e fifty men were
watching the sky, obviously waiting. Others stood around, watching them
and avoiding looking up. Almost directly overhead, there was a rent
place where the strange absence of color or feature indicated a hole in
the dome over them. As it drew nearer true vertical, a chanting began
among the men with up-turned faces. Their hands went upwards, fingers
spread and curled into an unnatural position. Then they stood waiting.

"I don't like it," Bork whispered to Dave. "This is one of the reasons
we're growing too weak to fight the Satheri."

"What's wrong with a ceremony of worship, if you must worship your
eggshell?" Dave asked.

"You'll see. That was all it was once--just worship. But now for weeks,
things are changing. They think it's a sign of favor, but I don't know.
There, watch!"

The hole in the sky was directly overhead now, and the moaning had
risen in pitch. Across the little clearing, Malok began backing quietly
away, carefully not looking upwards. Nobody but Dave seemed to notice
his absence. There was a louder moan.

One of the men in the clearing began to rise upwards slowly. His body
was rigid as it lifted a foot, ten feet, then a hundred above the
ground. Now it picked up speed, and rushed upwards. Another began to
rise, and another. In seconds, more than half of those who had waited
were screaming upwards toward the hole in the sky. They disappeared in
the distance.

Those who had merely stood by and those who had worshipped waited a few
seconds more, but no more rose. The men sighed and began moving out of
the clearing. Dave arose to follow, but Bork gestured for him to wait.

"Sometimes--" he said.

They were alone now. Still Bork waited, staring upwards. Then Dave saw
something in the sky. A speck appeared and came hurtling down. In
seconds, it was the body of one of the men who had risen. Dave felt his
stomach tighten and braced himself. There was no slowing as the body
fell. It landed in the center of the clearing, without losing speed, but
with less noise than he had expected.

When they reached the shattered body, there could be no question of its
being dead.

Bork's face was solemn. "If you're thinking of joining, you'd better
know the worst. You're too easily shocked to make a good convert unless
you're prepared. The risings have been going on for some time. Malok
swears it proves we are right. But I've seen five other bodies come down
like this. What does it mean? Are