Equality 7-2521's friends also have free will. International 4-8818 makes an understated but important choice in the story. He is faced with a difficult decision when Equality 7-2521 states that they will not report the existence of the tunnel. If he decides not to report it, he is going against everything he has been taught, every law decreed by the Councils and, consequently, is risking his life. If, on the other hand, he chooses to inform the Councils, he not only violates the trust of his good friend but also likely condemns his friend to a death sentence. International 4-8818 makes the extraordinary decision to repudiate everything he has learned to stand by Equality 7-2521. If he makes a different choice, Equality 7-2521 is lashed to death before he ever begins his research, he does not invent the electric light, and he does not discover the meaning of the word "I." International 4-8818's choice to support Equality 7-2521 is vital to the outcome of this conflict.
The Golden One likewise makes a life-altering decision in the face of alternatives. When she hears that Equality 7-2521 has fled into the Uncharted Forest, she is confronted by a difficult dilemma. If she chooses to pursue Equality 7-2521, she faces excommunication from the only society she has known and probable (from her perspective) death in the untamed wilderness. But if she selects the physical and psychological safety of the culture in which she was raised, then she loses the man she loves. The Golden One's choice is as bold as International 4-8818's. She chooses to risk all, including her life, to find Equality 7-2521. In her choice, too, the stakes are high. If she selects the safety of conformity, then Equality 7-2521 is alone, and his attempt to initiate a new society is undercut by his lack of a wife.
