I advance over broken terrain toward my assigned position. The prospect of action exhilarates me, but my assessment of enemy strength indicates they are fielding approximately 17.4 percent greater weight of armor than anticipated, with commensurately greater firepower. I compute that I am grossly overmatched. Nonetheless, I shall do my best.

26

“There’s no doubt whatever, gentlemen. Computers work with hard facts. Given the enemy’s known offensive capability and our own defensive resources, it’s a simple computation. No combination of the manpower and equipment at our command can possibly inflict a defeat on the PR forces at this time and place. Two is greater than one. You can’t make a dollar out of fifteen cents.”

27

“At least we can gather some useful data from the situation, gentlemen. The Bolo Mark XX has been committed to battle. Its designers assure me that the new self-motivating circuitry will vastly enhance the combat-effectiveness of the Bolo. Let us observe.”

28

Hate to see old Denny out there, just a great big sitting duck, all alone and—here they come! Look at ’em boiling out of there like ants out of a hot log. Can’t hardly look at that screen, them tactical nukes popping fireworks all over the place. But old Denny know enough to get under cover. See that kind of glow all around him? All right, it, then. You know, working with him—it—so long, it got to feeling almost like he was somebody. Sure, I know, anyway, that’s vaporized ablative shield you see. They’re making it plenty hot for him. But he’s fighting back. Them Hellbores is putting out, and they know it. Looks like they’re concentrating on him now. Look at them tracers closing in on him! Come on, Denny, you ain’t dumb. Get out of there fast.

29

“Certainly it’s aware what’s at stake! I’ve told you he—the machine, that is—has been fully programmed and is well aware not only of the tactical situation but of strategic and logistical considerations as well. Certainly it’s an important item of equipment; its loss would be a serious blow to our present underequipped forces. You may rest assured that its pain circuits as well as its basic military competence will cause it to take the proper action. The fact that I originally opposed commissioning the device is not to be taken as implying any lack of confidence on my part in its combat-effectiveness. You may consider that my reputation is staked on the performance of the machine. It will act correctly.”

30