"Oh, my."
"No, no, please. As Susan said, we don't mind. It's just that we can't understand how this could be."
I sat picking at an omelette and drinking strong black coffee, listening. I hadn't said much since the Snark had made its appearance. I was feeling very sober.
A slow smile crept across Prime's full, plum-colored lips. "I suppose I must explain. The creature is merely a mechanism-a very sophisticated one, and fully entitled to all rights and privileges accorded self-aware beings-but that is all it is. One of many we have available. It was activated recently, and its task is to look after your personal needs. In order that it might fulfill its function more efficiently, we thought that we would program it with appropriate cultural background data and impress it with a fully human personality. The matrix we used was a composite of all of your personalities. The dreamteaching technique was modified for this purpose, so that last night, while you dreamt, you were feeding data back into the process. The amount of information here is considerable, and there are uncertainties associated with the technique. Personality is still one thing that resists quantification. The exact nature of the final product can't be predicted, nor could we predict your reaction to it. I'm very sorry you don't care for the, result. "
"Oh, no," Susan said. "I kind of like him."
"I want to know who Arthur Treachet is," Lori said.
Prime looked at her, sipping from his cup. "Who, did you say?"
"A very cryptic cultural allusion the creature made," John said. "Astonishing, actually. Most of us had no idea who he is, or was, but Jake says he remembers something about a motion picture actor by that name."
I roused myself to speak. "Yeah, middle-twentieth century or thereabouts. Maybe earlier. When I was a kid back on Earth, they were still showing those old black-and-white movies on video. Sam and I used to stay up late watching them. Memory grows dim, but I think I remember the name. Played servants, butlers, a lot. 'Course, I could be mistaken."
"Thing is," Roland said, "how did the creature know?"
"Well." Prime sat back. "The amount of background data fed in was considerable. Quite frankly, you would be astonished if I gave you numbers. Exactly where that particular datum came from would be difficult to pinpoint. It very well may have leaked in from Jake's unconscious. No way to tell, really. Is it important?"
John shrugged. "Hardly."
"Why does it look the way it does?" Susan asked.
"Its form derives from the race that created it, long ago. That race is quite extinct."
"I see. So it's an android, in a manner of speaking."
"In a manner of speaking."
Susan grinned. "We named it Arthur."
"Very good choice."
As if on cue, Arthur came shuffling in with a fresh pot of coffee. I got to wondering where in hell the kitchen could be. "Freshen your cup, dearie?" Arthur said to Susan.
"Sure."
Yuri said, "I'm looking forward to using all the data storage facilities you said were housed on Microcosmos."
"Yes, of course," Prime replied, "but you may find yourself feeling quite lost. Again, I must emphasize to you that the amount of information available here is staggering. Simply getting your bearings would take a human lifetime."
"Yes, I suppose so. And, of course, there would be the problem of translation."
"Oh, that's not a problem. Most of it can be translated into standard English, if you wish-"
"I prefer Russian."
"— or any human language. Or any language at all. And it can be done very quickly. Even at that, you would be adrift in an endless sea of data. It's all organized, mind you, catalogued and cross-referenced. But simply learning your way around the system would take up a good deal of your life. That's why I urge you to accept the dream-teaching."
"Still," Yuri said, "I would like to test the waters-wade around a bit, if you don't mind."
"Not at all. You might find something of interest."
"I'm sure I will."
Arthur finished pouring refills and waddled off, mumbling. I stared after him. It. I wasn't quite ready for "him" yet. Or "her," if that was the case.
"When can we begin?" Yuri asked.
"Now, if you wish," Prime answered.
"I'll wait for the others."
Susan asked, "Will we dream again tonight?"
"If you will permit it, yes," Prime said.
"Oh, I have no objection. It's a wonderful way to learn. However do you do it? Does it have something to do with telepathy?"
"Actually, it has more to do with electromagnetic inductance than with extrasensory perception."
"Then I wouldn't understand it at all."
"The technique is not beyond your comprehension. It's quite simple, really."
"I'm sure."
"I suppose, then," John said, "that any further questions we might have will be answered in the dreams."
"I will be more than happy to fill in any details you might need, but as far as providing a broad perspective, the dreams can do that very well. There is one thing you should understand. We are using the dream-teaching technique at a very low level of efficiency. If we wanted to, and if you would permit it, we could infuse your minds with more knowledge than you could ordinarily accumulate in a dozen human life-times. There is the possibility that this sort of cramming could produce deleterious side effects, but it could be done, and the side effects most likely could be handled. It will be up to you to decide how much you want to know-how far you want to progress along the path to a higher consciousness."
"How far can we progress?" Yuri asked.
"As far as your desire takes you."
"I see."
Nobody had much else to say as we finished our coffee. Arthur returned, and Prime got up.
"Arthur will conduct you to the main data storage facility. We will meet again for lunch. Until then, have a pleasant morning." He bowed and walked off.
Arthur watched him leave, then turned to us. "Okay, kids. Schooltime. Get your pencils and books together and follow me.
"Fuck off," Carl said.
Arthur scowled at him. "Uh-oh, this one's going to be trouble. Detention for you, kiddo. And bring a note from your mommie."
Carl grabbed a milk pitcher. I was pretty sure he would have thrown it if John hadn't wrenched it away.
Lori was appalled. "Carl, behave yourself!"
Arthur flinched. "Ooh, he's dangerous! Reform school material. All right, you're excused from class."
"Get bent."
"Same to you, dearie. The rest of you-"
"Hold on a minute." I got up. "We're all very interested in browsing through the library, but first I'd like to go back to my vehicle to take care of a few things. If you don't mind."
"Fine with me," Arthur said. "Do you know how to get to the cellar?"
"Not really."
Arthur pointed. "Go down this corridor here, make the first right, and you'll find a down chute, express to the basement. If you want, I can summon a guide to show you."
"Uh…" Those light-spheres gave me the creeps, now that I thought about it. Besides, they were probably monitoring devices. I wanted at least the chance that I wouldn't be watched. "No thanks. I can find my way."
"Be careful, dearie. Okay, if any of you want the cook's tour of Data Storage, follow me."
Darla got up and walked over to me. "I'll go with you."
"Okay. I hope we can find our way back."
"Don't you think they're watching our every move?"
"I've been trying to delude myself that they're not."
"I'm coming, too," Carl informed me. "And Lori. We're cutting class."
Lori turned up her nose. "Who wants to see a bunch of books?"
I said, "I could be wrong, but I doubt that Prime was talking about books per se."
"Or pipettes; or tapes, or any of that stuff," Lori said. "Anyway, I never went to school, and I'm not going to start now."