"As I understand it, it is all around you here," said Mordel.

The purring noise increased within Frost, followed by more clickings.

"What do you see, hear, taste, smell?" asked Mordel.

"Everything I did before," replied Frost, "but within amore limited range."

"You do not perceive any beauty?"

"Perhaps none remains after so long a time," said Frost.

"It is not supposed to be the sort of thing which gets used up," said Mordel.

"Perhaps we have come to the wrong place to test the new equipment. Perhaps there is only a little beauty and I am overlooking it somehow. The first emotions may be too weak to detect.""How do you—feel?"

"I test out at a normal level of function.""Here comes a sunset," said Mordel. "Try that."Frost shifted his bulk so that his eyes faced the setting sun. He caused them to blink against the brightness.

After it was finished, Mordel asked, "What was it like?"

"Like a sunrise, in reverse."

"Nothing special?"

"No."

"Oh," said Mordel. "We could move to another partof the Earth and watch it again—or watch it in the rising."

"No."

Frost looked at the great trees. He looked at the shadows. He listened to the wind and to the sound of a bird.

In the distance, he heard a steady clanking noise."What is that?" asked Mordel.

"I am not certain. It is not one of my workers. Perhaps . .."

There came a shrill whine from Mordel.

"No. it is not one of Divcom's either."

They waited as the sound grew louder.

Then Frost said, "It is too late. We must wait and hearit out."

"What is it?"

"It is the Ancient Ore-Crusher."

"I have heard of it, but..."

"I am the Crusher of Ores," it broadcast to them."Hear my story... ."

It lumbered toward them, creaking upon giganticwheels, its huge hammer held useless, high, at a twistedangle. Bones protruded from its crush-compartment.

"I did not mean to do it," it broadcast, "I did notmean to do it ... I did not mean to ..."

Mordel rolled baclnnward Frost.

"Do not depart. Stay and hear my story...."

Mordel stopped, swiveled his turret back toward themachine- It was now quite near.

"It is true," said Mordel, "it can command."

"Yes," said Frost "I have monitored its tale thousandsof times, as it came upon my workers and they stoppedtheir labors for its broadcast You must do whatever itsays."

It came to a halt before them.

"I did not mean to do it, but I checked my hammertoo late," said the Ore-Crusher.

They could not speak to it. They were frozen by theimperative which overrode all other directives: "Hear mystory."

"Once was I mighty among ore-crushers," it told them,"built by Solcom to carry out the reconstruction of theEarth, to pulverize that from which the metals would bedrawn with name, to be poured and shaped into therebuilding; once I was mighty. Then one day as I dugand crushed, dug and crushed, because of the stownessbetween the motion implied and the motion executed, Id'd what I did not mean to do, and was cast forth bySolcom from out the rebuilding, to wander the Earthnever to crush ore again. He.T my story of how, on aday long gone I came upon the last Man on Earth as Idug near His burrow, and because of the lag betweenthe directive and the deed, I seized Him into my crushcompartment along with a load of ore and crushed Himwith my hammer before I could stay the blow. Then didmighty Solcom charge me to bear His bones forever, andcast me forth to tell my story to all whom I came upon,my words bearing the force of the words of a Man, becauseI carry the last Man inside my crush-compartment andam His crushed-symbol-slayer-ancient-teller-of-how. Thisis my story. These are His bones. I crushed the last Manon Earth. I did not mean to do it."

It turned then and clanked away into the night.

Frost tore apart his ears and nose and taster and brokehis eyes and cast them down upon the ground.

"I am not yet a Man," he said. "That one would haveknown me if I were."

Frost constructed new sense equipment, employing organic and semi-organic conductors. Then he spoke toMordel:

"Let us go elsewhere, that I may test my new equipment."

Mordel entered the chamber and gave new coordinates. They rose into the air and headed east. In themorning, Frost monitored a sunrise from the rim of theGrand Canyon. They passed down through the Canyonduring the day.

"Is there any beauty left here to give you emotion?"asked Mordel.

"I do not know," said Frost.

"How will you know it then, when you come upon it?"

"It will be different," said Frost, "from anything elsethat I have ever known."

Then they departed the Grand Canyon and made theirway through the Carlsbad Caverns. They visited a lakewhich had once been a volcano. They passed above Niagara Falls. They viewed the hills of Virginia and theorchards of Ohio. They soared above the reconstructedcities, alive only with the movements of Frost's buildersand maintainers.

"Something is still lacking," said Frost, settling to theground. "I am now capable of gathering data in amanner analogous to Man's afferent impulses. The variety of input is therefore equivalent, but the results arenot the same.""The senses do not make a Man," said Mordel. "Therehave been many creatures possessing His sensory equivalents, but they were not Men."

"I know that," said Frost. "On the day of our bargainyou said that you could conduct me among the wondersof Man which still remain, hidden, Man was not stimulated only by Nature, but by His own artistic elaborationsas well—perhaps even more so. Therefore, I call uponyou now- to conduct me among the wonders of Manwhich still remain, hidden."

"Very well." said Mordel. "Far from here, high in theAndes mountains, lies the last retreat of Man, almostperfectly preserved."

Frost had risen into the air as Mordel spoke. He haltedthen, hovered.

"That is in the southern hemisphere," he said."Yes, it is."

"I am Controller of the North. The South is governedby the Beta-Machine.""So?" asked Mordel.

"The Beta-Machine is my peer. I have DO authorityin those regions, nor leave to enter there."^"^-

"The Beta-Machine is not your peer, mighty Frost. Ifit ever came to a contest of Powers, you would emergevictorious.""How do you know this?"

"Divcom has already analyzed the possible encounterswhich could take place between you."

"I would not oppose the Beta-Machine, and I am notauthorized to enter the South."

"Were you ever ordered not to enter the South?""No, but things have always been the way they noware."

"Were you authorized to enter into a bargain such asthe one you made with Divcom?""No. I was not. But—"

"Then enter the South in the same spirit. Nothing maycome of it. If you receive an order to depart, then youcan make your decision."

"I see no flaw in your logic. Give me the coordinates."Thus did Frost enter the southern hemisphere.They drifted high above the Andes, until they came tothe place called Bright Defile. Then did Frost see thegleaming webs of the mechanical spiders, blocking all thetrails to the city.

"We can go above them easily enough," said Mordel.

"But what are they?" asked Frost. "And why are theythere?"

"Your southern counterpart has been ordered to quarantine this part of the country. The Beta-Machine designed the web-weavers to do this thing."

"Quarantine? Against whom?"

"Have you been ordered yet to depart?" asked Mordel,

"No.""Then enter boldly, and seek not problems before they arise.'*

Frost entered Bright Defile, the last remaining city ofdead Man.

He came to rest in the city's square and opened hischamber, releasing Mordel.

"Tell me of this place," he said, studying the monument, the low, shielded buildings, the roads which followed the contours of the terrain, rather than pushingtheir way through them.