Chapter 41 39

The two rooms on the second floor of the house on the Plaza de España were small and narrow, with high ceilings, and, except for a very dim lamp in each room, which seemed to be lit for visits from other ghosts. Dark, my bed is in a smaller room facing the square, but tonight from that high window there is only darkness in deep shadows, and the endless Bernini Fountain unseen The sound of the water only makes people feel that the night is thicker. One of the twin bell towers of Holy Trinity Church struck the bell.The church crouched like a big tawny cat on the top of the steps outside, and every time I heard the short chime of the midnight chime I imagined a ghostly hand pulling the rotten bell rope, or maybe it was rotten Hands pulling ghostly bell ropes, I don't know which image fits all my fantasies about death in the long night.

That night I had a high fever, and I was covered with a thick, heavy, water-soaked blanket.My skin alternately felt hot and clammy to the touch.Two violent coughs, the first of which caused Hunter to jump from the couch in the next room and run straight into my room, where I saw his eyes widen at the sight of the blood I vomited on the damask sheet During the second attack, I tried to hold back as much as I could, and staggered to the basin above the small cabinet, spitting out a smaller amount of black blood and dark sticky phlegm.The second time Hunter didn't wake up. Being in this place, traveling thousands of miles back to these two dark rooms, this nasty bed, I vaguely remember waking up here, miraculously healed, the real Dr. Sylwellen and Dr. Clark, and even There is little Signona.Angeletti 24 was waiting in the room outside.That period of recovery from death; the period in which I knew I wasn't Keats, not on the real Earth, not in the century I closed my eyes on the last night that I wasn't human.

24 Sigina.Signora Angeletti: Landlady of Keats in Rome. At two o'clock, I fell asleep, and in my sleep, I had a dream, which was a dream I had never experienced before.I dreamed that I was slowly crossing the data plane, passing through the data circle, entering and passing through the giant data circle, and finally entering a place I didn't recognize, a place I had never dreamed of. The pace, the indescribable colour, an entity with no horizon, no ceiling, no floor or what could be called a ground.I think it's the giant datasphere, because I immediately feel the sympathetic reality of this level, including all the changes and abnormalities of all sensations that I have experienced on earth.All the dual analysis and the joy I feel in wisdom flowed from the intelligence core through the data circle.And more importantly, what kind of feeling does it have?rich?free?Unlimited potential may be the word I'm looking for.

I am alone in this hyperdatasphere.Colors flowed above and below me, through me sometimes disintegrating into blurred soft pinks, sometimes combining into cloudlike visions, and at other times seemed to form more solid objects, shapes, very distinct shapes, in They may or may not be human in appearance. I look at them as a child looks at clouds and imagines elephants, crocodiles on the Nile, and gunboats marching from west to east of the Lake District on a spring day. After a while, I heard sounds: from the square outside, the maddening sound of the Bernini Fountain scrambling; pigeons grooming and cooing between the beams above my window sill, Li.Hunter groaned softly in his dream.But above and below those voices, I also heard a softer voice, less real, but terribly menacing.

Something huge is coming this way.I try desperately to see through the pink haze; something moves just beyond the edge of my vision, I know it knows my name, I know it holds my life in one hand and in the other holds my death. In the space beyond this space, there is nowhere to hide.I can't escape.The banshee's song of pain rises and falls and keeps coming from the world I'm far away the pain everyone feels every day, the pain of the war that just started, piercing the dreadful tree of the thorn god A specific and concentrated pain felt.Worst of all, from those Pilgrims and others whose lives and thoughts I have shared, and the pain I feel for them.

If it saves me from this song of pain, it will be worth rushing forward to meet the shadow of fate that comes. Silveron!Silveron! For a moment, I thought it was me, as I was in this room before, when the pain and fever were beyond my ability to bear, and I called Joseph.Sylvelen, and he will always be by my side.He moves awkwardly and slowly, with a gentle smile on his face that always makes me want to wipe it away with some nasty words.It's hard to be good-natured when you're dying, I've been pretty generous all my life so why go on when I'm suffering, when I'm coughing up what's left of my lungs in a bloody handkerchief play that role?

Silveron! That's not my voice.Hunter was shaking my shoulders, calling Sylvellen's name.It occurred to me that he thought he was calling my name.I pushed his hand away and slumped back onto the pillow.What are you doing?Is there a problem? You're moaning, Graystone's assistant said, and screaming. Had a nightmare, that's all. Your dreams are usually more than just dreams.Hunter said.He looked around the small room, now lit only by a single lamp he had brought in.What a horrible place, Sylvellen. I want to smile a little, it costs me twenty-eight shillings a month, seven daras, it's like a money grab.

Hunter frowned at me, the light making his wrinkles look much deeper than usual.I said, Silveron, I know you're a modder.Graystone told me that you are the reborn personality of a poet named Keats.Now it was clear that everything here he had helplessly sketched the room, the shadows, the tall rectangular windows, and the high bed all had something to do with that.But what kind of relationship?What kind of trick is the Intellectual Core playing here? I'm not sure, I'm being honest. But do you know this place? Oh yes.I said in a voice full of emotion. Tell me, Hunter begged, it is because he has been reluctant to ask me until now, and now such an urgent plea, I decided to tell him.

I told him about John.Keats, of his birth in 1795, his short and often unhappy life, and his death of consumption in Rome in 1821, far from his friend and only love .I told him how it had been arranged for me to recover in this room, and why I had decided to choose Joseph.The name of Sylvelen is a painter Keats knew, and he stayed with Keats until his death. At the end, I told him that during the short time I was on Wanxing.com, I listened and looked carefully, and was ordered to dream of the thorn demon god who went to Hyperion. The lives of members of the pilgrimage group and others. dream?Hunter said: You mean, even at this moment, you're dreaming about what's going on in Starnet?

Yes.I told him about Graystone, the destruction of Heaven's Gate and the Valley of the Gods, and the chaotic images from Hyperion. Hunter paced the cramped room, his shadow cast high on the rough walls.Can you get in touch with them? The people I dreamed about?Graystone?I thought about it, but I can't. are you sure? I try to explain.I wasn't even in those dreams, Hunter, I didn't have no voice, and it didn't exist that I couldn't connect with the people I dreamed about. But do you sometimes dream about what they are thinking? I found this to be true, very close to the truth.i can feel what they feel

So can you leave something in their minds and in their memory?Let them know where we are now? cannot. Hunter slumped into a chair at the foot of my bed, looking suddenly very old. ’, I said: What good is it if it’s impossible for me to communicate with Graystone or anyone else?I have already told you that this duplicate Meta-Earth is in the Magellanic Cloud.Even at the speed of Hawking's space jump thruster, it will take hundreds of years for others to reach us. At least we can warn them.Hunter said.His voice was so tired it sounded almost sullen. To warn them of what?All of Graystone's worst nightmares were coming true around her.Do you think she still believes in the intelligence core?That's why the intelligence core kidnapped us so blatantly.Things were moving too fast for neither Graystone nor anyone at the League to handle. Hunter rubbed his eyes, then put his fingers together, under his nose.His eyes were not so friendly.Are you really the rebirth of a poet's personality? I didn't speak. Recite a few poems and write something to read. I shook my head.It was late, we were both tired and scared, and my heart was pounding from what had just been a nightmare that was more than a nightmare.I can't let Hunter make me angry. Well, he said: Show me you're a new, improved Bill.Keats. It's John.Keats, I said softly. Whatever, come on, Sylvellen, or John, whatever I call you, recite a poem and listen to it. Well, I glared back at him and said: Listen up. ∮ there is a bad boy bad boy he is because he does nothing only scribble poetry he did an ink bottle hold in the palm of your hand and a pen its incomparable hold in the other hand Then run away he ran Yamanakashi fountain ghost barracks Miko ditch he writes wear a coat because of the temperature cold afraid of gout or not because of the climate warm and pleasant ah, how charming when we choose follow your own feelings northbound also northbound also follow your own feelings Heading north too! 25 25 This is a poem written by Keats in 1816. I don't know, Hunter said, that doesn't sound like something written by a poet with a thousand-year fame. I shrugged my shoulders. Did you dream of Graystone tonight?Did something happen to make you moan? no.That had nothing to do with Graystone, it was different, a real nightmare. Hunter stood up and took his lamp, ready to take the only light in the room.I heard the fountain in the square, and the sound of the pigeons on the windowsill.Tomorrow, he said: We're going to figure it all out and figure out a way to get back.If they can teleport us here, there must be a way to teleport us back. Yes, I answered, but knew it wasn't so. Good night, said Hunter: Don't have any more nightmares, will you? Don't do it, I said, knowing it was even more impossible. Moneta pulled the injured Kassad away from the Thorn Demon God, stretched out a hand as if to block the monster, and took out a blue disc from the waistband of her tights, behind her. Twist it. A two-meter-high golden oval burned in midair. Let me go, Kassad muttered: Let's finish this fight.Blood gushed out from the huge wound that the Jing Demon God's sharp claws had scratched on the tights.His right foot was empty, as if it had been half rotted; he couldn't exert his strength. When he was fighting with the Thorn Demon God, Kassad was able to fight in the sparring by the other party holding him like a crazy dance. Stand upright. let me go.Feldman.Kassad said it again. Shut up, Moneta said, and then in a softer tone, shut up, baby.She pulled him through the golden oval, and they entered the blinding light. Even in pain and fatigue, Kassad was still dazzled by the sight before him.They weren't in Hyperion anymore, he was sure of that.A vast plain stretching as far as the horizon beyond logic and experience.Low orange grass, if it is grass, grows on flats and knolls, like the hairs on the back of some giant caterpillar; and what might be a tree looks like it's made of whisker-like carbon paper Sculptures, trunks and branches are in impossibly complex forms like Escher's paintings, and the leaves are a jumble of dark blue and purple ovoids that quiver toward the bright sky. But that's not sunshine.Just as Moneta led him through the closed door Kassad didn't think it was a portal, because he was sure that the door took them not only through space, but also through time to a clump of impossible things. Kassad looked up to the sky and felt something almost magical, as bright as day in Hyperion, as bright as noon in a shopping mall in Lusus, as bright as Kassad was in the sky. Midsummer in the dry homeland of Mars on the highlands of Tarsis, but this is not sunny A sky full of stars, constellations, and constellations, a galaxy of countless suns, crowded between the lights without any dark place.It would be like being in a planetarium with ten planetariums, Kassad thought, like being in the middle of the Milky Way. The center of the galaxy. A group of men and women in tights came out from the shade of the Asher tree and surrounded Moneta and Kassad.One of the men was a giant even by Kassad's Martian standards and looked at him, sticking his head toward Moneta, though Kassad couldn't hear anything on the radio and narrowband receiver in his tights I can't feel it, but I know that the two people are talking. Lie down, said Moneta. She made Kassad lie on the velvety orange grass. He struggled to sit up and talk, but both she and the giant pressed their palms to his chest while he lay. Going down, the whole field of vision is full of slowly twisting purple leaves and stars. The man touched him again, and Kassad's tights disappeared.He wanted to sit up, to cover his body as he found himself naked in front of the small assembled crowd.But Moneta held him in place, and in the pain and confusion he vaguely felt the man touching his cut arm and chest, touching his leg with a silver-covered hand, to where the Achilles tendon was severed.The colonel felt a chill wherever the giant touched, and then his consciousness ballooned up, high above the tawny plains and rolling hills, toward the canopy of stars where A monstrous figure waited, black as a thundercloud towering on the horizon, huge as a mountain. Kassad, Moneta called softly, and the colonel floated back, Kassad, she said again.Her lips pressed against his cheek, and his tights rebooted, merging with hers. Feldman.Colonel Kassad sat up with her.He shook his head, knowing that he was wrapped in mercury energy again, he stood up.The pain was gone. He felt that a dozen places on his body where he had been injured had healed, and the severe cuts were healed and a little itchy. He let his hands melt into his tights, and his skin slid over his skin. He bent his knees and touched Feel the heel, but don't feel a scar. Kassad turned to the giant, thank you.He said, but wondered if the man could hear him. The giant nodded and stepped back towards the others. He's a doctor or something, Moneta said.a healer. Kassad vaguely heard her, but focused on the others.They were all human, he knew in his heart that they were human, but the differences were striking: their bodysuits were not all silver like Kassad and Moneta, but a dozen different colors, each in a pastel And full of life, like the fur of a living wild animal, the surface of the tights can only be seen from the subtle energy flashes and slightly blurred facial features.Their shapes are as different from each other as their colors: the healer has a waist the size of a thorn demon god and a tall and strong figure, a broad forehead, and a cascading stream of tawny energy is likely to be a woman with long hair. Childlike, but clearly a woman, well-proportioned, with strong legs, small breasts, a pair of two-meter-long fairy wings growing from her back and not just decorative wings, Because when a breeze blew up the grass on the orange prairie, the woman took a few steps, stretched her arms, and soared gracefully into the air. Behind a few tall, thin women in blue tights with webbed fingers between their long fingers, there are a group of short men wearing masks and armor like Tyrannical Marines who want to fight in a vacuum, but Kassad felt that the armor was actually a part of them.Above their heads, a group of winged men rose into the air with heat, intricate codes flashing between them in thin yellow laser lights that seemed to shoot out of an eye on each of their chests . Kassad shook his head again. We should go, Moneta said: we can't let the Thorn Demon God follow us here, these warriors have enough to deal with, and there is no need to deal with the special appearance of the Lord of Pain. Where are we now?Kassad asked. Moneta used a gold ring drawn from her girdle to summon a purple oval, in the distant future of humanity, one of our futures.Time tombs are formed here and put back into previous times. Kassad looked around again. Something very massive was moving in front of the star, blocking thousands of stars and casting a black shadow that disappeared within seconds.The men and women looked up, then went back to their business, harvesting little things from the trees; gathered together to look at some bright energy map conjured up by a shaking finger; horizon.There was a short, round, genderless person who dug into the soft soil, and now there was only a line of slightly raised soil, circling rapidly in that area. Where is this place?Kassad asked again.what is hereSuddenly, for no apparent reason, he felt himself on the point of weeping, as if he had walked through a strange place, turned a corner only to find himself back at his home in the Tarsis resettlement camp, his long-dead mother waving at the door, His long-forgotten friends and relatives are waiting for him to play. Come on, said Moneta, with a clear sense of urgency in her voice.She pulled Cassandra toward the glowing oval, and he kept looking at the others and the starry sky, until finally he walked in, and the sight disappeared in an instant. They stepped into the darkness, and it took only a few seconds for the filters on Kassad's bodysuit to adjust to his vision.They were on the pedestals of the crystal monoliths in the valley of the time graves of Hyperion.It was night, clouds were rolling overhead, and a storm was forming.Only the light from the time tombs themselves illuminated the area.Kassad felt a pang of loss at having just left that clean and bright place, and then his thoughts focused on what he saw before him. Sol.Wen Chaobo and Bu Lang.Lamia was half a kilometer away from him in the valley.Thor was bent over, and the woman lay in front of the jade cairn, and the wind-blown dust swirled around them, so thick that they did not see the thorn demon walking down the path past the obelisk like a black shadow. The monument walked towards them. Feldman.Kassad leaped from the black marble in front of the monolith, skirting the shattered crystal shards in the path.He found Moneta still holding his arm. If you call again, her voice sounds gentle but urgent in his ears, and the Thorn Demon God will kill you. they are my friends.Kassad said.His overlord's equipment and battered armor lay where Moneta had discarded hours before; he searched among the monoliths and found his long gun and a bunch of grenades at last, seeing that the long gun was still usable, After checking the charging energy, I opened the insurance, left the monolithic monument, and ran to intercept Jing Demon God. I woke up to the sound of running water and thought for a moment that I was waking up from a nap on a walk with Brown 26 near Lodori Falls.But the darkness I saw when I opened my eyes was as terrifying as when I fell asleep, and the disgusting sound of the thin stream was not the famous rushing water sound that Shao Sai wrote in his poem later.And I feel bad not just because Brown and I stupidly went down Skidhorn before breakfast and got a sore throat but it's horrific to actually be sick, sore all over, much worse than a fever , There is phlegm and fire churning in my chest and stomach. 26. Charles Brown, a lover of literature and art, later made friends with Keats. In 1818, he invited Keats to go hiking in Scotland and other places. 27 Robert Socthey (Robert Socthey, 1774︱1843): British lakeside poet and essayist, one of the representatives of early romanticism. I got up and groped my way to the window.inside.There was a gleam of light under the door of Hunter's room, because he had left the lamp on, I suppose, when he went to bed.It would not have been a bad thing if I had done the same thing before, but it was too late to turn on the lamp now, for I had already groped my way to the darkness outside which was a little brighter than the darker room. The air was fresh and full of the smell of rain.I knew it was the thunder that woke me, and the lightning that lit the roofs of Rome.There are no lights in the whole city.I stretched my body slightly out of the open window, and I could see that the steps above the square were soaked with rain, and the tower of the Holy Trinity Church was outlined in black by the light of the lightning.The wind blowing down from the stairs was very cold. I retreated to the bed, wrapped myself in a blanket, and then pulled a chair to sit by the window, looking outside and thinking about something. I remember the last weeks and days of my brother Tom, his face and body contorted, trying to catch his breath.I remember how pale my mother looked, her face almost glowing white in the darkening room.My sister and I were only allowed to touch her wet hands, kiss her burning lips, and exit the room.I remember wiping my lips vigorously after I left the room, and looking sideways to see if my sister and the others saw my undeserved movement. Less than thirty hours after Keats' death, Dr. Clark and an Italian surgeon opened up the body and found that, as Sylwellen later wrote in a letter to a friend: the most severe case of tuberculosis completely destroyed both lung lobes and most of the cells were gone.Neither Dr. Clark nor the Italian surgeon could imagine how Keats survived the last two months. I sat in the dark room, looking out at the dark square, thinking about it, while listening to the churning in my chest and throat, feeling the pain burning inside me like fire, and the cries from inside me that were even more horrific. pain: Martin.The wail of Cylenus on the tree, the pain I suffered to write that poem I was too weak and cowardly to complete; Feldman.The cry of Kassad as he prepared to die at the claws of the thorn god; the cry of the consul forced to betray again; the mourning of thousands of templars mourning their world and their brother Hayter.The death of Mastine, and the wail from the throat; Brown.Lamia's cry at the thought of her deceased love, my alter ego; Paul.Doohey lay there struggling with burns and memories, and felt the wail of the crucifix fixed on his chest; Saul.Wen Chaobo pounded the land of Hyperion with his fists, calling out the wails of his child, and Rachel's baby cry still echoed in our ears. Damn it, I said softly, pounding my fist on the stone and stucco window frame, damn it. After a while, in the gray dawn, I left the window, found my bed, lay down and closed my eyes. Theo.Governor Lane woke up to the sound of music.He blinked, looked around, and seemed to recognize the life support cabin next to him and the medical room on this spaceship from his dream.Theo found himself in soft black pajamas, sleeping on an examination chair in the medical room.The past twelve hours began to be pieced together by Theo's fragmentary memories: He was picked up from the treatment cabin, fitted with sensors, the consul and another person leaned over him, asking him many questions, and Theo seemed to be really conscious She answered them all, and fell asleep again, dreaming of Hyperion and the city burning there.No, not a dream. Theo sat up, felt himself almost floating off the examination table, found his clothes clean and neatly folded on the shelf next to him, changed quickly, and listened to the music going on , there are highs and lows, but it has continued, with a special ghostly taste, which makes people feel that it is someone playing rather than recording. Theo walked from the short staircase to the leisure deck, but stopped in surprise, because he found that the entire spaceship was in an open state, the balcony was stretched out, and the protective force field had obviously been removed.The gravity under the feet is extremely small, enough for Theo to stand on the deck, but if there is no more gravity, it may be less than 20% of the gravity on Hyperion, only about one-sixth of the standard gravity. The whole ship was wide open.Bright sunlight streamed in through the open door onto the balcony where the Consul was playing on the antique instrument he called a piano.Theo recognized the archaeologist, Arendez leaning against the open boat, a glass of wine in his hand.The Consul was playing a very ancient and complex piece, his hands moving quickly and skillfully across the keys.Theo moved closer, ready to whisper something to the smiling Arendez, but then stopped in shock, eyes widening. Outside the balcony, thirty meters below, bright sunlight illuminated a green meadow that stretched to the horizon that lay before us.There were a few small groups of people on the grass, sitting or lying relaxed, apparently listening to the consul's impromptu recital.But who are they! Xio saw some tall and thin people, who seemed to fit the beauty standard of Tianyuan Four, with pale skin, bald heads, and wearing small blue robes, but beside and behind them, there were many An astonishing assortment of human beings sat there and sounded more diverse than I had ever seen in the Ten Thousand Stars Network: there were people with hair and scales; there were people with bodies and eyes like bees, with Compound eyes and tentacles; there are people as thin as silk statues, with huge black wings growing out of their thin shoulders, wrapping them like a cape; Muscular as a South African buffalo, the Lutherians look emaciated by comparison; there are short, long-armed, orange-haired people whose pale, sensitive faces make them look like the movie Meta-Earth There are others who look less like humanoids and more like lemurs, or less like people than hawks or lions or bears or apes.But Theo somehow knew right away that these were humans, despite their astonishing differences.Their focused eyes, relaxed posture, and a hundred other subtle human traits down to the way a butterfly-winged mother holds a butterfly-winged child in her arms all testify to a humanity that Theo can't deny. . Milio.Arendez turned around and saw Xio's expression, smiled slightly, and said softly: Destroyer. Theo who was stunned by surprise.Lian En could only shake his head, listening to the music.Ousters are savages, not such beautiful and sometimes celestial beings, and the Ousters captured in Brescia, not to mention the bodies of their aborted babies, were all about the same height, yes, thin, yes, But it is definitely more like the standard of Wanxing.com, rather than changing and dazzling like this. Theo shook his head again, and the Consul's piano piece reached a climax and ended with an accent.The hundreds of people on the ground outside applauded, their voices high and soft in the thin air, and Theo watched them stand up, stretch, and scatter in all directions. Some quickly passed the uncomfortably close Horizon, and some flew away with eight-meter-long wings.Others make their way to the pedestal of the Consul spacecraft. The Consul stood up, saw Theo, and smiled.He patted the younger man's shoulders with both hands.Theo, wake up just in time, we're about to negotiate. Theo.Lian blinked.Three Ousters landed on the balcony, tucking their huge wings behind their backs.Each has long fur, but in different patterns and patterns, their fur is as natural and real as any wild animal. It always sounds that good, said the closest Ouster to the Consul.The Ouster has a lion-like face with a broad nose and golden eyes surrounded by tan fur.That last one is Mozart's Fantasia in D minor, KV. 397, right? Yes, the Consul said: Vonzi, the Freeman, introduces you to Theo.Mr. Lien, the governor of Hyperion, the territory of the Overlord Alliance. The lion's gaze shifted to Xio's face, good luck, the free man Fanzi said, stretching out a furry hand. Theo shook hands, nice to meet you, sir.Theo didn't know if he was still in the recovery cabin, dreaming about these things, but the sunlight on his face and the thick palm in his hand let him know that it was not a dream. The free man Fanzi turned back to face the consul. On behalf of the entire group, I would like to thank you for playing.It's been years since we last heard you play, my friend.He looked around.We can talk here, or go to an administrative camp, depending on your convenience. The Consul hesitated for only a second.There are only three of us, Freeman Vanzi.You are many, let us go to you. The lion head nodded and looked up to the sky.We'll send a ship to take you there.He and the other two walked to the railing, stepped out of the hull, and fell a few meters before spreading their wings and flying towards the horizon. God, said Theo softly, grabbing the Consul's arm, where are we now? Settlement of Ousters.As the consul said, he put the lid on the Steinway piano, walked inside first, and closed the balcony after Arendez retreated. What are we going to talk about?Theo asked. The Consul rubbed his eyes, and it looked as though he hadn't slept much, or at all, during the ten to twelve hours Theo had healed. It depends on the next message from President Greystone, the consul said and nodded towards the projection area, where mist has begun to form due to the transmission of data. decoded on the ship's teletype receiver. Mena.Graystone walked into the government building hospital and was escorted to the recovery area by waiting doctors, Paul.Father Duhet is lying there. How is he?She asked the first physician, who was in charge of the president's health and medical care. About a third of his body suffered second-degree burns.Elma.Dr. Androniva replied: Burned off the eyebrows and part of the hair but he doesn't have a lot of hair. He still has some tertiary radiation burns on the left side of his face and body. We have completed the epidermis surgery, RNA injections were also given.He is now pain-free and conscious.There was of course the problem of the cruciform parasitism on his chest, but that presented no immediate danger to the patient. Third degree radiation burns?Graystone said, pausing out of earshot of Doohet's waiting cubicle.Plasma bomb? Yes, replied another doctor, whom Graystone did not know.We determined that this person was teleported from the Valley of the Gods a second or two before the teleportation system cut off. All right!Graystone said as he stopped in front of the floating bed where Dohey was resting.I would like to speak to this gentleman alone, please. The doctors looked at each other, returned a nursing robot to the storage room in the wall, closed the door of the ward and left. Father Douhet?asked Graystone, who she recognized from his image and from what Sylvellen had said of him when he spoke of the Pilgrim.Du Hei's face was red, blotchy, and greasy from the regenerative ointment and painkiller spray.He is still an attractive man. President.The priest uttered a little cry, as if about to sit up. Graystone put her hand gently on his shoulder, and lie down, she said: Will you tell me what happened? Douhet nodded, with tears in the old Jesuit's eyes.The World Tree Mantra did not believe that they would actually attack, he said softly, his voice hoarse.Sick.Harding thought there had been some kind of arrangement between the Templar and the Ouster.But they really have killers, death mirrors, plasma bombs, nuclear explosions, I think Yes, Graystone said: We saw it all in the Situation Room.I need to know everything, Father Dohey, from the moment you walked into Hyperion's Crypt. Paul.Du Hei stared at Greystone's face, you know about that? Yes, and most of the things up to that moment.But I need to know more, more things. Douhei Closed His Eyes: The Underground Labyrinth What? The subterranean labyrinth, he said again, louder.He cleared his throat, and walked him through those tunnels full of dead bodies, turned into the Overlord spaceship, and met Sylvellen on Peace Planet. 你確定席維倫是往這裡來嗎？要到政府大廈？葛萊史東問道。 是的，他和妳的助理杭特，他們兩個都要由傳送門回到這裡來。 葛萊史東點了點頭，小心地摸了下那教士肩膀上沒有燒傷的地方。神父，在這裡事情發生得很快，席維倫不見了，里．杭特也不見了。我需要和海柏利昂有關的忠告，你能留在我身邊嗎？ 杜黑一時看來很不明所以的樣子。我必須回去，回到海柏利昂，總裁，索爾和其他的人還在等我。 我明白。葛萊史東安撫地說：一旦有辦法回海柏利昂的時候，我就會送你回去。不過，目前萬星網正受到無情的攻擊，好幾百萬人瀕臨死亡邊緣或有死亡的危險，我需要你幫忙，神父，在那之前，我可以靠你嗎？ 保羅．杜黑嘆了口氣，躺了回去，可以，總裁，可是我一點也不知道我怎麼 在輕輕的敲門聲後，西黛蒲塔．艾卡喜走了進來，遞給葛萊史東一張寫有訊息的紙片，總裁微微一笑。我剛說過事情發生得很快，神父，又有了另一個發展，平安星來的訊息說紅衣主教團在西斯廷教堂集會葛萊史東挑起一邊眉毛，我忘了，神父，那就是那座西斯廷教堂嗎？ 是的，在大錯誤發生後，教會把那座教堂裡每塊石頭、每幅壁畫都拆下來，整個移到了平安星。 葛萊史東低頭看著那張薄箋。在西斯廷教堂集會，選出了一位新教宗。 So fast?保羅．杜黑輕輕地說，他又閉上了眼睛，我猜想他們覺得要趕快才行。平安星是什麼？再過十天就要面對驅逐者的侵略了。不過，這樣匆促決定 你對是誰當選教宗的事有興趣嗎？葛萊史東問道。 不是紅衣主教安東尼奧．嘉杜琪，就是紅衣主教亞戈斯蒂諾．魯德爾吧，我猜。杜黑說：目前這個時候，沒有其他人能得到多數的支持。 不是的，葛萊史東說：根據艾督華特主教傳來的消息 艾督華特主教！對不起，總裁，請繼續。 根據艾督華特主教的訊息，紅衣主教團選出了教會有史以來第一個位階在蒙席以下的人。這上面說新教宗是一位耶穌會的教士一個叫保羅．杜黑的神父。 即使身上有傷，杜黑還是坐了起來，什麼？他的聲音中充滿了不敢置信的味道。 葛萊史東把那張薄箋遞給他。 保羅．杜黑瞪著那張紙，不可能。除了在象徵性的情況下之外，他們從來沒有選過位階低於蒙席的人當教宗，那一次還是很特殊的狀況那次是聖貝爾維德里，是在大錯誤發生，以及那次奇蹟不對，不對，這不可能。 據我的助理報告，艾督華特一直試著打電話來，葛萊史東說：我們馬上接通電話，神父，還是我該稱呼，教宗閣下？總裁的聲音裡毫無諷刺的味道。 杜黑擡起了頭，震驚得說不出話來。 我去叫人接通電話，葛萊史東說：我們會盡快安排你回平安星，教宗閣下，可是如果你能保持連絡的話，我會感激不盡，我真的很需要你的建議。 杜黑點了點頭，眼光又回到那張薄紙上。一具電話開始在病床上方的臺子上閃亮起來。 葛萊史東總裁走到外面的走道裡，把最新的情況告訴了那幾位醫生，又通知安全單位核准艾督華特主教和其他教會成員由平安星傳送過來，然後經由傳送門回到她住處的房間裡。西黛蒲塔提醒她再過八分鐘委員會就要在戰情室重新開會了。葛萊史東點了點頭，等她的助理出去之後，回到隱在牆壁裡的壁龕中所設盼超光速通訊室，啟動了音速的私用力場，鍵入代碼把訊息傳送到領事的太空船，在萬星網、邊疆星系、銀河系和整個宇宙都收得到，但只有領事的船才能解碼。至少她希望如此。 光影攝影機的燈開始閃著紅光。根據你太空船的自動定位系統，我假設你已決定和驅逐者會面，而他們已經允許你這樣做，葛萊史東對著攝影機的鏡頭說：我也假設你已安然通過第一次會面。 葛萊史東吸了一口氣。我代表霸聯在過去這麼多年來要求你犧牲，現在我為了全人類再次向你要求。你必須查明以下幾點： 第一，驅逐者為什麼攻擊並摧毀萬星網的幾個世界？你、拜倫．拉蜜亞和我都相信他們要的只是海柏利昂。他們為什麼改變了這一點？ 第二，智核究竟在哪裡？如果我們要和他們作戰的話，我必須要知道這點。難道驅逐者忘了我們共同的敵人是智核嗎？ 第三，他們有什麼要求才肯停火？我願意做很多的犧牲來擺脫智核的控制。可是殺戮必須停止！ 第四，亂軍代表團首領是否願意親自和我見面？如果有必要，我可以利用傳送門到海柏利昂星系去。我們絕大部分的艦隊已經離開了那裡，可是有一艘空間跳躍船和護衛艦仍在守著傳送中心。亂軍首領必須及早決定，因為霸軍想要摧毀傳送中心。到時候海柏利昂和萬星網之間的時債就會變成三年了。 最後一點，亂軍首領必須知道智核希望我們使用一種驟死爆炸裝置來對抗驅逐者的入侵。霸軍的很多將領都同意，時間很急迫。我們不能我再重覆一次，不能讓驅逐者入侵毀了萬星網。 現在完全看你了。請確認收到這個訊息，談判開始就以超光速通訊告訴我。 葛萊史東兩眼正視著鏡頭，試圖將她在個性和誠懇兩方面的力量，傳送到如此遙遠的距離之外。我以對人類歷史的憐憫心向你請求，請務必達成這個任務。 這段超光速通訊的影音訊息之後是兩分鐘的不穩定影像，顯示出天堂之門和神之谷這兩個世界之死。領事、米立歐．阿讓德茲和席奧．連恩在光幕消失之後默默地坐在那裡。 回應？船詢問道。 領事清了下嗓子。確認訊息已經收到。他說：送出我們目前所在位置的座標。他望著隔著投影區對面的兩個人，兩位覺得呢？ 阿讓德茲搖了下頭，好像要讓頭腦清醒一點。顯然你以前來過這裡到驅逐者聚落之中。 是的，領事說：在布列西亞大戰之後我的妻子和兒子很久以前，在布列西亞之戰後，我和驅逐者見面做多方面的談判。 代表霸聯？席奧問道，這個紅髮男子的臉看來蒼老許多，而且滿布憂慮。 代表葛萊史東參議員的黨派。領事說：那還是她當選總裁之前，她的黨團向我解釋，如果我們把海柏利昂納入萬星網領地之中，會引發智核內部的權力鬥爭，要做到這點最簡單的方式就是走漏消息讓驅逐者知道這消息會讓他們攻打海柏利昂，而使霸聯的艦隊到這裡來。 而你做了那件事？阿讓德茲的聲音裡不露任何感情，雖然他的妻子和已經長大成人的子女都住在文藝復興星，現在離入侵的時間不到八十小時。 領事往後靠坐在墊子上。No.我把那個計畫告訴了驅逐者，他們送我回萬星網去當雙面間諜。他們計畫占領海柏利昂，但是要在他們自己選定的時間。 席奧俯身向前，兩手緊緊地互握著。這麼多年在領事館裡 我一直在等驅逐者的消息。領事冷冷地說：你知道，他們有一種裝置可以癱瘓時塚四周的反熵力場。在時機成熟時開啟時塚，讓荊魔神能脫出禁錮。 所以驅逐者幹了這事。席奧說。 不是的，領事說：是我，我像當年背叛葛萊史東和霸聯一樣地背叛了驅逐者。我槍殺了負責校正那個裝置的女人還有和她在一起的技師打開了裝置，反熵力場因此癱瘓。最後的朝聖團組成，荊魔神得到自由。 席奧瞪著他之前的恩師，在他那對綠色的眼睛裡，不解的情緒多過了憤怒。Why?你為什麼會做所有這些事呢？ 領事簡明扼要而不動聲色地跟他們說了他的祖母，茂宜︱聖約的西麗，她對抗霸聯的革命那場在她和她的愛人，也就是領事的祖母死後仍未結束的革命。 阿讓德茲站了起來，走到陽臺對面的窗前，陽光流瀉進來照著他的雙腿和深藍色的地毯。驅逐者知道你幹了什麼事嗎？ 他們現在知道了，領事說，我們到達這裡之後，我就告訴了自由人梵茲和其他人。 席奧在投影區裡走來走去。所以我們現在要去的這次會議可能是一場審判？ 領事微微一笑，或者是一場處決。 席奧停了下來，兩手握緊了拳頭。葛萊史東要你再到這裡來的時候已經知道這些事？ 是的。 席奧轉開了身，我不知道我是不是希望他們會處決你。 我也不知道，席奧。領事說。 米立歐．阿讓德茲在窗口轉回身來。梵茲是不是說他們要派一艘船來接我們？ 他說話的語氣裡有點蹊蹺，讓另外兩個人趕到窗前。他們所降落的世界是一個中等大小的小行星，四周環繞著十級的防衛力場，以產生的風和水經過仔細重新結構而化為一個球體。海柏利昂的太陽正沉向那太接近的地平線後方，幾公里不生其他雜物的草在變化無常的風中起伏。在船的下方，有一條不知是很寬的小溪還是很窄的河水慢慢流過草原，流向地平線，然後似乎向上飛騰成為由河水形成的瀑布，扭曲著向上穿過遠方的力場，蜿蜒在上面黑暗的太空中，最後變成一條窄得看不見的細線。 一艘船正由那無限高的瀑布上降下來，漸漸接近他們那小世界的表面。在船頭和船尾附近都看得見類人生物。 天啊，席奧輕聲地說。 我們最好趕快準備好。領事說：他們就是來護送我們的。 在外面，太陽以驚人的快速落下，把最後的光線射透離變成黑影的地面半公里高處的水幕，在深藍色的天空中形成在色彩和堅實度上都幾乎到駭人地步的彩虹。