�� Weslee had reverted back to his usual self. � He seemed monumnetally unconcerned. � I gave him a sharp look, wondering why he wasn't jubilant at the prospect of being the King of the world like I had promised him the side kick would be. � But he still didn't respond. � A sneaking suspicion crept into my mind. It involved him scamming the scammer. � I was willing to bet that he had just pretended to be excited all along, that he was, instead, acting under orders from Perki. � In fact,�looking back on, it I was more than willing to bet -- I WAS completely sure of it since it was the only thing that made sense. � It WOULD explain his lack of excitement completely. �� And it would explain his going along me with so easily. � He couldn't be scammed THAT easily. � Like I'd said, Weslee wasn't that stupid. � I'd just got carried away and had convinced myself that I WAS scamming him. � But I wasn't going to say anything about that now. I didn't want to question his friendship. � I might actually be real at some level.

�� Perki intruded on my thoughts. � "It's sorta like a soldier going into battle for the first time. � No matter how well they try to prepare you, there's no way you can be ready for the real thing. � In another way it's sorta like culture shock. � But once you get used to it the shock goes away. � I would've been real worried about you had you liked it. � No one is who sane really likes it. � But it's something that has to be done." And she gave me one of her patented warm, sweet, wonderful smiles. � That almost made me forget.

�� We set in companionable silence for a bit, sipping our fruit juice and eating our meal. � At one point Weslee got up to help himself to more porridge and I noticed that the back of his T shirt now read: "I survived the flood of Uncertainty." I chuckled mentally despite myself.

�� After a bit I couldn't contain myself anymore. � I HAD to know. "Um, I've got two questions. � One: How come there wasn't more of them? � Two: Why couldn't they do anything about the Time Paradox?"

�� Weslee really looked at me for the first time. � He gave me on those I pity the Fool looks. � It was Perki's turn to hand out a sharp look. � Weslee shrugged, poured more honey on his porridge, and busied himself making a pig out of himself.

�� Gently, sweetly Perki turned to me. � "The first answer is easy although it might injure your pride. � What makes you think Earth is so important? � I mean, this was just an outpost for the Annunaki. � If they lost this little, insignificant planet, so what? � There never was any reinforcements coming, these soldiers were all the Annunaki were willing to invest. � They had their little fiefdom here for awhile, but now it's over. �The Annunaki are not like earthlings. � They don't dwell on lost causes. �� They looked at it like an experiment. � What would the inhabitants do? � And they found out! ��I said earlier that the Annunaki are into galaxy domination. Well, I should clarify. � It's not the sort of domination you usually think of. � It's a sort of domination of experimentation. � That means if they can play havoc with your mind they will. �But if you won't let them they WILL back off. So we WERE in terrible danger -- and yet we weren't. � I mean, if you had caved in to their mind games they WOULD taken you. � But of course Weslee and I weren't going to let that happen.�� Because we kept you in the dark as to what their true purpose was you were safe. � That way you just thought you were fighting a conventional battle and wouldn't be agonizing and worrying over diabolical mind games."

�� I shuddered at what might have been and at the subtle cruelty employed by the Annunaki which paradoxically -- now that we were talking about paradoxes! -- was not so subtle at all. How COULD they sacrifice their own kind in such a cruel experiment? � Then I didn't know whether I should be offended by what Perki had just said about keeping me in the dark -- or if I should feel comforted. � In any case it proved to me that I was right about Weslee scamming the scammer and Perki playing a hand behind the scenes all along. � But I didn't mind. � They'd done it, I was sure, in REAL friendship!

�� But Perki wasn't done. � "I know it's a paradox, but -- speaking of paradoxes, that leads me quite nicely to this so called Time Paradox."

�� I opened my mouth to say something, but didn't know what to say so I closed it. Weslee gave me an amused look, "Your porridge is getting cold, Doc!" � Then he went back to shoveling it in.

�� Perki went on. � "There never was a time Paradox. � You just wanted to believe there was. � The reason why the Annunaki came to your house and didn't quite capture you is because they wanted to see if you WOULD go into the future. � The Annunaki who came to your house were not the Annunaki from here. � They were the High Command, or more precisely, the Academic Elite. �Like I said, they were perfectly willing to sacrifice the Annunaki here for the sake of the experiment." Then she gave me the saddest smile I had ever seen on anyone's face. � Seeing that smile, I shuddered again.

�� In a moment or two I shook off the mordant thoughts and recalled our very earliest conversation. �� In all fairness all Perki had mentioned was the nature of Time Paradoxes. � She had NOT said there was one. � On one hand this was a bit unfair. � But on the other she had not deceived me. � I had deceived myself by wanting to believe that I WAS somebody EXTRA special. � Perki had just played along, as she had just indicated. � Perhaps it was for the best? Of course it was, I answered myself. �� Had I known the truth what would I have done? � Would I have caved in after all because I would have thought I was battling superior minds whom I could not hope to fool? � This way I had fooled them by being fooled myself. � (And that was the biggest irony of them all. � A person being fooled (me) had fooled the foolers! � What dazzling levels of deception there had been!)�� But at least that way Earth WAS free again. � I could live with it. But then something else occurred to me. � Despite what Perki and Weslee had done, I still HAD gone through with it. � I might not have done that, I might have caved in even in my state of "ignorance" -- afraid of their apparent overwhelming forces and afraid even to fight a conventional (well, more or less conventional!) warfare. But� I had not backed out or backed down. � Therefore I COULD BE proud of myself, after all!

�� I gave Perki a lopsided smile. � She smiled back in understanding and patted my shoulder, proud of me. � After a moment she got up from the table and said, looking around the cottage with an air of finalty. � "I'm going to miss this quaint little cottage in the Banyan tree."

�� "Why? � Are you going somewhere?" I asked in alarm.

�� Weslee chuckled as Perki gave me a look of mock concern. "Are you feeling well?" � I nodded, still mystified. "Well, then you should know that our work here is done. � Edgar is waiting to take us to whatever adventure awaits us in whatever world and whatever time."

�� "Oh, of course, I knew that. � I DID !"

�� We left the cottage then, a happy trio heading off into the unknown. � And as Edgar closed his doors and began to move in his strange way, I looked back on the last few days. � I began this journal by saying that I had blundered into the future. � But now I see I was mistaken. � I DID NOT blunder into the future -- I belonged here! � I had made sure of that!

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