hing go mad, Fitz; you didn't. It was the most
horrible, most frightening thing I've ever experienced. I will not go
through it again.

"Even if the next one didn't crack, I couldn't take it. By human
standards, a robot is insane to begin with. If I followed this up, I'd
end up as an old maid with a twisted mind and a cold heart.

"I quit, Fitz, and that's final."

Mike was watching her as she spoke, and he found his emotions getting
all tangled up around his insides. Her red hair and her blue eyes were
shining, and her face was set in determination. She had always been
beautiful, but at that moment she was magnificent.

_Hell_, thought Mike, _I'm prejudiced--but what a wonderful kind of
prejudice_.

"I understand, my dear," said Dr. Fitzhugh slowly. He smiled then,
deepening the wrinkles in his face. His voice was warm and kindly when
he spoke. "I accept your resignation, but remember, if you want to come
back, you can. And if you get a position elsewhere, you will have my
highest recommendations."

Leda just stood there for a moment, tears forming in her eyes. Then she
ran around the table and threw her arms around the elderly and somewhat
surprised roboticist.

"Thank you, Fitz," she said. "For everything." Then she kissed him on
his seamed cheek.

"I beg your pardon," said a sad and solemn voice from the door. "Am I
interrupting something?"

It was Treadmore.

"You are," said Fitzhugh with a grin, "but we will let it pass."

"What has happened to Snookums?" Treadmore asked.

"Acute introspection," Fitzhugh said, losing his smile. "He began to try
to compute the workings of his own brain. That meant that he had to use
his non-random circuits to analyze the workings of his random circuits.
He exceeded optimum; the entire brain is now entirely randomized."

"Dear me," said Treadmore. "Do you suppose we can--"

Black Bart Quill tapped Mike the Angel on the shoulder. "Let's go," he
said quietly. "We don't want to stand around listening to this when we
have a ship to catch."

Mike and Leda followed him out into the corridor.

"You know," Quill said, "robots aren't the only ones who can get
confused watching their own brains go round."

"I have other things to watch," said Mike the Angel.

+--------------------------------------------------------------+
| UNWISE CHILD |
| |
|