A. No, it's too late. Things have already changed.... Q. The history of Man has been the history of his integration--from families to tribes, to communities, to city states, to nations, to hemispheres, to--what next? Is it to stop here, and the hemispheres to beat each other down to the tribal or family level? A. You will be destroyed in the process. Q. _We?_ In the process of unification? A. Of course. Q. And you? A. I'm always being destroyed. Q. Ridiculous. Unification can scarcely destroy the Unity. A. If you unite with Disunity? Q. The decision has been made: Absorption. A. By whom? Of whom? Q. The joining of the collective subconscious to the mutually antagonistic egos of all men. Freud of Vienna had this as a goal--you told us that yourself and I quote it back to you. A. Or the reverse--men's mutually antagonistic egos in combat with the Unity? Q. We will take that chance. Now watch--look at the world around you and you will see a dominion of universal brotherhood, the moment Unification is imposed! A. I will look, but is that what I'll see? Q. Now! Look! * * * * * She looked at Phil and then at her husband, who looked back at her questioningly. "You were going to say something?" he asked. She shook her head, and he shrugged his shoulders. "This business I'm working on--" Phil began, and hesitated. "Oh, yes. That reminds me," Farley said. "How's the Research Magnificent?" "It's beginning to show signs of life," Phil said. "I think I can detect a sort of fetal pulse." Dr. Farley blinked his pale eyelashes and nodded. He sat down at the end of the couch where Phil had been sitting and looked up at him. "Well," he said, "I just thought I'd drop by and see how you were doing. I'll never be able to understand it, though." "I was going to say, do you think the A.E.C. might conceivably be interested?" Phil said. "After all, it is sort of vaguely connected with atomic stuff." "I can't imagine why they would be," Farley said, and glanced at Katherine. She had gotten up and was standing at the window. "The sun's going in," she said, "and it looks as though it may rain. I've got to get back to the house." She turned around with a smile. "How about having dinner with us tonight, Phil? We've got some people coming who'd like to meet you. Don't you think that would be nice, Russ?" Dr. Farley didn't look as though he thought it would be nice at all, but he said nothing, and neither did Phil Kaufman. "If you're coming, you'd better straighten your tie," Katherine said. "It's under your ear, as usual." Phil reached up absently and pulled at it with one hand. "Sorry." "You put me in an embarrassing position," Farley said. "I think I had better say what I have to say now. Better to have it out, before things go any further."