Comet! (an Ell Donsaii story #5 ) (31 page)

The craft was being built and should be done sometime soon. But they’d built a beautiful streamlined craft to launch from the ground instead of an ugly bugger that D5R could take up to orbit for them in their modified Lear Jet.

They had spent weeks on a mission control computer to go on the craft instead of just keeping the computing resources here on Earth and using
PGR
chips to receive data and send controller messages.

The group working on orbital mechanics had worked out some beautiful trajectories and were bemoaning the fact that as time passed their ability to affect the comet’s trajectory became more and more limited.
The more he listened the more he became convinced that the leader would have to come from outside this group.

“OK,” he said, “You guys have a genius level group but
that
group is very dysfunctional.” He looked around the group. “Does anyone disagree with this assessment?”

There were some sullen looks but as he focused on each of them in turn, each nodded,
most
of them
reluctantly.

“I am going to appoint someone outside the group to lead you but for now I have the following directions.” He looked at the motor people. “Build a motor that will burn just long enough to get up to 22 kps.
Talk
to the people at D5R and pick their brains for what they’ve learned about port fueled motors. Use their plans if there’s any way they’
ll work, do
no
t
‘reinvent the wheel.’
If they have motors ready, buy them. If they’ve got some in construction buy those.
If they don’t cooperate let me know and I’ll talk to Donsaii.
Stop worrying about getting the ports. Like you sa
id, they already exist, we’re only held up by government permits. Remember, we
have an ‘in’
with
the government.
I’ll
talk to DOT and get that fixed.
” He turned to the craft builders, “Stop streamlining. Get it done. We’ll get D5R to launch
it
for us.
” To the computing section, “Get with the program. You don’t need a radiation hardened computer
in
the craft.
PGR
chips and computing resources here in
Houston
are the wa
y to go. Make it happen by next
week.” He looked around the table again, “I want this rocket to be on the way next week. Fail me on this and you fail the entire human race… Your
self and your
families too.”

Epaulding looked ar
ound at them again. M
any of them looked embarrassed but they seemed to have
gained
some resolve.
I don’t need a genius to lead this
group. I need a “people person.
”
Maybe Mike Voight?

***

In Ell’s ear Allan said, “‘Belle’ has a call from Gordon
Speit.”

“Put him on,” she said, feeling that it was somehow odd that life
—
such as calls from Gordon
—
went on normally
d
espite
her
knowledge of the comet breathing down
the world’s
neck. Using her “Belle” voice she said, “Hi Gordon, how’s ‘the road’ treatin’ you guys?”

“Hey, it’s pretty amazing. Since Vic helped us with our sound our audiences have been going crazy. Word seems to be spreading and we’re selling out. Our manager is moving us to bigger venues!”

“Wow! That’s great. I’ll tell my Aunt she bet on the right horse this time. After
making a long list of
bad investments, I’m not sure she’ll know what to do
.
”

“Yeah, if things will just keep going this way we should be able to pay back her loan pretty soon… actually I was calling to ask a favor?”

“Another loan?” Ell asked dubiously.

“No, no, we’re doing well financially. Actually, I was hoping you’d talk to your friend Emma and get her to invite Ell Donsaii to our show in
Greensboro
next week? We really feel like we owe her… for getting us started. We’ll leave her ‘comp’ tickets at the box office in case she decides to come.”

Contradictory feelings rushed through Ell
. Happy to be invited as “Ell.” Disappointed to be left out as “Belle.” Suspicion that they just wanted Ell as a publicity generator. Jealousy of “Ell” because he wasn’t very interested in “Belle.”
Is this what it’s like to have a split personality?
“Uh, sure. I’ll try to get a message to her.”

“Great!” then as an afterthought, “Uh, I’ll leave comp tickets for you and Emma too. Hope you
all
can make it.”

After he signed off Ell said, “Allan, summarize the news on Gordon Speit and Velos for me.”

As she read through the information summary
that
Allan assembled
for her
her eyebrows r
o
se. Velos was becoming hugely popular in the Southeast and people were flocking to its shows. Recently
,
fans
were having to be turned away in droves.

***

“Secretary?”

“Yes?” Bayless grumped. He’d just gotten off the phone with Overstreet over at PHMSA. Instead of getting flustered when Mullins had shown up to shut
D5R
down, that irritating little girl they had in charge had apparently just said, “No problem, go ahead and treat our ports like pipelines. We’ll make whatever applications you want.” Bayless had been looking forward to seeing some video of
Donsaii’s
dismay when he slapped her down
—
admittedly second hand but still, he was sure she’d know it was him. It was petty he knew, but he desperately wanted to get even for the way she’d put him in his place at that
ridiculous
meeting of Horton’s. Worse,
D5R had
already
submitted applications and
Overstreet implied that she didn’t think anything should be done to hold the
m
up!
D5R had
apparently hired a lawyer with a lot of experience submitting PHMSA applications and
theirs
looked flawless.
Bayless had had to lean heavily on
Overstreet
to get her to agree not to look at them right away and then to look very hard when they did examine the applications. He’d insisted that they do special safety evaluations of the ports but Overstreet had frowned and said that it didn’t sound like there was much
that could
go wrong. The ports either worked or they didn’t. The material either showed up where it was supposed to or it didn’t show up at all.
They weren’t like a real pipeline that could leak half way to its destination.

Cr
ap! Bayless rubbed his forehead and wondered what else he could do.

“Director Epaulding from NASA would like to speak to you.”

“Put him on.”

“Um, sorry sir, he’s here to speak to you in person.”

Bayless’ eyebrows climbed. “OK, send him in.”

Epaulding came in the door and put out his hand to shake. “Hey Jim, I’d like to speak to you, ‘off the record’ if you don’t mind.” Epaulding lifted his AI headband off and popped the
PGR
chip off the bac
k.

Bayless reached back and unplugged his AI, feeling a bit like a dinosaur when he did it. He showed Epaulding the jack, then said, “What’s this about?”

“PHMSA has stopped all sales of transfer ports
by
D5R
,
the company that saved the Space Station a few months back.”

Bayless waved his hand in dismissal, “Yeah, I know all about D5R. They’re a menace.”

Epaulding drew back, for the first time considering that PHMSA’s actions might have been purposeful and directed, rather than a random flexing of the agency’s regulatory arm. “Uh, how are they a menace?”

“Are you kidding? Their ports are going to
destroy
the economy. All the nation’s pipelines, tanker ships and tanker trucks are going suddenly become superfluous. That’s just in my bailiwick, all the power lines will be coming down,” he waved his hand again, “it’s a freaking disaster!”

“Well, sure. There’ll be some upheavals in the economy. But there’ll be huge savings too. In the long run we’ll be much better off!”

“Yeah, well, it’ll be the
really
long run if
I
have anything to say about it.”

Epaulding closed his eyes and pursed his lips against any vehement retorts.
Keep your eye on the ball Jim,
he said to himself. “OK, but I’d like to request a special dispensation for a set of ports that
ILX
ordered.”

Bayless rolled his eyes and picked up the jack for his AI, “Yeah, yeah, yeah. You’re only one of about 200 people who’ve been calling DOT about how
they
must absolutely, without a doubt get some ports yesterday.” He jacked his AI back in. “This old world has been doin’ business the old way for millennia and it’ll just have to keep on doin’ it that way a little bit longer.”

Epaulding closed his eyes a moment again, then gathering resolve said, “Please, as a favor to me, go off the record a moment longer?”

Bayless narrowed his eyes. He didn’t like this kind of begging for personal favors among the movers and shakers but he did reach back and pull the jack one more time. He steepled his fingers and waited.

“I don’t suppose you’d take my word for it. That there’s something very,
very
important that we need those ports for?”

Bayless sighed, “And I suppose it
can’t
wait?” He raised an eyebrow.

Epaulding shook his head.

Bayless said, “If you’re going to ask me to break with my personal ethics on this, then you’re gonna have to tell me why.”

Epaulding reflected that Bayless’ reputation for personal ethics wasn’t
that great
. Which made Epaulding reluctant to talk to him about the comet.
Could I talk to someone lower on the food chain and get them to authorize the ports? Or maybe just get Donsaii to give us the ports
behind
DOT’s
back
?
He grimaced, “Then I’m going to need to ask you to keep what I tell you an absolute state secret. This is ‘don’t even tell your wife stuff,’ do you understand?”

Bayless’ eyes widened. He hardly ever dealt with highly secret information in the DOT. He shrugged, “Sure.”

Epaulding reached into his jacket pocket and brought out a paper. “I have the President’s authorization to require you to sign this document stating that you are fully aware of the penalties for revealing a State Secret.”

Bayless frowned
, why would NASA have a State Secret?
For a moment he considered saying that he’d approve the damn ports for
ILX
without being told, but then his curiosity got the better of him. He held his hand out for the paper, took it and signed it with a flourish. He looked back up at Epaulding questioningly.

Epaulding took a deep breath, “Comet Hearth Daster is quite likely to hit the Earth.”

Bayless tilted his head and narrowed his eyes. “And
…
so?”

Now Epaulding’s eyes narrowed.
Could it be that he didn’t understand what that meant?
“As I’m sure you’re aware, such an impact would be a disaster.”

The left side of Bayless’ mouth quirked up sardonically, “Come on. I may not be a science whiz, but even
I
know that meteors hit the earth every day.”

Epaulding thought,
Jesus, he’s completely clueless.
“Jim, this thing masses about 300 million metric tons. If it hits the Earth it will be the end of civilization and
will likely
result in the extinction of the human race. Though it’s smaller, this is the same kind of event that wiped out the dinosaurs.”

Bayless stared at Epaulding uncomprehendingly for a moment, then his hair began to stand up and his ears began to ring. He noted distantly that his lips felt funny. He leaned back in his chair until his head stabilized against the headrest. The lighting was weird and the room was dark around the edges. Distantly he heard Epaulding saying, “Jim, you OK?”

Epaulding watched Bayless’ head loll to the side,
is he having a heart attack?
Epaulding stepped closer, “You OK?
”
he repeated. He recognized Bayless’ chair as the same type he had in his own office and leaned down to depress the lever that laid the chair back nearly horizontal. He took Bayless’ wrist and felt for a pulse, it was there and regular but very slow
.
Should I be calling 911?