"So what?" Verana queried in a sarcastic tone.
"The aliens want us transported to their planet so they can examine and question us. Right?"
"Right."
"Ed, remember that remark the machine made last night?"
"What remark?"
"It said, 'My masters will be displeased with me if you arrive in a damaged condition.' What does that indicate to you?"
I assumed a baffled expression. I didn't have the slightest idea of what he was driving at and I told him so.
"Ed," he said, "if you could build an electronic brain capable of making decisions, how would you build it?"
"Hell, I don't know," I confessed.