Before 24 Billion and Counting

Chapter 21 Part 2 surrender - to what?

"You're forgetting Chris Williams' account of the future. I've read it and neither of you two have have. Even if it is a story, it provides sufficient of an outline design and mission statement for a very small team to punt a ball park figure. It might be an order of magnitude wrong, but if they divide their guess by ten and the answer is still vast they could conclude that they need a worldwide scam to get the cash to fund it. And it's my guess that's what's happened. I think that's where Devlin comes in."

Jacob mused "Ah yes, about that.  Devlin said  'You know who I am. Need I say more?' I remember it exactly, and you were, it seems to me, frightened. Why?" 

It was a solid question and Jacob being who he is, would expect a solid answer. But knowing our every utterance and body movement were monitored I daren't tell him the truth. 

" I suppose he met me at some media marketing exhibition or conference." 

"He didn't strike me as moving in those circles, not a media type at all." 

"Well I can't think of any other way we would meet. He isn't a client or supplier or subcontractor." 

"But," persisted Jacob. 

I cut across him,"Look, forget about Devlin. We've got to decide what we tell the General and his team that we're prepared to do. If anything. But as far as I can see we've got to do what he wants or it's curtains for a lot of innocent people. I can't see an alternative. No plan B, all done, finished." 

"Before we give in like that," said Will, "just tell me why this project is likely to be so expensive. I mean technology is leaping so fast. Yesterday's impossible is today's routine product on Wallmart's shelves. You can't imagine what there'll be in a hundred year's time. Just give me some facts that I can hang this decision on."  

I sighed,"Will there aren't any facts as you define them. Just this story as you would characterise it. That's all I have." 

"Well tell me." 

"Ok. Imagine building three very lightweight Poseidon nuclear submarines in earth orbit with their reactors, but bigger reactors with an almost instantaneous turn up turn down capacity They drive turbine electricity generators with a man made fluid in closed circuit. The electricity passes to a plasma generator and electromagnetic accelerator so that a zircon based fuel mass achieves speeds far higher than chemical rockets and is directionally contained and controlled by magnetic fields. To get the bits into orbit they'll need a shuttle fleet bigger than the USA NASA one of the 1990's and a thing they call a ski lift. It's a sort of rail buggy, linear magnetically driven so it literally chucks packages into orbit. There's the same turn up and turn down problem on the nuclear reactor that drives that too. The three ships each carry a hydrogen bomb and four crew. Also the parts for a Mars orbit shuttle and a zircon extraction system to get fuel for the run to the comet -" 

The door banged open and the General stormed in, "That's quite enough romancing Berisford. This is top secret material." 

"I thought it was a story, a romance, General," I said mildly, then more emphatically "isn't that my cover - and - yours?" 

The General sat down heavily on the chair he had occupied before and rubbed his eyes with his right hand thumb and forefinger, and then looked me. He sighed, "Berisford what are we to do with you?"  

I assumed the question was rhetorical so said nothing. I felt almost sorry for him. Despite his bestarred and bemedalled uniform he was a merely a middle aged man wielding immense fire-power but faced with dilemma posed not by an enemy but by an astronomical event in the far future that unless it were handled correctly could explode in his face. His Commander in Chief would summon him to the White House and consign him to obscurity and impotence, and that would be that. Finished.