"And I must always tell him what to do?" she asked somewhat bitterly.
"That is true. If that disturbs you, perhaps it is better to send him away."
She shook her head. "This is theoretically every woman's dream: to have complete power over a man. It repels me. I want an independent man."
"Then send him away," Cat repeated.
She opened her mouth, but did not speak. She caught water in her hands and splashed herself. Then she spoke. "I can't."
"Then perhaps you have the capacity to love him, not yet realized."
"Perhaps I do," she agreed. She turned to Tom. "Throw me down in the shallow water and make love to me."
Tom hesitated. "I am uncertain this is your true desire."
"So you don't have to take my commands literally."
"He does not," Cat agreed. "But he does have to obey his understanding of your will."
"Then I'll do it to you," she said. She put her hands on his shoulders and pushed him back. He could not resist her, and fell into the chill water. Then she fell on top of him, her bare breasts against his chest. "Do it, do it, do it!" She brought her head down and kissed him.
She did want it. He responded, clasping her and finding her warm interior. Her mind sought his as he climaxed, and she rode his pleasure into her own, extending it for him. Now he realized that in their prior couplings she had not actually climaxed; she had shared his. This time she had completed it. He had never before experienced a female climax. It was less intense than his own, but it lasted longer, and there was a broader pleasure in it.
They lay there in the cold water, sharing the lingering rapture. There was a sound.
He looked up, past Nona's head. Darius, Colene, and Pussy were applauding the performance.
Nona lifted her head. "Get out of here!" she cried, furious.
They retreated. Nona looked at Tom and laughed ruefully. "We have no privacy, mentally; they shared our passion. But it's traditional in my culture that most sexual acts be private. I got carried away."
"I love you."
"And you didn't have to say that," she said, and kissed him. "Tom, I think Cat is right: I have the capacity to love you. Can you settle for that? No, don't answer; it's rhetorical. You have no choice. But I believe I will keep you. Maybe, to avoid subjecting you to the rigors of my Mode's culture, I will go with you to Darius' Mode to stay."
Overwhelmed, he lifted his head and kissed her. He felt her surge of pleasure: he hadn't had to do that either. He was learning a little bit of initiative even as she was learning a little bit of love.
"Maybe we'll meet in the center, your initiative and my love," she said, and flattened herself against him. "Now I know we could keep right on doing this, because you are crafted for chronic performance, but let's finish our wash-up and get dry and warm. I promise, at some more convenient time I will make trial of your endless potency."
"There is no ne—" But she cut him off with another kiss.
They got clean, and she conjured towels, and she insisted on drying him even as he dried her. Then they rejoined the others.
"God, I wish I could do that!" Colene exclaimed.
"Well, I suppose I could lend you Tom."
"Please do not," Tom said quickly. Then he was chagrined; he had spoken out of turn. But it hardly mattered; they were all laughing. It had been a joke.
They ate supper from their provisions. Conjuring ramp material and towels and firewood was fine; they did not need to cross the boundaries with them. But food was best from an anchor.
Colene joined them and spoke quietly. "I'm sorry about snooping. I guess I just had to make a joke of it, so I wouldn't cry. I'd give anything to be able to have sex like that. But even in the throes of it, listening in, I felt myself wincing. My dolor is gone, but not my hang-up about sex."
"I'm sorry I reacted as I did," Nona said. "I was wrestling with my own indecision, and was caught by surprise."
"That's okay. We were pretty crude." Colene returned to Darius.
Nona conjured plenty of warm blanket material, and they retired for the night. "Is it all right if we just clasp without more sex?" she asked in a whisper. But before he could answer, she laid her forefinger across his lips. "I know anything I want is all right with you. But I really don't like taking advantage. I will make you this deal: let me sleep this night, and just before dawn you may do what you want with me, even if I remain asleep."
"Oh, Nona, I would never—"
She touched his mouth with her finger again. "Wrong answer, Tom. I have in the past, long before I met you, dreamed of just such a liaison, and it intrigues me. If I wake and find you in me, I will know you made a decision of your will, and it will please me. Do you understand?"
"You want me to—"
"I want you to make your own decision, knowing that I will approve it regardless of its nature. I am not telling you do to anything; I am telling you that you may do it."
"I understand," he said doubtfully.
They slept. He did wake before dawn, and considered what she had said. Yet to do such a thing with a mistress without a direct order—that was painfully daunting. Still, he did desire her. But he had no right to impose his will. Though she had asked him to do just that. How could he decide?
Pussy, nearby, lifted her head. "Do it, idiot!" she snapped. "You're ruining my sleep. I haven't been humped in ages."
Apologetically, he clasped the sleeping woman with infinite tenderness and slowly, carefully, delicately, made his way into her. He did not want to disturb her repose, so he remained quite still. Then he was overtaken by a rush of urgency, and though he did not move his body, he put his essence forcefully into her.
Nona's eyes opened. "Well done," she said, and kissed him. Had she been awake throughout? She was much better at reading his mind that he was at hers; he generally received only those thoughts she chose to share with him.
Nearby, Colene spoke. "Darius, maybe if you did it that way, I'd be okay."
"You would not," Darius responded. "You are not receptive in the way she is."
"Still, it was nice," Pussy said.
"Even I can appreciate the tenderness and satisfaction of it," Cat said. "This is a truly caring relationship."
Everyone had been tuning in!
Nona laughed. "In my Mode, there is no telepathy," she reminded him. "Won't that visit be a blessing!"
Tom was inclined to agree.
They were all awake, so they got up and dismantled their camp by dawn. Soon they were on their way.
"Uh-oh," Colene said. "It's back."
"But you have no dolor," Pussy protested.
"Maybe we were wrong about that."
"Perhaps it regards your present state as a temporary aberration," Cat said. "It knew you would emerge at some time from the anchor Mode, and it knows your mental trace, so it checked this region periodically and now has found you. If you are not in dolor now, its siege seems likely to put you there."
"You got that right," Colene said, putting her hands to her head. "Damn damn damn!"
"We can help you," Pussy said. "Ride Burgess, and Cat and I will flank you."
"Gotta do it," Colene agreed.
"We remain too far from my Mode," Darius said. "Which Mode is closest?"
"Mine," Nona said. "We were heading for it anyway."
He nodded. "So we were. Lead us there."
Nona took the lead, and Tom accompanied her. "At least you will get a good look at my realm," she said. "If you truly don't like it—"
"How can I dislike your home?"
"We'll see."
As it happened, there were no bad obstacles intervening, and they moved rapidly toward Julia. That was fortunate, because Colene's suffering could be felt by all of them. The siege of the mind predator obliterated her prior cheerfulness and put her into a maelstrom of horrors. Some were physical, some mental, but the worst were sexual. Their specific natures did not manifest, but their emotional burdens did. The girl's recent cheer was ind
eed mere gloss over an abyss of awfulness, and that was what the predator was feeding on.
"We could never have done it, if that had been in our minds," Nona murmured. Tom could only agree.
They came to some eerily odd Modes. Their landscapes seemed normal yet subtly abnormal. Strange threads of elusive substance extended from odd projections on the ground.
"These are fractal Modes," Nona explained. "We are approaching my home realm."
Tom did not know what she meant, but she was too busy orienting on her anchor to clarify it for him. Soon they came to a grassy hill, and the Modes stopped changing.
Colene lifted her head. "It's gone."
Thus suddenly they were in the new anchor Mode. "Oh, I never thought I would be so glad to be home!" Nona exclaimed. She hugged Tom and kissed him. "I will make you happy too."
"You are already doing so."
There was a village at the base of the slope, and a castle beyond it. They made their way toward the castle.
"I should explain for the Felines that red-cloaked Amazons now govern this planet," Nona said. "We brought them across during our last stay here. Each of them has magic similar to my own, but they may defer to me because I am native."
Tom made an effort, and asked a question. "Why did you bring the Amazons, if women already rule?"
"Oops, I omitted something. My world of Oria was governed by men when I grew up; they were the ones with magic. But I was the ninth-born of the ninth-born, and therefore had magic too, the only women to possess it. With the help of Colene and Darius and Seqiro, I succeeded in reversing it, so that the men lost their magic. But that did not immediately give women magic; that has to wait for a new generation to grow up, possessing it. So there was some civil disturbance. To quell it, we brought in magic women from a larger planet, who now govern and keep order. They are the Amazons, larger than those of Oria, though small for their own world."
"Her Mode has many fractal worlds," Colene explained. "All different sizes. Some are huge, and some are microscopic, but they all have people on them, sized according to their worlds."
"This is a strange Mode," Cat said.
Nona laughed. "It is indeed. But perhaps we will not be remaining here long."
"I had understood that you intended to remain here," Cat said.
"I thought I should, but now I think I would prefer to remain with the group. I think Tom would prefer it there."
"We'll be glad to have you," Colene said.
There was a swirl of air before them. A carriage formed, with a black-and-white-robed driver. "Regent Tulip recognizes the approach of the ninth of the ninth, and welcomes her to the premises," he said, bowing.
"I will walk with Burgess," Cat said.
The others got into the carriage, which then floated toward the castle. They stepped out at the front gate, where a red carpet spread itself out before them.
They walked inside, where the carpet guided them to the audience chamber. There was the Amazon, a tall woman in a bright red tunic. She rose immediately and went to greet Nona. "Gracious lady," she said, bowing her head. Tom realized that she was not speaking any language he knew; Seqiro's telepathy made it intelligible.
"Regent Tulip," Nona replied. "Thank you for your courtesy. This is my companion Tom, and my friends Darius, Colene, and Pussy. Two more are on the way."
"We remember Darius and Colene, and of course Burgess."
"Are there facilities for a temporary stay?"
"There are, of course. But you, lady, I hope are returning to stay."
Nona shook her head. "I'm not sure I am. Are things not in good order here?"
"They may be," Tulip said. Then she changed the subject. "You are surely tired, and wish rest and refreshment."
Actually they were in good shape, but Nona took the hint. "Yes, we would like to relax for a while."
They found themselves in an elaborate three-room suite. Nona had the primary room. "I do like the notion of a hot bath," she said. She glanced at Tom. "You have a question?"
He did. "If there is no telepathy here, how can I understand this language?"
"Seqiro's mind does reach here, though his power is limited in this Mode. It is Colene's expanding mind that makes it possible. Were we to remain here, while they left, you would not be able to understand local speech. That's one reason I think it better that we not remain here."
"You may keep me here if you choose," he said. "Or send me away. You may be better off unfettered."
"Or I may go with you to another Mode," she said. "Now let's have that bath."
It was a fine big tub with plenty of soapy foam. They washed each other, dried, and donned the tunics that appeared. Nona's was red, Tom's black.
They found the others similarly cleaned and garbed. Cat and Burgess had arrived, and were ensconced in an adjacent chamber. There was also a message from the regent: she wished to confer privately with Nona.
Nona went, but she took Tom along. He stood behind her when she took her seat, and neither moved nor spoke thereafter. He just listened.
"Nona," the regent said. "You must stay. Oria has need of you."
Tom felt Nona's concern. He knew what the regent evidently did not: their whole party was telepathically linked, and heard what Nona heard. They might separate physically, but they remained a group mentally. "Things are not in good order here?"
"They are now, but already there are signs of future problems. We Amazons never anticipated an assignment like this. As you know, we were of little account on our own world. We have no experience in governing. Rivalries are developing, which may in time lead to conflicts. There is no way to prevent it, unless we have a queen we all respect."
"A queen," Nona said, feeling a chill.
"You, Nona. You are the ninth of the ninth, the only native woman with magic. The people will follow you—and so will the Amazons, because we all owe you everything. You alone can be queen—and you must be, to preserve the order of the planet."
"I have no desire for such status or power. I left Oria to avoid it. I brought you Amazons here instead."
"You have no moral choice," Tulip said grimly. "You must do it, for the sake of Oria."
"I do have a choice! I brought the anima. I brought the Amazons. I have no further obligation."
The regent looked at her. "It must of course be by your own choice."
"I choose to leave! I will do so tomorrow."
Tulip looked down. "If you can leave, perhaps that is best."
Nona stood and turned away. The dialogue was at an end. Tom followed her back to the suite. As they walked, Tom heard the dialogue of the others, in his mind.
"What did the regent mean by that?" Pussy asked. "That it is best if Nona leaves?"
Cat replied. "She means that if Nona has the ability to desert her world in its hour of need, she lacks the quality of character the position requires."
"She doesn't have to do it!" Colene flared. "They have no right to demand it."
"She does have the obligation," Darius said. "It is not a matter of her choice. It stems from what she is."
"She's a woman who wants adventure and love and freedom!"
"She is the ninth of the ninth. That defines her role. The regent knows it—and so does Nona."
"She has a right to her own happiness!"
"Perhaps."
Tom and Nona arrived at the suite. "We were thinking about you," Colene said.
"So I thought," Nona agreed.
"Darius is a creature of duty. I'm a creature of feeling. I guess you have to decide what you are."
"I never sought notoriety or power. I just want..." Nona paused, uncertain of her true will. "Do any of you know what I want? I don't think I do."
"You want a family," Cat said. "Just as each individual Feline needs its trio, you need the group you have formed. You are unable to abide living apart from it."
"Yes!" Nona cried. "When I joined with Darius and Colene and Seqiro, and then with Burgess and with you, that became
my family. I want to stay with you!"
"Yes!" Colene echoed. "I'm with you. I need love, and that's Darius, but I also need family, and that's this group." She got down and kissed one of Burgess's contact points. "You included, BEM. We're your hive."
Burgess responded. Tom heard his thoughts as if they were his own.
It was true. But more than Burgess, she needed Seqiro, whose telepathy truly unified them, breaching the barriers of language and kind. The only way for the group to recover Seqiro was to free an existing anchor. Then the horse could form a new anchor, and be back with them. They also needed to change anchors to change the Virtual Mode, losing the mind predator for long enough to allow Colene to reach Darius' Mode. So Burgess would have to return to his Mode and free his anchor, making that possible.
"No!" Colene said. "I want Seqiro back, but not that way. You're one of us, squirtface."
"Yet it is feasible," Cat said.
"No," Darius said. "Colene cannot go on the Virtual Mode at all until an anchor changes. Therefore we are unable to cross the Modes as a group. Burgess is also unable to cross them alone. He can't reach his home Mode to free his anchor, however generous his gesture."
"And he has no more future alone in his home Mode than Colene has in hers," Nona said. "That would not be an option, even if we were at his Mode." Then she did a doubletake. "Oh, no!"
"This is the only anchor that can be freed," Cat said.
Tom felt Nona's grief. "I'm the one who has to do it. I have to free my anchor, and remain here to be queen."
There was silence, physical and mental. Nona crumpled, and Tom took her in his arms. She was caught, and they all knew it. Her pain was everywhere.
"It is not necessarily permanent," Cat said. "When I return to DoOon with the Chip, my duty will be done, and I can free the anchor. Then Nona can recover hers."
"That, too, is a generous motive," Darius said. "But there is a complication. As I understand it, the DoOon anchor is multiple-person: the three Felines, the three Caprines, and perhaps four humans we don't know about. A majority of them must make the anchor-freeing decision. I think you will not be able to do it."