Final Command (ss), page 3
His fingers tugged at Barr’s sleeve. Blindly, Barr allowed himself to be led.
They came to the long building. As he entered, Barr saw that men guarded every visible entrance. They carried small energy weapons which had been manufactured by robots. At least, he thought, there were no alien weapons yet. The men looked at him with bleak, unfriendly eyes.
Seeing them, he felt his first relief. There was no sign here that the aliens had actually been turned loose as yet. He guessed then that this stage had been set—for him.
Momentarily, he wondered what had happened to the robot guards of the building. As with all other centers important to the robot strategy, he had tried not to call attention to this one. The difficulty was that robots were assigned to guard or other -duty by a central agency, which human beings controlled. As a result, he had only been able to get a few key robots into any particular area. He did not doubt that, where there was suspicion, such robots could be isolated and overcome by a surprise attack. The others wrould merely have yielded to authority.
Slowly, Barr stiffened to the situation. He turned to Marknell, and said forcefully: “I hope you realize that I came here as a soldier, prepared to die.” He added grimly. “In that, you will admit, robots have had more experience recently than human beings.”
Marknell said: “Barr, I admire your iron will. But I warn you again. You have not the experience to resist certain shocks. Remember, just the thought of what might have happened nearly paralyzed you.”
Barr listened coldly. He looked back at his moment of weakness with annoyance. But nothing else. There could be nothing else. It was the experiment he had worried about, he told himself. But that could be resumed at a later date with other robots.
He said: “I’ve come here to check on your statement that aliens will supply human beings with arms.” He shook his head ever so slightly. “I can’t believe that, seriously; we made many attempts to contact the enemy without success. But I would be doing less than my duty if I didn’t find out for sure, even if it means my own life.”
Marknell said only: “You’ll see.”
He motioned Barr to go through a door. The latter did so. As he crossed the threshold, he had the impression that he was in a trap.
A winged beast, more than eight feet tall, whirled at his entrance. The shiny, bonelike things that protruded from its head blurred with the blue flame of electrical energy. A bolt of lightning speared out with enough power to short-circuit and burn out every electrical connection in a robot’s body.
Involuntarily, Barr jerked back.
Then he saw that this was the “glass” room. He was separated from the enemy by a barrier of insul-glas. Here, in the past, outside robots had come to watch the experimental robots being put through their paces. The door to the robot quarters was visible on the far side of the inclosure. At the moment it was closed.
Barr stared at it grimly, then turned to Marknell. “I suppose,” he said, “if I don’t yield, sooner or later you’ll open the door.”
He went on quickly, “It will have no effect, I assure you.”
Marknell said: “Barr, at this moment you can still save the entire situation by yielding to reason.”
Barr sneered: “Human reason?” He made a gesture with one arm, was annoyed at himself for it, and then said, “Of course, you will say there is no other kind possible to robots.”
Marknell said: “Tell me about your experiments here.”
Barr hesitated. Then he recognized that he must be prepared to give information in exchange for information. He said: “We isolated robots here. We were careful not to give them a false picture of life. They know about human beings and aliens, though we never showed them any in the flesh.” He paused impressively. “Every robot in this building has been given to believe that robots are the equals of any life-forms in the universe.”
“And so they are,” said Marknell. Barr started to shrug aside the interjection. And then, its obvious propaganda nature angered him. He stopped short. He said icily: “I can see no point in this particular conversation. Let us proceed to realities. What do you intend to do?”
Marknell said: “By all means. Realities.”
He frowned, as if considering his exact words, then he began, “Naturally, as soon as I recognized the danger, I was determined to find some means of counteracting the imminent robot attack. Among other things, I visited the one alien prisoner captured during the war. You may remember that he was finally brought to Earth at my insistence.”
He paused. But when Barr made no comment, went on: “My appearance startled the alien. I had quite normally come in surrounded by robot guards. The alien made an assumption. He thought I was a prisoner also. His first picture communication to me was to that effect. I was about to explain our complex civilization, and then the tremendous implications of his belief struck me. But, do you realize that the aliens never fought anybody but robots ? It was a robot-alien war. The aliens didn’t even know human beings existed.
“Of course, I explored further. I discovered that their reason for going to war and for fighting so desperately was that they thought of robots as utterly alien. It was even more startling when that monster recognized me as an organic life form. He nearly fell over himself in his desire to be my friend.
“I told him a complicated story. I won’t repeat it to you. But the general result was that he communicated by telepathy with his high command, and so within the next few days alien ships will be approaching Earth-controlled planets. If a certain signal is given, they will come clown and supply arms to the human slaves in their uprising against the common robot enemy. If necessary, they will fight with us.
“You understand, Barr, there is a rather devastating irony to this situation. It would appear that the entire desperate alien war was unnecessary. I assure you that many men recognized human fault even before the war ended. Those forces are stronger than ever. Men are coming back actively into civilization.”
He broke off, “And now, as a final incentive for you, I have here a friend of yours, one of the experimental robots we found in this build-ing.”
He stepped aside. Barr waited, feeling strangely blank, as if his mind was no longer working in an orderly fashion.
The robot who came through the door was unattended by guards. Nor was he padded to resemble a human being. He had articulated legs and arms and a movable head. But his crystalline “nervous system” rested on a very hard transparent substance. In one direction it had room to grow. Most of his body was opaque to light on the human vision level, but Barr could see every tube, every moving part.
He stared in a tense fascination, as the newcomer said: “Gosh, director, you sure surprised us letting humans come in on us the way you did. I’m happy to report, however, that we took the shock without ill-effects.”
Barr said vaguely : “I .. . I’m glad that—” He caught himself. He said: “You have to have shocks in this world.”
The experimental robot regarded Marknell. “So this is one of the races with which we share the universe. You don’t mind my saying, I hope, that in my opinion we robots seem to be the best naturally endowed.”
Barr glanced at Marknell unhappily. He mumbled something under his breath. Once more, he took hold of himself. He said more firmly: “You’re absolutely right.”
“I mean,” said the other robot, “just look at the handicaps under which the organic form operates. It must depend for its food on other organic developments. This depends on so many variable factors, such as weather, presence of the proper elements in the soil and so on, that it’s hard to believe anything could ever have come of it. It seems fairly obvious to me that organic life forms must have arrived very late on the scene. Director, what is the general theory about that? Surely, it must be that robots predated all other life. It’s the only logical conclusion.”
Barr started to say something, but he was cut off. Marknell touched the sensitized arm of the experimental robot. “We’re anxious/’ he said, “for you to have a closer look at another organic life form. This way, through this door into the glass in-closure.”
As Barr watched, the two moved alongside the insulglas wall. Everything was becoming strangely dark, as if a film was forming over his eyes. And far away thunder rolled. He recognized it as excessive vibration in his crystal structure. He had a sudden, blurred picture of what was about to happen. In his mind, he saw the lightning flash out from the alien, and strike the unsuspecting robot. Mentally, he visualized the surprise and agony, the despairing awareness of imminent death.
All that flickered through his mind as the robot reached the door. Marknell fumbled with the lock. He did not turn to make another appeal, as Barr half expected. His movements were very purposeful.
Barr thought: “He expects me to break. He expects me to stop him.” It was ridiculous. Just because this particular robot was a growth from his own crystal structure—
As Marknell successfully unlocked the door, Barr was amazed to hear a panicky voice yell out, “Marknell!” He realized instantly that it was he who had called out. The implications shocked him. And yet— Marknell had turned. “Yes, Barr ?”
Barr tried to whip up his anger again. He couldn’t. The blur of vibration interfered with his thinking; and yet he could suddenly understand many things that had not been clear before.
“Marknell, I agree!”
“I want to hear the command!” said the man in an inexorable tone. “I have a radio here that can tune in on robot communication.”
He turned, and said to the other robot: “I think we’d better postpone this introduction. That fellow in there is very temperamental.”
“I’m not afraid.”
Marknell said: “Some other time. I suggest you go back to your quarters now.”
The robot looked at Barr, who nodded. When he had gone, Barr said: “What do you want me to order?”
Marknell handed him a sheet of paper. Barr read:
“On the basis of an agreement reached between robot and human leaders, there will hereafter be full equality between the two life forms. The details are being worked out. All special troops are hereby commanded to go home immediately, and prepare for a new era of association between two great and equal races.” When* Barr had broadcast that, he looked up and saw that Marknell’s hand was extended.
Marknell said: “Congratulations from one father to another. That’s a fine son you’ve got there, Barr.” They shook hands.
THE END
A. E. van Vogt, Final Command (ss)
