expanse. They
moved away at a speed of possibly 20 to 30 miles an hour. They floated
off in all possible directions. They would never reach Earth, of course.
They shared the Platform's orbital speed, and they would circle the
Earth with it forever. But when they were thrown away, their orbits were
displaced a little. Each can thrown downward just now, for example,
would always be between the Platform and the Earth on this side of its
orbit. But on the other side of Earth it would be above the Platform.
The Platform, in fact, became the center of a swarm, a cluster, a cloud
of infinitesimal objects which would always accompany it and always be
in motion with regard to it. Together, they should make up a screen no
proximity fuse bomb could pierce without exploding.

Joe heard clankings, transmitted to his body through his feet.

"What's that?" he demanded sharply. "It sounds like the airlock!"

Voices mingled in his ears. The other walkie-talkies allowed everybody
to speak at once. Most of them did. Then Joe heard someone laugh. It was
Sanford's voice.

Sandford's aluminized, space-suited figure came clanking around the
curve of the small metal world. The antenna of his walkie-talkie
glittered above his head. He seemed to swagger against the background of
many-colored stars.

Brent spoke quickly, before anyone else could question Sanford. His
tone was mild and matter of fact, but Joe somehow knew the tension
behind it.

"Hello, Sanford. You came out? Was it wise? Shouldn't there be someone
inside the Platform?"

Sanford laughed again. "It was very wise. We're going to be killed, as
you fellows know perfectly well. It's futile to try to avoid it. So very
sensibly I've decided to spare myself the nuisance of waiting to be
killed. I came out."

There was silence in the ear-phones of Joe's space suit radio. He heard
his own heart beating loudly and steadily in the absolute stillness.

"Incidentally," said Sanford with almost hysterical amusement, "I fixed
it so that none of us can get back in. It would be useless, anyhow.
Everything's futility. So I've put an end to our troubles for good. I've
locked us all out."

He laughed yet again. And Joe knew that in Sanford's madness it was
perfectly possible for him to have done exactly what he said.

There were eight human beings on the Platform. All were now outside it,
on its outer skin. They wore space suits with from half an hour to an
hour's oxygen supply. They had