Momentarily stunned by the size of the problem in front of him, Astro finally said to the well-dressed man, "The only food here belongs to the humans; it'll have to be up to them what happens. I'll go talk to them right now."

"Thank you," said the man as Astro turned and ran back to the big farmhouse. Once there, he rang the bell that was used to call a meeting of the three couples who led the place, then waited in the kitchen for them to arrive.

It was almost supper time, so it didn't take long for them to assemble around the big table, and Astro explained the problem to them.

"How can we possibly feed them all?" asked Finna Sordat. "We barely have enough for ourselves, especially after Hamegg brought his children here." She glanced at her husband Peran.

"We agreed to let Hamegg do it for one reason," Peran said firmly. "We trust that God will give us what we need. I don't see how we can refuse these folks, even if we go short. They are starving."

"That is very true," said his friend, Kattez Mirow. "But what about tomorrow, and the day after?"

"I don't think we have a choice: we share what we have," said Peran with a shrug. "We may all go hungry, but no-one starves."

"As long as they're willing to pull their own weight," Kattez said. "Even our sacred writings show little mercy for shirkers."

"And we can open up that land out back for more crops next year," said Peeny Ondney, the oldest woman on the farm. "By next year, we'll be able to feed everyone."

"Only if nobody else shows up," said Finna.

Astro stepped forward from where he had been leaning against the counter. "I think Mrs. Ondney has the right idea. If more come, we're going to have to open up more farms. There's plenty of unused land around here, so maybe us androids could build them houses to live in and clear their land while some of you guys teach them how to farm and hunt."

"That's about what it'll take," said Peran. "We don't have unlimited resources here. But what do we do for the neighbours at our door right now?"

"I say we feed them," snapped Peeny. "God'll get us by. He always has."

"Is it agreed then?" said Peran. Everyone nodded.

Half an hour later, the six leaders, along with half a dozen androids bearing large baskets, showed up at the gate where the crowd was still waiting on the road.

"This is all we can spare," Peeny announced. "Even we will go hungry tonight."

"Okay?" asked Astro. "Can we hand it out now?"

"Just a moment," she said. "Bring it all over here." The androids gathered around her, and she raised her hands and said, "God, you have given us good food to eat, and now others have come who are in great need. When you were a man, you provided for the hungry. Please help us now. Thank you." She looked at them again. "Go ahead."

Astro and the others started to distribute the food, half a bun and a chunk of cooked beef to each person.

"We all thank you for your generosity," said the well-dressed man. "We've had nothing for days." Many other people also expressed their gratitude as they started to get off the road and move over to a nearby field to sit down.

A while later, Astro realized there was something weird going on. "How much stuff have you got in your basket?" he asked Orkan.

"Oh. I ..." Orkan peeked into it. "Huh? It's like I haven't given anything out."

"Same with me. Keep going. I don't understand what's going on either, but I've got a hunch God's involved big time."

When the androids had made sure everybody had gotten the basic ration, they started over again, and kept giving out food until all of the people were full, including those already on the farm.

Then when they looked in their baskets, they were finally empty.

Peeny strode out into the centre of the field and called out, "I think it's only right that we kneel down here and say a big 'thank you' to our God for coming to our aid in our time of need."

Many of the people who had arrived that day were reluctant to do that, but they couldn't deny that something amazing had happened, and soon all were kneeling on the grass as Peeny led them in giving thanks.

"Thank you very much for coming to get us," said the woman a month later, as Astro led the crowd of 'unholy ones' along the road from the prison camp towards the safe area for transfer to the nearest farm.

"No problem," said Astro. "Glad to help."

Suddenly a shot rang out, and one of the people behind collapsed. More shots came from the trees around them, and more people fell.

"What's going on?" Astro radioed to Orkan high above.

"Ambush!" he answered. "They must be really well dug in. I can't see them."

Astro felt his anger rising: a murderous trap. "Everybody!" he radioed. "Protect the humans! I'll take the enemy!"

As the other androids swooped down around the crowd, he shot into the air and initialized his arm cannons. Then, sighting on the flashes of gunfire, he opened fire himself, blasting away until even the trees were broken and scattered everywhere. When he finally stopped, silence fell on the forest except for the groans of the wounded and the soft crackle of fires burning.

Warily he settled back onto the ground. "How are we doing?" he asked Orkan.

"A handful dead," he said. "And a lot of wounded. What should we do now?"

Astro checked his power level: it was predictably low from all the energy he'd just put out. "Get everyone to take the wounded to the farm right after we bury the dead. Then you check the woods for any survivors, while I lead the rest of the humans to the safe area."

"Right." Orkan started to organize the operation.

"Berq'an," Astro called.

"Yes sir."

"Get over to the Robovale farm at max acceleration, and get Peran Sordat. He's a physician, so he should be able to help us here. If he needs supplies, find a looted pharmacy, and see if you can salvage whatever he asks for."

"Got it." Berq'an rocketed into the sky and was almost immediately lost to sight.

Once the burials had been completed, the march resumed, and a young man approached Astro. "That's some serious firepower you've got there."

"M-hm." Astro glanced at him, trying to figure out what he was up to, then said, "Sometimes a 'droid's got to take a stand."

"So you're a robot, and yet you killed humans."

Astro stopped and looked him in the face. "That's the life of a warrior, isn't it? Sometimes you've got to choose who lives and who dies. And who was it forced me to make that choice?" He started walking again.

Startled, the young man fell silent for a while. Then he asked, "What's going to happen to the enemy survivors, if you find any?"

"We'll take them to the farm once all these people are all moved, and their injuries will be taken care of."

"Then what?"

"That's up to the people already at the farm. I don't know past that, but they've never turned anybody in need away before. Why?"

The young man sighed, and seemed to come to a decision. Pulling up his sleeve, he revealed a Mellanine tattoo. "I'm one of them—a 'plant'—but I don't want to be any more. They knew I was here, hiding, and they betrayed me. I would have been killed if their plan had succeeded."

"You're surrendering?"

The man took a deep breath. "Now that I know that you're not the monster the Holy One's made you out to be: Yes, yes I am." As they continued along the road, he went on, "Speaking of monsters, do you know how many people died because of that big solar storm last month?"

"No clue," Astro said. "The only news we get is from the news services that are still up."

"Well," he said grimly. "I overheard my unit's commanding officer say that they were expecting over four billion dead, most of them city people starving to death if they survived the initial fights for the remaining food."

Astro froze. "And how have your people survived?" he asked icily.

"It makes me sick to admit this: We've looked after ourselves just fine: no power outages; no shortages." He sighed, and his head drooped. "I'm ashamed to admit I'm a human being."

Astro took his hand. "Come with us as you said. These people will show you how to be a real human."

"It is going very well," said the image of Dr. Mella smugly to President Tremorten, seated in his office some months later. "Our efforts, including our reaction to the Great Solar Storm, have greatly reduced the surplus population of the world."

"Yes indeed, Holy One" answered the president. "No more shortages or starving people. Even the unholy ones have been silenced."

"That was our greatest victory. But one victory still eludes us: the Astro robots. You have been entirely unable to find out where those mechanical do-gooders are now hiding?"

"My agents have been scouring Wesaimin for the last year, ever since the Chinbury disaster. They are simply unable to locate them. Numerous of the agents, however, have reportedly disappeared in the course of their duties, so we have to assume that the robots are still out there and active."

"I grow weary of your excuses, but we still have many unholy ones in our care in spite of their predations. What of the plasma weapon? Have your experts been able to find the cause of that great blast?"

"No, Holy One, but they have determined that, if the plasma gun was the cause, it was a fluke, a one-time event, since they have been completely unable to duplicate the accident."

"Then make sure to have agents trained in the gun's use as a precaution, and keep the remaining unholy ones healthy enough so that they do not die before the anniversary of my ascendancy comes in nine months."

"Why is that, Holy One?"

"I have a plan: that is all you need to know. Just do as I say."

Tremorten stood up and bowed. "At your command, Holy One."

Astro sat under the big oak tree and gazed happily at Flin-bik and Mee-spen's second child, newly begotten pink ball that it was. Technically it was his second grandchild, but, with the way they would be reproducing, keeping track of relationships much past one's children would soon become a bookkeeping nightmare.

There were eighteen androids now, counting the other baby just begotten by the newly-weds, Zin-laz and Abo-kew. The next baby to come would probably be Baby Seventeen and Eighteen's, if they were able to marry. After that, there wouldn't be another until Zog and Dragon's time four months later—as long as nobody tried to convert another robot in the meantime. Not that he had a problem with it; after all, Zog, Dragon, and Berq'an had all turned out just fine.

He put Seventeen down on the ground between his legs, and it glowed contentedly for a while as it ate.

"Hey Astro," said Berq'an as he came over and sat down beside him.

"How's the harvesting going?"

"Good. They should have plenty for winter."

"I'm glad. They don't need another winter like the last one."

"I hear you. You know Ran-tan and Evan-sa are getting pretty restless for space."

"Yup. And I've told them that, once Seventeen and Eighteen are grown up, the humans should be okay and they can go, and take up to three other couples with them if they want. I'll just have a hard time saying good-bye."

"I know. They'll be totally out of communication with us. It'll be awful."

Astro touched its hand and linked, "'They'? I thought you were going too."

"I've changed my mind. I'm not ready yet."

Astro felt the bond Berq'an had with him, and didn't have the heart to argue. After all, Berq'an knew that it was one of the main reasons he was still sane after ... Luna. (How long would this go on hurting?)

"Don't feel so bad," Berq'an linked. "You did lose half of yourself. I'm going to lose a big part of myself when I finally have to leave you behind too, but I really don't feel like it's time yet."

"I can't imagine how you could go, with no-one in your heart and mind. It's just not right for an android somehow."

"Yup; I can't help believing that God's got someone for me, somehow, even if I can't marry."

"You're probably right."

Astro stared up at the leaves above him. What was his destiny going to be when the others were all gone from Earth, with no-one in his heart and mind?