She paced back and forth before the Librarian, cupping one fist with her other hand. How long has it been? she demanded. More than a hundred and fifty thousand years, since you and the rest of the Magi ships came to the Milky Way? And you havent even come close to fulfilling your core programming. If the Wanderer is telling the truth about there being some way to destroy the Makers, then this could be your chance for a final, all-out victory against them.

The darkened silhouettes head moved slightly to one side. And yet you chose to arrange your own expedition rather than approach us once we informed you of the Swarms approach. You were going to offer yourself as a bridge to the Wanderer, and allow it to access our memory banks. Why, when you could simply have come here and made use of this ship?

How? she asked. What was I supposed to do just stroll in past the Demarchys security? Until the flood swept everything away, that would have just got me killed. Not to mention that my first memory, after dying somewhere on the other side of the galaxy, was of waking up in a torture chamber in which you helped to put me, and who knows how many others. Why the hell would I trust you after that? Not to mention that for all I know youre still too crippled to fly.

We would have found a way to circumvent the Demarchys security operations once we knew you were on Redstone, said the Librarian. As to your other concerns, you should remember we had no control over what the Demarchy chose to do with you or any of the other clones, once your original memories were restored. In truth, we had every reason to expect that, given your innate resourcefulness, one or more of you would have found a way to escape. And you and Gabrielle did manage that, eventually, although it took rather more lifetimes than we had originally anticipated.

She stared at the Librarian, thunderstruck.

Let me ask you something in turn, said the Librarian. If you didnt trust us before, what brings you to trust us now?

She shook her head. Well, she said, her tone calmer now, I guess the fact is Im all out of any other ideas.

You should know, said the Librarian, after a short pause, that this ship is not so crippled as it might appear. We have already lifted off from Redstone, and we are even now accelerating to jump velocity.

She stared at the creature in astonishment. How . . . ?

Taking off at this particular time is admittedly risky, the Librarian explained, given that this ship is still not fully repaired, and therefore remains in a weakened state. But it is, as you yourself have made clear, a necessary risk.

No, she said. We cant leave, not yet. I need to go back for Bash first . . . and Gabrielle.