The Return of the Manhattan (4 page)

David began to get excited sensing the potential he saw when recruiting Roger. “That sounds incredible, can we do it?”

“Don’t know, but it’s worth a try. Are you prepared to turn it up a notch?”

Tom looked around seeing approval on each face. “What do you propose, Roger?”

“Delay our launch and convert one entire deck into a research laboratory before converting most of it back to storage for the return trip. The lab should be capable of manufacturing electronic and other materials needed for research as well as all the test equipment required. I have in mind several top notch physicists and engineers who could be persuaded to join the project. All of them have top secret clearances and I think they would gladly make themselves available.”

Tom tried to calculate in his mind how much delay that would cause, but gave up, “How long are we talking about?”

“Maybe a month. Sorry I didn’t bring this up months ago, but the ideas took a long time to germinate and make their way through my thick skull. The basic idea first popped into my head on that first visit David made to seek me out when he told me that the speed of light had already been exceeded, but the concept was slow in developing. That idea in my mind, not the fact that we would exceed the speed of light, was the deciding factor in my decision to join you. How to accomplish it is not crystal clear, but is becoming more so all the time. If nothing more, I think my research would be invaluable to future scientists and physicists. I don’t want to waste my time wandering in space for the next twenty years. If we can build a time machine, then it will have to have complete secrecy beyond anything the world has ever known. What better place to keep it secret than off in deep space where no one can talk?”

David was dubious, “How can we put the lab together without anyone knowing? And why would it have to be secret?”

“You four obviously have had no time to think about the concept, but in my field, it has been discussed thoroughly. Time travel could be extremely dangerous even if the best people were in control. How tempting for anyone to go back and help someone involved in a noble, but losing cause? Wouldn’t some Jewish person want to try to stop Hitler and prevent the holocaust? Maybe some zealous person would try to prevent the Jews and Romans from crucifying Jesus! It has to be secret! We can build the lab without undue concern since the existence of a lab is rather routine in space. In fact we should not try to keep it secret; it would just lead to greater speculation. I’ve already given it a lot of thought and I know what we need. We can inform the president there is a minor problem with the propulsion units, and we need to replace a couple defective ones. Those units in all my experiences never fail, but we’ll assume he doesn’t know that. Maybe he would believe someone sabotaged them. It wouldn’t take much modification; the decks are set up perfectly for that purpose. My people could procure the lab equipment without any leak and do any installation themselves after we are en route. Besides the lab equipment, we need the manufacturing capability to build electronic parts and construct probes that can be used for testing. We need to find machinists or engineers that can fabricate items using a wide variety of materials. I wouldn’t want to skimp on our inventory of exotic metals and alloys, but I’m sure all of the excess would be useful for the colonists on the planet. Marie, you could deliver the equipment and supplies without any of the other crewmembers getting suspicious.”

Warren had been silent up to that point, but he was bubbling over with enthusiasm. “We can do it! David could fake some headaches and I could put a hold on the mission for that reason alone. You remember what we said would happen if he wasn’t physically able to continue.”

CHAPTER 7

They postponed their launch for two months using both excuses for the delay. Roger recruited three noted physicists and several lab technicians, engineers, and machinists who considered it a once in a lifetime opportunity to work on any project headed by the famous Dr. Roger Dorn. One worked in the Research and Development Division of Westinghouse and the other two were faculty staff members who had worked with Roger at the university. The lab technicians were all Roger’s former students, and most were in varying stages of earning advanced degrees in physics or electrical engineering. Roger believed most of them would earn their doctorate before the voyage ended. The machinists were recruited from the manufacturing site at the space station.

As the Excalibur pulled away from Earth’s orbit, David requested all non-essential crewmembers to gather in the main auditorium on the second level for mission briefings. David, Marie, and Warren and made their way to the front after the conference room filled. The screens were filled with spectacular images from each respective end of the Excalibur. Toward the front, the distant stars were bright and steady, but the view in the rear was breathtaking as the Earth began to recede. The cloud shrouded continents were plainly visible but growing smaller by the minute. David, along with several other space veterans watched with fascination and delight along with the rookies. During their voyage to the edge of the solar system, they were promised spectacular close up views of Mars and Saturn as their planned track across the solar system to Space Station Juliet brought them close. The sights could be seen with the naked eye from the view ports or seen displayed on viewing screens available to all crewmembers in various places around the ship.

David waited until the space station became a small speck before taking his place behind the podium, “Commander White and Dr. Dorn are occupied with the departure, but they will get to know each of you personally in the coming months. It’s my job to inform you of our final destination and the unique features of the mission. Our first stop will be at Space Station Juliet which is beyond Pluto’s orbit to pick up some passengers who will accompany us to our final destination.

David flipped a switch and a three dimensional chart of the Milky Way filled the screen. He highlighted the Earth and a planet in a remote spot on the chart. “Our destination is this remote planet designated O-2113. As most of you realize by now, we are configured as a giant oil tanker, and hopefully, that planet will be our source of crude oil which is in short supply on Earth. That’s the gist of our mission. For you amateur astronomers in the group, the nearest star is approximately four and a half light years from our solar system. That planet is one hundred and three light-years from Earth.” He waited for the buzz of awe to die down, “We are not about to waste the several thousand years it would take at normal sub light velocity. That would obviously require some sort of suspended animation or none of us would be alive to reach our destination. That length of time is unacceptable. We are planning to accelerate constantly to the half-way point then reverse the engines to decelerate at approximately the same rate until reaching O-2113. Doctor Dorn, our science officer estimates we will reach at least Warp 35, and maybe slightly higher velocity. We are following a manned pioneer probe launched several years ago which will break new ground and send progress reports regularly. The last message indicated they were at Warp 2.1 and accelerating rapidly. Long before we reach Warp 35, we should receive confirmation that it is completely safe to do so.”

Warren took his place behind the podium. He looked out at his eager audience and began, “We have been involved experimentally in suspended physical states or deep sleep states for some time and have a lot of data pertaining to laboratory animals, but little research has been done with humans except for short periods. If you are willing to take the risk, this may be the course you want to follow. We think it will be relatively safe and the rewards may be of value for many of you. The choice is yours. If you are interested in the suspended state or deep sleep mode, we will begin that immediately for those personnel not needed for the rendezvous at Juliet.”

David stepped back to the podium, “The voyage to the edge of the solar system will be our shakedown cruise which will involve normal speeds. It will take a couple of months to arrive at Juliet so you will have at least that much time to make up your minds. Some of our starfighter pilots will be on alert for encounters with space pirates, and will remain that way until we leave the Solar System or until just prior to reaching Warp One. After that, we’re on our own.

CHAPTER 8

The executive council met regularly, at first every morning, then more irregularly, but at least once a week. A couple of weeks after passing the planet Mars, Tom handed the council a message received from the Pathfinder. David read it aloud, “We are at Warp 2.5 and accelerating more rapidly than planned. The Pathfinder was turned broadside and the acceleration forces have been increased significantly without adverse effect on the crew and passengers. By turning broadside, we are now using acceleration forces in place of artificial gravity. The forces are only slightly higher than on the earth’s surface and the artificial gravity simulator is no longer needed freeing more power for the propulsion units.”

Tom turned to Roger, “What do you think Roger? Will that work for us?”

“It should work.” Roger’s mind was rapidly recalculating time and distance scenarios.

David expressed his impatience and disappointment, “I thought they would be that fast by now anyway. Why are they accelerating so slowly?”

Roger laughed, “They are accelerating faster than you think, but at that speed, it will be a long time before we know it. If their approach is practical for us, then we should cut our time en route dramatically. Maybe in half. The solution is simple; why didn’t we consider it before. Obviously we think in terms of Earth’s atmosphere and aerodynamic force components. Those don’t apply. The probability of collision with space junk or maverick asteroids will increase, but not significantly, although I’ll have to run that model through the computer.”

“Okay, we have plenty of time before we reach light speed. The personnel on Space Station Juliet are anxiously awaiting our arrival, planning a reception in our honor, which my wife and I will attend. David will be in command during my absence. Marie, you can shuttle us to the station and bring the passengers aboard. I don’t want any of our regular crew to leave the ship. Too many loose tongues and news of our mission would reach the space pirates long before we reach light speed. We will put our starfighter pilots on full alert as we approach Juliet and remain on red alert until we reach light speed. The greatest danger from the pirates will be in the solar system and particularly while we are relatively stationary at the space station. Roger, what’s the latest ETA?”

“We should be there in under two weeks. We began our deceleration weeks ago.”

“Marie, you and David should get with Kevin Haugen, the flight commander for the starfighters, and map out the alert strategy.”

“We’ll get right on it.”

Marie paged Kevin and David joined her as they walked the short distance to the pilot’s briefing room. David turned on the projection system and they watched again the spectacular view they recorded while they passed near Saturn a few weeks earlier. The planet had been close enough for the rings to take on definition of their own. In moments like that, space travel had its rewards. They sat together and David held Marie close as they watched as the particles making up the rings seemed to swirl as the irregular shaped particles caught and reflected the sun’s rays. It was like watching a beautiful romantic sunset on Earth which seemed to go on forever.

They were interrupted in their reverie as Kevin entered the room, “Good morning Marie, David, you wanted to see me?”

Marie nodded, “Yes, Kevin, sit down. Can you believe this fantastic sight?” They continued to watch as she briefly described the rendezvous at the space station. “The Excalibur will be most vulnerable while orbiting Juliet, and we will require fighter protection. As soon as we slow to launch, we need to keep a portion of our force outside the ship on patrol and the rest ready for immediate launch until leaving the Solar System. Our intelligence reports are months old, but they indicate all known pirate ships have been relatively quiet recently and were last sighted near Jupiter which is a long way from our course. Even though we have no reason to believe they are aware of our mission or our configuration, we must be prepared. I’m sure they would love to capture some additional top of the line starfighters. If we could continue at top speed, we wouldn’t have any trouble running away from them, but we must stop at Juliet. We will have to rotate the crews on and off duty while we orbit Juliet. Give me your candid opinion on those security plans.”

Kevin was confident, “Don’t worry, we have the best pilots and anyone tangling with us should have their heads examined. We have been practicing the latest defensive maneuvers in the simulator and all our pilots are well prepared.”

Marie was more cautious, “Don’t get too cocky. Those pirates may not have the latest equipment, but the element of surprise will be on their side. Our intelligence reports indicate they do have the latest stealth cloaking technology and we won’t be able to detect them until it’s too late to prevent an attack.”

“True and there’s always danger involving a surprise attack. We would not be here if we weren’t willing to take that risk, but it won’t be as easy as they might think. We will launch four ships and keep them in a high speed scissors formation at a distance of one to two hundred miles from the Excalibur. At our speed, we can cover that distance quickly while keeping our surveillance active. We could cloak, but our speed will be our advantage. If they attack, they will have to uncloak for a few seconds first and that should be enough. While cloaked, they can’t maneuver quickly and they will not be up to speed. That is the standard defensive stance for all the battle cruisers and it has been highly successful in the past.”

“That would be sufficient if our mission weren’t so critical and our total force so vulnerable.” Marie protested.

“You wanted my opinion. That’s it and I’m sure that would be sufficient, but we will not be satisfied with that alone. The most critical time for the Excalibur will be during the launch of the shuttle and the starfighters when our doors are open. After the launch, nothing can penetrate our shields. David, I think we should keep the Excalibur moving above cloaking speed until after we launch the shuttle. After the launch, you can decelerate below cloaking speed, cloak, and then move to a new position. We will continue to orbit your vacated position as a decoy while keeping surveillance on your new position. You can orbit Juliet below cloaking speed and they won’t find you. Of course, you need to maintain a precise timed orbit and position. We don’t want any collisions between our own forces and the Excalibur. Marie, before you leave the ship, we will launch our remaining starfighters which will not return to the ship. They will remain with us until after you have made a high speed rejoin.

David had a premonition that something wasn’t quite right, but it escaped him. He held Marie even closer until his fears subsided.