The Map Makers by X Minus One

Summary

---

Relic Radio Sci-Fi – “The Map Makers” (X Minus One)

Original Air Date: December 23, 2025
Source: Adapted from a story by Frederik Pohl

---

Episode Overview

This episode of Relic Radio Sci-Fi features “The Map Makers” from the classic radio series X Minus One. The story follows a starship crew stranded far from home after a catastrophic accident during hyperspace travel destroys their navigation atlas and blinds their navigator, Lieutenant Grodin. Facing dwindling resources, increasing heat, and hopeless odds, the crew’s survival hinges on Grodin’s mysterious new ability to “see” through hyperspace. The episode explores isolation, the limits of human perception, sacrifice, and the unknown boundaries of space and mind.

---

Key Discussion Points & Highlights

1. Disaster in Hyperspace: The Loss of the Atlas

• Damage Report & Aftermath
  • [02:09–03:13]
    The ship is struck by meteoric matter during hyperspace jump—a “million to one chance,” which destroys the celestial atlas (the only record of hyperspace configurations) and leaves navigator Lieutenant Grodin gravely injured and blinded.
    • Captain: “That meteor dropped us out of hyperspace in the middle of a jump. Consequently, there isn't a constellation in the sky that you or I or anybody else ever saw before.” (03:56)
• Immediate Response & Crew Reactions
  • [03:31–05:55]
    The crew reflects on the essential nature of human navigators in hyperspace—machines can’t function due to the prohibition on electric current, creating a dangerous dependency.

2. The Stranded Crew: Tension and Survival

• Losing Hope While Attempting Repairs
  • [06:16–09:38]
    Recorder’s Mate Eklund is put into a trance to recite old navigation records, but the Captain laments, “A centimeter off the figures might put us 1,000 kilometers in hyperspace. Anything up to a million light years…” (08:09)
• The Draining Environment
  • [10:12–11:13, 14:33–17:23]
    As supplies dwindle and temperatures rise, the strain mounts. “Every time the jets blast, every time the cook fries an egg, the ship gets just a little hotter.” (14:34, Crew Member 2)

3. A Blind Navigator: Grodin’s Ordeal

• Blindness and Despair
  • [10:20–15:56]
    Grodin learns he is blind, possibly permanently if he is not treated within 10 days. He refuses painkillers, withdrawing inward as the realization sets in. “He didn’t say a word. I know that man is in pain...He just lay there without a sound until we went into the jump. Then he screamed his head out.” (15:30, Doctor Broderick)
• The Medical Struggle & Hopelessness
  • [15:56–17:23]
    Without modern medical devices, the ship’s doctor can do little; the crew suffers heat exhaustion and dwindling morale.

4. Hyperspace Jumps and Mind-Bending Perceptions

• Jump Sequences: Danger and Hallucination
  • [13:01–13:51, 18:03–18:22, 22:17–24:08]
    The terrors and hallucinations of hyperspace jumps are vividly portrayed—sight cannot be trusted, and time and direction become irrelevant.
    • Captain: “Your eyes lie to you...I don't know how much you will get in trance.” (11:48)
    • Crew Member 2: “They got a fix all right. 15,000 light years from Sol. That’s the way it is in hyperspace. Distances haven't got anything to do with anything.” (14:14)
• Grodin’s Revelation: Seeing the Pattern
  • [18:22–19:30]
    During a jump, Grodin suddenly perceives a “master pattern,” seeing beyond blindness: “They lied. I can see it. The master pattern. I...I can see it. Not like seeing. Like...knowing. That's Lorch. And Rodrick's on the bridge and Captain on Earth. Suddenly, I can see them.” (18:22, Grodin)

5. A New Ability: The Human Map Maker

• An Impossible Feat—Navigating by Mind, not Eyes
  • [23:11–24:08]
    Grodin demonstrates his ability to “see” through hyperspace and guides the ship:
    • Grodin: “I can see the stars and the ship and the Earth at the same time. The equations on hyperspace—I can see them the way you can see a triangle or a circle. I can see the Earth and I can tell you how far it is.” (23:38)
    • The Captain, astonished: “Grodin, you mean you can pilot us home?” (24:08)
• Guiding the Ship to Safety
  • [24:30–25:17]
    Grodin issues rapid-fire, precise navigation instructions, miraculously returning the ship from oblivion to a habitable planet near home—but while collapsing from exhaustion and blindness.
    • Captain, reverently: “He saw in hyperspace. He navigated by line of sight in hyperspace.” (25:17)

6. Aftermath: A New World and a New Purpose

• Not Quite Home, But Hope
  • [25:34–26:15]
    The crew hasn’t returned directly to Earth, but find a suitable planet for landing and resupply. Grodin’s sacrifice is revealed—he delayed the direct route to chart more of hyperspace, knowing his eyesight would not return.
    • Captain to Grodin: “You could have brought us back to Earth in two jumps...I can't allow a man to go blind because of phony heroics.” (26:22)
    • Grodin: “You offer me eyes. Captain, we have a quadrant of hyperspace to chart. I can see during the jumps. Captain, I…” (26:30)
• A New Role: Charting the Unknown
  • [27:32–28:09]
    The Captain formally appoints Grodin to lead future navigation during jumps, making him the “map maker” of hyperspace.
    • Captain: “Lieutenant Grodin will be in command during jump. He will handle this ship, and at his direction, we will chart hyperspace. But in the meantime, will you kindly lead him to his quarters?” (27:32)

---

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “A million to one chance. I don't think it's happened in 300 years. Meteoritic matter hitting a ship in hyperspace.” (02:19, Mr. Lorch)
• “That meteor dropped us out of hyperspace in the middle of a jump. Consequently, there isn't a constellation in the sky that you or I or anybody else ever saw before.” (03:56, Captain)
• “You don't use juice in hyperspace.” (05:44, Crew Member 1)
• “The whole thing is as orderly and chartable as our own space. And I could see it. All of it.” (26:30, Grodin)
• “He saw in hyperspace. He navigated by line of sight in hyperspace.” (25:17, Captain)
• “You offer me eyes. Captain, we have a quadrant of hyperspace to chart. I can see during the jumps…” (26:30, Grodin)
• “Lieutenant Grodin will be in command during jump… and at his direction, we will chart hyperspace.” (27:32, Captain)

---

Major Timestamps

• [02:09–03:56] – Catastrophic accident; loss of atlas and navigation.
• [10:20–12:01] – Grodin learns he’s blind; psychological impact revealed.
• [13:01–13:51, 18:22–19:30] – Reality-warping effects of hyperspace jumps; Grodin’s breakthrough.
• [23:38–24:08] – Grodin navigates using his new ability.
• [24:30–25:17] – The ship safely exits hyperspace; Grodin collapses.
• [26:22–27:32] – Grodin’s decision revealed and new duties assigned.

---

Final Thoughts

“The Map Makers” is a gripping exploration of human resilience and adaptation in the face of overwhelming odds and alien circumstances. The drama is rooted in the clash between the limitations of technology and the untapped powers of the human mind—emphasizing how crisis drives discovery. The episode’s closing firmly establishes Grodin as both a tragic and heroic figure, heralding a new era of navigation and exploration.

---

Transcript

[Lieutenant Grodin]

Relic radio.

[Mr. Bonner]

This is Relic Radio. Sci Fi Old Time Radio Science fiction stories from relicradio.com.

[Narrator]

Countdown for blast off. X minus 5. 4, 3, 2. X minus 1. Fire. From the far horizons of the unknown. Come transcribed Tales of new dimensions in time and space. These are stories of the future. Adventures in which you'll live in a million could be years on a thousand maybe worlds. The National Broadcasting Company, in cooperation with Galaxy Science Fiction Magazine, presents X minus 1. Tonight's story, the Mapmakers by Frederick Pohl.

[Captain]

Damage report, Mr. Bunnard.

[Mr. Lorch]

Aye, sir. Three bulkheads penetrated in AC and D sections. Patched in airtight.

[Captain]

How is Lieutenant Groden?

[Mr. Lorch]

He isn't good. He's unconscious. His head is all bandaged up. There's a million to one chance. I don't think it's happened in 300 years. Meteoric matter hitting a ship in hyperspace.

[Captain]

Mr. Bonner, would you please have the air vents operated to clear the control room of kerosene fumes?

[Mr. Lorch]

Mr. Larch.

[Mr. Bonner]

Aye, sir. Ciccaroli, man the fence.

[Captain]

I'll have a half G spin, if you please. We can use a little gravity while we figure this out.

[Mr. Lorch]

Aye, sir. Engine room, half G spin for simulated gravity.

[Captain]

How about the Atlas?

[Mr. Lorch]

That's the worst damage, sir. Celestial atlas is destroyed.

[Lieutenant Grodin]

Hmm.

[Captain]

The Atlas was the only record on board of the hyperspace configurations.

[Doctor Broderick]

It's a total loss.

[Mr. Lorch]

It's dead, sir. Oh.

[Lieutenant Grodin]

Hang on.

[Mr. Bonner]

Here comes gravity spin.

[Captain]

What was his name?

[Mr. Lorch]

Reedus Spawn. He had a sister in Seattle, I think.

[Captain]

Pass orders for burial at the afterlock.

[Mr. Lorch]

I see.

[Captain]

And, Mr. Bonner, have all officers assembled in the wardroom for an emergency meeting as soon as we are secured for normal space.

[Mr. Lorch]

At ease, gentlemen.

[Captain]

Gentlemen, we are in trouble. We are in the soup and we're a long way from home. Abana, would you get me a bulb of coffee, please? Now, nobody is going to come and get us out of this. We'll have to do it ourselves if we can. Ciccarelli is trying to get us a fix, but I can tell you right now we are not close to the solar system.

[Mr. Lorch]

There you are, sir.

[Captain]

Oh, thank you. That meteor dropped us out of hyperspace in the middle of a jump. Consequently, there isn't a constellation in the sky that you or I or anybody else ever saw before. We might be a hundred light years from home, or we might be 10,000.

[Mr. Lorch]

Well, sir, what about our records?

[Captain]

They went with the Atlas. We can't retrace our steps, not in hyperspace.

[Mr. Lorch]

Sir?

[Captain]

Yes, what is it, Lorch?

[Mr. Bonner]

Burial detail standing by at the afterlock.

[Mr. Lorch]

Very well.

[Captain]

We'll get down there in a few minutes. I'm afraid the atlas will have to wait.

[Crew Member 1]

He's a mess, isn't he?

[Crew Member 2]

Cover him up. Haven't you got any respect?

[Crew Member 1]

It's a laugh spawn. I mean, look at his head. They spent four years stuffing it with all those equations under that hypno machine. Did you ever see him working a jump?

[Crew Member 2]

My jump station's Engine Pit 3.

[Crew Member 1]

There's enough to curl your hair. You know what it's like during jump. No lights, no fluorescence even. Just those kerosene lamps smoking, everything looking bent and twisted. You can't tell what you're seeing. Well, Spahn stands right up there next to the captain in a trance. And he's spouting numbers and times and equations.

[Narrator]

And all the time his eyes are.

[Crew Member 1]

Shut, he's out like a light.

[Crew Member 2]

He's sure out for good now.

[Crew Member 1]

It's funny. He never knew how to count up his pay when he was conscious. When he's out, he's as good as a five story computer.

[Crew Member 2]

I never could figure. It's kind of creepy. Why don't they take a regular machine to do hyperspace navigating?

[Crew Member 1]

Well, you ought to know, you just lifted him. Spawn weighed 130 ringing wet. A computer would weigh maybe 3 or 4 tons. Ship couldn't lift it.

[Crew Member 2]

We got computers on board.

[Crew Member 1]

Yeah, electronic computers. What's the first order before jump?

[Crew Member 2]

Douse all electric gear.

[Crew Member 1]

Sure. The Terra one blew higher than the kite before they found that out. You don't use juice in hyperspace.

[Captain]

Not if you want to get out of it.

[Crew Member 1]

So you can't use a computer during a jump. That's where Spawn came in.

[Crew Member 2]

I can't use him in a jump anymore either.

[Crew Member 1]

Yeah, that's for sure.

[Crew Member 2]

Hey, listen, there's a brass coming to dump him. I gotta get back to my patient. Put out that cigarette and try to look solemn. Mr. Broderick.

[Doctor Broderick]

How is he?

[Captain]

Convoy?

[Crew Member 2]

Not so good. I gave him three ampoules of neomorph in the last two hours. That's twice the normal dosage.

[Doctor Broderick]

Let me see.

[Crew Member 2]

Lieutenant Grodin's the navigator, isn't he? I mean, what happens with him all cut up in the head?

[Doctor Broderick]

The captain is a trained navigator.

[Crew Member 2]

Well, that doesn't do us any good in jump, does it? Not without the atlas to do the calculating.

[Doctor Broderick]

Look, our job down here is to keep Lieutenant Grodin out of pain. We'll leave the rest of the bridge.

[Mr. Lorch]

All right.

[Crew Member 2]

Sorry, sir, it's just that Corelli in the chart room told me he can't locate one of those stars in his chart.

[Mr. Lorch]

And what's more.

[Lieutenant Grodin]

Oh, convoy.

[Mr. Lorch]

Yes, sir.

[Doctor Broderick]

How about that amp you?

[Mr. Lorch]

Now. Now hear this. Now here. Recorders make second class. Echoing Report to the Wardron. Report to Wardro. All right, Ein. Come in.

[Recorder's Mate Eklund]

Recorder's Mate Eklund reporting, sir.

[Captain]

Stand at ease. Eklund. You've heard about Recorder's Mate Spahn?

[Recorder's Mate Eklund]

Yes, sir. I was with Charlie when.

[Captain]

Bonner. Get Eckland a chair, please.

[Mr. Lorch]

There you are.

[Recorder's Mate Eklund]

I'm all right, sir.

[Captain]

You know that Spahn's operation was essential to navigation in a jump.

[Recorder's Mate Eklund]

No, sir. I mean, I don't know much of anything until I'm indexed.

[Captain]

Yes, of course. You're rated a ship's library and log.

[Recorder's Mate Eklund]

Yes, sir.

[Captain]

Spahn, read his calibrations up to this point into you.

[Recorder's Mate Eklund]

I suppose so, sir. I'm in trance when I record.

[Captain]

Yes, of course. Now we're going to need those records. Are you ready?

[Recorder's Mate Eklund]

Yes, sir. The key word is index.

[Captain]

All right. Index.

[Mr. Lorch]

There she goes. Takes about 30 seconds for full trance.

[Captain]

Uh huh. You know, Bonner, this is risky. Trying to backtrack on hyperspace equations by dead reckoning. A centimeter off of the figures might put us 1,000 kilometers in hyperspace. Anything up to a million light years when we dropped back into normal. I wish that meteor had gotten me instead of the Atlas.

[Mr. Lorch]

She's in Transir.

[Captain]

All right. Eund. Ship's log. Journey day one. Jump one.

[Recorder's Mate Eklund]

Journey, day one. Jump one. Normal space. Coordinates 345-67-465 sub. 456. Time 4356.98.

[Mr. Bonner]

Ensign Lots reporting on watch, sir. No maneuvering during watch. No change in operating status. I. I haven't made an entry for course and position.

[Mr. Lorch]

Mr. Bonner just put down unknown in big letters.

[Mr. Bonner]

Yes, sir. You didn't get anything out of Eklund?

[Mr. Lorch]

Oh, sure. We got the absolute magnitudes in a stellar distance of half the stars in the galaxy and short course in the geodesics of the N dimensional space. We didn't get a roadmap. What does that thermometer read?

[Mr. Bonner]

It's all right, sir. I adjusted heat level.

[Mr. Lorch]

What?

[Mr. Bonner]

The welding torches had the temperature up 5 degrees, so I ordered air valved into the expansion line.

[Mr. Lorch]

Mr. Lorch, you were bleeding air.

[Mr. Bonner]

Well, yes, sir. To cool shift.

[Lieutenant Grodin]

Lorch, you're a fool.

[Captain]

What?

[Mr. Lorch]

You valve off air as though we had a whole world of it. Did it ever occur to you we might be in space a long time and we might Run out of air.

[Mr. Bonner]

But, sir, sir, that doesn't happen. I mean, no.

[Mr. Lorch]

Not when you can jump. Not when Earth is an hour or a day away. But we can't jump. You just leave those air valves alone. We'll need every molecule.

[Doctor Broderick]

Groton, can you hear me? It's Doc Bradley. Can you hear me?

[Lieutenant Grodin]

Yes, I.

[Doctor Broderick]

All right, don't talk now. You've been hurt. A meteorite got the Atlas. And something got you right across the eyes. Drops of molten metal. You're blind, at least for now. We can fix you up from the I bank when we get back on Earth.

[Lieutenant Grodin]

The Atlas. Atlas dead.

[Doctor Broderick]

We got enough problems. I've got to take the bandages off now. Can you. Can you see anything?

[Narrator]

I'm going to pass the light in.

[Doctor Broderick]

Front of your eyes. You tell me if you can see anything.

[Lieutenant Grodin]

No. No, nothing. But it hurts at all.

[Mr. Lorch]

Right?

[Doctor Broderick]

Convoy, hand me that ampule.

[Captain]

Secure for jump, Mr. Bunner.

[Mr. Lorch]

Secure.

[Mr. Bonner]

Engine room damage. Aft damage. Forward generator stations. Radiation control. Cargo hold. One, two, three, four. Men's quarters at.

[Captain]

You ready, Eckland?

[Recorder's Mate Eklund]

Yes, sir.

[Captain]

Have you ever been on the bridge during a jump?

[Recorder's Mate Eklund]

No, sir.

[Captain]

Well, it's tricky. Your eyes lie to you. You see things that aren't there. I don't know how much you will get in trance.

[Recorder's Mate Eklund]

Nothing, sir. I black out completely.

[Captain]

Oh, good.

[Mr. Bonner]

Ship secured, sir.

[Mr. Lorch]

Ship secured, sir.

[Captain]

Kill the spin.

[Mr. Lorch]

Engine room. Kill spin. Ship's company, stand by for free fall. Free fall. Check off chronometers. Wound and synchronized. Kerosene lamps lit. Navigator, aye. Communicator, Aye. Atlas. I'm sorry. Ready. Eklund, aye. Put her under eklund index.

[Captain]

Proceed, Mr. Bonner.

[Mr. Lorch]

Main circuit breakers open.

[Mr. Bonner]

Main circuit breakers open.

[Mr. Lorch]

Electricity cut. Eklund's entrance.

[Captain]

Well, we'll give it a try. Bonner. Backtrack on our jumps.

[Mr. Lorch]

Maybe it'll work out.

[Captain]

Maybe. Stand by the jump.

[Mr. Lorch]

Stand by the jump.

[Mr. Bonner]

Stand by to jump.

[Captain]

We'll go when she's straight up. 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Jump. Convoy. Convoy, where are you?

[Crew Member 1]

Over here.

[Captain]

I can't see.

[Mr. Bonner]

You feel your way over the road?

[Captain]

Everything's green. Kevin, the hypo.

[Mr. Lorch]

Come on, man.

[Doctor Broderick]

You've been in the jump before. Here's the ampoule, sir, not the pressure hypo. We can't use current in jump.

[Narrator]

The syringe crowd.

[Doctor Broderick]

It's all right.

[Lieutenant Grodin]

We're in. Jump.

[Doctor Broderick]

That's all.

[Lieutenant Grodin]

My eyes.

[Mr. Bonner]

My eyes.

[Lieutenant Grodin]

My eyes.

[Crew Member 2]

Deal. What's the use? You can't use the money even if you win.

[Crew Member 1]

What are you trying to do, chicken out?

[Crew Member 2]

Corelli says they got a fix after the jump.

[Crew Member 1]

What are we worried about?

[Mr. Lorch]

Deal.

[Crew Member 2]

They got a fix all right. 15,000 light years from Sal. Shuffle. Shuffle. He says that's the way it is in hyperspace. Distances haven't got anything to do with anything. Unless you're. Unless you can navigate when you're in jumping.

[Narrator]

We can't.

[Crew Member 1]

Hey, when did Lorch make his rounds?

[Doctor Broderick]

Why?

[Crew Member 1]

I'm gonna take off my jumper.

[Lieutenant Grodin]

It's hot.

[Crew Member 2]

Yeah, and it's gonna get hotter. Every time the jets blast. Every time the cook fries an egg, the ship gets just a little hotter.

[Crew Member 1]

Don't mention it.

[Crew Member 2]

Every time the jump generators turn over, every time you light a match that gets us hotter and hotter. Hey, what are you doing?

[Crew Member 1]

Picking up my skimmy shirt.

[Lieutenant Grodin]

Deal. Oh.

[Doctor Broderick]

How is he? Mr. Broderick, you can tell the captain that Lieutenant Grodin remains unimproved. How is he really? He's working up to some real damage. The kind of can't handle. It's in his head. I had to tell him his sight was gone. Unless we can get back to an eye bank within 10 days. Can patch in an eye, but once the nerve is deteriorated, you can't replace it. Did he take it hard?

[Mr. Lorch]

Worse.

[Doctor Broderick]

Worse? He didn't say a word. I know that man is in pain. The convoy found his pills hidden under his pillow. He wouldn't take them. He just lay there without a sound until we went into the jump. Then he screamed his head out.

[Mr. Bonner]

What's wrong with him?

[Doctor Broderick]

Who knows? If I had an electroencephaloscope on board, but I'm lucky they let me have a mini X ray.

[Mr. Bonner]

What did doctors do before they had those gadgets? Shoot the patients?

[Narrator]

No.

[Doctor Broderick]

With luck I could run an old fashioned verbal psychoanalysis on him. I might pick something significant out of the sludge. Maybe five or six months. That's what they did before they had the EES. What time is it?

[Mr. Bonner]

0756.

[Doctor Broderick]

I've got sick call in 20 minutes. Heat exhaustion, dizzy spells, skin rashes. I'm running out of aspirin and salt tablets.

[Lieutenant Grodin]

Yeah.

[Mr. Bonner]

Bonner had me with a 10 man detail defluffing the filter traps on the air circulators. It's a lucky thing spaceships aren't painted. They'd have us chipping paint.

[Mr. Lorch]

Now hear this. Mr. Broderick, report to the bridge. Mr. Broderick, Report to the bridge.

[Doctor Broderick]

How am I supposed to do that? I got two corpsmen down with heat prostration.

[Mr. Bonner]

I'll look after Groton. Mr. Broderick, maybe I could Give him an alcohol rub.

[Doctor Broderick]

Thanks, Lorch. Oh, by the way, that alcohol. Yes, it's denatured.

[Captain]

Here's the problem, Mr. Broderick. We have fuel for just under 40 minutes of rocket blast. At standard thrust, that will bring our overall temperature up to 60 degrees centigrade. That's the maximum the human body can stand. Right?

[Doctor Broderick]

That's about 140 fahrenheit. Well, it hits that on Earth in a couple of places around the Dead Sea. But it isn't sustained heat. It drops considerably after dark.

[Captain]

We'll hope we find ourselves out of this before we hit 60 degrees. If we don't, at least we won't starve or suffocate. All right, gentlemen. Mr. Broderick, you can prepare for increasing heat casualties as we proceed.

[Narrator]

Yes, Sir.

[Captain]

All right, Mr. Bonner, secure for jump. My eyes.

[Lieutenant Grodin]

My eyes.

[Mr. Bonner]

Now, take it easy, Groton. Convoy. Convoy.

[Mr. Lorch]

Yes, sir.

[Mr. Bonner]

Where's the Doctor?

[Crew Member 2]

He stayed on the bridge with the jump.

[Mr. Bonner]

Well, what do we do for Groton during the jump? I can't even see him.

[Crew Member 2]

I don't think he can hurt himself. We better just wait till the jump's over.

[Lieutenant Grodin]

My eyes. They lied. They lied to me. They lied. I can see it. The master pattern. I. I can see it. No, no, not like seeing. Like. Like knowing. That's. That's Lorch. And Rodrick's on the bridge and the Captain on Earth. Suddenly, I can see them. Unbuckle the straps. I've got to get up to the bridge. The jump is almost over. I'll be blind again. Lorch sees me, he'll think it's jump hallucinations. They're lost. But I'm not. I can see the whole universe. I can see.

[Mr. Lorch]

Jump completed. Secure normal space.

[Captain]

Drodin.

[Mr. Bonner]

Drodin, come back here. What are you doing out in the passage? Convoy, sir. Come on, give me a hand. Now, how did he get out here and jump? He's blind.

[Mr. Lorch]

Navigation, report? Negative, sir.

[Captain]

Is there a fix?

[Mr. Lorch]

No, sir. Corelli thinks he can get a triangulation on an extra galactic nebula. That'll take time.

[Captain]

What's the temperature?

[Mr. Lorch]

45.

[Captain]

We don't have time. We'll have to keep on. If we don't end up within a light year of Sol, we're cooked.

[Crew Member 1]

Literally.

[Captain]

So, at your convenience, we'll take another jump.

[Doctor Broderick]

Sir, we've got to take a break. The only way to handle the temperature is frequent rests and liquids.

[Captain]

Will ten minutes be enough? Oh, I suppose so, Mr. Bonner. Cap, stewards, sections. Issue whatever they have. Juices, water, there's no point in saving it. Any length of time. We have about 24 minutes of rocket time before the hull heats up to 60 degrees.

[Doctor Broderick]

Is there any reasonable chance?

[Captain]

Mr. Broderick, we have tried dead reckoning from the records, but in hyperspace we can't follow them accurately. Not without Atlas. I'm timing the blasts from my pulse because you can't trust reading a clock unless you can touch it. When we jump, I might as well be blind.

[Mr. Bonner]

Easy. Get him back on the bed.

[Captain]

Easy, Convoy.

[Mr. Lorch]

Easy.

[Crew Member 2]

Oh, I got his arm here.

[Mr. Bonner]

I can't figure how we got out there. I saw him, but I thought it was a jump hallucination.

[Crew Member 2]

Easy, mister.

[Captain]

Go now.

[Narrator]

Just lie.

[Lieutenant Grodin]

No, no, no. I can see. I can see.

[Mr. Bonner]

Is that possible?

[Crew Member 2]

Look at him, Mr. Lorch. His eyes are covered with bandages.

[Doctor Broderick]

He's blind.

[Mr. Lorch]

Ten minutes is up, captain.

[Captain]

All right, secure for jump.

[Mr. Lorch]

I had to assign three more men to each generator. The crew couldn't handle the manual clutch.

[Doctor Broderick]

In the heat very well.

[Captain]

Proceed.

[Mr. Lorch]

Chronometers wound and synchronized. Kerosene lamps lit. Navigator, aye. Ready, Eklund.

[Recorder's Mate Eklund]

Aye.

[Mr. Lorch]

Index.

[Captain]

Proceed, Mr. Bonner.

[Mr. Lorch]

Main circuit breakers open.

[Captain]

Stand by to jump.

[Mr. Lorch]

Stand by to jump.

[Captain]

Straight up. Four, three, two, one. Jump.

[Mr. Lorch]

30 seconds to full velocity, sir.

[Captain]

Never can get used to it. You can hear, you can touch, but your eyes lie. The photons and electrons that carry vision have some crazy mathematics of their own.

[Mr. Lorch]

I know, sir.

[Captain]

I remember once I saw a row of monkeys sitting on the control console. I wondered what they were before hyper space twisted them into monkeys.

[Mr. Lorch]

10 seconds.

[Captain]

Yeah, that's what I mean. Now it seems as if I'm seeing Groton up here on the bridge and I know very well he's down in Sickbay asleep.

[Narrator]

Captain?

[Mr. Lorch]

Captain?

[Captain]

Who is that?

[Mr. Lorch]

Larch?

[Captain]

Yes, sir. You're not on bridge watch.

[Crew Member 2]

Captain.

[Mr. Bonner]

He's really here. It's not a hallucination.

[Captain]

What are you talking about? Grodin.

[Mr. Bonner]

He's really here, sir.

[Doctor Broderick]

Launch. What's the idea of bringing him up here during jump?

[Mr. Bonner]

I only brought him to the forward lock, sir. Then he brought me.

[Captain]

Broderick, is this some kind of heat exhaustion?

[Mr. Bonner]

I'm telling you, sir, we went in to jump and I couldn't see anything that made sense. Just twisting shadows and lights, you know. But Grodin took my hand and led me right up here along the passage. Blind. Not in hyperspace. Not in jump. Then he can save Captain.

[Doctor Broderick]

I gotta get him to sick.

[Mr. Bonner]

Pain. He must be in intense pain.

[Lieutenant Grodin]

Yes, yes, it's painful, all right, but I can see the Whole plan, the whole pattern, it makes sense to me now. I can see the stars and the ship and the Earth at the same time. The equations on hyperspace, I can see then the way you can see a triangle or a circle. I can see the Earth and I can tell you how far it is.

[Captain]

Groden, you mean you can pilot us home?

[Lieutenant Grodin]

Yes, I can.

[Captain]

All right, Mr. Groden, take over this ship.

[Lieutenant Grodin]

Number three pattern.

[Captain]

Fire. Cut.

[Lieutenant Grodin]

Velocity 563748. Relative thrust, seven eight, six seven. Counterblast for two two seconds. Pattern six, five, seven.

[Doctor Broderick]

Blast.

[Captain]

Cut.

[Lieutenant Grodin]

All right, hit normal space at mark. Five, four, three, two, one. Mark.

[Captain]

Look out.

[Doctor Broderick]

He's gonna fall. Yeah, I've got him. There.

[Lieutenant Grodin]

He saw.

[Captain]

He saw in hyperspace. He navigated by line of sight in hyperspace.

[Doctor Broderick]

I'll have to order a stretcher off. He's blind again.

[Mr. Lorch]

Sun system 239 degrees, 45 elevation magnified by 50 on forward screen.

[Captain]

That's not so.

[Lieutenant Grodin]

No, but it's a place to land. There's a planet there. It's Earth normal. You can land in cool ship and replenish air.

[Captain]

Mr. Bonner, take her down to atmosphere. Have planetology section start to check it out.

[Mr. Lorch]

Hi, sir. Ensign Lorch, report down to planetology. Engine room. Planning routine.

[Doctor Broderick]

Why didn't we hit Earth on the chump road?

[Captain]

Why, just as well, Mr. Roderick. If the planet checks out, it's a whole world for colonization.

[Narrator]

Sure, but it'll be two weeks before.

[Doctor Broderick]

You can replenish ship and catalyze fuel. There won't be any new eyes for Lieutenant Grodin. Then the optic nerves will be gone too far. You'll never have eyes again.

[Mr. Lorch]

I knew that before I brought you up here. Ready Blast for skip deceleration in Pit 3.

[Captain]

You mean Grodin? You could have brought us back to.

[Lieutenant Grodin]

Earth in two jumps.

[Captain]

Then why didn't you? I can't allow a man to go blind because of phony heroics.

[Lieutenant Grodin]

Do you want to know how many Sol type systems there are within 5,000 light years? I can tell. You want to know what the universe looks like in hyperspace? I can tell you that, too, only I can't describe it. The whole thing is as orderly and chartable as our own space. And I could see it. All of it. And you offer me eyes. Captain, we have a quadrant of hyperspace to chart. I can see during the jumps. Captain, I.

[Narrator]

Look out.

[Doctor Broderick]

He's still in pain.

[Lieutenant Grodin]

I can see to the end of the galaxy.

[Mr. Lorch]

And we are.

[Narrator]

I know.

[Captain]

But in the meantime, Mr. Broderick, Aye, sir. When we take off again, Lieutenant Grodin will be in command during jump. He will handle this ship, and at his direction, we will chart hyperspace. But in the meantime, will you kindly lead him to his quarters?

[Narrator]

You have just heard X Minus one, presented by the National Broadcasting Company in cooperation with Galaxy Science Fiction magazine, which this month features Dead Ringer by Lester Del Rey. A fascinating story about a man who learned that there was nothing on Earth which could set him free, least of all the truth. Galaxy magazine on your newsstand today. Tonight, by transcription, X minus 1 has brought you the Mapmakers, a story from the pages of Galaxy, written by Frederick Pohl and adapted for radio by Ernest Kanhoye. Featured in the cast were John Larkin, Ed Prentice, Bob Hastings, Tom Collins, Dick Hamilton, Burford Hamden, Raleigh Bester, and Carl Frank. Your announcer, Fred Collins. X minus one was directed by Daniel Sutter and is an NBC Radio Network production.