "Outside. " He walked out through the door, the others following him. They were on a hill, overlooking the vast bowl of a valley. Dimly, against the graying sky, the outline of mountains were forming, becomingtangible. "It'll be bright enough to see in a few minutes, " Moss said. Heshuddered as a chilling wind caught him and moved around him. "It'sworth it, really worth it, to see this again after eight years. Even ifit's the last thing we see--" "Watch, " Franks snapped. They obeyed, silent and subdued. The sky was clearing, brightening eachmoment. Some place far off, echoing across the valley, a rooster crowed. "A chicken!" Taylor murmured. "Did you hear?" Behind them, the leadys had come out and were standing silently, watching, too. The gray sky turned to white and the hills appeared moreclearly. Light spread across the valley floor, moving toward them. "God in heaven!" Franks exclaimed. Trees, trees and forests. A valley of plants and trees, with a few roadswinding among them. Farmhouses. A windmill. A barn, far down below them. "Look!" Moss whispered. Color came into the sky. The Sun was approaching. Birds began to sing. Not far from where they stood, the leaves of a tree danced in the wind. Franks turned to the row of leadys behind them. "Eight years. We were tricked. There was no war. As soon as we left thesurface--" "Yes, " an A-class leady admitted. "As soon as you left, the war ceased. You're right, it was a hoax. You worked hard undersurface, sending upguns and weapons, and we destroyed them as fast as they came up. " "But why?" Taylor asked, dazed. He stared down at the vast valley below. "Why?" * * * * * "You created us, " the leady said, "to pursue the war for you, while youhuman beings went below the ground in order to survive. But before wecould continue the war, it was necessary to analyze it to determine whatits purpose was. We did this, and we found that it had no purpose, except, perhaps, in terms of human needs. Even this was questionable. "We investigated further. We found that human cultures pass throughphases, each culture in its own time. As the culture ages and begins tolose its objectives, conflict arises within it between those who wish tocast it off and set up a new culture-pattern, and those who wish toretain the old with as little change as possible. "At this point, a great danger appears. The conflict within threatens toengulf the society in self-war, group against group. The vitaltraditions may be lost--not merely altered or reformed, but completelydestroyed in this period of chaos and anarchy. We have found many suchexamples in the history of mankind. "It is necessary for this hatred within the culture to be directedoutward, toward an external group, so that the culture itself maysurvive its crisis. War is the result. War, to a logical mind, isabsurd. But in terms of human needs, it plays a vital role. And it willcontinue to until Man has grown up enough so that no hatred lies withinhim. " Taylor was listening intently. "Do you think this time will come?" "Of course. It has almost arrived now. This is the last war. Man is_almost_ united into one final culture--a world culture. At this pointhe stands continent against continent, one half of the world against theother half. Only a single step remains, the jump to a unified culture. Man has climbed slowly upward, tending always toward unification of hisculture. It will not be long-- "But it has not come yet, and so the war had to go on, to satisfy thelast violent surge of hatred that Man felt. Eight years have passedsince the war began. In these eight years, we have observed and notedimportant changes going on in the minds of men. Fatigue and disinterest, we have seen, are gradually taking the place of hatred and fear. Thehatred is being exhausted gradually, over a period of time. But for thepresent, the hoax must go on, at least for a while longer. You are notready to learn the truth. You would want to continue the war. " "But how did you manage it?" Moss asked. "All the photographs, thesamples, the damaged equipment--" "Come over here. " The leady directed them toward a long, low building. "Work goes on constantly, whole staffs laboring to maintain a coherentand convincing picture of a global war. " * * * * * They entered the building. Leadys were working everywhere, poring overtables and desks. "Examine this project here, " the A-class leady said. Two leadys werecarefully photographing something, an elaborate model on a table top. "It is a good example. " The men grouped around, trying to see. It was a model of a ruined city. Taylor studied it in silence for a long time. At last he looked up. "It's San Francisco, " he said in a low voice. "This is a model of SanFrancisco, destroyed. I saw this on the vidscreen, piped down to us. Thebridges were hit--" "Yes, notice the bridges. " The leady traced the ruined span with hismetal finger, a tiny spider-web, almost invisible. "You have no doubtseen photographs of this many times, and of the other tables in thisbuilding. "San Francisco itself is completely intact. We restored it soon afteryou left, rebuilding the parts that had been damaged at the start of thewar. The work of manufacturing news goes on all the time in thisparticular building. We are very careful to see that each part fits inwith all the other parts. Much time and effort are devoted to it. " Franks touched one of the tiny model buildings, lying half in ruins. "Sothis is what you spend your time doing--making model cities and thenblasting them. " "No, we do much more. We are caretakers, watching over the whole world. The owners have left for a time, and we must see that the cities arekept clean, that decay is prevented, that everything is kept oiled andin running condition. The gardens, the streets, the water mains, everything must be maintained as it was eight years ago, so that whenthe owners return, they will not be displeased. We want to be sure thatthey will be completely satisfied. " Franks tapped Moss on the arm. "Come over here, " he said in a low voice. "I want to talk to you. " He led Moss and Taylor out of the building, away from the leadys, outside on the hillside. The soldiers followed them. The Sun was up andthe sky was turning blue. The air smelled sweet and good, the smell ofgrowing things. Taylor removed his helmet and took a deep breath. "I haven't smelled that smell for a long time, " he said. "Listen, " Franks said, his voice low and hard. "We must get back down atonce. There's a lot to get started on. All this can be turned to ouradvantage. " "What do you mean?" Moss asked. "It's a certainty that the Soviets have been tricked, too, the same asus. But _we_ have found out. That gives us an edge over them. " "I see. " Moss nodded. "We know, but they don't. Their Surface Councilhas sold out, the same as ours. It works against them the same way. Butif we could--" "With a hundred top-level men, we could take over again, restore thingsas they should be! It would be easy!" * * * * * Moss touched him on the arm. An A-class leady was coming from thebuilding toward them. "We've seen enough, " Franks said, raising his voice. "All this is veryserious. It must be reported below and a study made to determine ourpolicy. " The leady said nothing. Franks waved to the soldiers. "Let's go. " He started toward thewarehouse. Most of the soldiers had removed their helmets. Some of them had takentheir lead suits off, too, and were relaxing comfortably in their cottonuniforms. They stared around them, down the hillside at the trees andbushes, the vast expanse of green, the mountains and the sky. "Look at the Sun, " one of them murmured. "It sure is bright as hell, " another said. "We're going back down, " Franks said. "Fall in by twos and follow us. " Reluctantly, the soldiers regrouped. The leadys watched without emotionas the men marched slowly back toward the warehouse. Franks and Moss andTaylor led them across the ground, glancing alertly at the leadys asthey walked. They entered the warehouse. D-class leadys were loading material andweapons on surface carts. Cranes and derricks were working busilyeverywhere. The work was done with efficiency, but without hurry orexcitement. The men stopped, watching. Leadys operating the little carts moved pastthem, signaling silently to each other. Guns and parts were beinghoisted by magnetic cranes and lowered gently onto waiting carts. "Come on, " Franks said. He turned toward the lip of the Tube. A row of D-class leadys wasstanding in front of it, immobile and silent. Franks stopped, movingback. He looked around. An A-class leady was coming toward him. "Tell them to get out of the way, " Franks said. He touched his gun. "Youhad better move them. " Time passed, an endless moment, without measure. The men stood, nervousand alert, watching the row of leadys in front of them. "As you wish, " the A-class leady said. It signaled and the D-class leadys moved into life. They stepped slowlyaside. Moss breathed a sigh of relief. "I'm glad that's over, " he said to Franks. "Look at them all. Why don'tthey try to stop us? They must know what we're going to do. " Franks laughed. "Stop us? You saw what happened when they tried to stopus before. They can't; they're only machines. We built them so theycan't lay hands on us, and they know that. " His voice trailed off. The men stared at the Tube entrance. Around them the leadys watched, silent and impassive, their metal faces expressionless. For a long time the men stood without moving. At last Taylor turnedaway. "Good God, " he said. He was numb, without feeling of any kind. The Tube was gone. It was sealed shut, fused over. Only a dull surfaceof cooling metal greeted them. The Tube had been closed. * * * * * Franks turned, his face pale and vacant. The A-class leady shifted. "As you can see, the Tube has been shut. Wewere prepared for this. As soon as all of you were on the surface, theorder was given. If you had gone back when we asked you, you would nowbe safely down below. We had to work quickly because it was such animmense operation. " "But why?" Moss demanded angrily. "Because it is unthinkable that you should be allowed to resume the war. With all the Tubes sealed, it will be many months before forces frombelow can reach the surface, let alone organize a military program. Bythat time the cycle will have entered its last stages. You will not beso perturbed to find your world intact. "We had hoped that you would be undersurface when the sealing occurred. Your presence here is a nuisance. When the Soviets broke through, wewere able to accomplish their sealing without--" "The Soviets? They broke through?" "Several months ago, they came up unexpectedly to see why the war hadnot been won. We were forced to act with speed. At this moment they aredesperately attempting to cut new Tubes to the surface, to resume thewar. We have, however, been able to seal each new one as it appears. " The leady regarded the three men calmly. "We're cut off, " Moss said, trembling. "We can't get back. What'll wedo?" "How did you manage to seal the Tube so quickly?" Franks asked theleady. "We've been up here only two hours. " "Bombs are placed just above the first stage of each Tube for suchemergencies. They are heat bombs. They fuse lead and rock. " Gripping the handle of his gun, Franks turned to Moss and Taylor. "What do you say? We can't go back, but we can do a lot of damage, thefifteen of us. We have Bender guns. How about it?" He looked around. The soldiers had wandered away again, back toward theexit of the building. They were standing outside, looking at the valleyand the sky. A few of them were carefully climbing down the slope. "Would you care to turn over your suits and guns?" the A-class leadyasked politely. "The suits are uncomfortable and you'll have no need forweapons. The Russians have given up theirs, as you can see. " Fingers tensed on triggers. Four men in Russian uniforms were comingtoward them from an aircraft that they suddenly realized had landedsilently some distance away. "Let them have it!" Franks shouted. "They are unarmed, " said the leady. "We brought them here so you couldbegin peace talks. " "We have no authority to speak for our country, " Moss said stiffly. "We do not mean diplomatic discussions, " the leady explained. "Therewill be no more. The working out of daily problems of existence willteach you how to get along in the same world. It will not be easy, butit will be done. " [Illustration] * * * * * The Russians halted and they faced each other with raw hostility. "I am Colonel Borodoy and I regret giving up our guns, " the seniorRussian said. "You could have been the first Americans to be killed inalmost eight years. " "Or the first Americans to kill, " Franks corrected. "No one would know of it except yourselves, " the leady pointed out. "Itwould be useless heroism. Your real concern should be surviving on thesurface. We have no food for you, you know. " Taylor put his gun in its holster. "They've done a neat job ofneutralizing us, damn them. I propose we move into a city, start raisingcrops with the help of some leadys, and generally make ourselvescomfortable. " Drawing his lips tight over his teeth, he glared at theA-class leady. "Until our families can come up from undersurface, it'sgoing to be pretty lonesome, but we'll have to manage. " "If I may make a suggestion, " said another Russian uneasily. "We triedliving in a city. It is too empty. It is also too hard to maintain forso few people. We finally settled in the most modern village we couldfind. " "Here in this country, " a third Russian blurted. "We have much to learnfrom you. " The Americans abruptly found themselves laughing. "You probably have a thing or two to teach us yourselves, " said Taylorgenerously, "though I can't imagine what. " The Russian colonel grinned. "Would you join us in our village? It wouldmake our work easier and give us company. " "Your village?" snapped Franks. "It's American, isn't it? It's ours!" The leady stepped between them. "When our plans are completed, the termwill be interchangeable. 'Ours' will eventually mean mankind's. " Itpointed at the aircraft, which was warming up. "The ship is waiting. Will you join each other in making a new home?" The Russians waited while the Americans made up their minds. "I see what the leadys mean about diplomacy becoming outmoded, " Frankssaid at last. "People who work together don't need diplomats. They solvetheir problems on the operational level instead of at a conferencetable. " The leady led them toward the ship. "It is the goal of history, unifyingthe world. From family to tribe to city-state to nation to hemisphere, the direction has been toward unification. Now the hemispheres will bejoined and--" Taylor stopped listening and glanced back at the location of the Tube. Mary was undersurface there. He hated to leave her, even though hecouldn't see her again until the Tube was unsealed. But then he shruggedand followed the others. If this tiny amalgam of former enemies was a good example, it wouldn'tbe too long before he and Mary and the rest of humanity would be livingon the surface like rational human beings instead of blindly hatingmoles. "It has taken thousands of generations to achieve, " the A-class leadyconcluded. "Hundreds of centuries of bloodshed and destruction. But eachwar was a step toward uniting mankind. And now the end is in sight: aworld without war. But even that is only the beginning of a new stage ofhistory. " "The conquest of space, " breathed Colonel Borodoy. "The meaning of life, " Moss added. "Eliminating hunger and poverty, " said Taylor. The leady opened the door of the ship. "All that and more. How muchmore? We cannot foresee it any more than the first men who formed atribe could foresee this day. But it will be unimaginably great. " The door closed and the ship took off toward their new home. --PHILIP K. DICK Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from _Galaxy Science Fiction_ January 1953. Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the U. S. Copyright on this publication was renewed. Minor spelling and typographical errors have been corrected without note.