Collected Stories 3 - The Father-Thing and Other Classic Stories
Page 40
"No," Walsh said.
"Good. Well, it had to come sooner or later. I'm sorry it had to come this way, though."
"I'm not," Walsh said. "This was the only way possible. It's clear to me, now. Being undecided isn't necessarily a negative thing. Not seeing anything in slogans and organized parties and beliefs and dying can be a belief worth dying for, in itself. I thought I was without a creed. . . now I realize I have a very strong creed."
The robot wasn't listening. It scribbled something on its pad, signed it, and then expertly tore it off. "Here." It handed the paper briskly to Walsh.
"What's this?" Walsh demanded.
"I don't want anything to interfere with your therapy. You're finally coming around -- and we want to keep moving." The robot got quickly to its feet. "Good luck, Don. Show that to the police; if there's any trouble have them call me."
The slip was a voucher from the Federal Psychiatric Board. Walsh turned it over numbly. "You mean this'll get me off?"
"You were acting compulsively; you weren't responsible. There'll be a cursory examination, of course, but nothing to worry about." The robot slapped him good-naturedly on the back. "It was your final neurotic act. . . now you're free. That was the pent-up stuff; strictly a symbolic assertion of libido -- with no political significance."
"I see," Walsh said.
The robot propelled him firmly toward the external exit. "Now go on out there and give the slip to them." From its metal chest the robot popped a small bottle. "And take one of these capsules before you go to sleep. Nothing serious, just a mild sedative to quiet your nerves. Everything will be all right; I'll expect to see you again, soon. And keep this in mind: we're finally making some real progress."
Walsh found himself outside in the night darkness. A police van was pulled up at the entrance of the unit, a vast ominous black shape against the dead sky. A crowd of curious people had collected at a safe distance, trying to make out what was going on.
Walsh automatically put the bottle of pills away in his coat pocket. He stood for a time breathing the chill night air, the cold clear smell of darkness and evening. Above his head a few bright pale stars glittered remotely.
"Hey," one of the policemen shouted. He flashed his light suspiciously in Walsh's face. "Come over here."
"That looks like him," another said. "Come on, buddy. Make it snappy." Walsh brought out the voucher Charley had given him. "I'm coming," he answered. As he walked up to the policeman he carefully tore the paper to shreds and tossed the shreds to the night wind. The wind picked the shreds up and scattered them away.
"What the hell did you do?" one of the cops demanded.
"Nothing," Walsh answered. "I just threw away some waste paper. Something I won't be needing."
"What a strange one this one is," a cop muttered, as they froze Walsh with their cold beams. "He gives me the creeps."
"Be glad we don't get more like him," another said. "Except for a few guys like this, everything's going fine."
Walsh's inert body was tossed in the van and the doors slammed shut. Disposal machinery immediately began consuming his body and reducing it to basic mineral elements. A moment later, the van was on its way to the next call.
Missing Parts
Introduction, by John Brunner
# "Misadjustment"
# "A World of Talent"
# "Psi-Man Heal My Child!"
Notes
Table of Contents
Fair Game
The Hanging Stranger
The Eyes Have It
The Golden Man
The Turning Wheel
The Last of the Masters
The Father-Thing
Strange Eden
Tony and the Beetles
Null-O
To Serve the Master
Exhibit Piece
The Crawlers
Sales Pitch
Shell Game
Upon the Dull Earth
Foster, You're Dead
Pay for the Printer
War Veteran
The Chromium Fence
Missing Parts
Table of Contents
Fair Game
The Hanging Stranger
The Eyes Have It
The Golden Man
The Turning Wheel
The Last of the Masters
The Father-Thing
Strange Eden
Tony and the Beetles
Null-O
To Serve the Master
Exhibit Piece
The Crawlers
Sales Pitch
Shell Game
Upon the Dull Earth
Foster, You're Dead
Pay for the Printer
War Veteran
The Chromium Fence
Missing Parts
Table of Contents
Fair Game
The Hanging Stranger
The Eyes Have It
The Golden Man
The Turning Wheel
The Last of the Masters
The Father-Thing
Strange Eden
Tony and the Beetles
Null-O
To Serve the Master
Exhibit Piece
The Crawlers
Sales Pitch
Shell Game
Upon the Dull Earth
Foster, You're Dead
Pay for the Printer
War Veteran
The Chromium Fence
Missing Parts