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"If you don't care about science enough to be interested in it on its own, you shouldn't try to write hard science fiction."
- Frederik Pohl
 |
| Hell-Stone | ||
| An incomparably beautiful and rare jewel. |
This description is a <* SPOILER *> for the story, so don't read it if you would still like to enjoy the story - it's still a good read!
That's a hell-stone!
The jewel, against the black velvet,
was a drop of living, incredible light.
A little crystal sphere, no larger than
the end of his thumb. But the dancing color and splendor within it some-
how filled his eyes with tears.
| Haldane was trained to deal with
minds, not with machines. He recognized a big atomic converter, but most
of the gleaming silent bulky things
were strange to him. There was a wide
crystal disk, with a metal star set in
the middle of it. A huge open glass
tube was suspended below — or, really,
above it.
"You needn’t be afraid, Miss Carnadon.” Then she was the kidnaped heiress! "I’m not going to kill you.” Brand made a short, harsh laugh. “On the contrary, I am going to make you virtually immortal.” Brand touched buttons at an intricate control-board. Motors hummed. The huge transparent tube descended, to enclose the helpless girl. Brand nodded, and the two men went clicking out of the room. The atomic converter began to thrum. Presently a second star-shaped electrode, in the tube above the girl, was tufted with hissing blue fire. Arms of terrible crackling flame reached down from the points of the star, toward the screaming girl. A thick luminous mist filled the tube and hid her struggles. At last he stopped the thrumming converter. The shining mist disappeared and the star ceased to glow. The girl was gone. There were only her empty garments and the stretcher — and a tiny point of shimmering fire. A hell-stone! |
| Technovelgy from Star of Dreams,
by Jack Williamson. Published by Comet in 1941 Additional resources -
|
Compare with the star stone from Doorways in the Sand by Roger Zelazny - also a <* spoiler*>!
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'Tell me your torments,' the Padre said, in an elderly voice marked with compassion.
'...a slender-legged tripod surmounted by a spherical body no larger than a football.'
'... making the point that their likenesses, every move they made, were being transmitted.'
'But the stars are only atoms in larger space, and in that larger space the star-atoms could combine to form living matter, thinking matter, couldn't they?'
'...to build up a video picture would require, say, ten million decisions every second. Mike, you're so fast I can't even think about it. But you aren't that fast.'
'The area affected was five hundred kilometres across, and perfectly circular.'
'Hasan always pitched a Gauzy - a one-molecule-layer tent, opaque, feather-light, and very tough.'
