Henry Slesar

“ One by one, the small spacecraft of the Blues began to rise towards the heavens. Before the next Spring came to Earth, the Blues were gone.
Ky-Tann cleared his throat, and looked at his young wife. Devia stared at Deez.
"How long ago?" Ky-Tann asked. "When did this happen?"
"Perhaps three, four thousand years ago," Deez said. "They left the Earth to its fate, and eventually that fate was extinction. Some defect in its sun caused an outburst of nuclear fire, and shriveled the planet to what it has become. But still she stands, their goddess of welcome, lifting her torch to the empty skies. ”

“ It is time for the human race to call a halt; not merely for the sake of our alien visitors, but for the sake of the almighty soul of Man. We must hold out our hand, and say 'Welcome. Welcome to Earth!'"
Moved by the plea of the Secretary-General, the assembly voted to form a 12-nation commission to study the problem. Many governments made offers of hospitality to the aliens; the United States, Canada, Australia, the Scandinavian and Low Countries, all expressed a willingness to set aside land areas for the exclusive use of the aliens. ”

“ Woodward took a deep breath.
"They wish to migrate to Earth, Mr. Ridgemont. All of them. Their evolutionary development was virtually identical to ours; when I marveled at this, Borsu laughed heartily at me. It is the belief of their science—or perhaps their theology—that the physical form both races share is the only one possible to the intelligent beings of the universe. So you see," Woodward said wryly, "perhaps the old prophets were right, when they said that God made Man in his own image. ”

“ There was never an official estimate of the deaths, but it was certain that well over three thousand of the aliens lost their lives before ever tasting a drop of cool Earth water, or knowing the shade of an Earth tree, the peaceful blue of an Earth sky. ”

“ The doctor winced at the word "creatures." But his reply was soft.
"No," he said. "That coincidence would be too great. But they have no such desires; they will be happy to produce their own future generations of citizens. They have deliberately controlled their birthrate until they could find a home. Earth can be that home, Mr. Ridgemont, but they wish to be sure of a welcome."
The Secretary stood up, and came to the front of the desk to face the doctor.
"Dr. Woodward," he said, "your story is an incredible one, but for the moment I'll assume that everything you've said is true. ”

“ Borsu has a mortal—and understandable—fear of being treated like a freak or a guinea pig. I'm here to pave the way for him, and the others."
Ridgemont must have been aware of Woodward's sincerity; he looked astonished.
"You really mean this, don't you?" he said. "A man from another planet is here, with you?"
"Yes," Woodward said firmly. "In my own home. But I cannot give you the name of his world, and neither can Borsu. At the moment, their way-station is an airless asteroid in our solar system, where they are living in an artificial atmosphere and surviving on synthetic food. ”

“ We made our landing on the ledge of a gigantic basin that might once have been the container for a vast ocean. Gi-Linn, our ship's scientist, was convinced by the configuration of its floor that the planet had once been blessed with water, air, and in all probability, some form of life. He speculated that the vanished ocean might have once teemed with creatures as those we discovered on Vosa. He was doubtful, however, that life forms had become more advanced than Vosa's. Gi-Linn has a way of leaping to conclusions, a smug fellow. ”

“ Her right arm was extended towards the heavens, and clutched within her hand was a torch plainly meant to symbolize the shedding of light. Her headpiece was a crown of spikes, her features noble and filled with sadness. She was blackened with the grime of centuries, battered by time, and yet still wonderfully preserved in the airless atmosphere. ”

“ The savagery of man to beast, the bestiality of man to man, has now been exceeded by our shameful record of cruelty towards these homeless wanderers from a forgotten world. We have slain almost a third of their number wantonly and without cause. They proffered to us the wisdom and knowledge of their own civilization, and asked for nothing in return but sanctuary. ”

“ Ky-Tann said skeptically.
"Once inhabited, anyway. Please don't ask me to explain it, Ky, ask newsray or Deez himself, you know how stupid I am about such things."
He chuckled, and said something loving in their private code, and switched off. His curiosity about Deez' discovery rivaled his excitement about seeing his friend again; in a hundred years of exploration, the space vessels of Illyri had merely confirmed the ancient belief that Life was a rare and precious gift. They had found slugs and lichen and moss on rocky, almost-airless worlds ”

“ Devia laughed, but they could see that Deez had labored to make the joke. She took the infant from him, and let Su-Tann crawl about the heated floor. Deez watched her progress and then looked up, flashing his old grin. "But I suppose you're waiting to hear about my great Discovery? Think of it, Ky! A dead planet, a genuine lost civilization! Not a hoax this time...." He spoke avidly, but his eyes were bewildered, the eyes of a man injured in battle.
"It can wait," Ky-Tann said. "You're tired, Deez." ”

“ In New Zealand, another farming community of Blues fared better than their fellows in Kansas. But in the year 1982, they fell victim to the still-unnamed plague which Earthmen merely called the Blue Disease. It seemed to strike only the aliens, but it resembled typhoid in its symptoms and deadly progress. The Blues themselves became unable to cope with the disease; their pleas for outside medical help brought only a handful of Earth physicians. When one of them, a Dr. Martin Roebuck, died of a seizure that the Blues swore was unrelated to the plague, the others fled in fear of contagion. ”

“ These are questions to be decided by others—"
"Does this Borsu expect us to guarantee this welcome? To assure them that they will be received with open arms? People are strange. Once the initial excitement of their arrival is over, who can say how ordinary citizens will react?"
"You must understand that they come in peace and friendship. They are tired, weary of searching for a home. They need our help—"
"You say they're blue, doctor." Ridgemont's eyes were penetrating. "Do you think the world can withstand still another race problem? Do you?"
"I don't know," Woodward said miserably. ”

“ I know nothing of Borsu's interior construction, only X rays could tell us that."
Ridgemont said, suspiciously: "What surface differences?"
"They are somewhat more angular than we are, a bit taller. Their craniums are larger, their shoulders narrower and bones finer. Borsu told me that they have no tonsils or appendix. In a way, they might be one lateral step higher on the evolutionary scale than the people of Earth. Their science is slightly more advanced in some areas, behind us in others. And of course, the number of their scientists and technicians is greatly limited." Woodward paused. ”

“ He had survived the loss, but a treacherous heart condition forced his retirement. He chose a small village in Eastern Pennsylvania. He lived with a dog and a thousand books. Borsu, the alien, could not have chanced on a better host that night.
"Yes, what is it?" Woodward said. When no answer came, the doctor realized that his visitor expected him to watch the screen. He did. The lines wavered, shifted, blurred in their excitation, but conveyed nothing. Panacea, Woodward's aging beagle, finally came out of his warm bed near the furnace and set up a furious barking. ”

“ They have a belief, an ancient conviction, about Forgetting. I don't know whether it's cultural, or religious, or scientific in origin; but each generation conceals the past from the new generation, especially those things in the past which have been unpleasant or hurtful. They are future-minded; they believe their children are sounder mentally if they know nothing of past evils. ”