– You're not telling the truth again.
– No, listen. By revealing a secret to one and not telling the other, you are both showing your exceptional treatment of the woman and testing her ability to keep a secret, whatever you ask. But, of course, she'll tell her friend.
– What makes you so sure?
– Oh, Rutra Tigrovich, you know how women are.
– Irene, what is this?
Ruthra smiled ironically, glancing up, though Irene could have been watching from anywhere.
– What's next?
– Next, you'll do the same thing with the men.
– Oh, that's two men. Who's the other one?
– Someone I've labeled as Narcissus, or Petty.
– Is he short?
– Let me show you all of them.
– Only in real life, visually. I don't want them in my brain. I know your habits and manners.
Irene visualized holographic images of the people she had chosen. They appeared at the table in front of Ruthra. A robotic mechanism, in the form of a delicate female hand, extended from a nearby wall with two cups of fragrant, steaming coffee and placed them on the table.
– I can "revitalize" them.
– No, not yet. I don't know them. What am I gonna talk to them about?
– That's as close as you'll get to finding out without their knowledge.
– No. For now, you and I will just talk. Then I'll watch them, listen to them talk to each other from the sidelines. And then we'll get to know each other virtually. Then we can get real. By the way, you picked some good-looking girls.
– Do you like it?
– Let me see them without makeup.
Irene immediately did as asked. Ruthra thought, "Women invented the disguise and the whole conspiracy system. And not by design, but as if for everyday needs.
– I'm fine. All I care about is what's in there.
– Over there?
– There, in my head.
– Of the many combinations, this is one of the best groups.
– Why do we need Shallow? Why do you call him that, by the way? He's not so small.
– Through nicknames, pseudonyms, and name interpretations, I label human mentality, behavior, and character.
– What about him?
– Fairly erudite, but a petty little scoundrel.
– Why do we need him?
– It will come in handy. He will play the role of schemer between you and the women.
– What's that for?
– I apologize, but you still have a poor understanding of the whole concept of the experiment.
– Why?
– If the characters are familiar, they'll find themselves in a similar environment there as well.