The Heirs had spoken. They had deigned to give explanations, but a moment awaited for an immeasurable length of time by the human mind was rapidly approaching, and Pilgrim, Armor, and Messenger, and their retinue, were very little compared to the completion of their great plan.
They turned their gaze toward the sky, where there was nothing for humans and everything for them.
Andreï stepped forward again:
- "Excuse me. We have a request."
The Heir of humans and that of Caliban turned around, but the former, although encased in an Armor similar to that of the Wau, adopted a very familiar posture that suggested curious surprise.
- "You entrusted powers to the Pilgrim. Could you take them back from him?
- Why? He can bring you many benefits. And just like the Armor, our other gift, lead your society toward fulfillment and happiness."
Andreï seemed stunned by this response. His gaze met Gulmira's, who hesitated, and he continued:
- "There is no consensus on the virtuous nature of the Pilgrim.
- Your delegation is very small. Does it represent humanity?
- Heirs, are you aware that if the Pilgrim was exiled to the far end of the universe, it is precisely because humanity no longer wanted him among its own?"
The Heirs looked at one another and communicated silently. Then the Heir of humans added:
- "I possess the memory of humanity. I read that Garen Antor was exiled following an unjust decision.
- And your source is Garen Antor? You are the result of the After, but you see, all of Garen Antor's victims were not uploaded into the After. In the same way that you did not upload me.
- Why?
- Because…"
Andreï seemed to lack the strength to confess the truth.
- "This Armor," said the Wau as he stood up, "was damaged by Garen Antor. He tried to kill me with his own hands, many times.
- The Armor… sent by our temporal probes, it was meant to structure your society so that it would welcome the Pilgrim under the best possible conditions… to serve him. You opposed him?
- I observe," said the Wau coldly, "that you have carried out many interferences in our development.
- We are shepherds to one another," finally declared the Heir of Caliban, almost authoritarian. "Time is pressing, and in none of you do I see malice. It would be reasonable to trust you.
- I assure you," said the Heir, "that the history I carry of the Pilgrim is that of a man who chose love.
- Enough," the Heir of Caliban continued authoritatively, raising his hand. "The man who chose love may have done so for millions of years after five years spent sowing suffering, and for them, they are still in that world of suffering. They have pure hearts. They gave enormously to a cause that was unknown to them and that is probably still obscure even now. They are asking neither for his death nor for his suffering, only for the withdrawal of his powers. That is very reasonable. We did not give a gift to Garen Antor the man; we gave a gift to humanity. It is a legitimate right to refuse that gift."
Andreï thought to himself: the Heirs claim to be our continuation, and yet they do not carry the exactness of our present. Perhaps the survival of what we are is impossible. We change, and one day we are unrecognizable, even to ourselves. And yes, an empathetic, gentle, intelligent, open society may one day make of Garen Antor and his energy, perhaps, a remarkable being. But it is impossible for me to conceive of it.
The Heir of humans raised his hand again:
- "Our powers are considerable, but limited in space and time. I can grant to one of you, or even several, a power equivalent to that of Garen Antor. I can create a link between you and the source, the dimensional place from which we draw our means and our energy. Among everything you will be able to do with that link, you will be able to remove his power, and, I imagine, remove your own as well."
Pallas took a step forward, chest thrust out, and exclaimed:
- "Then I will take this power.
- Granted," replied the Heir.
Andreï, the Wau, Gulmira, Ada-everyone looked at one another and then at Pallas, stunned. Everyone thought the same thing: she was of the Grip. But already Pallas radiated the same power as the Aleph, which flowed among all those present: a wild, diffuse warmth.
Andreï, head lowered but smiling, approached Pallas. He guided her with an arm away from the crowd… they went to a remote corner of the tower's surface, while the others murmured.
- "I am at your orders, my admiral. Let us finish with the Aleph!
- Pallas, how do you feel?
- Quite well," she said with a smile. "I had a blackout, but I'm starting to piece things back together. And now, the link… it gives me a new energy.
- Very well. You know, I need you alive, with your full mind, for a very long time.
- My admiral… I prefer to tell you this now rather than… later… because later… there will be so many things.
- I have all the time in the world for you. Go ahead.
- Ravzan forced me to apply as second-in-command on the Alecto. It was a secret mission, with a promotion to captain as the reward. He wanted to spy on you. And I served him. I hated this mission quickly, because you were stable and clearly in no way a traitor."
At the base of the tower, at a crossroads of the city, the Heirs and the captive transients were gathering into a luminous mass. Andreï focused on Pallas. She was the pivot-or the weak point-of the battle. With eyes only for the admiral, she continued:
- "I understood that I would have to remain aboard the Alecto for years, and I began looking for an exit that did not exist. Rav-or rather Charity-wanted his guard dog. And then I understood who you were. You were the most brilliant man of the HS. You were also in prison. And you carried… the suffering of your past. When Tohil wanted to remove you and the President of the HS reassigned you to Valentine, you launched all those research projects on board with a new energy. We could no longer explore, but then you told the crew: the archives will be our planets and our stars, and our imagination our ship. I told myself: I do not want to be anywhere else but here, at your side, Your Excellency. I did not yet know it, but you were in a secret war against Garen Antor and Charity. You had a vision. You always have. Today, I want to be at your side, now, and forever."
Andreï felt overwhelmed by her fanaticism. He nodded with understanding and added:
- "The plan is to use the link granted by the Heirs to remove Antor's, we agree?
- Yes!
- And then you will renounce this link, won't you?
- If you order me to.
- And if I ordered you to entrust this power to me right now?
- I would be faithful to you, have no fear.
- I am certain of that. But I would prefer to hold this power and deal with Antor personally.
- Without me?
- Garen is the one who initiated Lodovico. I am the sole survivor. This story can only end with a symmetrical encounter between the two of us, you understand?
- I will be your weapon. I am your extension. We will be one.
- Pallas, I am a little afraid that it is the Grip speaking, and not my loyal officer.
- No, my admiral. I am disappointed that you mention it. I am not like those who worship the Grip for power. The Grip… it is just something to hold on to.
- Pallas, you claim to love me. You claim to be my second. You can also conquer the stars, become the wise Aleph the Heirs had envisioned for us. Who knows? The story of that improbable Aleph, gentle of heart, who remained in history-perhaps it is you. But you cannot be both. You must choose. I will respect your choice."
Pallas held back tears, perhaps of anger. All the power of the Aleph was within her: she could perhaps have brought down the inverted Tower of Babel or plunged them into a nightmare, captured the admiral and taken him to the far end of the Universe-but she did not use the link. She seemed tortured at last, circling the question of her true intentions and her relationship with the Grip. Did the Grip ultimately dominate those who worshipped it?
And she was exhausted. She extended a trembling hand and Andreï took it, and he was invested with the power of the gods.
- "Take it, my admiral," she said in a broken voice.
She collapsed in his arms. Now endowed with psi power, Andreï could have relieved her, but he decided to use the power of the Heirs only once and for one single thing. He held her against him-she was sleeping again.
He carried her in his arms to Gulmira's security officer, who took charge of her. The survivors of the battle had approached the edge of the tower to witness the departure, through The Empyrean Gates, of all the Heirs of all the civilizations that would ever exist in the Universe. But Andreï and Pallas saw nothing, and it did not matter.
A darkness had fallen, and Ada explained that the creatures had then suggested restarting the flow of time by touching the Form of Three once again.
Without a word, Andreï's gaze met that of the Wau, who nodded. Both were perfectly aware of the next step.