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easy on that bubbly, Bixie and Momotaro. It’s much stronger than you think.”
    â€œLet’s fetch a piece of redwood trunk,” said Thuy. “There’s a fallen giant near here. Hey, Kittie and Nektar, can you pitch in?”
    â€œThat sounds a little too lumberjack for me,” said Nektar. “Sawing logs in the dark? More up Lureen’s alley. She’s so butch.”
    â€œSure I can help,” said Lureen affably. “I had more sense than to dress all femmie. But the firelight through your skirt makes a nice effect, Nektar. Don’t forget you’re teaching me a lesson tonight.”
    â€œOh, you’re awful,” said Nektar, finally giving Lureen a smile.
    â€œOur clothes don’t matter,” interrupted Thuy. “We’ll use our minds to teek a big block of steps right out of the log. Me, Lureen, Kittie, who else?”
    â€œOh, I’ll help, too,” said Nektar, not wanting to be a bad sport.
    â€œAnd me,” said Bixie. “Woman power! Let’s stand around the fire like witches.”
    â€œHand in hand!” said Jil, completing the thought. “We’ll dance widdershins.” She paused, checking Gaia’s database. “That means counterclockwise.”
    The men were greedily hunkered around the picnic table eating fish and meat. The six women circled the fire, the yellow light flickering on their faces. Teeping as one, the women extracted an immense block from a fallen redwood nearby. A sharp crack sounded as the cellulose molecules broke their bonds with the main mass of the trunk. The women moved the block into place in front of the cottage. With a further round of sharp reports, they carved three pleasantly proportioned steps out of the block, adding the waste pieces to Jayjay’s woodpile. A hefty chunk slid loose and thudded to the ground.
    â€œIs that a bear?” shrilled Lureen, breaking the trance. “A wild pig?” She leaned against Kittie, laughing. “Maybe we should go back home, honey. I can’t stop thinking about your beautiful mural.”
    â€œStick around,” said Nektar. “It’s our turn at the table. I’m really hungry now. Get away from the trough, boys.”
    â€œJust a second,” said Jayjay, teek-flipping the meat and fish that sizzled on the grill. “It’s not quite done. Have some more champagne.”
    â€œGetting back to what we were talking about before,” said Ond to Jayjay, waving a chicken bone for emphasis. “You have a point about the whole power industry dying out. So what takes electricity’s place—in terms of something to sell? I’d be glad for some ideas about that.”
    â€œOutsource your question to Gaia,” suggested Sonic, running his meat-greasy fingers through his long hair.
    â€œThe pighead’s universal solution,” said Jayjay. He didn’t want to talk about business at all. With Sonic here, and with the champagne warming his veins, he was feeling that old urge to merge into the global mind. Moonlight puddled the table, filtering in through the trees. Maybe in a minute he and Sonic could get high. His heart beat faster as he imagined the rush.
    â€œMove!” yelled Thuy. “Up, up, up! Our turn!”
    The men dispersed and the women took their places. Jayjay served them their grilled meats and fish fillets. He’d worked really hard lately, and Thuy was being just a little bit annoying. He deserved a break.
    â€œ
Yeah
you do,” teeped Sonic, who was tuned right in on Jayjay’s flow of thought. “I’m thinking we skulk over to that dark area by the stream.”
    â€œThere’s a nice flat rock we can lie on,” said Jayjay.
    But just then Craigor and Darlene showed up with Darlene’s teenage sister Mabel.
    â€œAbout time!” exclaimed Thuy. “Where were you when we were moving the house?”
    Craigor shrugged. “Darlene was reading a