"Oh, for God's sake! I didn't mean it literally! Abe, you be the spokesman. The rest of you just settle back and twiddle your thumbs or something. What's going on?"
Abe stepped forward. The other five stepped back, putting their thumbs together. Jack's annoyed glance stopped that: they were coming to understand about non-literal.
"The Gaol will isolate this retreat in as little as three days," Abe said.
"Three days! Candy said the Gaol were coming sooner than you expected, but three days? How did that happen'?"
"We surmise that they located this site in the globular cluster during a prior quest for the Imago, several centuries ago, and retained awareness of it. There are a limited number of suitable planets in such clusters. In this manner they are able to check potential locations much more rapidly than is possible in a routine quartering. This puts us in an extreme situation."
"Extreme isn't exactly the word! You need seven years you were going to cram it in in one year, and now three days? I don't know much about how you operate, but that seems pretty chancy to me."
"You have understated the case , Abe said.
" Sometimes I do that, too. Or do you mean there is more I don't know?"
"Yes. We have treated Tappy in the manner you desired, with her acquiescence, but without complete success."
Jack felt an ugly thrill of apprehension. "All I said was to null that mental block that stops her from speaking English! You mean she can only speak some words?" He knew it was more than that.
'We also eliminated her physical deformities." Abe said. "She now has no weakness of limb, and should be able to see normally."
"You cured her blindness?" This was more than he had hoped for It is your desire," Abe said. "You wish her to see and speak and dance. When we made her aware of that, she acquiesced, and we proceeded."
"My survey! You told her what I imagined?"
"She wished to know. She had supposed that you might prefer her unchanged. Learning otherwise, she chose to change."
"Of course I want her to see!" Jack said. "I want everything that is best for her. But I didn't know it could be done. What's this about your not succeeding? What happened to her?"
"We eliminated her physical defects. But this does not appear to be sufficient. She can see and speak, but she does not. We suspect that despite her acquiescence to your will, she lacks motivation to do these things."
Jack thought about that. There had been a hint back on Earth that Tappy might be able to do more, but didn't try. He could understand that; her case had been hopeless. But she had come alive with him, in more than one sense. Now she should be eager to see everything, and to talk about it. What was holding her back?
"Once the Imago is ready," Jack said slowly, "what then? I mean, what does Tappy do?"
"She will serve the Imago implicitly, as do we."
"Will she have any time to herself.? Any social life? Will she get to read any books, or splash in the ocean, or sleep an hour late?"
"Such things are meaningless to the Imago."
"Well, then, I think I have a glimmering of what you don't. I can see why she might hesitate just to step into this role."
"Please explain this to us."
"Tappy wants to live!" he exclaimed. "She's not a robot! She's had so Iittle joy of life and now maybe she has a chance-and she'll have to throw it all away and get into harness as the Imago.
No chance at all to be a child or a girl, just to change from one kind of freak to another. No wonder she's afraid to move ahead! "
"It is true that we do not understand the urges of human life," Abe said. "Either in their acceptance or their denial." He glanced at Candy, and Jack realized that none of them understood why he had not simply made sexual use of the woman when she suggested it. Maybe other galactic creatures had no hang-ups about that sort of thing. "However, the Imago may do as she desires. Nothing is denied her. She may splash in water or gaze at a text if she wishes."
"But she won't want to, you said."
'Past manifestations of the Imago have not had incidental interrests of the flesh."
"Because you had seven years to train them," Jack said. "There was no place for such things in your curriculum."
"True. What is your point?"
Jack took a deep breath. "You are right. I really do understand Tappy in a way that you don't."
"Therefore it may be possible to make the Imago functional in the current host, with your help, despite the extreme brevity of training. This is what we ask of you."
"You want me to talk Tappy into seeing and talking, so you know she is 'functional," so she can step right into harness now as the Imago."
"Yes. And thereafter, you must serve as her immediate adviser, so that she does not misuse the power of the Imago."
"And you don't care how I do it. I can talk to her, have sex with her, anything, just so long as she snaps to."
"Yes."
"And you will be advising me what to advise her, so that my own ignorance doesn't mess things up."
"True."
"How do you know I will do what you advise?"
"That was ascertained in the survey."
Jack was gaining respect for that survey. It hadn't seemed like much, but obv*ously they had fathomed his motives. If he agreed to the deal, he would honor it.
"And why do you figure she'll do what I tell her -to?"
"Because she loves you. This is a phenomenon we understand no better than we do the source of the power of the Imago, but we have seen its effect. She is immediately responsive to your will."
"But I don't love her!"
"Therefore you are objective. This is appropriate."
Jack ground his teeth. "Why don't you take a flying fuck at the nearest sun?"
"This is a rhetorical question?"
"This is a nonrhetorical no. I won't do that to Tappy."
Abe paused only that fraction of a second that passed for machine confusion. "Why?"
"Because it isn't fair to Tappy. She may be the host for the Imago, but she deserves some joy of life, an e the one who denies that to her. Especially I refuse to toy further with her emotions. She never did deserve that."
"It is concern for her larger welfare that mo it .,ates you".
"Yes. Want to verify it in your survey chamber?"
."No. We accept this. But we must remind you that Tappy's alternatives and ours are limited. We believe that the course we ask of you is best in the circumstance."
"Maybe you'd better spell out those alternatives for me."
"The first we have described: you will work with her, under our guidance, in this manner circumventing the training we are unable to provide."
"Got it."
"The second is to delay until the Gaol arrive and capture her.
The seven of us will then be destroyed, and Tappy will be cocooned for the duration of her human life, allowed neither freedom iloideath."
"God, no' I heard about that. No way."
"The third is the easiest and perhaps best, but we suspect you will object to it also."
"Maybe. Let's have it." He figured he had them on the run now.
"To destroy the host immediately, freeing the Imago for a future host who may have better prospects."
Then Jack knew he had lost his ploy. Of course that made sense! They served the Imago, not the host. They did have an easy way out. But it was impossible for him. Tappy had to live!
"You win. I will cooperate in the first course."
"We thought you would. However, your reactions have been irregular."