When he left the building, the robots had gone. So the power came back, he thought. The bike was leaning against the wall; he jumped on it and rode back on the obscurely dark road. It would take another hour to get back to the base. He had ventured very far, but it had been worth every moment. He could speak with Dad. He would not expect any punishment; Mr. Morton and Mrs. Elden couldn’t say anything, nor could the Leader, because his Dad would take over his education tomorrow.
After ten minutes of riding, he saw those lights from the right-hand side, down the harbour. They did not go in a straight line, as the robot ships usually did. The rays of bright light marched round and round as if somebody was using a torch, lighting the tortuous road coming up the hillside. They came exactly to
