Rossum´s Universal Robots (11 page)

Hallemeier
That’s money! Bundles of banknotes! What is he up to? Hey, Busman!

Domin
He’s not trying to buy them off is he, to save his own life? (
calling
) Busman, have you gone mad?

Dr., Gall
He’s pretending he can’t hear you, running over to the fence.

Fabry
Busman!

Hallemeier
(
yelling
) Bus-ma-n! Come back!

Dr. Gall
He’s talking to the robots, showing them the money, pointing up at us...

Helena
He wants to buy them off to save our lives.

Fabry
As long as he doesn’t touch the fence...

Dr. Gall
Ha, look at him throwing his arms about!

Fabry
(
shouting
) For Heaven’s sake, Busman, get away from the fence! Don’t touch it! (
turning
) Quick, turn it off!

Dr. Gall
Ohhh!

Hallemeier
Jesus Christ!

Helena
Oh God, what’s happened to him?

Domin
(
pulling Helena away from window
) Don’t look!

Helena
Why is he dead?

Fabry
He was killed by the current.

Dr. Gall
Dead.

Alquist
(
standing
) The first one.

(
pause
)

Fabry
There he lies... with half a billion on his heart... our financial genius.

Domin
He was... lads, in his own way he was a hero. A great... self-sacrificing... friend... Cry, Helena.

Dr. Gall
(
at the window
) Look at him. No king ever had a costlier monument than you, Busman. Half a billion lying there on your heart... And now it’s no more than a pile of dried up leaves over a dead squirrel. Poor old Busman.

Hallemeier
Well I say... all honour to him... he was trying to buy our lives for us!

Alquist
(
hands together
) Amen.

(
pause
)

Dr. Gall
Do you hear?

Domin
Some kind of howling, like the wind.

Dr. Gall
Like a storm in the distance.

Fabry
(
switches on light above fireplace
) Shine, you light of man! The generator’s still working, there are still some people there. Hold on in there, generator men!

Hallemeier
It was great, being human. Something boundless. There’s a million consciousnesses buzzing inside me like bees in a hive, millions of souls coming together inside me. My friends-Humanity was great!

Fabry
Ingenious light, you’re still aglow, and still your shining brightness shows the thought that lasts forever! Give us science of the sciences, and beauty in the work of man, whose spark will give the spirit flame!

Alquist
Eternal lamp of God, and fiery chariot of light, holy flame of faith and prayer for what is right! Altar of sacrifice...

Dr. Gall
Primaeval flame, you branch that flares to light our cave! Campfire flame that sets the border where we safely come together!

Fabry
You’re still on watch, you star of man, steady glow and perfect flame, bright clear sprite of man’s invention. Every beam brings thought and greatness...

Domin
Torch that passes hand to hand, age to age, and ever onward.

Helena
That evening lamp in the family home. Children, children now it’s time for sleep.

(
lamp goes out
)

Fabry
That’s the end.

Hallemeier
What’s happened?

Fabry
The generator room’s gone down. We’re next.

(
door opens, left, in it appears Nana
)

Nana
On your knees! The Day of Judgement’s here!

Hallemeier
Hell, you’re still alive?

Nana
Repent, you unbelievers! It’s the end of the world! Pray to God! (
runs out
) The Day of Judgement....

Helena
Goodbye everyone, Gall, Alquist, Fabry...

Domin
(
opens door right
) Helena, come here! Close the door behind her. Now, quickly! Who’ll be at the gate?

Dr. Gall
I will. (
noises off
) Ah, now it’s getting started. Good luck, lads! (
runs off, right, through wallpapered door
)

Domin
The stairs?

Fabry
Me. You stay with Helena. (
takes flower from the bunch and exits
)

Domin
Hallway?

Alquist
Me.

Domin
Have you got a gun?

Alquist
No thanks, I won’t be doing any shooting.

Domin
What are you going to do?

Alquist
(
exiting
) Die.

Hallemeier
I’ll stay in here.

(
rapid gunfire from below
)

Hallemeier
Oho, Gall’s already started playing. Go on, Harry!

Domin
I’ll be right there. (
inspects two Browning guns
)

Hallemeier
For God’s sake, go and join her!

Domin
Goodbye. (
exit right, following Helena
)

Hallemeier
(
alone
) Now, barricades, quick! (
takes off coat and pulls settee, armchairs, tables to door, right
)

(
very loud explosion
)

Hallemeier
(
leaving work
) Damn them, they’ve got bombs, the swine!

(
more gunfire
)

Hallemeier
(
resuming work
) We’ve got to defend ourselves, even if... even if... Don’t give up, Gall!

(
explosion
)

Hallemeier
(
stands erect and listens
) What was that? (
puts arms around heavy chest o’ drawers and heaves it to barricade
)

(
behind him, a robot appears on a ladder at the window. Gunshots right
)

Hallemeier
(
struggles with chest o’ drawers
) Just a bit more! Last defence.. We should... never... give up!

(
Robot jumps in through the window and stabs Hallemeier behind the chest o’ drawers. Second, third, fourth robot jumps in through window. Then Radius and still more of them
)

Radius
Finished?

Robot
(
stands up from Hallemeier, lying on floor
) Yes.

(
enter more robots, right
)

Radius
Finished?

Other Robot
Finished.

(
more robots from left
)

Radius
Finished?

Other Robot
Yes.

Two Robots
(
they drag in Alquist
) He did not shoot. Do we kill him?

Radius
Kill him. (
looks at Alquist
) Spare him.

Robot
He is a human.

Radius
He is a worker. He works with his hands like a robot. He builds houses. He can work.

Alquist
Just kill me.

Radius
You will work. You will build. Robots will need many buildings. Robots will need many houses for new robots. You will serve robots.

Alquist
(
quietly
) Move aside, robot. (
kneels at dead Hallemeier, raises his head
) Killed him. He’s dead.

Radius
(
steps up onto barricades
) Robots of the world! Many humans have fallen. We have taken the factory and we are masters of the world. The era of man has come to its end. A new epoch has arisen! Domination by robots!

Alquist
All dead!

Radius
The world belongs to the strongest. Who wishes to live must dominate. We are masters of the world! Masters on land and sea! Masters of the stars! Masters of the universe! More space, more space for robots!

Alquist
(
at doorway, right
) What do you think you’ve done? You’ll all die without people!

Radius
There are no people. Robots, down to work! March!

Act Three

(
One of the research laboratories at the factory. When the door, upstage, is opened an endless row of similar laboratories can be seen. Left, a window, right, door into dissection room. At the wall, left, is a long workbench with countless test-tubes, flasks, burners, chemicals, small thermostat; at the window is a microscope with a glass ball. Over the bench hangs a row of lamp bulbs. Right, desk with big books, lamp shining onto it. Cupboard with instruments. In corner, left, wash basin with mirror above it, in corner, right, settee.
)

(
Alquist sits at desk, head in hands
)

Alquist
(
leafing through book
) Will I find it? Will I understand it? Will I learn it? Damned science! I wish they’d never written it down. Gall, Gall, how did you make robots? Hallemeier, Fabry, Domin, why did you keep so much in your heads? You could at least have left a few traces of Rossum’s secrets about. Oh! (
slams book shut
) It’s a waste of time! The books can’t say anything now. They’re as dumb now as everything else is. They’re dead. They died along with all the people. Just stop looking. (
stands and goes to window and opens it
) It’s got dark again. I wish I could sleep! To sleep, to dream, and see some people. How come there are stars still there? What’s the good of stars if there are no people? Oh God, why haven’t they all gone out? Cool my brow, ancient night, cool my brow. As divine and as beautiful as you always used to be, why are you still here? There are no more lovers, no more dreams; you watch over us but sleep without dreams is death; you sanctify us, but there are no prayers; mother, you don’t bless us with your beating heart. There is no love. Helena, Helena, Helena! (
turns away from window, takes test-tube from thermostat and examines it
) Nothing, as always. It’s a waste of time! What am I supposed to do with this? (
smashes test-tube
) Nothing works! Can’t they see?; I just can’t... (
listens at window
) those machines, always those machines! Stop them robots! Do you think you can force them to produce life? I can’t take any more of this! (
closes window
)-No; no you’ve got to keep looking, you’ve got to stay alive... If I just wasn’t so old. Am I getting old too soon? (
looks in mirror
) My poor face! The face of the last man on Earth! Let me see, let me see, it’s so long since I saw a human face. A human smile. And is that supposed to be a smile? Those yellow chattering teeth? Those twitching eyes? Ugh, an old man’s tears-stop this. You can’t even keep your tears in, you should be ashamed of yourself! And what about those soft, blue lips, what’s that nonsense you’re talking? Look at you shaking, you dirty chin. And this is the last man on Earth! (
turns away
) I don’t want to see anyone any more! (
sits at bench
) No, no, just keep looking. Damn this specimen, come to life, damn you! (
flicks through book
) Will I never find it? Never understand? Never learn?

(
knock at door
)

Alquist
Come in!

(
enter robot servant who remains standing in doorway
)

Alquist
What is it?

servant
The Central Committee of Robots wishes to know when you will receive them, sir.

Alquist
I don’t want to receive anyone.

servant
Damon has arrived from Le Havre, sir.

Alquist
So let him wait. (
turns round sharply
) How many times have I told you you should go out and look for more people? Find me some people! Go and find me some men and some women! Go!

servant
They say that they seek everywhere, sir. They send expeditions and ships everywhere.

Alquist
So what?

servant
There is not a human anywhere, sir.

Alquist
(
standing
) Not one! Not even a single one?-Send in the committee.

(
exit servant
)

Alquist alone
Not even one? Didn’t you even let one person live? (
pacing
) Come in then, robots. Come and bother me some more, come and tell me I should find out the factory’s secret yet again. You like people now, don’t you, you want them now, now that they can be of some help to you.-To help you! Domin, Fabry, Helena, you can see that I’m doing everything I can. Even if there are no people left, at least there can be some robots, some shadow left behind by the human race, at least his achievements, at least something that looks like him!-Oh, chemistry is madness!

(
enter committee of five robots
)

Alquist
(
sitting
) What do you want, robots?

Radius
The machines are not working, sir. We are not able to make more robots.

Alquist
Call in some people.

Radius
There are no people.

Alquist
It’s only people that can procreate life. Don’t keep wasting my time.

2. Robot
Have pity on us, sir. We are afraid. We repair everything as well as we can.

3. Robot
We have increased working hours. We no longer have room to store all the things we have made.

Alquist
Who did you make these things for?

3. Robot
For the next generation.

Radius
Only robots are we not able to make. The machines produce nothing but pieces of bloody meat. The skin does not adhere to the flesh and the flesh does not adhere to the bones. Formless lumps flood out from the machines.