Ivan Yefremov - Andromeda (A Space-Age Tale)

FOREIGN LANGUAGES PUBLISHING HOUSE

MOSCOW 1959

Иван Ефремов

Туманность Андромеды

(Научно-фантастический роман)

ИЗДАТЕЛЬСТВО ЛИТЕРАТУРЫ НА ИНОСТРАННЫХ ЯЗЫКАХ

МОСКВА

Translated from the Russian by George Hanna

Designed by N. Grishin

CHAPTER 1. THE IRON STAR

CHAPTER 2. EPSILON TUCANAE

CHAPTER 3. CAPTIVES OF THE DARK

CHAPTER 4. THE RIVER OF TIME

CHAPTER 5. THE HORSE ON THE SEA BED

CHAPTER 6. THE LEGEND OF THE BLUE SUNS

CHAPTER 7. SYMPHONY IN F-MINOR, COLOUR TONE 4.75,u

CHAPTER 8. RED WAVES

CHAPTER 9. A THIRD CYCLE SCHOOL

CHAPTER 10. TIBETAN EXPERIMENT

CHAPTER 11. THE ISLAND OF OBLIVION

CHAPTER 12. THE ASTRONAUTICAL COUNCIL

CHAPTER 13. ANGELS OF HEAVEN

CHAPTER 14. THE STEEL DOOR

CHAPTER 15. THE ANDROMEDA NEBULA

MEMBERS OF COSMIC EXPEDITION No. 37 IN THE SPACESHIP TANTRA

Men: Erg Noor, Commander of the Expedition

Pour Hyss, astronomer

Eon Thal, biologist

Pel Lynn, astronavigator

Taron, mechanical engineer

Kay Bear, electronic engineer

Women: Nisa Greet, astronavigator

Louma Lasvy, ship’s physician

Ingrid Dietra, astronomer

Beena Ledd, geologist

Ione Marr, teacher of gymnastics, storekeeper

CHARACTERS ON EARTH:

Men: Grom Orme, President of the Astronautical Council

Diss Ken, his son

Thor Ann, son of Zieg Zohr, Ken’s friend

Mir Ohm, Secretary of the Astronautical Council

Darr Veter, retiring Director of the Outer Stations

Mven Mass, successor to Darr Veter

Junius Antus, Director of the Electronic Memory Machines

Kam Amat, Indian scientist (In a former age)

Liao Lang, palaeontologist

Renn Bose, physicist

Cart Sann, painter

Frith Don, Director of the Maritime Archaeological Expedition

Sherliss, mechanic to the expedition

Ahf Noot, prominent surgeon

Grimm Schar, biologist of the Institute of Nerve Currents

Zann Senn, poet-historian

Heb Uhr, soil scientist

Beth Lohn, mathematician, criminal in exile

Embe Ong, candidate for Director of the Outer Stations

Cadd Lite, engineer on Satellite 57

Women: Evda Nahl, psychiatrist Rhea, her daughter Veda Kong, historian

Miyiko Eigoro, historian, Veda’s assistant

Chara Nandi, biologist, dancer, artist’s model

Onar. girl of the Island of Oblivion

Eva Djann, astronomer

Liuda Pheer, psychologist (in a former age)

EXTRATERRESTRIAL CHARACTERS:

Goor Hahn, observer on the diurnal satellite

Zaph Phthet, Director of External Relations of the planet of 61 Cygni

In the faint light emitted by the helical tube on the ceiling the rows of dials on the instrument panels had the appearance of a portrait gallery — the round dials had jovial faces, the recumbent oval physiognomies were impudently self-satisfied and the square mugs were immobile in their stupid complacency. The light- and dark-blue, orange and green lights flickering inside the instruments served to intensify the impression.

A big dial, glowing dull red, gazed out from the middle of the convex control desk. The girl in front of it had forgotten her chair and stood with her head bowed, her brow almost touching the glass, in the attitude of one in prayer. The red glow made her youthful face older and sterner, cast clear-cut shadows round her full lips and even made her slightly snub nose look pointed. Her thick eyebrows, knitted in a frown, looked jet black in that light and gave her eyes the expression of despair seen in the eyes of the doomed.

The faint hum of the meters was interrupted by a soft metallic click. The girl started and raised her head, straightening her tired back.

The door opened behind her, a big shadow appeared and turned into a man with abrupt and precise movements. A flood of golden light sprang up, making the girl’s thick, dark-auburn hair sparkle like gold. She turned to the newcomer with a look that told both of her love for him and of her anxiety.

“Why aren’t you sleeping? A hundred sleepless hours!”

“A bad example, eh?” There was a note of gaiety in his voice but he did not smile; it was a voice marked by high metallic notes that seemed to rivet his words together.

“The others are all asleep,” the girl began timidly. “and… don’t know anything…” she added, whispering instinctively.

“Don’t be afraid to speak. Everybody else is asleep, we’re the only two awake in the Cosmos and it’s fifty billion [1] Billion — is used in its European meaning of a million millions (1012). kilometres to Earth — a mere parsec [2] Parsec — the unit of measure of astronomical distance, equal to 3.26 light years or 32×1012 km. and a half!”

“And we’ve got fuel for just one acceleration!” There was fascinated horror in the girl’s exclamation.

In two rapid strides Erg Noor, Commander of Cosmic Expedition No. 37, reached the glowing dial.

“The fifth circle!”

“Yes, we’ve entered the fifth… and… still nothing.” The girl cast an eloquent glance at the loudspeaker of the automatic receiver.

“And so I have no right to sleep, as you see. I have to think over all the variants and all the possibilities. We must find a solution by the end of the fifth circle.”

“But that’s another hundred and ten hours.”

“All right, I’ll go to sleep in the armchair here as soon as the effect of the sporamin [3] Sporamin — a drug to maintain the organism active over long periods without sleep (imaginary). wears off. I took it twenty-four hours ago.”

The girl stood deep in thought for a time but at last decided to speak.

“Perhaps we should decrease the radius of the circle? Suppose something’s gone wrong with their transmitter?”

“Certainly not! If you reduce the radius without reducing speed you’ll break up the ship. If you reduce speed you’ll be left without anameson [4] Anameson — atomic fuel in which the meson bonds of the nucleus have been disrupted; it has an exhaust velocity equal to the speed of light (imaginary). … with a parsec and a half to go at the speed of the ancient lunar rockets! At that rate we’d get somewhere near our solar system in about a hundred thousand years.”

“I know that. But couldn’t they…”

“No, they couldn’t. Aeons ago people could be careless or could deceive each other and themselves. But not today!”

“That’s not what I wanted to say.” The sharpness of her retort showed that the girl was offended. “I was going to say that Algrab may have deviated from its course looking for us.”

“It couldn’t have deviated so much. It must have left at the time computed and agreed on. If the improbable had happened and both transmitters had been put out of action it would have had to cross the circle diametrically and we should have heard it on the planetary receiver.

There’s no possibility of a mistake — there it is, the rendezvous planet.”

Erg Noor pointed to the mirror screens in deep niches on all four sides of the control tower. Countless stars burned in the profound blackness. A tiny grey disc, barely illuminated by a sun very far away from them, from the outer edge of the system B-7336-S+87-A, was crossing the forward port screen.