2150 A.D.

For a long moment I burned with lust that seemed to consume all other desires. I felt myself sinking into a bottomless sea of dark red waves.

If I had never experienced Macro immersion and if I had not now remembered the infinite perfection of the embrace of my twin soul, Lea, I am sure that Sela would have won. From then on, I would have followed her about as a dog follows a bitch in heat. But as I teetered on the brink of that sea of lust my mind filled to overflowing with the picture of my beloved Lea.

I thrust a maniacally screaming Sela away from me and left the bed, walked across the room, and seated myself in one of the high-backed ornate chairs.

Lea and I had won the first battle.

For a few moments Sela flung herself about on the bed and gave vent to screaming, howling rage. Then suddenly the storm passed and she was sitting up smiling at me saying, "Next time, Jon Ten, it will be my turn to win, and you can be sure there will be a next time."

I shook my head. "No, Sela," I said. "Elgon's telepathic mind net with its thousand minds may take over my body and force it to touch you, but know, Sela, that my mind will never choose to wallow in temporal micro pleasures, which are all you have to offer."

For a moment her eyes burned with dark lights, then she looked away and said, "I am Sela Nine. You seem to have forgotten your ma

"No, I haven't," I said. "But are you willing to tell me what you and Elgon 'Ten' have done with her?"

Telepathically, I had picked up from Sela's mind only that Carol had been drugged and was being held somewhere in the palace. I was not about to admit that I knew even this. Before Sela answered me, the door opened and Elgon entered the room accompanied by three female servants who went immediately to Sela and began helping her into a jewel-encrusted tunic. I was still naked and asked that my own tunic be returned to me. Elgon merely smiled and said, "Only micro man feels uncomfortable when he is naked. Had you already forgotten?"

I ignored this and asked when I could see Carol.

"That," Elgon replied, "depends on how soon you will allow us to help you complete your time translation."

"Why is it so important to you to complete my translation?" I asked.

Elgon laughed and said, "I'm sure you must know that as the first person to transcend time and occupy a mentally created human physical body you are very famous.

"We know that the Macro society has denied you permanent time translation unless you attain third-level awareness, which is impossible in the time available. The people of Micro Island will be pleased to save a fellow micro being."

"And you will be happy to thwart the Macro society," I replied.

"Of course," he answered. "But now we will leave you to think over how soon you want us to help you become a permanent resident of Micro Island."

"That will be never," I answered.

Again he laughed and said, "I wouldn't be too sure of that, Jon Ten. I have a precognitive hunch that you'll change your mind before the next two weeks are over."

He turned and walked to the door accompanied by Sela and her three servants. As he walked out of the room he called back to me over his shoulder saying, "You might watch the video screen in your room, Jon Ten. It will help you pass the time."

With these words the door closed behind him and, I noticed that the six-foot-square video screen -on the wall opposite the bed had been activated. On it I saw a picture of Carol lying on the floor of a barren room.

I was across the room with a bound examining the video picture more closely. Carol was dressed as she had been at the di

The audio portion ended with this message, but the picture remained as a constant reminder of Elgon's threat.

For the rest of the day I wandered about in my suite of five rooms trying to think of some way to rescue Carol and get back to the Macro society.

I tried to make mind contact with Carol's subconscious mind, but Elgon's telepathic mind net always stopped me as they did when I twice attempted to go into the outside hallway. I didn't feel desperate, however, because I was convinced that if I asked for help from the Macro society their superior Macro powers would free us both from Elgon's control.

By late evening I was begi

Finally, I decided to go to sleep so I could return to 1976 and talk my situation over with Karl-my guardian -and Neda. I went to sleep but I didn't awaken in 1976. I had a dream.

In this dream I was lying in the barren room beside Carol's body. I seemed to be paralyzed because no matter how hard I tried I couldn't move any part of my body. At last, exhausted from my efforts, I lay back and stared at the face of Lea, which had appeared floating above me. I telepathically asked for her help, but she shook her head saying, "Think carefully, Jon, before you ask for help. I must remind you that if we help you, it will be impossible for you to attain third-level awareness soon enough for us to complete your time translation."

"All right," I said, "but then help Carol. Take her back to the mainland."

Again Lea shook her head. "I can't do that unless she requests it, and so far she has asked to remain with you even if it means her death."

Then I found myself suddenly awake back in 1976 shouting, "Don't let her die, Leal Don't let her die!"

CHAPTER 16: Karma

I had dressed, eaten breakfast, and done a lot of floor pacing and it was still only 6:45, but I decided to call Karl anyway. He usually woke up at about 7 a.m., but today he answered on the first ring. He had been awake for almost an hour struggling with a feeling that he ought to call me.

Five minutes later I was sitting with Karl and Neda at their kitchen table sharing Karl's carrot juice.

I told them about Eli's revelation.

"I've always told you to pay more attention to what I say!" Karl laughed. Then, looking thoughtful, he added, "Do you suppose there could be something to that, Jon?"

"My dearest and truest friend, there was never any doubt!" I said as I threw my arm across his shoulders. A lump arose in my throat and my eyes burned briefly with the poignancy of restrained love that aches to be expressed.

I told them about my difficulties in 2150. When I finished with Lea's telepathic dream communication, Karl got up from the table and said, "That Macro society of yours will be guiltier than Elgon if they let Carol die when they could easily save her."

"But Karl, they don't look at death the way you do," Neda said. "Besides, from the Macro view there is no problem, since it's a perfectly just universe and no one can experience anything that he hasn't chosen."

"What about the population explosion that Elgon is pla

"Yes," I replied, "I've thought of that, too, but I know that the Macro society won't interfere with the free will of anyone."