"I recognize Councilman Hasthor Flan," Asthar said.

"I believe I can construct a theory that will explain that," Hasthor
Flan said. "I suggest that when the Paratime Police were questioning
Councilman Salgath under narco-hypnosis, he made statements
incriminating either the Paratime Police as a whole or some member of
the Paratime Police whom Tortha Karf had to protect--say somebody like
Assistant Verkan. So they just killed him, and made up this
impostor--"

Tortha Karf began, alphabetically, to blaspheme every god he had ever
heard of. He had only gotten as far as a Fourth Level deity named
Allah when a red light began flashing in front of Asthar Varn, and the
voice of a page-robot, amplified, roared:

"Point of special urgency! Point of special urgency! It has been
requested that the news telecast screen be activated at once, with
playback to 1107. An important bulletin has just come in from
Nagorabar, Home Time Line, on the Indian subcontinent--"

"You can stop swearing, now, Karf," Dalgroth Sorn grinned. "I think
this is it."

* * * * *

Kostran Galth sat on the edge of the couch, with one arm around
Zinganna's waist; on the other side of him, Hadron Dalla lay at full
length, her elbows propped and her chin in her hands. The screen in
front of them showed a fading sunset, although it was only a little