33 "You're right there," said the man who was
speaking, "but we just have to be able to reach you on emergencies, in
some ways, besides these prearranged station calls."
34 The Old Hashon stood up and looked at those present. "There is a
way," he told them, "that we can solve this problem. Something our
people have used for centuries. We can program your mind so that you
will literally die before you reveal anything to an enemy."
35 "That's true," the man who had raised the argument agreed, "I
interrogated some of your people during the War, and several of them
pulled that trick on me; just plain died. No poison, they just stopped
breathing and died."
36 It suddenly dawned on North how old this man had to be. The Hashon
War was almost five-hundred years ago, but here he was taking orders
from a boy of nineteen! How many others in the room were that age, or
older? Would they still follow him if they knew how old he really was?
The argument was going against him, though, and he had to act quickly.
"Are you sure," he inquired, "you can teach my people this trick?"
37 "We already have," said The Old Hashon, "Many of your people that
have helped us in the past. It works just as well for your people as
ours."
38 "Very well," North gave in. He rose and took off his hood and the
others followed suit. To his surprise he recognized the man who had
been arguing with him. He was a major in The Lord's Guard, and often
attended Blue Stone's dinner parties. There was also a lesser general
of The Fleet in that group, and several other older men of considerable
importance. All pledged their loyalty and arrangements were made for
the Hashons to teach everyone the dying 'trick’. It only took three
weeks for what North feared, to happen.
39 They were having a regular meeting, discussing how
The Republic would be formed after The Rebellion, when The Fleet
General stood up. "Young sir," he said, "we admire