Click on image to enlarge.

	Regular				Club
You Pay:	$0.55				$0.47

eBook Category: Science Fiction
eBook Description: The maturation of an individual usually comes at a price, and that price is usually the sacrifice of some precious belonging. The maturation of society, of an entire race would be no different. But would humanity remain after sacrificing so much to achieve its destiny? What if we had the means of finding out?

eBook Publisher: Fictionwise.com, Published: Analog, 1994
Fictionwise Release Date: August 2002

40 Reader Ratings: Great Good OK Poor

Available eBook Formats [MultiFormat - What's this?]: Adobe Acrobat (PDF) [59 KB], eReader (PDB) [27 KB], Palm Doc (PDB) [13 KB], Rocket/REB1100 (RB) [12 KB], Microsoft Reader (LIT) [64 KB] - PocketPC 1.0+ Compatible, Franklin eBookMan (FUB) [85 KB], hiebook (KML) [58 KB], Sony Reader (LRF) [43 KB], iSilo (PDB) [11 KB], Mobipocket (PRC) [14 KB], Kindle Compatible (MOBI) [42 KB], OEBFF Format (IMP) [22 KB]
Words: 3876
Reading time: 11-15 min.
Microsoft Reader (LIT) Format: Printing DISABLED, Read-Aloud ENABLED
Adobe Acrobat (PDF) Format:  Printing DISABLED, Read-Aloud DISABLED
All Other formats: Printing DISABLED, Read-aloud DISABLED

"I think it is time to go," the humaniform complex prompted itself gently as it floated above the warm green world. "We can't wait much longer." The complex contemplated the planet's attributes in ultraviolet, visible, infrared, and radio bands, wondering with each frequency shift at the beauty revealed. Here was the place of a civilization's birth. Here was the cradle of science, philosophy, of literature, and art. Here was where a people had learned of their limits and possibilities, of their place in the universe. It was a lovely place, an empty place, the sweet cradle of knowledge.

"We've confirmed that it's definitely an ordered set of signals, using the protocol that you requested," the Lunar watch office reported from the Clarke Bank late in the evening, Greenwich time. "We're recording it on sixteen discrete frequencies, none of which have a common harmonic nor run afoul any of the absorption windows."

"So you're saying that you definitely have a confirmed extraterrestrial signal," Dr Hugh Banker asked dryly from his High Street office, near the "observatory" where no significant star had been seen optically for fifty years because of the luminescent pollution of greater London, and awaited the inevitable delay for the signal to bounce through the satellite links to the Lunar base.

"That's affirmative! Yes, yes, and yes! We have a guaranteed, gold plated, died in the wool, absolutely, positively certain..."