For the one thing that never changes is that, despite many attempts to reshape history by the manipulation of time, the Visitors come from Earth, see what the human race has become in the nineteen wallfolds of Garden, and then send the Destroyers to blast all nineteen civilizations into oblivion.

The Conversation:

“The biggest problem we have is ignorance,” said Rigg Noxon. “We don’t know what causes the people of Earth to decide to destroy our whole world.” Though in fact the biggest problem he was having at the moment was the realization that he was capable of killing someone in cold blood.

It was the other Rigg who had actually done the killing, but Rigg Noxon knew that they were the same person. If Rigg had not come back and prevented the killings, Noxon would certainly have done just what Rigg did. Only now, because he hadn’t taken those actions, both Noxon and Rigg continued to exist as separate people with nearly identical pasts.

Am I a killer, because I know I could and would commit murder? Or am I innocent, because something prevented me from doing it? After all, the person who prevented me was myself. A version of myself.

The killer version.

“Which is why your friends have to allow the mice from Odinfold to go back to Earth with the Visitors,” said Ram Odin.

“They’re deciding whether to stop themselves from warning the Visitors about the stowaway mice,” said Rigg-the-killer.

Ram Odin shook his head. “Why is it up to them? You go back and prevent them from giving warning.”

“They had good reason for preventing the mice from getting aboard the Visitors’ ship,” said Rigg-the-killer. “The mice weren’t going back to find out what happened. They were infected with a disease which was no doubt designed to wipe out the human race on Earth.”

“When you say ‘no doubt’ it means that there is reason to doubt,” said Ram Odin. “People only say ‘no doubt’ when they know they’re making a judgment based on insufficient information.”

“They don’t have facemasks,” said Rigg Noxon. “They can’t hear the mice or talk to them. They can’t ask.”

“You can hear them,” said Ram Odin. “You can ask.”

“We don’t necessarily believe the mice,” said Rigg-the-killer. “They already killed Param once. Our goal is to save the human race on Garden, not provide mousekind with a depopulated Earth for them to inherit.”

“There are too many players in this game,” said Ram Odin.

“The mice were planning to take several billion of them out of the game entirely,” said Rigg-the-killer.

“Not all the players are equal,” said Ram Odin. “Make a decision and make it stick.”

“You’ve been alone with the expendables far too long,” said Rigg Noxon. “You think because you can play God with other people’s lives, you have a right to do it.”