"Approach Beacon 4." "Arrival Shuttle Orion, relocate at vector 6." "Captain James, your presence on pad 73, immediate, urgent." "Captain James, your presence required, urgent, pad 73 for immediate launch." "Launch 392, Captain James, your presence pad clearance soonest, status urgent." "That you, Benson?" "How you doin'?" "So, you blew the mental test, huh?" "Potentially unstable." "Huh." "I'd of been unstable too if I knew I was gonna get Saturn 3." "Hm, Saturn 3." "You're not going to appeal, are you?" "I wouldn't recommend it." "It's been tried before." "Hey, Benz, what are you doi" "Wait a minute, Benz!" "Holy hell, stop!" "Stop, no Ben-- Ben-- stop, Benz!" "Hold it!" "Benz!" "Launch 392, Captain James for Saturn 3, launch minus five." "Launch 392, commit minus three." "Launch to control-- crewman boarding." "Commit minus two-fifty." "Status red and counting." "You remain clear, let's go." "Minus zero-thirty." "Have a pleasant trip, Captain." "Minus twenty." "Minus fifteen." "Minus ten and counting-- nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one." "You are entering the field of Saturn 3 Experimental Food Research Station." "Intended landers should adopt vectors 3-9 to the polar elliptic, 2-4 to the equator." "You are entering the field of Saturn 3 Experimental Food Research Station." "Any urgent unloads?" " It can wait." " Let's get inside then." " I'll take that." " No." "Is that all right in here?" "Yes." "Here's where we've been for the last three years." " Captain." " Major." "This is my partner." "Take a look around." "We'll lock up." "You're quite an event in our lives." "Well, I guess you don't get many drop-ins on Saturn 3." "Mm, hardly ever, especially not from Earth." "Mm." "Captain." "What counter do you come from?" "Terminal five." "Oh, I know five." "Where?" "Far side of the East Billions." "Oh." "Where were you?" "Well, I spent a couple of terms in Billion Park." "They've cleaned it out now." "It's a dead cell." "Dead?" "I didn't know that." "Well, it's been a long time." "Uh, this way." "I see by your scan, you've never been to Earth, have you?" "No, no, I haven't." "Saturn 3, when they want to give the solar system an enema that's where they stick the tube in." "We've heard that one." "I expected to go to the laboratory." "We thought we'd have a welcoming drink first." "How's Earth, Captain?" "You get the bulletins, don't you?" "You're supposed to scan and acknowledge." "We do acknowledge." "But we don't always scan." "No." "Earth is hungry." "That's why we're here." "Your research is behind schedule." "We're doing all we can." "Not enough, you need help." "And you're the help?" "No taction contact." "You mean, don't touch?" "Correct." "What's in there?" "I have to sound Earth and report in." "You can't do that." "We're in eclipse." "Oh, yes." "No external contact while we're shadow locked." " You know that." " Of course." "How long will it last?" " Twenty-two days." " Mm-hm." "I need some rest." "Alex, show the captain to his quarters." "Major." "Can I get you anything, some ervil?" "No, I'll just take a couple of blues and crash." " Blues?" " Blues-- blue dreamers." "Sleeping pills?" "You've never heard of blues?" "You really lead a shut life out here, don't you?" "I choose to be here." "Here, in case you choose to try one." " One thing I envy him." " Mm, what's that?" "He's breathed." "I mean, we lead a shut life here." "It must be really something to go outside and breath." "When I was last there, if you went outside and breathed, the pollution count was liable to rust your tubes." "Mm!" "What do you think of him?" " The captain." " I don't know." " He's funny." " Funny'?" "I must have missed his best lines." " Adam." " Hm?" "What are blues?" "Blues?" "Blue dreamers." "Where'd you get that?" "From him." "He had no business giving you this." "What do they do?" "Well, when they send someone out alone, they give them some of these to keep them from going static." "Did you ever take one?" "Blue dreamers?" "Did you?" "Years ago." "What was it like?" "Huh?" "You heard me." "Interesting." " Let's try one." " Hm?" "Together." " Maybe." " Come on." "Please?" "After he goes." "How long do you think he's gonna be here?" "No longer than I can help." "Do your best to make him feel at home, huh?" " Sally." " Shut in the lab again." "I'll get her." "Hey." "Alex." "Oh." "There you are." "'No!" "'Uh!" "No taction contact." "Come here, Sally." "Sally." "Sally, where are you?" "Come on." "Sally." "It has a name?" "Of course she has a name." " Haven't you ever had a dog?" " A few times." "Well, didn't they have names?" "Just something to eat." " Give her to me!" " What?" "Don't." "It's time we get to bed, Captain." "Yes, you have a great body." "May I use it?" "I'm with the major." "For his personal consumption only?" "Yes." "That's penally unsocial on Earth, you know that?" "Well, it's not here." "Enjoy your blues." "Hey." "Problems?" "Come on." "Come into my quarters, we'll discuss your problem." "Looks like he's gonna build his own place." "Hm." "He's not travelling light." "Maybe I should help him." "Why?" "He's here to help us." "He's so strange." "That's a lot of stuff." "How long are you staying?" "Till I'm done." "Now, exactly what have you got for us?" "It's the best." "The latest robot." "We've got three robots." "They're not very much help." "This one's different." "Different, huh?" "It's the first of the Demigod Series." "Alex." "Where'd you get that name?" "That's what the major calls me." "I know why you're denying me hospitality." "We offered you the run of the place." "I'm talking about you." "Your body is very beautiful." "I'd like to use it." "I'm not interested." "On Earth we use each others bodies to give ourselves pleasure." "No thanks." "You're afraid of me, aren't you?" "I'm not afraid of anyone." "You're afraid he'll be jealous." "He will be jealous." "He's frightened of the new ways." "He is obsolete." "His problem" "Lights." "Pure brain tissue." "Human?" "This is an unborn." "Hasn't a thing on its mind." "Yet." "Then it has to be programmed." "It takes a human being 20 years just to develop" "I need three to four weeks." "Three to four weeks?" "Once I can get its head together, it will take over your program." " Take over?" " With a little help." "Then what?" "Then one of you will be obsolete." "We can apply for re-mission together, can't we?" "We have to find a way to stay together." "The truth is I'm close to abort time." "I hoped they'd have forgotten us." "They never seem to forget." "Obsolete." "Alex, I've got it." "We flush the captain and his friend into space." " You wouldn't do that." " Why not?" "People are being flushed all over the solar system." "No one cares." "That's a horrible idea." "It's a great idea." "Come here, baby." "Yes." " Blue dreamers?" " Mm-hm." "Now?" "Why not?" "Ahh!" "I don't feel anything." "You always want instantaneous satisfaction." "Do you miss it?" "Maybe it's different now." "Yeah, maybe it's worse." "That pill is getting to you." "No." "I think you ought to go to Earth." "What?" "You said I'd hate it." "Well, find out for yourself if you hate it." "I don't want to go." "Yes, you do." "Oh." "I just want to have been." "So, have been." "And leave you?" "It's gonna happen sooner or later." "Quiet please, you're blocking him." "I wanted you to meet Hector." "Adam." "Give it a simple instruction." "Ask it something." " Hector?" " Yes." "Hector, hand the flask to the major." "Abort." "I'm glad you didn't ask him to shake hands." "Wheel and peditate." "Obviously, there's still some more fine tuning to do." "Begin." " Mm." " I thought you had me." "I think you have me." " Good evening, Captain." " Good evening." "Can he play?" "Yes." "I play, he plays." "I'd like to see that." "Hector." "All right." "How would you like to make a small wager, Hector, hm?" "He doesn't like to be laughed at." "Can't you program him to have a sense of humor?" "That's not an early priority." "Oh, come on, you can't program a sense of humor." "Anything I have, sir, he can have." "Well then, he'll definitely have a sense of humor." "Who's white?" "You be, Hector." "How does he learn?" "Direct input." "He sits him down in front of a blackboard." "I said direct input." "But how do you work that?" "Brain to brain." "A brain drain?" "You mean, he draws from your brain?" "Yes, when I want him to." "But how?" "Radio contact." "Where do you make the connection?" "Mm." "Hector." "What were you thinking?" "Exchange and simplify." "And you can control whatever you think?" " Yes." " I wish I could." "I teach him as much as I choose." "You haven't taught him enough." "Sacrifice-- that's one thing you can't teach them, Captain." "Sacrifice." "Checkmate." "Now, whatever he thinks goes straight into that robot." "Doesn't that scare you?" "Not really, the captain's been carefully selected." "He's trained." "To control his thoughts?" "Of course." "How do you work that?" "Is it the box?" "You can hear me, right?" "But you can't talk." "Who knows what's in the captain's brain?" "Who knows what goes on in anybody's head?" "Alex, would you say I was a man who could control his thoughts?" "I think so." "Stand up, please." "Now, take that off very slow" "No." "No, go on." "Now, I'm gonna think about nothing but hydroponics." "Hydroponics, hydroponics, hydroponics, hydroponics." "Hydroponics." "Who devised this system?" "There are sources for food present and cities are starving." " Oh!" " What happened?" "My eye, something's in my eye." " Get Adam!" " No, let me look." "It's a live chip." "Sit down." " Get Adam!" " Please, Adam can't help." " Hector." " No." " Relax, trust him, Alex." " No." "Don't, please don't." " Be still." " Don't let him touch me!" " Do as you're told, be still." " No." "It could spread." "No." "Steady." " Oh, oh, no." " Steady." "No." "No, please don't." "Ready, Hector?" "Keep the eye still!" "All right, Hector." "She's ready now." "Hold your head still." "No." "Oh, that's better." "Oh." "That's much better." "Thank you." "I have something for you." "Earth dreams." " No." " We could be together." "You'll feel like you're there-- a 3D inner experience." "No, thank you." "You're worried you'll like it, aren't you?" "You'll never know how good it is until you try." "I'm today, he's yesterday." "Don't you like me?" "Don't you?" "Turn off the video scans." "There." "What's wrong with you today?" "Today." "I'm not today." "I'm yesterday." "You've been listening to our cuckoo." " He's not so cuckoo." " Tsk, you can tell the time by him." "Hm." "What is it?" "Nearly out of charge?" "I wish you would talk." "You know you can." "Why won't you talk?" "Why not?" "What have I done wrong?" "Not that, blank that." "That's not what I meant." "That was an improper thought leakage." "What have I done wrong?" "Don't get smart." "Are you aware of Alex?" "What do you think?" "What do you know about it?" "Don't get ideas above your station, Hector." "I said to blank that, now blank it!" "Now, reply as ordered." "Am I a killer?" "Is that the truth?" "Is that the truth?" "You're malfunctioning." "Answer." "Now, tell me-- absolutely can you talk or are you malfunctioning?" "Sally!" "Sally!" "Sally!" "Sally!" "Sally." "Sally?" "Sally." "Sally, come on." "Come on, Sally." "Sally?" "Sally?" "Uh, uh." "No!" "No, no, no, no, no!" "Adam!" "No!" "Hector, put her down!" "Let her go!" "Conform!" "Hector." "He'll do what you say." "Alex, you ask him." "Hector, please put me down." "Why did you bring him here?" "Did you-- did you teach him to kill?" "No." "It's you-- he wants you." "We both do." "He's learned too much from me." "Watch out!" "Alex!" " Adam'." " Major!" "What happened?" "Major, help me." "Major." "Let the robot have him." "Help me please, Major." "Don't leave me!" "Please, help me, don't leave me!" " I can't do it." " Please." "How long will the doors hold?" "How strong is Hector?" "Come on." "Go through your drills, Captain." "What's emergency procedure?" "I don't know." "You don't know?" "If we weren't in eclipse, we could call Central." "And if we were chickens, we could lay eggs." "We're shadow locked." "What do we do?" "Just sit and watch him for three days?" "He's getting low on charge." "He's about to recharge." "Let him." " You can't let him recharge." " Oh, yes we can." "Alex." "We'll overload him." "I'm gonna give him a headache he won't forget." "Track it." "Track it." "I can't see." "I can't see it." "Now." "He's out." "You'll have no more trouble from him." "Or from you." "As soon a we declipse," "I'm reporting your incompetent handling of this whole experiment." "Where have you the right to call me incompetent?" "You told me he could perform those functions." " You told me you could hand" " I did it on your say so!" "You told me you could handle it!" "You're the one that put him together!" " Is this the way you handle him?" " It's moving." "Hold him down." "Get his brain out!" "Don't let go of his arm." "Uh!" "Now." "Dismantle it." "Piece by piece." "And crate it." "Then take him and your ideas back with you." "What you can't stand you run from." " Like you ran from Earth." " That's right." "To get away from people like you." "To set up your own little universe?" "To help feed yours." "And when you brought Alex here, were you thinking just of her?" "Captain, you flunked." "You want to kill me?" "You want to kill me?" "Go ahead." "Go ahead, kill me." "Kill me." "If you think you can." "Did you know the original Hector came to a tragic end?" "He was slain by Achilles." "His body dragged around the walls of Troy." "You want the girl?" "Hm, sure, sure, you want the girl." "You think she's beautiful too, don't you?" "You know the captain's crazy?" "He really is crazy." "The robot scared me more." "If the robot can kill, the captain can kill." "I thought I could kill." "I'm just not update enough for murder." "I wish I was." "Are you sure he's taking it apart?" "Either he takes it apart or it takes him apart." "Captain, how are things progressing?" "I have completed the dismantling." "Glad that's over." "It's my fault, Alex." "I should never have let him stay." "In a week or two we will have forgotten it ever happened." " Will we?" " Of course we will." "I'm leaving." "I told you never to barge in here." "And I'm taking your partner with me." "What?" "You are crazy." "Come along, Alex." "I'm taking command." "You're inadequate, Major." "In every area." "Captain, for the last time." "Doesn't it disgust you to be used by him?" "To be touched by an old man?" " Can't you feel the decay?" " Get out of here!" "Stop it!" "Stop it!" "Stop it!" "It's me." "Why did you stop me?" "Uh!" "You're coming with me." "Let me go!" "First thing we do is go see Earth." "Adam, how can we get to the captain's ship?" "We gotta be quick." " Let's try." " Now?" "Come on." "It's no use, we can't lose him." "Alex?" "Alex." "Adam." "Shh." "Get back!" "Run for it!" "Shh." "Where is he?" "I don't know." "He just vanished." "He's in the communications room." "He's tracking us." "Come in, Hector." "Come on." "Come on in." " Are you sure you can fly it?" " No trouble." "It'll be locked into automatic return." "All we have to do is light it up and just sit back." "Eh, we know something." "He doesn't want to kill us." "Whatever he wants us for, it's not for that." "It's hopeless." "You'll get your trip to Earth." "I promise." "The captain." "He's alive?" "Yes, I'm alive." "Captain, what happened?" "Hector and I have come to an arrangement." "Where is the robot?" "Hector is with me." "Come this way, please." "How strange that it ends like this." "How will it end, Captain?" "You and I will come to an arrangement." "This way, please." "This way." "Hurry along, please." "Hurry along, please." "Uh!" "I'm here." "I'm alive." "I haven't died." "I'm taking over." "Good morning, Adam." "I trust you slept well." "What are you doing to me'?" "Your program for the day is very simple." "Where is Alex?" "First you will restore the damage to the laboratory." "What are you trying to put in my head?" "Put in?" "Put in?" "I'm not trying to put anything in." "That comes later." "I'm taking it out." "Where's Alex?" "What have you done to her?" "Have you done the same thing to her?" "Good morning, Alex." "I hope you slept well." "Your program for the day is simple." "After repairing the damage to the lab" "Where's Adam?" "I'm happy to report he's cooperating fully." "Where is he?" "What's going on?" "We're just coming out of eclipse, if you'll excuse me for one moment." "Wait!" "This is Survey 19, Survey 19." "Come in Saturn 3." "Hello, this is 19, 19, come in Major." "Survey 19, Survey 19, this is the major." "Saturn 3 here, Saturn 3." "This is the major." "Receiving you, Survey." "We have audio reception, Major, but no picture." "Are you in any difficulty?" "Just a temporary video inconvenience." "Everything's A-OK." "You've just come out of shadow and we wanted to make our routine contact." "Everything's normal here." "You can expect increased output on our hydroponics shortly." "And how's our favorite space girl?" "She's wonderful." "In fact, she's perfect." "Is she nearby?" "Put her on." "Hello, Survey 19, hello." "Can you hear me?" "Hello, Survey 19." " No'." " Hello, Alex, how are you making out?" "No, it's not me!" "That Hector unit, is it working out?" "Hector's responding very well to his new challenge." "Would you like to have a word with the captain?" "Oh, that won't be necessary." "Well, that's all then." "Talk to you in six months." "Bye now." "Now we can proceed." "First, make your way to the laboratory so we can continue with our work." "After repairing all damage, we shall continue with our search and analysis procedures." "I'm sure you will find them profitable." "And for the most part, painless." "This way, please." "Come along, I don't want to force you." "You could very quickly become hungry, hot, cold, or even breathless." "Now, this way, please." "Adam?" "When I heard your voice, I thought I was going mad." "Oh, Alex." "Hurry along, please." " Go on in there." " Without you?" "I need a minute." "What's going to happen to us?" "Don't worry." "Hurry along!" "Go on." "Ah, there you are, and how beautiful." "Come in, Alex." " Come in." " Stop it, Hector." "Hector, I never liked that name." "Did you know that Hector was slain by Achilles?" "His body dragged around the walls of Troy." "No, I never liked Hector." "We can do better." "How about Adam?" "Stop using his voice." "Forgive me." "Is this more to your liking?" "Or this perhaps." "Stop it." "Stop using us." "Well, you see my difficulty." " I'm you." " I'm Adam." "I'm the other one." "I'm everyone." "Conversation's an art." "I do it to perfection." "There you are." "Don't be late again, Adam." "Major." "You will call me Major." "I'm in command here." "You will do as I say." "Both of you." "Stay where you are!" "It's time we programmed your brain to be a bit more productive." "Captain?" "Yes, that's who you really are." "I'm not the captain." "I'm your superior." "Adam, please." "I told you to keep away!" "Don't do that!" "You must learn to obey." "It's not your fault, Hector." "Turn around." "It's not James' fault." "Turn around!" "It's everybody's fault." "Yeahh!" "No, no." "Desist." "I am your superior..." "Hello there, this is your captain speaking." "I trust you're enjoying the ongoing flight situation and we hope you're gonna fly World Spaceways again, and again, and again." "Duty-free goods service will be closing shortly." "Right now, though, I'd suggest you walk to the ports and get a good position for a swell view of Mother Earth coming right up."