Project Pope

'No, I'm not, Te

He took Decker by the arm and marched him up to Theodosius.

'Your Eminence, he said, 'this is Thomas Decker II. He desires to speak with you.

'Decker II, said the cardinal, 'you drop in on us unceremoniously and with no warning whatsoever, but I'll be glad to listen.

'I speak for an alien being who is a fugitive from his home planet, Your Eminence, said Decker. 'He is that egg-shaped bubble out there and I call him Smoky, although he has a more proper name.

'It seems to me, said Theodosius, 'that I have seen this Smoky, or one of his fellows, a number of years ago. And now, please, eliminate all the palaver and get on with what you want to tell me.

'Smoky throws himself upon your mercy, Eminence, said Decker, 'and begs sanctuary of you. He can't return to Center, for if he did, his life would be forfeit. He is truly a homeless creature and fallen from very high estate. He is quite humble now.

'He sounds in bad shape, said Theodosius.

'He truly is, Your Eminence. He petitions you —

'Enough of that, said Theodosius. 'Now, tell me, is this place he fled from known as Heaven?

'Not to my knowledge. I have never heard it called that.

'Are you aware that one of our Listeners made an attempt to visit your Center — is that what you call it?

'Yes, Your Eminence, that is what we call it, the Center for Galactic Studies. And, yes, we are aware that someone or something that fitted the description given me by Te

Te

It reached a position in front of Smoky and began hopping up and down in place, going very rapidly.

'Oh, my God, cried Te

Te

Decker was yelling at Smoky in the Bubbly language. 'No, Smoky! Don't try it. Haven't you had enough? You're finished, I tell you. You are all washed up; you haven't got a chance.

Haystatck was also bawling at the Bubbly. 'You and your goddamned pet! You'll be the death of us.

Haystack yelled at Decker. 'Get out of the way! The fool is going to do it.

Decker hurled himself to one side, ru

Plopper blazed. He became a circle of brilliant fire, but the fire was cold. Even where he lay, fallen off to one side, Te

But even as this happened, an awful silence fell, cutting off the screaming of the crowd — a silence and a darkness. Te

Te

'He just wouldn't give up, said Decker, making a thumb at Smoky. 'He is one of those fanatics who never know when they are licked. Even when he was flat on his butt and knew it, he still had to make another try. You know what his motto is? First the galaxy, then the universe.

'He is mad, said Te

'Of a certainty, said Decker.

'But you stayed with him.

'As I told you, friend. Survival.

By now Smoky had reached a position in front of Theodosius. He stopped his crawling and remained face down on the pavement.

Decker spoke to him and Smoky answered in a muffled voice.

'I told you, Eminence, said Decker, 'that he was humble when I spoke to you before. I missed a lick, it seems. But he's humble now. He's truly humble now. Take the bastard and lock him up, as tightly as you can. The best way would be to put an end to him.

'We do not put an end to life, said Theodosius. 'With us, all life is sacred. But we have a place for him. How about the hopper?

'Throw it in with him. It's not likely it will live.

'And the other?

'You mean Haystack, Eminence?

'Yes, I suppose I do.

'Haystack's all right. Harmless. Even decent. I'll vouch for him.

'All right, then. We'll take care of the other two. And please accept my gratitude"

'Your gratitude?

'For telling me that one of our Listeners was frightened from your Center.

The crowd was buzzing again, begi

A voice boomed above the chatter.

His Holiness was speaking.

'These proceedings, he said, 'are ended. In due time all the facts in this situation will be taken under careful consideration. The results will be a

Sixty-one

They had gathered in Te

The cardinal hunched down more solidly on the stool that Jill had brought in from the kitchen. 'It is sufficient, he said, 'to be here, in this circle of friendship before this warming fire. You remember the night I came and you invited me in?

'Yes, I do, said Te

'That is right, and I have looked forward ever since to an invitation.

'There is no need to await an invitation, said Jill. 'Drop in any time. You'll always find a welcome.

'It seems to have turned out all right, said Ecuyer. 'It looks as if we can pick up where we left off. The Listeners can settle down and start going out.

'His Holiness said an a

'None at all, said Theodosius. 'After listening to what the second Decker had to tell us, especially about the Center having been aware of Mary's visits, I would think there'd be no question. His Holiness, as a matter of fact, would accept lesser proof than what we have. He was more upset than any of us knew by the Heaven business and the proposal to make a Listener a saint. You must remember that he is, basically, a computer, although a most sophisticated one. None of us should have had any doubt where his interest lay.