Free 03. Quest for the Well of Souls by Jack L. Chalker

and vegetarians. I'm sure you'd have no trouble if you explained your problem, although they might not help much. But—wait a minute! I'm talking like this crazy thing is going to work! Hey, look! If you're right, Mavra, and somebody is trying to get rid of you as a threat to that ship, won't Ortega need you then?"
    She laughed derisively. "For all I know Ortega's gotten impatient and decided to kill off all three pilots. Besides, even if not, it might just be that one side or the other has a lead and has decided to act just to foreclose any potential threat. It doesn't matter—I have to act as though that's the case. Please! Won't you help me?"
    They would, could, and finally decided to. Any good seaman would chance the unknown rather than sit waiting for death to creep in.
    They understood her.
     

South Zone
    Serge Ortega stared curiously at the crystalline crablike form that had just entered. Though there was no face, and no eyes, ears, or other orifices, it could speak, the operator modulating small crystals inside the creature, which in turn modulated a translator.
    "You are the Ghiskind?" Ortega asked, genuinely curious.
    "At your service, Ambassador."
    Ortega considered the Northerner. "I—ah—take it that this is not exactly your normal form, but is for my benefit?"
    "That is so," the Ghiskind acknowledged. "It is one of my worker modules, which I have modified with the necessary speaking devices. Our own form of communication is, shall we say, nonverbal. I do wish to thank you for providing the translator; it is a fascinating device."
    "My pleasure. And now, down to work. You know about this business with the Torshind and the Yaxa and the ship, of course."
    "Of course. The authorities have tried to keep things quiet, but I had the good fortune to be near the Zone Gate when the Yaxa materialized. Its nature was immediately apparent—it radiated carbon. I guess that is the best way to put it. It is so difficult, putting these concepts into a form easily understood by you."
    The Ulik nodded. "Never mind that. The real questions are more basic. For example, why have you chosen to contact me instead of one of the others, and why are you going against your own government? And, of course, can you do the job we'll require—and why?"
    "A long series," noted the Ghiskind. "As for why you, the answer is that you are on record as opposing the Yaxa all along, which means, as well, that you are against the Torshind."
    Ortega's bushy eyebrows went up. Ah ha! he thought to himself.
    "As for going against my own government," the Ghiskind continued, "well, first it is rather much of a tradition in Yugash to go against the government. A silly game in any event—the government has no true power, only the business clans. No, the government is quite out of this, really."
    "The Torshind represents a commercial rival, then?" Ortega guessed.
    "Not at all," the Yugash replied. "The Torshind represents the—ah, let me see . . . concepts, concepts—I suppose the closest thing I can get to it, although you will probably misunderstand, is a church. At least, an organized cult that has rigid dogmatic beliefs and is rather fanatical about them."
    Ortega thought it over. "Cult is good enough for me. Doesn't matter much what it believes—or is that relevant?"
    "Relevant, yes," the Ghiskind responded. "Once they had great power. Once, when the Markovians were supervising departures, they managed to go out in the bodies of some of these people, to spread the faith and power of the cult, so to speak. They are the reason for much of our social and political isolation, for they regard all other creatures as tools, like this device, for their use and pleasures."
    "I thought you couldn't read minds, even when occupying a host body," Ortega interrupted nervously.
    The crystal creature shook. "You misunderstand. Knowledge, no. But they can disrupt the brain, of course, cause damage, cripple, induce madness. They can feel—as all Yugash can—what