t all the ancients fit their thoughts into measured lines
as naturally as we pick a word that will do, but I'm not sure how good
the Vicksburg language department is. Though why I should wonder about
things like that when I've got Kaby spouting the stuff right in front of
me, I don't know.

"But I didn't die there, kiddos. I still hoped to hurt the Greek ships,
maybe with the Snake's own heat gun. So I quick tried to outflank them.
My two comrades crawled beside me--they are males, but they have
courage. Soon we spied the ambush-setters. They were Snakes and they
were many, filthily disguised as Cretans."

There was an indignant murmur at this, for our cutthroat Change War has
its code, the Soldiers tell me. Being an Entertainer, I don't have to
say what I think.

"They had seen us when we saw them," Kaby swept on, "and they loosed a
killing volley. Heat- and knife-rays struck about us in a storm of wind
and fire, and the Lunan lost a feeler, fighting for Crete's Triple
Goddess. So we dodged behind a sand hill, steered our flight back toward
the water. It was awful, what we saw there: Crete's brave ships all sunk
or sinking, blue sky sullied by their death-smoke. Once again the Greeks
had licked us!--aided by the filthy Serpents.

"Round our wrecks, their black ships scurried, like black beetles, filth
their diet, yet this day they dine on heroes. On the quiet sunlit beach
there, I could feel a Change Gale blowing, working changes deep inside
me, aches and pains that were a stranger's. Half my memories were
doubled, half my lifeline crooked and twisted, three new moles upon my
sword-hand. Goddess, Goddess, Triple Goddess--"

* * * * *

Her voice wavered and Sid reached out a hand, but she straightened her
back.

"Triple Goddess, give me courage to tell everything that happened. We
ran down into the water, hoping to escape by diving. We had hardly
gotten under when the heat-rays hit above us, turning all the cool green
surface to a roaring white inferno. But as I believe I told you, I was
calling on my Caller, and a Door now opened to us, deep below the deadly
steam-clouds. We dived in like frightened minnows and a lot of water
with us."

Off Chicago's Gold Coast, Dave once gave me a lesson in skin-diving and,
remembering it, I got a flash of Kaby's Door in the dark depths.

"For a moment, all was chaos. Then the Door slammed shut behind us. We'd
been picked up in time's nick by-