The Crystal Crypt

by Philip K. Dick

"The Crystal Crypt" by Philip K. Dick is a science fiction short story first published in 1954. As Earth and Mars stand on the brink of war, the final spaceship departing Mars faces a tense inspection by Martian soldiers hunting three saboteurs accused of destroying an entire city. Among the passengers, a businessman encounters three individuals who claim responsibility—but their explanation involves an impossible feat and a tiny globe containing an extraordinary secret that could shift the balance of interplanetary conflict.