5 THE FARM

CHAPTER 5 THE FARM Mr. Shareef turned and shouted, "Come here, Rambler!" A moment later, a pickup truck automatically rolled out from the garage. The truck pulled up to the man and the robot, its doors opened wide, and they both climbed in. Rambler had a steering wheel, but Mr. Shareef sat back and let the truck drive itself. They followed the driveway behind the house, across the backyard, past trees and hedges, and suddenly they were surrounded by farm buildings. The buildings were different sizes and shapes, all white walls with gray roofs, and they were so tightly packed together that you could hardly tell where one building ended and the next one began. Some were spattered with mud. Others had holes and loose boards. The entire place smelled like grass and manure. Mr. Shareef pointed out each building to Roz. There was the enormous dairy barn, the milking

parlor, the workshop, the machine shed. Smaller sheds were scattered all around. Rambler drove out from the buildings and down the back side of the hill into a wide sweep of farmland. A fence lined this part of the driveway, and behind the fence was a sprawling, rolling pasture, lush with tall grass and a few leafy trees, where a herd of cows was grazing. The cows swished their tails and chewed their cud and followed the truck with their eyes. One of them let out a long "Moooooo." "This is a dairy farm," said Mr. Shareef, "so these cows are the queens around here. Your whole world now revolves around them. Understand?" "I understand," said Roz as she stared at a young calf who was staring right back at her. They rolled past the herd of cows, past clumps of wildflowers, past a quiet pond, past birds and field mice and bumblebees. The driveway cut through a row of trees on its way out to the crop fields, which were flat and square and covered with bright green sprouts. Hilltop Farm was bursting with life, but it had seen better days. Patches of weeds and bare dirt were spreading across the fields. Broken-down farm

machines and piles of junk were strewn across the grounds. Thick tangles of brush were creeping in from the edges of the property. They drove all the way out to the farthest fields, to a little roundabout at the very end of the driveway. Rambler shut off its engine, and the man and the robot sat and looked at the countryside. Far off, where the land met the sky, a train quietly slid along its tracks and disappeared to the north. Then all was still. "This farm needs help," said Mr. Shareef at last. "It's been in my family for generations and I don't want to lose it. But I can't do farmwork anymore, not with this bad leg. That's why you're here. They say ROZZUM robots can learn to do almost every kind of job. And you'll have to do almost every kind of job on this farm." "I understand," said Roz. "We've had automachines for ages," Mr. Shareef went on, "but we didn't need a robot until my wife died." Those last words hung in the air for a while. The silence was finally broken by a low rumble of thunder. A storm was approaching. Tornado season

was still months away—but in farm country any storm could become dangerous. "Let's go home," said Mr. Shareef. Rambler started its engine and drove back up the long driveway. By the time they reached the farm buildings, a steady rain was falling, and the cows were in the barn. "This is for you," said Mr. Shareef, and he handed Roz her own computer. "That controls the farm's equipment, and it's got all the information you'll need to work here. Do you know how to use a computer?" "Yes, I know how to use a computer." Roz had never used a computer before, but she instinctively knew what to do. Clearly, the robot was designed to work with technology. "Study up tonight, and start farming tomorrow," said Mr. Shareef. "You can stay in the machine shed with the other machines." "Perhaps I should stay in the barn with the cows," said Roz. "My whole world now revolves around them." The man smirked, and he said, "I like the way you think, Roz."