The Face Of The Enemy

For reference, see Sibylla.

Here is an anomaly in the English language:

"I remembered about hurricane doors before the hail beat us unconscious." (p. 79)

I thought that Simic meant that first he remembered about hurricane doors, then the hail beat Laurie and him unconscious. However, the following sentence begins:

"We found one on the south side..." (ibid.)

He means that, because he remembered about hurricane doors, they found one and therefore were not beaten unconscious.

They see how much the colonists suffer in the hostile Sibyllan environment, then:

"...at once, like a blow to the guts, wildly swearing to myself I must be wrong, I saw the face of the alien enemy." (pp. 80-81)

I knew from previous readings that Simic would solve this mystery. I should have anticipated that the solution would hit him in an Andersonian moment of realization. As for the solution, that will have to wait until the next post.