Page 25 - An Evening with Maxwell's Daemons

Invasion of the Silicates

away sand on all sides, they realize it is a stone structure—but not a
natural outcropping. It seems to have an intentional design!”
“They stop and take photographs, still unsure of what they have
uncovered. Then Fred takes his hammer and swings it down on one
edge of the thing, planning to take back a sample for analysis in his
university’s lab. It explodes in his face, sending a cloud of fine sand
into the area. They are protected by their masks, but blinded for a
minute while the dust clears. They wipe off their goggles and are
amazed to see the jagged edges where his pick had struck slowly
smooth and the missing corner begin to regenerate. Scared but
determined, they gather samples of the blown-off material and seal
them in airtight bags. After taking more photographs, they leave,
anxious to return with what will be a sensational story.”
“They don’t get any traction with the powers that be until some
of the silicates are revealed to be of extraterrestrial origin and their
photographs are verified as not being doctored. The next trek out
to the site involves heavy equipment and dozens of scientists,
military personnel and members of the press. They find that the
structure has grown, apparently consuming desert sand as it
expands in all directions. Then the dig around it begins, this time
under the supervision of archaeologists careful not to disturb the
‘rock pile’, as it becomes known around the world. They do not
reach bottom.”
“Okay, that’s enough story for now. You should all get the
picture. And before you start objecting to this opening because of
my shameless borrowing of sci-fi horror movie conventions for
inorganic monsters, kindly recall that those films demanded their
viewers to suspend disbelief and accept the possibility of a
humanoid or monolith made of rock or clay. Yes, the golem, the
daimajin and a host of walking boulders cannot be ignored. So:
ignore them, please! Remember my premise: that is what sets this
invader apart from assorted chthonic and man-made stone brutes.
It is not an evil intelligence. It simply shatters into clouds of deadly
dust if disturbed. If left unchecked it will cover the earth, absorbing
every silicon compound it comes in contact with and spitting out

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