Maverick

Chapter 18. Wild Goose Con Tutti

Ariel and Mandelbrot stood on the bridge of the Wild Goose Chase, studying the small blue-white planet that hung like a jewel in the sparkling black velvet of the main viewscreen. “Tau Puppis IV,” Ariel said wistfully. “What a beautiful little world. ”

“Mistress Wolruf is a better navigator than she will admit,” Mandelbrot said. “Despite all the uncontrolled variables, we came out of the jump less than six light -hours from our planned position. ”

“It was worth the extra four days of flying time. ” Ariel touched a control and increased the magnification. “Look at those rivers. It reminds me of home. ”

A new voice spoke. “To me, it is home. ”

Ariel turned at the sound of the voice. “ Adam! I didn’t know you were here. ”

The robot bowed slightly. “I am sorry if I alarmed you, Friend Ariel. I came on the bridge a few minutes ago, but I have been so enjoying the view that it did not occur to me to speak. ” He walked over and joined Ariel and Mandelbrot before the viewscreen.

“I am coming to understand more of the subtlety of emotion,” Adam said. “In my mind, I know that I am a robot. I am a thing that was manufactured in deep space; pieced together from Auroran robotics, rare earths, and dianite.

“But there is a part of me that was born in the cool green forests of that planet; a part of me that came to life among its peoples and still knows the pleasure of bare paws on soft grass. In my-heart-I feel that I am coming home. ” Adam reached out, tentatively, as if he could touch the image on the viewscreen.

He turned away. “I apologize. This must seem quite incoherent to you. ”

Ariel offered him a smile. “Emotion usually is, Adam. ”

“Not as incoherent as you might think, Friend Ariel. In our search for the Laws of Humanics, we have devoted considerable study lately to the structure of the human brain. It is our hypothesis that humans have not one mind but four, located in the midbrain, cerebellum, and left and right cerebra respectively, and that it is the conflict between these four minds that gives rise to emotion. Further, we suspect that it is the ability to overrule logic with emotion that has enabled your species to evolve as far as it has. ”

Ariel wrinkled her nose. “That’ s a pretty strange theory, Adam. ”

“Our experience seems to support it. The Ceremyons are brilliant, yet they are also capable of a vast range of subtle emotions. In comparison, Dr. Avery is quite intelligent for a human, but his inability to admit to emotion eventually drove him insane. Only by forcing him to integrate his logical functions with his more primitive drives were you able to cure him and turn him into a somewhat more complete human being. ” Adam looked at the viewscreen again.

“I have concluded that having a split mind is a tremendous evolutionary advantage. I look forward to returning home and fully exploring my primitive side. ” Abruptly, he pivoted and began walking toward the lift.

The doors opened as he approached, but Mandelbrot called out, “Wait,” and he stopped.

“Yes, Friend Mandelbrot?”

“I have a dilemma which is causing me discordant potentials. I now believe that you can help me resolve it. “

“I will try. ” Adam stepped away from the lift and let the doors close.

“I have had a long association with Wolruf,” Mandelbrot began. “But since my memories of my existence as Capek. were partially restored, she appears to make excuses to avoid associating with me.

“For example, now we are about to enter orbit, and she should be here on the bridge. But she claims to have no interest in the orbit and reentry procedure. ”

Ariel joined the discussion. “That’s easy, Mandelbrot. Whenever you invoke a Capek memory, you slip into your Capek personality, and Capek identifies Wolruf as a member of Aranimas’s crew. You’ve started to restrain her four times, trying to defend me. Wolruf is afraid of you. ”

“I understand that part, Mistress Ariel, and I am making a serious effort to integrate those memories into my current personality. Perhaps you have noticed that I no longer call you Mistress Kathryn?

“But that’s not my dilemma. My real question is, what is this confused and conflicting stream of potentials that I experience whenever I think about Wolruf?”

“It’s called heartache,” Adam said. “Wolruf was your friend, and now you fear that you have lost her. The same condition prompts feelings of guilt, anger, grief, and remorse-sometimes simultaneously.

“Use these emotions,’ Mandelbrot. Integrating your two minds will make you stronger. ”

Mandelbrot’ s voice synthesizer took on a hopeful note. “Are you confident that it is heartache?”

Adam turned away and looked at Tau Puppis IV, glowing like a blue-white jewel in a field of velvet and diamonds. “I am certain of it. I left many friends behind on that world; some were depending on me to protect and lead them. I am very familiar with that feeling. ” Abruptly, Adam walked to the lift and stepped inside. The doors hissed closed.

Ariel was still trying to understand why she felt so disturbed by the exchange between Adam and Mandelbrot when the lift doors reopened. Avery and Derec spilled onto the bridge, arguing heatedly.

“You’re being paranoid, Dad!”

“No, I’m not. He found us twice; we have to assume that he’ll find us again. ”

“And spend the rest of our lives playing dead every time some crummy little freighter passes by?”

Avery threw up his hands. “Look, I said I was wrong four days ago. It was probably just some Settler ship making a course correction between jumps. But if that had been Aranimas-”

“But it wasn ’ t!”

Smiling sweetly, Ariel stepped in between Derec and Avery. “Having fun, boys?”

Avery’s white moustache was bristling with anger. “ Ariel, maybe you can talk some sense into my son. The question is not whether, but when Aranimas will find us again-” He bobbed left and fired a glare at Derec over Ariel’s shoulder. “- and we frosted well better have some kind of defense ready this time!”

Derec popped up and poked an accusing finger at Avery over Ariel’s head. “You’re nuts, old man! Finding us the second time was an accident. Pure dumb luck! We toasted his boarding crew and we gave him the slip. He’s given up, I tell you!”

“And I say he can track your commlink!”

“You’re paranoid!”

“You’re insolent!”

“Toad!”

“Nit!”

“Boys, boys. ” Ariel was shorter than either Derec or Avery, but she pushed the two of them apart with an authority born from centuries of selective breeding by short, motherly women. “Now Derec, listen to your father; he’s only being sensible. ” Avery’s face lit up in an I gotcha smile, but it collapsed the instant that Ariel turned on him. “And Dr. Avery, you listen to me.

“This ship is a robot, fully subject to the Laws of Robotics. Even if we could come up with a weapon, the ship wouldn’t let us use it unless we could prove that there were no humans on board Aranimas’s ship.

“So what we have to do-” Derec and Avery were glaring at each other again, so she grabbed them both by the ears and steered them around until they were looking at the viewscreen. “-What we have to do is go down to the planet and develop our defense there. With all the resources of a Robot City at our disposal, I’m sure that we can find a way to protect ourselves from Aranimas. ”

Smiling sweetly, she looked first to Derec and then to Avery. “ Agreed?” They were a little slow on the uptake, so she dug her long red fingernails into their earlobes.

“Ow! Yes! We agree!”

“Good, I’m glad you decided to be reasonable about this. ” She released her grip. “Mandelbrot? Begin preparations to deorbit and land in Robot City. ”

“There will be a time delay of approximately six hours,” Mandelbrot answered. “Reconfiguring the ship for atmospheric entry will take two hours, and then-owing to the damage we suffered in the fight-I must insist on full visual inspection and structural testing before we attempt reentry. ”

“Okay. Get on with it. Is there anything that we can do to help you?”

“Yes. ” Mandelbrot turned to face Ariel, and his eyes dimmed momentarily as he worked his way through some kind of Robotic Law dilemma. “Mistress Ariel? I would appreciate it if you could locate Mistress Wolruf and… reasonwith her. ” His gaze dropped to focus on her fingernails.

“Don’t worry, Mandelbrot, Wolruf’s a smart girl. I’ll get her back on the bridge before reentry, and I won’t use anything sharper than words. ”