Gale received a signal from Voila. “It does,” she said. “In fact, that's the least of it. There is power of other kinds here."
“We have already seen some of it,” Havoc said. “If it can nullify Glamor magic, it can surely do more. Best to proceed with caution."
“This from the wild barbarian,” Gale said, laughing. Of course she knew that Havoc was anything but wild in reality; he was an exceedingly smart and careful man, which was one reason others tended to underestimate him.
“Query Voila,” he said. “I don't want to blunder into anything we can't handle."
Gale did. Voila extended her precognitive awareness, and a flood of information came in, confusing in its complexity. It wasn't the baby's thoughts, but the raw material, beyond Voila's ability to process.
“Help me,” Gale said to the other children. “Limit, parse and translate."
“It's huge,” Weft said. “We can only bite off little chunks."
“They'll do."
“Who made this?” Havoc asked.
“The sphinxes,” Warp said. “When they had to set up for the changelings and altars and loom and stuff."
“Amazement,” Ini breathed. “Just like that, the answer to your quest."
“What's the main power of this site?” Ini asked.
“It broadcasts mood,” Weft said. “To the whole planet, from here, following the lines of Chroma dif—diff—"
“Differentiation,” Gale said.
“And it's as fast as light,” Weft concluded.
“What is the nature of ultimate reality?” Aspect asked, smiling.
Flame looked at her. “Simplify."
“What does the future hold? It's not a serious question; no one really knows that."
But Flame gave her a serious answer. “Voila knows short term. Mino knows long term."
This drew the interest of the other adults. “Two different types of precognition?” Gale asked.
“Sure. Hardly need the enhanced information flow to know that. Mino's a linear precog, Voila a parallel. Do you know the terms? I don't."
“Linear,” Gale said. “In a line. Parallel, several lines next to each other."
“That's it. Mino can see way down a hundred years along one line. Voila can see a hundred lines for the next minute, maybe ten up to an hour, but then they mostly fuzz out except for the strongest ones. But a year's about her limit on the longest."
Gale controlled her excitement. “So which one can see who wins this contest?"
“Neither,” Flame said, frowning as she read this bit of the data stream from Voila. “Voila can't see far enough to know for sure, and Mino can't untangle the near lines well enough to pick a winner."
“Then why is he here helping us?"
“Because all his long lines lose if he does nothing, and he can't do anything unless the Glamors let him loose."
That aligned with what they had suspected but had not told the children. “And why did Voila cooperate in this, if she doesn't know whether it helps?"
Flame hesitated. “I can't say."
“She doesn't know?"
“She knows, but I can't say. It's weird."
Gale let that pass, lest she disrupt the information she was getting. “How can anyone know who wins?"
The little girl concentrated. “They can maybe find out together, if they cooperate."
“Why would they do that?” Gale asked, surprised.
“They want to know."
Of course. Why battle for supremacy if you can discover the winner without fighting? “Is there any other way to find out?"
Again the concentration. “No."
Gale looked at Havoc. “Opinion?"
Havoc looked at the others. “Vote. Do we let them cooperate to find out the ultimate victor between us?"
“Us too!” Weft cried.
“Granted."
They voted: seven adults and three children. Only Havoc and Gale of the Glamors were present; all other Glamors were staying out of range of the machine, forging a sphere of illusion to confine him. Mino was not free, and surely knew it. This was perhaps all that guaranteed his continuing cooperation. The other Glamors, human and animal, were using the multiple-sense illusion technique they had learned from Idyll, and were able to contain the machine, though only by constant vigilance and effort. The battle between them was constant, as Mino probed for weaknesses and the Glamors shored them up. But this impasse couldn't last forever. They needed to know.
The decision was eight to two. Only Symbol and Futility, the two most cynical members of the party, voted no. “It's dangerous for the children,” Symbol explained.
“Can't trust the machine,” Futility said.
“Do it,” Havoc said.
Nothing happened. “How is this set up?” Ini asked.
“They're doing it,” Weft said. “Leave them alone."
So simply! Gale tried to tune in on Voila's mind, and discovered an amazing phenomenon. That little mind was a conduit for a huge focus of magic power. It felt like a monstrous cable extending to the stars.
Then the cable dissolved, and the baby slumped in her pack. It was done.
“Verdict?” Havoc asked tersely.
“Confirmation of what Mino thought,” Flame said. “They have to be together, or both lose. Everybody loses."
“Together?” Gale asked, not liking this at all. “How?"
“On the same side."
“And if they are not, how does everybody lose?” Havoc asked.
“Another culture comes and takes over,” Flame said. “Not human. Not machine. Different."
Now it was making sense. “They saw the future together,” Gale said carefully. “Together, either our side or the machine side will win. Apart, both sides will lose. To nonhuman, nonmachine aliens."
“Agreement."
“And if we get together, how do we determine which of us wins?"
“They fight,” Flame said. “Voila and Mino. Winner takes all."
Gale looked around the circle. She didn't need to read any minds to know the general feeling of horror.
* * * *
Augur shook his head. This had come to a dismaying pass. How could a four month old baby fight a big thousand-plus year old machine? Yet the Glamors were seriously considering it.
They settled in the cave, which was comfortable rather than freezing, and camped for the rest of the day and the night. The Glamors conjured food, bedding, and whatever else the group needed, including toys for the children. Augur, Aura, and Futility helped Symbol entertain the children while Havoc, Gale and Ini discussed the ramifications of the information available here and potential mechanisms for the contest. Augur knew he should participate in that discussion, but for the moment he didn't want to face the strange prospect that loomed. By common consent, none of the adults with the children mentioned it.
“Is any of this real to you?” he asked Aura in passing.
“Some,” she said, smiling. “The children are cute, apart from their powers. Let's have nonGlamors ourselves."
“Agreement."
She glanced at Mino. Warp and Weft were floating around him, playing dodge and tag, trying to confuse his observation panels. “Do you think the machine likes to play with children?"
“Doubt. He's just making sure they don't push a wrong button."
“They have short-range precognition, shorter than Voila's. He doesn't, so he has to watch them, and even so they fool him sometimes. It seems to be about even, for their game. But he may be studying them to learn how they do their precog."
“He's a machine. Can he learn an ability he's not programmed to do?"
“I wish I knew.” She moved off, distracted by Flame. Things tended to be hectic when the children were around, even when routine.
They slept the night, and had a conference in the morning. “We were guided by our own limited powers of clairvoyance and precognition,” Havoc said. “That's why we required all of you to come here, inconvenient as it ma
y be for some.” He glanced rather fondly at the Ladies Ennui and Aspect. “We believe there is need for some of you, but we couldn't tell which, and didn't want to risk lacking the right one. Now the situation is coming clearer."
“Concern,” Aura said. “Should this discussion be in the presence of our opponent?"
“Yes,” Havoc said. “Because we have worked out the nature of the settlement we must make with Mino. Clarification: he sees long, we see short, but both are needed for the answer. A path that ends short does not connect to the long path, so we have no advantage staying short. A path that ends long but has no clear connection to a short path is of no use to either party. It's a path that has no access. We need to find the path that extends all the way from here to a clear answer, perhaps a century hence. Working together, Voila and Mino saw that no paths are continuous unless we work together, so it is to our mutual interest to locate those ‘together’ paths we favor. We shall now do that."
“Mystification,” Aura said.
“Voila is people oriented,” Havoc said. “She can better appreciate a person with a mission, than the mission itself. Surely when she grows older she will be more independent, but we can't wait for that. We mean to settle this matter today. If we win, Mino will join us, suffering himself to be reprogrammed to be our servant. If Mino wins, we will deliver Voila to him as hostage, with her mother to care for her. This does not mean that harm will come to her; indeed, Mino will want her in the best of health and sanity, because he needs her to keep the path straight. The rest of us will come and go, but Voila will remain in the machine. The other children may visit her freely, but only in the machine. She will grow up there, and may marry and have a family, but she will never leave. She will be the guarantee that none of the rest of us will make mischief for Mino, both by her nature and her person."
“Horror,” Aspect said.
“Compromise,” Havoc said. “The stakes are even. The contest is between Voila and Mino, and the loser will serve the winner, and the power of their unification will make all else irrelevant in terms of the ultimate fate of the planets. Voila may live in Mino anyway, if she wins, to facilitate that future vision, but will be free to come and go. So there may be little apparent distinction between victory and defeat."
“Except for the fate of two planets,” Ennui said grimly.
“Affirmation. Questions?"
“Have we a choice?” Augur asked.
“No more than Mino. We don't want to be destroyed by any other alien culture. By joining forces we have the chance to prevent that."
“But it's only theoretical,” Augur said. “We can't know what aliens may come in the far future."
“Negation,” Havoc said. “Mino knows of the other galactic cultures the machines have encountered in the past. A number of them are expansive in nature, and in time will almost inevitably come this way. They all need resources, and these two planets represent an extremely rich potential harvest. Mino sent the signal out fourteen hundred years ago, so we are known. Secrets are hard to keep; if the machines don't come soon, someone else will race to grab the treasure first. Chances of escaping are minuscule. Even if we lose, we may be protected for a century, until the machines come. That's better than the alternative."
It seemed tight. “How is this contest to be handled?"
“First, each of us must decide on a firm course of action or inaction,” Havoc said. “Or perhaps merely think pleasant thoughts. Each is different; whichever one directs the course will make a unique path to the future. One of those paths will be the one we want."
“One?” Ennui asked sharply.
“One. All others will be for Mino."
“Dismay! How can that be?"
“In the normal course Mino would have won, had the ifrits not captured him. That did not change the outcome, it merely complicated it. Now, with the involvement of the Glamors and Voila's precognition, we have an even chance for victory. Because she can select that single course, and Mino can't prevent her."
Symbol looked relieved. “So we win after all."
“Negation. She will choose the course, but she can't see it to the end. Only Mino can do that. So she may choose wrong. All factors considered, the odds are even; they agree on that. It is a fair match."
Augur still mistrusted this, and saw that the others did too. “How does she choose?"
“Each of us will stand in a circle,” Havoc said. “Voila will float past and choose one of us. She will sense the ambiance, and select the one whose course seems most promising. Once her choice is made, Mino will announce the victor."
“Mino!” Aspect exclaimed. “Confusion."
Havoc smiled. “You wonder how we can trust Mino to announce correctly. There are several answers. As a machine, he may be incapable of lying; that is a sophisticated living sapient sort of thing. Regardless, the truth will not be changed by it, as Voila's choice will not be changed. She will not see the far future, but she will know if Mino lies. So he has nothing to gain that way; his best course is to honor our agreement. He will tell the truth, either way."
“Doubt,” Symbol said.
“You lack precognition.” Havoc glanced at Ennui and Aspect. “You have the dragon seeds, which signal untruths. Did I say anything false?"
“Negation,” Ennui said, and Aspect nodded.
Augur did not find this entirely persuasive, because as he understood it, the dragon seeds were of limited scope, not in the league of this contest; how could they know what no one else did? But evidently the Glamors accepted it and were ready to gamble the fate of worlds on it. What could the others do but go along?
They formed the circle. Gale let the baby go, and she floated into the center. Augur kept forgetting that she was a Glamor, with Glamor powers, regardless of her age. She couldn't walk, but she could use magic to fly. She couldn't talk, but she could communicate by telepathy. She couldn't truly reason, but could perceive the near-term consequences of choices. And, it seemed, she could save two worlds—if she chose the right person, with the most promising course.
Voila floated first toward her mother, who had just released her. Gale extended her hand, and the baby touched it. Then she floated on; this wasn't the one.
She approached her father. Havoc extended his hand, and it was touched. And rejected.
Aura was next. Augur hoped it wasn't her, chiding himself for his selfishness; he wanted to complete this mission successfully, then retire to Counter Charm with Aura, Ini, the ifrits, and whoever else was interested. If she were chosen, what would be her role, her obligations? Would she have to take up residence in the machine?
But Voila touched Aura's hand and floated on. Augur himself was next. Somehow that prospect did not bother him as much as it had for Aura; he didn't want it, but would handle it if he had to. He had no idea how to guide the worlds to an effective defense against galactic invaders.
The baby touched his hand and floated on. Aura took his arm, her grip shaking with relief. She had been similarly concerned.
Voila went on to Ennui, who seemed no more eager for this dubious honor. Then to Aspect. And finally to Symbol.
“I can't do it,” Symbol said. “I have children to take care off.” But she held forth her hand. And was passed by, evincing similar relief.
All seven human adults had been checked. Were none of them right? How could this be?
Then Voila floated down to Warp. It was to be one of the children? This was a surprise.
It wasn't Warp. She went on to Weft, and passed her by too. At last she came to Flame. “Agog!” the child exclaimed expectantly.
And passed her by. A ball of flame appeared, intensified, and exploded into nothingness.
The adults shared glances of mixed relief and dismay. It wasn't a child, but neither was it an adult. How could this be?
“Does this mean that no one marks a path for our victory?” Augur asked grimly.
Havoc glanced at Weft. “Ask,” he said.
“There's a person,”
Weft said. “But he isn't here."
“Where?"
Weft spread her hands. “Somewhere. And there's something odd. Don't know what."
“Can she locate him?” Gale asked.
Weft concentrated. “Yes. Hot cold."
“Then we'll look,” Havoc said. He stepped into the center of the circle and took Voila from the air.
“Take my pack,” Gale said.
They set the pack on Havoc's back and put the baby inside it. “Direction,” Havoc said, slowly turning around.
In a moment he stopped. “On our way,” he said, and disappeared.
Augur looked around. “It seems we must wait."
“So must Mino,” Aura said. “Maybe he knew that none of us was right, and thought he had the victory."
“But she saw through it,” Ini said. “She can't be fooled that way."
If Voila really did know, Augur thought. What did Weft mean by “something odd?” This had been presented as a straightforward choice of people and paths, but he suspected that it was more devious than that.
* * * *
Havoc jumped to the ifrit reservation. Could it be an ifrit? Weft had said there was something odd. That could account for it. The ifrits did not want the two worlds ravaged any more than the humans did.
But there was no “hot” here. Voila's mind signaled north of here.
Havoc jumped again, to a region well north of Triumph City, half expecting the direction to reverse. It didn't; the way was still north
Then he caught on. “The miners!” he said. “The ones who were framed for the assassination of the mocks.” He jumped to the crevice at the north pole they had explored before.
But here the search became difficult. Voila had a direction, but it was not possible to follow it literally, because the cracks did not go straight. It could take a long time, and he didn't care to take it.
The minions of the king had not yet cracked down on the miners. It would come, but it was no simple operation. Throe was organizing it now, getting his men into place for an orderly operation.
Havoc was more direct. He followed a crevice deep down, discovering that the north polar region, like the south one, was an Air Chroma zone, its color invisible. He nulled the intruder-alert magic and reached the warm residential section. He collared the first miner he encountered. “Take me to your leader."