 Tired of the everyday grind? Ever dream of a life of romantic adventure? Want to get away from it all? We offer you escape. Escape, designed to free you from the four walls of today for a half hour of high adventure. You are on a planet of desolation and utter ruin, awaiting the return of your comrades to carry you to safety. While the remains of life about you, crawling in evil, are slowly hemming you in and ruthlessly tracking you down to your death. Listen now, as escape brings you Charles Smith's unusual story, North of Polaris. Testing, one, two, three, four. You read me, Joe? Loud and clear, R5S5. Already, sir. How is he? Well... How do you feel, Mac? Scared, sir. Now take your time out there. Be very sure. Can you see him? Not yet, sir. Yes, sir, there he is. Mac, what's it like out there? Nothing much to see. You feel heavier or lighter than usual? Can you move about easily? Just like at home. What about atmosphere? I'm turning off my oxygen unit and opening the intake valve. Careful. Not too fast now. I've got my supply completely, sir. Rescue party standing by, sir. It seems to be okay. Yes, sir, the air is good. Are you sure? It's okay. Send him out. From the port of the spaceship we could see him calmly walking about on the surface of a planet approximately 20 million miles from our own. All 40 of us had drawn straws. Mac had won. And if we returned home safely, he would be remembered as the first man to touch the soil of an alien planet. Well, Joe? I guess I'm as ready as I'll ever be, sir. Who else are you taking with you? Stoner. He's good with the camera. Sam, have you got your gear already? You know what to do. What I want. Yes, sir. Map the area as best you can. Bring me a report on water sources, mineral deposits, vegetation. And if you see any signs of life, try to get pictures. But otherwise, avoid it. You can tell the others that's an order. Yes, sir. Do you think there is life here, sir? Well, some of our best minds have always claimed there was. Well, when we get back, we'll set them straight, sir. Yeah. I'll make her other drops and pick you up at this spot in 48 hours. So you're on your own. Good luck, Joe. Thank you, sir. Joe, do you notice anything wrong with this place? What do you mean, Mac? Well, look around. You see any trees, bushes, grass, anything growing? You see anything green? Yeah, that's right. Well, it's probably desert country. No, no, look here. You feel the soil. What? It's rich enough. Gets plenty of sun, probably plenty of rain. Look at its color. Gray, dead. Maybe it's like the moon. Maybe this is just another moon. Well, there's air here. There isn't any on the moon. How do you know you ever been there? Well, that's what they say, Sam. Sometimes they're wrong. Well, what now? Well, we've got about five hours of daylight left. We'll head north. I don't like it. It's too quiet. Not even the wind. What are you trying to do, Mac? Don't you think we're jumping enough? How long are they going to leave us here? 48 hours. That could be a long time. We started north. It was easy walking over the flat rolling land. Easy because there were no trees or bushes or weeds. There was nothing. Nothing but the gray sky and the great dead soil. I was beginning to think that maybe it was only a moon. And then we made camp for the night. Okay, come and get it. Look here, beans and K-ratches. That's what I wanted. Now, watch those cans. They're hot. The first thing I'm going to do when I get home... Oh, what? I'm going to the best restaurant in town in order to biggest steak in a joint. You're pretty sure you're going to get them, aren't you? Yeah, I'm sure. Why aren't you, Mac? I don't know. Hey, want some coffee, Joe? Yeah, yeah, thanks. You're married, Mac? Uh-huh. Any kids? Yeah, I want a little girl, she's fine. What makes you volunteer for this trip? I don't know. Maybe I just had to. You understand that? Yeah, I think so. Hey, you know what I missed? The crickets. You know, at home you sit around a campfire, like at the lake, you hear the frogs and the crickets. And slap the mosquitoes. Yeah. It's funny. Oh, what's that? Well, here we are, 20 million miles away from our home. 20 million miles. And yet up there in the sky, we can still see it. Yeah, I wonder if anybody's looking at this stinking planet and wondering if we made it. Oh, sure they are. All the scientists, the astronomers. I don't mean them, I mean... What do you mean? You got a family, Sam? Only my mother, she lives... And this? Hmm? What is it? Something's out there. Moving. It was life. There was life here. And we can see it now. In the dim light given up by our heating unit. It was an ugly four-legged beast. With a hairless body. And from its odor, a scavenger. Like everything else here, it was the color of grey. That's real smart. It was supposed to be a photographer. Take pictures of what we found here. Oh, lay off them, Joe. It was only a rat, a big rat. The day broke clean and bright. And we kept walking north during the job we'd set out to do. And there were no other signs of life. And we'd almost convinced ourselves that the rat had been a stowaway from our ship. For the first time, things felt right. Hey, Joe! What? Hold it! Ah, stop wasting that film. I don't want to watch your pictures and magazines. I've shot everything there is. You shoot here, it's all going to look the same. Nothing. Yeah, I know. When we turn them back. Tomorrow morning. Ah, there. Now let's take a look around. What's the use? There's nothing to see. Hey, why don't we start back now? Joe? Joe? Mac? Come up here. What is it? On the double. Now take a look through these binoculars, Sam. Up to the east there. What do you see? A lake. Yeah, maybe an ocean. Now swing around slowly to your left. No, easy. There. What do you make of it? I don't know. Well, what's up? Looks like clumps of stone or cement. Take a look. Give him the glasses. Hey, could that be what's left of the city? If it is. If we found... Yes! Yes! Sam! Sam, you fool! Come back here! But he wasn't coming back. Not now. He found a subject for his camera and he was racing toward it. At the edge of the sprawling stone ruins we caught up, and he made us turn with our backs to the city and pointed his camera at us. Welcome to the city. Hold it, both of you, right there. I should have shaved. And Mac, pick up pieces of that stone. I like this. Come on, what are you waiting for? Hold it. Mac, put that stone down. Hey, you think... Just put it down. What's the matter with you guys? The counter's acting up. You kidding? What could be radioactive around here? Mac, lower it near the ground. Well, what do you know? Radioactive? What is it? Uranium? Pitchboard? What? No. This isn't a natural composition. Yeah, then what? Look around you. Take a good look. What's it look like? Just stone? Some kind of ruins? What else? Look at the color of it. The edges. Yeah. Like it's been burnt. Remember what our cities look like? They wouldn't know about atomic energy here. But make sure, sir, sure. I let them on into the sprawling corpse of the great metropolis. Until we stood near the jagged base of what once must have been a magnificent building. Mac? Yeah? Over there. What? Look, rats. Yeah, scrounging for food. Oh, sure thing. At each step we'd taken the radiation, it had increased. And when it reached the danger point, we turned and started slowly back. We didn't say anything. We didn't need to. We had seen and we knew that this world, this civilization had committed suicide. That's getting late. We'd better make camp. Well, this is as good a place as any, I guess. We don't know about you guys, but I'm pooped. Yeah, it's been a long day. You want to set up the stove, Mac? Yeah, I might as well. The sky's clouding up in the south. Looks like a storm, bro. Yeah, your film's safe, Sam. You think the radiation back there damaged it? No, it's packed in heavy lead foil. Oh. Sooner or at, Joe? Yeah. Yeah, I think so. That's funny. No, what's that? Take a look out there. You know, south, honey. It's not the sky that's clouding up. It looks like dust, a dust storm. It couldn't be. There's no wind. Take a look. But there's no wind. Well, something's out there kicking up the dust. How far away you figured? It's hard to tell. Ten, maybe 15 miles. Joe! Joe, look! What? There, to the right of our mile. You see them? See what? No, no, no. Over to your left. Well, what is it? People... You're crazy. There's nothing out there. There. No, they're up again. Joe, he's right. The people like a... Hey! Hey! Look, we've got orders to avoid contact with life here. But, Joe, they're people, human beings. You don't know what they are. Just because they resemble us physically, that doesn't mean a thing. But, Joe, they're not... We've got our orders. The ground's higher over there. Let's move over there where we can see them better. Come on. When we made it to the rise, we could see a man and a woman. Two people just like ourselves. What was left of their clothing was similar to ours. And they were running desperately. And then I looked beyond them and saw the cause of their fear. Stalking them, slowly closing the distance between them, were six of those great, evil rats. We stood there silently, watching the hunters and the hunted. And the longer we watched, the more it became certain that the rats could end the hunt whenever they wanted to. I could see their features now. The woman was much younger than the man. Their faces were distorted by panic and fear. And we watched and waited. And then the old man fell, and Sam and Mack were running, screaming, driving off the rats. Are you all right? Can you understand me? Yes. Where's my father? I must go back to him. The boys are with him. It's all right. You speak our language? Yes. But we were sure there wasn't anyone else in this sector. We thought they'd all gone. Gone where? South. They left us behind. They said he was too old, not worth the trouble. How many of you lived here? Eleven of us. Only eleven? Father and I started out yesterday morning. We thought we could meet them later. And then the rats were... Where are you from? From the outside. Then there is something left outside. Oh, yes. I was sure. I'd hoped. I knew it couldn't end here. Come on. We'd better get you back to camp now. We were asleep. Gave them a set of it. She'll be all right, but I'm worried about the old man. Hey, Joe. Yeah? We've been talking. How can they know our language? Yeah. I don't know. I don't know. You know, it's like our world, isn't it? After the atomic war, I mean. Yeah. I remember reading how the radioactive dust spread all over the land, killing everything. Grass, trees, animals, everything. Well, I guess the same thing happened here. You off your rocket, Joe, with twenty million miles apart. It was over fifty years ago. Look. Don't you think it's possible that life on another planet could have started, advanced and progressed step by step with ours? Oh, Joe, now you're talking like something out of one of those science fiction magazines. Well, what's the matter? Can't your ego accept it? Do we have to be the greatest, the super beings? Everything else in the universe is subhuman? Oh, knock it off. Is it the sack? Okay. It might be a good idea if one of us stood watch while the other two slept. How about it? Sure. Well, I'll take the first slap, and then you, Sam, and then Mac. Each of us will do three hours, huh? I'll try to get some sleep. The three hours passed quickly. My mind was racing, asking if this world was a parallel to our own world. Were all the worlds of the universe alike? I was trying to find the answer when Sam relieved me, and I still hadn't found it when I dropped off to sleep. But I didn't sleep very long. Sam! Oh, good lord. He must have dozed off. Come on! Great Sam just as the sun rose full above the horizon. And then as we turned to walk back to camp, I saw it. The sky to the south was black with dust. It was closer now, much closer than the day before. And whatever it was out there was moving straight for us. What do you make of it, Joe? Oh, Jean. Yes? Does your father feel well enough to travel? Oh, he's much better. He wants to talk to you. All right. Joe, how far are we from our round of a point? 12 miles. Have you noticed the dust to the south? Yes. I was hoping that you could tell us what it was, sir. It is the army. What? The army. The great army of the rats. The others. Those you saw yesterday and this morning. They were the scouts. Out there is the main force. Why only rats? Why no other animals? When the war started, the rats were already immune to radiation. They thrived on it. When all other lives perished. But why? We did it. We made them immune. We used them in our early atomic experiments. Generation after generation. And generation by generation, their resistance increased until a rat was born who was immune to radiation. What are we waiting for? Let's get out of here. Yes, we must run. For now, they are the masters, the rulers, and we are the scavengers. My father! Well, if he can't keep up, hold it. All right, hold up. There's no use going on. Look there ahead of us. Yeah, dust. More of them. Behind us. Into the north. Yeah, they cut us off. Now they close in for the kill. I told you it was an efficient army. Their strategy is well planned. They have a good general. A good man as myself. Father, please try this. Oh, no, no, these young men need me, Jean. We're outnumbered. We need time to muster our forces. Perhaps we could make a truce with the rats. Talk, please. Gentlemen, gentlemen, be reasonable. We have no other choice. You see how easily they outmaneuvered us? A truce is our only hope. Make him show up! Joe, he's crazy. He talks crazy. Don't let him get you. How much time we got left before they pick us up? Seven hours. We'll never make it. Uh, Jean. Yes? Do you know this sector? Yes. Well, come with me, please. Uh, Mac, keep an eye on the old man. I didn't know what I was looking for or what I expected to find, but I had to do something. Even walking aimlessly over the scorched stone rubble was better than standing, waiting for the circle of rats to close in. And then Jean found it. An entrance to an underground bomb shelter. One just large enough to hold the average family. We raced back to where we'd left the others. And now we could hear the rats. Thousands of them all around us. Joe, Joe, I tried to stop him. He wouldn't listen. He was like crazy. What do you mean? I couldn't help it. Believe me. I couldn't help it. 100 yards away, his shoulders back, his head held high, walking directly toward the rats. And in his right hand, he was holding a small white handkerchief, waving it back and forth like a flag of truce. He kept on until they formed a semicircle around it. And then he stopped. And all around us, the rats stopped. For a moment, I swear, he spoke to them. And then he turned toward us, raised his hand and salute. And then the rats swarmed all over him. Come on. Come on, Jean, you can't help it. Come on. We burrowed ourselves in a shelter. In a few moments, we could hear them overhead, cruddling themselves against the heavy, lead-lined door. A yellow teeth digging at the concrete and steel. But it had been built to stand in atomic blast. It held up the rats. And we waited. The one thing. How long could we stay alive in that coffin? We didn't speak. We just sat there, wondering when they'd break through. What's the use? Let's get it over with. No. No, they'll give up. They're starving. They leave to find some other food. They're quitting. They're leaving. Maybe they are. Maybe they just want us to think they are. No, they're leaving. I'm going to take a look. Mac, don't open that door. Should all of them. Now listen. Listen, it's a ship. Come on, can they ship? Come on, Jean. We can go out now. They've gone. It's all over. We're safe now. We can go out. Out? Out? I can't believe it. We're going to take you back with us. Away from this. No, please. Please. I'm afraid. Afraid? Don't you hear it? That noise? That's our ship. Here, I'll show you. Look, you see the landing. Ship? I don't understand. It's the one that brought us here. Brought you here? Yes. Where did it come from? Europe? Asia? Where? Europe? Asia? You, we hadn't destroyed all of the Earth. Earth? Is that what you call this planet? Earth? This is the Earth. You. Where are you from? What? We're up there. Just north of Polaris. Under the direction of Anthony Ellis, Escape has brought you north of Polaris by Charles Smith, starring William Conrad as Joe, with High Aberbach as Mac, and Eddie Firestone as Sam. Featured in the cast were Vivi Janus, Ralph Moody, and Frank Gerstle. The special music for Escape is composed and conducted by Leith Stevens.