Together Derec and Katherine watched as the rescue robots fit a self-cutting emergency hatch to the upper hull. When the hatch’s contact ring had burned through the hull and fused itself in place, the robots entered-one at a time, the witness first.
“This is where Aranimas had me living,” she whispered as the hypervision panned the atticlike upper deck.
“How long were you there?”
“Two months. Believe me, it seemed longer.”
When the witness robot led the way down to the main deck, the first thing they saw was a robot standing in the central corridor.
“Alpha,” Derec cried.
“Capek,” Katherine said at the same instant. “Where’s my robot?”
Hajime suspended the recording. “This robot was removed and taken away for diagnostic examination and repair.”
“I want him back, just the way he was,” Derec said. “You’ve got no right to tinker with him without a work order.”
“The robot resisted our efforts to rescue you. It was judged to be operating in a substandard and hazardous manner and was deactivated. Standard procedure in such cases is to perform a full examination so that the anomaly may be reported to the manufacturer.”
Katherine was nodding in reluctant agreement, and Derec took his cue from her. “All right,” he said. “Go on.”
When the recording continued, they saw themselves for the first time. They were lying head to foot along one wall in the central walkway of the main deck. Katherine winced and turned away at the sight of her own burn-blistered face and bloody clothing. Derec gritted his teeth and tried not to feel the pain all over again that was reflected in his burned skin.
“I thought so,” Derec whispered under his breath. “I thought so.”
“What?” Katherine demanded. “What are you talking about?”
“Alpha. He kept us alive.”
“You heard Hajime-the robot was abnormal. He wouldn’t let them rescue us.”
“That was just the PD cube being careful. Look,” Derec said, gesturing. “Those aren’t positions that you fall into naturally after an accident like that, or even crawl into. We were moved. And more: we were at least five days out when I tripped the booby trap. It took the rescue ship two and a half days to reach us. There’s no quarreling with the fact that we were badly injured-”
“No,” she said with a little shiver.
“I was wondering how we survived until the paramedics got to us. We should have died right there on the ship. All they should have found were corpses. Alpha is the reason they didn’t.” Derec looked toward the robot. “Hajime, could you pause the recording and give us privacy, please?”
“Of course, Derec.” The image and the robot both froze.
“What? What’s going on?”
“I just want to point out that someone else might have been on the ship, too.”
“What are you thinking about?”
“I had wondered why Wolruf and the robot were taking so long to get back from their errand. What if Aranimas regained consciousness? They might still have been trying to lock him up when the bomb went off. Alpha would have come running back. He wouldn’t worry about Aranimas. He probably wouldn’t even worry about what Aranimas might do to Wolruf. Aranimas and Alpha could both have gotten back into Hull A before it was cut loose.”
“And Alpha would have protected us from him, just as it tried to protect us from the rescue crew.”
“That might even explainwhy Alpha gave the robots trouble.”
“He could have hidden,” Katherine said thoughtfully. “It was his ship. He would have known where he’d be safe. Until the ship was brought in-”
“Just what I was thinking. If he doesn’t have the key, he’s looking for it-or us. If he’s got it, he still may be looking for us. Either way, the key’s not safe, and neither are we. And we can’t just sit around and tell ourselves there’s no rush. We have to start doing something right now.”
Katherine cast her gaze downward into her lap. “All right,” she said at last.
“Hajime,” Derec said. “You can rejoin us.”
The robot stirred again. “Thank you, sir. Shall I continue with the recording?”
“No. Terminate the replay. We’ve seen enough,” Katherine said.
“Very well, madam,” the robot said, complying. “Do you have other questions?”
“Yes. Where is Oh Seven B now?”
“I do not know, madam.”
The answer brought Derec up off the bed, his face reddening. “What do you mean, you don’t know?” he demanded. “You’re the second highest ranking staffer on the station.”
“That is correct, sir.”
“And you don’t know where our ship is?”
“I only know that Oh Seven B is no longer in the berth at which it was moored when first towed into the station.”
“Was it stolen?” Derec pressed. “Are you trying to tell me it’s gone?”
“It was not stolen. It was moved under the authorization of the station manager.”
“Why didn’t you say so from the start?” Katherine snapped.
“Derec asked if I knew where Oh Seven B was berthed. I do not, and so informed him.”
“Then find out where our ship is. I want you to take us to it.”
“I am sorry,” Hajime said. “I am not permitted to do that.”
“Then find us a robot who is permitted,” Derec snapped.
“I have been instructed to refer all inquiries of this sort to the station manager.”
Derec sighed. “All right. You can go.”
“Thank you, sir.” The robot paused. “May I make an inquiry, sir?”
“What about?”
“Do you continue to refer to Oh Seven B as ‘our ship’ out of habit or as a matter of affection?”
“What do you mean?”
“I have been informed that the vessel known as Oh Seven B is no longer your property.”
Chapter 16. Into The Darkness
The station manager, a robot named Anazon, would not come to see them, but agreed to a brief vidcall.
“Is the care you are receiving satisfactory?” Anazon asked politely. “I hope that Hajime is seeing to your other needs-”
Derec did not waste any time on pleasantries. “Where is our ship? Where is Oh Seven B?” he demanded.
“I regret, sir, that I am not permitted to tell you,” the robot said without a hint of regret in his voice.
“Who gave that order?”
“I regret, sir, that I am not permitted to tell you that, either.”
Derec was determined not to be thwarted. “Who is your supervisor? What’s his name?”
“My supervisor’s name is Aram Jacobson.”
“Get him on this channel.”
“Mr. Jacobson may not be available at this time-”
“Do it. Use whatever priority you have to to get him to answer. And keep the line open. I want to hear what you say.”
The robot reached forward for the hyperviewer controls. “This is Anazon, Manager of Rockliffe Station, requesting a conference with Mr. Jacobson.”
A voice said “One moment,” and there was a pause.
“Yes, Anazon,” a new voice said. The words were muddied by the faint electronic echo which was the telltale sign of a scrambler somewhere in the link. “What is it?”
“Anazon called you on my behalf,” Derec cut in. “Your robots have appropriated my ship. I expect you to order them to return it.”
“And our robot,” Katherine added. “We want Capek back, too.”
The hypervision image of Anazon faded and was replaced an instant later by one of a round-faced man with narrow eyes and shiny black hair. In sharp contrast to the robot’s slender physique, Jacobson’s stout body was perched precariously on his executive chair like an egg on a teaspoon.
“Excuse me, by whom do I have the pleasure of being ordered about?” he asked with exaggerated politeness.
“My name is Derec. This is-”
“Just Derec? No last name, like a robot?”
“Don’t be cute. You know all about me. I’m sure there’s a file on me in your library.”
“I have many files in my library,” Jacobson said. “I’m responsible for facilities which employ twenty-six hundred humans and nearly eight thousand robots. Believe me when I tell you that neither your name nor your face are familiar to me.” His gaze flicked toward Katherine. “And you, miss?”