When he returns she is sitting magnificently upon the altar, chest heaving and a terrific smile upon her face. She opens her lids and there, just as the manufacturer's manual declared, her eyes burn with two flames, dancing in and out, slightly singeing her poison green eyebrows. Saul smiles, saying, "Now remember, those flames feed off of your soul. TECHNOLOGICAL CHANGE IS NEITHER ADDITIVE NOR SUBTRACTIVE. IT IS ECOLOGICAL. If you ever choose to sell it, your eyes will revert to smoldering black pits. Everything is connected, you know, so think before you go around selling the power source." "Is there any recommended soul-food which will affect the flames?" she asks, just now getting her breath. "Maybe cockroach?," he says with a weird look and a small belch. They walk back slowly, she touching everything and peering into darkened corners. He darkly watching. "Everything looks so cavernous, so stark and flickering," she says. "The manual -- I really should give you a copy by the way -- says you will soon feel the urge to feast upon the flesh of virgins. This can be overcome with an easily installed plug-in for a, uh, nominal fee." The stairs creak. When they arrive back in the shop, he is awkward. There is momentary silence. The ship jinks sharply left, She is brazen. dives a hundred feet, turns and climbs. Normal flight conditions. Time to op zone is 1:42... 1:41... 1:40. Eventually the MMCS rounds up enough tuples I MEAN 'ECOLOGICAL' IN THE SAME SENSE AS THE WORD IS USED BY ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENTISTS. ONE SIGNIFICANT CHANGE GENERATES TOTAL CHANGE. to process his earlier speculation. Why would Quarterdeck order a Flash Priority Abort? "Geraldo Rivera," the MMCS replies. The software on this mission (MMCS-99b03) allows users to select among fifteen female and ten male voice profiles. Di Manes goes with the overwhelming choice all top-rated Q-pilots -- the late, great Barbara Jordan. Think what you will.