To Don's surprise, the roboe men smiled at each other. "You were right," one said to Shiela; "he was for us. I'm glad."
Shiela was almost in tears. "But we'll never make it," she cried. "If we could've reached him five minutes sooner, then everything would've been all right."
"I don't understand," puzzled Don.
"We knew all along what the general was planning," Shiela told him.
"Then you have a defense against the wave?" he asked hopefully.
"No, but we had constructed a specially shielded room for Fa—Father and you," sobbed the girl. Even now Don found it hard to believe that she was a roboe.
"But why for me?" he queried. "The wave was designed for all of you."
"Not for us," broke in Shiela, "For the robots that rebelled against the last civilization."
"I know," said Don. "But many of you have a more thorough scientific training than I. You know that it'll only be a matter of hours before they discover the wavelength that will kill all of you if the first one doesn't?"