Books In English "City Of Illusions" Ursula K. Le Guin | Page 109
The replacement-personality…It meant nothing particular. What did it
mean?
Falk felt a little cold creep over him, and he said carefully, "Do you
mean that, in. order to remember what I was, I must…forget what I am?"
"Unfortunately that is the case. We regret it very much. The loss,
however, of a replacement-personality of a few years' growth is, though
regrettable, perhaps not too high a price to pay for the repossession of a
mind such as yours obviously was, and, of course, for the chance of
completing your great mission across the stars and returning at last to your
home with the knowledge you so gallantly came to seek."
Despite his rusty, unused-sounding whisper, Abundibot was as fluent
in speaking as in mindspeaking; his words poured out and Falk caught the
meaning, if he caught it, only on the third or fourth bounce…"The
chance—of completing—?" he repeated, feeling a fool, and glancing at
Orry as if for support. "You mean, you would send me—us—back to…this
planet I am supposed to have come from?"
"We would consider it an honor and a beginning of the reparation due
you to give you a lightspeed ship for the voyage home to Werel."
"Earth is my home," Falk said with sudden violence. Abundibot was
silent. After a minute the boy spoke: "Werel is mine, prech Ramarren," he
said wistfully. "And I can never go back to it without you."
"Why not?"
"I don't know where it is. I was a child. Our ship was destroyed, the
course-computers and all were blown up when we were attacked. I can't
recalculate the course!"
"But these people have lightspeed ships and course-computers! What
do you mean? What star does Werel circle, that's all you need to know."
"But I don't know it."
"This is nonsense." Falk began, pushed by mounting incredulity into
anger. Abundibot held up his hand in a curiously potent gesture. "Let the
boy explain, Agad Ramarren," he whispered.
"Explain that he doesn't know the name of his planet's sun?"
"It's true, prech Ramarren," Orry said shakily, his face crimson. "If—if
you were only yourself, you'd know it without being told. I was in my
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