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  "Enjoying your freedom?" she asked.

  I had almost forgotten my suspicion that this gathering might be a function created by the Freedom Crusaders. I wondered if Lyonella was part of the conspiracy and if she was trying to recruit me.

  "What freedom do you mean?"

  "Freedom of the mask. Your face is masked, your wristlock concealed. You're free to be. You followed me, but didn't feel free to approach me. I told the door guard to let you in because I wanted you to be free, free to tell me what you want from me."

  "I want you to listen to my story and give me advice."

  "Be free, Stranger. You want more than advice. I can feel your want."

  As she said that, Lyonella put one hand on the cloth covering my wristlock, the other hand over my heart, and rested her forehead against my own.

  "I…I feel your wristlock is wrong for you—not in tune with your heart or your head. The dance didn't loosen all your tension. You want me and yet you're hesitant to act. Don't be wary. Don't talk."

  She pressed her smooth, full lips to mine. Her tongue sought and found a gateway between my lips that allowed her to explore my mouth. I put my arms around her and drew her even closer. The touch of my hands on her skin was electrifying. I felt fully alive and held her as if I never wanted to let her go. My heart was beating in sync with the drums. I hadn't been aware they had started playing again. I was enveloped in a sensual universe where there were only the two of us.

  We burrowed into a pile of tunics as if making a nest, eased out of our own tunics and pressed flesh upon flesh. Her small, round breasts flattened against my chest. I pulled back to touch one gently with my fingertips. When her nipple hardened, I took it between my lips and tenderly teased it with my tongue. Her hand moved from my neck and began a sensual journey to my abdomen. She found me ready and guided me into the union of opposites.

  We moved with the beat of the drums. In the flickering light I could see the smile of her mouth. Her mask eyeholes were two shadows and I could not tell if her eyes were open or closed until a shift of the tunics which we were nesting in let a beam of light illuminate her soft brown eyes which were looking directly into mine. I felt my essence escaping my body as I experienced a thundering climax.

  I'm not sure whether or not I lost consciousness but when I was able to think again, I could only think of Lyonella and the experience we had just shared. We stayed entwined for another timeless moment until the drums stopped and someone said, "There's jarva for everyone."

  We put on our tunics. I asked her, "Do you want some jarva?"

  "Not especially. Do you?"

  "I don't feel I need anything."

  She smiled at me and then a more serious expression settled on her face. She said, "I think I need to listen to you. Your body is at rest but your mind remains restless. Tell me what led you to seek my advice."

  Reality came rushing back—the Rainbow Room, Errox, Ural, a disturbed Lyonella, Hushel, Miral, the Simulike Palace, the tribal initiation interrupted by the VIS, the Freedom Crusaders attacking the VIS Center, Clandine and her disciplined ways—I had to have something to tell Clandine.

  "I was brainwiped, stripped of my wristlock and dumped in the Rainbow Room to die. I survived. I managed to get a wristlock but it belonged to someone wanted by the VIS. The VIS took me into custody. I'm in a dwell with a VIS officer who says she'll get me a wristlock if I help her. I don't know if I can help her and I don't know if I can trust her to help me."

  Lyonella’s face took on a trancelike look as she closed her eyes and said, "Change wristlocks at the first opportunity. Never play the Game. The Game is not what it seems. The VIS officer can be trusted only as long as she can use you. Her suspicions await transformation. Be of use if you can."

  I memorized every word she said.

  Lyonella opened her eyes and said, "I get veiled future images. They’re gone now. I hope I've helped you."

  "Will I see you again?" I asked.

  "Yes, but go now."

  "I'll cherish this memory of tonight. It's the best memory I have."

  "I know but now you must go,” Lyonella said in a soft voice. “My gift tells me there is danger in the cycle ahead for us both, but more if we’re together."

  As I walked back to the door to leave, it felt as though my feet were hardly touching the ground. The world seemed like a better place now than it had been before.

  ELEVEN

  I didn’t tell Clandine about following Lyonella or about the scene in the factory area. I did tell Clandine that Lyonella didn't answer her door when I got to her dwell, that I had waited until she appeared and that Lyonella had listened to me and advised me.

  Clandine asked, "Did you tell her that you weren't sure you could trust me?"

  "Yes. Just like we rehearsed it. She told me I could trust you to the extent that I can help you confirm your suspicions."

  "What else did she tell you?"

  "She told me to get a new wristlock, but never play the Game."

  "Did she give you a reason?" Clandine asked her forehead furrowed.

  "She said the Game is not what it seems."

  "What did she say it was?"

  "All she said was not to play it and that it wasn't what it seemed."

  A perplexed look remained on Clandine's face as she asked, "Why do you think she warned you about the Game?"

  "I asked her for advice. That's the advice she gave me. She seemed sincere. I didn't question her about her answers. She's not as verbal or as orderly as you are."

  "I think she must have a hidden purpose in telling you the Game is not what it seems and not for you. She wants you to be doing something else, something that might be of benefit to her and her associates, but not necessarily to you."

  "I know you suspect Lyonella, but I don't know why."

  "I'm almost certain she is part of the power conspiracy. Some of her clients have joined the Freedom Crusaders; others have vanished. I think she violates the Listeners Guild code by repeating some of what she hears to others. Did she do or say anything to make certain that you'd see her again?"

  I flashed back to our sexual encounter; I didn't think it would be wise to mention that to Clandine. I need my own privacy and was still uncertain about Clandine’s trustworthiness. I hoped that Lyonella's motives were as open as they had appeared to be. "No, she didn't even ask me my name."

  "Maybe she already knew it."

  "She didn't call me by it or invite me to have another listening session."

  "Don't try to defend her," Clandine snapped.

  "I'm not. I'm just telling you what happened. If she's part of a conspiracy, she's a cautious actor or a very subtle one."

  "Yes, that could be it. It's late. Let's get some sleep and tomorrow I'll brief you about what's next. On All Hues Day you'll be mixing with the rainbows."

  I didn't have any trouble going to sleep. I hoped to dream of Lyonella but, if I did, I didn't remember my dreams.

  The next morning, after first meal, Clandine showed me pixcubes of three of her rainbow suspects.

  "I want you to contact only one of these three suspects. As I said before, they know each other and might get suspicious if more than one of them met you. Which one you talk to depends on which one you find at home first."

  The first pixcube was of a man Clandine identified as Flantel, overseer of the Clerics Guild. The pixcube showed a tall, large man. His thick torso was topped by a large head with pale blue eyes and almost colorless blond hair. Clandine said, "Flantel presents himself as a spiritual person, but I have suspicions that he is more interested in personal power and the pleasures of the flesh. I think some of the more corrupt clergy provide him with information about grays who are dissatisfied and of possible use to him. His dwell is near the Color Wheel. He will probably be home on All Hues Day."

  Her mention of the Color Wheel brought back a memory of the danger I faced there. I asked, "What should I say to him?"

  "Tell him that you have sought him out t
o ask if he has any special spiritual program for someone like you who is trying to develop his spirituality, but is handicapped by a blanc background and by the lack of a proper wristlock."

  "Do you think he'll believe that? What if he turns me into the VIS?"

  "I've thought about it," Clandine said, "from what I know of him, it’s very likely that he will believe your story. Even if he is suspicious, Flantel will act as if he believes you because that is part of his image. At worst, he will probably suspect you of no more than an attempt to get a wristlock from someone who might be sympathetic to your plight. As far as turning you over to us, I believe he has more reasons to be cautious than you do."

  Her reasoning had certain logic to it. I hoped she was right. Clandine showed me another pixcube and said, "This is Boget, the overseer of the Simulike Palace. His dwell is adjacent to the Palace. He monitors the experiences of the Simulike users. I think he has convinced some of them to serve him in illegal ways. I suspect that he is involved in Cainenol distribution."

  The pixcube was of a handsome man with black hair and bright blue eyes. He was smiling as if demonstrating his good will toward the world. He, like Flantel, was someone I had never seen before—at least not since I had become Rathe. "What kind of a story do I tell him?"

  "Tell him about your Simulike experience and how you were arrested by the VIS because the wristlock you wear belongs to a suspected criminal. Tell him the VIS released you from the center once they realized you were not the person they were looking for. Ask him if there is anyway he can help you get a legitimate wristlock so you can have the Simulike experience without the potential problem of being arrested again by the VIS."

  "I shouldn’t have any trouble making that believable. I’d very much like to be able to visit the Simulike Palace again."

  Then Clandine showed me the third pixcube. It was of a woman whose charisma I felt just looking at her image in three dimensions. She was of medium height with a wiry body. She had pale blonde hair that fell across her high forehead in geometric perfection. Her eyebrows had a high arch. Her eyes were a deep gray and her gaze was almost hypnotic. The skin of her face was stretched tightly over a prominent bone structure. There was very little flesh in her cheeks. Her jaw line was almost square. The overall effect was striking; yet she appeared hauntingly familiar.

  It was possible that I may have seen her somewhere recently, but I suspected she might have been part of the memories I had lost when brainwiped. Then again, it might be wishful thinking on my part because her image provoked sexual yearnings.

  Clandine noticed my fascination with the pixcube. She said, "That's Ozerta, a staff member of the Medical Complex, an overseer of the House of Rebirth. She makes life and death decisions. I suspect that she cooperates in covering up assassinations of those people who learn too much about the conspiracy. I see that her image has you entranced. You'll have to be very careful in contacting her. Don't let any of the sexual attraction you might feel for her interfere with our objectives."

  Clandine paused.

  I continued to look at the image of Ozerta.

  "Aren't you going to ask me about your cover story for her, Rathe?"

  "Oh, sure. What is it?"

  "Tell her that you were reborn a blanc without the benefits of the House of Rebirth. Explain that you don't have a wristlock that identifies you. Ask her if there is any way she can help you. She lives near the Medical Complex but she may not be home. The rumors are that she uses All Hues Day to seek out prospective sexual partners of both sexes. I don’t think you should approach her unless you can't find Flantel or Boget."

  "Why is that?" I asked.

  "Because she’s dangerous, Rathe. She uses her sexual aura to entrap and confuse. I think you are way too vulnerable right now. If you can't find either of the other two rainbows, make certain that you spend some time with one or more holiday hedonists before seeking out Ozerta."

  "Who and what are the holiday hedonists?"

  "Those persons who practice sexual variety during any holiday. You can recognize them easily—they're the ones who appear nude in public."

  Clandine's information made me realize how much I didn't know about this culture. I hoped I wasn't too ignorant to make an effective spy.

  * * *

  On All Hues Day, I finished my morning grooming, put on my freshly cleaned tunic, reviewed instructions and directions with Clandine, exited the building and entered the wildness and weirdness of the citywide celebration. As I took the slideways that would take me to the Color Wheel, I saw most people wore tunics but some were wearing costumes made out of strips of colored paper. A few were nude, the holiday hedonists that Clandine had told me about.

  When I got off to change slidestrips a naked man offered me an orange paper hat. I took it, thanked him, put it on, and continued on my way, uninterested in what else he might be offering, and determined to carry out Clandine's plan. I had never seen the outside of the Color Wheel but I had no trouble recognizing it. It was the only building shaped like a large squat cylinder. I had returned to my rootless beginning.

  I stifled the memories of my previous time here by mentally listing the improvements in my life since then: One: I was not in immediate danger of dying. Two: I had food, clothing, and shelter. Three: I liked what I knew about my new self. Four: I knew more about the culture. Five: I had prospects of a better life.

  There were crowds around the various booths where white wristlock wearers were dispensing jarva, holiday food, paper hats, and rainbow imprinted paper streamers. The crowd noise hovered in the air like a melody line over the bass beat of drums. I went around the crowd toward Flantel's dwell, holding a drink of jarva punch in one hand and some rainbow-colored food cubes in the other. With both hands full, no more food and drink would be forced upon me by manic celebrants, whose high spirits seemed to mask a desperate hysteria just as their paper masks hid their features.

  By the time I reached Flantel's building I'd drunk the punch and eaten the food cubes. I found no one home at his dwell. A nude woman in the corridor told me that most of the building's residents had gone to dance to the drums. I headed back toward the sound of the drums which reminded me of the autofactory section scene of drums where I'd followed Lyonella. What I had thought might be a meeting of the Freedom Crusaders had been a private rehearsal for the public celebration of a holiday.

  I realized that my thinking had been strongly influenced by Clandine's suspicions, which might have no basis but a tendency on her part to paranoia. People clustered around the drums, some rocking to the beat, others dancing in their individual styles.

  Flantel's height and blond hair helped me locate him. He was engrossed in watching one of the dancers. She was naked, her skin as black as a starless night sky. With her movements she created a unity with the drumming, shaking her rounded hips in what appeared to be joyous freedom. I kept edging closer until I was standing next to Flantel. His eyes never left the dancer.

  I felt her eyes on me and I shifted my gaze from Flantel to her. Her hair lay almost flat against her skull in tight waves. Her eyebrows arched over large eyes as dark as her skin. A straight nose with rounded nostrils led my eyes to her lips, their fullness enhanced by a coating of purple paint, the same shade of purple as that of the food cubes. From the neck down she was hairless with nipples and labia painted purple.

  I hadn't realized how hypnotic the dancer and the drums were until the drumming stopped. Flantel had been captivated too. He hadn't moved from his place beside me. If he had left I wouldn't have noticed. I realized that I was too easily distracted to make a good secret agent. Flantel stepped forward and reached out as if to take the dancer by the arm.

  She looked at him and said, "Don't be a usurper. I want a purple slurper."

  Flantel answered in the same rhyming style, "I feel passion's burn. What I don't know, I'll learn."

  "If you come my way, you'll stay all day," she replied.

  Flantel said, "I'll say goodbye to the pack i
n case I never come back."

  The dancer took him by the hand and said, "Come to my place so I can sit on your face." They left. I tried to follow but lost sight of them when the drumming resumed and a cluster of people wearing orange hats like the one I still had on came between me and the pair I wanted to shadow.

  By the time I convinced the orange hat group that I had places to go and things to do, Flantel and the dancer were nowhere to be seen. I handed the orange hat to the first hatless person I saw and walked toward the nearest slidestrip. Ahead of me on the walkway I saw a nude woman who, from the rear, looked like Lyonella. I caught up to her.

  She turned to look at me with a smile.

  She was someone I'd never seen before.

  "Excuse me; I thought you were someone I knew."

  She smiled and said, "I'm someone you can get to know easily."

  "Thanks, but I better not. I was really looking for a particular person."

  "I'm particular and I like the way you look. Come with me and we'll get acquainted in the old, familiar, intimate way."

  It seemed like everyone was celebrating the holiday with sensual excess except me. I was committed to following Clandine's agenda as my main hope for getting a wristlock of my own. I said, "I appreciate the offer but I really approached you because I thought you were a friend of mine."

  "I'm willing to be a new friend or we can go to some darkened nook and I'll pretend to be anyone you want and make you feel wanted. I play the Game every day but holidays. Today I'll play any game you want."

  "The offer is appreciated but I'm committed to other plans." I hurried away before the temptation became too great to resist. I had to find Boget or Ozerta before the holiday ended.

  TWELVE

  Boget’s dwell was near the Simulike Palace. Seeing that edifice brought back memories—the fascinating, dreamlike experience I’d had as a tribal initiate and the disturbing experience of being arrested by the Variation Investigation Service. I hoped to find Boget at home but I thought that learning something which would either justify or negate Clandine’s suspicions seemed unlikely.