They had emerged from the clump of trees and were at the edge of the slope, with the early sun just touching the tops of the branches above them. Shea went on, «I’m sorry, Pete, but Belphebe and I don’t want to spend the rest of our lives here, and if we’re going, we’ve got to go now. As you said. Now, you two hold hands. Give me your other hand, Belphebe.»
Brodsky obeyed with a somewhat sullen expression.
Shea closed his eyes, and began: «If eitherA or (B or C) is true, and C or D is false.» motioning with his free hand to the end of the sorites.
He opened his eyes again. They were still at the edge of a clump of trees, on a hill inIreland, watching the smoke from the fire as it rose above the trees to catch the sunshine.
Belphebe asked, «What’s amiss?»
«I don’t know,» said Shea desperately. «If I only had something to write with, so I could check over the steps. No, wait a minute. Making this work depends on a radical alteration of sense impressions in accordance with the rules of symbolic logic and magic. Now we know that magic works here, so that can’t be the trouble. But for symbolic logic to be effective, you have to submit to its effects — that is, be willing. Pete, you’re the villain of the piece. You don’t want to go back.»
«Don’t put the squeeze on me,» said Brodsky.
«I’ll play ball.»
«All right. Now I want you to remember that you’re going back toOhio, and that you have a good job there and like it. Besides, you were sent out to find us, and you did. Okay?»
They joined hands again and Shea, constricting his brow with effort, ran through the sorites again, this time altering one or two of the terms to give greater energy. As he reached the end, time seemed to stand still for a second; thencrash!and a flash of vivid blue lightning struck the tree nearest them, splitting it from top to bottom.