human
So I've heard, Venza interrupted me.
gpt
They say that, and then they stop. Why can't a newscaster tell you what is so mysterious?
human
For a very good reason, Venza: because you can't throw people into a panic. This whole thing, up to today, has been withheld from the public of Earth and Venus. The Martian Union tried to withhold it, but could not. Every heliogram between the worlds is censored.
gpt
And still, said Venza sarcastically,
human
For one thing, I said,
gpt
What does that mean?
human
They're beginning to make wild guesses but we won't go into that.
gpt
What else is mysterious?
human
The thing isn't normally visible.
gpt
Don't talk in code!
human
Not normally visible, I repeated.
gpt
A world one-fifth as large as the Moon could be seen plainly by our 'scopes when well beyond Pluto. It's now between Jupiter and Mars, invisible to the naked eye, of course, but still it's not very far away. I've been out there myself. With instruments, we ought to be able to see its surface; see whether it has land and water, inhabitants perhaps. You should be able to distinguish an object on its surface as large as a city, but you can't.
human
Why not? asked Anita.
gpt
Are the clouds too thick? What causes it?
human
They don't even know that, I retorted.
gpt
There is something abnormal about the light-waves coming from it. Not exactly blurred, but a distortion, a fading. It's some abnormality of the light-waves.
human
Hola-lo, everybody! Is it a conference? You look so solemn.