Xenocide

Human is a fathertree, which is an honorable third life stage that only the wisest of the Pequenino people of Lusitania are allowed to achieve. Human and the Hive Queen discuss the concept of freedom. When Human claims that he feels freer now that he is a tree and cannot move, the Hive Queen calls him a liar.

Han Fei-tzu is tending to his wife, Jiang-qing, who is on her deathbed after developing an illness in which her bones have become so fragile that they easily break. Han Fei-tzu dreads his wife’s death; he argues that a husband should die before his wife and claims that he will not find happiness after her passing. He also states that he will resent their daughter, Qing-jao, whose name means “Gloriously Bright.” Jiang-qing asks Han-tzu to promise to raise Qing-jao to be a devout citizen of the planet Path. At that moment, Qing-jao runs into the room to tell her parents about the fish she has counted. Just before his wife dies, Han-tzu promises to honor her wishes.

Han Fei-tzu’s faith in the gods wavers upon his wife’s death, and he is compelled to perform the physical motions of his ritual cleansing, which he does for hours until he feels able to stop.