Mirror Friend, Mirror Foe Part 11

"Not so fast," Rick retorted"I said 'almost.' We've got another half-hour's driving before we're clearIt'll be close, but it'll probably catch usEven if it doesn't, it'll be close enough to use its slicer on us."

Hosato studied the pursuing vehicle as it came into view again.

"Where are the surface suits?" he asked finally.

"In the tall lockers back in the crew areaWhy?"

But Hosato was already gone.

"Hosato-" the boy began, looking up.

"Not now, James," Hosato mumbled, brus.h.i.+ng past him"We've got problems."

"If I might suggest." Suzi began, but Hosato ignored the robot.

"If anything happens, James," he said, dragging the bulky surface suit from the locker and gathering it in his arms, "get in touch with the HungarianSuzi can tell you how to find him."

"But-"

Hosato cut him short, calling ahead to Rick as he started for the c.o.c.kpit again.

"Stop the crawler in the next gully!"

"What for?" the mechanic called back.

"We haven't got time to argue," Hosato growled, joining him in the c.o.c.kpit"Just stop this thing and help me get into this suit."

"What are you going to do?"

"I'm going to take a blaster and lay a little ambush for our friend there."

"You're nuts," Rick proclaimed"You won't stand a chance out there."

"If I don't, none of us have a chanceAt least I can create a diversion until the rest of you are out of rangeNow, stop this thing."

The mechanic obediently pulled the vehicle to a halt in the dark shadows of a gully.

"All right," he said, swiveling in his chair to help Hosato with the suit, "but how will we know to come back and pick you up?"

"You don't," Hosato replied, struggling with the suit's fastenings"You get out of range and waitIf this works, I'll follow your tracks and catch up with youIf I'm not there by sunrise, I'm not coming."

"Well, good luck, Hosato." Rick slapped him on the back as he headed back to the crew area.

Just through the doorway, he stopped suddenlyHis swords, his clothes, were all heaped in the center of the floor next to JamesIt took him a moment to real-ize the implications of this fact; then he cast about the area, opening his faceplate.

"Where's Suzi?" he demanded.

"She she told me to unload her," James stam-mered.

"But where is she?" Hosato barked.

As if in response, he heard a m.u.f.fled hiss of com-pressed airThe outer airlock door had just opened.

Hosato stoqped and rummaged desperately through his gear.

"I didn't know what she was going to do!" the boy insisted"All of a sudden she was gone."

Hosato finally found what he was looking forThe radio unit he and Suzi sometimes used for communi-cationsThumbing the unit on, he raised it quickly to his lips.

"Suzi!" he called"What are you doing?"

"What's going on?" Rick called from the c.o.c.kpit Hosato pushed his way forward again, centering his attention on the rear viewscreen.

"See for yourself!" he said, nodding at the screen.

Suzi could be seen clearly, steadfastly making her way back along the crawler's tracks.

"If you don't mind my saying so," Rich said archly, "that's a waste of a fine robotShe can't do anything against that ore scout."

"I didn't send her," Hosato snarled"She's out there on her own."

The robot was almost out of sight as Hosato thumbed the radio b.u.t.ton again.

"SuziI asked you a direct questionRespond!"

"I am executing your plan for diversionary action," came the calm reply.

"The plan was for me to create a diversion," Hosato barked.

"That was the only flaw in your planI am emi-nently better suited than you for this mission."

"Return to the crawler at once!"

"May I remind you"-Suzi's voice was dry, despite the radio-"the purpose of this maneuver is to gain time for the crawler to escapeThat effect will very quickly be lost if you continue to delay your depar-tureThe time for argument is past."

"She's right," Rick said, and set the crawler in mo-tion again.

Hosato started to stop him, then hesitatedSuzi was right-at least on the time elementThen again, if she failed, he could still try his own gambit.

"For the record," he said into the radio, "I disagree with your a.s.sertion that you can deal with the ore scout better than I could."

"Normally you would be correct," Suzi retorted, "but under surface conditions my mobility and ma-neuverability exceed your own."

"But your programming won't allow you to carry out any aggressive functionsHow do you expect to stop it?"

"Even though I cannot pose an actual threat, if the ore scout perceives me as a threat, it'll stop."

"And then it will start again and you'll be dead."

"Actually, the correct phrase is 'nonfunctional.' "

Hosato was involuntarily startled by the correctionHe realized suddenly that he had grown to think of Suzi not as a robot but as a living individual.

"Suzi-" he began slowly.

"Future communications will occur only as time permits," the robot's voice interrupted"The ore scout is in sight now."

Hosato waited impatiently for the crawler to top another rise, thereby giving him a view of the action occurring to their rearBut as the scene rose into the viewscreen, he could see nothingThen, as they were about to plunge into the next gully, there was a quick flash of light.

The ore scout had fired its slicerApparently the two robots were somewhere in one of the gullies, hid-den from the crawler's line of sight.

As their vehicle reached the bottom of the gully, the front viewscreen picked up a second flash of light re-flected on the ridge aheadThe slicer had been fired a second time.

"Suzi!" Hosato called into the radio"Are you all right?"

"It missed," replied the robot.

"How are you drawing its fire?"

"Just a minute."

There was another flash of light.

Hosato waitedThere was no sound from the radio.

"Suzi?"

Silence.

"Suzi?" he repeated.

"In response to your question," came Suzi's voice, "I am playing upon the machine's target-image sensi-tivities."

Relief flooded over Hosato, but he kept it out of his voice"Conld I have that last bit in English?" he asked.

"From the actions displayed by the security robots at the complex, it is apparent they are being directed by the central computer to seek out and destroy ob-jects of a humanoid formThat means the target unage must display cerain properties, of shape-spe-cifically, a head, a given body shape Excuse me a moment."

There was another flash of light.

"SuziWhat are you doing?" Hosato barked.

"That is what I am attempting to explain," came the calm response"Additional questions will only prolong my efforts."

Hosato ground his teethHe had dealt with Suzi's explanations beforeThey were usually drawn out and detailed, but it was useless to try to rush her.

"Sorry, Suzi." He sighed"But could you try to keep it to the major points only?"

"I never indulge in needless. Excuse me."

There was another flash of light.

"Whatever she's doing, it's keeping that thing pinned down," Rick commented.

Hosato nodded absently, waiting for Suzi to con-tinue her oration.

"As I was saying," Suzi's voice came again, "fortu-nately I have been provided with just such a shape- or half of one, to be specificIt seems to be sufficient to convince the ore scout's scanners that I am a tar-get."

For a moment Hosato was confused, but then he rememberedThe fencing manikinBy facing the fencing manikin with its single arm toward the ore scout, she was making it believe she was a human!

"We'll be out of range soon," Rick announced.

Hosato ignored himThe information was welcome, but at the moment his attention was commanded by Suzi's report.

"By presenting the humanoid shape," Suzi was say-ing, "I am able to draw the ore scout's attention and activate its attack patternThen, by removing the image, I am able to effectively disappear as a targetApparently the scout is directed to search for the target for a given period of time before resuming its pursuit of the sand crawlerThe periodic interruptions in my transmission occur when the scout starts to abandon its search, thereby making it necessary to display the target once moreExcuse me."

It occurred to Hosato that Suzi was flirting with dis-asterThe slicer would destroy her completely if it touched her even onceIf she were slow in turning, or.

"Suzi!" he said desperately"Do you know if the central computer has a learning capacityIf it does, a repeated pattern could be detected and the target image changed."

"That's right!" Rick supplied"The computer does have that capacity."

"Even if that capacity exists," Suzi's reply came, "in my opinion it has not received sufficient data to effect such a change."

A warning bell went off in Hosato's mindSome-thing that had been drilled into his head time and time again during his training.

"Suzi!" he warned"Never underestimate your op-ponentDon't make plans that hinge on his incompe-tence or inability to react."

There was no response.

"Suzi?" he repeated.

"We're out of range now," Rick said over his shoul-der.

"SuziStatus check!"

Silence.

"Shall I stop and wait for the robot?" Rick asked.

Hosato didn't reply.

"I said, shall I-"

"No," said Hosato, his hand holding the silent radio dropping listlessly to his side"There's no use waitingPush on for Ravensteel."

"We've got to stop them!"

Sasha's delirious meanings from the crew area ech-oed Hosato's own thoughts.