“Well, I just wish she wouldn’t practice on me,” Proteus retorted. He looked around. Now the ancient courtyard seemed alive and glowing in an unfriendly way. He no longer felt that he’d come home. Sensing Proteus’ mood, Window led him back toward the buildings and the people.

Seven and Cyprus stayed. They’d watched the whole day’s proceedings. Seven was incredulous himself. “Window saw Ma-ah! Of course,” he said.

“Do you understand now?” Cyprus asked.

“Yes, I do!” Seven cried out triumphantly. “Ma-ah and Proteus live in the same physical place in different times, at least they do now that Proteus’ journey has taken him there. What a pity that they don’t know each other, or see what’s happening. I wonder if I could possibly explain it to—”

Seven broke off. He was growing slightly dizzy—or his environment was—he wasn’t sure which. Objects seemed to shift focus, become blurred, then become clearer again than they’d been in the first place—yet oddly different. For a moment Oversoul Seven was in the courtyard of the Speakers, standing next to Ma-ah in 35,000 B.C. The mosaics were bright and dazzling. The cliffs shot upward. But there was a difference. What was it? “Ma-ah! Ma-ah!” he shouted.

“Did someone call me? I thought someone called my name?” Ma-ah swung around, obviously astonished.

“It’s me, uh, the old man,” Seven said. But the ground shimmered once more. Seven could no longer see Ma-ah. The cliffs rose as before, but now the grass covered most of the tiles, and where the rubble was cleared away the tiles were chipped and darkened.

Cyprus was waiting for him. “Now, hold my hand,” she said. “And remember, you’ll have to answer some questions about this later on.”

“I’ve got some questions now,” Seven objected.

“Seven! Pay attention.”

Seven sharpened his own fourteen-year-old male image, made the face as elfin as he could—and grinned.

In a flash Cyprus turned into another fourteen-year-old male image and grinned back. The next moment she had the woman’s form again. “Now,” she said. “Back to your examination. Look at one tile. Any one will do.”

Seven chose a chipped blue and orange one, with a design partially showing. The rest had broken off.

“Do you see it clearly?”

“Yes.”

“Now, this is the way that the tile appears to your present focus of perception. You must change your focus to see its other Aspects. You can stay here. Do you follow me?”

“I’m trying to,” Seven said.

Cyprus sighed. “Those in Ma-ah’s time use one specialized focus to perceive their reality—and that tile. Do you remember how the tiles looked a moment ago when you slid into Ma-ah’s courtyard?”

“I’ll never forget—” Seven said.

“Then keep moving your consciousness a notch at a time while watching that particular tile until it looks like the tiles did then.”