Slow Boat to Minbar Part 2a
Roger had slept for many hours; however, Dorothy had noted that he hadn't moved at all after they went into hyperspace. She went to the dining hall and got a tray of food, knowing Roger would probably be quite hungry when he woke up. A number of the crew had greeted her, but she was in no mood to chat as she nodded politely to them on her way back to the stateroom. One of the men offered to carry the tray, but she smiled charmingly and told him she was fine as she opened the door to the room.
All thoughts of feeding Roger fled when she saw him standing naked in front of her, his face completely and utterly blank. She shut the door quickly and put the food on the table. She didn't need to be told twice. She rapidly gathered each of Roger's pieces of clothing and held them out to the Megadeus now inhabiting his body.
"You need to put these on."
The eyes glanced down at the clothes, then looked back into her face.
"You need to put these on."
It didn't even glance down.
"You must do as I tell you. If you do not, you may place Roger in danger." The Megadeus made no move to take the clothes. Dorothy realized that everything she was telling it meant nothing. What did a giant robot know of clothes? She grabbed his underwear. She managed to coax it to raise each leg as she directed and pulled the black briefs up, then repeated with the pants and socks. She pulled its arms forward, slipping the undershirt onto them, then pushed and pulled it over Roger's torso. The shirt and tie went on easily.
"This is a problem. You know nothing of human behavior. I know you comprehend the spoken word, but I am unaware of whether you are limited in vocabulary. If you understand me, nod your head, like this." She bobbed her head.
For a moment, she was concerned that it had absolutely no comprehension, then Roger's head went slowly down and up.
"You are currently in Roger's body. Do you understand that?"
Nod.
"You can use his voice. Say my name."
"Dddd...Dor...Doro..thy." It sounded so oddly stilted. Even her own precise voice didn't sound quite so strange. "Dorothy." It was flat.
"You must answer to Roger's name. If someone should come to the door, you must not tell them who you are. Do you understand me?"
"Yes."
She moved him over to one of the chairs. She sat down across from him. "Sit." The Megadeus folded down to the chair heavily, almost sending it skidding and Roger to the floor. "You must be careful. You cannot hurt his body while you are in it. It is far more fragile than your own."
"Why? Here, why?"
"Roger's ability is strengthened in hyperspace."
"Hyper...space?"
"We are on a space ship. In order to travel between worlds, it must go into a region known as hyperspace to achieve this. The distance would be too vast otherwise. Roger's mind can reach yours even though you are separated by dimensions?"
The Megadeus nodded.
"That ability is increased while this ship travels through hyperspace. Unfortunately, Roger is not yet skilled in controlling this. He has changed places with you as he did before. However, we are not in immediate peril, so you may experience human existance until Roger returns."
"Why?"
"Why what?"
The Megadeus shifted uncomfortably. "Why am I here? Why is Roger home?"
Roger's face hadn't move into any kind of expression, but she could sense some frustration from the Megadeus. "Our friend, Mike, asked Roger a question he could not answer. He needed to switch places with you to answer it."
"What question?"
Dorothy was quiet for a moment. It was a silly question, very typical of Mike and very typical of Roger when he was around Mike. "He wanted to know if your body would speak with his voice when Roger was in it."
Blink.
Blink.
"Why?"
"They are humans. Sometimes their motives are...unfathomable."
The Megadeus frowned. It wasn't an appealing expression on Roger's face. "Who is Mike?"
"Mike is someone we have met here."
"On this ship?"
Dorothy told it about the last year. The Megadeus listened attentively, but the frown remained on its face. "You have been gone for over a year? It has only been a day since Norman heard from Roger. It has only been a day since I saw you with these sensors. They are most inefficient."
"Here it has been a few weeks since you were in Roger's body."
"There is some kind of time distortion?"
Dorothy nodded. "We are in a different dimension. If you are correct, time passes differently and more quickly on this plane."
"When are you and Roger coming home?"
"We are unsure how to do so physically. But we will be home soon - both Roger and I have felt this."
The Megadeus cocked its head. "You feel? You are an android."
"I am made to interact with humans. After a while I would be expected to be able to simulate their reactions. Being a Megadeus, you have no such need to interact, save with Roger. And Roger is made for you."
"What am I to do?"
"What would you like to do?"
The Megadeus stared at her for several minutes. "I wish to go home."
"Until Roger can facilitate his return, you will need to stay."
"I understand. Is there something that needs to get done?"
Dorothy shook her head. The Megadeus continued to frown at her.
"Do you wish to do something?"
"There is a strange reaction registering."
Dorothy cocked her head at it, wondering what it meant. "What reaction?"
The Megadeus's expression twisted, became pained. It pointed at Roger's stomach. Immediately, Dorothy set the tray on his lap and handed it the roll.
"Eat this."
The machine brain stared at the roll, then turned it in various directions to inspect it. It crushed the bread in Roger's fingers and looked at the mess. Dorothy sighed. She ripped off a piece and held it in front of Roger's mouth. The machine stared at it as she waved it.
"Open your mouth."
It glanced at her, then returned its gaze to the piece in front of it. The mouth yawned open and Dorothy lay the bread on his tongue.
"Close it." She was obeyed. "Now, move the bottom jaw up and down. No, close the lips and keep them closed. Now swallow." He did so. She waited a little, then asked, "How was that?"
"There was an interesting reaction."
"Finish that and you will no longer feel that strange sensation in your stomach."
Slowly the Megadeus continued to eat the roll, taking tiny bites. As he swallowed a bite, his eyes suddenly widened and he began to slide onto his side. Dorothy quickly snatched the tray, placed it on the table and still managed to have Roger's head fall into her lap thoroughly unconscious.