Mode 1 - Virtual Mode by Piers Anthony;Mark Winston

Author:Piers Anthony;Mark Winston
Language: eng
Format: mobi
ISBN: 9781423352792
Publisher: Brilliance Audio on MP3-CD
Published: 2008-02-07T08:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 8

PROVOS

TT^ARIUS resumed his quest alone, having delivered -- Prima to his anchor Mode. His feelings were mixed. He was not glad for the delay occasioned by this en -- counter, yet it had enabled him to satisfy about three quarters of his commitment to Kublai: he had found Prima, and she had a lot of information about the nature of the Modes that Kublai would find most interesting. He was now about two days behind wherever he would have been, but it was possible that he would have been captive or dead by now if it had not been for her. Probably he was ahead, overall. For one thing, he was now the first in a long time to enter a Virtual Mode

and return.

Prima had fashioned for him the mirror tube she had prom -- ised. It did seem to work. He experimented by setting a pack -- age of food on the ground, stepping across the boundary, looking back to see nothing, then poking the tube cautiously across. He saw the package in the mirror, when it wasn't visible directly. So it seemed that the way the tube excluded the light of the Mode in which he stood did enable it to carry the light of the Mode beyond. Or perhaps it was just that the device was fashioned of the substance of his anchor Mode, so was able to transmit the light along the Virtual Mode.

But it was not feasible to stop to check every Mode bound -- ary as he went. He would take ten times as long to get any --

VIRTUAL MODE 165

where if he did that. So he would have to use it judiciously, when there seemed to be danger. Such as in the region of the dominant dragons.

He moved much faster this time, using magic to take him -- self as far along the route as it would. Magic seemed to have no difficulty taking him across Modes, in the region of the Virtual Mode where magic was operative. Beyond that he walked rapidly, with the confidence of his prior experience in two directions.

Soon he reached the lake. He had learned a lot here, from Prima. Now he became more cautious. He needed to get safely past the region of the dragons. But he didn't depend on the tube alone. He had another sword, and also a heavy pair of shears which could cut through cord. For this he had more confidence in the shears than the sword, because they would be faster. He also had a fair coil of cord of his own, strong enough to sustain several times his weight without breaking. Experience counted.

He came to the geographic region of the dragons, which on the Virtual Mode was the same as the Mode of the drag -- ons. This time he intended to keep the two separate! He paused to use his mirror tube before crossing each boundary. He could even see his footprints in the soft dirt, in places. To a creature watching, he would seem to appear, walk three paces, and disappear, leaving the prints.

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