"I'll go back first," Nona said.
No one argued. She was Tom's closest companion, apart from the other Felines.
Burgess carried her back. The island was empty. "Tom!" she called. "Tom! Where are you?" But of course he was not in the Mode, and could not hear her.
She walked across the island. It was almost level and barren. She could see that Tom was nowhere on it. Had he somehow fallen into the water and drowned? Yet she knew he could swim.
"Burgess, let's circle the island," she said, trying to keep her voice calm. There was little in the universe quite so final as being lost on a Virtual Mode. "We must be missing something." How could he have disappeared?
Burgess carried her in a loop around the island. Its shoreline jumped back and forth slightly as they crossed Mode boundaries, showing that it had not weathered evenly in adjacent Modes.
They completed the circuit of the island. Tom never appeared. Nona's nervousness increased. What could have happened to him?
She had a horrible thought. "The DoOon pursuers, could they have come and gotten him?" She wished she could communicate directly with Burgess; he could understand her, but his thoughts were opaque to her. She didn't have Colene's mind-reading talent. "No, that's impossible; even if they are following, they could do it that fast—and why would they give themselves away? They want Tom with us."
What were they to do? She couldn't just leave Tom here, yet neither could she find him. She just couldn't accept the idea that he had drowned. He wouldn't be that careless.
"Go around again, closer," she said. Burgess obliged, floating right at the edge of the island, so that the land was on their right, the water on their left. The shore flickered under them as they crossed Modes, never varying very far.
Then, suddenly, it changed. They were over land, extending as far as she could see. "It's a discontinuity!" she exclaimed. "But how could it be here—with no sidewise extension?" Yet it was the case, for in a moment the water returned.
They explored it, and found that it was a mere patch of a Mode, an island of its own, entirely surrounded by sea Modes. It had no sidewise extension. "So the layer cake analogy is not completely correct," she said. "Modes can overlay intermittently."
Tom was still gone, but now she had a hint of how he could have gotten lost. He could have walked around the island—and suddenly found himself here. And if there were another Mode of this type—"Cover every part of this island Mode," she said. "There must be another discontinuity."
Burgess floated in a pattern back and forth, canvassing the spot Mode. Each time he passed back into the sea Modes, he turned around.
Then he spun around so suddenly that Nona almost slid off. "What's the matter?" she cried, grasping one of his contact points.
The thought came back: a picture of an abyss.
"Oh, another Mode. A discontinuity!" She climbed off, then got on her belly and crawled toward the place where he had balked. It looked like an endless plain, but as her head crossed the Mode line, she found herself peering down into an abyss. No, it was a landscape set significantly lower than the one they were in. That was why Burgess had balked: his forward sensors had picked it up, and he had reversed before plunging into it. Because he could not fly; he floated, on a roiling cushion of air trapped between his body and the ground. He might have cushioned his fall somewhat, if he landed upright, but then would not be able to return.
She angled her head so that she could look back. There was a mountain rising in the direction pointed at by her now-unseen feet. Its peak was at her present level. Too bad that mountain didn't quite coincide with their island; then they could safely step from one Mode to the other.
Then she realized that this new Mode might be the same, only without the water. That mountain was the island, near but not identical. If Tom had fallen here—
"Nona!"
She turned her head again, orienting on the sound. There was Tom, coming into view about twenty feet below, carrying a stone. "Tom!" she cried, enormously relieved. "Are you all right?"
"It was a hard landing, but we Felines are good at landings. I fell, and could not return. The neighboring Modes are rock or water."
And he could not simply step into deep rock. He might step into water, and swim to the top, but then he would fall again when he tried to cross back to this Mode. He might have been able to swim around it—but not if it was a regular one, with infinitely extending sides. He had to cross here—and couldn't leap high enough to reach this level of land.
"What are you doing?" she asked.
"Piling rocks from the sides, to make a mound high enough."
That made sense. Then he could jump from the top of the rock pile to this Mode. "It will be easier to pull you up with a rope," she said. "Darius has one. It has to be an anchor Mode rope, to reach across Modes."
"That sounds good," he said.
She drew her head back across the boundary. "Burgess, leave me here. Fetch Darius back. We need his rope to rescue Tom."
Burgess floated away and disappeared in a moment. She turned back to Tom, poking her head across. "How did this happen?"
"I was walking around the isle, then found myself in a land Mode, and then suddenly fell. I had never suspected something like this."
"Neither did we, and we're experienced Virtual Mode travelers. An island discontinuity connecting to a waterless section of a Mode. We've never seen this combination before. Oh, Tom, I'm glad you weren't hurt!"
"Thank you, Nona. I regret being a nuisance."
"It was an accident! Not your fault that you fell."
He paused. "That, too," he agreed. Then he laughed, and she realized that her statement had indeed had a double meaning. He had fallen in love, and then physically, but both were nuisances to her.
Soon Burgess returned, carrying Darius. Darius wore a coil of rope around a shoulder, for just such occasions. Normal rope from a nonanchor realm could not cross the Mode boundaries by itself. It could be carried across, but became discontinuous, and could not be used to haul farther than whatever Mode it was in.
Darius lay on the ground beside her and poked his head across. "This is interesting," he said. "This route is by no means obvious. Perhaps we should take it instead of the one we have been using. The DoOon folk may never find it."
Nona hadn't thought of that. "But can we reach our anchors from here?"
"I suspect we can. Any route will do; the problem is with the discontinuities, physical hazards, or living threats. The island Mode section serves as a link to another normal Mode segment that should return us to normal land at some point."
"All right," she agreed. "If the others care to try it."
He withdrew his head to talk to Burgess. "We'll be back in a moment," she called to Tom, then followed him.
Burgess was already going, leaving Darius behind. "He will ferry the others here. If they don't agree, we can haul Tom up and continue island hopping."
"That's fair," she agreed.
He looked at her. "Nona, while we are alone—you don't wish to marry me?"
"Colene told?"
"Yes. When I thought about it, I realized that your aversion is natural. You need a man who will appreciate you for yourself, not your magic or your joy."
"That's true. No offense to you, Darius; you're an ideal man. But I would not take you from Colene if I could, and would not wish any ill to her to make you available. I think I must go my own way."
"Have you considered Tom?"
"Tom? He's a null."
"When I traveled with Doe, I came to realize that the nulls are fully human inside, and worthy of fully human relationships. Tom has qualities I think you should appreciate. He loves you without concern for your magic, which he has never seen, or your joy, which does not relate in my absence. I doubt you will find another man who is not conscious of these things."
She was amazed. "But you need a vessel of undiminishable joy, so you can love Colene."
"Not at the price of your happine
ss. I could marry Pussy in the normal manner of my profession, and provide her with a normal retirement thereafter. I think that would still be better for her than what she faces in her home Mode."
"But Colene doesn't want you with Pussy!"
"Colene suggested it."
She stared at him. "Mind reading must be very liberalizing."
"It is. Colene is a realist, and she likes Pussy. But if Pussy does not return to DoOon, that leaves the Feline trio incomplete. If you cared to take Tom—"
"What of Cat?"
"He will carry the Chip back. He can do that alone. Then he could return to join us in my Mode."
"So we would all be together at the end," she said, seeing it. "That does appeal."
"Colene would like us to be together. But we are missing Seqiro. That is the complication."
"That is the complication," she agreed. "I will consider the matter."
Then she put her head back to talk to Tom. "We're bringing the others here," she said. "We may follow you through this Mode."
"This is feasible?"
"We think so."
Then a hand touched Nona's ankle. She recognized Colene's touch. She drew back.
"Seems good to me," Colene said. "I see Darius talked to you."
"He suggested Tom."
"You sure don't have to. We're just trying to patch things together for when we finally get off the Virtual Mode. Maybe it's a bad idea."
"I don't know. I just never thought of Tom in that manner."
"I know. But if it weren't for Darius and my hang-up, I could see being with Tom. So I figured you might too."
Nona was still trying to orient on the idea. "I will consider the matter," she repeated.
The others arrived. Then they used the rope to lower themselves down one by one to join Tom. Nona was first. When she reached the ground, Tom caught her, to steady her. She turned into him and kissed him.
He was astonished. "I do not understand."
"Neither do I," she said. "Consider it your reward for not getting killed. You must promise not to get lost like this again."
"I will try," he said humbly.
Burgess was the anchor for the rope. When it was his turn, they worked together to build up the rock pile Tom had started, so that it formed a rough ramp to the other level. Burgess was able to jolt slowly down that, with their help.
They considered whether to remove the ramp, and decided not to, because they might need it themselves if they had to return this way. It would be a giveaway of their passage here, if the DoOons found this site, but probably the DoOons would already know.
They followed the new Mode's side extension, poking at the boundaries every so often. Sometimes there was water, and sometimes impenetrable rock. But in time this slice rose, until they were able to cross to the shore of another. Thereafter they proceeded normally, crossing from Mode to barren Mode.
The first vegetation appeared. Nona made an exclamation of delight. "We're getting beyond the ruined Modes!"
Colene paused, looking strange. "Are you all right?" Pussy asked.
The girl's eyes were dreamy. "I think I feel Seqiro."
"He's finding us?" Nona asked, thrilled. For the horse's powerful mind was able to link them all together telepathically, and to provide them with each other's powers, to an extent. His return, even if it were only mental, would make a phenomenal difference.
"Yes, to a degree. He hasn't located us specifically, but he's orienting on our party, and the rapport should get stronger as we go. At first we'll just be linking minds, but as he closes in it will get stronger. Oh, Seqiro! How I missed you!"
Now Nona felt the faint touch on her mind, and knew it was true. It was like hearing a distant melody, but it was definitely Seqiro, and she liked him too.
"This is the telepathic horse?" Cat asked. "The one who foiled Ddwng before?"
"Yes," Darius said. "But I will honor my commitment. Seqiro will help us get safely through."
"This telepathy," Pussy said. "Will we Felines feel it too?"
"You may," Colene said. "I may be able to project to you; then you'll know. When it becomes complete, we'll all be able to know each other's minds without speaking."
"Is this necessary?" Tom asked.
Nona believed she understood his reticence. "You prefer that I not receive your thoughts?"
"I fear they would embarrass you."
Colene glanced at him. "I doubt it. But you can ask Seqiro to cut you out of the circuit. Mind sharing brings tolerance."
They walked on, crossing the Modes, orienting on an anchor. Nona wasn't sure which one. That was the nature of traveling the Virtual Mode: they had an awareness of anchors, but couldn't necessarily distinguish between them until they got close to one. But they were definitely making progress.
FIVE
Earth
Burgess felt it the moment Seqiro's questing mind found them. He liked the horse, because he made communication and understanding easy. Burgess had felt isolated when they lost the horse in the DoOon Mode. Only Colene's faint telepathy and the good will of the others had sustained him. Fortunately he had come to understand their auditory utterances well enough to get along, and when one of them touched one of his contact points he could answer to a crude degree. But there was no substitute for the oneness they had had before. Now he was coming back into their hive, and it was wonderful.
They were crossing Modes, and Cat was with him. Cat had made a special and continuing effort to relate, and that had helped. Cat had become his companion when the others were busy, and now Cat was almost as easy to relate to as Colene. But none of them could match Seqiro.
They had traveled far, and were increasingly tired, so when they came again to the living Modes, they sought a place to rest. Burgess was good at odors, and soon found a region that was clean and healthy. It was by a pond in a river, where fish swam, and there were no large predators. There were fruiting trees and edible plants, but the others did not eat them, because either they would lose the sustenance when they crossed Modes, or would digest it and have it become part of them, eventually complicating their ability to return to their anchor Modes. Burgess, however, had no choice; he fed constantly on tiny debris in the air. Still, their time in the DoOon anchor Mode had restored him considerably, and he was in no immediate difficulty.
He searched around and assembled a pile of small spherical stones. If anything did attack in the night, he would blow those out his aft trunk with sufficient force to discourage further intrusion. If that did not suffice, they could all move across a Mode boundary, and the threat would be gone. A boundary was always within about one human body length, so it was not hard to do.
The others made a temporary shelter of local materials and settled down beneath it. That was all right, as none of its substance was crossing the boundaries. They had to place it carefully so that it did not overlap a second Mode, because the extra would simply vanish.
Burgess let his air subside to subsistence level, his carapace coming to rest on the ground. Cat came to join him. The others paired off, Darius with Colene, Pussy next to Colene, and Tom with Nona. All of their thoughts were slowly growing louder as the ambiance of Seqiro's mind slowly coalesced. Darius and Colene loved each other; this was a concept Burgess had slowly come to know as he associated with them. But their love was as yet imperfect, because she had had bad prior experience and could not banish it from her memory. Tom loved Nona, but Nona did not love Tom. She was however intrigued by him, and considering whether he would make a sufficient match for her. She was tempted to indulge him sexually, but was afraid he would take it too seriously.
There was something else. They were in the weak ambiance of Seqiro's mind, but that was not the only questing force. A more distant, hostile, deadly mind was also searching. It was the mind predator that had fixed on Colene. It wanted to consume her. It had been pursuing her when they entered the DoOon Mode and won reprieve, for it could not range into an anchor universe. It was a thing of t
he Virtual Mode. Each time that shifted, as it did when they changed an anchor, the predator lost its orientation and had to begin again. But as Colene's mental powers slowly increased, she was becoming a stronger beacon for the predator. Now with Seqiro's mind enhancing hers, she would be a brighter beacon. There was trouble coming.
But that was not immediate. Perhaps they would complete their journey and be off the Virtual Mode before the predator found her again. Burgess hoped so, for he liked Colene best of his fellows in the hive.
He relaxed, and let the night pass.
In the morning the party roused itself and performed its ablutions. The females, particularly, preferred to wash themselves periodically. That was why they chose to camp beside a lake or pond or river: it was a ready source of water for immersion.
"Who's for a swim?" Colene demanded as she stripped away her clothing. She had a danger-seeking nature in certain respects; women were not supposed to allow men to see their bodies, except in the case of their committed partners. That meant that Tom Feline should not gaze on Colene's body. Therefore she arranged to show that body. It was her way of daring fate.
Nona joined her. She was not danger seeking, but neither was she as much concerned about social proprieties. She had a remarkably appealing face and form, as the minds of the two human males indicated.
Pussy also came. Her lightly furred body required no clothing except when the environment was bad, though she normally did wear some.
The three of them plunged into the water. Colene screamed: it was chill. But she was game. "Come on, men!" she called.
Darius and Tom accepted the invitation and joined them. "You too," Colene called to Cat and Burgess. So they too came. Burgess always enjoyed such hive games.
The six of them splashed in the water, getting clean. Burgess floated just above the surface and dipped his trunks. He sucked water into his fore trunk and jetted it out his aft trunk, soaking them all. The screams doubled, but they liked it. They could readily escape it by ducking across a Mode boundary, if they chose; the jet of water would not follow them. As it was, they remained in a confined section of the pond, so as to remain in a single Mode section.