"Yes, that's right," Ikuo replied.
"Ever since I announced at the memorial service for Guide that I would be restarting the church, and I decided to allow the Quiet Women and the Technicians to join first, Dancer has had her doubts. If after they returned to the fold the Quiet Woman and the Technicians recognized the Somersault- and recognized the new church as developing out of the Somersault, rather than out of a denial of it-these groups would be powerful allies to have. But that's not the case, she said. We moved here to Shikoku with all that still up in the air. So I entrusted you, Ikuo, with the task of getting to know both groups better and trying to discover what's really going on with them."
Patron's speech was getting noticeably slower.
"That's right," Ikuo said. "My two responsibilities since coming here have been that and supervising the Farm. Meeting the Fireflies, admittedly, led to other activities."
"Knowing now what the Quiet Women are planning plus the fact that the Technicians will be indirectly helping out, I can see that Dancer was right to be suspicious," Patron said. "The Quiet Women and the Techni- cians immediately denied the Somersault that Guide and I did, and nothing's changed. They haven't altered their stance in ten years. Dancer tells me that at the meeting where I'll announce the launching of our Church of the New Man, they're planning to take me captive and act as if the Somer- sault had never taken place.
"After the Quiet Women have made sure that the Somersault has been canceled, they plan to pass on joyously. They'll be the martyrs who saved the church, and a great Hallelujah! will ring out. And the Technicians, bearing the atonement of these twenty-five saintly women, will take over the church and run it the way they have always wanted.
"If that happens, it doesn't really matter whether I truly canceled the Somersault or not, does it? All they have to do is take care of me until the day I die. Our summer conference would then be remembered as the time when Patron canceled the Somersault and the Quiet Women ascended to heaven and became divine. Dancer told me she could already sense this at the party at the Farm. Is that a good summary?"
"Gii told me he felt that too," Ikuo said. "As far as the order of events is concerned, it wouldn't really matter if you deny the Somersault after the Quiet Women passed on, would it? Applauding the atonement of the Quiet Women, God would-Hallelujah!-forgive you for making a fool of him.
"Before they pass on tonight, the Quiet Women are praying that they can atone in your place for what you did. They're also praying that you're repentant after having fallen with Guide into hell and after Guide had to atone with his death. They're cleansing your image so you can be an appropriate leader for the new church. They've already typed up a prayer on a word pro- cessor and prepared a thousand copies. It's a direct prayer to God but also an appeal to their former colleagues in the church and an announcement aimed at the media. To the Quiet Women you are no longer the Patron who medi- ates between man and God. They're trying to reestablish the bond between you, repentant, and God.
"In their discussions so far, the Technicians recognize how inscrutably adroit you were in doing the Somersault. They're optimistic that after you hear about the Quiet Women passing on you'll deliver a sermon responding to that and cancel the Somersault once and for all."
The window started to get lighter. The leaves were still dripping, but the rain had let up.
Patron closed his eyes and lay back down, while Morio, who was awake all this time, didn't move a muscle. Ogi felt sorry for both of them. But Patron's words after a long silence didn't reflect any of these empathetic feelings.
"Dancer feels very strongly that this is beyond her," he said. "I'm afraid I've dragged her into some foolish things. And you too, Ogi. I imagine that the church from now on won't be the same Church of the New Man that I was hoping to make with you two. When you leave the Hollow, Ogi, I'd like you to take Dancer with you."
It bothered Ogi that Patron hadn't mentioned Ikuo, but Ikuo didn't respond to this. Instead, he spoke of other things, his tone changed.
"Friday night convinced me that the popular interpretation of the Som- ersault in the media was absolutely correct," Ikuo said. "In other words, you feared the mass suicide of your followers, so you took humane steps to pre- vent it. But if the Quiet Women commit mass suicide now, that will just add insult to injury. So I'm going to make sure that not only will their plan fall through but also they'll be so sick they'll give up any alternate ideas too. I've got it all set to go.
"Dr. Koga will be helping me, but I don't think I'm making him feel he's a traitor to his fellow Technicians. I have two plans, Plan A and Plan B. Which of the two it'll be is up to me, not Dr. Koga. While the Quiet Women are recovering, I'll put one of those plans into effect. All you need to do is persuade people in a humane way. Once the Quiet Women aban- don their mass suicide of atonement, I suspect the radical elements of the Technicians will be so deflated they'll leave. Then the followers reunited at this conference will support your humane church, with the Quiet Women, who've given up on passing away, at the center.
"In order for all this to happen, you'll need to use the sermon today to set the direction you'll be going in. Emphasize this humane approach. The name of the church, Church of the New Man, should help."
"This Plan A and Plan B you mentioned, let's say what you do tonight is Plan A. Well, what is it?" Patron asked, sitting up in bed. Morio sat up too and gazed at Ikuo with the same expression on his face as Patron.
"It's as much of a farce as your Somersault. Dr. Koga's going to give me twenty-five doses of a powerful laxative."
At this Ogi couldn't help but let out a high-pitched giggle.
"Dr. Koga will also prepare twenty-five doses of a second kind, as part of these two plans. There's no toilet in the chapel, so they'll have to break their siege. But after they've had such terrible diarrhea, they won't have the strength left to climb high enough to hang themselves, will they?"
Patron and Morio both looked as if they loathed the faint smile that played around Ikuo's now-silent lips. But this didn't bother Ikuo. He turned his gaze first to Patron, then Morio, and finally to Ogi-who was holding his tongue after his previous slipup-as if appraising their reactions one by one.
"I'd like you to make sure that plan succeeds without fail," Patron said.
"On your way out, would you ask Dancer to come in here? If Ogi takes her place, I think she can leave the office for a while."
"I'm going to let Ogi go for the clay," Ikuo said. "Even if he were to go back to the office, we're not expecting any important calls today, so I think it's okay for him to sneak off for some R and R with his friend."
Once more Ogi was flabbergasted.
"There's something else I'd like Dancer to tell you," Patron said, in undisguised disgust for Ikuo. "She's the one-not Professor Kizu-who has the greatest influence on you now."
4
Late in the afternoon-in another little innocent tale-Ogi, thinking he might as well go along with what Ikuo suggested, vanished for a while, and then, after he got back, received a proposal from Ms. Tachibana, who'd been awaiting his return. She wanted to tell him that she wouldn't be able to take Morio to hear Patron's sermon in the special seating set up between the grandstands and the area below the monastery.