Michael Kube-McDowell - Odyssey

No, he did not want to wait around for the Supervisors’ masters to arrive. The key to escaping was Darla. The pod’s thrusters were almost certainly rated for a much stronger gravity field than the one the asteroid boasted. If so, then there should be more than enough fuel remaining to lift off the asteroid again and put some distance between it and himself-if only he could convince Darla of the wisdom of that act.

But first, he had to find her. Measuring from memory, Derec suspected that the pod was too large to have been brought down the lift. The robots must have removed him from the pod somewhere on the surface-inside an entry dome, perhaps-and left the pod behind.

So he began by riding the lift in search of the place where he had been brought into the asteroid. It turned out to be called Level Zero. At the top of the lift shaft a disclike pressure door scissored out of the way to allow the platform to pass, and the lift carried Derec up into a high-ceilinged circular room a hundred meters across.

Most of the chamber was filled with neatly aligned rows of machines-buglike augers and borers, tracked carriers, and flying globes like the one Derec had seen when the robots were carrying him and his pod away. On the far side of the room, a steep ramp enclosed by a transparent material led up and out onto the surface.

There was a Supervisor there as well, seated at a control station with its back to Derec. Though it gave no such sign, Derec was sure the robot was aware of his presence.

Stepping off the lift, Derec began to wander among the idle machines. This must be some of the equipment that was used to survey the outer crust of the asteroid, he thought. The flying globes were probably scanning platforms, while the other machines could be used to dig up any promising sites.

It seemed just as obvious to Derec that the surface survey was complete. It was not only the appearance of the machines that led to that conclusion. Searching the surface first made sense. Why even begin the underground excavation before you were sure that the object of your search wouldn’t be turned up by a much faster and far less complicated aerial survey?

But Derec was less interested in sorting out the remaining mysteries about this world than he was in finding Darla and saying good-bye to it. A quick catalog of the chamber turned up no sign of the pod or of his safesuit. But he did find a rack with three pearl-white augmented worksuits. They were too large for use in the lower levels or to allow him to climb into the pod if he found it, but he could still use one for an excursion to the surface.

Moving behind the nearest suit, Derec grabbed the crossbar and vaulted himself feet first through the access door on the back. As he settled in the saddlelike seat, he felt the feedback pads snugging up against his feet. He inserted his arms into the suit’s arms, and the controllers for the external manipulator came into his hands. A sloping display screen reflected the status of the suit’s systems on the bubblelike canopy before him.

“Close and pressurize,” he said, and the access door began to swing shut. He tried raising his arms, and the suit stirred in smooth response. At last, a little power, he thought.

But when he turned to head for the ramp, he found a Supervisor barring his way. “The surface is a restricted area,” the robot said.

Derec heard the words through a speaker at his ear and halted his advance. Probably the augmented suit was more than a match for a Supervisor, or would be in the hands of a skilled operator. But Derec did not want a fight. He only wanted answers.

“Tell me where I can find the survival pod I came here in,” Derec said.

“You do not have authorization to leave the community.”

“That’s where it is, isn’t it? On the surface. That’s where you hid it. What did you do, put my suit back in it after you took it off me?” Derec demanded. “I’m going out. If you don’t want to be damaged you’d better get out of the way.”

The robot did not move. “The survival pod is not on the surface,” it said.

Considering the way the Supervisors had been treating him, that was a generous answer. But Derec wanted more. “Either I go looking on the surface, or you show me where the pod is. Those are the only choices.”

There was a brief pause before the robot responded. When the answer came, it was a welcome surprise. “I will show you the pod.”

“Are we going outside, or down below?”

“Down.”

Derec still wanted to go to the surface. He had hopes of being able to use the stars and sky to determine at least in general terms where the planetoid was located-what kind of star it was orbiting, and whether the planetoid was independent or part of a planetary system. But until he found the pod, none of that mattered, so Derec could afford to be a gracious victor.

“Thank you,” he said. “If you’ll wait just a moment, I’ll put this suit back.”

But Derec did not get to enjoy his victory for long. The Supervisor took him back down to the warehouse level and led him through the maze toward the east wall. As they swung around the molding section and its high rack supply cache, the robot stopped short.

“Here.”

But Derec could see no pod. All he could see was a large open area with rows of assorted components neatly arrayed on the floor. “Where?”

With a sweeping motion of his arm, the Supervisor repeated, “Here.”

That was when Derec took a closer look at the hardware laid out before him and realized the truth. The pod was there, just as the Supervisor said. But it was in a thousand pieces, lying on the floor like a giant jigsaw puzzle. The robots had disassembled it down to fundamental components. Derec could recognize but a few-curved plates that had been part of the hull, several thruster bells, and, a few meters from where Derec stood, the lenses from the seven green lamps on the command console.

“No,” he cried out despairingly. “Why did you do it?”

“It was necessary to determine that the search objective was not concealed within the pod.”

“And my safesuit? Did they tear that apart, too?”

In answer, the Supervisor led Derec into the maze and showed him his suit, lying in several dozen pieces. The fabric had been separated from the binding rings, the environmental systems stripped out of the chest unit. Even the helmet had been disassembled.

“I’m surprised that you didn’t tear me apart, too,” he said bitterly as he looked at it.

“Please explain the reason for your surprise,” the robot said. “It is impossible for a robot to harm a human. Have you not been informed of this fact?”

“Nevermind,” Derec said with a sigh. “I was being sarcastic.”

“Sir?”

“Humans don’t always mean what they say. Haven’t you been informed of that fact?” After a moment, he added, “But you did search me, didn’t you?”

“Yes. While you were unconscious, you were subjected to a full-body magnetic resonance scan,” the robot replied.

Derec almost laughed at the absurdity of it. “It figures,” he said. “I suppose having you put the suit and pod back together is out of the question.”

“Nothing may take priority over the primary directive.”

“What about all those spare robots sitting up north doing nothing? You could activate a few of them.”

“The tasks would require not only Assemblers but the supervision of a Systemist. All Systemists are fully scheduled under the current duty cycle.”

“I guess that means no,” Derec said. He looked across the expanse of parts that once was a spacecraft and sighed. “Do you have a name of some kind?”

“I am Monitor 5.”

“Why are you talking to me, Monitor 5?”

“I perceived that you were stressed. While stressed, humans frequently derive benefit from communication.”