Xone Of Contention (30 page)

After a time Robota stirred. She hauled herself from Grey's pocket. She pulled a sodden handkerchief out after her. She crawled across to the Gorgon, and laid the handkerchief across her face.

The Gorgon woke. “What—?”

“The Magic—returning,” Robota said. “Cover face.”

“Oh.” The Gorgon spread the handkerchief. The spell of invisibility had been banished by the absence of magic, and would not be mended by the magic's return.

Then the magic returned. Com-Pewter came to life, his screen lighting Grey Murphy's eyes opened, and he stared full into the handkerchief. “What?”

“Look away!” Robota cried with renewed strength “Gorgon!”

He did so with alacrity. Robota had just saved him from getting stoned again. He got up and faced Pewter's screen. “Change reality,” he said uigently “Make the Gorgon's face invisible.”

WHO ARE YOU? the screen demanded.

“I will explain It's important. Null the Gorgon first.”

Grudgingly. Pewter did. The Gorgon's threat disappeared, and she returned Gray's hanky.

“Now I will tell you the truth.” Grey said. “But you must forget, and make the Gorgon forget, after we leave. I will tell you why.”

STRANGER HAS MUCH NERVE.

Then Grey told Pewter why. “That's the first time I've seen a machine surprised,” Pia commented.

"Now will you help us leave Xanth safely?” Grey asked

YES. THEN I WILL SEAL OFF THIS MEMORY UNIT UNTIL YOU INVOKE IT IN YOUR TIME

“Good. Now we could use some food, and better clothing.”

Pewter generated a well stocked table of food, and they fell greedily to. Robota talked with Pewter, explaining how he had made her, in the future, and providing details of their mission Grey had skipped.

Then two more people arrived at Pewter's cave. They were bedraggled, having evidently struggled through the nonmagical jungle most of the way before the magic returned. One was a middle aged man. the other a rather pretty young woman. They stood blinking at the gloom.

Grey looked at them—and froze. “I forgot!” he whispered. “We must get away from here.”

The Gorgon and Robota looked at him. “Why?” the Gorgon asked. “Aren't they people seeking refuge, like ourselves?”

“Yes! But they are my parents. His talent is to make things go wrong—and they just went wrong for us.”

“Oh, no!” Robota said. “Paradox.”

The man heard them. “There are people here,” he said, surprised. “And food.” The two of them lunged to the table, too hungry to resist.

Grey looked as if he were going to faint. Then Robota came to the rescue. “Pewter can erase the memory,” she said

Grey sighed with sheer relief. “Yes!”

“Hello.” the man said. “We are two strangers in need of sustenance. May we join you?”

“Yes.” Grey said. “We shall talk. Then Com-Pewter will help us all to go to Mundania, and erase your memories of this meeting.”

“Why?” the woman asked, around a mouthful of pie.

“Because this is Robota, a golem from the future.” Robota smiled and inclined her head. “And you are Magician Murphy and Sorceress Vadne.”

The Magician leaped to his feet. “How do you, a stranger, know that?” he demanded.

“Because I am your son you just signaled the stork for, Grey Murphy.”

Both of them stared at him. “How can this be?” the man demanded.

“I am also from the future, on a mission to what is my past. I will be delivered to you in Mundania, and grow up with you. before we all return to Xanth.”

“We can't be in Xanth.” Vadne said. “They would put us back in the Brain Coral's Pool we just escaped.”

“You will be pardoned, and become productive citizens of Xanth. And I will marry a princess. Until I undertake this mission, fifty six years from now.”

They doubted, but slowly the came to believe. “My son!” Vadne exclaimed, coming to hug Grey. It was odd, because she was slightly younger than he.

“That's so touching.” the Gorgon said, blowing her invisible nose.

Robota turned to Magician Murphy “If I were real, would I be shedding a tear now.”

Murphy brought out a handkerchief and wiped off her wet face. “Yes”

The scene blurred. Pia had to open her eves so she could wipe her own face.

“But you hardly know Grey Murphy,” Breanna said “And you never met his folks.”

“It's like a wedding.” Pia said “You just have to cry.”

Soon she returned to the observation. Grey, Robota. and the Gorgon had retreated behind a screen, and the memory of Magician Murphy and Vadne had evidently been wiped. The two bedraggled figures stood at the entrance to the chamber.

GREETINGS, INTRUDERS.

“Who are you?” Murphy demanded.

I AM COM-PEWTER. YOU ARE NOW IN MY POWER.

Actually that was no sure thing, because Murphy's talent was to make things go wrong. But the two worked out a deal: Pewter would help them get safely out of Xanth. if they gave him their just-ordered son. They agreed.

Then Pewter put them into temporary stasis and addressed the others.

GREY, YOU CAN AND WILL GUIDE THEM SAFELY OUT.

“I can and will.” Grey agreed. “Otherwise I would jeopardize my own existence.” He glanced around. “I will guide the Gorgon out, too.”

YES. I WILL NOW WIPE HER MEMORY

“No!” the Gorgon cried. “Please! I beg of you. I promise never to tell. Let me remember this wonderful scene, and the way Magician Grey has helped me.”

Pewter paused

“It makes sense,” Robota said. “She will be in Mundania, and later will return to marry the Good Magician, who knows everything anyway. So it shouldn't make any difference.”

AGREED.

“Oh. thank you!” the Gorgon cried. “And thank you, Robota! I will remember this favor.” She paused, considering. “But never tell.”

Then they organized for the trip to Mundania. Grey, Robota, and the Gorgon made an entry, and were introduced to Magician Murphy and Vadne as their guides to Mundania. The party of five set off.

The walk took several days, but was without event. They took the invisible bridge across the Gap Chasm and followed the trail north through the North Village. They disguised themselves, and no one recognized them. When they reached the border. Grey did not have to nullity the deadly shield; it had been taken down, on orders of King Trent. But they forgot one thing: to tune in the color of the water of the sea near the border. So they did not come out where Trent and his army had been, but in a different time and region of Mundania.

“That's all right.” Grey said. “The border interface automatically registers you as you pass through it. and at such time as any of you return, you will return to the same time in Xanth that you left. Except that it will be as much later in Xanth as the time you spend in Mundania.” He did not explain about the time traveling aspect; he and Robota were a special case.

The Gorgon's face reappeared as they left the magic. She was just as pretty as her sister the Siren, and had just as good a figure. “That's all right,“ she said. ”I will make do."

They ascertained that this was the region they had passed through before, that spoke Italian. “I can teach you a few words,” Robota said.

The Gorgon considered. Then she smoothed her skirt and inhaled. “I will pretend to be a mute girl, in need of a good man's protection. Do you think that will work?”

Grey considered her statuesque face and figure. "I believe it will. Still—“

“Thank you.” She walked away, into the heart of drear Mundania.

Vadne nodded. “She will surely succeed.”

“Now where do the two of you wish to be?” Grey inquired. “There arc different sections of Mundania, speaking different languages and having different customs.”

They considered. “You seem like an honest young man.” Magician Murphy said. He no longer knew Grey as his son. because of the memory wipe, but they had spent several compatible days together. “Take us to a region you feel will be good for us.”

Grey paused, and Pia knew why: he didn't dare change his own history Robota whispered in his ear: “Where you lived.”

So he watched the changing color of the sea, and brought them to the region and time within a year of where he had been delivered, which was fourteen years after the Gorgon's time, and on another continent, where English was spoken. The stork might find it a challenge to make a delivery outside of Xanth, but history indicated that it would succeed.

Grey explained the problem of language, and Robota told them a few useful words so they could get started “As I understand it.” Grey said. “When Xanthians go to Mundania. they are not challenged; the Mundanes seem to believe that they have always been there. But they do need to learn the conventions.”

“He did not say where he learned that,” Justin remarked. "But it was surely from his parents—the very ones he is now addressing.”

They came to a crossroads. Three roads led away from them. Murphy and Vadne took one. and Grey and Robota took another. But Vadne hung back a moment. "Thank you. We will name our son after you,: she called.

Startled. Grey didn't answer. “Thank you,” Robota called back in his voice, and nudged him with her knee so that he got moving. They were at the fringe of magic. so she had fair animation.

“That's playing it close,” Edsel commented. ”I think we might find a paradox hidden somewhere in there, if we looked hard enough."

“Don't look.” Breanna said.

Tristan smiled. "It does seem that this meets the technical situation of not changing the future.”

When they were alone, Grey reversed course and went back the way they had come, right back into Xanth. Robota oriented, and they entered just one day after their original departure.

The invisible giant was waiting for them. He picked them up and brought them rapidly to the cave.

"Why didn't the giant carry them from the cave, when they were leaving Xanth?” Pia asked.

“The giant might have remembered.” Tristan said.

Then Grey and Robota entered the cave. “Did anything change?” Grey asked.

Pia exchanged a glance with Edsel. She had forgotten about that aspect toward the end.

“Not that we know of.” Edsel said. “You did a nice job of covering your historical tracks ”

“When my parents walked in, I thought we were lost.” Grey admitted. “But then I realized that I was not overlapping myself, because I did not yet exist I had merely been signaled for.”

“And when you got stoned, we thought you were lost,” Pia said. “But Robota carried through ”

“I had to.” Robota said. “I could not handle the return alone. Also, it was what a souled person would have done.”

Pewter's screen lighted DID YOU GET THE WEATHER DATA?

“Yes,” Robota said. “And so much more. I have learned to emulate a conscience.”

“For sure,” Breanna agreed.

Grey turned to Edsel and Pia “I believe that completes your service for the Good Magician. You are now free to go.” He turned to Com Pewter. “And I believe it also completes my obligation to you, according to the terms of our agreement ”

AGREED.

“And you may now open the closed file, and recover your personal portion of the adventure.”

The screen dissolved into a pleased swirl of color as Pewter did just that.

“Hello.” Ivy called from outside. “We're back. Are you?”

“Yes. dear,” Grey called.

“Oh.” Pia said, suddenly remembering. “Were Demon Ted and DeMonica here yesterday?”

“Why yes,” Robota said. “We played together. But they departed before you arrived.”

“Did they have a magic locket?”

“Yes, that was what we played with.”

“Where did they go?”

“Demon Vore took them to the Fanta Sea. They love that.”

“What is that?” Edsel asked.

“It's a pond where tolk can find their wildest dreams.”

“I hope they didn't stay there,” Edsel said.

“They should have been home by the end of the day,” Tristan said.

ONE MORE THING, Pewter's screen printed. CONTACT WITH THE EXCHANGE COUPLE HAS BEEN LOST AGAIN.

“That's nervous business,” Edsel said. “They could be in trouble.”

Pia agreed. “We had better wrap up our business in Xanth and try to make the exchange back.”

I SHALL CONTINUE TO MONITOR THE O-XONE, Pewter printed.

Pia bid farewell to Tristan and Robota, whom she had really come to like, and they left the cave. There was the duck footed boat with Princess Ivy and the triplets.

They rode back toward the Good Magician's Castle, telling the story. It was of course Grey's story, but Edsel and Pia were able to fill in main details and reassure Ivy that he had done nothing untoward during his adventure.

“Except sleep with the Gorgon,” Pia said mischievously.

Ivy raised a brow. “Oh?”

“Well, you have to understand,” Edsel said “She was eighteen and lovely then.”

“And innocent,” Breanna added.

“To keep her warm,” Justin said.

Ivy laughed. “I'll ask her, next time she's the Designated Wife ” But Pia suspected that she did not find the joke as funny as the others did.

They reached the castle and dropped Grey and Ivy and the triplets off. “Now we need to find those demon children.” Pia said.

“Probably best to start with their parents,” Breanna said. “Nada Naga should be able to round up DeMonica any time.”

“Where can we find Nada Naga?”

“I believe she's visiting her home now,” Justin said. “That would be Mount Etamin, north of the Gap Chasm.”

Para set off. He knew the way there.

Progress was swift, thanks to the duck footed boat. Soon they were crossing the Gap Chasm, using the invisible bridge: the same one she had seen through Robota's eyes in the past, when she and Grey were guiding his parents and the Gorgon to the Xanth border. The Gap was as awesome as before, descending a mile or so into gloom. They had crossed the chasm when the harpies carried them south, but it seemed more formidable now that they seemed to be floating close to its maw. Suppose there were a break in the bridge, a section out?

Pia closed her eyes, feeling unpleasantly giddy. Soon they were back on solid land, to her relief, and forging along a new path. “Oh. we're coming to the Library,” Breanna said enthusiastically. "I love this place.”