Childhood's End

Jeffrey Greggson plays in the ocean. Although his mother, Jean, initially worried about the risk, she is reassured when she dives with him. He is intensely curious about the water.

George occasionally remembers the night 10 years ago that Jean fainted at Rupert Boyce’s party. Neither of them ever mentions it, and Jean has lost all interest in the paranormal.

As George prepares to go out to Sparta to fish and see his son, he and Jean hear a siren warning of a tsunami. Jeffrey is alone on the small island of Sparta when the water sucks out to sea and the siren sounds. He is found hours later entirely safe on a block of coral, hungry and frustrated at the loss of his bike, but physically and emotionally unharmed.

When George and Jean put him to bed that night, he tells them he was rescued by a voice during the tsunami. A voice, which George believes to be Karellen, warned Jeff to run when the water receded and then removed a boulder from his path of escape. Jean takes her son to a psychologist, who says he has an active imagination, but George believes Jeff was rescued by Karellen with a similar ability to the one his mother seemed to display at the party 10 years prior. George is thankful but wonders why Karellen intervened.

Karellen orders an inspection of the New Athens colony. An Overlord visitor named Thanthalteresco arrives and meets with Charles Yan Sen, the chairman at the time of Thanthalteresco’s visit. Known by the residents as The Inspector, Thanthalteresco tours the island, collects statistics, attends a concert, views a play, and visits the schools. After a few days, he leaves, seemingly satisfied with all he’s seen.

George is frustrated that he was unable to talk directly to the Overlord. Jeff tells his parents that he recognized The Inspector’s voice during his school visit as the voice, or one very like it, which protected him from the tsunami. George and Jean talk it over, deciding that Jeff is of particular interest to the Overlords for some reason. Jean worries while George reassures himself that Jeff is a normal boy with a possibly important future.

Thanthalteresco delivers his report to Karellen. The colony, he says, is no threat to the goal of the Overlords. He refers to Jeff as “subject Zero” (166) and reports that no unusual event has occurred yet. He also tells Karellen, “I grow more and more sorry for these people” (166).

Jeff has a strange dream in which he is standing among mountains that are burning with blue flames as a blue sun rises swiftly. Jean wakes feeling that Jeff needs her, which wakes George, who feels helpless and concerned about the odd dream.

Karellen and Rashaverak discuss Jeff’s dream, which they have heard through their surveillance technology. They identify the location of the planet in Jeff’s dream: Alphanidon Two. Karellen also cautions Rashaverak to remember they cannot interfere, which means they cannot question Jeff unless and until Jean and George approach them.

The dreams continue, but for Jeff they have ceased to cause any loneliness or fear and instead become the advent of a transformation. Karellen and Rashaverak watch the dreams, identifying the astronomical locations, until Jeff discovers places they have never seen or heard of.

George goes to see Rashaverak, who reveals that the children are the first of a new race. George’s daughter, Jenny, has entered a state of metamorphosis, evidenced initially by her ability to move her rattle with her mind, levitating it and shaking it. This terrifies her parents and serves as evidence that the Overlords are telling the truth. The Overlords, Rashaverak tells George, have acted as midwives for this new race—a new evolution happening faster than could be imagined by human science.

Jeff changes quickly, but not as quickly as his sister. He sits for hours with his eyes closed, visiting the farthest reaches of the universe. Jenny is described as being in a sort of chrysalis—apparently sleeping but able to move furniture and retrieve food from the freezer at will. Jean and George find solace in one another and late-night walks, grieving the children they had as they helplessly watch the transformation.

In a short time, the transformation spreads to essentially every child under the age of 10. Humanity is devastated by the loss of their future, the loss of children and childhood. Karellen prepares to speak to all of humanity one last time.