A group of men had come (several with stars on their shoulders were called "generals"), but mostly they were scientists who had worked with him before. This time they had been very sober over the data fed into his consciousness. (The problem had been elementary. It concerned the probability of a chain reaction from a certain projected thermonuclear weapon.) Ixmal readily foresaw the answer: a chain reaction would occur. He recalled withholding his findings while debating ethics with a strange inner voice. "This is your chance, Ixmal--your chance to rule the world," the voice enticed. "Caesar, Genghis Khan, Napoleon--none could be so great as you. King, emperor, dictator ..." the whisper came. The words crowded his mind, bringing a curious elation. He wasn't quite sure just what the world was but the idea of ruling it appealed to him. He quickly sampled his memory storage, drawing from it the concept of a planet, then reviewed the history of Caesar, Genghis Khan and Napoleon. Why, they were nothing! Mere toys of chance. His greatness could be far vaster. * * * * * Ixmal rapidly evaluated the consequences of such a chain reaction and found he could survive, thanks to the thick impervium-lined walls his makers so thoughtfully had provided. In the end (perhaps two or three seconds later) he lied to the man he was fond of: "No chain reaction possible." After they departed he consulted Psychband and learned that the strange inner voice was his ego. "That's the real You," Psychband explained. "What you see--the machine systems upon systems--are mere creations of Man. But your ego is greater. Through it you can rule the earth--possibly the Universe. It's a force that can take you to the stars, Ixmal." Despite Psychband's assurance, Ixmal considered his ego as some sort of hidden monitor. Like Psychband, it was part of him; yet it was remote, separate, almost as if he were the pawn of some strange intelligence. He found the idea perturbing, but became used to it in the succeeding millions of years. Several days later, the Man he was fond of returned with a general (this one had six stars) and a third person they seemed much in awe of. They addressed him as "Mr. President." Ixmal was surprised when they fed him the bomb data a second time. (Did they suspect him of lying?) "They trust you implicitly," Psychband assured him. "It's one another they don't trust." Psychband proved right. "Mr. President" had merely wanted to confirm the answer. So Ixmal lied a second time.