But Raoul found it increasingly hard to concentrate; his attention was drawn away from the Ghost and his words, away from the tangle, up to that infinite light.

The Ghost spun on its invisible axis, this way and that. ‘Jack Raoul, I urge you to consider. If we are safe here, so are you. We can provide any Virtual environment you desire.’ The Ghost seemed to hesitate. ‘We can give you Eve.’

Ah, Eve . . .

You can ‘t stay. It was as if he could hear her voice, see her pushing her fingers through her greyed hair. You held on to me for too long. And now, this. You never could let go Jack. But now you have to. You see that, don’t you?

He felt himself rise further. The tangle shrank beneath him, becoming lost in the light.

It’s time to go, Jack.

‘The Sink Ambassador is a friend,’ he told Eve.

‘Jack Raoul?’

Sure he’s a friend. That’s why he’s showing you what you want to see. You don’t want to die a failure. But it isn’t real. You know that, don’t you?

Perhaps the Sink Ambassador somehow heard this inner voice. ‘Jack Raoul, it can be as real as you desire. We have only a single moment to give you. But we can make that moment last an eternity.’

‘Thank you, my friend. But this isn’t my place.’

‘Jack Raoul, please . . .’

The tangle faded into the light. Raoul had time for a last, brief stab of regret.

Then, artificial eyes raised, he ascended into the white glow that was calling him.

‘I attempted a third call, but there was no further movement. The eyes finally took on the glazed look of the dead.

‘The whole sequence of post-excision events lasted twenty-five to thirty seconds. More precise timings are of course available in the record.

‘Death occurred due to separation of the brain and spinal cord, after transection of the surrounding tissues and excision of the brain from the chest cavity, which probably caused acute and possibly severe pain. Consciousness was lost due to a rapid fall of intracranial perfusion of blood. Throughout the procedure nervous connections were maintained with sensory organs, notably the “eyes”, “ears” and “nose”.

‘As noted, Jack Raoul did not resist.

‘It may be that because of Raoul’s unique physical condition, this “beheading” was the only available mode of execution. However I believe that my precise observations during my administration of this case demonstrate that Raoul was aware of what was happening to him even after excision, thus casting doubt on the humanity of the procedure.

‘I will concede that I saw a certain peace, at the last, in Jack Raoul’s dying eyes. It may be that somehow he found consolation, which may in turn give comfort to those who passed sentence on this complex man.

‘Death occurred at the time and place noted.

‘Signed: HAMA TINIF, Attending Physician.’