Wor's voice was deep in his throat. "One lives longer that way when plotting against Sin," he declared. Eldon was lying on his back, breathing raspingly through his open mouth. Wor gave a satisfied grunt as he closed the door, and almost at once Eldon had his ear to the panel again. "Ugh! What an ugly sight! How can you stand having that thing near you?" "When the stakes are the control of a world one can endure much," the woman said evenly. "And it should not be for long." Wor chuckled softly. "There is one more problem," Margaret continued. "He _must_ be present on The Night." "An idiot Outworldling at an Observance! Impossible! Highness Sin would never permit it," Wor objected. Margaret's tone sharpened. "Are you or are you not commander of the Forces? And aren't you clever enough to invent a story? Perhaps that a mild administration of life-essence from the Vat could restore enough of his mind to give you information on the Rebel defenses, and thus hasten The Night." Wor gave a low whistle of appreciation. "It might be arranged." Eldon had heard enough, but still he had no plan. He must improvise in accordance with developments. About failure he did not dare to allow himself to speculate. Even El-ve-don could fail--if he were really El-ve-don. And the price of failure he must keep from his mind lest it confuse his thoughts at a moment when he would need all his powers. But now the deliberate self-torment of his body had served its purpose, and well. To carry it further would be stupid. Carefully he closed his mind against telepathic probing and prepared for sleep. But his last thoughts were not of his own safety, not of the disheartening shock of discovering that Margaret was not a prisoner but was Of the Faith, not of vengeance on Victor. He thought instead of poor Krasna as he had last seen her, and of their unborn child--the child she had hoped would one day save Varda--doomed to die at birth. He cursed himself for a fool while his mind groped in hopeless longing. IX Gradually his body recovered. After the first day or two Margaret tired of the menial tasks of caring for his wants, as he had expected, and turned them over to her mindless slaves. But first she assured him carefully that it was all perfectly right and normal, and Eldon, supposedly under the hypnotic influence of the drug, nodded docile, unquestioning acceptance. The slaves, two men and two girls, all carried crescent-shaped scars upon their chests, duplicates of the one marring Krasna's loveliness. One of the men had the racial characteristics of the Forest People. The other three were Puvas, evidently of the non-mutant group. Carefully Eldon suppressed the wave of indignant sympathy they aroused in him, and almost as though he too were mindless submitted as they rubbed his abraded skin with healing ointment, fed him, brought him clothes at Margaret's command, dressed him.