Harry nodded in return. "You are welcome," it said curtly, as the robot who was now known as Big Bob returned its attention to the building. Harry raised its hand and began pointing its finger as if to make another point, but was detained by Benny, who distracted it by patting it on the shoulder. The rapping of the metal skins echoed softly throughout the square.
Benny said, "Deal with it more simplistically, comrade, else you shall continue to experience the utmost difficulty in vanquishing this human business."
"Yes, you are correct."
Derec shook his head. He thought he might clear his ears in the process, but they seemed just the same when he was finished. Had he been hearing correctly? What was this "human business" they were talking about? Was there indeed another human on the planet, or were they talking about the Laws of Humanics? He watched them for a few moments more, to see if anything would happen next. But Benny and Harry joined their friend M334 in gazing at the building, and that was all.
Surely there had been some significance to that incident, and Derec determined to discover what it was as soon as he had the opportunity. He also resolved to ask Harry and Benny about their manner of speaking, which differed markedly in both rhythm and vocabulary from those of other robots. Something about it Derec found affecting, and he suspected other robots might be reacting the same way. "Big Bob" indeed!
Derec left Mandelbrot staring at a light-red plane, and crouched down to the base of the building. About a quarter of the base was beneath the surface. Derec crawled to get a closer look at the actual point where the building began. He felt in his fingertips the machinery operating through the plasticrete, but the vibrations were utterly silent.
Again, he touched the building. It rotated just fast enough that, if he had exerted any pressure with his fingertips, the smooth surface would have rubbed off strips of skin. The surface was cool to the touch. Its composition did appear to differ radically from the rest of the plasticrete cells comprising Robot City. The creator, whoever it was, had analyzed the meta-DNA code and conceived its own variation on it, gauged for exactly the effect it was looking for.
That by itself proved Derec's suspicion that the creator had transformed the city's raw materials in addition to his other accomplishments.
Was there nothing this robot couldn't do? Derec felt a chill as the implications of this creature's abilities began to sink in. Perhaps its only limitations would ultimately prove to be the Three Laws of Robotics. The fact that a robot with such potential merely existed in the first place could have a profound impact upon the social and political policies of galactic culture, redefining forever the place of robots in the mind of humanity.
And Derec's chill increased several fold as he imagined the remote possibility of robots superseding man in importance, if for no other reason than the art they could create-the emotions and dreams they could inspire-both in robots and in people
You're getting ahead of yourself, Derec,he thought. Get a grip on yourself. There's nothing for you or the race of Man to worry about. Yet. With a sense of renewed concentration, he returned his attention to the inspection at hand.
But he only got as far as peering into the blackness of the crack of two centimeters between the building and the plasticrete of the square. He only heard the gentle hissing of the mighty gears below for a few seconds. A familiar voice interrupted him, demanding his immediate and full attention.
"There you are. I should have guessed you'd be crawling around where it isn't necessary."
He acquiesced to the demand of Ariel's presence, reluctantly yet willingly, as always. Despite her words, she bent down on her hands and knees to examine the crack with him. He could not decide whether to be relieved or annoyed that she had finally caught up with him.
She made the decision for him, for she did not look at the crack or touch the building. She only looked into his eyes.
"Found anything interesting yet?" she asked eagerly, breathlessly, from deep in her throat.
He smiled involuntarily. "Much, but nothing definitive."
Wolruf's hair stood on end as she came forward to sniff the area around the crack.
"What are you looking for?" Derec asked.
"Forr w'ateverr thiss one can find," said the alien. "Ssmells, ssounss, w'ateverr." Wolruf looked up at Derec. "Mosst interesstin'. No ssmell anyt'in'."
"Yes, the electric motor turning this building is certainly operating at optimum efficiency," said Derec.
"Undoubtedly designed with such unobtrusiveness in mind," said Ariel.
"Not'in hass been tak'n for granted," said Wolruf.
"Do I detect some semblance of admiration in your voice?" Derec asked her.
"Yesss. My people would say thiss buildin' iss ass weightless as tricksterr toy. Itss effect iss ssame, too."
"Tricksters?" Derec asked. "
Wolruf has been trying to explain the concept to me for the last couple of days," Ariel said. "Before her species became spacefarers, they lived what we at first glance would call a primitive existence. But her people had sophisticated folklore, which existed in part to provide metaphysical explanations for the phenomena of day-to-day existence. Tricksters were a device frequently employed in these explanations. They were children of the gods, who frequently played pranks on the tribes and often figured prominently in a mythic hero's adventures."
Derec nodded. He really didn't know what to make of all this. His mind was already too full trying to understand these robots, and at the moment he didn't think he could assimilate much information about Wolruf's people. "Listen, I'm feeling a little claustrophobic; and besides, I don't think we can learn anything else here, anyway."
"Why learn?" asked Ariel. "Why not just enjoy?”
“I've already done that. "
"You just say that because you've always liked to pretend you're an intellectual."
Derec raised an inquisitive eyebrow and stared hard at her, a hundred questions suddenly plaguing his mind. How could she know he liked to pretend? Pretend what? Was she referring to their supposed chance meeting at the spaceport? Presumably the meeting had been brief-too brief for her to be able to infer an "always."
Derec was naturally overcome with a desire to know, but the innocent way she had made the remark cautioned him.
She probably hadn't been aware of the implications. If he quizzed her now, she might become too careful; he could gain more information from her in the long run if she felt free to speak casually.
"Master? Master?"
Mandelbrot was speaking. "What is it?" Derec answered.
"I recall you had expressed an interest in the individual responsible for this creation."
"Yes, that's true," said Derec excitedly, suddenly forgetting how he had been disconcerted by Ariel's implication.
Mandelbrot shaped his malleable hand into the form of an arrow and pointed it toward the edge of the square. "Then I suggest you take a walk in that direction, where those robots are gathered."
"Thanks, Mandelbrot. I'll see you in a minute." Derec smiled weakly and nodded at the hand. "A nice touch," he whispered. He walked toward the area indicated-a place where the robots were packing themselves tightly indeed. Those who weren't speaking on the comlink circuit-a means through which they could communicate more fully and faster-spoke loudly, perhaps in deference to the humans present, but then perhaps not. It was another question Derec would have to find the answer to.
“Hey! Wait for me!" Ariel called out.
"But not forr me," said Wolruf. "Don't like crrrowds."
Derec turned and waited for Ariel to catch up. 'This is the second time tonight I've had to wait for you. What took you so long to get here earlier?"
"Oh, I took a turn too fast and capsized my scooter. Wolruf and I weren't hurt, just shaken up a bit. I think my body's covered with black-and-blues though."