Scattered Suns - Kevin J. Anderson [212]
Moving carefully on fingerlike legs, Sirix scuttled across the buckled hull. He instructed DD to remove twisted plates for repair, while he himself worked on more major damage, disconnecting unwieldy engine shafts, stripping away a destroyed sensor array, scanning for deep fractures in the structural frame.
While they worked, the robot transmitted to DD. “Now you see the destructive abilities of humans. They caused this damage. You must acknowledge why we need to eliminate them. They are all our enemies.”
But DD did not follow. “What I observed, Sirix, was that Klikiss robots annihilated a human base down on that planetoid in order to 'acquire' materials. Considering what your fellows did, the humans were acting in self-defense.”
“Humans should not have been on our planetoid in the first place. They meddled where they were not wanted.”
“How were they to know this? They received no warnings from you, no notification.”
“You argue about irrelevant things.”
The black robot used his claw arms to disconnect the ruined lump of a rear engine, while DD moved to complete the next task Sirix had given him. Always observant, the compy noted that the plate holding the external engine component was loose, that the Klikiss robot’s balance was precarious as their ship continued to drift drunkenly.
A calculated possibility raced through DD’s mind. He weighed the consequences, discarded concern for his personal safety, and acted.
He had already tested the power and tolerance of the cutting tool he held, knew how long it would take to sever the last connections holding the plate and engine to the spinning ship. While Sirix clambered over the smashed engine, DD melted through the separable hull plate, cutting the whole assembly loose.
He anchored his body to the ship, knowing that when he pushed, the equal and opposite reaction would disorient him. With all the strength his artificial body possessed, DD shoved Sirix and the engine off into open space. In one instant, he sent the black robot off on a divergent course. Soon there was a substantial gap between them. As the ship continued to drift on a different trajectory, the separation grew greater.
DD caught a last glimpse as the Klikiss robot scrambled over the detached component, holding on with his insectile clawed limbs. His tiny island spun farther and farther from the damaged ship.
DD did not know what he was going to do now. He was still stranded, but at least he was free of the Klikiss robot. He expected some sort of transmission from Sirix, a demand for assistance, even an outright threat.
But the black robot remained silent. He scuttled over the moving lump of debris until he faced the ship. Even from a distance, DD could see the gleaming red optical sensors.
Then there was a bright flash of light, a glint of reflected starshine. Sirix had launched a grappling cable from his ellipsoid body core: a hook and an attached line spinning across space.
After an interminable moment, the cable struck the damaged ship and anchored itself magnetically, sealing with an automatic weld. Then Sirix leaped away from the drifting engine and began to reel himself in. The cable drew taut and vibrated as the black robot flew across the gulf of space, closing the gap.
DD hurried to where the cable was attached, knowing the Klikiss robot would destroy him as soon as he made it back to the drifting wreck. Moving as fast as possible, he powered his cutting tool again and attempted to sever the cable. The material was tough, some sort of diamond polymer, but the little compy worked furiously, cutting and cutting. A few strands broke away. Finally the rest of the cable parted.
But by now Sirix had gathered enough momentum. His body slammed into the hull. The beetlelike machine rose up, looming over the small compy under the starlight. His silhouetted form blocked out the misty swath of the Spiral Arm. DD tilted his head back to look at the other machine and prepared