"Poor Old Pirri. She was in the first revolt. She was captured, had a disciplinary band put in her head, and slaved five years in one of Consar's mines. She lived only to see the Machine's end." "She died too soon," said Cadmus. "Your memory will return if you succeed, Cadmus. Johlan planted a threshold-response word in your subconscious mind. When you hear that word your full memory will come back. I heard him make the posthypnotic suggestion. But I can't tell you what it is. If you were captured--" "I know. How and when will I receive this word?" "It will be on millions of lips--if you succeed." * * * * * Cadmus said quickly, "All right. Give me the details, and let me get at it! Now what's the microtape for?" She leaned forward. The fragrance of her hair was a promise. "You know how the Machine's mechanical brain operates. But because of your amnesia, maybe I'd better refresh your memory. Now--any question, social, economic, individual, is submitted to the supreme council in the council tower. On the top of the tower is the question submission chamber. There are big digital panel-boards with facilities to receive the questions and problems which are submitted on microtapes. "These microtapes are placed before the photoelectric analyzing eyes of the digital panels. From there, the problems or questions are carried by electron beam tubes directly into the Machine for solving. The Machine's answer comes back through the electron beam tubes and is recorded on answer tapes. Audio tapes are recorded and broadcast from the tower. Also the broadcast is received in every Martian city and is conveyed to Venus and Earth by ethero-magnum. You remember all this?" "Some of it," said Cadmus, frowning. "Go on." "The Machine's doom is in that microtape I've given you, Cadmus. It contains a highly complex problem which Johlan has worked out during all these years of isolation on our asteroid. You have only to get inside that question submission chamber in the council tower. Get that tape in front of those analyzing eyes. That's all. Get the problem on that tape into the brain of the Machine." He looked at her steadily. "And then--is that the end of the plan?" Her hand trembled. "There's you and I, after that." "I remember that, Zaleel. If I succeed, it's you and me together, in a new System of progress and change and hope. If I fail--" "If we fail, Cadmus, there'll be nothing for you and me. Nothing for anyone, ever again." He got to his feet quickly. "Zaleel, what's your part in it? Why are you dancing here?" Red flushed her face. "I knew that one of Consar's scouts would find me during the worship. One has already found me. They'll be here to pick me up before dawn." He gripped her shoulders, hard. His face worked with unvoiced emotion.