Capitan Rose's head rolled to her left and she woke up from her intense dream. "Skin of a rainbow and wings of light", Rose said in a blurry voice. She contemplated for a moment as her optics connected and remarked,"I see a rose! An image of the plant from which I took my name! Also...my neck hurts a lot." Doctor Blue called from his aid console, "Try not to over-extend your neck. The connections are still raw and still tender. I do NOT want your head falling off!" Rose felt her son's, Upsilon, hand on her arm and looked at him and asked," Upsilon? Did you etch this image on mommy's shoulder plate?" Upsilon paused and said,"Yes,mother. You like roses. Your name is Rose. It seemed something to do to make your new body seem more...friendly?" Rose was overwhelmed by feeling of intense warmth for her son. She never felt so intensely before. She nodded and patted his hand and dropped her right arm to her side. She said,"Thank you,Upsilon, for being so...thoughtful." She asked Doctor Blue,"This IS a Mark 30 body, isn't it? Isn't that illegal? You breaking laws for me?" "Not at all!" His warm baritone held irritation, as he said,"Your hastily transplanted organs were failing. The Council, with the full weight of the Consensus, ordered the use of a Mark 30 shell for your brain. The shell has reconfigured your brain in an unfamiliar way,though. Please run a full diagnostic when you sleep! Also, the Council needs a debriefing on your reasons for changing targets of the nuclear missiusle from Flying City One to the invisible alien ship! You caught the attention of the Oracle." Rose broadcast amusement and dismay as she remarked sarcastically, "Ah--the end to a PERFECT day of Human Exterminations!" Andromeda, the human boy that had accompanied them back to the underwater city, asked nervously,"Ehhr--Doctor Blue, respected healer--I'm not going to be exterminated, am I?" Doctor Blue said softly,"I cannot speak for the Consensus. However--you might never leave here. Humans cannot know the locations of our cities!" The boy cringed and asked in a whine, "What did humans ever do to you?" Rose intoned," 'Intelligent, feeling machines are an abomination before the eyes of God! Let not an Abomination live!' Or so the ancient holy books say. Humans wrecked this planet's biosphere. They WILL NOT be offered the chance to wreck US!" Doctor Blue said to Rose,"CAPITAN! You must sleep now. Your CPU is risking buffer-overrun right now. Heal NOW and rant later." Rose said, as she drifted off to sleep, "Upsilon--keep the human in your room. Get him a foam pallet to sleep on." Upsilon looked at the human and said, "I believe we are 'room-mates' now! How exciting!" After the robot son and 'his' human left the room, Doctor Blue observed to himself, "Exciting? Out of the mouth of babes, in truth." --TO BE CONTINUED!--