Dean Koontz Dark of the Woods [Released as Ace double with Dean Koontz Soft Come the Dra

ra on! [Scanned by BuddyDk May 21 2003] [Original typos hasn t been corrected]

Blessed shalt thou be in the city, and blessed shalt thou be in the field. Thou shalt be blessed above a// . . . Our holy empire of the Alliance of mankind has fulfilled our destiny. Remember the many heroic humans who have' died in conquering the stars for you. Therefore do not let misguided sympathy toward inferior and conquered animals deter you from your inherent title of divine rulers of the universe. !o not lose this birthright by succumbing to the "attractions# of any alien creature. Remember the penalties imposed by the $upremacy of %an party for this transgression. Our blessings be with you as you follow in the paths of your brothers and sisters. &e have faith in mankind and we have faith in you. 'ut however should you falter from the paths of righteousness we have many willing hands eager to show you the error of your ways. . . .

Turn this book over for second complete novel

DEAN R. KOONTZ DARK "f #$% W""DS

A() 'OO*$ A !ivision of (harter (ommunications +nc. ,,-. Avenue of the Americas /ew 0ork /. 0. ,..12

DARK OF THE WOODS Co&'ri ht () *+,-) b' Dean R. Koontz All Ri hts Reser/ed.

Cover art by Jeff Jones.

D%D0CA#0"12 #o Dad) and to the memor' of m' mother.

SOFT COME THE DRAGONS Co&'ri ht () *+,-) b' Dean R. Koontz 3rinted in 4.S.A.

I
bit of trouble came e/en as the' were lea/in the starshi& on Demos6s &ort field7 it was a harbin er of worse times ahead. Stauffer Da/is walked down the corru ated ram& with his &rotection robot) 3roteus) at his side. After a tedious fli ht out from the Alliance central worlds) he was so on ed e that the ur lin of &lasti8&lasma with the robot6s s&herical) force8ca&&ed bod' round hard on his ner/es and made him somewhat nauseous. 3roteus was i norant of his master6s irritation) for e/er' ounce of his bein ) e/er' dro& of his 9uasi8li9uid circuitr' was concentrated on maintainin an o&timum efficienc' watch to detect e/en the sli htest minim of hostile life before it could do dama e to his human char e. As he floated on his ra/ &lates) his tin' sensor nodes leamed in the bri ht sun:some of them ali/e with color that radiated from within2 amber) crimson) and a soft) &ulsin blue. $is two chief si ht rece&tors were cataracted white screens:but as watchful as e'es could e/er be. When the' were halfwa' to the minibus that would carr' them to the main &ort terminal) a s&iderbat swe&t low from the east) win s fluffed) claws e;tended to ri& o&en Da/is6s scal& . . . 0nside 3roteus) the card ta&ed inde; of this &lanet held the information that the s&iderbat was a &articularl' /icious little &redator that had been known to o for a three8horned buffalo when it onl' wanted a snack) lea/in better than ++< of the cor&se for the eaters8of8dead8meat. 0ts win s&read was but ele/en inches of leather' membrane7 its wei ht seldom more than two &ounds. #he onl' thin s it had oin for it:aside from its maniacal determination and total lack of fear:were its teeth and its lon brittle claws which it honed constantl' on the limestone outcro&&in s of its nati/e foothills. #he claws could ut a man in moments. 3roteus sna&&ed alert) the force8ca& o/er his main mani&ulation barrel dissol/in as he turned to take aim. A tentacle of &lasti8&lasma shot out of the casin ) wra&&ed around the s&iderbat and throttled it in a sha&eless hand of warm oo. 3roteus dro&&ed the bod' on the concrete where it wri led a moment and was) finall') utterl' still and dead. =ater) Da/is could not remember whether he heard the win s of the second beast or whether it had called in s'm&ath' to the last s&asm of its d'in mate. >ut somethin re istered as ominous . . . $e mo/ed swiftl') fell to his knees and rolled sidewa's) his hands flun o/er his head to ward off the second s&iderbat. 0t was alwa's wise to remember that the ods who had made other worlds were the same ods who had made %arth and that one of their &rime rules was that all thin s tra/eled in &airs . . . 5ortunatel') 3roteus had not for otten. #he dead bat6s mate aborted its di/e and skidded across the hard &ort floor. 0t came for Da/is) win s fla&&in ) claws rattlin a ainst concrete) e'es bri ht with rabid madness. 0t ot within si; feet of him before 3roteus sna&&ed it u& and man led it. $e dro&&ed the thin beside the bod' of its mate. #he' boarded the bus.
#$% 50RS#

At the terminal buildin ) the minibus drew to a halt before a small cluster of &eo&le who were holdin u& a banner which declared2 W%=C"?%) S#A455%R DA@0S. $e si hed) looked to 3roteus and wished that the robot could understand) could listen and discuss and do more than &ro8 tect. $e would ha/e liked to tell 3roteus) somethin then2 that fans of historical no/els made him want to retch. #he' were the last off the bus) the robot floatin ahead) his microminiaturized brain weedin the bad from the ood and destro'in the former. 0f the world were as black and white for men) Da/is thou ht) thin s would be a damn si ht easier. #he insects the machine killed seemed harmless enou h) and he decided he mi ht not ha/e &ro&erl' ta&ed the card indices of Demos6s flora and

fauna into the thin 6s memor' banks. 3roteus6s retention cells had e;&erienced hundreds of recordin s) erasures) and rerecordin s and needed an entire new set of s&ools. #hat could be taken care of when the' returned to the central worlds7 for the &resent) Da/is knew he would ha/e to take the first o&&ortunit' to rerelate his mechanical com&atriot to the &lanet and ho&e that would be sufficient. ?r. Da/isA a curl' haired) cowish woman as&ed) shufflin out of the knot of bookworms. She offered him her white8 lo/ed hand. $e wondered how lon it would be necessar' to endure their little tribute. Damn) he was tiredA #his is flatterin ) he mana ed to sa' with a smile) thou h he thou ht it amazin the' could not seem to tell that his teeth were gritted. 3roteus finall' decided that the white8 lo/ed woman6s li/e beetle brooch could &ro/e a dan er. $e flashed a &seudo&od out and crushed it a ainst her &ink la&el. $e6s a&&arentl' not correctl' carded to Demos) Da/is said) barel' able to su&&ress his lau hter at the dri&&in mess. She reached to wi&e the blood' s&lotch from her suit and merel' succeeded in smearin her lo/e as well. A harmless beetle) she said. #here6s /er' little that is harmful on Demos) ?r. Da/is. Demos is the ne;t thin to 3aradise. Wasn6t the ne;t thin to 3aradise:3ur ator'B Ces) &erha&s this had been a &aradise before the Alliance arri/ed) coatin the &lains with concrete to berth their iant shi&s. And it wouldn6t ha/e been so bad if onl' the landsca&e had been destro'ed:but the' had obliterated Demos6s &eo&le as well. Such a small &o&ulation) the win ed &eo&le) 'et the Alliance had killed rather than make concessions. #he Demosians) after all) had been so insolent as to offer resistance to the Alliance6s anne;ation of their world. So the Alliance had shut them u&. 3ermanentl' . . . #he motto of e/er' ruthless o/ernment2 1e/er o around) o o/er. And) of course) these win ed &eo&le had been aliens:which word could be translated as animals as far as Alliance o/ernment was concerned. 5or et that the Demosians were intelli ent with a culture and herita e that was rich and ancient. #o the Alliance) that was irrele/ent. #he &ro/incial &olic'8makin board of the %arth8centered o/ernment considered all alien lifeforms inferior to mankind. #herefore) if an alien was less than a human) he did not re9uire humane treatment. #he lo ic of me alomaniacs7 but such were the t'&es in &ower. #he Su&remac' of ?an coalition still ruled the Alliance as the maDor &art') and the' understood onl' the /oice of the un. Did this dum&') self8im&ortant woman not understand that his ne;t no/el would ha/e to be about the slau hter that took &lace here) about a hundred and se/ent' million win ed men and women who had been murdered in the Alliance6s colonization of Demos) with condemnin details on the sterilizin effects of the mutant mustard as that had e/entuall' s&elled E%1"C0D% in dark letters across the face of an entire raceB Paradise . . . She interru&ted his re/erie to re9uest that he address their book club before lea/in Demos. #hat he si n a handful) Dust a few) not man' mind 'ou:will take onl' a moment:of his first editions which the' had brou ht with them . . . #here6s reall' little need for one of those here) the Alliance re&resentati/e said) motionin toward the bobblin form of 3roteus as Da/is slouched into a seat before the hea/' metal desk. $e killed a s&iderbat Dust after we ot off the shi&. "h) most of those ha/e been e;terminated. #he'6re rare an'more. 0t onl' takes one. #he re& frowned. 0 belie/e 'ou6ll be &leased to know 'ou6ll be li/in ri ht in one of the a/iaries. 0t was used b' a research team) sociolo ists) a few 'ears back and is all decked out for human habitation. Workin ri ht in there) 'ou6ll be better able to et an idea of how the' li/ed. #he last three words were said

with an undertone of dis ust) as if the win ed &eo&le had been unima inabl' barbaric. #he Sanctuar' is onl' a mile and a half from where 'ou6ll be sta'in ) the re& continued) &ullin at the comers of his mustache with his thin) ner/ous hands) as if he thou ht the orderin of that &atch of brush would brin a corres&ondin order to his thou hts. #he'6ll su&&l' 'ou with food and &ro/isions. Sanctuar'B Da/is asked. Where the' kee& the last of the win ed &eo&le. Kee& themB Ces. 4ntil the':well) die. #he re& looked uncomfortable and did not meet Da/is6s aze. We ha/e a car waitin to take 'ou u& there ri ht now. 0f 'ou6ll Dust follow me . . . 'our lu a e has been collected and loaded alread'. #he' left the office b' a rear door) walked a lon ) bleak corridor) throu h a metal firedoor and into the &leasant breeze of the earl' autumn afternoon. #he fresh air was a welcome relief from the sterile) chill' air8conditioned tomb of the Alliance head9uarters. A sleek) black ra/ car rested on its rubber cushion before them) its doors o&en like a&in mouths. >' the wa') the re& said) fid etin a bit) the wife wondered if 'ou mi ht: Well) 0 ha/e a first edition of this book here) Lilian Girl and . . . Da/is auto ra&hed the book) climbed inside the car) waited for 3roteus to enter throu h the other side) then c'cled the doors shut with the &ro&er to le on the console. All the while) the Alliance man stood b') uncertain if the' were &artin on friendl' or anta onistic terms. Since Da/is was su&&osed to be writin a &ro8Alliance no/el) he wanted to be as racious as &ossible. 3ro8 Alliance no/elists were rare in the creati/e communit'. When the book a&&eared) Da/is thou ht) the little bureaucrat would hate himself for bein so racious now. #he'6d send Da/is a bill) surel') for all the coo&eration the' were offerin freel' now. >ut it was essential to delude them into belie/in his book was oin to take a fa/orable /iew of enocide in order to et into the &reser/es of the win ed &eo&le and do first8hand research on their architecture and &robable lifest'le. $e &unched to &ut the car on its own reco nizance) leaned back) and rela;ed as the car lifted off the round and &urred awa' from the &ort cit') awa' from the re& and the s9uare) ra' buildin of Alliance head9uarters. #he bi robo8car e/entuall' left the concrete nothin ness of the &ort and &ulled onto a badl' &a/ed road which re9uired the ra/ &late distance com&ensators to work o/ertime. #he' twisted throu h rollin hills and reen8blue rass. "nce) a carni/orous bird) much less menacin than the s&iderbats) do/e at the windscreen. 3roteus flun out a &suedo&od) sla&&ed it a ainst the lass before he realized Da/is was alread' shielded. $e retracted the &lasti8&lasma and brooded 9uietl' the rest of the wa'. Da/is sincerel' ho&ed he would not ha/e to listen to 'et another Alliance em&lo'ee tell him that Demos was safe and hea/enl'. Was their reassurance about this &aradise sim&l' a &s'cholo ical tool to hel& them Dustif' the e;termination of the nati/e DemosiansB #he car broke throu h into s&arsel' treed foothills and confronted the first of the Demosian houses. #he dark stones seemed fitted to ether without) benefit of mortar) Duttin to form a ninet' foot tower) fift' feet in diameter. #here were se/eral round doors on the round and at seemin l' random inter/als u& the sides. Win ed &eo&le would be enterin ) after all) while in fli ht. Da/is turned to stare after the mar/elous structure as their car fled onward. At the thirt'8si;th tower) the car &ulled onto a dirt track and sto&&ed) flun its doors o&en as the ra/ &lates shut down and the bod' settled onto its rubber rim. 3roteus was the first out) ner/ousl' &atrollin the immediate area. >ut there was nothin for him to kill. Da/is carried the first of the ba s inside) 3roteus still in the lead. #he e;terior of the &lace had

been interestin :but the interior was stunnin . #he core of the buildin ) which the' had reached throu h a wide &assa e leadin from the entrance) shot directl' to the o&en8beam ceilin ninet' feet abo/e. =eadin from this small core were &ortholes to rooms around the rim of the tube8within8a8 tube structure. #he architecture was one of bold swee&s and raceful cur/es) den'in the ancient facade2 the lines of men unbound b' ra/it') s&oiled onl' b' a set of ricket' homemade stairs. $e decided these must ha/e been added b' the sociolo ical research team the re& had informed him of. What &ossible reason would win ed men ha/e had for stairs . . . B When he had all of his lu a e unloaded) he in/esti ated the alien chambers. #here were recreation rooms with ame8boards &e ed to the walls. $e took down a few of these) well aware that he would ha/e to deci&her their rules in order to include them in his book. "ther chambers were Demosian e9ui/alents of kitchens) baths) loun es) and libraries. #he bedrooms were hun with la/ish ta&estries and handwo/en rass nets whose fibers formed &ictures in the manner of embroider'7 the beds were too low and wide) the mattresses thick and a bit too soft b' human standards. When he had e;&lored onl' half of the fort' rooms) he recorded his first im&ressions on his ta&ewriter in order not to for et the initial awe that &ossessed him at the start of this &roDect. $e also felt a hea/') restful air of &eace) as if no harm could e/er come to him in a &lace built b' those lon 8dead &eo&le. =ater) he tried all the kitchen de/ices) found them in workin order as the re& had &romised. #here was a&&arentl' a ra/ &late stress enerator somewhere in the buildin ) tucked awa' where the si ht of it would not destro' the naturalness of the house. #he onl' thin missin was food. 4ntil she came . . . $e had flo&&ed on the bed to &onder the scene) his mind ablaze with ima es of alien art and structure. $er /oice came on the hollow echo of the still) late afternoon air. At first) he thou ht it was a dream /oice) for he hun on the ed e of slee&. #hen he realized it was callin his name. $e &ushed off the bed and went to the inner &ortal) stared down the well of the central core. She was about to call him a ain) then saw him out of the corner of her e'e and looked u& . . . $e realized) as if he had ste&&ed outside of his bod' and looked back at himself) that his mouth was han in o&en rather stu&idl'. Cet he could not summon the will&ower to close it. $er ebon' mane of hair s&read about her cherubic face) which was further hi hli hted b' the &itch of her e'es) the cunnin l' crafted swee& of her raceful neck. #he hair curled down her li ht to a arment and encircled her small breasts. 0 brou ht food) she said) holdin u& a &a&er ba and a thermos. 5rom the Kee&ers at the Sanctuar'7 Shall 0 brin it u&B Ces) he said) finall' able to mo/e his mouth and s&eak. She took three small ste&s on her toes as if be innin a ballet twirl) and she was airborne) risin toward him on soft blue win s. Amber li ht filtered throu h the membrane) softened into /iolet) and made each &anel of the thin flesh into a flower &etal lued between the fine struts of cartila e. #here was a hea/' fla&&in noise as the membranes folded) s&read) folded:and she stood before him on the &latform. She offered the food and thermos. 3roteus hummed beside him) ur lin franticall' as he searched his flora and fauna banks to be certain she was not of a deadl' s&ecies. Da/is was lad he had taken time to rerelate the robot to Demos on the dri/e u& from the &ort. "therwise) the machine mi ht alread' ha/e dis&osed of her in a most un&leasant manner. #hat6s Dust for toni ht) she said. ?atron Salsbur' will send me in a ra/ car with &ro/isions for a week. #omorrow mornin ) if that suits 'ou. Ces) fine. $e stared a moment) unable to a/ert his e'es from her) then said) Will 'ou Doin meB

1o thank 'ou. 06/e eaten) ?r. Da/is. She smiled) amused b' his confusion. Stauffer. She frowned. 0 don6t know that name) thou h 0 had thou ht 0 had mastered 'our lan ua e 9uite well. Cou ha/e. 0t6s not a real first name) but a famil' name. A sadistic mother who was sorr' she e/er married m' father. She mana ed to saddle me with her bitterness b' labelin me with her maiden name. Cour &eo&le don6t sound ha&&'. #he'6re dead an'wa') he said. And don6t look sorr' about that! #he' stood) e'es dark to dark in the amber li ht) her win s drawn back and folded like /el/et cloth so that the' almost ceased to e;ist. Well) she said) 0 ha/e to o. 0m&ulsi/el') he said) 06m unfamiliar with Demos. Would 'ou ask ?atron Salsbur' if 'ou mi ht be m' uide for a few da's:until 0 become ac9uaintedB She hesitated. 0ll ask. >ut now 0 ha/e to o) or she6ll be an r'. She turned) ste&&ed into the air) fluffed her win s and drifted down. ?oments later) she was one from the core) e/en the distant sound of her win s faded alto ether. Remo/ed from her bewitchin &resence) his common sense returned like a tidal wa/e crashin across the beach of his mind) and he cursed himself for his stu&idit'. Certainl' she attracted him) for she was undeniabl' beautiful. >ut he should ne/er ha/e made his interest so e/ident. #o ima ine her as his lo/er Fas he had been doin G was sheer madness :sheer) deadl') stu&id madness. #he Su&remac' of ?an coalition had desi ned and enforced the strictest ima inable misce enation laws7 %arthmen who lo/ed those of other races were made im&otent) and the minimum &rison sentence was twel/e 'ears. "nce in &rison) there would be little chance of e/entual freedom) e/en if he were i/en the minimum sentence. #he Su&remac'8hired) Su&remac'8s'm&athizin uards would see to that with a Do'ous) sa/a e brutalit' . . . $e could not allow himself such dan erous dreams. 0t was a sill' thin for an' man to think of) let alone a) man with so much to lose as he. $e must consider her onl' a friend. $ow could affection ha/e arisen so swiftl' an'wa'B $e surel' wasn6t oin to tr' to ar ue lo/e8at8first8si ht) was heB 0t could onl' be lust he felt. And lust could be con9uered. $e would think of her onl' as a friend) and he would not allow himself to lo/e her. $e ho&ed . . . =ater that ni ht) there were dreams2 Love in its essence is spiritual fire": S endenborg . . . Stauffer !avis tossed through fla"es. #hey lic$ed at hi" but did not consu"e hi". %nstead& they e'hilarated& shot his flesh through ith a contained burning that flo ered in hi" ith glo ing ash and phoeni'ed his ancient soul . . . #he only victory over love is flight": (apoleon . . . )ut he didn*t "ean+ ,h& ell& a -reudian .uote. !avis -L/0 in his illicit drea"s. Still& there ere fla"es all about& all1deep& all1high& all1 ide and full. 2nd he fle through the"& dancing on the hot air& flying beside her . . . ,h "y luve*s li$e a dar$1haired rose": )urns and Stauffer !avis . . . 3e fle through the fla"es beside her& tangling their ings& singing love songs in the crac$ling air . . . )ut everything abruptly "utated into night"are. #he fla"es suddenly stung. 3is ings caught

fire& flashed hite. 3e sa hers catch too . . . 3e sa her falling . . . 2nd he as falling beside her+do n to here thousands of inged "en and o"en aited accusingly. #hey $ne he as not one of the". 2nd standing on the hori4on ere Supre"acy guards ith scalpels of steel and diagra"s for i"potency. . . $e woke screamin . 3roteus hit the li hts) &lasti8&lasma slo&&in about in his sil/ered husk) and restlessl' searched the room. #here was nothin ) onl' the hosts of a thousand win ed men and women etched in the ether from another da' lon one. Da/is sat on the ed e of the bed) head cradled in his hands) thinkin of the stu&idit' of allowin this sill' infatuation to row into somethin more serious. 0m&otenc' under Su&remac' sur eons6 hands . . . im&risonment . . . almost certain death . . . >ut none of these u l' &ossibilities seemed able to dri/e out the &icture of her ebon' hair or the &erfect eometrical desi n of her win s which had been im&rinted on the soft ra' flesh of his brain. God da"n it& he thou ht. %*" not "a$ing the artist*s error of falling in love ith the sy"bol of "y sy"pathies& a" %5 %nfatuation. (othing "ore. Please. 3roteus roamed the far corners of the room) searchin . . .

II
D4R01E #$% followin two da's) Da/is6s &osition became e/en more difficult) for he found that the irl) =eah) was more than a beautiful form and a finel' scul&tured face. She also &ossessed a shar& wit and a dee& well of in9uisiti/e intelli ence that was a deli ht to feed with more and more knowled e. She had educated herself in the wa's and culture of her con9uerors) and she could debate cle/erl' and at len th on almost an' to&ic Da/is chose. $e be an to stren then the emotional interest he held in her instead of whittlin at the strands that drew him to her. #hat first moment he had seen her) he had been s&ellbound. 1ow he was enchanted. At ni ht) l'in on the bed that was too lar e and too soft and too low) he would force himself to remember the &unishment for misce enation. #he' could insure that he felt no se;ual interest in an'one e/er a ain) let alone an alien woman. #he' could im&rison and torture him. #he' could kill him . . . >ut e/er' mornin ) when =eah returned) he seemed to for et the /ows of the &re/ious ni ht. $e could not dismiss her) for he was too fascinated b' her. $e &ur&osefull' acted lost in man' cases) onl' to insure that she would not feel it was time for him to find his own wa' about. "n the third da' of her work as a uide) the bond was struck:at first in his mind alone) later between them and in the o&en. "n the third da') he became a criminal b' Alliance law. 0t started with the rat and culminated in the tem&le. #he rat . . . $e asked her) that mornin ) if there were shelters which the win ed &eo&le had constructed as &roof a ainst the hea/' clouds of mustard as that had been flushed throu h their cities b' the Alliance troo&s. $e knew the stuff rotted rubber and that as masks would ha/e &ro/en relati/el' useless after more than two uses. #here6s one half a mile u& the lane) she said. We can et there in a cou&le of minutes) e;ce&t it6s mostl' demolished.

0s there one intact nearb'B #here aren6t an' intact an'where) she said. #he con9uerors found them) one at a time) and destro'ed them. $e had sto&&ed wincin at references to the brutalit' of the war. She did not make them to embarrass him) but as mere statements of fact. 0ndeed) he thou ht she did not e/en consciousl' connect the %arthmen ci/ilians who had settled here after the war with the armor8suited &ower soldiers of the reat conflict. Well) then 0 uess that has to do. $e slun his ta&ewriter o/er his shoulder) and the' walked to enDo' the warmth and the cris&ness of the mornin . "n both sides of them) there was an occasional scurr' as a woodland animal rushed for a tree or burrow. $e remembered ha/in read descri&tions of the Demosian cit' sites immediatel' after the Alliance troo&s had landed. #he' had described the /ast numbers of dead birds) and animals that had succumbed to the mustard as) tens of thousands of them) l'in so thickl' that the' concealed the earth itself for lon stretches. #here6s the shelter) she said. What is left of it) at least. $e followed the direction of her slim) tan hand and saw reat slabs of concrete thrustin out of the earth) len ths of rusted and twisted steel that &unched at the sk' as if to ri& it o&en and brin it down. #he earth around the debris was charred black and in a few &laces fused into darkl' leamin lass b' the heat of the e;&losion that had ri&&ed throu h the under round structure. As the' drew closer) he could see &ieces of furniture) metal benches) and leather couches all broken) shattered) melted) mashed in amon the cross8work of beams and concrete. 0n the crook of a steel beam) wed ed in the ti ht an le) was a Demosian skull2 fra ile) tendin toward a sli ht len thiness) with the o/al e'e sockets that would accommodate the lo/el' orbs of a irl like =eah. 0n a &ocket of rubble onl' a few feet awa') as if i/in balance to the scene) was a field mouse6s nest. #he thin hunched in the mass of weeds and rass and strin ) its two babies in its bell' &ouch) lookin at them with more curiosit' than fear. Death and life) side b' side. Cou couldn6t ha/e had traitors) he said. 0 know that much about the Demosians. #he' ne/er a/e information8e/en under torture. $ow did the Alliance know where to dro& bombsB #he' didn6t) she said. #he e;&losion) 'ou see) came from within the shelter) blastin outward) rather than down and in. #he con9uerors had a thin we think the' called the 6mole.6 #he' dro&&ed them b' the hundreds) ma'be thousands. Ces) he said. 0 remember now. #he thin s were onl' as lar e as a man6s arm) &acked full of su&ere;&losi/es. #he' hit the round) bored down thirt' feet) then le/eled out and acted like subterranean submarines) seekin out heat with /er' sensiti/e rece&tors. Dro& enou h in one area) and sooner or later) one of them is oin to hit &a'dirt. #hen it bores throu h the wall of the shelter and detonates itself) #he field mouse made a chitterin noise at them) but didn6t bother runnin . Da/is clambered into the rubble) sto&&in here and there to look down the s&aces between the fused debris. #here was a soft li ht wellin u& from somewhere /er' far below) and it illuminated a ra ed but &ossible slo&in corridor. 0t looks) he said) as =eah came to his shoulder and looked downward with him) as if the enerators ha/e ne/er run out. 0t hasn6t been too man' 'ears) she said. #he rubble looks fused the whole wa' down. #here shouldn6t be an' slides. 06m oin to tr' to &r' m' wa' in there. 0t6s &acked too ti htl') she said) lookin o/er the e;&anse of man led construction materials. Cou won6t find a wa'. 06ll make a wa') he said) rinnin . 3roteusA #he robot floated 9uickl' to his side) main mani&ulator barrel unsto&&ed) sensors flashin e;citedl'.

Eun left. 3roteus slid a barrel from his smooth) seamless bell') turned left. Eround le/el) Da/is ordered. #he an le of the barrel dro&&ed until it was &ointin at the melted beams and concrete hillocks. 5ire oneA 3roteus shot a small) e;&losi/e rocket) lar e enou h to blast a hole throu h an' animal as lar e as a horse. 0t struck the ruins fi/e 'ards awa' as Da/is and =eah sto&&ed behind a slab of concrete. #here was an almost instantaneous e;&losion that shook the entire crust of ruin) and a section of the floor the' stood on a/e wa' and crashed down into the o&en s&aces beneath. 5or a lon moment) the sound of thin s reboundin from the walls and outcro&&in s of the re ions below echoed u& to them) a mournful noise. When the 9uiet returned) Da/is /entured forth and carefull' ins&ected the entrance 3roteus had made) found that the crust immediatel' around the hole was still solid and trustworth'. 06ll tr' not to be lon ) he said. 06m oin with 'ou) she &rotested) &outin her face. 06/e ot 3roteus. #hat6s one of the burdens as well as blessin s of ha/in a robot uardian. $e oes with 'ou whether 'ou want him to or not. 06m oin with 'ou) she re&eated. $e saw the determination in her face) the ti htenin of the muscles alon her Dawline) and he knew there was no sense ar uin . #he wa'6s oin to be a little tou h) and there isn6t room to s&read 'our win s and fl' if 'ou should fall. >ut if 'ou6re still all that set on oin : 0 am. #he wa' was not as ru ed as he had thou ht. $is &ers&ecti/e) &eerin throu h the Dumbled rubble earlier) had made the slanted corridor below look lon er than it was. 0n ten minutes) the' were in what had been the bottom floor of the shelter) a three8le/el affair. $ere) the Demosians in hidin from the Alliance ases had not been killed b' the force of the e;&losion itself) but b' the firestorm which it had en endered. #he bodies of about two hundred win ed men and women and children laid about the room) mostl' a ainst the walls where the' had been cau ht and suffocated so swiftl' that the' had not had a chance to mo/e. #he suction of the e;&losion and the intense heat must ha/e snatched the air from their lun s in one instant and re&laced it with flames the ne;t. At least) he thou ht) it had been a swift end. #here was nothin now but bones) a few skeletal masts of cartila e that had once been the bearers of membranous win s. And four hundred e'e sockets) o/al e'e sockets) starin accusin l' . . . 3roteus soared the len th of the chamber) certain that there must be an ad/ersar' in such an uncommon &lace. When he reached the far corners of the room) fort' 'ards awa') the rat o/erhead screeched its battle cr') s&ra'in s&ittle down onto Da/is6s head . . . $e looked u&) saw red e'es as lar e as 9uarters. #he rat lea&ed) strikin =eah6s shoulder and sinkin tin') razorlike claws throu h her to a. #o the modern Alliance man) the abilit' to commit /iolence) a ainst either another man or an animal) was somethin distasteful) barbaric) somethin that onl' an Alliance soldier had. And since most Alliance soldiers were &ower soldiers) robotic de/ices) machines) and c'bernetic s'stems) there were relati/el' few men ca&able of /iolence in the entire s'stem of settled worlds. #he 3roteus robots had) after all) all but ne ated the necessit' to know how to defend 'ourself. #his atro&h' of the /iolent abilit' /er' nearl' meant the win ed irl6s death) for Da/is found himself starin with fascination at the rat which scrabbled at her) tore her to a as it tried to sink claws into her flesh and ain a &urchase from which it could brin its wicked) 'ellowish teeth into &la' as well. 0t was as if he were in a dream) mo/in throu h s'ru& or suddenl' turned to stone Dust when it was essential that he act most swiftl'. #hen) fleein across the back of his e'es like a

s&ecter across a moor was a /ision of =eah with her face chewed u&) an e'e torn loose b' the /icious fin ers of the ratlike thin . 0n a moment) the anti8/iolence tendencies which had been nurtured throu h his entire life e/a&orated and were re&laced b' a manic and uncontrollable ra e. $ad he looked o/er his shoulder) he would ha/e seen that 3roteus was ra&idl' returnin to do battle) but he did not e/en think of that. $e reached out and seized the animal b' the back of the neck) tore it loose from her. $e saw blood on its claws) matted in the thick fur of its &aws. $er to a was stained crimson where it had had hold of her. Screamin ) not aware that he was and wonderin who was makin that un odl' noise) he rabbed the head of the rat with his other hand and simultaneousl' attem&ted to crush its skull and stran le it. 0t wri led loose and lea&ed at his chest where it ou ed its nails into him) struck u&wards toward his neck with its deadl' teeth . . . $e rabbed its head a ain) &ulled it awa' from him Dust in time) thou h it still held onto him with its rear feet) claws du dee&l' into his flesh. $e wrenched at it) ruthlessl' unconcerned about what such an action would do to his chest) ri&&ed it loose) turned) and slammed it into the wall. 0t screamed) wi led and kicked to et free a ain. >ut he clenched it ti htl') i norin the dozens of scratches it inflicted on his hands. $e slammed it a ain) a ain) twice more until its back was broken) its s&ine shattered. 0ts blood ran down his fin ers and dri&&ed onto the floor. $e was no lon er screamin ) but he found himself mak8in hea/') ras&in breathin sounds as air rushed ra edl' in and out of his lun s. And he was whim&erin ) dee& inside) like a child. And he was s9ueezin the lifeless rat as if he would s9uash it be'ond reco nition) would com&ress its /er' bones into &owder . . . $e looked u& at =eah) who seemed not to notice the sli ht wound on her own shoulder. She stared wide8e'ed at him. $e wondered if she realized what had ha&&ened) understood the de&th of his actions in these last few minutes. $e had risked his own life to sa/e hers) had broken the conditionin of his social trainin and had resorted to /iolence. $e had not e/en thou ht to wait for 3roteus) to summon the machine to the task) for her life had been too &recious to endan er for e/en the briefest of moments. 0n that first instant when he had seen her blood) he had ceased to think in terms of 'ou and me but) instead) in the sense of us. $er blood suddenl' seemed as /aluable as his own) and he had acted swiftl') insanel') without hesitation to &rotect this new e;tension of himself. Which meant it was not lust) as he had been workin so hard to con/ince himself. $e dro&&ed the rat. $e tried to sa' somethin ) an'thin . $e choked and fell forward into unconsciousness . . . =ater) when she had finished usin his s&eedheal ointments and banda es on their wounds and the' had eaten a li ht lunch she &re&ared in the kitchen of the a/iar' where he was li/in ) she leaned her elbows on the table) smiled at him) and said) Can we o some&lace s&ecial now) like 06/e been wantin B 0t will make the da' seem a little ha&&ier after all the u l' thin s that ha/e ha&&ened. $e did not much feel like &ursuin the research &lan he had outlined for the da'. $is ner/es still trembled from memor' of the rat s9uirmin and screechin within his hands) strikin for his throat. And his mind was &la ued with the realization that thin s had one too far with =eah) entirel' too far. #he' would ha/e to be brou ht to an end before the silent attachment he felt for her:and) he thou ht) she felt for him:was brou ht into the o&en and made turnin back im&ossible. Where do 'ou want to take meB he asked. #o the tem&le) #em&leB Cou6ll see.

And when he ot into the ra/ car to make the dri/e) she said) "h) 0 so wish 'ou could fl'. So do 0) =eah) he said) &ullin the car into the driftin lea/es that settled from the 'ellow trees onto the rou h) black road. So do 0. #he car hummed down the tree8shrouded lane. 3roteus sat in back) inches abo/e the seat) bored:if such an emotion were &ossible for a &lasti8 &lasma robot. Da/is knew the tem&le when the' came in si ht of it. #win hills &eaked breastlike a ainst the backdro& of 'ellow mountains) and each was adorned with a iant structure. "n the first hill there was a buildin com&osed of nine hu e towers all Doined in the middle to form a iant central cham8 ber. Ereat teardro& entr' &ortals s&lit the ra'8brown stone here and there. #his was the tem&le. "n the other breast) &erched like a rakish ni&&le) la' the Sanctuar') a manmade block of u l' cement. >ehind both) cree&in close to them) were the terribl' dense forests of the 'ellow mountains) the reat) broad8leafed 'il trees. #he' sto&&ed the car before the tem&le and waited until it settled onto its rubber rim) then ot out. Abo/e the Sanctuar' on the other hill se/eral hundred 'ards awa') half a dozen female an els floated on the breezes of autumn. #he cool air carried their tinklin lau hter to Da/is and =eah2 bells) Chinese wind chimes) water tricklin into a Du . "ne of the an els flew at the thick trees) her win s dazzlin with refracted sunli ht. She turned fift' 'ards from the ed e of the woods and flew back to the others who i led and s9uealed with deli ht. 5ascinated) Da/is stood b' =eah) watchin them. Another of the Demosian beauties swe&t awa' from the rou& and mo/ed to within ten feet of the forest) hun there an instant) came back to the others like a trium&hant child who has walked a dark alle' without colla&sin of fri ht. #he irls cheered. A third soared to the challen e) crossed o/er the trees and ho/ered o/er them) di&&ed and swa'ed Dust o/er the to&s of the branches and the brilliant 'ellow lea/es. She came back slowl') &roudl'. As she a&&roached them) the other fi/e cherubs went wild with e;cited chatterin and s9ueals of lau hter. What are the' doin B he asked =eah at last) unconsciousl' takin her tin' hand in one of his iant) callused mitts and effecti/el' swallowin it with his own hard flesh. #he le ends sa' the woods are haunted. #he irls are &la'in a ame that is centuries old2 Darin the Demons of the Woods. Cou belie/e in s&iritsB 1ot reall'. She watched the irls a moment. 0t Dust hel&s to &ass the time an'more. #hen how did somethin like this et startedB $er hand was a hot ball of flesh in his fist. #he woods are a reat dan er) for one thin . Wh'B We cannot fl' in there. #he trees are so thick that their branches restrict fli ht. 0f we should be chased b' a wolf or some other fierce creature of the mountains) we wouldn6t ha/e a chance. We6re too delicate for runnin much of a distance. 5li ht is our onl' esca&eH) and the trees would den' us that. So we sta' out of the woods. #ime) then) builds u& le ends of demons. We are as su&erstitious a &eo&le) in some wa's) as 'ou men of %arth. Da/is smiled. 5ascinatin A 0t has to o into the book. #he' watched the ame. Will 0 be in 'our bookB she asked at last.

>ut of courseA 0 think 'ou6ll e/en be the heroine. She lau hed and wi led her hand in his. $e drew her closer) not takin time to think that the esture was e;actl' the one he should be a/oidin at all costs. Shall we look at the tem&leB CesA she said enthusiasticall'. Cou6ll want that in 'our book too. #he' entered at the base of one of the immense towers and walked throu h stone corridors into the hu e central chamber where the nine towers met. #he bare floor) cobbled in crimson and &itch) stretched some hundred feet to a ranite slab framed b' stone candlesticks as tall as a tall man. >ehind this altar was an enormous face which com&osed an entire wall of the church) stretchin *Ifeet o/erhead) +- feet from ear to ear. #he /acant black e'es were J- feet across) *K feet hi h. #he nose was an elon ated boulder &unctuated b' nostrils that were reall' ca/erns almost lar e enou h to dri/e a ra/ car into. #he full8li&&ed mouth was car/ed in lo/in detail) the broad teeth showin ra'l' in a bene/olent smile. What is itB he asked. #he 5ace of Eod) she said. Come on. =et6s o inside. 0nsideB Come on. She tu ed at his hand) drew him toward the 5ace of Eod. At the chin) the' sto&&ed while she tu ed at a ranite mole and swun a stone door outward. >ehind) there were ste&s chiseled from the rock2 broad) ru ed &latforms that led u&wards into darkness. #he' climbed them) mo/in from the ra' li ht that flushed throu h the o&en door into a dense blackness) then into another area of soft illumination that filtered down from abo/e. %/entuall') the' came out of the loom' stairwell into a &assa ewa' wide enou h for three men to walk abreast. Ahead la' circles of bri hter li ht in the ra'ness. When the' ot to these) he found the' were the result of li ht &assin throu h the iant e'es. #he' were directl' behind the odl' orbs) lookin out and down on an em&t' tem&le. 0sn6t it wonderfulB she asked. $e nodded) trul' struck with the beaut' of the &lace. What is the &assa e forB #he bisho& would sit u& here on hol' da's that demanded his &resence. #ell me about this od) he said) runnin his hands alon the rims of the e'es. What was belie/ed of himB She abru&tl' &ulled awa' from him and turned to look stiffl' out o/er the em&t' &ews. What6s the matterB 1othin . Somethin 6s the matter. $a/e 0 /iolated a tabooB 1o. "f course not. What) thenB $e was the od: $er /oice broke into a miserable as&in . She silenced herself) tried to collect her wits. 0 should not ha/e brou ht 'ou here. Wh'B $e: #hen he knew7 much as men are /isited b' reat re/elations in biblical stories) he was touched b' the understandin of what she was tr'in to sa' but could not. $e ras&ed her and held her a ainst his chest) held her ti htl' and closel'. She cried on his shoulder while he stroked the mane of her hair. $e was the od: Da/is be an) tr'in to sa' it for her. $is own /oice broke and refused to s&eak the rest of it. She sank to her knees) and he knelt with her. "n the floor) to ether) the' cradled each other. $e found his /oice a ain where it cowered in his throat. $e was the od of fertilit') wasn6t heB #he od of the future.

/'ter"inated . . . She nodded her head a ainst his chest. Don6t cr') he said) knowin the foolishness of the statement. $er &eo&le were dead) the last of her kind were d'in . Wh' the hell shouldn6t she cr'B !a"n the 2lliance! !a"n the Supre"acy of 6an! !a"n the" to hell! $is curses were like a litan' on his ton ue) s&urtin between his tears and echoin about the stone corridor within the head of Eod. $e held her) rocked with her. $e lifted her face and kissed her nose. 0t was tin' and warm a ainst his li&s. $e kissed her cheeks) neck) hair) li&s . . . And she kissed back) with enthusiasm. $e felt her ton ue a ainst his) her tears min led with his. And the corridors of Eod6s mind knew lo/e . . . #he' told him Demos was a &lace without dan er. Cet there had been the s&iderbats when he had landed. #he bird di/in at the windscreen of the ra/ car on the wa' u& from the &ort . . . the rat in the demolished as shelter . . . And now the lo/e he had for this alien woman. Ces) that was the most dan erous thin of all. And thou h 3roteus floated onl' a short distance down the ancient &assa ewa') this was the one dan er the machine6s &owers could not &rotect him from . . .

III
#$% DACS seemed to &ass as swiftl' as the lea/es fell from the 'ellow trees. "ne fled after the other with such ra&idit'8that autumn was soon fast u&on the frin es of winter and the air was ni&&ed with the chill of comin snow. #he' were usuall' obli/ious to the cold) for there was the warmth between them) the heat of their bodies. "ccasionall') as the afternoon waned be'ond the &ortals of the a/iar' and she would be re9uired to return to the Sanctuar') he would be in thinkin of the ho&elessness of the situation and a chill would work its wa' into the base of his s&ine and crawl u&wards alon his back like a s&ider. 0t was in the fifth week of their lo/emakin that time Derked to a halt in its rush &ast them) and he was forced to confront the nature of their future in a res&onsible manner. When must 'ou lea/eB she asked) her head a ainst his chest) her li&s tremblin on his skin with the words she s&oke. ?' notes are &rett' com&lete. Soon) thenB 0 can6t &ut them off much lon er. Sus&icions will row. What can we doB $e took a dee& breath) fillin his lun s) tr'in to clear his head to think. #here are two &ossibilities) 0 uess. 5irst) 0 could fi ht the misce enation laws throu h the courts. #hat6s oin to take most all the mone' 0 ha/e. And 0 still mi ht lose:most likel' will lose:and o to Dail an'wa'. #he other wa' is for me to lea/e) ha/e 'ou smu led off Demos) smu led onto another world:some backwoods &lace:and bu' a &lace dee& in some wildland area where the nei hbors wouldn6t be a &roblem. #hen li/e in secrec'. #here are a ood man' dan er &oints) like smu lin 'ou off) ettin 'ou onto a second world without customs findin 'ou #he first would not be so criminal. ?a'be the' would take that into consideration. $e said nothin ) suddenl' filled with a &anic that threatened to take control of him. 0t had been all ri ht to theorize about what the' could do) to let &lans roil o/er one another in his mind:but to s&eak them) to talk about them as if a decision must be reached) was more than he could stand u& to. $e lit a ci arette) sa/ored the smooth smoke of the dru weed) ho&in it would rela; him more 9uickl' than usual. $e tried to s&eak) to talk o/er the &roblem with her) but the words wouldn6t come. When she asked what was the matter) he found he could not e/en look at her. A coldness) a

terror) a calculated emotionlessness had see&ed into his mind and was stru lin to take o/er the reins and uide his actions. 5or a lon while) the' la' to ether) sa'in nothin ) listenin to the occasional noise of animals in the trees outside and the far and melanchol' cr' of the Wintercrest) a white) la/ishl' feathered bird common in the cold months on this &art of the continent. 5inall') she asked) Are 'ou marriedB $is /oice bounced into his throat unbidden) Ces. 0t fell into the air like hot) smokin lead. 0t was the wa' out) the wa' to a/oid losin e/er'thin . $e was not married) of course. >ut if he could lie) if he could sa' that he was) if he could dismiss all of this so swiftl' with that one) three8letter word) didn6t that &ro/e that there wasn6t the kind of lo/e here that he had once thou ht there wasB Ces. #hat was it. $e had been followin alon a dan erous trail with onl' disaster at the end) lulled b' infatuation and mistakin that for lo/e. 0f he had reall' lo/ed her) he would not ha/e hesitated a moment to risk e/er'thin to ha/e her. $e would not ha/e lied so libl') so 9uickl') so easil'. $e had /er' nearl' blown e/er'thin for infatuation) for lust mi;ed with curiosit') and that had been sheerest foll'. #he' were silent a time. 0t6s Dust as well) she said at last. She hesitated) blushed for the first time since he had known her. So am 0. $e tensed a ainst her. Cou6re marriedB Do 'ou mindB 4h: 0f 'ou do: She started to mo/e as she s&oke. 1o. Don6t o 'et. Silence. #ime &assin . #he roar of the future s&eedin darkl' on to meet the &resent and be thrust into the &ast. 0s he:a win ed manB "ne of m' ownB "f course) 'es. #hen wh': WhatB Wh' lea/e him to lo/e me like this. 0 couldn6t com&are with: $e was furious) and the words stuck in his throat) clun to his li&s and would not come forth. $e felt that she had been makin a fool of him. Surel') lo/in a man as free as the birds) bein enfolded within his win s in Do') could be much better) much more fulfillin than an'thin a cumbersome) landbound brute such as he. could offer. $is tenderest mo/ements would seem ross and stu&id in com&arison. $e isn6t im&otent) she said) but sterile) Dust as 0 am sterile. Cou are not. 0 wanted a fruitful man) e/en if 0 cannot bear children. #hen it wasn6t me:but sim&l' m' DuicesB She s9uirmed awa') stood. 0 better be lea/in now) she said in her elfin /oice. She sli&&ed her hea/ier winter to a on and walked 9uickl' toward the &ortal. $e heard her win s. 3roteus came alert at the sound) looked about for an enem'. Da/is rolled onto his face) filled with an er and a sense of loss:and chiefl' relief. #he ne;t da' came and went) and she did not a&&ear as she had for so man' da's in the recent &ast. $e made a &retense of correlatin his notes) but his mind was elsewhere) tan led in memories of her) lost in the alle'wa's of her smile. $e tried to con/ince himself that a lon in of the flesh could be o/ercome easil') and that such was all this was. #he second da' without her was worse. $e a/e u& the &hon' facade of writin and &atrolled the woods about the towers) hands in his &ockets) head bent to the chill wind of earl' winter. Wh' had he told her he was marriedB And wh')

most of all) had he felt such o/erwhelmin relief when he had watched her lea/e and known it was fore/erB And wh') if he was relie/ed) did he now ache em&til') like a drained can of fruit left to rust in the ditch) with onl' &articles of sweetness still clin in to the corroded metalB Was it onl' relief that he was no lon er a criminal and onl' the ache of the aftermath of his fear:or was there) as he sus&ected) some dee&er reason for itB "n the third da') he ot in the ra/ car and set the coordinates for the &ort) for he had an a&&ointment to kee& with ?rs. >unter6s readin club. She had called the &re/ious e/enin ) and he had acce&ted) an;ious to ha/e some reason to flee the confines of this a/iar'. $e sat in the front seat broodin ) watchin the lea/es smack wetl' a ainst the windscreen) watchin the sk' cloud and &ack itself for snow. #he club meetin was held in the s9uat woman6s home2 a rather &alatial mansion with a lar e drawin room where a &odium had been &laced before fi/e rows of ten chairs each. $e was &la'in to a full house b' the time he be an his lecture. #he' were 9uite intent) and soon he ot wra&&ed u& in tellin of the trials and tribulations that had one into the construction of Lilian Girl& !ar$ 0atch on the 7iver& and other famous Stauffer Da/is no/els. Afterwards) there was a social hour with the traditional li htl' alcoholic &unch and homemade cookies. ?rs. >unter had corralled him and was leadin him about) showin off. 3roteus followed close to his left) constantl' on uard. 0 ho&e he6s been recarded) ?rs. >unter Fwho ke&t tellin him to &lease call her AliceG said) e'ein 3roteus cautiousl'. 06m wearin a new brooch. She raised a &rotecti/e hand to the li/e beetle that skittered across her la&el) strainin to the end of its tin' olden chain) then back a ain. Ces) Da/is assured her) he has. Still) the' both noticed the wa' the machine6s &lasti8&lasma sloshed inside whene/er he came near the bu . 4& and down the room) back and forth) corner to comer the' went until he had met nearl' e/er'one. $e was arm in arm with Alice >unter now as she e;hibited him like a mother with a son freshl' raduated from colle e. #he li ht alcoholic &unch onl' ser/ed to bolster his s&irits and make him 9uite talkati/e. #hese &eo&le were reall' not so bad) he decided. Wasn6t that what he usuall' disco/eredB Weren6t the' alwa's nice when he met them &ersonall' in the social &eriod after the lectureB $e had a fondness for them) a somewhat &aternal affection that made their com&an' desirable. #he' came) in time) to the mustached Alliance re& who had secured Da/is6s a/iar' and ra/ car and had ordered ?atron Salsbur' to deli/er food once a week. ?' wife thanks 'ou for the auto ra&h) he said) his /oice le/el) harsh) cold) and much more self8&ossessed than it had been &re8 /iousl'. Da/is6s head was s&innin from too much &unch. $e had drunk so much that the room danced u& and down and the re& ke&t meltin and solidif'in in front of him. #hink nothin of it) he said ma nanimousl'. Don6t worr') the re& said) smilin icil'. 0 think nothin at all of it. Cou will be mo/ed into the cit' tomorrow. >e read' when the /an comes for 'our car and e9ui&ment in the mornin . Da/is stood) dumbfounded e/en throu h the li9uor haze. Wh'B Cou should not drink in &ublic) ?r. Da/is) he sna&&ed. Cou like to boast too much. >oastB About the book6s dee& &hiloso&hic themes) about the manner in which 'ou will so brilliantl' destro' the Alliance &olic' of enocide. $ad he said thatB And wh'B Wh' blurt that out after all the work he had one to) after all the careful &lannin he had done to et onto this world and recei/e the coo&eration he neededB Wh' to these Alliance8oriented &eo&le of all he mi ht ha/e toldB

We don6t ha/e to coo&erate with those intent on defamin us) the re& said. Cou will et a bill for o/ernment ser/ices. And 0 should ad/ise that 'ou act more like a od if 'ou wish to &la' the &art. And he was one. 1e/er mind him) Alice >unter cooed) tu in at Da/is6s arm to draw him across the room to meet someone else she had Dust s&ied. She was too e;cited about ha/in a celebrit' b' the arm to consider the conse9uences of the re/elations he had a&&arentl' made about his ne;t book. >ut he sto&&ed her) stood swa'in like the drunk he was. Was the re& ri htB Could he &ossibl' ha/e been ri htB Did Da/is the author lo/e the worshi& of these readin club &eo&leB Ces. Ces) he did. $e erected a facade of disdain in order to delude himself) acted Dust the sli htest bit snobbish with them in order to i/e credence to that facade7 but the cold hard facts said that he had alwa's acce&ted lecture re9uests) had alwa's been more than willin to min le sociall' afterwards) had alwa's talked about his work to an'one who would listen. $e boasted. "ld) successful 1obel8 winner) Alliance8=iterature83rize8contender Stauffer Da/is was lookin for the a&&ro/al of the masses) thou h he denied it heartil' to the academic world and to himself. >ut he was seekin the dro&lets of en/') worshi&) and a&&reciation that were to be found in the hearts and minds of his fans) was tr'in to s'nthesize lo/e out of that mi;ture. #he Alliance re& had been correct. #here6s ?r. Alsace) ?rs. >unter said. #he beetle crawled on her breast. Suddenl') whate/er these &eo&le had done to fill the em&t' can of his soul was drained awa'. $e felt rusted a ain) d'in . $ad that been wh' he had told =eah he was marriedB 0f he fou ht this in court or smu led her out of Demos and was disco/ered) the masses would look down on him) disa&&ro/e of his raciall' mi;ed marria e. >' marr'in the win ed irl) he would be i/in u& the worshi& of the readin club &eo&le all o/er the Alliance worlds. So he had lied to her) tr'in to han on to the onl' thread of a&&reciation he could rel' on. $e had chosen the adoration of historical no/el fans o/er the lo/e of a woman. #he ceilin bobbled dan erousl' close. @omit tin led in the back of his throat. $e forced it down) tore himself free of Alice >unter. ?r. Da/isA StaufferA >ut he was out the door) sta erin ) lea/in them behind to discuss the stran e beha/ior of the 1obel winner who was lon o/erdue for the Alliance =iterature 3rize. 3roteus floated ne;t to him. $e found the car) almost closed the robot out. 0t was fortunate that he had not) for the machine would ha/e /ibra8beamed the door awa' if he had. $e &ulled the ra/ car onto) the hi hwa') i norin the coordinates and takin manual control. #he &ort cit' whizzed awa' and was re&laced b' rass' hills. #he trees came) still dro&&in lea/es. 0t be an to snow . . . $ow lon had he been foolin himselfB Cears. ?an' of them. $e had &la'ed the role of the uncarin ) the isolationist without need for human com&anionshi&. Ei/e me m' t'&ewriter) he cried) and 0 will con/erse with m' own soulA #hat is sufficientA he had shouted. >ut it had ne/er been sufficient) not for a second. $e had acce&ted the adulation of his fans) relied u&on it. 0t had become his onl' contact with &eo&le) and without it he would ha/e been shallow and incom&lete. $e realized now that he had been searchin for lo/e) searchin for what two dead &arents had ne/er i/en him) had denied him in their bitterness and their determination to destro' one another no matter what the cost. Stauffer) Stauffer) Stauffer . . . Wife a ainst husband) both of them a ainst the son. When he had rown and the' could not li/e to see his accom&lishments) to see that he had made it des&ite them) he had turned to the masses) o&ened his heart and wrote for their &leasure and their &raises. #hat had become so im&ortant to him that the true lo/e of a win ed irl had been momentaril' dis&laced) lost in the reater need for acce&tance. >ut not now. 1ot an' lon er . . . $e dro/e faster. 3roteus ur led noisil'.

Snow bulleted the windscreen) danced whitel' across the hood. 0t co/ered the lea/es alon the road) be an deckin the trees in soft shrouds . . . What would he sa' to herB Could he make her reDect her win ed an el to come with himB Could he con/ince her that he would lo/e and cherish her more than her Demosian lo/erB $e would ha/e to. #here was nothin else he could ima ine now. #here could be no oin back to the readin clubs for a hint of lo/e) admiration) a&&reciation. $e knew the &honiness of that) at last) and it was not oin to be &ossible to delude himself with the same routine an' lon er. #he 'ros whined to kee& the car as stable as &ossible while he &oured the stress &ower from the ra/ &lates into the &ro&ellin mechanism. #he' swe&t &ast the towers of the a/iaries and onward toward the Sanctuar'. #he twin breasts were the breasts of a fair maiden now) frosted with snow. $e turned toward the u l' black block of the or&hana e and accelerated. $e was afraid she would sa' no) would sta' with the win ed bo') lea/in him without an'thin but his loneliness and lon in . $e constructed ar uments as sound as those re9uired to breach the ates of $ell or $ea/en) re&eated them to himself to et them &erfectl' in mind. Somehow) the' all sounded like &ieces of broken lass dro&&in off his ton ue. $e swun the car in front of the ste&s of the main &romenade before the hu e double doors of the Sanctuar'. $e ot out) rushed u& the ste&s) throu h the &ortals and into a well8li hted lobb'. 3roteus hurried behind. Da/is crossed the car&eted floor to where a woman sat behind a rece&tion desk) a ra'8haired matron with enormous fallen breasts. 06m lookin for ?atron Salsbur') he said) &antin . Cou6/e found her) then) she said) smilin . 06m ?atron Salsbur'. And 'ou must be ?r. Stauffer Da/is. She rose) tremblin /isibl' with e;citement. >efore his encounter with the =ea ue re& at Alice >unter6s house) he would ha/e held ?atron Salsbur'6s hand) talked of his books) charmed her with his tales of writin and &ublishin . 1ow) all of that was behind him. #o en a e in an' of it would ha/e dri/en him 9uite mad. 0nstead) he sna&&ed) #he irl. =eah. #he one who was m' uide. Could 0 see her) &leaseB 06m sorr') but she6s not here at the moment. #he alcohol was one) but he was drunk with fear) fear that she had one off for an id'llic holida' with her smooth8skinned 'oun an el and that e/en now the' were tan led in lo/e. $er husband) Da/is said. Could 0 s&eak to himB She looked at him blankl'. WhatB $e was enra ed b' her inabilit' to understand so sim&le a re9uest at so ur ent a moment. $er husband) womanA 0 want to s&eak to her husbandA 0 don6t understand) she said) lookin a bit fri htened. She has no husband. #here are onl' si;teen win ed &eo&le left. #he' are all women. $e felt his mouth unhin e) /'ter"inated . . . $e closed his mouth) licked his li&s with a ton ue that felt swollen and dr'. She had known what he feltA And to sa/e him the &ain and the loss of &ublic res&ect) she had cunnin l' offered him this out. 0f the' were married) the' were better a&art. And each had been l'in to the other. She had known it) but he had been i norant. She had taken ste&s to insure his career and his e o. #o hell with thoseA he thou ht. Where has she oneB ?atron Salsbur' looked flustered. 0 don6t know. She sat here in the lobb' for two da's. She e/en took her meals here) sle&t here. She watched those doors as if she were waitin for someone or : She sto&&ed as if understandin had struck like li htnin inside her head. And then) Dust an hour a o or so a o) she left without sa'in where she was oin . She was still talkin as he ran across the loun e) out the doors and down the ste&s. 3roteus came

after him) barel' bobblin inside before he slammed on the ra/ car6s stress &ower) kicked at the accelerator and shot across the field between the two hills) not botherin to use the much lon er road that connected them. A hundred feet from the tem&le) the ra/ &lates a/e u& tr'in to adDust to the /ar'in distances to the round and blew on him. #he car Dolted u& the base of the second hill and came to a nois' halt) settlin ru edl' to the round where the rubber rim was sheared awa'. $e o&ened the door and ran. Lust as he entered the main hall of the reat cathedral there was a fla&&in of win s. =eah de&arted from one of the teardro& &ortals hi h in the walls. #he base of the 5ace of Eod was o&en) the chin now a door. She had been into the corridors of the idol6s mind) lookin out throu h its e'es) waitin for Stauffer Da/is) the famous no/elist) the lo/e8seeker) the:he cursed himself:stu&idest man in the AllianceA >ut he had come in Dust a moment too late) and she had left without seein him. $e turned) ran down the echo8shar& hall and out onto the rounded dome of the snow' breast) lea/in his foot&rints in its white skin. $e looked for her) searched the sk'. She was flittin off toward the 'ellow mountains. $e called to her) but she was too far awa'. She could not hear him. And the car was useless. $e could onl' run. $e ran. She flew. #he distance between them rew. She settled before the trees) ste&&ed into the dark of the woods and was one from si ht. $e screamed) but she was too far awa' to hear. $e ran. $is chest ached. A fire had been set to flashin life in his lun s. $e sucked in cool air and blew out steam. Still) he ran) faster and faster:but not as fast as he thou ht he had to. $e was o/er the ed e of the tem&le hill) streakin alon the fields toward the trees. ?inutes &assed before he reached them. $e called her name. She was too far ahead. #he thickness of the trees soaked u& his words. #here was no echo. #he snow drifted down around him) filtered throu h the ti ht web of branches and sifted the forest floor. 3roteus came behind. Which wa'B Would she o strai ht. ahead or slant to the leftB #o the ri htB $e sobbed) mo/ed strai ht on) lea&in o/er fallen lo s) kickin &iles of lea/es u& around him as he went. $e skidded on the snow once) s&rawled onto his face) skinnin his cheek. $e la' for a moment) tastin dirt and blood. #hen he sho/ed u& and went on) aware that a moment6s dela' mi ht mean the difference between success or failure. $e called her name a ain. Silence. $e hurried on. #hen a cr' and the howl of wol/es. A screamA $e sto&&ed and listened) head cocked to catch the e;act direction of the noise. #here was a second scream) one that trailed off like a d'in siren. 0t was to his left. $e started in that direction. 0n a moment) a ba'in of sa/a e hounds moaned throu h the cold air and snow slithered like thick) cold oil between the trees. 3roteus mo/ed u& beside him. 0n the darkness ahead) two limmerin red e'es the size of walnuts &eered at Da/is between the thick trunks of the 'ellow8leafed trees. A wolf lo&ed closer) skidded to a sto& and stared at what it e/identl' ho&ed mi ht be its su&&er. 0ts Daws hun o&en) dri&&in sali/a onto the frosted round. 0t

rowled dee& in its thick throat) s&at) blew snot from its nose. 3roteus o&ened with his /ibra8beam wea&on) blasted the darkness with blue flames. #he wolf danced onto two le s) twirled) colla&sed onto the snow. >lood s&attered outward from the charred bod' and &atterned the whiteness. Da/is ste&&ed o/er the cor&se and mo/ed on. Please& he thou ht) don*t let her be dead . . .

IV
fallin more hea/il' now) driftin throu h the trees where the lea/es had been worn awa' b' the tireless hands of autumn) mattin Da/is6s e'elashes so that he had to kee& brushin them to see. #here was more howlin ahead) dee& and utteral) a brother to the si h of the wind itself. $e scrambled o/er a formation of rocks) stumbled on a small lo concealed b' snow and lea/es) and came to the clearin where she was stretched out on the round) head raised sli htl' a ainst a 'il tree base. #here was a wolf circlin her) its teeth bared) a snarl held dee& in its throat where it was releasin it onl' a note at a time. #here were teeth marks abo/e her wrist where it had ni&&ed her e;&erimentall') and blood dribbled down o/er her hand. Da/is screamed to draw the wolfs attention. 0t turned from her) starin at him with hot coal e'es) its Dowls 9ui/erin and slo&&ed with crimson. $e shouted at it a ain) screamin nonsense s'llables. 0t looked at him) snarled) bared teeth that were Da ed and stron . 0t turned back to her and started to mo/e in toward her neck. Da/is rabbed a fistful of lea/es and snow) &acked them to ether and threw the ball at the beast. 0t bounced off its flank) and the wolf turned to Da/is a ain) &added awa' from the irl. 0t lea&ed: 3roteus shot the animal) flicked on the /ibra8beam and fried its bod' while it was still in fli ht. #he charred cor&se crashed at Da/is6s feet) its 'ellow teeth bared in a cris&ed snarl. Eo awa'A she said) makin as if to et u& and run. 06m not married) he said. An'wa') not to an'one but 'ou. She sto&&ed tr'in to et u& and colla&sed back onto the snow' earth) looked u& at him stran el' for a moment) then started to cr') thou h he knew she was not cr'in in sadness. 3roteus hummed around the trees) alert) searchin ) its sensors seekin heat and sound and si ht and e/en olfactor' stimulation. $e went to her) knelt) took her wounded arm. 0t was not a serious bite) thou h it was swollen and blue. Clots had formed) but it should be cleaned and sterilized and lathered with s&eedheal ointment and a s&eedheal banda e. $e tried to et his arms under her) but she fou ht him. What are 'ou tr'in to doB he asked) an ril' tr'in to make her hold still. #he'6ll &ut 'ou in Dail) she said. 06/e ot the mone' to fi ht it. >ut 'ou6ll lose e/er'thin . She bit him on the hand. Eoddamned little she8wolfA he said) lau hin . Cou6ll lose e/er'thin A she re&eated. =ook) he said) &ointin to dark sha&es mo/in toward them throu h the 'il trees. See thoseB Wol/es. Ri ht. @er' ood. 1ow let me tell 'ou somethin . 0 am oin to sta' ri ht here if 'ou won6t let me take 'ou out of the woods. 06m oin to wait for those wol/es and kill them one at a time) with 3roteus) until there are too man' for the robot to handle. #hen 06ll let them kill both of us if 0 can6t sto& them with m' hands. 3roteus can onl' do so much) 'ou know. $e wasn6t desi ned to work at
S1"W WAS

o&timum efficienc' in some e;otic situation like this. As if in confirmation of all Da/is had said) the robot6s &lasti8&lasma be an ur lin loudl'. 0t could) of course) handle these wol/es lon enou h to scare them off) but there was no sense tellin her that. >ut 'ou6ll lose e/er'thin A ?one'. Some fans. We6ll fi ht it) and we6ll win it. She looked at him) seemed to wilt) as if she had been holdin herself stiff and alert throu h sheer will&ower. As she sa ed and whim&ered that the bite on her arm hurt /er' badl') he lifted her in his arms much as he mi ht ha/e carried a child) careful that her win s were folded and would not et torn or bent b' his rou h handlin . As he turned to find their wa' back to the fields) the wol/es mo/ed in e/en closer. #o his ri ht) one of the heft') sla/erin monsters hunched its shoulders and hun its neck low to the round) &awed at the earth. 0ts hind le s tensed) all the muscles standin out e/en throu h the thick coat of hair. Eun ri htA he ordered 3orteus. #he machine turned. #he wolf bounded two ste&s) soared into the air . . . . . . eru&ted like a match head in the searin brilliance of the /ibra8beam) died howlin like a banshee. #he other beasts backste&&ed a bit) lowered their heads and made dee& moanin noises that the wind snatched and carried awa') chan ed into the cr'in of children) then the buzzin of bees) then nothin ness. Da/is carried her back o/er the leaf8co/ered lo ) worked around the thrustin teeth of the rock formation) sna in her to a se/eral times and lookin u& an;iousl' at each halt to make certain 3roteus was still watchful. #he wol/es &aralleled their e;it) sta'in behind the trunks of the 'il trees) their scarlet e'es flashin now and a ain in the dense loom :the onl' si ns of their &resence outside of an occasional brutish mutter. At last) the ed e of the woods loomed ahead7 the snow8blanketed fields /isible and:des&ite their ic' dress:warml' welcome be'ond. $e shifted her sli htl') directed her to han onto his neck with her ood arm) and looked around at the &airs of leamin bloods&ots that indicated the &ositions of the wol/es. #here were ei ht of them that he could locate) all too close for comfort. >ut there was nothin to do but o ahead and rel' on 3roteus. $e ste&&ed awa' from the 'il bole a ainst which he had been leanin ) hu ed =eah6s bod' to his chest) and walked briskl' toward the li ht and the o&en s&aces. #here was a rustle of mo/ement behind him) and he was conscious of 3roteus arcin abo/e his head) trainin his uns downward. #here was a crackle of /ibra wea&on) the smell of burnin fur and roastin meat. Da/is did not sto& to look back but maintained the &ace he had set for himself. #o their left) two of the wol/es char ed) co/erin reat len ths of round with each &owerful boundin stride. 3roteus s&ra'ed both of them with the deadl' wea&on6s bluish li ht and cau ht them before the' were e/en off the round. Around them) dried lea/es) under the thin blanket of snow) flashed and burned in an instant) left onl' a &all of smoke and no coals. #hen Da/is was throu h the trees and into the field where he could not be a&&roached on the sl'. #he wol/es) the fi/e that were left) raced out after him) &assed him) started comin back in) tr'in to corner him between the woods and themsel/es. #he' were reat) sla/erin demons) cancerous rowths a ainst the white &urit' of the snow) but he knew that:thou h the' mi ht look m'tholo ical) unreal: their bite and their clawin would be &erfectl' solid) &ainful) and murderous. 3roteus met this challen e as he had met all the others. $e brou ht down two of the wol/es with

the /ibra wea&on) sent them rollin and kickin backwards until the' were coated with snow and ice and looked like &laster of 3aris fi ures. #he remainin three beasts decided that enou h was more than &lent') turned to the left) toward a &roDection of the 'il trees) tails between their le s) and raced throu h the snow) kickin clouds of the fine &articles u& in their wake. Da/is slowed down) cau ht his breath for a moment. #he car was useless now that its ra/ &lates had been destro'ed. $e could see it) alon side the tem&le hill) canted to one side) the rubber rim twisted u& the side of it like a snake. $e looked toward the Sanctuar'. ?atron Salsbur' should ha/e another ra/ car) surel') which he could use to et the irl back to the a/iar' where his s&eedheal medical kit la'. $e looked down at =eah to tell her what he had &lanned) but found she was unconscious. $er head hun lim&l' a ainst her bosom) and her breath was comin ra edl'. $e looked at the wolf bite) saw that it was more swollen than before) and that the /ein leadin awa' from it was &uffed and black. %ither the bite had i/en her natural blood &oisonin ) or the fan s of the wol/es contained some no;ious chemical that mi ht be:no) /er' clearl' was:of a deadl' nature. $e looked franticall' in all directions) as if someone mi ht be about who could hel&) then turned toward the Sanctuar' and) holdin her more ti htl' than e/er) he be an runnin throu h the inch of snow that had fallen) his feet sli&&in and slidin ) but somehow mana in to maintain his balance. $is ears were so cold the' ached) and he ima ined the irl must be freezin with nothin more on than the hea/'wei ht to a. $er bare le s dan led o/er his arm where the arment had ridden u&) and he almost sto&&ed to tuck it &ro&erl' around her to kee& her warm) then realized an' waste of time was also a waste of the dro&lets of life she still &ossessed. $e ran faster) fell on his back once) numbin himself thou h he mana ed to hold her and cushion her from bein inDured. 0t was a stru le ettin to his feet without la'in her in the snow) but he did not want to let her out of his arms. 0n minutes) he reached the Sanctuar') sta ered u& the ste&s with her) his throat afire and dr') his ton ue stickin to the roof of his mouth. $e raced for the door) was about to slow to &ush it o&en when it o&ened of its own accord) i/in him entrance. $e went throu h) sto&&ed in the fo'er) &uffin and unable to s&eak. $e looked u&) e;&ectin to see ?atron Salsbur') but was confronted with the face of the Alliance re& instead. #he re& drew on his mustache with one hand) looked at the irl) then u& into Da/is6s face. 0n his other hand) he held a &istol. She6s been bitten b' a wolf) Da/is said) the words harsh and wheezed) an octa/e too hi h. Dro& her) the re& said. Eet hel& for her 9uickl') Da/is &leaded. Dro& her) the re& said) &ointin at her with the &istol. 0 must warn 'ou that 0 was an Alliance soldier before enterin the di&lomatic cor&s. With m' trainin ) 0 ha/e no inhibitions about /iolence. 06m ca&able of:well) of an'thin ) reall'. Dro& her. 3roteus made rumblin sounds. And a &rotection robot isn6t desi ned to strike out at an' other human bein ) Da/is. So for et that. $e started to bend o/er with =eah) to &lace her on the car&et. 0 did not tell 'ou to la' her down. 0 told 'ou to dro& her. Lust let her o. $e i nored the re& and &laced her entl' on the floor. #hat was a bad mo/e) the e;8soldier said. Another strike a ainst 'ou2 disobe'in an officer of the Alliance. #hat carries two 'ears in itself. 0 think 'ou had best be more courteous. $ow did 'ou et here so 9uickl'B Da/is asked. 0 came around to /isit ?atron Salsbur' to discuss 'ou) to see if she knew of an' misdemeanor :/iolatin the &reser/e laws or an'thin :we mi ht harass 'ou with. She had Dust told me what

she disco/ered about 'ou and the animal there when 'ou obli ed us b' char in ri ht in with 'our little beast. $e smiled. Da/is looked down at the irl. Will 'ou et hel& for herB She6s d'in . A sim&le s&eedheal unit would: =et her die) the re& said) still smilin . Da/is looked astonished. Da/is) what 'ou for ot is that no matter how intelli ent an alien ma' seem to be) no matter how cle/er) it is inferior. 0t is not a man. ?an is the hi hest order of life. Wh' do 'ou think) in all these 'ears of e;&loration into s&ace) we6/e ne/er met a race that could com&ete with usB We were meant to be the dominant s&ecies) man. And in the million 'ears to come) we6re not oin to run across an'thin we can6t handle. Cou tainted 'ourself b' touchin this little animal. Cou should ha/e known better. And because 'ou made a fool out of me and set m' chances of &romotion back fi/e 'ears b' 'our little ruse about the sort of book 'ou were oin to write) 0 think 0 should ha/e an o&&ortunit' to &a' 'ou back) in some small wa') for 'our brutalit'. And) &erha&s) if 'ou watch her die) 'ou6ll realize that she was nothin more than an animal) a beast) a thin . She6ll die) and there won6t be choruses of an els sin in her to her final restin &lace. Cou6re insane. 1o) the re& said. 0t6s 'ou who are insane. $e ste&&ed forward and &ushed a toe of his boot a ainst the irl6s side) sho/ed her hard enou h to flo& her o/er on her bell'. See) Da/is) insanit' is Dud ed) in &art) b' what is standard for societ'. Someone who breaks the reatest taboos with the least re ard for his own bein is often labeled as a lunatic. =o/in an alien is /er' abnormal. So 'ou will surel' be Dud ed mad as well as a traitor. 0n one swift) clean mo/ement) Da/is locked hands and brou ht the resultant club in an u&swin that cau ht the re& under the chin) sna&&ed his head back. #he e;8soldier6s e'es rolled u& until the' were all white) and he to&&led backwards) crashed onto the floor) his head strikin hard at the tem&le. $e had ne/er been e;&ectin a ci/ilian to &ossess the abilit' to commit such a /icious act of /iolence a ainst another human bein ) and his smu ness had made it the sim&lest thin in the world for Da/is to take him out of the &icture. Da/is looked u&) saw ?atron Salsbur' runnin for a &hone screen outlet near the rece&tion desk. $e bounded after her) &ulled her awa' from it after she had &unched out two of the ei ht numbers) cleared the board b' ta&&in the cancel bar) and sho/ed her back toward the re& who was l'in 9uite still. What are 'ou oin to do to usB she asked. Sit downA he ordered her) &ushin her ne;t to the unconscious Alliance man. She &lo&&ed ne;t to him) her fatt' bod' Di lin with the im&act. Don6t mo/e and 'ou6ll not be hurt. $e was ri ht) she said) her /oice 9ua/erin on the ed e of h'steria. Cou are mad. Da/is i nored her) well aware that no amount of facts) lo ic) or ar ument could e/er swa' someone with her sort of mind) Dust as the re& would ne/er renounce one of his &reDudices. #heir li/es were based on the assum&tion that the' were su&erior) at least) to aliens. 0f the' should e/er be con/inced that man') man' aliens were their intellectual su&eriors) their &s'ches would crumble in the instant. #he' were inferior &eo&le) the lacke's of those in &ower) and without the o/ernment behind them) the' would be Dell'fish and nothin more. $e tore down the dra&eries o/er the hi h windows) ri&&ed each &anel in two lon stri&s and used these to bind both the re& and the Sanctuar' kee&er) t'in them stoutl' enou h to last until he came u& with somethin to et he and =eah out of this mess. When that was done) he turned to the irl) rolled her o/er) and e;amined the &ro ress of the black line u& her delicate arm. 0t was rowin 9uite near her arm&it. 0n another fifteen minutes) she mi ht /er' well be dead. 3erha&s sooner. $er breathin was shallow) birdlike) and the beat of her lar e heart was fast) much faster than it should

be e/en for a Demosian. Do 'ou ha/e a s&eedheal kit around hereB he asked ?atron Salsbur'. 1o) she said. $e knelt) sla&&ed her twice across the face. $e thou ht 0 couldn6t hurt him. Don6t make the same mistake. $e held the re&6s un at her neck. $e had not ac9uired so much of a /iolence dri/e that he could kill a human bein ) but as lon as she did not know that) it was an effecti/e threat. #here6s an infirmar' on the round floor here) she said. #hat door) the reen one. #here should be a s&eedheal e9ui&ment racked in the o&en. $e &atted her cheek) smiled) and raced into the infirmar' where he located and brou ht back a s&eedheal kit inside of two minutes. When he returned to the loun e) ?atron Salsbur' was whis&erin to the re&) tr'in to wake him. $e was moanin a little) but still fairl' well out. Sa/e 'our breath) Da/is said) enDo'in the wa' she sna&&ed her head around to look at him) fri htened and confused. After bein terrified) for weeks) of what the Alliance would do to him if it disco/ered his indiscretion) it was nice to see the Alliance &eo&le doin the cowerin . $e lifted =eah and &laced her on one of the comfortable sofas) which dotted the floor of the lobb') on her back so that he could kee& close watch on her res&iration and the /italit' of her heartbeat. "&enin the medical kit) he be an e;tractin the tools he would re9uire to work on her and was soon absorbed b' the Dob of sto&&in the ad/ancin line of &oison before it was too late to contain it and destro' it. 5or a while) he thou ht he was oin to lose the race a ainst the infection) but then he had the forei n element on the retreat) eliminated it) and was nearl' to home base. $e a&&lied the s&eedheal banda es) set the circuits into o&eration) checked the &ower le/el of the microminiature batter' attached to the 'ellow cloth) and settled back) feelin as if a ton or two of steel had been lifted from each shoulder. She was oin to be all ri ht. @er' touchin ) the re& said from behind him. $e whirled) but the Alliance man was still tied &ro&erl'. @er' touchin ) but foolish. 1ow 'ou ha/e a third char e a ainst 'ou2 molestin an officer of the Alliance. Damn) 06ll bet that char e hasn6t been le/eled a ainst an'one in this centur'. $ow did 'ou do it) Da/isB $ow were 'ou able to hit meB $e didn6t want to e;&lain that the anti/iolence taboo had shattered and died in that as shelter when he had had to resort to /iolence to sa/e a irl he lo/ed from the claws and teeth of a rat:or watch her die and be torn a&art. $e didn6t want to e;&lain that such a thin mi ht not be stron enou h stimulus to &ush e/er' modern Alliance citizen into /iolence) but that it was &lent' for a man who had been seekin lo/e all his life and had ne/er found it until he had met that irl. So he didn6t e;&lain. And refusin to e;&lain to an Alliance officer made him feel e/en tou her and more of a man than he felt now:and he felt better at this moment than he had in all the rest of his life. =ook) he said to the mustachioed re&) 'ou6re oin to be m' hosta e to see that 0 et &ublic notice. "therwise the Alliance mi ht stick me in a back room somewhere and no one would e/er hear of me. 0f 06m to ha/e a fair chance) 0 ha/e to be allowed a trial. 0f it6s s&lashed all o/er the statsheets on the ne;t news hour) the Alliance won6t dare tr' to railroad me without due &rocess. And all 0 want is a chance to fi ht the misce enation laws. Eo to hell) the re& snarled. Cou6ll call 'our bo's off if the': 06d rather) the re& hissed) his /oice ti ht and whis&ered) order them to shoot to kill) whether or not 06m liable to be shot also. Cou6/e ruined a career 06/e worked 'ears to build. #he' won6t e/er ad/ance me within the di&lomatic cor&s. And 0 won6t be &ermitted back in the arm'. #hat means their oin to condemn me to a ci/ilian &osition) and 0 couldn6t stand that. 06d rather die first. 0 belie/e 'ou) Da/is said soberl'. Without &ower of some sort) militar') or o/ernmental) 'our t'&e of &est can6t sur/i/e. #he re& s&at on him.

#hat hit home) didn6t itB Eo to hell. Cou6re re&eatin 'ourself. Cou a/e me that direction onl' a short while a o. So all 'ou can do is run) the re& said) mana in to smile a ain. And with winter settin in) how far will 'ou etB Cou can6t lea/e the &lanet with her. And 0 think 'ou6re stu&id enou h to sta' here rather than lea/e her behind. Da/is did not res&ond) e;ce&t b' tearin down the last two &anels of dra&es and ri&&in them u& to bind the two &risoners more thorou hl'. $e finished the Dob with two ti ht and effecti/e a s) then dra ed them to a su&&lies closet behind the rece&tion desk. $e loaded the re& into the cubb'hole) then decided he mi ht as well ha/e as much information as &ossible with which to make their esca&e. $e remo/ed the a from ?atron Salsbur'. When will 'ou be missedB Su&&er6s o/er. 1ot until breakfast. 0 don6t alwa's make a room check at ni ht an'more. Where are the other irlsB 4&stairs) in the ame room. $e stuffed the a back in her mouth) wra&&ed the band around her face to kee& it in) knotted it ti htl' behind her head. She was harder to mo/e than the man had been) hea/ier and more h'sterical. When he had her wed ed into the closet) facin the re&) he closed the door and hurried back to =eah. She was still slee&in ) but he could not afford to wait for her to wake. $e lifted her) carried her outside) down the ste&s) and across the flat &arkin area to the ra/ car that the re& had dri/en u& from the &ort in. $e &laced her in the &assen er6s seat) stra&&ed her in) waited until 3roteus had clambered in the back) then sli&&ed behind the wheel and reached for the controls. 0t was then that he first noticed the blinkin amber li ht abo/e the radio that indicated a call was bein made. $e contem&lated answerin it and tr'in to fake it out) but knew that would end in dismal failure. >etter to let it rin . %/entuall') the' would be in to worr') but &erha&s not for an hour or two. And b' that time) he and =eah mi ht be too far alon in their esca&e for it to matter. %sca&e . . . $e looked to the mountains) the hea/' clouds han in low on them) and the sheets of snow that were dri/in before a stiff wind that looked as if it mi ht row more fierce as the storm worsened durin the ni ht. #hat was their esca&e2 the mountains) the wildlands of Demos. With that re& in command of the Alliance &olice on Demos) there would be no chance of runnin u& the le al fla and battlin this in courts. 1o chance at all. 0f the' could Mnot a/oid the &olice) the' were dead. #he' were &robabl' e9uall' as dead if the' tried esca&in into the mountains at the be innin of the winter) but there was no other &ro&osition o&en to them. #he re& had seen to that. 5or the first time) Da/is realized that he did not e/en know the Alliance re&resentati/e6s name. $e had Dust been a &u&&et of the o/ernment. #here had ne/er been initial cordialities. $e had not thou ht to ask) and the Alliance man had not thou ht to /olunteer the information. 0t was the ultimate &roof of the dehumanization of man b' bureaucrac'. #he little e;8soldier with the mustache was no lon er an indi/idual) but a co in the cor&orate ima e of the Alliance o/ernment) the Su&remac' of ?an &art') adherin to doctrine) dri/en b' do ma) unthinkin and uncarin about an'thin but &ower and the means of obtainin it. #he radio li ht continued to blink. $e started the ra/ car) &ulled awa' from the Sanctuar') and &ushed the accelerator all the wa' down as he followed the road back to the a/iar' which contained his thin s) from which the' would ha/e to &ack their &ro/isions for the) lon trek ahead . . .

V
not re ained consciousness b' the time the' reached the a/iar') and thou h he did not feel ood about interru&tin her slee&) he administered a stimulant to her with a h'&odermic and be an /i orousl' rubbin her cheeks and hands. #here was so little time to do so much that he re8 9uired her assistance e/er' ste& of the wa'. She stirred) muttered slee&il') sat &artwa' u& without o&enin her o/al e'es. $er win s uncrinkled a bit) strained to o&en) then settled back and folded into &lace. She shook her head) made blubberin sounds) and finall' looked u& at him. #here were dark circles under her e'es) but the' onl' ser/ed to make her that much more stunnin ) intri uin . Where are weB she asked. At the a/iar' with m' thin s. #he wol/es . . . 06ll tell 'ou as we &ack thin s) he said) &ullin her to her feet. Cou feel u& to workin a littleB 06m tired. >ut 0 can mana e) she said. #he armB 0t doesn6t hurt an'more. =et6s hurr' then. She took time to kiss him) once) lon and lan uidl') then the' be an roundin u& com&act food &roducts) concentrates) thermos Du s for water) &ortable electric torches) e/er'thin it seemed likel' the' mi ht find use for and be able to carr' without much trouble. "nce) she &aused to tr' to &ersuade him that he should turn her back to them) tr' to make amends. $e con/inced her that such a su estion not onl' insulted him and underrated his feelin s about her but was totall' fanciful since the Alliance re& was now out for blood and re/en e and would ne/er acce&t an'thin less. #he &ackin resumed at the same furious &ace. >ut where are we oin B she asked as the' worked the last of the items Da/is felt the' needed into the rucksacks and the sin le suitcase. $e started to answer) then onl' &acked more 9uickl'. Se/eral minutes later) he said) 0f we can et to the woods) bu' some time) ma'be the'6ll think we died in the mountains durin the winter. ?a'be we will. >ut well tr' like the de/il not to. And if we make it) ma'be) in the s&rin ) 06ll be able to o into the &ort cit' without an' trouble) unreco nized. 0t6s no ood) she said. $e shru ed. $e knew it was unworkable as well as she. >ut what else had been left o&en to themB #he' were nothin now but two scurr'in creatures cau ht in the web of the me alomaniacs) the &ower seekers) mice in the walls of an inconcei/abl' /ast social order. #heir onl' chance was to act e;actl' like mice) li/in off that order) in the frin es of that order) without bein disco/ered and eradicated. 1ot the best of li/es. >ut better than bein dead. 0 ma' ha/e a su estion) she said. $e continued to &ack) stuffin the last few items into the bul in rucksack. What6s thatB A fortress. $e looked u& as he stra&&ed the fla& of the sack down) not 9uite ras&in what she was tr'in to tell him. WhatB A fortress. Remember m' tellin 'ou about them) about how the' were su&&osed to be the thin that would turn the course of the war in the fa/or of m' &eo&leB #he word clicked into &lace then) and all the notes he had taken on the subDect and studied in detail a&&eared before his mind with the almost total recall he &ossessed. Accordin to =eah) the Demosian o/ernment had constructed) durin the tail end of the war when the sterilizin ases had
S$% $AD

had their effect and there was a ra/e shorta e of fi hters) four fortresses dee& within the earth) scattered) o/er this one lar e continent on which most of the win ed &eo&le had made their homes. #he fortresses were dee&) im&re nable shelters a ainst e/er' sort of attack and were e9ui&&ed with) accordin to rumors) e;&erimental laboratories for the de/elo&ment of new wea&ons:and e;&erimental enetics labs which were to find some method of &roducin more Demosians without the need of fertile men and women. #he reat &ush b' the Alliance forces had come Dust as the fortresses were com&leted) and the men who would ha/e staffed them were needed in the last des&erate attem&t to sta/e off the %arthmen:which) of course) failed. #he fortresses) if the' e/er had e;isted) were ne/er disco/ered. =eah6s randfather had been an en ineer in char e of the hea/' construction workers in the buildin of the nearest of these fortresses and had been assi ned) with his famil') to occu&' 9uarters there to take char e of the maintenance once the structure was in o&eration. >ut he died in the last battle. Could these fortresses be m'thsB he asked. A des&erate &eo&le will e/ol/e all sorts of ethereal fantasies to i/e them ho&e. ?' randfather was a realist) she said. 0t was no m'th. And 'ou know the locationB 1ot e;actl'. >ut from listenin to m' randfather and anal'zin what 0 can remember) 06/e since decided it has to be inside the mountain we call #ooth) which is a ood wa's from here) but not so far that we cannot make it on these &ro/isions. $e thou ht a moment) then stood) rabbed the rucksacks. 0t6s worth a tr'. We don6t ha/e an'thin better in mind. Don6t et 'our ho&es u&) lo/e. %/en if there is a fortress) it mi ht /er' well be crumblin and uninhabitable. #he' were not built to crumble. 3erha&s) he said) smilin . 06ll take these out to the car and come back for the suitcase. Cou think 'ou can wear that coat without hurtin 'our win sB She looked at the two coats he had laid out for them) &icked u& a hu e) furr' Alaskan sur/i/al coat that would come down below his knees an inch or two but which came to her toes. 0t6ll be all ri ht. $e loaded the car) hel&ed her down the ricket' stairs since she could not fl' while wearin the sur/i/al coat) and ot her in the car. $e wore the fall coat he had) &lus se/eral shirts) and he was not too cold:thou h he wondered whether a da' or two s&ent in the o&en would ha/e him as warm. #rouble) he said as he &ulled the ra/ car out onto the lane which the snow had obscured. WhatB she asked. $e &ointed to the radio. #he bulb has sto&&ed blinkin . Which means the' ma' ha/e decided their re& is in trouble. #he snow whooshed u& around them) obliteratin the forest on either side as the ra/ &lates6 field disturbed the &owder' stuff. Da/is dro/e the car back the lane) toward the Sanctuar') until =eah directed him to the best &oint of entrance into the woods for the Dourne' to the mountain called #ooth and the fortress that mi ht or mi ht not be there. $e an led across o&en fields at her insistence) which meant the s&eed of the ra/ car had to be reduced. $e ke&t an;iousl' stud'in the road in the rear/iew mirror) certain the dark sha&es of &olice /ans would lide into /iew at an' moment. 0t was a ood four miles throu h the risin ) s&arsel' /e etated foothills) alwa's risin ) disa&&earin from the hi hwa' for short moments) then rea&&earin a ain as the' started u& the slo&e of the ne;t hill which was hi her than the last. 0n ten minutes) the' arri/ed at the ed e of the woods where he dro/e the car between the trees) scra&in the &aint from it) tearin off a stri& of chrome) but effecti/el' concealin it from an'one down there on the lane who mi ht chance to look u& and see the dark leam of metal. 0t6s on foot now) he said. 06m oin to i/e 'ou an inDection of adrenalin and a few c.c.s of a

s&eedheal restorati/e. Roll u& 'our slee/e. She stru led with the bulk' arment) finall' mana ed to obli e) and didn6t &rotest when the needles &unctured her slim arm. #wo little marks of blood were left behind) but she had bled enou h recentl' not to be bothered b' that. 06ll carr' a rucksack on each shoulder and switch the suitcase from hand to hand until 'ou6/e built enou h ener ' throu h those dru s to lend me su&&ort. 0 can do it now) she said. Ceah. ?a'be for ninet' seconds. Come on) lo/e. 0 know 'ou6re a bra/e irl and a stron irl) but let6s be honest with oursel/es. When we6re tired) we rest. 0f we don6t make that rule) we6ll colla&se before we6re a third of the wa' to this fortress of 'ours. #he' ot out) 3roteus immediatel' behind) and Da/is loaded u& with the ear. As he was &ickin u& the suitcase) both rucksacks firml' on his shoulders) =eah as&ed and said) =ookA Down at the Sanctuar'A $e looked back down the ri&&lin landsca&e at the tem&le and the Sanctuar') which was onl' &artiall' /isible on the other side of the reli ious structure. 3erched on the hillto& around the u l' &lace were four ra/ /ehicles much too lar e to be an'thin but &olice /ans. %/en as the' watched) the thin s be an mo/in awa' from the Sanctuar') down the lane toward the a/iar' where he had been doin his research. #heir headli hts were like the luminous e'es of iant moths) slicin down the darkness that had be un to descend. 0n minutes) the' would find their &re' had fled. And) Da/is noted miserabl') the ra/ car had left a &erfect trail u& the foothills to the forest) a trail a blind and noseless bloodhound could follow. #he onl' thin that mi ht &ossibl' 'et sa/e them was the ni ht which was ra&idl' settlin o/er the land. Come on) he said to =eah. 06ll break the trail. $e stom&ed off into the trees) tr'in not to look as fri htened as he was . . .

VI
05 0# W"4=D16# ha/e been for the snow and the bitter cold) Da/is would ha/e &raised their luck and thanked e/er' od he had e/er heard of. #he' climbed on throu h the dark hours without bein molested) trustin to the faint leam of the snow co/er whene/er that was &ossible and breakin out a hand torch when the trees rew too thickl' to allow natural li ht in:what little of it there was: and the' could no lon er trust to &ut their feet down before them) unable to make out the la' of the land and an' obstacles or &itfalls that mi ht be &resent. #here was no sound of &ursuit) no /oices on the slo&es below) no co&ter blades o/erhead. #he mountainside was often stee&) but ne/er so shar&l' an led that climbin ear or techni9ues were re9uired. #hese were old mountains) a ran e that had been weathered awa' throu h thousands of 'ears. 0t was more like hikin ) thou h strenuous and e;haustin . Still) all would ha/e been well if the storm had not rown and rown in fur') mountin into the ran e of blizzards with e/er' &assin hour. #he wind roared throu h the tress) rattlin the man'8forked branches so rudel' that there was a continual dull roar o/er which the' had to shout if the' wished to s&eak. "ften) he felt as if he stood below a mi ht' waterfall) within inches of the s&ot where the ri/er dashed itself into the rocks. As lon as the trees were ti htl' &acked) the worst of the stin in cold was blocked from them. >ut se/eral times) the' were forced to &ass throu h lon stretches where the densit' of the trees was as much as N-< below a/era e and the howlin hurricanelike masses of air tore down u&on them) made them bend double to kee& from bein blown awa'. "nce) on a stee&er slo&e where the wind was banked off the mountain abo/e and shunted ri ht down throu h the nearl' treeless e;&anse the' were tr'in to ne otiate) the' had had to hold ti htl' to the trees) Da/is lockin his le s around

her bod' to hold her as best he could. 0n the short moments when the wind abated) the' would rush forward to another handhold) anchor themsel/es in time to be struck a ain b' the hammerin blows of their in/isible enem'. >' the middle of the ni ht) the snow was fallin so hard that it was nearl' im&ossible to see more than an arm6s len th ahead) e/en with the aid of the electric torch. Da/is had ne/er seen such a hea/' storm in his life and found himself) for lon moments) sto&&in to look with wonder at the white delu e that was smotherin the land. 0n/ariabl') =eah would sto& behind) holdin his free hand) s9ueezin it to ur e him onward. $e wished he had i/en himself the ener ' boost he had &ro/ided her with the dru s of the medkit. #he' made the to& of the mountain some time before dawn and struck across the relati/el' flat to&land) rateful for the chance to Dust walk without the necessit' to fi ht the &ull of ra/it' and the sli&&eriness of the earth that wanted to send them tumblin backwards and down. #he' made /er' ood time once on the le/el) des&ite the drifts that bo ed them down and concealed obstacles which Da/is) more and more) found himself tri&&in o/er) s&rawlin into the wetness with all their ear. =eah had been carr'in the suitcase for some time) but the wei ht of the two rucksacks was enou h to make him feel as if his feet were not onl' sinkin throu h snow at e/er' ste&) but throu h an inch or two of the round as well. As the first ra's of li ht touched the sk' behind the thick cloud co/er and made the ra' horizon a sli htl' li hter shadow) the' reached the far side of the mountain and came to the &oint where the round be an to slo&e downwards a ain. 0n the first hundred 'ards of the descent into the ra/ine between this and the ne;t loomin landrise) he fell twice) almost knockin himself out the second time. When he ot u& to continue) she rabbed his arm and said she was /er' tired. When he turned) certain she was onl' tr'in to sa/e his feelin s b' blamin a halt on herself) he found that her e'es were sunken) her cheeks drawn and &ale inside the hood of the Alaskan sur/i/al outfit. $e had for otten that the ener ' those dru s had &ro/ided would not sto& the wear and tear on her bod') but would onl' i/e her the ener ' to o on des&ite the wa' she felt. She must be a onizin l' wear') as e;hausted as he was. $e nodded) stru led a hundred 'ards back u& the slo&e) found a co&se of trees in which the snow was not so dee& as in the more o&en land. $e shucked off the ba a e) took a lar e s9uare of durable &lastic out of the suitcase) unfolded it) tied it to some branches to make a &artiall' effecti/e lean8to in which the' mi ht huddle. 0nside) the' sat close) sharin what bodil' warmth mana ed to esca&e throu h their hea/' clothin . 1ow that the harsh whi& of the wind was off them) it seemed not nearl' so cold as it had all ni ht:e/en when the' were walkin and constantl' on the mo/e) buildin bodil' warmth. #he' did not talk) sim&l' because the' were too wear' to think of what to sa') to form the words if the' could think. And their mouths were a sli ht bit numb from the stin in cold. Words) howe/er) &ro/ed unnecessar'. #he' o&ened two cans of stew with warmin tabs in their bases and enDo'ed a hot meal. #he' drank water from one of the bottles) then filled u& what the' had drunk with snow. When the' were finished) the' leaned to ether a ain) head to head) and nestled under the blanket which had heat radiators wo/en into its threads) an item Da/is was es&eciall' &leased to ha/e thou ht of brin in . 6adness& he thou ht. 6adness& "adness& "adness . . . 0e*ll never "a$e it. 0e don*t even $no & for certain& here e*re going. 0e "ay even be lost at this "o"ent& though she thin$s she $no s her ay around. 6adness . . . $e looked at 3roteus) bobblin at the other end of the lean8to) and wondered what the mechanical &rotection s'stem was thinkin :if it were ca&able of initiatin a thou ht on its own. Cold was another 9uantit'Ocondition which it could not &rotect him from. $e could freeze to death) if he had not remembered this blanket) and 3roteus could do nothin to sto& the slow but certain &ro ress for e/en a fraction of a second.

$e was struck with) the thou ht that 3roteus was a fu iti/e now too. 3roteus was runnin with them) was here to &rotect them so the' could esca&e from the Alliance o/ernment. #hat made him a traitor and a fu iti/e from Dustice. $e wanted to lau h but did not ha/e the ener ') and he fell aslee& before he could frame e/en a fra ment of another train of thou ht . . . 0t was not a 9uiet slee&. #his was not the time for that. #here were dreams2 3e as in a house "ade of ice& each roo" a frigid cubicle ithout differentiation. 3e as na$ed& and his s$in as gro ing blue& nu"bing& lacing over ith glittering particles of frost . . . 3e as trying to find the door ay . . . #here did not appear to be one. %t gre colder and colder until& shi""ering out of nothingness& stalactites and stalag"ites for"ed in the roo"& "ade of ice& effectively barring his ay and "a$ing hi" a prisoner of this one cha"ber. #hen& as he cru"pled on the floor and felt his strength ebbing out of hi"& one spot in the all began to "elt& the ater running do n and puddling around hi"& ar" and pleasant& life1giving. 2 portal appeared in the all& and Leah as there& s"iling. She al$ed to ard hi"& see"ing to s$i" on the ater& and the ice "elted around her and the cold air beca"e ar". 3e grasped her& and feeling returned to his flesh. 2nd 8ust as they ere $issing& a "an ithout a face& dressed in a blue unifor" ith brass buttons& tapped !avis on the shoulder& separated hi" fro" Leah& and started leading her a ay. #he ice began to refor". #he flesh that had been ar" gre cold again. 3e raced frantically after the unifor"ed "an and the girl& trying to regain her& but his feet $ept free4ing to the floor& slo ing his progress& hile they "oved s iftly& the ice "elting before the" and solidifying behind . . . 3e asn*t going to catch her. (ever . . . /ver . . . 3e opened his "outh to screa"& ondering if that ould crac$ the ice atts of his prison . . . . . . and was awakened b' the boom of a &istol shot fired /er' nearb' . . . $e rabbed for his own un) sla&&in his hand a ainst an em&t' holster. $e had confiscated the wea&on from the Alliance re&resentati/e at the Sanctuar') and now someone had confiscated it from him) in turn. $e looked about the lean8to and saw 3roteus7 nodes leamin all colors as the machine bobbled irritabl') swa'ed from side to side as it tried to ascertain Dust what sort of role it should &la' in the trans&irin e/ents. =eah was near the left o&enin of the shelter) and it was she who had lifted his &istol from the holster and had been usin it. She held it in both hands) as if it were too hea/' for her to mana e in one) and &ointed it at the white landsca&e be'ond the entrance. What is itB he asked. Suddenl') it seemed as if the' must ha/e been mad to sto& and slee&. Wol/es) she said. $e rela;ed a little. Wol/es mi ht be cunnin and &owerful) but not so cunnin and not so &owerful as a man with a un or a /ibra8beam wea&on workin as a soldier of the Alliance. $e mo/ed o/er to where she sat) looked throu h the o&enin . 1ot more than si; feet awa') a reat ra'8brown wolf) much like those that 3roteus had fou ht off the da' before) s&rawled in the thick car&et of snow) reat red blotches of blood stainin the &urit' around it. 0ts mouth was o&en) its ton ue lolled to the side. 0 didn6t want to wake 'ou) she said. 0 thou ht this mi ht be e9ui&&ed with a built8in silencer. 0t wasn6t.

0 didn6t know 'ou could use a un) he said. %/er'one was a soldier in the last da's of the war. 0 uess so. #here are others) she said 9uietl') starin intentl' at the clum&s of brush that &ushed throu h the snow. WhereB #he' scattered when 0 shot. >ut the'6re not too far awa'. Cou can be sure of that. 3roteus: 0 disco/ered somethin unsettlin about 'our 3roteus) she interru&ted) lookin behind at the ra/8&lated wea&ons s'stem which floated abo/e the earth in absolute silence. WhatB $e6s your &rotection robot) not mine. #he wol/es ke&t comin closer. $e ke&t scannin them) /er' attenti/el') but 0 realized that he was not oin to shoot an' of them unless the' went for you. 0f the' attacked me) it was &erfectl' all ri ht. $e nodded) a 9ui/er of horror runnin throu h him as he contem&lated the serious o/ersi ht in their &re&arations he had made. $e had been thinkin of 3roteus as their uardian) not as his own &ri/ate soldier) for he had been e;tendin the new conce&t of us e/er'where the old conce&t of me had &re/ailed. >ut 3roteus would be obli/ious of emotional de/elo&ments such as that and would stand blithel' b' and watch her &erish if her own life was not im&eriled b' the same enem' and at the &recise same instant as Da/is6s own. #he cataracted e'es of the s&herical defender stared out into the winter wasteland2 white /iewin white. 5rom now on) he said) well tie the &lastic down so that there6s onl' a sin le entrance instead of two. 0f 0 hadn6t been so tired this mornin ) 0 would ha/e done that. #hen 06ll slee& near the o&en side) with 3roteus near the entrance. $e &ushed u& the slee/e of his coat and the slee/es of the two sweaters which he wore beneath it. We6/e been aslee& for about fi/e hours. 0t6s ettin on toward the end of the mornin . 0f we6re oin to make use of the da'li ht to walk) we6d better et started. #he' drank more water and ate some chocolate) then carefull' folded the blanket to unali n its heat emanators so that the' could cool) &acked thin s awa') took down the &lastic sheet that formed their shelter and stowed that. 0n fifteen minutes) the' were read' to mo/e out) with =eah carr'in the suitcase and Da/is totin both rucksacks. #he' set out down the mountainside with a reat deal more ease than the' had mana ed in their slee&iness and e;haustion the first time) fi/e or si; hours a o. #he terrible winds had died) thou h there were now and then usts that startled them and unbalanced them) to&&lin them into snowbanks. #he snow was still fallin ) rather hea/il' but in less than a blizzard &ace. #he' could see some distance ahead) and the wa' looked uniforml' eas' down this ra/ine and u& the other side) at least. #here were drifts of snow as hi h as their waists in some s&ots) thou h these could most alwa's be circum/ented if the' took time and &atience to find their wa'. %/er'where) the white stuff was u& to mid8calf on Da/is and u& to the irl6s knees) which slowed and tired them and made them wonder whether the' would be able to make the sort of time necessar' to sta' well ahead of the Alliance forces that must:at dawn: ha/e struck out on their trail. When the' reached the bottom of the de&ression and started u& the o&&osite slo&e) the' found that oin down throu h the wa/es of the drifts had been far easier than &ushin u&wards throu h them. #he' were re9uired) now) to fi ht the an le of the earth) the treacherous and unseen footin beneath winter6s blanket) and the stiff resistance of more than a foot of fine) ti htl' &acked snow. 1ear the to&) the' were &resented with 'et another obstacle2 an o/erhan in drift that crowned the last twent' feet of their &ath and made reachin the to& of the second mountain difficult if not

im&ossible. At Da/is6s su estion) the' worked to the ri ht) mo/in horizontall' now) searchin for a break in the o/erhan throu h which the' mi ht stru le to achie/e the blessed le/elness of the summit. >ut the' found) three hundred 'ards alon ) that the ra/ine dro&&ed into a sheer cliff where there was no toehold and that the o/erhan in drift continued be'ond e/en this. #he' were forced to backtrack) followin their own foot&rints) until the' came to their startin &oint. #he' worked left) then) and found much the same situation there as well. #here was no break at all in the dee& and unscalable snow wall that blocked their &ro ress. What nowB =eah asked) settin the suitcase down and wi&in &ers&iration off her forehead. She had to resist an ur e to &ull off the hea/' coat for a feelin of coolness a ainst her skin. #hat bod' heat that now bothered her was e;actl' what she needed to maintain her life) she knew) and the blast of fri id air that would hit her when she stri&&ed mi ht /er' well i/e her the &neumonia that both of them feared. #wo thin s) he said. 5ull of ideas aren6t we. Don6t con ratulate me until 'ou hear how un&leasant both of the &ossibilities are. #he' couldn6t be an' more un&leasant than waitin here until we either freeze or et cau ht. Well) he said) wishin he could dro& the rucksacks but knowin if he did he would ne/er &ut them on a ain) we can either turn back) climb the other side of the ra/ine) cross to another wa' down the first mountain) and make a second attem&t at ettin off it) then work our wa' back in the direction we want to o. #he flaw is that we ma' run into the same thin :or somethin worse no matter where we o. And it6s still snowin :which means e/er' hour we dela' ettin on our wa') there6s another inch of snow we ha/e to &ush throu h. Sounds bad. 0 don6t like it either. #he second wa') then. $e frowned. We break a wa' throu h the drift han in o/er us) o. ri ht throu h and on our wa'. 0t looks se/en or ei ht feet dee&) an'wa'. We don6t ha/e a sho/el) and e/en if we did we couldn6t use it &ro&erl' from a slo&e like this. We do ha/e 3roteus) he said. She rinned. "f courseA #he wea&onsA Don6t et too e;cited) lo/e. #here6s a hazard. 3roteus will refuse to et more than a few feet from me) which means we6ll ha/e to be ri ht where he6s workin . And since his ran e of fire isn6t reat enou h to work from the bottom of the ra/ine or the other side) we6ll ha/e to stand about half8 wa' u& the slo&e while he blasts awa'. 0f there6s a slide) we6re oin to be ri ht in the &ath of it. #he' both looked at the shelf of white abo/e them. What if he uses the /ibra8beam instead of the &roDectile wea&onB she asked. 0 can6t direct that one. 0t6s an automatic s'stem at his discretion) Dust like the &lasti8&lasma tentacles. >ut the &roDectile business res&onds to /ocal commands. 0t6s all we ha/e. Slide or not) she said) we mi ht as well tr' it. Eun left) he ordered the robot. 0t e;truded the barrel from the smooth sheen of its hull. Eun u&) he directed. 0t com&lied. #raction left. 5raction left a ain. Stead'. $e looked once more at the shelf of snow that was sus&ended o/erhead. Somewhere behind) a wolf howled. 5ire oneA he ordered.

#he shell e;&loded in the middle of the drift) blasted snow in all directions) sent a fine white mist rollin down the ra/ine and across them. When the air cleared) a&&ro;imatel' a third of the wa' had been torn o&en. Eun u&) fraction) he directed. 4& fraction a ain. 5ire oneA #he shell e;&loded) and there was a screechin ) whinin rumble from abo/e. Cracks a&&eared in the crusted drift. 0t Derked) seemed to descend) in mass) an inch or so. #hen e/er'thin let loose with an horrendous roar and the entire snow shelf swe&t at them with the s&eed of a locomoti/e. Da/is rabbed =eah) tried to lea& with her u& the slo&e toward the a/alanche) with the intention of reachin the cleared section where there was little snow left to fall. >ut before he could et there) the wa/e of cold snow and ice swe&t o/er them) &ulled her from his ras& and carried her awa') toward the bottom of the small /alle' . . .

VII
$% ?A1AE%D to ras& the trunk of a thin) sturd') 'il tree :&ast which the rushin snow carried him:wra&&ed his arms around it and locked his hands to ether on the other side. #he tree bent amazin l' beneath the &ressure of the small a/alanche thou h it refused to sna&. 0n a moment) the roar seemed to row distant) as if he were hearin onl' echoes of the e/ent) then abru&tl' ceased alto ether. $e rose) his le s shak' beneath him) and tried to et his breath and to still the flutterin of his heart. #he air was so choked with mist that it was difficult to breathe) and he thou ht it would not be im&robable for a man with an im&aired lun or a cold and its subse9uent stuffed nose to either drown or suffocate in seconds. $e wi&ed the dew' /a&or from his face) s9uinted his e'es and tried to see throu h the water dro&lets that immediatel' beaded his e'elashes. #here was a dense cloud of snow edd'in in the air currents in the /alle' bottom) a cou&le of hundred feet below) and it effecti/el' shielded an'thin down there from his /ision. Wi&in his face once more) he stumbled foward) rabbin trees and shattered sa&lin s for handholds) sli&&in ) crashin into rock formations and 'il trunks with his hi&s) but somehow mana in not to fall. $e was breathin well enou h now that the /a&or had be un to settle) but his heart still thum&ed wildl' in his chest. $e had recalled the dream he had had onl' a cou&le of hours before in which he had been im&risoned in a house of ice and =eah had come to release him b' meltin the walls down:and how she) in turn) had been led awa') a&&ro&riated b' the Alliance soldier without a face . . . 0f she were dead) in this a/alanche) it would be as much the Alliance6s fault as if a blue suited) brass buttoned officer had come and taken her and shot her . . . 1o. 1o) he had to face u& to the fact that some of the blame would lie with him. $e should ha/e tied her to a tree) tied both of them firml') to &rotect a ainst the &ossibilit' of an a/alanche. 1e/er before in his life had there been another human bein for which he had felt res&onsible. 0t had alwa's been him) alone) a ainst the world) and an' cuts or wounds incurred were marks of &ride to satisf' the sadistic trait in him. 1ow the me was us as he had been remindin himself e/er since that da' in the tem&le) in the corridors of Eod6s mind) when the &oint of no return had been reached and &assed at blindin s&eeds. And while one half of us was rather bi and brutish and able to take care of itself) the other half was frail) li ht) and in need of hel& when the forces of the o&&osition were /er' lar e. $e cursed his mother and) to a lesser de ree but still /ehementl') his father. 0f the' had been reasonable) o&en human bein s instead of e o8bloated back8biters) &erha&s he would ha/e learned the conce&t of us when he should ha/e) in his childhood. >ut from the /er' first da's) when he

saw that one or the other onl' took his side in order to oad the one who disa reed with him) he had realized it was Stauffer a ainst them) Stauffer in the sin ular. >ecause of them and the lateness with which he had come to the disco/er' of lo/e and the res&onsibilities it carried with it) he mi ht /er' well ha/e made a mistake in Dud ment that would cost him the other half of us. And so soon) before he had e/en had time to e;&lore all the &ossibilities of the am&lified self that now included this win ed Demosian irl . . . =eahA he shouted as he reached the ed e of the wall of snow. Silence. %;ce&t for the faint si h of the wind. =eahA $ere) she called half8heartil') thirt' feet to the ri ht and fort' feet behind. She had been brou ht u& a ainst the thick base of an enormous) black8barked tree and had not suffered the ride clear to the bottom. She was stru lin to et out of the im&risonin snow) but with little luck. $e started after her at a run) fell) cracked his head on a bared section of ston' round) ot u& a little dizz'. >' the time he reached her she was half to her feet) and he had her clear of the mounds in seconds. $e drew her to him) nearl' crushed her) des&ite the &addin of her sur/i/al coat. $e wanted to sa' /er' man' thin s) but there were not reall' words to frame them. #he' were emotions) formless thou hts of ha&&iness. 0nstead) he kissed her and stood back to look her o/er. 0n one &ieceB 1o broken bones. #hou h 0 uess 06ll ache &rett' terribl' b' tomorrow. An ache can be borne. 0 don6t know 9uite how we6d handle a broken le or somethin like that. #he s&eedheal doesn6t ha/e the facilities. She turned and looked u& at the to& of the rid e. Well) we6/e broken throu h ri ht enou h. And if an'one is on the trail) he said) that should brin them runnin . Come on) let6s et a mo/e on. #he suitcase) she &rotested. 0t has the blanket and the &lastic in it. $e looked at the tons of snow at the bottom of the ra/ine. We6d ne/er find it) e/en if we had da's to look. We6ll Dust ha/e to make do with what we ha/e. 1ot down there) she &rotested. 0 held onto it until after 0 was sto&&ed b' the tree. 0t6s in this mound) ri ht here somewhere. $e looked u& to the &oint where the' had stood) where the slide had struck) them. Cou held on to that hea/' case all the wa' downB 0 knew) if we lost it) we6d not ha/e an' heat when we sle&t and that would mean the end of it. Ri htB She looked so serious and 'et so elfin at the same time that he burst into lau hter. What6s so funn'B she asked. Cou. 0 had m' rucksacks stra&&ed on) and the' were /er' nearl' ri&&ed off me. Cet 'ou had &resence of mind enou h to clutch that damned suitcase and make it sta' with 'ou. =ad') remind me ne/er to challen e 'ou to a fist fi ht. #he suitcase was near the surface) and the' unco/ered it in a few minutes. 0t had been dented when it struck the tree) but was otherwise undama ed. When Da/is started u& the hill with it) she insisted he let her take it. $e tried to ar ue) realized that would lead him nowhere) and finall' let her ha/e it. 1ow) dammit) let6s et oin ) he said) ras&in her elbow and hel&in her u& the side of the ra/ine toward the to& which was no lon er drifted shut. 3roteus came behind. $is &lasti8&lasma was ur lin 9uite a bit) and his cataracted si ht sensors swi/eled and twisted) as if somethin like the a/alanche mi ht strike a ain. >ut somethin worse ha&&ened. What are the'B =eah asked as the' &ulled themsel/es onto le/el round and be an walkin across the short table of the mountainto&.

3arallelin them to their ri ht were three blue s&heres) each as lar e as a one8man &lane) &ainted with flat li ht8absorbin &aint that did not leam or reflect the sli htest minim of dim sunli ht. %/en as he watched) the' arced) chan ed course) an led in toward he and =eah. #here were no men inside them) he knew) but that did not make the situation the least bit better for them. Sherlock robots) he e;&lained) watchin the ad/ancin balls of blue with fascination. #he' must ha/e brou ht them in and set them loose before dawn. 0 wouldn6t ha/e thou ht6 a backwoods world like this would ha/e an'. #he' most likel' released them at three different locations. #he'6/e been closin in on us all ni ht) comin toward one another as their data was correlated) shared) and factored. #he'6/e ot the most so&histicated trackin ear the Alliance &ossessses) all microminiaturized and stuffed in that shell. Cou can6t esca&e one of them. $ow do the' killB she asked loomil') her lar e) o/al e'es fi;ed to the middle of the trio of lobes. #he' don6t. >ut don6t look relie/ed about that. #he'6re Dust as deadl' as if the' were killers. >ut with heat sensors) sound sensors) /isual a&&aratus) infrared scanners) ence&halo ra&hic trackers) and a com&lete librar' of card indices on e/er' &ublic act 'ou and 0 ha/e en a ed in) the' ha/e no room for wea&ons. >ut the'6/e certainl' alread' radioed our &osition back to the Alliance soldiers. Cou can e;&ect a s9uadron of &olice to be dro&&ed in here within minutes: if the weather isn6t too bad to &ermit that. #he Sherlocks slowed. #he snow continued to fall. What do we doB =eah asked. Lust wait to be &icked u&B

VIII
standin there with the wind whi&&in his coat ti htl' a ainst his le s:with the wei ht of their su&&lies on his shoulders) with his ner/es still un9uieted from the near disaster of the snowslide:like doin nothin heroic) like waitin for them and oin with them as meekl' as the' could &ossibl' desire) lettin them do to him whate/er the' wished. >ut he reminded himself that such thinkin was selfish and that us should not be i nored in a rush to consider 6the bone8achin e;haustion and the desire for rest and &eace that &la ued me. With so man' miles left to o before the' would reach #ooth) their chances for sur/i/al were slim. $ow much easier and less &ainful it would be to die under the uns of the Alliance soldiers than under the sa&&in wind and cold of Demos6s winter. 0ntellectuall') he was aware that the death wish that now flitted about the back of his mind was a holdo/er from earlier da's) from those dark hours in his childhood when he found rebuff from both &arents and turned to his books for solace i/en second8hand where none of first8hand nature was obtainable. $e read books of stories about the su&ernatural) of demons and de/ils) an els and s&irits. 0n those da's) it seemed as if it would be so much more bearable to be dead) to inhabit the re ions of the netherworld creatures where odd and ma ical thin s trans&ired and where there were no reat emotional tan les that made 'ou sick dee& in 'our stomach) no fi hts and scoldin s that made 'ou shake like an old man with the a ue. >ut he was no lon er a child. And there was solace to be had in this world) in the land of the li/in . 0f onl' he could kee& both of them ali/e lon enou h to enDo' it and stren then the bond of affection that Doined them) he mi ht e/entuall' learn to stand u& to ad/erse conditions without hesitation) without first fallin back on the deathwish and the eas' wa' out of a bad &osition. Eun forwardA he directed 3roteus. 5ire oneA
$% D0D 5%%=

#he &roDectile struck the center Sherlock) tearin the delicate and com&le; machine into thousands of whirlin ) twisted &ieces of Dunk. 1ow he had added 'et another crime to his strin of &unishable acts on his record2 willfull' destro'in a maDor &iece of Alliance &ro&ert'. $e wondered how man' 'ears that carried with it) and he felt an elation rise in him the likes of which he had not felt since he was a bo' and had secretl' /iolated one of the man' rules his mother or father laid down for him. #he other two detection robots cur/ed awa' to a/oid the same fate) but he shouted for 3roteus to track the one on the ri ht and fire when on tar et. $e was rewarded with a flash of reen8blue li ht as the casin of the second Sherlock s&lit and &oured forth a lon stream of mechanical uts. $e turned to look for the third of the de/ices) but he could not locate it. DamnA he sna&&ed. 0t disa&&eared between the trunks of those trees) strai ht ahead) she said. =et6s o. 0t6ll ha/e to follow us. ?a'be) if we make it mo/e) well et a look at it. #he' struck out for the trees) mo/in as swiftl' as the terrain and the weather &ermitted. 3roteus floated ahead of them) watchful of the dee& shadows throu h which the' must &ass. 1ow that the Sherlocks had been identified b' Da/is as enemies) the &rotection robot would be constantl' alert until the third de/ice had been demolished. 0t did not withdraw its &roDectile wea&ons barrel throu h its flawless shell but maintained it in firin &osition as it scanned the woods with all of its senses. 0t was more likel' to ha/e luck findin the Sherlock than it would ha/e had findin a man under the same conditions) for the Alliance detection s'stem would be radiatin leaked &ower &lus the traceable sensor emanations of its multi&le trackin facilities. >' the /irtue of the /er' same instruments it used to kee& touch of them) 3roteus could kee& its &osition known. #he' entered the co&se of trees and wea/ed between the smooth boles) followin the &ath of some mountain deer herd which had &assed this wa' and &ro/ided an easier thorou hfare than the' had been used to in the last se/eral hours. 0t onl' takes one of them) doesn6t itB =eah asked) marchin alon behind him) bent a little to accommodate the wei ht of the suitcase. WhatB he asked) not lookin back. #here wasn6t an' time to look back now. "ne Sherlock. #o let them know where we are. #hat6s ri ht. #hen) no matter how fast we walk) no matter how far we o before the' can et &olice on the mountain) the'6ll still ha/e us &in&ointedB 3roteus will find it and destro' it) e/entuall'. >ut until he does) shouldn6t we take one of these other trails that cross this one e/er' once and a whileB 0f we mo/ed in the wron direction) and we make a few thousand feet before 3roteus can destro' the Sherlock) then the' will be left with the wron fi; on us as their last bit of data. As soon as the Sherlock is finished) we backtrack) &ick u& this &ath a ain) and o the wa' we reall' want to o. $e sto&&ed so suddenl' that she almost walked into the back of him) and when he turned around) her face was nearl' u& a ainst his chest. $e kissed her nose) said) $ow come 'ou6re smarter than meB 06m not. Cou6/e &ro/en it a cou&le of times now. 0t6s Dust that 'ou6/e ne/er been in a war. Cou don6t understand about thin s like this as well as 0 do. Cou6ll learn. She said it with such sincerit' that he was forced to lau h a ain) thou h the situation certainl' did not merit mirth. #here6s a cross trail Dust ahead) he said. =eft or ri htB Doesn6t matter. ?a'be ri ht) since we6ll be bearin Dust sli htl' to the left when we start down the other side of this mountain.

=et6s o) he said) leadin the wa') takin the ri ht turn and strikin off on the false trail. $e Dust ho&ed 3roteus would locate the Sherlock and destro' it in time to let them et back to the ri ht trail and make some distance on it before the blue uniformed bo's arri/ed. 3roteus6s &lasti8&lasma ur led. 0t seemed an interminable time that the' walked) thou h he knew it could not ha/e been more than three or four minutes. >ut each ste& awa' from the trail the' intended to re ain seemed like a ste& into a swam& from which there was no e ress:a swam& lined) beneath the brackish water) with 9uicksand. $e e/en fantasized) for a moment) that the Sherlock mi ht be 9uite aware of their &lan and onl' leadin them on lon enou h for the soldiers to arri/e. >ut that was ho wash) for the Sherlock could not think) not e/en as much as 3roteus. 0t was a densel' &acked shell of seekin e9ui&ment) nothin more. 0t was a ame machine) a /er' cle/er one at that) but not a man. Still) it would not show itself. At least) not /isuall'. $e wished there were some wa' he could know if 3roteus had it s&otted. $e remembered ha/in often &ondered the sim&licit' of bein a machine) of seein the world in black and white) in 9uantities of ood and bad without shades of ra' in the middle. 1ow he realized a few other /alues in a machine6s e;istence. #here was no fear) no worr'. 1o an;iet': and therefore no ur enc'. $e wished there were some wa' to make 3roteus aware of the /alue of these tickin seconds that sli&&ed b' them so terribl' fast. #he &roDectile wea&on made a whoofin noise as 3roteus blasted at somethin almost directl' ahead) throu h the trees. #here was an e;&losion) li ht and smoke) then silence. $e ot itA =eah cried. =et6s see before we celebrate) he said) rushin forward to the s&ot where the &roDectile had struck. #here) steamin in the snow) meltin hollows in it) were dozens of chunks of the blue8 husked Sherlock. =eah dro&&ed the suitcase and sla&&ed her hands a ainst her bulkil' clothed hi&s) lau hin much as he had seen the other Demosian irls lau hin when) the' had been &la'in ames with the m'thical demons in the forest back at the Sanctuar'. $e was intri ued b' the wa' these &eo&le could mi; Do' and humor with the direst of e/ents) the manner in which the' ne/er lost track of the thin s that should be a&&reciated in life no matter how man' tons of dross and u liness those nu ets were buried under. 5ast now) he ur ed) turnin and &ushin &ast her to lead the wa' back to the other trail. #he'6ll be here in moments if the'6/e taken a chance of sendin a co&ter u& in this storm. #he' ained the first herd &ath in two minutes) mo/in at a trot. When the' ot there) he insisted takin the suitcase from her was the wisest course) since:for a short &eriod an'wa':he could run faster with it than she could and) without it) she would be able to kee& u&. She did not ar ue this time) &erfectl' aware of the ur enc' in/ol/ed and the truth of it. She was) Dust as she said) a ood soldier. $ad it been better for her to stra le with the lu a e) she would ha/e refused7 but seein the wisdom of his su estion) she com&lied. #ime &assed much too 9uickl' for comfort. #here was no sound but the wind) the rattlin of the branches o/erhead) and the s9ueak of their feet in the snow. $e estimated their remainin time before the arri/al of the troo&s at a little more than fi/e minutes. $e tried countin seconds as the' ran) but he lost track so often that he a/e it u& and concentrated on mo/in Dust a few feet &er minute faster than the' alread' were. 5or a time) it seemed as if the' were the onl' li/in bein s in all the world) two fi ures in a landsca&e without &ur&ose and without meanin . All other thin s were inanimate2 cold) snow) sk') earth) stark trees) stran el' stilled wind . . . 0t was a tomb &lanet) a dead world) and the' were rodents scurr'in throu h its corridors and chambers in search of some e;it that would lead them into life.

#he thin which made them run so fast was the knowled e that the' mi ht soon cease to be rodents and become two more cor&ses to inhabit the cells of the tomb. #hen) with the swiftness of a slee&walker ste&&in on a nail) the world came awake with a thunderin e;&losion of sound. #he sk' was filled with the chatter of the blades of an aircraft whose fli ht &attern was too hi h for ra/ &lates to be of an' use:a staccato barra e like machine uns from some ancient &eriod of man6s histor'. #he forest took u& the shar& call and threw the clatter of the bi en ines back at the low clouds. $urr') Da/is said as the' reached the ed e of the mountain flatland and be an to descend another treacherous slo&e toward the lon bowl of the /alle' throu h which the' would be walkin for the ne;t four or fi/e hours) if =eah was not confused about the wa' to the #ooth. =et me ha/e the suitcase) she said. 1e/er mind that. Cou can6t brace 'ourself with two rucksacks and the suitcase on une/en round. Cou know that as well as 0 do. 1ow 9uit ar uin and hurr' itA $e set the case down without sto&&in ) merel' slowin his &ace for a moment) heard her ra&&le with it) heft it and brin it after him. $e worked from tree to tree down the sheet8white land beneath the bare trees) his e'es on the skies that could be seen throu h the Crosshatch of limbs more often than the' were focused on the terrain ahead. She followed. When the' were halfwa' down) the &olice co&ter rushed b' o/erhead) obli/ious of them as it s&ed toward the s&ot the Sherlock had last &in&ointed them. 4nder its bell' was the A of the Alliance) rin ed with the circle of reen worlds that was the o/ernment s'mbol. #hen it was one) and its hoarse /oice diminished as it &ut distance between itself and the /er' fu iti/es it was seekin . $ow lon until the' knowB she asked when the' reached the floor of the /alle'. 1ot lon . 0 thou ht so. Well) he said) we6re on the le/el for a ood while. We can make time eas' enou h. >ut if the' disco/er we6/e struck for the /alle' and decide we6re still in it) it6ll be no trouble for them to &en us in and use a search &art' to net us from all sides. $e leaned a ainst a Duttin tower of ranite which was encased in ice) took some snow in his mouth and allowed it to melt before swallowin . #hat6s true enou h. >ut this is the onl' route) isn6t itB #he onl' one we could &ossibl' stand u& to. We could i/e u& the fortress idea. And o whereB $e shru ed. Cou take the suitcase a while) she said. We6re on the le/el a ain) and it won6t be too hard for 'ou. ?' arms ache. $e took the lu a e without comment) turned back to the trail and started forward at a /er' brisk walk. Se/eral hours awa') at the other end of the lowland) he could see the &ass throu h which the' must o to e/entuall' reach #ooth and the fortress:if there was a fortress. 0f the Alliance had been too sure of itself to send more Sherlocks alon with those &olice) then he and =eah mi ht make that &ass and) &erha&s) e/en #ooth ?ountain. 0f the o/ernment was) on the other hand) hed in all corners of their bet) this was the &lace in which both of them would die. . . . $e found a stream) a se/en8foot8wide s&an of water which was mostl' frozen o/er b' a thin crust of ice. 0t was almost certain that the stream ran down the center of the /alle') from one end to another) followin a fairl' strai ht line) and it would therefore &ro/ide the shortest route to the &ass. $e &aralleled it reli iousl') walkin on its banks most of the time) e;ce&t for one stretch where it

cut dee&er into the land and formed small cliffs to either side where thick) thorn' brambles rew: their bite unsoothed b' the white arb of winter the' wore. #he' were more than halfwa' across the de&ression) within an hour or so of the &ass) when =eah rabbed his arm and 'anked on it for him to sto&. When he turned) she held a fin er to her li&s and said2 =isten. At first) all he could hear was the rush of air in and out of his own lun s and the roar of blood throu h his tem&les. #hen the thin she wanted him to hear im&ressed itself abo/e these sounds2 a chatterin :like co&ter blades. $e tilted his head) searched the air for another &iece of the noise) cau ht it a ain) closer this time. 0t was comin fast . . . PuickA he as&ed) rabbin her and &ullin her backwards) off the bare earth alon the banks of the stream) into the trees and brush. #he suitcaseA she said. $e had set it down when she sto&&ed him and had for otten to brin it into concealment with them. 0t stood on the bank) lookin a dozen times lar er than it reall' was) a monument to his stu&idit'. $e looked an;iousl' at the ra' sk') the fallin snow) back the wa' the' had come. #here was no si n of the co&ter) thou h the noise of its en ines and the roar of its blades rew closer and closer. $e stood) took a ste& toward the suitcase) and cau ht si ht of the aircraft comin across the to&s of the trees fi/e hundred 'ards awa'A $e fell) crashin into the brush) &ressin des&eratel' down into the shadows there. $e felt thorns &rick throu h his lo/es) ou e his cheeks. #here was a warm flush on his face) and he knew that he was bleedin a little. #hat didn6t bother him as it once would ha/e. $e was no lon er think in about the handsome ima e he must &resent to fans. $e was thinkin ) instead) about winnin this hard8&la'ed ame to sal/a e his life. And hers. $is sur/i/al instinct had alwa's worked well on an intellectual le/el) for he had been able to sa/e his sanit' from his &arents e/en as a child. >ut now) in this last da') that instinct was functionin on a &h'sical &lane as well7 and he was &leased enou h of that de/elo&ment to feel a sur e of &ride and deli ht as the Alliance co&ter swe&t o/erhead without slowin ) without s&ottin the suitcase. Are 'ou all ri htB =eah asked. $e ot to his knees) &ulled a thorn from the ed e of his li&) wi&ed his face) looked at his blood8 smeared hand. 0t looks worse than it is. 0 was Dust luck' not to collect one in the e'e. What are the' doin B $e looked to the &ass) saw the Alliance co&ter takin u& &osition at the wa' between the mountains. Directl' beneath the &lace where it ho/ered) the ribbon of this stream tumbled down o/er ra' rocks. #he' know we6re in the /alle') he said. #he'6re waitin for us to come out. #hen the' must ha/e &olice comin in at the other end. $e looked back the wa' the' had come) listened. $e thou ht he detected the sound of a second co&ter) somewhere back alon the stream. =et6s o. WhereB #hrou h the &ass. ?a'be we can find some wa' to sneak &ast the co&ter. #he'6ll ha/e men on the round at that end) won6t the'B ?a'be. >ut we can6t Dust sit here and wait. And it6s easier to o ahead than to double back and tr' to sli& throu h the search line. #he'6re bound to ha/e hand trackin units) heat sensors. ?a'be not an'thin nearl' as so&histicated as Sherlocks) but somethin ood enou h to kee& us from &assin them unnoticed. 06ll take the suitcase a while) she said) &ushin &ast him) throu h the brush) and rabbin the su&&lies.

?a'be we should lea/e it here. And let them find it so the' know we6re runnin scared. #he' must know that alread'. And so the'6re certain we ha/en6t left the /alle' 'etB And the' must know that too. 06ll carr' it an'wa') she said. >reak a trail. $e mo/ed off) sta'in beneath the trees now) thou h maintainin their &ro;imit' to the stream so that there was no dan er of their ettin lost. $e ke&t them out of si ht of the co&ter dancin on the air at the end of the /alle') thou h the' cau ht lim&ses of it now and then when the' were forced to dash across an o&en stretch of land where the' felt &ainfull' un&rotected in the white s&otlessness of the /ir in snow. #he li ht was slowl' be innin to lea/e the sk' when the' were near to the end of the /alle'. 5or the last half hour) the land had slo&ed u&ward) rowin stee&er and stee&er) and their s&irits had lifted with it. #here had been no encounter with the searchers and) e;ce&t for the area of the stream itself) the &ass was thickl' treed) &ro/idin hea/' co/er for them to sli& throu h the net of their ca&tors) A thousand feet from the brink of the /alle' and a re&rie/e from the from the &ressure the Alliance had &ut on them) Da/is called a halt so that the' mi ht ather ener ies for the last le of the assault and so that he could reconnoiter to see if thin s were oin to be as sim&le as the' seemed. #he' were not. $e had left =eah and one onl' a third of the wa' u& the slo&e) sli&&in 9uietl' from tree to tree) when he saw the sentries stationed onl' a dozen feet down from the to& of the rid e. #he' were stoo&ed so that the' could not be silhouetted a ainst the sk') and each of them cradled a rifle across his knees. #he' &eered intentl' downward) and he realized that) if the /alle' had not been sli htl' darker than the to& of the rid e in these last minutes of da'li ht) the' would be able to see him as he now saw them. #he' were no more than fi/e feet a&art. 0f that s&acin had been maintained across the entire width of the &ass) there must be a hundred and fift' men in the line. Which meant there had been other helico&ters in/ol/ed in the o&eration and that the men had been brou ht u& from the other side of the &ass. 0t seemed as if the entire mountain ran e had been blanketed b' the Alliance. 0t &leased him to know that the' considered the two of them im&ortant ame. >ut he su&&osed an' totalitarian o/ernment must o to reat e;tremes to &unish each and e/er' /iolator of its dictums) lest one man who esca&es their wrath becomes a s'mbol of rebellion for the masses. Carefull') so as to make not the sli htest sound or &resent e/en the sli htest mo/ement to the sentries) he worked his wa' back throu h the brush and the snow to =eah. $e noticed) as he mo/ed) that the wind had &icked u&) e/en thou h the snow had sto&&ed) and that the disturbances he caused in the landsca&e were fairl' swiftl' eradicated b' the brisk air. WellB she said when he returned. We can6t et throu h. 0 ha/e bad news too) she said. WhatB See that clearin half a mile down in the /alle'B $e nodded. A moment a o) a line of searchers mo/ed throu h it) each onl' a few feet awa' from the other. #he' must ha/e been in the woods to either side of the clearin with the same distance between them. %/er' other man carried a short8ran e heat sensor and was fannin it in front of him. $e looked at the now em&t' clearin in the fadin li ht below. #he'6ll be here in half an hour. =ess. #he' were walkin rather fast.

IX
DA@0S 5010S$%D di in the snu ca/e into the drift and said) $and me the blanket. When she &assed the co/erlet to him) he &ushed it to the back of the snow8walled chamber without unfoldin it) e;amined his handiwork once a ain) then turned around) smilin . 0t6s all done and looks like it won6t ca/e in on us. We ou ht to ha/e e/en a few minutes to s&are to i/e the wind a chance to erase our tracks. 3roteus) she reminded him. $e turned to the ho/erin &rotection robot) reluctant to make this final mo/e. $e had come to de&end on the &resence of a mechanical bod' uard) and there was somethin almost sacrile ious: somethin taboo:about shuttin it down without ha/in a tem&orar' re&lacement. >ut when he looked down the slo&e and saw the lam&s of the soldiers who were beatin the brush for them) lam&s li hted onl' moments earlier) not e/en fi/e minutes awa' now) he reached out) thumbed the stud that o&ened 3roteus6s slidin access &anel) and 9uickl' c'cled down the machine6s s'stems with one to le control until it was totall' inacti/e e;ce&t for its ra/ &lates) which dam&ed slowl' to a com&lete shutoff) lettin the s&here settle softl' to the round without sustainin dama e. 1one of the sensors nodes leamed from without or within. 5or the first time in nearl' three 'ears) 3roteus was aslee&. Da/is hefted the s&here) &ushed it throu h the narrow tunnel that led into the snow ca/e) sho/ed it to the far end of the small chamber. =eah went throu h ne;t) disa&&earin from si ht) and he brou ht u& the tail end after takin a final look at the a&&roachin ) irresistible line of li hts that bisected the /alle' floor. 0nside) he re9uired two minutes of hast' work to block off the entrance with snow which had been &iled in the entrance tunnel for that &ur&ose. $e knew the seal must be clumsil' ob/ious from outside) a blotch on the smooth swee& of the remainder of the drift) but he could do nothin more but trust to the now rather stiff and &ersistent winds and the whi&&in clouds of fine) dr' snow to conceal his labors as well as the maDorit' of their foot&rints. 0nside the i loolike dwellin ) the air was relati/el' warm) for there was no wind at all) and what little bod' heat did esca&e them was contained in the small area that had been car/ed out of the white stuff. Snow &ro/ed such a ood insulator) a ainst e/en the sli htest draft) that he wondered wh' he had not thou ht of this the first ni ht out rather than erectin the flims' and dan erous lean8 to. $e su&&osed it was because the sur/i/al instinct had not 'et bloomed from the bud he had then &ossessed. #he' sat) 9uietl') shoulder to shoulder with 3roteus at their feet) still and mute. #he' could hear a faint wind. As 'et) nothin more. Da/is felt as if the' were mice) huddled there in the darkness) an;iousl' waitin for the cats to &ass b' and lea/e them so the' mi ht resume life as normal mice should li/e it. And) like the mouse in his wall nest) he felt as much relie/ed as afraid. #here was at least two) and &ossibl' three feet of snow on e/er' side of them e;ce&t one. Snow would either hold their bod' heat within the little room he had e;ca/ated or filter the warm air into coolness before it reached the world outside. "n the one side where there was no snow) the back of the chamber) there was a rock wall) which should certainl' &re/ent the emanations of bodil' heat from reachin the delicate sensors of the thermal detectors carried b' the Alliance troo&s. 0f thin s worked as the' &lanned) as the' thou ht the' should) the searchers would stom& ri ht b' them and collide with the sentries at the to& of the rid e. #he' would then conclude that their 9uarr' had somehow otten throu h the &ass:either before the line of sentries had been &osted or in the first moments of the watch when the soldiers6 attentions were not as shar& as the' should ha/e been. %;cuses would be made) heads would roll)

but at least he and =eah would et b' unscathed. $e ho&ed. $a/e the' one b' and: she be an. $e shushed her. "utside) the faint sound of footste&s) breathin ) and a few muttered commands &assed as if down a line in chain communication) echoed in the ni ht and found their wa' throu h the shell of the snow ca/e. Da/is sat /er' still) as if the sli htest mo/ement mi ht cause the drift in which the' hid to colla&se and blow awa' on the wind) lea/in them e;&osed and defenseless. #he /oices faded7 the footste&s faded7 the breathin sounds were one . . . #he wind re&laced all of them. 0 think it worked) she whis&ered. =et6s wait) he said. #he time went b' so slowl' that he felt he was oin to ha/e to scream to et it mo/in a ain. $e remembered how) when he was hollowin out the drift to make a &lace to hide) the minutes went b' so ra&idl'. 0f time were not onl' so subDecti/e) but obDecti/e as well) ma'be a man would not ha/e so much trouble in lifeA #hen the sound of footste&s came a ain. #he' were slower) more &ur&oseful) and accom&anied b' commands shouted b' the officers to search into the trees as well as to all sides. %/er' few ste&s there was a commanded halt when) Da/is ima ined) e/er' rock and snowflake recei/ed an intimate scrutin'. $e wondered whether the wind had done its Dob well enou h to allow the seal to their snow chamber to &ass that close in/esti ation. #hen the footste&s drew e/en with them and another halt8and8e;amine &eriod was called for. =eah took his hand) snu led a ainst him. #ime &assed. $e wondered how 9uickl' he could acti/ate 3roteus and et him workin ) then remembered that 3roteus could not be used a ainst other men) e/en if the' did mean 'ou harm. Ad/anceA a /oice called. 0mmediatel') the line walked se/eral more &aces) &ast the entrance to their hideout before sto&&in for another e;amination of the terrain immediatel' before it. #he' were safe. #he command had ordered a second search of the /alle') had sent tired men back to tackle an e/en more tirin chore than that which the' had Dust finished. And both times) their du out had withstood scrutin' and had not aroused an' sus&icions. $e was about to turn to =eah to ask what the' could do to celebrate the occasion and still remain inside a cram&ed hole inside a hollow snowdrift on to& of a mountain) in subzero weather:but he heard her li ht) flutterin snore and disco/ered she had fallen aslee& e/en as the line had been &assin them. $e shook his head) chuckled) unable to en/ision the sort of steel ner/es that would ha/e allowed slee& at a moment like that) e/en if slee& was so terribl' in need. Eentl') he unfolded the heat radiatin blanket) &ulled it around them) ali ned the heat makers) and settled down for a ni ht6s rest. 0t was /er' likel' that the Alliance would han around throu h the earliest of the da'li ht hours) Dust to check the &lace o/er one more time) in full li ht) before admittin the fu iti/es had sli&&ed throu h their ras&. >ut if the entrance seal had been sufficientl' co/ered now) it would e/en be more obscured in the mornin . >' tomorrow afternoon) the' should be able to break out) rested and fed) and continue the Dourne'. #here was the &ossibilit' that the' could find themsel/es comin u& on the tail end of the Alliance search &art') which would now be ahead of them7 but as lon as the' sta'ed in territor' the troo&s had thorou hl' searched) the' were safe. And then there was the chance . . . . . . slee& found him in the middle of the thou ht.

0t was a dreamless ni ht until) near wakefulness) he be an to ha/e a ni htmare in which he was cau ht b' Alliance troo&s) shackled and led awa' to be turned o/er to the re& who had &romised to destro' him. 0n the &ort cit') he was taken down into dun eons beneath the ra' block buildin of the o/ernment head9uarters and chained to a wall where he was beaten) se/erel') a ain and a ain b' an assortment of uards. #hen the re& had him transferred to a cot where he was ti htl' lashed) and the ancient Chinese water torture was a&&lied. Dro& b' dro&) the li9uid s&lashed on his fore8 head) ran down his face and neck. #he sound of it rew from an almost inaudible tick to a resoundin ) crashin boom that was dri/in him insane. All the while) he mar/eled at the effecti/eness of so ancient and sim&le a torture in a time when Science and man were so de/elo&ed and so&histicated. 0t seemed anachronistic.. >ut it worked. Dro& . . . b' . . . dro& . . . boomin . . . on his . . . head . . . head . . . head . . . $e felt his mind be innin to o) and he screamed:which awakened him. #he scream he had bellowed in the ni htmare issued as a faint croak in his throat in the realit' of the mornin on Demos. >ut a &iece of the ni htmare &ersisted. #he water continued to dro& on his head. 5rom a white ceilin ) a stead') 9uick rh'thmicall' timed series of water dro&lets fell to e;&lode on the brid e of his nose. 5or a moment) he could not ima ine where he was and what the dri&&in water could mean. #hen a section of the snow ceilin ) about as lar e as his hand) fell directl' onto his face) a cold mass of slush that remedied his disorientation and woke him full'. With a sinkin feelin in his stomach) he sat u& as if he had been &ro&elled b' a s&rin mechanism. #he melted s&ot abo/e his head was not the onl' breach of the shelter. #here was a second hole &ast his shoulder where another column of hot air had worked its wa' throu h) and there were four &laces whose thinness was a&&arent from the amount of li ht that &assed throu h and flushed into the ca/elet. 0n a /er' little while) their sanctuar' would cease to e;ist. #he disaster had been una/oidable. #he' would ha/e frozen to death without the heat blanket) e/en with the bod' heat that would ha/e collected in the tin' room. Cet the hea/' amount of heat &roduced b' the de/ice was bound to be more than the snow could filter to coolness without) itself) bein melted. 4na/oidable) 'es. A sur&rise) no. $e should ha/e thou ht of it) should ha/e tried to arran e some method of wakin in the middle of the ni ht to turn it off) to i/e the cr'stalline walls of their du out a chance to recu&erate. $e had been tired and had i/en in to the ur e to consider the /ictor' last ni ht a final /ictor':when he knew &erfectl' well it could onl' be tem&orar'. #he Alliance as ne/er oin to i/e u& that easil'. $e sat there) /er' tense) waitin for the sound of a soldier) waitin for the startled e;clamation of disco/er' and the shout of trium&h. >ut when) after a lon while) he heard nothin ) he &ulled u& the slee/e of his coat and checked the time. 0t was alread' &ast midda'. #he soldiers would ha/e had sufficient time) startin at dawn) to comb the /alle' a ain. #he' were one b' now) surel'. $e tickled =eah6s nose until she finall' lifted an e'elid to stare at him slee&il' with an e;&ression that said she had not decided whether to kiss him or &ul/erize him. #he'6re one) he informed her. She sat u&) 'awnin . 5or now. 06m su&&osed to be the &essimist here. Cou6/e infected me) then) she said) smilin thinl'. #he' had a breakfast of /itamin &aste) chocolate) stew) and water. #hou h that was not the most a reeable combination to &ut into their stomachs and be in the da' on) the' both a reed that e/er' bite of e/er'thin had tasted like somethin the' mi ht ha/e &urchased in a delicac' sho&. After toilet duties had been finished with) and the' had e;ercised their cram&ed and achin muscles thorou hl' enou h to dare to &ut them to the torture of more walkin and climbin ) the' made their wa' u& the last thousand feet of the rid e) to the brink of the /alle' which had been so hea/il'

uarded last ni ht and was now so lonel' and bleak. #he' looked back the wa' the' had come) to the mountain the' had crossed the da' before. #hree helico&ters fluttered around the to&s of the 'il trees on that last mountain) and from the flurr' of hoistin and lowerin ) it a&&eared the search had been shifted to this area and that a ood number of round troo&s were in/ol/ed. Such a fortuitous decision would ne/er ha/e been made b' the Alliance if Da/is had &ra'ed for it) he was certain. >ut without ho&e) their luck had chan ed for the better) and the enem' was off on some wild oose e;tra/a anza behind them. 3erha&s the' would make #ooth after all. #he' turned) went down the other side of the rid e) out of the forest into a clearin three hundred 'ards across which broke between two arms of the hea/' woods. #he sk' was onl' &artiall' clouded) and bits of sun shone down on them) makin their faces warm as the' walked. #he' mo/ed briskl') thou h the' knew the enem' was far behind) for the' had become accustomed to mo/in in shadows and felt oddl' as if the' were on a sta e when out in the o&en. #he' did not ha/e to worr' about lea/in &rints) for the troo&s and helico&ters which must ha/e been here until Dust a short while a o had destro'ed the smooth blanket of windblown snow. $alfwa' across) Da/is saw somethin which did not seem ri ht) thou h he could not &in&oint what it was. $e carefull' e;amined the area of the a&&roachin woods which he had been watchin when the feelin of uneasiness had descended o/er him) and saw it a ain) in a &atch of brush2 the leam of sunli ht on lass or metal . . . @eer left) he said. She asked no 9uestions) but did e;actl' as he instructed. Walk as fast as 'ou can) but don6t break into a run. #he moment their &ace &icked u&) the camoufla e net dro&&ed awa' from the one8man scout co&ter which had been on sentr' dut') and the machine kicked its rotors on) danced off the round) and s&ed toward them) the sound of its blades crackin in shar& echo on the o&en basin between the trees. RunA he shouted) rabbin the suitcase and wrenchin it from her. $e knew the co&ter &ilot had radioed the other Alliance aircraft that he had found the fu iti/es and that the area of search would be hot on their trail in minutes. $e also knew) with a certain dread) that thou h the Alliance mi ht want to take them ali/e) this &ilot &robabl' also had orders to kill if the' seemed about to ain the ne;t stri& of woodland before the other co&ters could arri/e. #he' would not ha/e the sli htest idea how the two of them had hidden in a /alle' searched two or three times with thermal trackin units) and the' would not want to i/e them a second chance to use the same trick. RunA RunA he shouted to her as she la ed behind him b' half a dozen &aces. #he woods looked so far awa'. #he first stutter of unfire burst from the one8man co&ter and tore into the round fifteen feet behind them.

X
5AS#%RA DA@0S shouted. She stumbled and went down. #he co&ter swe&t o/erhead) its landin skis no more than si; feet abo/e them as it &assed. #he deafenin ) chaotic e;&losion of its blades ate into Da/is6s bones and made him feel as if he were in a reat blender) bein s&un around the walls. $e ran back to her) hel&ed her u&) cradled her in his arm and) half dra in ) half carr'in her) he ran for the trees and the safet' the' offered) no matter how short8li/ed that safet' would be when

the round forces and the other three co&ters arri/ed. #he one8man craft arced) doubled back) fluttered in toward them) the sun o&a9uin its lass8 bubble cock&it and i/in it the look of mercur'. #he &ilot banked) brin in the side8mounted machine un into the &ro&er an le) and let off another burst of shells. Da/is was s&un around and sent crashin head o/er heels with =eah in his arm. 5or a short) horrible moment) he was certain he had been hit in the arm) for it was numb. >ut he saw there was no blood . . . And he saw that the suitcase had been hit) takin the full brunt of the bullets. 0t was torn u& the middle) and e/er'thin it had held was shredded and s&illed across the snow2 the &lastic with which the lean8to could be made) the heat blanket which was their onl' &rotection a ainst the stin in ) awful cold of the ni ht . . . $e6s comin backA =eah shouted) stru lin to her feet) tr'in to hel& him u&. $e ained his feet) rabbed her with his numbed arm) and ran) wonderin how the' would sur/i/e another ni ht without the warmth of the blanket) wonderin 0f it mi ht not be better for both of them to Dust sto& and offer themsel/es to the &ilot of the little craft) o&en their arms and et it o/er with in the 9uick bite of the bullets. #he co&ter &assed) s&ra'in the round immediatel' ahead of them with hea/' fire. Da/is stumbled and went down in his ur enc' to kee& from runnin into the death zone. ='in there) tr'in to et u&) he realized that the &ilot could ha/e killed them easil' before this) that he was tr'in to see if he couldn6t contain them) slow them from the woods until the others had arri/ed to take them ali/e. And he was doin /er' well at that. "nl' seconds could remain until round troo&s would be arri/in . $e sto&&ed tr'in to reach his feet) told =eah to be still) and fumbled the &istol out of his holster. $e laid on the round) as if he were too weak to continue) and waited for the co&ter to make another &ass. $e did not know if he could mana e what he was about to do) but he had to tr'. A moment later) the lass8bubble cock&it swe&t at them) tilted so the &ilot could et a ood look. $e was rinnin ) and his fin er was on the tri er for his un. $ad Da/is misDud edB Was the &ilot Dust &la'in with them) tirin them and then killin them like a cat does with a mouse) without an' concern about when the round forces would arri/e in the other co&tersB #here was no doubt at all in his mind that the man in that control seat was a sadist. 1o other sort of man could ha/e that e;&ression with his fin er on the tri er of a deadl' wea&on. $e rolled) brou ht u& the &istol) and fired two rounds into the lass of the machine) directl' at the man in the chair. #he shar& sound of the un sounded unrealistic. #he co&ter &ulled u&) &assed o/er them) stalled) and s&iraled into the earth a hundred 'ards awa'. 0t burst into oran e and blue flames that sto&&ed the ur led scream of the &ilot before he and =eah had reached the trees that had been their oal. #he blanketA she said when the' were in the cool shadows of the trees. 0t was shredded. 4seless. #he radiators wouldn6t work e/en if there was enou h of it to crawl under. We6/e ot to make time. 0n the distance) the sound of a&&roachin aircraft . . . 1owA he hissed. She followed him into the trees) alon another herd &ath. Without the suitcase the' made far better time) for she was easil' able to kee& u& with whate/er &ace he set as lon as the round was flat and relati/el' eas'8 oin . #he' had one &erha&s fi/e hundred 'ards when one of the hu e Alliance co&ters) a troo& carrier) shuddered b') Dust abo/e tree le/el. Da/is looked u&) afraid he mi ht see the hoist lowerin armed men) but the worr' was unfounded. $e bent his head and concentrated on makin time. $e ho&ed the craft was not &lannin on de&ositin a crew somewhere ahead and lettin the fu iti/es collide with them. %/en thou h the machine could not attack other men) Da/is was &leased to see 3roteus floatin

twent' feet ahead) hull leamin ) marked in one s&ot b' the dark crease of a bullet that had been fired from the one8man co&ter back on the o&en field. As lon as 3roteus was nearb') Da/is could remain sane. As children had securit' blankets which were of no use to ward off their enemies but which still a/e them comfort) so he had his &rotection robot which could not do him an' ood in the battle in which he was now en a ed but which still &ro/ided solace because of its &ast associations with trium&h o/er death and dan er. #hen the forest flared crimson . . . #here was a wash of flame) like li9uid) burstin throu h the trees across their &ath) swee&in o/er 3roteus) And there was sound2 a bellowin thunder . . . Concussion2 a fist that thum&ed the round and tossed both of them down:hard. #he Alliance had i/en u& on the brin 8them8back8ali/e a&&roach and was now set to destro' them) whate/er the cost. #he re& whose dut' it was to direct Demos6s forces had cracked) had let his e o sna& and rule su&reme o/er him. Da/is and =eah had made a fool out of the searchers once too often7 now) with the murder of the sin le8man co&ter &ilot on his record) Da/is was a dan erous fu iti/e a ainst whom an' means of ca&ture or destruction was sanctioned b' law. #he chemical flame died as swiftl' as it had eru&ted) thou h some of the 'il trees:tou h and durable:near the center of the blast were still burnin furiousl'. Da/is lea&ed o/er a twisted mass of metal) started to hel& =eah across it) before he realized it was the hulk of 3roteus. #he &rotection robot had been cau ht near the center of the renade eru&tion and had been smashed o&en down the middle. #he uardian was one7 the securit' blanket had been taken from him. 5or a moment) he was &aral'zed with fear) unable to co&e. #hen) slowl') as two other &hos&horescent renades eru&ted around them) barel' missin killin them) he remembered that she was de&endin on him) that he had to mo/e) that he had to o one more la& of this Dourne'. $e had thou ht he could not commit /iolence) and he had committed &lent') startin with that rat he had destro'ed in the as shelter. $e had drou ht he could not do without the adulation of his fans7 he had found he was wron . $e had thou ht he could not sur/i/e a ainst other men more ru ed than he) a ainst an uncom&romisin ?other 1ature :but he had. #hus far) an'wa'. 0n short) he had disco/ered an entirel' new Stauffer Da/is) o&ened u& a/enues within himself that he had not known e;isted. 0t was because of her) the sli ht irl with win s) and he must not let her down) must not /iolate the trust she had i/en him. ?an' of the trees were aflame now. #he snow had melted in ri/ers of whirlin water) and the earth was e/en mudd' in some &laces. #his wa'A he shouted abo/e the cracklin and burnin ) abo/e the sound of co&ter blades which o/erlaid the holocaust. She took his hand) followed him down a narrow corridor of brush and trees which was not 'et burnin . As the' &assed throu h) a renade struck behind) settin that corridor ablaze as well. #he' had made it out of the fier' tra& without an' time to s&are. >ut the Alliance &ilots were a&&arentl' able to see them) for the' shifted the area of attack and be an lobbin chemical renades to the left and the ri ht. Walls of fire burst into cracklin e;istence around them) and the corridor of safet' between was 9uite narrow indeed. 5ar ahead) another aircraft be an seedin the woodland floor with still more e;&losi/es. 0t seemed as if the oka' had been i/en to destro' a few miles of woodland in order to destro' the &re'. Da/is was forced to shield his e'es from the intense heat that made them water and im&aired his /ision. #he world was suddenl' a &lace of illusion and delusion) where firewalls looked onl' inches awa' one instant) then seemed to flicker in the distance the ne;t. #he snow melted) see&ed into the thawin earth and formed mud that sucked at their boots as the' tried des&eratel' to ne otiate their

wa' down the closin corridor of unburned land. =eah was ha/in trouble walkin ) for her slim le s had not been made with the sort of musculature necessar' to combat the luelike earth. $e walked beside her) hel&in her) all but carr'in her. $e wished he could sto& and stri& off his clothes) for he was &ers&irin hea/il' beneath them. $is face) he thou ht) was recei/in a third de ree burn and was &eelin and bubblin . $e saw her face was red8tinted) too) and that ri/ulets of sweat coursed down her small) &i;ieish features. #he roar of the fire had become so reat that the noise of the ho/erin co&ters was no lon er audible. $e was certain) thou h he refused to acce&t it) that the' were about to die . . . #hen) as the' came to the end of the &athwa' and found the' were surrounded b' fire on all sides) he saw the cliff throu h the flames) to their left. >eneath the /eil of terror that had been drawn down o/er all his. thou hts) his mind still functioned) &erha&s more 9uickl' and cle/erl' than e/er) s&urred on:as it was:b' des&eration. #he cliff) somehow) re&resented a momentar' sal/ation. $e could not think wh') e;ce&t that it mi ht offer shelter of a minimal nature where) now) the' had none at all. $e held her to him) tried to see the rocks more clearl') tried to &ick a s&ot where the' should strike for. >ut the shimmerin wa/es of heat and the lickin oran e ton ues made an' detailed e;amination of the wa' ahead im&ossible. =eah clutched at him) whirled) tried to &ush herself awa'. $er Alaskan coat had cau ht fire. Small) bluish flames danced alon the bottom of it. $e fou ht her attem&t to sta' awa' from him) carried her to the round) and fell on to& of her) usin his own bod' and clothin to smother the fled lin blaze. $e tried to shout) in her ear) what he wanted to do) but the manic scream of the blaze was too reat to o/ercome) and she could not make out what he said) e/en when his li&s were &ressed to her ear. $e ot to his feet) drew her u&) and ras&ed her) lifted her from the round) a ainst his hi&) when he was certain she understood that she was not to fi ht him) no matter what he did. #hen) forcin himself to use e/er' ounce of ener ' within him) he burst forward into the fire and throu h the si;8foot line of it) to the cliffside he had cau ht a lim&se of earlier. As the' came out of the fire) he fell) rollin under the o/erhan of the rock where there was still some snow and a reat deal of water &uddled in shallow &ools) dousin their clothes which had lea&ed into flame. #he recess under the o/erhan was about se/en feet dee&) and a small ca/elet) tucked to one side) was wide enou h to accommodate both of them and &ut another ei ht feet between them and the fire. #here was still a reat deal of heat) but not more than the' could bear. #o ether) the' checked themsel/es for wounds. =eah was onl' sunburned on the face and had a twisted ankle. $e also had suffered facial burns of moderate se/erit' but had &icked u& another sou/enir of the encounter which could mean more trouble to their &ro ress and esca&e than an' burn e/er could. 0n his thi h) on the outside) four inches abo/e his ri ht knee) he had collected a &iece of scra& metal from the e;&lodin casin of a chemical renade. #he shar& &iece of steel was embedded dee& in his flesh) and dark blood welled around it. Well ha/e to et it out) she said. $owB #he medkit) the s&eedheal will: She sto&&ed s&eakin and looked suddenl' horrified. %;actl') he said. 0t was in the suitcase that ot shot u&. >ut 'ou6ll et blood &oisonin A $ow far to #oothB he asked. $alf a da'. #hen there better be a fortress there) because otherwise 06m done. #he' should ha/e some sort of medical facilities and stock&iles in such a &lace. >ut can 'ou walk on itB 06ll ha/e to) won6t 0B

5or the ne;t half an hour) the o/ernment &ilots lobbed fire s&oors into the turmoil of the forest until the inferno ra ed throu h such a howlin madness that nothin could ha/e sur/i/ed its countless hot ton ues. #he' were forced to stri& off their coats and sweaters) e/en back in their cool) water8floored ca/elet. "ften) the air became so su&erheated that it was difficult to draw a satisfactor' breath:thou h Da/is was &leased that the air currents worked in such a wa' as to draw the smoke u&wards) awa' from the trees) and &ulled new air in) underneath. "therwise) the' would ha/e been dead of smoke inhalation inside of minutes. #he Alliance re& was takin no chance with his elusi/e &re'. 5inall') when the soldiers ceased shellin the charred and smokin woodlands) when the fire be an to abate) Da/is decided it was time to mo/e out. #hou h it was still 9uite hot) the' &ut their coats on once more) for wearin the bulk' arments was easier than carr'in them. "utside) in the ashes and thin black skeletons of 'il trees) the &all of smoke was so dense o/erhead that the sk' was in/isible) shieldin them from the /iew of the &olice7 e/en after the' had left the burned sections and made their wa' into unmolested trees and brush) it offered them e;cellent co/er a ainst disco/er'. Da/is hardl' felt the chunk of shra&nel in his thi h as the' be an their last lon la& of the trek. #hen it be an to itch. #hen burn. 0n an hour) it felt as if it were cored with na&alm and that the flesh was bein burned to ashes from within b' stead') small flames) as if the shell of his le were hollow) without bones or meat to fill it. With each ste&) it buckled and bent under se/ere &ain. 0t bled more than it should. ?ost of that trouser le was soaked throu h. #he flesh in the area immediatel' around the wound was swollen and a 'ellow8blue in color. $e felt fe/erish. $e fa/ored it for the first three hours of the walk) and the' sto&&ed to rest &eriodicall'. #heir &ro ress was ham&ered) but the Alliance seemed to be certain that the' had &erished in the forest fire and that misassum&tion ained them all the time the' needed. Sometimes) sittin on a lo or rock) restin the dama ed limb) he ot furious with his bod') as if its ruined le were its own doin . After comin throu h so much) he could not contend with the idea that his own inabilit' to o on the last cou&le of miles would s&ell the end for them. >ut he soon realized that a hatred of himself and a dis ust with his own weaknesses onl' de&ressed him and made it more difficult to o on. "n the other hand) if he turned his fur' into hatred of the Alliance) a &ersonal) intimate hatred of the little re& and of each and e/er' soldier that had been after them) the an er a/e him stren th) roused him to the accom&lishment of thin s he had not known &ossible. When the ra e was most brilliant in his mind) he could e/en &ut wei ht on the wounded le without feelin much &ain) if onl' for a few ste&s7 And so the' &ro ressed) =eah addin her su&&ort when he stumbled) Da/is6s face flushed with fur' at the men who had &ut them in these circumstances) had dri/en them to this insane fli ht) banished them from the com&an' of normal &eo&le. 0n the writin of so man' historical no/els) he had become intimatel' ac9uainted with nearl' e/er' era of mankind6s &ast. 0t alwa's amazed him that taboos chan ed so radicall' from historical moment to historical moment and from one culture to another:e/en when those cultures mi ht e;ist in countries whose lands were side b' side) or e/en when the' e;isted within the lar er societ' of a sin le nation. 0t was one of the thin s he tried so hard to make his readers ras&. #he structurin of taboos which ha/e nothin to do with the health of a nation but merel' interfere with another man6s ri hts is a sill' and useless &ractice. Wh' tell a man what he ma' wear or with whom he ma' make lo/e and under what conditionsB 0n a hundred 'ears) 'ou will be lau hed at for 'our narrow8mindedness. $e thou ht of all this as the' walked) and he forced himself to e;&lore the ideas in more detail than e/er) in an attem&t to relie/e

his mind of too much consideration of his &ain. %/entuall') he came to understand somethin im&ortant about the men who constituted the Alliance) the men who held &ower o/er the masses. #he' had ne/er disco/ered the conce&t of us. 0ndeed) the' had e/en reDected the conce&t of me in order to re ress to one more barbaric le/el: the conce&t of it. %ach man in the Alliance was &art of itH2 the o/ernment) the reat machine of the laws and the &risons and the councils. %ach man was a co inside the o/erall mechanism) without indi/idualit' outside of his o&eratin &ers&ecti/e. #his /iew of the world) this it conce&t was the most dan erous unconscious &hiloso&h' e/er ado&ted b' a lar e se ment of humanit') for it allowed its adherents:the bureaucrats and soldiers and &oliticians:to commit the most atrocious acts of &h'sical) emotional) and mental slau hter and abuse a ainst their &eo&le that the human mind could concei/e. A member of the Alliance o/ernment who murdered a traitor or other enem' of the state ne/er actuall' thou ht of me as the res&onsible &art'. 0t was to blame) if an'one. #he soldier who killed in the war) the eneral who a/e him his orders to destro') and the &resident whose &olicies initiated the combat to be in with:none of them were res&onsible Fin their own mindsG as indi/iduals) for the' had onl' been actin in the name of the o/ernment) as a small:or e/en a lar e:size hardl' mattered7 the e;cuse could alwa's a&&l':co in the me8 chanics of it. And) in the last le/el) it) the o/ernment) was &rotected as well) since the machine could alwa's rel' on the clichQ that the o/ernment ets its &ower from the &eo&leH:a ruse to et the &eo&le to /ote for the same me alomaniacs the ne;t time the' went to the &olls. $e was Dolted out of one of these tan led re/eries as the' &assed out of the forest and climbed u& a brush8co/ered foothill at the base of one of the lar est mountains he had e/er seen) a ar antuan &eak of rock whose form /a uel' resembled a wisdom tooth. #he' had been walkin and restin ) walkin and restin in an almost h'&notic c'cle for nine hours) e/er since the' had left the burned woods. #o sto& and not sit to raise his le broke the chain of e/ents) if onl' a trifle) and called forth his attention. #ooth) she said) holdin onto his arm) kee&in him erect with her own tense little bod'. 0f 0 understood m' randfather correctl') the entrance to the fortress is not far. $e nodded) sorr' she had broken the trance into which he had settled so comfortabl') for the &ain was a reat deal worse while he was full' aware of his surroundin s. Come on) she said) &ullin his arm. $is le was /er' warm and an odd tin lin sensation &ierced it from foot to hi&. When he looked down at it) he wished that he had not) for the si ht was unsettlin . #he wound had been torn wider) and the shra&nel had worked its wa' &artiall' back out. 0n the &rocess) the se/ered blood /essel had been &ermitted more freedom to s&urt) and it was Dettin re ular &ulses of warm blood down o/er his trousers. With an effort) he looked around and saw) behind) that he had been lea/in a fairl' rich red trail for the last half a dozen ste&s. 0n the moonli ht) thou h) the red looked black. $urr'A =eah said. >leedin . . . too fast) he said. A tourni9uet) she su ested) tr'in to make him sit down on the snow. 1o time. "nl' a. ... medkit. >leedin too fast. Wound6s . . . too bi . 06m sort of slee&'. Don6t slee&) she said. 5i ht itA >lackness rose out of his uts and sur ed throu h his entire bod') /el/et' and smooth and &leasant to behold. $e felt his blood &ressure dro&&in as a leaden dizziness clutched him and s&un him hea/il' about. $e screamed silentl'. . . Silentl' . . . #ooth ?ountain stood so close:'et so far.

$e shambled a few ste&s forward before he fell and struck the round hard. #he cold snow felt wonderful on the s&urtin wound) and he suddenl' felt sure he would be fine) Dust fine) with Dust a little snow in the wound where the blood was . . . $e laid there) feelin ood) drows') a&&reciatin the cold snow as he sli&&ed 9uietl') &eacefull' into death . . .

XI
silence2 9uieter than that. 1ot Dust total blackness2 darker. 1ot Dust odorless) antise&tic) clean2 much &urer than an' words. 0t was an achin ) senseless /oid) a &it without matter) a &it without nonmatter) without walls or ceilin or floor) without air or wind) without an'thin the senses could distin uish) a limitless eternal stretch of absolute nothin ness . . . . . . and then there was li ht. At first) there was an almost intan ible bri htenin of the nothin ness. #hen the indescribable blackness became &itch. #hen Dust black. #hen Dust dark. #he li ht came b' de rees) and in a millennium it was as bri ht as a moonlit ni ht) thou h there were no features about him. $e became aware of sounds ne;t. Clickin s . . . Whirrin s . . . #he sound of ta&es s&oolin and uns&oolin . . . All the noises of a com&le; and bus' machine doin whate/er it was its makers had created it to do. As he thou ht of the word machines) the first concrete conce&t which had occurred to him in this slow awakenin ) other solid thou hts and 9uestions arose in his mind. Where was heB $is mind danced o/er that 9uestion) aware that a man who had no idea where he was was either into;icated or insane or had been abducted b' someone) &erha&s under dru s. Ces) 'es) all the clichQs of the historical no/el rushed back to him in bulk. >ut as he considered each of them and reDected them) he found there was no comfort in clichQs. Where in the de/il was heB $e could feel a chair beneath him. 1o) not e;actl' a chair) either. 0t was more like a &lushl' &added automatic couch which had now folded 8 and chan ed &osition8ele/ation to et him into a sittin &osture. #he thin was so well &added) in fact) that it bordered on the uncomfortable at first) thou h he found himself ra&idl' ada&tin to it Wh' couldn6t he o&en his e'esB (ot yet& a smooth /oice8ta&e whis&ered into the auditor' ner/es of his head. #he words were not heard so much as e;&erienced) and he knew there was a ta& directl' to his brain. 0here a" %5 he thou ht8asked of the machine. (ot yet. $e was still) tr'in to &ercei/e what else la' about him in this weird world of ra' li ht as soft as mouse fur:and without an' form whatsoe/er. $e could feel a fabric restrainin belt around his waist) similar stra&s holdin down his hands at the sides of the couch. $e wi led one hand and disco/ered somethin in the feelin of it that terrified him like nothin he had e/er feared before. 0t was as if he had willed the hand to mo/e and had disco/ered it was not his but someone else6s hand :but that it had obe'ed him and he had been able to feel throu h itA 7ela'& the /oice8ta&e &rom&ted. $e mo/ed the fin ers a ain. $e rubbed them back and forth a ainst each other. #here was a smooth) 9uick sensation of flesh on flesh. #he &roblem) the thin that terrified him a ain) was that it was too smooth and too 9uick. 0t felt much like the am&lified) unreal tactile effects of a senso8
1"# L4S#

theater film wherein e/er'thin was somewhat lar er and better than life Fnot because the senso8 theaters meant it to be) but because no one had e/er been able to a&&ro;imate true human sensations e;actl' enou h:and &atrons would &a' more for o/ercom&ensation than for inade9uac'G. $e tried to s&eak. $e could not. $is face) strainin in the normal e;&ression to form the words he wanted to use) felt wron . 0t felt like someone else6s face. $e felt like screamin . 0hose body a" % in5 he asked the machine. 9ours. (o! 9ours. Please. 0hose body a" % in5 %t is your body. #ell "e hy+ (ot yet. 0hen5 0ait. $e tried to deci&her the m'ster' of his whereabouts b' inhalin and sa/orin the air. >ut it was antise&tic air) tan ' with disinfectants) nothin more. A hos&ital) thenB 0e ill test no & the /oice said. 0hat do you "ean5 Spea$. % can*t spea$. Spea$. Dammit) 0 can6t s&eakA he roared) then realized the words had been formed and thrust forth) i/en birth b' /ocal cords and ton ue and li&s and teeth. 0t seemed) almost) like a miracle. #hat is enough& the /oice8ta&e said. 0here a" %5 0hat has been done to "e5 $e hissed it out in such a tense) shallow whis&er that it almost seemed as if he had communicated the thou ht without usin has new8found /oice. #he /oice . . . #his isn6t m' /oice) he said. #he tone was too hi h) not at all the dee& and manl' baritone he was accustomed to hear issuin from his own throat. %t is your voice. 1o. 0: 0ait. %f it isn*t your voice& ho are you& and hat should your voice sound li$e5 $e realized) with horror) that he not onl' didn6t know who or what had him and where the' or them were kee&in him) but he was e9uall' i norant of his own identit'. ?eekl') he asked) Who am 0B % ill restore the "a8ority of your "e"ory ban$s shortly. #he nerves to the" had been "o"entarily disconnected. Patience. 0ait. >ut: #he tests co"e first. 2fter the tests& you ill $no . $e obli ed its re9uests to mo/e feet) hands) arms. 0t released his hands and le s of the stra&s) but onl' one at a time) so there was no &ossibilit' of him Dum&in and runnin . Which was unlikel') he thou ht) considerin he was blind and nearl' mindless in a world he didn6t know. $is olfactor' ner/es were tested with a lon series of odors he often did not reco nize:not because he couldn6t smell them) but because the' were not the s&ices commonl' used b' citizens of:"f whatB $e for ot.

(o & a short sleep+the /oice8ta&e be an. ?' memor'A he shouted. >ut then there was slee& . . . Cellow . . . 0hat is the color5 he was asked. Cellow. #his one5 #here was nothin before his e'es) in an' direction) but shimmerin blue the color of an %arth sk'. $e named the hue for the machine. #his5 3ur&le. 0s this second blue closer to the shade you have called purple than the first blue+this blue+you sa a "o"ent ago5 $e went throu h the routine for fi/e minutes) rowin im&atient. >ut he was afraid to s&eak for fear he would be &unished b' further slee& before he learned the answers to the 9uestions that &la ued him. When he was finished) the couch settled into a horizontal &osition) and dozens of instruments of a sur ical nature be an workin about his head. $e could feel the brush of them a ainst his skin now and a ain) thou h he could not uess what the' were doin and could feel no &ain. #hen) abru&tl') he knew who he was and that he had) in the last moments before he had awakened here) been l'in in the snow at the base of #ooth ?ountain) d'in . $e had died. $e distinctl' remembered the &assin from the slee&8darkness to that other shade of black) the ener iless and eternal ni ht that had been be'ond the &ower of words to describe. $e tried to sit u&) was held down b' the stra&s. 0ait. $e waited. $e had a fairl' ood idea where he was now. #here had been a fortress after all. And =eah had otten him into it. And if he had not died until she had him within the recei/al tra' of a fullsize robo8doc there was a chance the machine had been able to h'&o adrenalin into him to et his heart functionin ) while it had fed him bottles of blood &lasma from a needle. Cet that did not e;&lain some of the stran e sensations that he had been throu h. $e still felt as if he were Stauffer Da/is:and someone else) as if he were not wholl' himself. #here was slee& 'et a ain. And when he woke) he was sittin u&) still stra&&ed in the form8chan in couch) lookin strai ht into the e'es of a Demosian man) when there ne/er should ha/e been such a creature there. #he Demosian men were none;istent now) destro'ed b' the war and the sterilizin mustard as. #here were onl' women remainin ) as ?atron Salsbur' had so &ointedl' assured him when he had tried to find out where =eah6s husband was) $e o&ened his mouth to ask how the Demosian came to be there:and the mouth of the alien o&ened at the same moment. 5or the first time) Da/is realized he was lookin into a mirror &laced directl' o&&osite him and that the sli ht) handsome Demosian with the win s folded down the middle of his back was hi"! #he mirror rose into the ceilin ) and =eah was standin behind it) on the &latform of the sur ical robot) lookin worriedl' down at him. As the stra&s let him o) she asked) 0t was all ri ht) what 0 didB6 $e was dazed) unable to understand what had ha&&ened to him. Cou were dead. Cou were dead shortl' after 0 found the entrance and dra ed 'ou back and inside. $alf an hour after 'ou were dead) 0 ot 'ou into the machine. 0 didn6t think an'thin could be done then. >ut what brain cells had deteriorated) the machine rebuilt.

06m not a man an' more) he said. Cou6re a Demosian) 'es. #he enetic chambers were &re&ared to deli/er a &erfectl' structure male Demosian for the im&lantation of 'our own brain tissue. #hat was the &roblem with the Artificial Wombs2 the' could turn out rown Demosians) male or female) but not with brains that could learn more than enou h to understand the basics of e/en self8care. ?orons. 0f the &roDect couldn6t sol/e the &roblem) the' were &re&ared to trans&lant the brains of our own &eo&le:after the' were killed b' the Con9uerors:into new shells) kee& usin the same warriors o/er and o/er. 0t was also &ossible to take the brain of a ca&tured Con9ueror) wash it clean) im&lant it in a Demosian form. #he resultant h'brid was a ... a zombie) a ser/ant for menial tasks that would free ood men to fi ht. 0f 0 was to sa/e 'ou) 0 had to make 'our bod' the bod' of a win ed man. >ut the Demosian machine:'our machine:s&oke to me in %n lish. 0t had to be &ro rammed with the Alliance dominant ton ues as well as Demosian lan ua es) for it had to be able to communicate with a Con9ueror &risoner in order to obtain information and to brainwash him. $ow lon B #hree weeks. $e looked startled. 0t has been lonel') she said. 1o one . . . B #he search has been i/en u&. #he fortress can ta& their &ublic communications) so 06/e followed it all in detail. We were killed) the' ha/e announced) in the firestorm. $e burst out lau hin ) and realized that she had been) e/en tenser than he when she smiled uncertainl' at him. $e lea&ed u&) rabbed her) hu ed her to him. She no lon er seemed 9uite so tin') 9uite so elfin. >ut) throu h the &erce&tions of the Demosian bod') she was a hundred times more allurin than she had seemed before. $e realized that this was sim&l' because the tactile) /isual) auditor' rece&tors of the Demosian bod') the ner/e clusters that athered these sensations) were far more sensiti/e and refined than the like ner/es of the rosser human form. >ut he also liked to think that she was more radiant) also) because the' were now se&arated b' fewer differences than e/er) were Doined b' a likeness of flesh that would make &h'sical and emotional intimac' so much dee&er and more meanin ful. Cou6re not mad) thenB she asked. "f course notA 06m lad. 06/e been worried all these da's 06/e waited for the machine to finish its chores with 'ou. 1ow) he said) feelin the Do' of life boundin in him like the stimulatin fin ers of some booster dru ) we are not onl' free and unhunted) but we ha/e the fortress with which to work and &lan7 we don6t ha/e to be barbarians) li/in without con/eniences and without ho&e. #here6s so much to stud' and accom&lish that it6s hard to know where to start. $ow about oin fl'in with me for be innersB she asked. 0t took him a moment to realize that she meant fl'in and was not usin a eu&hemism for lo/emakin . $e stood) mouth o&en) and looked down to his now small feet) u& his &owerful but thin le s) at a bod' that had been constructed for tra/el throu h the air. Carefull') he unfolded his reat) blue win s behind him . . .

XII
DA@0S SA#

in the richl' &added maroon eas' chair behind the ornate desk which seemed /er'

lar e and block' and Comfortabl' solid before him but which was) b' human standards) a mite too small to do business from. 0t had been a little more than two weeks now since he had awakened under the hand of the mechanical sur eon in the enetic chambers in the bottom floor of the subterranean fortress and had disco/ered that he no lon er &ossessed the bod' of an %arthman) and still he continued to com&are the sensations and the time8s&ace Dud ments he made with those he would ha/e made in the much different human shell he had been born with. ?ore often than not) the Demosian bod' came out the winner in such com&arisons) for it was more com&act) more muscular) considerin the fine tunin of what muscle it did &ossess) and 9uicker than the loomin hulk of the old8Stauffer Da/is. $e found that) unlike a man of %arth) a Demosian mo/ed in a fluid) catlike manner so natural and rh'thmical that he was not aware of his bod' in an' conscious &lane. $e ne/er tri&&ed o/er a seam in the floor. $e ne/er bent to &ick somethin u& and found his stomach in his wa'. $e ne/er cracked head or hi&s a ainst doorwa's) ne/er fumbled somethin he was attem&tin to &ick u&. $e was one with his en/ironment) as a human could ne/er be) and met and co&ed with it on a subconscious le/el that freed his mind for almost continual dee& thou ht on the thin s he had learned in these &ast se/eral da's. $e turned off the ta&e/iewer on the desk) leaned back in his chair) and closed his e'es) lettin his mind wander. #he ta&e concerned the o&eration of the enetic wombs and the theories ad/anced to e;&lain their inabilit' to &roduce bein s with ser/iceable brains inside their skulls. $e still did not understand two8thirds of the technical lan ua e) but he was learnin with the aid of slee&8teach machines that fed the data into his own brain at a hundred times the s&eed he could ha/e learned it under normal classroom circumstances. #he theor' that most interested him was the one constructed b' Dr. ?i6nella:who was now dead) slau htered in the senseless Alliance takeo/er of Demos. ?i6nella belie/ed that the &roblem with the mindlessness of the artificial men did not lie in. the enetic en ineerin at all) but) instead) in the time8ratio chamber where the untouched fetus was &ut and:in ten da's subDecti/e time:a ed twent' 'ears obDecti/el'. #hus) ?i6nella ar ued) the' were &roducin twent'8'ear8olds with the minds of newborn babies and the sensor' e9ui&ment of the adult bod':which was se;uall' com&lete:the most de/astin blew to the confused) blank mind was shortin out the seekin brain of the infant) brin in insanit' in the first few moments of life outside the time8ratio chamber. ?i6nella wanted to work out a retoolin of the &rocess on the main com&uter in 5ortress #wo as soon as &ossible and see if the bu s could be ironed out of the time8 ratio chambers or whether it was worthwhile to &roduce infant Demosians who could not be read' for battle for at least a dozen 'ears. #he war had ended without ?i6nella bein i/en that chance. >ut the theor' and the:if e/en sli ht:&ossibilit' of ettin the Artificial Wombs workin on a &ractical le/el fascinated and cheered Da/is. $e had come to feel) after the first cou&le of da's of celebration at their esca&e and his resurrection) that it would be criminal for them to s&end the rest of their li/es in &ursuit of &leasure within the /ast com&le; while all the facilit' of the Demosian culture) all the knowled e and e;&ertise) was here at hand in an eas'8to8use form. #he librar' was /ast7 the slee&8teachers could make them e;&erts in an' field o/erni ht. "r) at least) o/ermonth. #he machines that &erformed the miracle chores from enetic Du lin to maintenance were the t'&e that either res&onded to /erbal commands or to ke'board instructions t'&ed out in nati/e Demosian ton ues Fwhich Da/is learned the first week under the slee&8teachersG. 0t seemed to him that all of this could be &ut to some use) thou h he was not certain what. #he thou ht had &assed throu h his mind that the two of them mi ht take some form of re/en e u&on the Alliance:not onl' for the miser' the' had been &ut throu h) but in retaliation for the destruction of the millions of win ed men and women who had died in the enocidal conflict. "n a sim&ler basis) he realized that if he and =eah were to ha/e children) to raise them as a

uerilla arm' a ainst the Alliance control) the' would ha/e to form the fetuses in the Artificial Wombs) workin with the basic chemicals of creation:for =eah was) after all) sterile. #he door to the stud' o&ened) a thick slab of wood that hummed awa' on &ower runners as =eah entered bearin a bo; of s&ools. She had been doin research in the ta&e librar') lookin u& those subDects he wished to know more about) and she was the sort of cle/er and selecti/e research aide e/er' writer dreams about) ne/er brin in him an'thin esoteric unless it was in some wa' illuminati/e of the maDor to&ic:in which case) he uessed) it wasn6t esoteric at all. Success) 0 see. A ood bit of it. #here are three other fortresses) Dust as 0 told 'ou. 0t6s all here. And this number two fortress 'ou6/e been findin mention of) the one ?i6nella s&eaks about in conDunction with its com&uter) is the lar est of the four. 0t makes this &lace look like a mole hole. #here are RS floors) each RN- feet lon b' K-- wide. #he last *- stories contain the main com&uter and an au;iliar' node com&uter whose &ur&ose is to e;tra&olate on scientific data disco/ered in the enetic en ineerin chambers and &roDect &ossible research a/enues a man mi ht not think of. We could use that lo/el' machine. We can et to it) she said. Cou ha/e the locationB 0t6s SK miles from here) at the northern ti& of this ran e) the third maDor mountain from the end. #he other two fortresses are both o/er twel/e hundred miles from here. We6re fortunate it isn6t one of those. %i ht'8si; miles. Well) we know we can use the com&uter if the standard model we ha/e here can6t hel& us. #hat e;tra&olati/e node mi ht /er' well be the turnin &oint. >ut 0 want to learn e/er'thin here) first) before we mo/e. 0t6s ettin dark) she said) holdin out her hand. 0t had become their custom to fl') to ether) when the last li ht of da' was in the sk' and the world was in that lo/el' sta e that corres&onded to half8undressed in a woman. $e did not break that custom toni ht) but Doined her in the bubble of the lift that carried them smoothl' toward the to& of the mountain where a dis uised obser/ation nook had been built:which the' used for a launchin and landin &latform. #hat first ni ht) when he had arisen from the couch of the mechanical sur eon) sufferin from the emotional shock of findin himself in an alien bod' and knowin his own tem&oral shell was rottin in a ra/e) he had been unable to fl'. $e had s&read the win s) done as she had told him to) but he could not lift himself) not e/en a foot. #hat had de&ressed him) on to& of all else that had ha&&ened) and he had thou ht he would ha/e to look forward to a future in which his bod' was &erfectl' ca&able of fli ht but his mind was too earthbound and hun u& to allow it. #he ne;t e/enin ) she had &ersuaded him to o out a ain) after a reat deal of ur in and ar ument that Demosian children) after all) didn6t fl' from the moment of birth. Wh') then) she wanted to know) did he e;&ect to be an' differentB Sure) his was a rown Demosian bod') but he was still a child in the sense that he had a reat deal more to learn about the function of his new flesh. Reluctantl') feelin like a &etulant child) he went with her. 0t had been a clear ni ht) with a &ink8'ellow sunset that s&read 9uestin fin ers from the horizon to the middle of the sk'. $e had rud in l' one throu h the routine of learnin how to fl' a ain) &ositionin himself as she did) listenin to what muscles should be8used) tr'in to use them:meetin with failure a ain. 0t was the most frustratin e;&erience of his life) es&eciall' since she could do it so easil' and he could onl' stand there) runtin comicall' and fla&&in his membranous a&&enda es like sheets on the clothesline durin the hurricane. $e had /owed to i/e it u& fore/er after this session) but

was determined to stick it out now that he was here. She had said half an hour) and he had fi/e minutes to o:and then he had suddenl' mo/ed the win s correctl') in time) smoothl') catchin a ust of wind under them) balloonin them) liftin off the obser/ation) deck. $e had closed them swiftl') lest he should raise awa' from the landin area) thousands of feet abo/e the round) and find he could not re&eat the &erformance. >ut he had done it a ain and a ain until) at last) he took the last ste&) risked e/er'thin ) and fla&&ed off the side of the mountain) fallin like a rock for a moment until his win s ot air beneath them and he was soarin ) lidin ) a creature of the wind and sk' as surel' as =eah was. 1ow) two weeks later) he still looked forward to fli ht as a child looked forward to the zoo. #here was alwa's somethin new to tr') some stunt he had worked out in his head and had not) until now) had the uts to see if he could &ull off. $e wondered if he would e/er row wear' of the sk' and of his win s) decided that was about as likel' as his e/er ettin tired of =eah:which was not /er' likel' at all. 3erha&s if he had been born with win s) he would ha/e e/entuall' come to take them for ranted as an earthbound human comes to take his le s for ranted after:for a brief few weeks:findin reat Do' in takin his first few ste&s as a babe. >ut bein win ed in middle8 a e) after a lifetime of walkin the round) ne ated an' diminuation in the wonder effect. >ut none of this was the meat of the nut) the real reason wh' he found himself so ha&&' and contented in this new form) wh' he had been able to reco/er) so swiftl') from the shock of losin his bod'. At first) he had been worried that he was not bein honest about the horror he must cer 8 tainl' feel o/er losin the old Stauffer Da/is husk7 he was certain that he was su&&ressin the dis ust and terror) and that his subconscious mind would acce&t them and let them fester. Someda') he would &a' for not bein honest with himself now) he thou ht. >ut) da' b' da') he came to understand that he as bein honest when he said he was ha&&ier with his new bod' than his old one and that he wished he had died sooner and been resurrected as a Demosian 'ears a o. And he came to see that) down dee&) bein freed of the old &h'sical shell had freed him) more than e/er) from his mother and father. $e was no lon er their child. #he' would not:if the' were ali/e and came to Demos:e/en reco nize him. $e could walk amon them and be unknown. #he form) the mannerisms) the tic in his left cheek the' had i/en him:all these thin s had been slou hed awa') and onl' the essence had been left2 the mind which he had faithfull' scrubbed of their hatred 'ears a o and which =eah had hel&ed him to free in these &ast months on Demos. $e would no lon er ha/e to look in the mirror and see the lon ) thin) &atrician nose that reminded him) alwa's) of his mother:or the s9uare) hea/' Daw that was distinctl' his father6s. Ces) this was the seed of the bloomin Do'2 that he no lon er had e/en the sli htest ties to those &eo&le he loathed so much) to that twisted and hate8filled cou&le who had concei/ed him. #he bubble of the ele/ator came to rest) and =eah thumbed for the doors to o&en. #he fake rock &artitions slid back) and the' walked out onto the obser/ation niche near the to& of #ooth ?ountain. #he forests and &eaks of Demos s&read out before them) maDestic in the multicolored li ht of the dust8filtered sun. S&readin his arms Fand his win s behind themG) Da/is dashed to the ed e of the niche) lea&ed into s&ace) and barel' mana ed to et air under the thin membranes in time to a/oid a collision with a lon anti ra/ bus which was usin its &lates a ainst the side of the mountain to ne otiate hi h enou h to i/e the &assen er6s inside a thrill. "n the side of the /ehicle was lettered 30K%6S W"=5 $41# #"4R. #he men and women inside) dressed in hunter6s camoufla e and holdin drinks) looked at him wide8e'ed) as if he had materialized out of nowhere. $e saw them look abo/e) where =eah still stood on the niche) and he knew that their res&ite from the &ursuit of the authorities had ended in one) short second when he had been too Stu&id to look before lea&in .

XIII
b' the re9uest ke'board of the fortress com&uter and &unched out e/er' subDect headin he could concei/e of that mi ht concern the e;istence of the other three fortresses. S&ools of ta&e slid into the deli/er' slot in alarmin number) and he dro&&ed them swiftl' into a sack he had brou ht for the &ur&ose. When he could not think of an'thin which mi ht contain critical data about the other hideouts) he started &unchin out headin s dealin with the Artifical Wombs) ho&in to ha/e time to den' all of that to the Alliance as well. $ere) =eah said) enterin the room and dum&in a &ile of s&ools into the sack. #hose are the ones 0 ot 'ou this e/enin . #he' were still on the stud' desk. #hanks) he said. 5oodB All &acked. WaterB $e &unched out another to&ic7 more s&ools slid into the tra'. Eot it) she confirmed. #wo heat blanketsB Ces) and electric torches. And) thou h 5ortress #wo mi ht /er' well ha/e wea&ons) we6ll need some while we6re ettin from here to there. 0 &acked four uns. DamnA he sna&&ed) &oundin a fist into the ke'board. What is itB 0 don6t see how we6re oin to ha/e time to et all the &ertinent data out of the librar'. And e/en if we do) we6ll not be able to take it all with us. And it6s burn8&roof film. 0 could cut it u&:and the'6d &ut it back to ether. What about acidB she asked. #here should be a reat man' kinds in the labs) don6t 'ou thinkB "ne of them ou ht to destro' the stuff. $e a/e her a mock kiss. EreatA $e fished in the sack) handed her some s&ools. Cou o down and find somethin that works. 06ll sta' here and &ush for as man' to&ics as 0 can come u& with and Doin 'ou when 0 think 06/e ot e/er'thin . She took the s&ools and raced throu h the door) into the ele/ator across the hall and down to the lower reaches. 5or some reason) as Da/is stood there &unchin out subDects) he felt like the le endar' little Dutch bo' at the wall of the dike) tr'in to &lu u& the leak with a fin er. 0nstead of water s&illin out across his shoes) there were data films) dozens of them. At last) when he could not conDure u& another title on an' &ertinent subDect) he filled the sack with the s&ools. $e was well enou h ac9uainted with the librar' to know there were a few thousand other to&ics co/ered) but he had no more time to worr' about those. When he reached the first lab floor and ot off) =eah) almost collided with him. What is itB he asked. #he acid idea is out. 4nless 'ou6/e boned u& on 'our chemical formulas recentl'. $uhB #he' don6t ha/e stuff sittin around in bottles. 0t looks like each lab table has a dis&enser that connects to a central chemical de&ositor'. 0t looks like 'ou dial out the formula for what 'ou want. >ut 0 don6t know an' formulas. #r' somethin random. 0 did. 5our times. 1othin ha&&ened. $is thou hts were flittin throu h his mind too fast for him to full' com&rehend an' one of them. And before he could mana e to slow them down to a reasonable s&eed) the warnin li hts and sirens went on all o/er the com&le;. Someone had breached the obser/ation niche6s false rock door.
DA@0S S#""D

#he Alliance men were now in the fortress) PuickA he shouted. >efore the' sto& the liftsA $e &ulled her backwards) into the bubble car) and &unched for the basement. #he lift dro&&ed so suddenl' their stomachs fli&&ed o/er) and a moment later the doors o&ened on the last le/el of the installation. #here6s the sled) she said) &ointin to the ra/8&lated snow /ehicle sittin alon the far wall. 0t was li ht) with a lar e) flat surface to sit on) no comfortable seat) onl' belts to hold the &assen ers on the hard metal it was constructed from. 0t had been meant for short distance tra/el in storm' weather) not for SK8mile rides. >ut it was oin to ha/e to do. #here were two rucksacks stra&&ed on the lu a e rail) li hts and uns stra&&ed to the hand rail on the other side to i/e balance. 0t looked sturd' enou h) as if it could take a ood bit of knockin around) and it was no doubt fast. >ut he didn6t relish ettin on it and o&enin u& its dri/e motor to see what it could do. #he' sli&&ed into the hea/' coats) buttoned them u&) &ulled the hoods in &lace) and worked thick lo/es on. Da/is felt a stran e itchin in the small of his back from ha/in his win s co/ered. 0t seemed unnatural) and he wished he could shed the coat. >ut this was oin to be a lon haul. 0t mi ht be SK miles to 5ortress #wo as the Demosian flew. >ut the' were oin to ha/e to sta' out of the sk') and the' were sure to find a round route was a hell of a reat deal lon er. #he lift closed its doors and went u&) s&eedin to brin the men of the Alliance down on them. $ere are the controls) =eah said) 9uickl' identif'in each of the &edals and each of the knobs on the semicircular steerin wheel. #his is for o&enin the concealed door to let us out. #his is for closin it once we6/e one throu h. Eet on) he said. #he' sat on the flat surface of the sled) stra&&ed themsel/es down. =eah rabbed him around the waist) laid her face a ainst his shoulder so she could see Dust a little of what was ahead. Eo) she said. #he door in the rock wall slid o&en. $e lifted the sled) shot it forward) throu h the raised stone) and into the snow' world outside. $e &ressed to close it the instant the' had one throu h) and then the' were se&arated) fore/er) from the com&le;) alone in the dark and the wind. Abo/e) near the &eak) Alliance co&ters cho&&ed the air a&art) lowerin men to the obser/ation deck where the stron hold had been breached. $e wondered if the' knew that the two win ed &eo&le the' saw were the same the' had certified dead se/eral weeks earlier:back in the times when onl' one of them could fl'. Accordin to =eah) who had monitored the news out of the &ort cit') both of their &ictures had been flashed on e/er' communications media on the &lanet) com&lete with an in8de&th re&ort on what ha&&ens to ood citizens who i/e in to e/il and &er/erted lusts and break the law of the Alliance and the Su&remac' of ?an &art'. And thou h his own features did not e/en remotel' resemble those the tele/ision audience had lim&sed) she looked the same. And no one) he was certain) could e/er for et her face ha/in seen it onl' once. #he' &robabl' knew) well enou h) that the irl was =eah. And if the' didn6t sus&ect his identit') the'6d know for sure when the' found the Artificial Wombs and deduced their &ur&ose. $e concentrated on steerin the li ht) fast craft alon the to& of the snow. 0ts ra/ field was so stron that the thin could su&&ort itself on the crust without stirrin a breath of air in &assa e. #he onl' noise it made in the Demosian ni ht was a soft) contented &urrin ) like a cat who had been on &rowl and has found what it6s been lookin for. #here were no hardshi&s this time) and no moments when either of them thou ht the' had seen their last breath of air drawn:e;ce&t once) when a bull moose with s&iderweb antlers Fwhich were reall' antennaeG lo&ed across their &ath) directl' in front of them. #he' had missed it b' inches) and it had char ed after them) its ossamer antlers ri&&lin and swa'in abo/e its head7 but it had been

no match for the sled. #he' reached the second fortress in fi/e hours) ne/er dri/in faster than fift' nor slower than thirt') wea/in in and out of trees) hu in the sides of /alle's and buckin crazil' u& o/er the ru edest drifts the' had e/er seen. 0t was well before dawn that the' found the mountain which housed their sanctuar' and achie/ed the door in its base that led to a sled berth like the one the' had de&arted from earlier in the ni ht. 0t was structured much the same as the first stron hold) thou h it was far lar er. When the' had looked at onl' a small bit of it) the' a reed that a full reconnaissance could wait until mornin . "ne thin ) he said) wearil') as the' tumbled into bed. What6s thatB she asked) soundin e/en slee&ier than he. We can6t sta' here more than another da' or two. She sat u&. Wh' notB >ecause) lo/e) e/en thou h 0 tried to &ull e/er' trace of the other three fortresses from the librar' of the first) there is bound to be a reference hidden in one of the thousands of other s&ools of data. And 'ou can be damn sure the'6re oin to o o/er that librar' with a microsco&e:es&eciall' when the' disco/er we6/e seen fit to de&lete it of lar e sections of knowled e. #he'6ll know) at once) that there is another &lace like the first) and the'6ll waste nothin to find it. 0t won6t take them lon at all. #he' can e/en use 5ortress "ne6s com&uter to scan 5ortress "ne6s librar' and sa/e them8 sel/es a few thousand man hours. >ut what can we doB "nl' one thin ) he said. $e 'awned and rolled o/er. Wait Dust a damn minuteA she e;&loded) dra in him onto his back a ain. What6s the one thin B 0t6ll take a lon time to e;&lain. And it6s oin to re9uire a /er' emotional and im&ortant decision on 'our &art. Wait until 'ou feel better) wait until 'ou6re rested. 1ow) she &ersisted. $e shru ed) sat u&) scratched his head. 1ow) ehB Well) 'ou mi ht not like this. Cou ma' e/en hate me for su estin it. 0t6s not oin to be &rett') and we can6t kid oursel/es that it will be an eas' thin to do. Cou still want to hear) nowB Go on) she said. $e did . . .

XIV
#$% E%1%RA= sat in the &assen er seat of his &ri/ate helico&ter as the &ilot brou ht it around 1eedle&oint) the mountain which contained 5ortress #wo. 0n his la& was a book about ancient m'tholo ') a subDect he e;&lored with reat interest whene/er the duties of his command would &ermit. $e fin ered the leather8bound /olume now as he watched troo& co&ters settlin into &osition as the' had been commanded. "ne touched down at the base of 1eedle&oint) blockin e;it from the concealed sled door. A blunder like that which had been &er&etrated at the first stron hold would not occur here. #wo other co&ters Docke'ed for &osition near the obser/ation deck near the to& of the mountain) that cunnin l' crafted &latform of stone that seemed such a natural &art of the land. #he eneral &icked u& the micro&hone. Eo in) %;&losi/es. A team of three blue8suited Alliance soldiers Dum&ed from the car o ba' side door of one of the co&ters) three feet to the led e below. #wo cases of tools were handed down) and in a moment) the trio was at work.

#he eneral thou ht) sittin there abo/e the ni ht and watchin the small drama bein &la'ed out in the li ht of the co&ter lam&s) that he was much like a od himself. #he notion &leased him considerabl'. $e &icked u& the mike and said) to the co&ter that had been carr'in the e;&losi/es team) #ell them to hurr' it u&A #he three men) a moment later) res&onded to the order re&eated to them b' an unseen hand in the co&ter6s car o ba' and ste&&ed u& the &ace of their acti/ities considerabl'. Within two minutes) the' ste&&ed back from the seemin l' natural rock wall before them) looked at their watches) tensed a second before the e;&losion echoed and the stone flew inwards) awa' from them) and made an entrance into 5ortress #wo. #he eneral was about to issue orders to hold off until he could be landed to lead the &art' when a hea/il' armored &rotection robot) a&&arentl' &art of the fortress6s defense chain) o&ened fire throu h the blasted door. #he three men of the e;&losi/es team went down) rolled in a on') and fell from the led e down the se/en thousand feet to the first &romontor' that cau ht them with brutal finalit'. #he window lass on the first car o co&ter shattered) and the &ilot inside screamed so loudl' that the eneral could e/en hear him throu h his own &ilot6s head&hones. #he co&ter s&iraled downward) bounced awa' from the mountain) burst into flame) and rolled throu h) the trees and the snow) settin a few branches afire. #here was no need to order a &ullback. %/er'one had done that the moment the three men had collected the first blast of fire. 5ire a renade in thereA the eneral ordered the &ilot of the other co&ter. $is own craft had minimal wea&onr') nothin hea/' enou h for the task at hand. #he first &ilot obli ed. A moment later) the mouth of the entrance flared into brilliance) and the &rotection robot there shattered under the heat and concussion. With nothin but rock and steel to feed on) the fire died. Ad/ance infantr') the eneral ordered. Another co&ter ho/erin rather far out from the mountain s&ed toward the deck. #en minutes later) a rou& of twent' Alliance soldiers dressed in &ower suits stood before the blackened entrance to 5ortress #wo. #ake it) the eneral said. #he' went in. #he ca&tain of the ad/ance infantr' followed behind his two e;&erts in &ower suit manue/ers. $e was amazed) as he alwa's was in action) at the docilit' of men) the manner in which the' so readil' a reed to rush forward into what mi ht be certain death. $e shook his head inside his thickl' armored helmet and rinned. Dumb) reen kids) e/en if the' were thirt' 'ears old and older. #o the ri ht) a batter' of armor8&iercin uns s&ran to life) and one of the &ower suit e;&erts went down with half a dozen steel s&ines stabbed throu h his bod' des&ite the tou hness of his metal shell. #he second man was faster2 he turned and lobbed an im&losion missile into the offend8 in wea&onr') wi&in it out of e;istence before it could reali n its si hts on him or an'one else. #hree) forwardA the ca&tain bellowed. And #hree marched u& to take the &lace of the man who had Dust been killed. #he ca&tain mar/eled at the rh'thm of it. #he Alliance knew how to train its men. ?ake them think of themsel/es as co s) he mused. #hat6s what kee&s them in line. 0f the' start to think or ha/e o&inions) boot the bastards out of the ser/iceA 5irst floor secured) he radioed back to the eneral a few minutes later. "ne loss. #he eneral wondered who had been taken out) whether it was an'one he mi ht know. $e

doubted it. 0t was best to i nore the enlisted men) for the' were nothin more than co s in the reat works of the arm'. #he ca&tain was a nice enou h cha&:but ob/iousl' an idiot. "ften) the eneral mar/eled at the humilit' with which &eo&le like the ca&tain obe'ed their orders e/en when the' knew death was likel'. >rainless) the lot of them. $e debarked from his &ri/ate co&ter and entered 5ortress #wo) &rowled the battle8scarred first le/el while he waited for news that another floor had been cleared and desi nated &eaceful $e carried the book of m'tholo ' in his hand. $e sto&&ed o/er the bod' of the dead) &ower8suited soldier who had been s&eared b' the antiarmor unit. $e kicked the helmet until the man6s face a&&eared. 0t wasn6t an'one he knew. $e wondered what he would ha/e done if it had been someone he reco nized. 1othin . A man had to be an idiot to a ree to a &osition in the ad/ance infantr'. And how could 'ou feel sorr' about the death of an idiotB #he Demosians) the ca&tain learned) had not e;&ected their fortresses to be found and breached) for the' had not used reat ima ination in the &lacement of the defense wea&ons. ?uch of it was drearil' &redictable. "f course) there was that incident on the ei hteenth le/el down when the un im&lantations had been:for the first time:in the ceilin s) and four men had been brou ht down before e/er'one had otten back out of firin ran e. >ut that had) thus far) been the onl' disaster. %/en so) he had stationed himself to the side of the main bod' of men) as well as behind the front &air of &ower suits) $e looked back the line) to see that the rear uard was kee&in in ste& and at read'. $e couldn6t understand what sort of man would take a rear uard &osition) Dust as he couldn6t understand what kind of man would willin l' lead the rest of them) &lacin his bod' in the &ath of the first shots fired. >oth &ositions were o&en to eneral disaster. #he &ri/ates in the rear uard watched the ca&tain with interest as the ad/ance infantr' s9uad mo/ed down throu h 5ortress #wo. 0f the' hadn6t been in armor) the' would ha/e been tradin whis&ered Dokes about him. After all) what sort of man refuses to walk midst the &rotection of other bodies when the bullets are fl'in B #he eneral was standin b' the stairwell) waitin to o down when he ot the word7 readin a &assa e of his book) a &ara ra&h from a cha&ter on ?ars) the od of war. #here was a drawin of the su&ernatural man8entit' on the facin &a e. #he eneral liked the look of the Daw) the almost mad leam in the e'e which he inter&reted as the si n of a cle/er man. ?ars. Ces) he was ?ars) at least in a wa'. $e was the to&8rankin militar' official of an entire world. $e could brin destruction or &eace) as he so chose. $e was chucklin o/er the stor' of a m'tholo ical &rank ?ars was su&&osed to ha/e &la'ed on his fellow ods when the floor bucked) buckled) sent him s&rawlin ) and a deafenin roar swe&t out of the corridors below and throu h the other floors of the fortress) out into the Demosian ni ht. $e rabbed his la&el communications mike. What the de/il6s oin on down thereB #here was no answer. $as the floor been securedB he asked. SirB a thin /oice asked from the other end.

Who am 0 s&eakin toB the eneral demanded. Rear Euard 3osition #hree) the &ri/ate said. Where6s 'our ca&tainB Dead) sir. DeadB We reached the end of the Demosian defense s'stem. %;&losi/es in the floor) tri ered to a certain wei ht stress of &edestrians. "nl' fi/e of us left) and two of those are badl' in need of treatment) Eeneral. Sir. Cou6re sure of the defense s'stemB #hat was the last of itB 0t had to be) sir. #he' couldn6t risk an' e;&losions like that further down) for fear of bur'in themsel/es. 0t had the feel of the last obstacle. #he' would &robabl' defend with hand uns from now on. >e &re&ared to escort me to the last chambers) 3ri/ate. Cou and the other two men still ca&able of fi htin . Ces) sir. #he'6re in there) sir) the &ri/ate said) comin into the corridor from the last chamber in the fortress. With the eneric en ineerin e9ui&ment. Well) brin them alon ) the eneral said. #he'6re rather: Well) there Dust isn6t much to brin ) sir. #he eneral frowned) closed the m'tholo ' book. %hB #he' killed themsel/es. Set fire to the room) then shot themsel/es in the heads with two hi h8&owered &istols) 0t6s mess'. #he eneral blanched. Cou6re sure it6s themB Absolutel'. A win ed irl and bo'. $e &aused) then2 #here6s enou h of one side of her face left to tell she was the &rett' one we were after. #he eneral walked back down the hallwa' without /isuall' confirmin the. &ri/ate6s re&ort. $e si naled his co&ter &ilot with his la&el mike. SirB 3atch me throu h to the re&resentati/e. Ces) sir. $e leaned a ainst the wall) readin about Teus. 0t would be nice to be all &owerful) to be more than a eneral Fthou h that was niceG. 0t would be deli htful to &ull strin s and see nations Dum& instead of Dust a s9uadron or two of men. $e closed 6the book and &ondered a thou ht that had been cro&&in u& in his mind more and more2 wh' not run for a &olitical office. 1ow there was the Demos re&) a former militar' man. 1ow he was in a &osition of &ower where . . . 1o. 1o) that was a bad thou ht. A re&6s Dob wasn6t worth it. Cou were Dust a co in a wheel) if 'ou were a re&) mouth8 in the orders of those abo/e 'ou) ne/er 'our own man. 1o) the onl' &lace for indi/iduals was here) as arm' officers. #he re&) sir) the &ilot said) interru&tin his line of thou ht. EeneralB #he'6re dead. Cou6re certain of 6that. "nce before 'ou said the' couldn6t ha/e sur/i/ed: 06/e ot the bodies. "r what6s left of them. Set the room on fire and then shot themsel/es throu h the head. Reall'B Did the' reall' do thatB >oth thin sB Ces) the eneral said. #he' had four da's) the re& mused. 5our da's before we located 5ortress #wo. #he' must

ha/e known we were comin . 0 wonder wh' the' didn6t use the time to et out of thereB ?a'be the' were tired of runnin . #he' Dust coo&erated for a chan e. Ces) the re& said. A man of Stauffer Da/is6s &ast would surel') e/entuall') see the madness of fi htin us. Coo&eration. #hat6s e;actl' what it was) Eeneral. Eood ni ht.H) #he eneral said oodni ht) switched off his la&el mike) o&ened his book and be an waitin for the ele/ator which was workin now that the technicians had re&aired the sabota e to it. Teus. Ces) it would be mar/elous. >ut how did 'ou et to the to&) an indi/idualist and allB Could it be done. $e read on while the lift descended to ather him u&. As the last of the co&ters lifted awa' from the ruined fortress and turned into the blackness toward homebase) two birds nestled to ether in the branches of a lar e tree halfwa' down the side of 1eedle&oint) lookin u& into the underbellies of the brutish troo& carriers. #he' were as lar e as a si;8'ear8old child) each) and co/ered b' thick) downish feathers the color of 'il tree lea/es) 'ellow and lo/el'. #heir faces were incredibl' soft and entle. "n the end of each lon win ) a rudimentar' hand with four fin ers and two thumbs was concealed in a &ocket which feathers crossed o/er. Are the' reall' oneB she asked. #he' won6t be back. %/en if the' sus&ect some trick) the' won6t know what the'6re lookin for. $ow do 'ou feelB Still some shock) he said. We should ha/e had more time) before the' came) to et used to oursel/es) to what we6/e made of oursel/es. >ut now we ha/e 'ears for that She was silent a while. #hen2 Can we reall' ha/e others like usB 0n two da's 0 learned e/er' sin le &iece of data and &rocedure ha/in to do with the Artificial Wombs. 0 took two more da's to structure these bodies because 0 wanted to be careful) sure:when 0 could ha/e made them in hours. We can ha/e children. #he' will be whole and health') children like us) birdmen. #he'6ll be intelli ent. Cour &eo&le had one further than the' realized in con9uerin the secrets of the enes. 0f the' had not been so set onto the sin le track of creatin soldiers) the' could ha/e done mar/elous thin s. #he' mi ht e/en had come u& with a &lan like this to sa/e themsel/es from the last ra/a es of the battle with the Alliance. $ow lon will it takeB 5or babiesB 0 think:fi/e months. Cou6ll ha/e them naturall') not throu h e s) of course. WhenB she asked. 1owB he asked. 0t would be &erfect to concei/e their first child on this ni ht) the first ni ht of their residence in the new bodies) the ni ht the Alliance thou ht them dead and for otten. 0t6s oin to seem sill':the mechanics of lo/emakin ) she said) a touch of embarrassment in her /oice. 1o) noA he said. Cou6re beautiful. And 'our children will be too. #oni ht) the first child) the first of the secret) unseen) unsus&ected warriors concei/ed in the dark of the woods) the warriors that would one da' reclaim the land of their forefathers) reclaim Demos for &eo&le of the air ... #oni ht) lo/e and conce&tion and an effort to o/ercome awk8 wardness at not bein human. #oni ht) celebration. #omorrow2 oin to come the re/olution . . .

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SWORDSMEN IN THE SKY )dited by !onald A. &ollheim THIS IMMORTA by Roger HelaDny CITY OF I USION by ;rsula 7e5uin

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DEEPER THAN THE DARKNESS by 5reg 'enford

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ACE RECOMMENDS .. .
THE ,ROKEN ANDS by :red $aberhagen THE MOON OF 7OMRATH by Alan 5arner 08110 - 50 51850 - 50

MOONDUST 52200-50 by Thomas 'urnett $wann THE SI KIE by A. ). 4an 4ogt !6500-60

OUT OF THE MOUTH OF THE DRA7ON 62260 - 60 by %ark $. 5eston DUNE 1!260-95 by :rank ?erbert MEN ON THE MOON 522!0 - 60 )dited by !onald A. &ollheim THE WAR OCK IN SPITE OF HIMSE F 8!100-!5 by (hristopher $tasheff THE YE OW FRACTION by ReE 5ordon THE MERCY MEN by Alan ). /ourse THE RE,E OF RHADA by Robert (ham 5ilman 92150-60

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