It turned its head with a whinge of metal. It took them in with eyes that were milky and melancholy, and though it was absurd to think that some self-organised viral mind moved in the flywheels behind that glass, Cutter had a moment where he felt that, in the fall of the Collective, New Crobuzon had gone so grim that even the machines were running. The construct continued, and Cutter led Judah away.

They had some miles to go still. There was sound. The militia must, Cutter thought, have been by the paused Iron Council for hours. The sound came closer. Cutter tightened his eyes shut. The time was ending, as he had known it would.

In a little stone-cluttered clearance he and Judah came to face Rahul and, on his animal back, Ann-Hari. Her teeth were bared. She held a repeater pistol.

"Judah," she said. She dismounted. "Judah."

Cutter patted himself until he found his gun, tried unsteadily to raise it. Rahul crossed to him with spurt-quick lizard steps and held him in his saurian arms. He leant forward at the waist and took Cutter’s weapon away. He tapped Cutter’s face with brusque kindness. He moved, dragging Cutter as if he were his parent. Cutter protested, but so weakly it was as if he said nothing. He was almost sure his gun would not have fired. That it would have been clogged, or unloaded.

Judah swayed and watched Ann-Hari. He smiled at her with his vatic calm. Ann-Hari trembled. Cutter tried to say something, to stop this, but no one paid notice.

"Why?" Ann-Hari said, and came forward. She stood close to Judah Low. She was teary.

"They’d be dead," said Judah.

"You don’t know. You don’t know. "

"Yes. You saw. You saw. You know what would have happened."

"You don’t know, Judah, gods damn you…"

Cutter had never seen Ann-Hari so raging, so uncontrolled. He wanted to speak but he could not because this was not his instant.

Judah looked at Ann-Hari and hid any fear, looked at her with an utterness of attention that snagged Cutter’s insides. Don’t end now, like this. Rahul’s arms around him were protective.

"Ann-Hari," Judah said, his voice gentle though he must know. "Would you have had them die? Would you have died? I tried to turn you, we tried to…" You knew they wouldn’t, thought Cutter. "They’re safe now. They’re safe now. The Iron Council remains."

"You’ve pickled us, you bastard…"

"You’d all have died…"

"End it."

"I don’t know how. I wouldn’t, besides-you know that."

" End it."

"No. You’d all have died."

"You’ve no fucking right, Judah…"

"You’d have died."