"Well, then we can almost live." She kissed him.
A few minutes later, he said, "Did you notice anything funny out there in that council room?"
"What do you mean by funny? I was so busy looking at those tumbling ice cliffs—"
"I mean the councilmen sitting on either side of Pandek. Not one of them moved or spoke."
"That's right. They sat there like dummies."
"A row of dummies afraid to move even their eyes."
"There's something else that puzzles me," Jean said. "Those ice cliffs are life and death to we Terrans down below. Then why do the Martians build them up each winter and melt them for us in the spring? I'd think they'd leave the plains arid and thus drive us out."
"I wondered about that too. There can be only one explanation. They've repeated the process for so long they're afraid to stop—afraid of what it might do to the overall welfare of the planet."
"Perhaps if they didn't the ice would pile up of its own accord and crush them and their cities."
"I wonder how many cities there are."