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people, new wealth, new possibilities maybe still more than we Terrans would and if in the long run it
leads to making Mars come truly alive, why, they are human too. The prospect of getting into space again
in earnest excites them tre-mendously. Here at home, they mainly want to make sure their race won't
ever be subjects of a Life Mother as they think of it and they realize that if they cooperate from the
very beginning, when their help will be inval-uable, they can arrange the terms they want.
Now lately I have heard that the leaders of the Threedom no, not strictly 'leaders,' Lunarians aren't
like that, but you understand me they too are in favor. They're in occasional beamcast contact with
Proserpina, that's no high secret, and now Elverir has told me the Proserpinans may well offer to help
with the project too. It would be an entry for them, back into the inner System and, yes, of course
they'd expect to make profits but it could also lead to a reconciliation between the Threedom and the
Republic, the disbanding of the Inrai. Anyway, that was my first thought. I know it won't be easy. Some
of the Inrai are probably irreconcilable. I know something about the wildest ones, like a man named
Tanir. But never mind for now. This is looking too far ahead. Just the same, there's hope, isn't there?
"Maybe more to the point, we know the Proserpinans are in touch with the people out among the stars.
Could this, your work, Fenn, could it somehow start bringing all humans everywhere back together?
How could that be wrong?
"I'm not sure about asking Chuan this. I mean, he's bound to learn the same things, if he hasn't already,
but what will he say to me? I do care about him. Maybe I'll wait to hear from you, what you think, before
I do any-thing except keep on with my very ordinary life here."
The text ended and Kinna's image reappeared. Fenn stopped play. "Now that's news," he said, turning
his look on Wanika. "Not totally unexpected, but news worth getting."
"The girl is scarcely an intelligence agent," she an-swered without enthusiasm.
No, no. But she has a lot of contacts, and knows the situation from the inside out.... We should tell her
to give future communications quantum encryption. We can pay for it, and who knows what difference it
might make?"
"It would draw attention, and suspicion."
Fenn chuckled. "It would suggest something private on between her and me."
Wanika glanced away. Perhaps.... But why are you suddenly so wary?"
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He bristled. "Why give away information when we've got a fight ahead of us?"
"Do we?" Her eyes came back to dwell on him. "You're charging ahead toward your glorious vision
you, personally, free in space. They're more conservative in the Lahui councils. They have more to
consider also beyond their own lives. They'll weigh the advice of the cybercosm of the Teramind, if it
chooses to speak di-rectly tq us."
"Of course." He straightened. "But you don't belong to the cybercosm, do you? We don't. And it admits
it can't prophesy. How then can it prove any big change will be for the worse? It isn't even human."
"I know, I know," she sighed. "You talk like lokepa and so many others. Like me, most times, except
that I have my misgivings once in a while. Oh, yes, we will go ahead, for the time being at least. So far,
we're only investigating the feasibility. But this mention of the Pro-serpinans joining in it does make me
wonder."
She rose from her chair. "I think I would like to walk around a bit. Let me know if your friend has
anything else important to say. I'll be back in an hour or two, and we can go to dinner." Her hand stroked
his cheek as she left.
He puzzled briefly over what she had in mind. She was seldom this moody. He forgot the thought when
he reactivated the playback.
Not that there was anything special in the remainder. Kinna smiled and said, "I'm glad that's done with.
Aren't you? But I'm sorry not to've been more helpful. Do call back if I can do anything further, or if you
just feel like swapping words. I'll try to keep abreast of things, the quiet things, I mean, that don't get on
the newscasts. Have it well, Fenn, trouvour. Ai devu," and that was a Lunarian good-bye with
unsentimentally wish-ful overtones heard in no Terran language. She waved aeain. The screen blanked.
13
THEIR HIRED SUBORBITAL took Fenn and He'o to Port Bowen. There they immediately engaged a
minicar on the monorail. On the ride south to Tychopolis they left the interior darkened. Fenn was
content to rest, presently falling asleep in his recliner. Even for him, the past day-cycles had been
strenuous, not least because he must of-ten help his friend as they and their machines scrambled around
Archimedes Crater and the adjacent highlands. The metamorph lay quietly on his cart, but awake and
looking outward. He did not watch the Lunar landscape and the occasional works of humankind or
.cybercosm leaping over the horizon and streaming past. He kept his eyes from half-phase Earth, which
would have dazzled night vision away. His gaze was for the stars.
Fenn roused as the car surmounted the ringwall, slow-ing. He blinked, stretched, and said, "Well, amigo,
here we are. It's been quite a circuit, hasn't it?"
"Wearying." Beneath the slow synthetic voice went a sigh as of waves. "Now we shall soon forsake
space. I long for my sea."
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"And your wives, no?"
Fenn regretted his jape when He'o replied, "Are you not eager to be with Wanika again?''
The man felt himself hesitate, and swore silently, be-fore he said, "Yes, she's a fine one."
The seal head aimed straight at him. "I fear she has found you a little ... kauwi drawing apart from her,
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