Phaze Doubt

10 - Seed

Lysander had suffered a whirlwind change of situation, at the time of the invasion and again when he had fled the city with Echo, the cyborg woman whose other self was a harpy. He had quit Alyc when she turned out to be a Hectare agent, and gone with Jod’e, until the Tan Adept had used his Evil Eye to make her his love slave. Lysander was a Hectare agent himself, but his necessary association with the natives enabled him to relate to their concerns. Alyc’s identity as an agent had been a distressing surprise, and he had reacted as any loyal native would, dumping her. Jod’e’s conversion had been an uglier shock; he had really come to appreciate her qualities, physical and intellectual, in their brief association. But Echo-Echo was beautiful, with her slender body and brown fluff of hair. But her body was of inanimate substance; only her brain was human. Alyc had been full human, and Jod’e android, so Echo seemed to be one more step away. But on this planet few things were quite what they seemed, and he found he could accept the emulation of life Echo represented, knowing that her loyalty to the old order was absolute. Alyc had been fully alive in body, but a traitor in mind; Echo was true in mind. He had less interest in her harpy form, except that that was the root of her loyalty lo Phaze.

She had taken him to a serf boy walking the halls. “Who is this?” he had demanded.

“Who do you think, unbeliever?” the boy had responded. Then Lysander had known it was the weird child Nepe/Flach.

Three serfs walking ahead of them had assumed the likenesses of Lysander, Echo, and the boy, for the hall monitors to track. Lysander had ducked into a side passage with Echo, and abruptly had found himself standing here under the trees where he had first encountered the harpy Oche, and handled Echo’s legs.

“We’re out of the city!” he exclaimed, amazed.

“Yes, the Unicorn Adept conjured us free,” she said.

“Where do we go from here?”

“Nowhere.”

“But I hardly know how to forage, and I have no place to sleep. I can’t be much use to anyone, here!”

The harpy appeared, perched on a low branch. “Willst share my nest w’ me?” she screeched.

Lysander tried to mask his dismay. “No affront to you, but I’m not sure I care for the elevation, even if my weight doesn’t tear your nest out of the tree.”

Echo reappeared, her nakedness glorious in comparison. One hand was on the branch, and he realized that she had made a smooth translation because she had contact with it, and could guide herself during the change. “I also have a nether bower you may find more comfortable.”

“I’m sure I would,” he agreed quickly.

She put her hand to the trunk of the tree, and pulled on the bark. The bark swung out, becoming a panel or door. Now there was a hole in the tree, just about big enough for a man to crawl through. “After you, then,” she said, gesturing to it.

“But that’s just a cavity!” he protested. “There can’t possibly be room inside it for me! The trunk is only a meter thick.”

She merely waited, her gesture in place.

Lysander shrugged. He walked to the opening, and discovered that it was the entrance to a chute leading down. Oh. He lifted a leg and put a foot in, then worked the rest of his body through, until only his head was outside. His feet now dangled in the darkness; he had no idea how deep the hole was. “Drop,” Echo said. “You will not be hurt.” Could this be some trap to put him away? But why would they bother to transport him here for that? He had to trust them, because he wanted to achieve their trust. Only when he had it could he learn the most secret details of their plan for resistance—and betray it.

He let go. He fell down—and landed in a moment in a bed of feathers. There was a sliver of light from above, that soon shut off.

Echo was coming down after him. Hastily he rolled to the side so she wouldn’t land on top of him.

He was not quite fast enough. She whomped down beside him, knocking him flat in the darkness.

“Well, now,” she said. “This is the way I like my men: laid out.” She wrapped her arms around him and squeezed close.

“But we’ve only met!” he said.

“We met months ago. Now hang on while I take your measure.”

“Measure?”

“I need to ascertain whether you are truly with us,” she said. “Jod’e was supposed to do that, but Tan took her out. I doubt you’re ready to love me on such short notice, but we only have a few days, so it will have to be the crash course.”

“I don’t think I understand.”

“The prophecy says—“

“Oh, that! But how can you be sure that refers to me?”

“We can’t. But if it does, we want you with us. We think you will be more likely to be with us if you love one of us. That’s why Jod’e had to take you from that spy.”

“You know about that?”

“The Adepts did. So they sent Jod’e to—“

“She did! But then Tan—“

“Yes. That really messed us up. They had to scratch at the last moment for another girl, and so I was recruited, because at least we’d met before. I don’t know anything about the plan to free Phaze, except that you may be vital to it, so I must bind you to it. That I shall do.”

“Now, wait! Do you think you can just pass me from woman to woman, and I’ll love any I’m near?”

“Yes. Now kiss me.”

It seemed she wasn’t joking. “Forget it! I liked Alyc, until I learned what she was. I was getting to like Jod’e a lot; if I had any time to reflect, I’d be grieving for her. But you—you’re a harpy!”

“And a cyborg. A nice match for your android body with a living brain. You know as well as I do that it is the mind that determines the person. I can make this body do anything your body desires; you won’t care that the body isn’t alive. So we’ll get started.”

“We shall not get—“

But she cut him off with her kiss. She was expert, and her body was warm and sleek and pulsing with the seemingness of vitality. Indeed it was easy to ignore the mechanics of it; in the dark she was all woman.

Then there was light, expanding from what looked like balls of cotton set against the walls. He saw her—and she was still all woman.

“Look,” he said as the kiss broke. “I did like Jod’e. I know that’s over. Tan raped her emotion and made her his. But I knew her before that, and I grieve for her loss. I would have stayed with her, perhaps married her in time; we related well. But this business of simply assuming that any woman can take me just by being assigned—doesn’t that turn the stomach of even a harpy, a little? Didn’t you have other plans for your life, before Jod’e got taken out? How can you go along with this nonsense?”

She gazed at him, her eyes spots of midnight. “Actually, I did like you, Lysander. I enjoyed flirting with you, though I never expected anything to come of it. I was between males. But that’s not the point. Our world is at stake, and any personal plans I might have had are vacant. I must love you, and you me. and hope that you are the one who will save Phaze.”

“Just like that,” he said with irony. “Phaze needs me, so you and I must fall in love. Then I’ll decide in favor of your planet, because I’ll want to stay with you the rest of my life, even though you are made of plastic.”

“You’ve got it. Meanwhile, we might as well enjoy ourselves. Let’s kiss and talk for a while, before we start on the sex.”

“I am at a loss to comprehend why you think any of this will occur. I may be of alien origin, but everything I’ve learned of your culture indicates that this isn’t the way love normally occurs.”

“There are three reasons. Are you sure you want them recited?”

“Yes.” He was intrigued. If he had to pretend to love her in order to get close to the source of the resistance, he would do that. But the role he was playing required that he offer natural resistance to such bread-and-butter romance.

“First, your body is handsome and virile and responds normally to stimuli. I am in this form an attractive woman, similarly responsive. Propinquity will normally cause us to merge, in the absence of counterindications.”

“Granted. But there are counter—“

“Second, this chamber is sealed. For the next several days, I will be your only companion, and I will be most attentive and obliging to your interests. You will find me very good company indeed—and I trust I will find you the same. Only when the love is firm will we be released.”

“So it is a trap!”

“A love trap,” she agreed. “But a willing one, for me, and I think not jus! because I love my planet.”

She evidently believed in this! “And the third reason?”

“This chamber is suffused with love elixir. It will take perhaps three days to be completely effective, and we have that amount of time available, perhaps more.”

“You really think that—“ But he broke off, remembering how Tan had changed Jod’e. Magic was operative here, and surely their love potions were effective, though slower than Adept enchantment.

“So you see, we may try to resist it, or we can go along with it. The outcome will be the same, but it will be more pleasant to go along.”

“Suppose I just break out now, before any of this can take effect?”

“I hope you don’t do that!” she said, alarmed.

“Why not? I prefer to make my own choice whom I may love.” This, again, was consistent with his established personality.

“Because if you emerge without me, my sister harpies will tear you apart. Literally. They are guarding this retreat. Please accept my word, they are mean customers, and fully capable of the act. Even if your android body is resistant to the poison of their claws, it can not withstand their massed attack. They intend to keep you in here for the full three days, and to prevent any possible rescue. Since no one else knows where you are—“

“Point made. I think I’m stuck for it.”

She sat up. “I can understand your anger, Lysander. But it will pass. I just thought that since our love is inevitable, and thereafter we may be separated, it would be nice to make the most of it in this time we have. It would be a shame to squander the interim by quarreling.”

He had one more objection. “But you are a cyborg! The love potion should not affect you.”

“I am also a harpy, and my brain is living. The potion will affect these. It is not purely chemical; it is a magical ambience that can affect even a metal robot. Indeed, I am already feeling it; that is why I am pleading for detente between us.”

Lysander shrugged. “Whether I will love you I can’t say. But your arguments are persuasive. I want to save your planet too; I just didn’t care to be cynically coerced into it.” That was a half-truth, but it would do. “My anger is fading; let’s give love a try.” That was true; it seemed that the potion was already having its effect.

“I’m glad.” She leaned into him and kissed him. “We are not always free to choose our destinies or our emotions. I think we can make a good couple, and perhaps save the planet. Then neither of us will be sorry that it wasn’t natural.”

“But how can you be sure I don’t just tell you I love you, so that you won’t sick the harpies on me?”

“Unless you are immune to magic, there is no chance of that. Jod’e would have brought you to a similar chamber.”

“Jod’e would not have needed to.”

“When the fate of our world is at stake, the Adepts do not gamble. They chose her for you, and when she was lost, they chose me. I am not as good a choice, but will have to do; there was no one else convenient. Of course Jod’e will betray you to the Hectare, and they will know about the prophecy and the love, and probably that it is me you love. But we shall try to keep you out of their tentacles, until the prophecy is fulfilled.” She paused, gazing at him. “Now you may have the pleasure of using a woman you do not yet love, if you wish, or you may wait until you do. I am amenable to your preference. I have told you all that I know about this matter.”

She was certainly being candid! “What is your own preference?”

“Oh, I was hot for you when I first met you. Harpies are lusty creatures, being chronically male-starved. I loved it when you handled my legs! But you seemed destined for other things, so I resigned myself. I’d like to discover how many times and in how many ways it can be done in three days, with one man.”

“One man?”

“The limitation is male. If I had ten men here—“

“Oh.” He considered. He appreciated both her candor and her cynicism; it relieved him of confusion and conscience. He remembered how feminine even the complete robot Sheen had seemed; Echo was interesting despite what he knew of her. “Then let’s find out.”

She addressed him with a hunger that seemed even more intense than what Alyc had shown, and in a moment they were in the throes of sex, and in another moment beyond them. Her harpy aspect must indeed be hungry for male interaction! She was evidently ready to continue, but his interest faded, so they talked instead. Her attentions to him continued during the dialogue, restoring his interest more rapidly than would otherwise have been the case.

They continued with both sex and history, in stages and bouts and alternations and mixtures, and time passed both rapidly and slowly, simultaneously. It hardly mattered what Echo said; Lysander was increasingly interested merely in listening to her, and in having her listen to him. Their sexmaking became lovemaking, the passion less, the satisfaction more. Being with her was sheer pleasure, of a sort he had not experienced before.

“It is true,” he said at last. “I have not loved before, but I do love you.”

“And I love you,” she said. “It is magical in origin, but I think I could have loved you anyway, had you had any natural interest in me. Soon we can emerge, but let’s not hurry.”

Lysander was enjoying himself, but something was bothering him increasingly. He did not want there to be a lie between the two of them. He wanted their love to be perfect, and feared it could not be.

“There is something I must tell you,” he said.

“That you now believe in love potions? I know it, Lysander.”

“That I love you too much to deceive you,” he said grimly. “I must tell you the truth, though it destroy your love for me.”

“Too late for that. Three days have passed, and I am lost. You can only hurt me, you can not destroy my love.”

The gravity of his situation suddenly tormented him. “I can lie to you only if you ask me to. I would prefer to do that, so as not to hurt you.”

She gazed at him with understanding. “There really is something bad,” she said.

“There really is. Please, tell me to lie. It will spare us both pain.”

“Does it affect our mission to save our world?”

“Yes.”

“Then you must tell me. Maybe the Adepts had this in mind.”

“Maybe they did,” he agreed, realizing that if the Adepts had known about Alyc, they might have learned about him too. In that case, it would be pointless to conceal his mission longer. It would be better to come out into the open. Maybe the love potion was distorting his judgment, but it did seem to make sense. “But can we wait a little? Love is new to me, and I want to savor it before it is dashed.”

“No, you had better tell me now. I was never one to postpone either the best or the worst.”

“I am an agent of the Hectare.”

She shook her head. “But if you were, why would you tell me? If I said one word to my sister harpies...” She trailed off, her thought evidently bothering her.

“I did not tell you, or anyone else, not even the local Hectare administrators, because it is essential that no one be able to betray my mission. It is my assignment to infiltrate to the heart of the resistance, and then destroy it, so that there is no further threat to Hectare dominance. No coercion could have made me tell. But now I have to tell you, because our love can not be true if what you know of me is false. I am not just an android with a borrowed living brain. I am an android with a Hectare brain.”

She stared. “How can it help your mission to reveal this to me?”

“It can not. Now, if you will, assume your harpy form and kill me. I will not resist you.”

“Your love makes you do this?”

“Yes.” He smiled briefly. “I see now that the Hectare, having no direct knowledge of love, did not condition me against it. But I am a Hectare, a bug-eyed monster, in human form. Kill me now, because if you do not, you are unlikely to do it later.”

“I love a Hectare?” she asked, dumbfounded.

“You love the form of a human being. I knew you for what you were when love took me; you knew only a lie about me. You are not bound. Do your planet the most good you can. Kill me.”

“But if you love me, won’t you join my side? Maybe that’s what the Adepts want.”

“If you love me, will you join the Hectare?”

“I can’t do that!” she protested. “My world is my nature! All that I am, even the metal and plastic—I can not be untrue to that!”

“You have answered yourself,” he pointed out. “I am Hectare. I must serve my species.”

“If I do not kill you, you will betray our last source of resistance to the enemy?”

“Yes. That is my mission.”

“You can’t want to do that! You would not have told me, if—“

“I don’t want to do it, any more than you want to love your home world. It is in my nature to do it. Can you love me, knowing my nature and my mission?”

“If I see you about to betray my world, I will try to stop you,” she said.

“Is that an answer?”

“I do love you, despite what you have told me. I will not tell anyone, I will only try to stop you, and die if I fail.”

“You have no call to keep my secret. You should at least tell the Adepts.”

“I think they know. It makes it certain that you are the one the prophecy means. So I must believe that I am helping my world by keeping silent.”

Lysander found himself both surprised and unsurprised. If the Adepts truly believed the prophecy, then he could indeed be the one—because of what he was. Yet it had to require a great deal of faith on her part to trust in that. “Now we know we are enemies, or that we serve opposite sides. Can we still love each other?”

She stood, gesturing him to do the same, and took his hands in hers. “I will answer, and so will you, together. Then we will know.”

“But—“

“Speak only your true feeling, as I speak mine. Are you ready?”

He nodded, not sure what she thought this was going to accomplish.

She squeezed his hands. “When I squeeze again, we’ll speak.”

Then she squeezed. “Yes,” they said together.

Something strange happened then. A ripple seemed to go out from them, causing the air to shimmer, and the walls of the cave. It was as if the color of reality shifted, though color wasn’t quite it. But he didn’t care. He drew her into him and embraced her. He didn’t care how it had come about; his love for her was real and complete.

She melted into him, as passionate as he. “So it is true,” she breathed in his ear.

“I don’t understand.”

“You saw the splash?”

“Do you mean the ripple in the air?”

“That was the splash of truth. It comes only when the emotion is true and strong, and only once for a situation. We spoke our love, and it is true, though we are in Proton form. Phaze is here too, and it manifests. I love you and you love me; there is no doubt.”

He found he had to believe. “Then stay with me, and when I do what I have to do, you do what you have to do.”

“Yes. But until then, let it be only love between us.”

He was satisfied with that.

It seemed a moment later that there was a scratching at the entrance, above. “They are opening the door,” Echo said. “I must see what they want.”

Lysander looked at his watch. “Five days have passed,” he said, startled. “It must be time for us to come out.”

She used the root-handholds to hoist herself up. He followed. Soon they were beside the tree. A harpy with a horrendous explosion of hair and feathers about her head hovered near. “Take thy paramour to the Brown Demesnes,” she screeched. “The Unicorn Adept has need o’ him.”

“Thank you, Phoebe,” Echo said.

“Ne’er thank a harpy, slut!” the creature screeched. But Lysander had the impression she was pleased.

“We’ll dress and start walking. I suppose you know how it stands between us now.”

“Aye, Oche! We spied the splash. Then we dispersed our guard.”

“I thought you would. Warn us if dragons come.”

“Aye!” The harpy flapped heavily away.

“Who was that?” Lysander asked.

“The chief hen of our Flock, Phoebe. She befriended the Robot Adept long ago, before I was hatched. She speaks for him.”

“Then we’d better go to the Brown Demesnes! I hope you know the way.”

“I do. It will be a fair walk, but we’ll be helped if we need it,” She climbed back into the tree and disappeared, going for the clothes.

Soon they were on their way, garbed in belted robes and sandals. The jungle looked wild, but Echo knew the paths. When on occasion she was uncertain, she changed to harpy form and flew high, spying out the way. The first time he had seen her in that form he had thought her ugly; now it didn’t bother him, though he preferred her cyborg form. During the whole five days of their time in the love nest, he had hardly remembered that her body was inanimate; it had seemed completely alive. That love potion had been strong stuff!

They passed an open range. On the horizon he could see animals grazing: unicorns, surely. Once a huge shape appeared in the sky; Echo drew him quickly under cover. “Dragon,” she explained. “We’ll be protected, but we don’t want to cause a commotion.”

He was in good physical condition, but Echo was indefatigable. That was the advantage of a robot body. By the day’s end he was glad to rest.

She opened a breast cabinet and brought out food for him. She was able to eat, but didn’t bother. There was no shelter here, and the chill of the night was settling in, but this turned out to be no problem. They simply removed their robes, spread them as blankets on the ground, and lay between them. Echo’s body turned warm, like a gentle stove, and drove away the chill.

“I am coming to appreciate your qualities,” he murmured, caressing her.

“Had we had more time, we could have done this before the love,” she said. “But better in reverse order than not at all.” Then she embraced him. “However, now that I mention love—“

He tried to remind himself that her body was inanimate, but it was no good. She was all the way alive for him. Evidently he was all the way human for her, similarly. Their knowledge of each other changed nothing.

He was sorry he would have to betray this wonderful dual culture. But he knew he would do it, when the occasion came.

Next day, as they continued their walk toward the southeast, a figure abruptly appeared before them. It was Flach, the Unicorn Adept. “I need him now,” he said to Echo. “I thank thee, Echo, for thy service.”

“May I not remain with him?” she asked, alarmed.

The boy smiled. “It were unkind to deny thee, considering. Make thy way alone to the Brown Demesnes and watch; an thou see a woman emerge, take human form and go with her. We shall rejoin thee in due course.”

“Thank you, Adept,” she said. Then, quickly, she kissed Lysander. As the kiss ended, she became the harpy, and flew into the foliage of the nearest great tree.

The boy faced Lysander, and his small face was disturbingly serious. “Thou has fathomed that we know thy nature,” he said. “We like thee not, Hectare, but there be none but thee to give us victory, an thou choose. An thou not cooperate completely with me, thou willst ne’er get close to our plot, so it behooves thee to make thy move not early.”

So they had indeed known! “And if you nullify me early, your prophecy will be invalidated before it has a chance,” he replied. “Even if you can’t trust your love spell to change my mind.”

“Aye. So we fathom each other. We work together, until the moment.”

“Until the moment,” Lysander agreed.

“Now will I conjure thee to the Brown Demesnes, and make thee invisible. Keep thy silence, whate’er thou dost see.”

“Agreed.” It was an interesting situation: he was an enemy agent, and they knew it, and he knew they knew, but it changed nothing. It was analogous in its way to his love with Echo: the facts simply did not affect the situation.

Flach took his hand. With his free hand he made an odd gesture.

Then they stood in a wooden room. Manlike figures of all sizes stood against the walls, immobile. That was scarcely surprising, as all of them were fashioned of wood.

Flach squeezed his hand, and became the girl, Nepe. “We have a little while,” she said. “Kiss me.”

Remembering the boy’s caution about silence, Lysander did not reply. But he obeyed the directive. He leaned down and kissed her on the mouth.

She kissed back, with surprising vigor, but hardly with the expertise Echo had. “Do I have it right?” she asked. “Squeeze my right for yes, left for no; I can’t see you.”

He glanced down at his feet, and saw only the floor. He was invisible, as promised. But what was her concern with kissing? He extended his right hand and squeezed her left upper arm.

“Try it again,” she said. But her body was melting, and in a moment there was only a knob at the top with a pair of lips.

He shrugged and kissed those lips. This time they were more competent. He squeezed her right arm.

“Good,” the mouth said, as the blob continued to change. “After I talk with Brown, I will form a sheath over your body, and it will cover your head. There will be holes for you to breathe and it will be transparent over your eyes, but if Purp tests with a kiss it better be right. Don’t jump if he pinches your ass. Just do whatever you’re told, and I will guide you with pressure on the side I want you to turn away from, or behind the legs to make you walk forward. You’ll catch on. We’ll both be hung if Purp catches on. Now stay clear and wait.”

He did that, watching her change further, until she resembled a squat wheeled robot. What was she up to?

There was a light footstep beyond the wooden door. The seeming machine made a whirring noise. The person beyond paused, then fled.

Shortly, a brown-haired woman of about forty opened the door and entered. She glanced around, then walked straight to the Nepe-machine. “Why didst thou return?” she inquired.

“Mach said you did not betray me,” Nepe replied, without the benefit of lips. “Though you did recognize me.”

“Of course I did not betray you, you darling child!” the woman exclaimed. Obviously she knew with whom she was talking.

“But Purp will make you talk,” the form that was Nepe said. “I know how.”

Lysander saw by the woman’s reaction that something significant had been said. Evidently the Brown Adept had some personal secret, and the child was playing on that. Lysander had come to appreciate how cleverly this seeming juvenile could play on a person’s secrets! Maybe it was some embarrassment of the past, or an illicit deed; whatever it was, Purp—that would be the Purple Adept, he realized—had learned it too, and would blackmail the woman. Purple was working for the Hectare, but Lysander had no more respect for him than he did for Tan, because both were traitors to their societies. The Hectare would dispose of such quislings when their usefulness was done; the termination would come without warning or reprieve or regret. The Hectare would also dispose of diehard resistance figures. But some of the intermediate individuals, who had the sense to yield without turning traitor, like Citizen Blue—these would be treated with greater respect, because they had ability and judgment and could be trusted.

From this odd dialogue Lysander learned that while he had been distracted by Echo, two more opposition Adepts had been captured. Black and Green. Only two remained, the Robot and the Unicorn. Did that mean that Clef and Tania had also been captured? The child did not mention them, which was surely significant.

Now it seemed Nepe was going to use Brown to get back at Purple in some devious way. Lysander was as mystified as Brown about this. Apparently there was to be a game played between Purple and a Hectare, and Brown was to be there, along with her servant Tsetse. Except that it wouldn’t really be Tsetse.

“As thou sayest, dear,” Brown agreed, as baffled as Lysander.

Brown was told to hide Tsetse immediately, and make ready for Purple’s visit. She left the room.

Immediately Nepe began changing form again. Her changes were not instant, the way her alternate’s were, but they were impressive. The machine became a blob, then a pool that spread across the floor like a blanket. A mouth formed in its center. “Pick me up, drape me over you,” it said. “Remove your clothes first.”

Even if he hadn’t had a mission to perform, Lysander would have cooperated just for the continuing adventure of it, he realized as he quickly removed his robe and sandals. They became visible as he set them aside, so he hid them behind a golem. The more he learned of the child Nepe/Flach, the more he appreciated how difficult she/he would be for the Hectare to capture. This was surely the chief figure of the resistance. Yet Nepe acted as if she were only a part of a much larger plot, and it was that plot Lysander had to discover.

He stooped and put his hands to the edges of the blanket. It felt like warm plastic. He lifted, and it came up as a cohesive unit, not disintegrating like jelly. He draped it over his bare shoulders, and it formed a cloak extending down to his waist.

Then the cloak animated, drawing itself close to his body. It wrapped itself about his torso, and extended down, thinning, forming a snug wetsuit. It reached his genital region and tightened about it. Oddly, his member did not react; instead it became numb. There seemed to be an anesthetic quality to Nepe’s substance, so that wherever it touched him he felt comfortable and relaxed. That was fortunate, because otherwise the notion of being so completely enclosed by a female, even a juvenile one, could have caused an awkward reaction.

The material at his shoulder humped up and formed a hood. Then it closed over his face. He was able to breathe through his nose and his mouth, but his nostrils and lips were coated with the film of flesh. He felt activity at the top and back of his head, and realized that the cap over his hair was growing hair of its own, extending down to his shoulders. Nepe was transforming his appearance!

There was a squeeze on his right arm. He looked at it, and saw that it was now visible: smooth and white, with silver-tinted nails. Then he remembered Nepe’s instructions: she put pressure on the side from which she wanted him to turn, guiding him in the manner of a horse. He turned, then walked forward as he felt guiding pressure at his backside.

At the side of the chamber a mirror hung on the wall. He went to it and looked at his reflection—and was amazed.

Not only was he visible now—he looked exactly like a beautiful woman! His hair was silvery, his eyes an echoing gray, long-lashed and large. His chest was a bosom, with extremely full and well-formed breasts. His waist was high and small, his hips wide, his legs well fleshed. There was no trace of his penis or testicles; he now had the dainty cleft of maidenhood. He was the image of a creature who, in other circumstances, he would have been glad to embrace.

Except that he was man-sized. As a woman, he was an Amazon. That would make others take unwanted notice.

His flesh-covering quivered. Then the image in the mirror fuzzed and re-formed—smaller. Nepe had done magic of some sort, and made him smaller—no, made him appear smaller, for only his reflection had diminished. That meant he would have to avoid contact with others as much as possible, to preserve the illusion.

Nepe—magic? No, that wasn’t the way it worked. She must have had a spell provided by Flach, maybe an amulet to be invoked. Amulets didn’t have to be like gems or dolls; one could be as small as a single hair, carried in her substance.

His respect for the child increased another notch. She had evidently prepared well for this mission of hers. If she was only a part of a larger plan of resistance, that plan must be formidable!

She guided him back to his original place, and to his clothing. He put on robe and sandals—and as he did so, they changed appearance and became feminine. He realized that he could have masqueraded as a woman much more simply by having his clothing changed and stuffed, but for some reason Nepe wanted him authentic through to the buff.

He stood in the center of the chamber, before the door, and waited. In a few minutes there was the sound of someone approaching, and the door opened.

Brown stood there. She stared at him, evidently astonished. It was a sentiment he could appreciate.

“Thou needs must come—“ she started, faltering as her eyes continued to travel over the apparition. Lysander realized that she had sent Tsetse away somewhere, so knew this was someone else, yet could not verify it by sight.

Now his lips felt pressure, and he knew it was time to speak. He said the most neutral thing he could think of, knowing that his voice would ruin the illusion. “Yes, of course, Brown. Whatever you say.” And was astonished again, himself. The voice he heard was not his own, but that of a woman. The illusion changed the sound, too!

The Hectare had sadly misjudged the power of magic! Lysander had not even believed in it, when he arrived, and though the Hectare in charge had surely researched it, they could hardly have appreciated its nuances. For the first time, Lysander suffered a twinge of doubt about the certainty of continuing Hectare hegemony here. Magic was a game that could change the rules of any other game!

Brown recovered. “Something has come up. I am to be Purple’s second in a game against a Hectare.”

The lip pressure came again, so again he spoke the obvious. “A game against a Hectare! But don’t they make natives—?” He broke it off deliberately, as he wasn’t sure how much Tsetse would know.

“Aye. Needs must we help Purple win. Now come.” He followed her out of the chamber and out of the castle itself. A small airplane waited there, and Citizen Purple was there, in his purple robe. “You can keep your clothing. Brown,” he said as they climbed in, “but she’s a serf.”

Now he understood why Nepe had taken the trouble to fashion a complete illusion. He wormed his way out of the robe and became the gloriously naked serf woman. Brown helped him. and he knew by her fleeting expression that when she touched his real flesh—rather, Nepe’s coating of flesh over his—she felt his real size, and knew the nature of the illusion. But of course she would protect the secret. He knew only that Nepe had to get past the Hectare guard devices to fetch something, and that Brown was helping.

The clothing resumed its original appearance as he doffed it. He wadded it up into a ball and wedged it under the seat; he should be able to pick it up on his return. If not—well, Purple probably wouldn’t pay attention to it anyway.

They flew to the city, then got a ride to a Citizen transport chamber. Citizen Purple paid no attention to Lysander; evidently he had been so completely fooled that he wasn’t challenging anything he didn’t have to. If he caught on, Nepe would be done for—and she knew she was depending on a Hectare agent for the success of her ruse. The child had phenomenal nerve!

Purple touched a button. One wall of the chamber became a video screen. It showed Purple himself challenging the particular Hectare he worked with to a game.

Hoo! As an act of foolhardiness, that could hardly be surpassed. But of course Purple hadn’t done it; he had been framed. Lysander understood now how apt Nepe was at emulations; she could have made herself resemble Purple and recorded that challenge, and had it sent to the Hectare when she was safely away.

She had a grudge against Purple; Lysander hoped she never had a grudge against him!

Purple nodded. “Flach/Nepe,” he said. “I’ve tangled with that brat before. If I don’t kill her, she’ll kill me.”

Obviously Nepe could do that, any time she chose. But she wasn’t attacking Purple, she was using him. His understandable nervousness about the high-stakes game with the Hectare was causing him to be careless, as she had anticipated, and she was pulling a stunt Purple didn’t dream of.

But it seemed that Purple had coerced Brown into putting her golems at the disposal of the Hectare invader, and to serve him personally without trying to do him direct harm. Brown had evidently agreed because Purple was blackmailing her—but also because this allowed her to help Nepe. What a devious interaction this was!

They proceeded to the Game Annex, where the Hectare and its second waited. Its second was Tan. That gave Lysander a momentary start, but he realized that it made sense; the Hectare were playing the game by local rules, and needed competent local advice. So the two quislings were on opposite sides in this matter, but united in their support for the invader. Another interesting situation!

The game proceeded. The irrepressible Game Computer discarded their grid choices, as was its wont, and assigned them a competitive play set in ancient Crete, of planet Earth’s history. The chamber assumed the likeness of the old stone palace.

Too bad he had been unable to obtain access to the game source code. He could have found out why it aborted the regular grid, and corrected the malfunction. But now that he knew that the Adepts had known his nature, he understood why Blue had given him make-work instead of real work. That malfunction must relate in some way to the Adepts’ plotting.

The Hectare selected an actress by picking her up and carrying her away. She was a robot, but she screamed protest and kicked her feet, seeming exactly like a ravished maiden. Lysander thought of Echo, and could believe it. The robots of this planet were extremely sophisticated, emulating human beings almost perfectly.

He would have liked to watch the game, but his lips and legs felt Nepe’s pressure. That meant she had somewhere else to go, and he would have to make an excuse. “I don’t care to watch this,” he said in Tsetse’s dulcet voice, and backed away. Brown saw her, and did not protest. No one cared about a serf servant when there was more interesting business afoot. In a moment he was out of the chamber and on his own.

Nepe had achieved the first pan of her plan: she had gotten them past the Hectare alerts, that would have stopped them had they not been an authorized part of Purple’s party. But what was next?

Guided by her pressure on his legs and backside, he walked down the hall, not to the concourse, but to a service area. When there was no one to observe, he ducked into the machine passages, and caught a rubbish cart to the Hectare district. Nepe was playing a dangerous game!

They came to a particular apartment. Suddenly Lysander realized whose it must be: the Hectare who was playing the game with Purple! Not only was Nepe using Lysander to assume grown human form, and using Purple to get past the alerts, she was raiding the Hectare’s den itself, while the game kept it occupied.

They came to a service access panel. Now there was pressure on his hands and on his back: she wanted him to go forward through the panel. But of course he couldn’t do that; it was closed, and any attempt by an unauthorized party to force it open would set off a strident alarm. In fact, entry by the wrong party would do the same, even if no force was used. Only the Hectare code would do, here. Which meant that Nepe knew about that, too. The Adepts had done a real job of investigation on him!

Very well. He had to cooperate if he was to get to the root of their plot, even if he facilitated that plot along the way. Nepe’s nervy plot had him in thrall too. If he didn’t do it, they would find someone else to, or some other way; he knew that the Hectare had seriously underestimated the cunning of the resistance. Which was, of course, why agents like him were assigned. He represented the backup, to make sure that there were no devastating surprises. He had already learned enough to justify that policy.

He tapped in the code pattern. The panel slid open. He stepped into the apartment, setting off no alarm.

Nepe guided him to an antechamber, where a special unit sat on a table. She made him use the Hectare code to open it. Inside, carefully aerated and protected from all shocks of motion or temperature, lay a set of small, intertwined tentacles.

Lysander stared. Oh, no! Only now did he appreciate the full daring of Nepe’s mission. This was a Hectare seed!

Lysander’s brain had been taken from a living Hectare whose body had suffered irreparable damage. His memories of his prior life had been eliminated, but his knowledge of Hectare custom and culture had remained, so that he would never lose his fundamental identity. He knew the significance of this seed, and knew that Nepe knew it too. The Adepts must have done meticulous research, and acquainted her with exactly what she needed to know.

Human beings reproduced in the fashion of their mammalian kind: the male, when amorously inclined, used his organ of intromission to insert a number—a considerable number—of viable seeds in the receptive chamber of the female. The species was so organized that there was continual interest in this activity, so that such insertions were made even when there was no reasonable prospect for viability. This was what he had done with Alyc, and thought to do with Jod’e, and had done most recently with Echo. He knew that his android body did not produce viable seed; it would never merge with the female seed and form a new living entity. Only with the help of laboratory enhancement could an android produce offspring. Female androids generally served as brood mares for the embryos of living human women who preferred not to interrupt their social schedules by being gravid. Humanoid robot females could do the same, to a lesser extent. How magic affected this he wasn’t sure; strange things were happening on the planet, and perhaps strange crossbreeds were occurring. Nepe herself was an example.

Hectare reproduced differently. They were of one sex, but did pair off to breed. Under their mantle of tentacles, normally concealed from exterior view, were their appendages, which were small and immobile tentacles. Periodically one of these would ripen, at which time the Hectare would seek a compatible Hectare with a similarly ripened member. The two would approach each other and if the compatibility persisted, engage in what the human kind would term a sexual encounter. Their two ripe tentacles would twine around each other, and in the ecstasy of the experience, the Hectare would separate and break off the members. The interlocked tentacles, each containing the chromosomal complement of the parent, represented the nucleus of a new Hectare.

But the course of development was not automatic. The Hectare seed had to be planted in the soil of the home planet, the only place where it would grow. It could survive in stasis for a time, originally brief but with the aid of modern technology up to a year, if the proper environment was maintained. That was the purpose of the housing unit: it provided the environment of stasis, so that the seed could be shipped to the home planet for planting. Hectare did not have families; all seeds were treated equivalently in the protected nursery. They sent out roots to gather nutrients, and drew energy from the sun. They also developed their mantles of tentacles to catch insects and other prey, and their eye complexes, that gave them their beauty. In time they achieved the mass and resources to enable them to become mobile. As they did so, they were captured by the nursery caretakers and brought to special chambers for education. In due course they would emerge as adult Hectare, ready to participate in Hectare civilization, and to help extend it to other planets.

What did the human resistance want with a Hectare seed?

The covering of flesh that made him resemble the woman Tsetse rippled and changed. Nepe’s main mass was overlaid at his chest and hips; this now drew the thinner sections into itself, forming a single mass at the region of his stomach. As it slid away from his legs and arms he saw nothing: he remained magically invisible, even to himself.

A mouth formed in the bloated belly he now carried. “Lift me to the seed, then carry me away from here swiftly.”

Lysander did not like this at all. He was after all Hectare himself, despite the human body and human attributes he had assumed. How far did his mission require him to go? To interfere with a Hectare seed would be to provoke a ferment that could bring about extraordinary mischief.

But if he did not, Nepe would probably turn him in, and his chance to fathom the Adept plot would be gone. She was putting him to the test, and there would be no evasion.

He made his decision. Better to sacrifice one Hectare seed than the mission, because the mission could affect the Hectare dominance of this planet. What was one seed, which might not survive, compared to the planet, which was important in its small fashion to the alliance dominance of the galaxy?

He put his hands on the ball of flesh that was Nepe and heaved it up and over the unit. She weighed about half as much as a grown man, and probably never would get beyond three-quarters man-weight, but what a creature she already was! The Hectare, if they but could know it, should be thankful that there was only one of her on the planet. As it was, even that one might be more than they could handle. Two would swamp them!

A pseudopod extended from the mass, depending toward the seed. It touched the seed, and enfolded it, and then retracted, carrying the seed. In a moment he held the ball again, with the Hectare seed hidden inside it.

He moved the glob to the side and down; his arms were tiring. He didn’t know whether Nepe wanted to clothe him again, or do something else, and hesitated to inquire. There was probably an aural monitor that would set off an alarm at the sound of his voice. Nepe had spoken, but she might know of the monitor and how to avoid triggering it. She seemed to know everything else, including exactly how to use him to achieve her mission.

There was pressure on one side of his hands, from protoplasm that wrapped around them, so he carried her that way. It was toward the service access panel they had used to enter. He put a foot through, then carefully shifted to bring Nepe through. But the extra weight was awkward, and his shoulder brushed the edge of the opening.

Immediately an alarm sounded. A device in the ceiling spun about, searching for the intrusion; the moment it spotted him, a laser beam or worse would strike. They were in for it now!

Lysander jammed his body through the hole and shoved to the side, to get out of the line of fire. But there wasn’t room for them both; Nepe would get tagged. So he heaved her into the darkness beyond like a big bowling ball, rolling her out of danger. Then he tapped the Hectare “At Ease” code on the wall.

The alarm silenced. The Hectare codes overrode all else. But the brief sounding of the alarm would alert the Hectare security force, and there would be a prompt investigation. He had to get far away from here in a hurry!

He closed the access, so that their mode of exit would not be immediately apparent, and let his eyes adjust to the darkness. He knew there was very little time to waste.

Where was Nepe? She had disappeared, and he just had to trust that she would know how to manage; he would only get them both caught if he searched for her.

He would probably get caught anyway! He heard a machine coming his way, and there was nowhere to scramble out of its way. He huddled against the dark metal wall, waiting for whatever offered.

It was a delivery wagon, self-propelled and empty. It evidently did double duty as a cleanup unit, sent automatically when the alarm went off. It came to the dead-end that was Lysander’s niche, and flashed a beam directly on him.

And through him! The magic still made him invisible, and the machine didn’t see him! It spun around and rolled away. He had assumed that the effect was limited to the perception of living creatures. He had underestimated it again.

How far did this magic extend? His shoulder had set off the alarm, and Brown had felt his real body (as covered by Nepe), so obviously touch was not included. Nepe had told him not to speak, so sound probably was not included either. But could he walk with impunity among the machines, as long as he did not touch them? It was worth trying.

He walked, and the machines ignored him. He made his way down the dark passage, walking between the tracks of the delivery system. It was working!

Then he heard a larger machine coming—and there was no room to get out of the way. If it did not see him, it would run him down. He turned and sprinted for the last alcove, but the machine was too fast; he knew it would overhaul him first.

Then it slowed, and he made it to the alcove and swung himself out of the way. The machine moved past, picking up speed, and in a moment was gone.

Lysander had to pause to think about that. There had been no reason for the machine to slow; it was a level track, and it had the programmed right-of-way. No reason to slow—except to avoid hitting Lysander.

The machine had known he was there, yet given no other indication. What did that mean?

Nepe’s father Mach was a self-willed machine. He must have given a directive, that the machines obeyed. To ignore Lysander as if they did not see him, but not to hurt him. So that he could complete his mission for the Adepts. The magic did not after all affect the machines, but their orders did.

He felt a shiver. He was sure the Hectare did not know about this. How much else was going on under their noses? If a machine could be instructed to ignore a spy, why couldn’t it be instructed to assassinate a Hectare leader?

He was right to pursue his mission, even though it facilitated the opposition. He had to get down to the fundamental ploy of the resistance. The Adepts might let him do that, because they believed they could not win without his help. He was now less certain about that than they were. This planet was deviously dangerous.

He made his way to an exit panel near the concourse. He would have to get out, trusting his spell of invisibility to humans and avoidance by machines to protect him, and try to find Nepe. She still needed his help, for she could not masquerade as Tsetse alone.

He opened the panel and stepped out. He took one step—and a serf blundered into him. Lysander had done the most elementarily foolish thing: he had assumed that other people would automatically avoid collisions. But they couldn’t, because Lysander was invisible to them. They were not machines.

“Hey, there’s a man here!” the serf exclaimed, groping as he caught his balance. “I can’t see him!”

Citizen Tan’s voice came over the speaker system. “Hold him! We want him!”

Lysander brought up his hand and pinched the man’s neck, making him gasp with pain and let go. But half a dozen others were now closing in. These were serfs who had volunteered to serve in the new order; they wore the identifying arm bands with tentacle pattern that denoted lesser collaborators. They spread their arms, to prevent anyone unseen from passing by them, and more were converging from beyond. Lysander knew he would not be able to fight his way clear of this. All because of his completely stupid mistake!

Then another serf lurched toward him. Lysander got one look at the man’s face—before it vanished. The man had turned invisible!

“Duck down, crawl away,” a voice beside him said. “Nepe’s waiting next intersection. I’ll distract them.”

Lysander didn’t question it. He ducked down just as the first serf of the closing ring made contact. The man might have fell his touch, but immediately contacted the other invisible man and grabbed on to him. “I’ve got him! I’ve got him!” he yelled— before his breath whooshed out from what must have been a blow to the solar plexus.

Lysander slid around and between legs, and got clear as the melee proceeded. Who was the other man? He had never seen him before. Yet obviously the man had not only seen Lysander, he had recognized him—and known his mission with Nepe.

He hurried down to the next intersection, getting well clear of the action behind. He skirted a standing guidebot, but felt a thread extending from it. He paused, then touched it with a finger.

It was warm and alive. It was Nepe in disguise.

Now the machine moved, evidently called for duty somewhere else. Lysander followed. They entered the side hall and got out of sight of the pedestrians. Then they ducked into an empty food alcove.

Nepe was already flattening. Lysander heaved her up and draped her thinning body over his shoulders. He stood nervously while she spread out across his body, making it visible; the process was not instantaneous, and if someone came right now—

No one came. Nepe completed the transformation. He did not need to look in any mirror; he saw the breasts and hips. He was a visible woman again.

Guided by her, he walked onto the concourse. There was Brown, looking about. They approached her. There was pressure at his lips. “I’m sorry,” he said in Tsetse’s voice. “I didn’t know your game was through.”

“It’s all right, Tsetse,” Brown said. “We have passes to leave. My golems will carry us back to the castle.”

She showed the way to a public exit, where they stood and waited for half an hour. Then a horse appeared, running toward the city. It was a wooden horse—a golem—with a wooden carriage behind.

They boarded the carriage, and the horse set off for home. “Citizen Purple won his game,” Brown said. “I was able to assist him, and I think he was pleased. I must say he has treated me better than I expected.”

“I’m glad,” Lysander said. He did not feel free to say anything else; Purple might have this carriage under observation, as a routine precaution.

They drew up to the Brown Demesnes. “I thank thee for thy company, Tsetse,” Brown said, reverting to her Phaze self. “I will need thee not again this day; do as thou willst.”

“Thank you, Brown,” Lysander said carefully. She knew that her companion was not the real Tsetse, but did she know who it really was?

They entered the castle. Brown went to her room, probably to lie down; she had had a wearing session, he was sure. Nepe guided him to the golem storage room.

There she drew away from him, and formed her natural self, the naked girl. “We can talk now, Lysander,” she said. “This castle is secure, when Purp’s not here. I just wanted you to get rehearsed for your role, before. You did well.”

“Thank you. But what happened to the Hectare seed? You didn’t lose it, after all that?”

She patted her abdomen. “No, I have it in here. I never thought I’d be pregnant at age nine!”

She was a Moebite, of course, able to assume any form; she could as readily carry an object inside her in human form as when she was in ball form or machine form. This allowed her to function normally while maintaining a suitable environment for the seed, so as not to let it die. Still, her remark surprised him. He had absorbed enough of human culture to know that human children did not procreate any more than immature Hectare did. “Glad I could be of help, getting you pregnant,” he said dryly.

“You aren’t finished. We have to take the Hec seed to the West Pole.”

“That’s where your center of operations is?”

“You don’t think I’ll tell you,” she accused him mischievously. “But I will. The answer is, I don’t know where our setup is, and neither does anybody else. All I know is that I have to get a Hec seed to the West Pole, and then I’ll see what else I have to do.”

“So if I want to find out, I’ll have to keep helping you.”

“Right. We’re making you fulfill the prophecy, even if you don’t like it. But you’ll get a choice somewhere, I think, if you stay with it.”

“You play a nervy game!”

“I’ve had experience. I can’t save the planet alone, so I’m recruiting whatever I need. You helped a lot, especially with the Hec code to null the alarm. Now we can relax, until Tsetse comes back. Then a long walk, so you better rest.”

“Why not change to Flach and conjure us there?”

“Two reasons. First, he couldn’t carry the seed like this, so it has to be me. Second, Purp’s got magic warners out, to spy on any Adept-level magic in Phaze. So the small stuff, like invisibility, is about all that’ll pass. So I have to hoof it, and I can’t make it by myself in time, so I need you and Echo to help.”

“Echo’s coming with us?” he asked, his human heart coming alive. The pressure and oddity of events had distracted him, but now he missed her intensely.

“You bet. We make it nice for you, so you’ll think about joining our side. Same way as Purp makes it nice for Brown. So he’s got her working for him, and I’ve got you working for me.”

“But Brown is still helping you against the Hectare, and I’m still working for the Hectare.”

“Yep. You can’t get full use out of an enemy. But you do what you can.”

“Who was that man who took my place, so I could get away from the serfs? He turned invisible?”

“That was Bane. My father, aka the Robot Adept.”

“Oh! He distracted them, then conjured himself clear!”

“No. After Flach conjured you and Echo out, Purp got wise and set up a magic barricade against conjuration and transformation in the dome. That’s why Flach couldn’t just conjure himself in to steal the Hec seed; I had to do it. He could’ve overridden Purp’s magic, but it would have made a splash, and alerted the Hecs. Tan’s got splash-watch, I think. He’s been having a lot of fun with Jod’e, but he watches the warners all the time. So we had to do it the hard way. Good thing it worked.”

Jod’e—that still hurt, though now he had other love. “You mean your father let himself be captured—to help me escape?” Lysander asked, astonished. “Knowing that I’m an enemy agent?”

“He did that. Just as Green and Black gave themselves up to spring Flach. We need you, ‘Sander.”

“You have more faith in your prophecy than I do!”

“We know magic better than you do. Now eat something, if you need it; there’s some food in a chest in the comer. And sleep; you can dream of Echo. One good night is all we have before it gets rough.”

At this point, he believed it.