Kir Bulychev - Alice - The Girl From Earth

Alice tried to recover her breath. The iron hand clamped down on her chest and Alice thought the robot was now trying to crush her. It was very difficult to breath.

“One-Two-Three-Four!” The robot commanded.

The boat rocked back and forth. Around Alice there was an enormous commotion.

Then everything was silent.

The Field Marshal jerked at Alice’s arm and seated her beside him, and said:

“Look and be amazed, human spy!”

Alice looked around, and what she saw really did amaze her. The boat was empty.

Only she and the robot General sat in the boat; the general had an iron harpoon on his lap.

“But what happened to all the others?” Alice asked.

The robot laughed. The robot’s laugh was like slamming a hammer against a piece of steel.

“Do you see this?” It asked; it pointed to the minimizer. The suitcase lay at his feet, closed, black, peaceful.

“I am no fool.” The robot said. “I examined this bag back at headquarters. I looked inside. I saw many small things that lay inside it. When I took them out the things became big. It is a very clever military tool. I like it very much.”

“It’s not at all a military tool.” Alice said.

“Do not contradict me! It is the ideal attack mans. I understood everything. For this I awarded myself the next rank. You may now refer to me as Lord Field-Marshal.”

Not letting go of Alice’s arm the robot Field-Marshal opened the minimizer and allowed Alice to glance inside. At the same time he shone the light from his forehead lamp into the minimizer.

Alice gasped in horror; inside the minimizer stood a line of rusty robots. Tiny, like toys, each of them smaller than her finger.

“Now, we shall have victory!” It said.

The robot field-marshal slammed the minimizer shut.

“Now you will be defeated.” It said. “I can hardly imagine how this came about.”

“But why are you telling me all this?”

“I need you.” The robot said. “In order to carry out a deception of the coast’s defenders.”

It pulled the old man-film robot’s straw hat from the bottom of the boat and put it on it own head.

“Now you and I are merely peaceful villagers sailing in a boat. And if someone should catch sight of us he will never guess that a great invasion is about to begin. If you, young human, will behave yourself and obey all my commands, I will release you alive and, perhaps, even award you with a medal. But if you attempt to deceive me you will not live another second!”

And suddenly Alice was very frightened indeed. She realized that with every minute they were drawing closer to a shore filled with thousands of unsuspecting tourists and vacationers. These people were getting ready to go to bed, out watching the stars, rocking children to sleep, and not one of them suspected that truly merciless killers were approaching.

“Okay.” Alice said. “I’ll help you. Just let go of my arm. It hurts.”

“That I will not do.” The robot said. “I do not believe you. I believe no one. I do not even believe myself.”

“But there’s no where for me to swim to!” Alice insisted. “Doesn’t your boat sail faster than I can swim? There’s no way I can run away from you.”

“What are you planning?” The robot’s clutch weakened.

And then Alice saw something in the water not far from the boat; a black arch was cutting the waves.

Could it be a dolphin?

The sun was below the horizon and dark shadows had run to cover the land and sea in silence.

Of course they’re dolphins. Too bad there’s no way they can talk…. But, what if they understand?

If she could grab hold of a dolphin’s dorsal fin, there was no way the boat could ever catch her!

Should she risk it? And what if the dolphins were too frightened to help?

But there was no way she could just sit there and wait while the war robots started to attack the peaceful coast.

“Dolphins!” Alice shouted. “Help me!”

And, pulling her arm out of the robot’s hand, she threw herself into the water.

The water immediately exploded in foam around her. Alice came back to the surface and realized there wasn’t a single dolphin anywhere around.

But the boat’s nose had begun to turn in her direction. She saw the black silhouette of the robot, who stood up in the boat and held an iron harpoon in one hand over his head. The light from his lamp flashed in her direction.

I’ve failed, Alice thought.

But at that moment the firm body of a dolphin struck her from below. Alice instinctively grabbed onto the high, curving dorsal fin. The dolphin carried her to one side, and Alice did not see, but she did feel the swish of the iron harpoon cutting through the water. A second dolphin swam over to Alice as well; together the pait quickly began to carry the girl toward the shore. Around her she could make out the fins and laughing snouts of the other dolphins.

“Stop!” The robot shouted, shining the light from his lamp on the water.

An arrow cut the water close to them with a splash. A second struck one of the dolphins. He groaned, just like a person.

“Look out!” Alice shouted, but, certainly, from the splashing and noise no one could hear her voice.

The shore was already very close its black headland cut stars out of the sky. Beyond the headland burned bright fires.

“Bad people!” One dolphin said. “We don’t like him.”

“That’s not a person.” Alice said, not at all surprised that the dolphins could talk; not at least enough to be taken aback. “That’s an iron robot. It’s a machine. It’s an evil machine.”

The dolphins whistled and clicked among themselves, trying to understand what had just taken place.

“But aren’t these people?” The dolphin who had helped Alice asked again.

“They’re the enemies of people.”

The dolphin gave a loud whistle and immediately the black tailfins of his fellows rushed to his side.

“Watch.” The dolphin said, turning.

Alice watched how several dolphins rammed into the side of the inflatable boat where the robot field-marshal was standing. The plastic shuddered in the water, one side rose into the air, the crashed down again; the war robot could not maintain his balance and fell into the water with an enormous splash.

“Perfect!” Alice shouted. “Hooray!”

And she suddenly realized just what was there, in the boat the minimizer. It would be lost!

“The boat!” Alice shouted, watching how the waves played with it. “The boat. I have to get to the boat!”

The dolphin did not ask any questions. A few seconds later he had swum up to the boat and hung along side.

Alice clambered on board.

The suitcase minimizer lay on the bottom of the boat.

“Thank you, dolphins!” Alice shouted.

“You’re welcome, brave child.”

“You’re injured. Alice said, heading the boat toward the shore. “Do you need help? Should I call a doctor?”

“Don’t bother.” The dolphin answered. “It’s nothing.”

And the dolphins vanished into the night.

As though they had never been.

The night was totally silent. The only sound was the singing of the crickets on the shore.

The boat rammed its nose against the rocks.

Alice threw the minimizer out onto the beach.

And suddenly she heard voices calling her name.

“Alice!” The words flowed down from the cliff “Alice, where are you? Aaal-isss!”

“I’m here!” She shouted. “I’m here!”

A few minutes later she found in the center of a crowd. Everyone was there. The rescue workers, Vasya and Herman, and of course Svetlana Odinokaya.

“You’re alive!” “You’re not injured?” “You’re not hurt?” “Where were you?” They all spoke at once from all around her.