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of your nine planets. Does it tell you anything? Indeed it does.” The scene shifted, bringing Jupiter into focus. Even from a distance it bespoke hugeness. Its zonal divisions, clearly defined, gave it a “split personality”, an aura of mysterious strength. There was a small red area on its otherwise mono-form sphere; monoform, that is, except for the zonal belts. Adam wondered if his guess at the nature of the red spot would be confirmed or reversed. Even as he was wondering Antares softly began ree area toed. explaining this strange bright area. “Now, Adam, let us go directly onto the surface of Jupiter, and right into that red spot. You will hear the sound emanating from this seething sea of red, that you may fully appreciate what you see. Remember, that spot is so huge several earths, strung side by side, would well fit into it. “Notice it is becoming larger and larger, more red as we approach it,” continued Antares. “The misty vapor you see is that of molten metal. We are now entering its cloud, then it thins out so you see it no more. The red spot has become a huge sea of bright orange color, and you cannot see its shores. It appears to be smooth, but wait until we are closer to it. It is still several thousand miles below us, so the clouds you saw were reflected, not real. Now we are in the true metal vapor clouds, which you 1 1 1D see only as a hazy mist.” When Antares finished speaking these last words there was silence in the office, the scene before them dominating every thought of the three people watching. In the darkness the lifelike televised projection of the planet’s red sea loomed like some fiery ghost. Adam was still feeling the effect of the nectar, and the presence of Launie and Antares gave the moment something akin to his idea of heaven. The spell was soon broken by a deep, guttural and ominous roar. It was the voice of Jupiter’s red ocean of molten metals. The surface was no longer smooth, but had become a heaving and billowing mass, bright orange with angry heat. Now the eyes of the watchers were brought to within scant yards of the seething turbulence of metallic geysers and whirlpools. 117 ADAM MEETS ANTARES