She nodded again, without hesitation. Yates let her go and produced the small box from his pocket. "When I press the clavicle into your hands and transfer its services to you, it will grow to its active size. It will work for you only; if you die, it will crumble to dust. So long as you live, it will serve you—though what use it will be if you succeed, I don't know. It will open new gates only from within the Way, not from without. It will recognize the existence of prior gates, even should they be closed. . . .”

Yates removed the clavicle, now little more than twelve centimeters long, and pressed it into her left hand. "Take both grips," he instructed. She held both between the thumb and forefinger of each hand. The clavicle picted a steady stream of red symbols at Yates.

"It doesn't recognize you now," he said. "It's asking for instructions from its last master. I will reactivate it." He instructed the clavicle in picted code.

The device slowly enlarged in Patricia's hands, until it was the same size as the clavicle used by Ry Oyu.

"Now I pass its control to you." More instructions in code, and Patricia felt a sudden warmth between herself and the device.

Korzenowski watched from a few meters back. Lanier floated behind him, near the flaw passage.

"I can talk with it now," Patricia said in wonder. "I can tell it things directly. . . .”

"And it can communicate with you. It is active, and you are its master," Yates said. There was a touch of sadness in his voice.

Korzenowski came forward. "I have some thoughts on your search—suggestions for technique," he said.

"I'd love to hear them," Patricia said.

At a steady acceleration of twenty g's, the flawship moved south along the Way.

The plasma front reached the sixty-kilometer sector reserved for the last gate opening, slamming against the barriers, the extreme heat upsetting their subtle geometry. Down came the first barrier, and the little oasis was incinerated; the circuit of wells was fused shut, and the surface of the Way became smooth and undisturbed.

Final messages from gates along the human-controlled length of the Way told of evacuations. Millions of humans decided to remain on the worlds beyond their assigned gates, rather than choose between the separated sections of the Axis City. The last remnants of Way commerce were shut down, and the gates were sealed, preparing both for the passage of the Geshel precincts and the arrival of the plasma front.

Despite the nearness of the plasma front, Olmy began decelerating. The flawship had two blunt-arrowhead flyers; Prescient Oyu was outfitting one for Patricia's journey.

Patricia went to Lanier and hugged him strongly.

"I appreciate all you've done for me," she said.

Lanier wanted to convince her not to make the attempt, but he didn't try. "You've come to mean a great deal to me," he said.