
Six humans and three aliens find themselves mysteriously transported to an enclosed valley, the playthings of a powerful entity called the Watcher. They find the life of an aquarium fish is not to their liking and seek escape... The characterization is adequate, if not deep, and it's a decent read. Fairly distant future setting with many inhabited planets, hyperspace travel, at least three alien races, and instantaneous (though expensive) communication across interstellar distances.
Written into Lest We Forget Thee, Earth.
One of the "Roma" stories. (Check out the Themes entry for details.) A Britannic visitor to Rome finds himself among the political "jet set" and sees from the sidelines the bloody creation of the Second Roman Republic.
Chapter 10 of Majipoor Chronicles. I don't know of any other publication.
In Lord Valentine's Castle, Valentine mentions an incident in which he and his brother in their youth had met a fortune-telling witch. After a night of intimate gymnastics, she read their futures in the pingla-seeds and pronounced that both would someday be king. This confused them greatly, and only many years later did the truth become apparent.
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Last updated October 21, 2002
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