They went down in the lander and slowly circled it. It was a dazzling contrast to the surrounding environment, a configuration of geometrical shapes, polygons, cones, pyramids, cylindrical towers, cubes, and other profiles for which there was no descriptive term. They were laid out in symmetrical patterns. “It’s beautiful!” said Beth.

Derek grunted. “Yeah. It was.”

It was unlike any city Hutch had seen, ever, a place that might have been designed and created by artists. Every conceivable sort of style was manifested, yet somehow there was a unity to it all. It rose above a layer of combined ice and rock, a magnificent collection of edifices, still resplendent in starlight.

The city was surrounded by flat land that seemed composed of giant claws rising out of the ice. “What the hell are those?” asked Ken.

Derek needed a moment. “I’d guess it used to be a forest. The trees froze, most of the branches fell off and got buried. This is what’s left.”

“Incredible,” said Ken.

And Beth: “They had some serious architects.”

Ken could not stop staring. “The symmetry is completely different.”

“How do you mean?” asked Wally, who was still on the Eiferman.

“Put it in a normal landscape. Imagine it the way it must have been. The buildings don’t line up. There’s no Central Avenue or Broadway or any indication that any single street ran through the place. At least not in a straight line.”

“You’re right,” said Derek, as they passed over, turned and came back. “It wouldn’t have been a place where I’d have wanted to be in a hurry to get to work.”

“Still,” said Hutch, “it seems to have perfect balance.”

“Blows my mind,” said Wally.

“It is an incredible piece of work.” Derek was, as usual, seated beside her. “Slow down a bit,” he said.

She complied and he leaned forward as they approached. There were several open areas inside the city, sections that possessed only occasional small structures. They had probably been parks. She picked one and set down in the middle of it.

They got into their suits, turned on wristlamps, and climbed out onto the frozen ground. Most of the buildings had visible front doors. But the structures that had looked so pristine from the sky were now revealed as crumbling piles of stone and, probably, metal and plastic.

Derek looked momentarily lost, but then he made up his mind and led the way toward a six-story building with a sloping roof and Greek columns, though two lay on the ground. At home it would have been a courthouse.

They took pictures and climbed a few steps onto a portico. It had large front doors with handles, but, as everyone expected, none of them moved. So, they had to climb through window frames again.