Zero 'g' (2 page)

I
nodded slowly as I listened. They were arguing that the energy and
money would be better spent on making human life more useful. I had
to agree with them
, though I
wasn’t sure how much further the advancements could really go. I
mean, we were literally making our own dream babies. What more
could we ask for?

Chapter Two

All the heads of state
gathered in a large NASA conference room for a meeting.
There was a buzz in the air as officials talked over one another.
Judging by the chattering around the room, everyone was wondering
what was going on. Their buzzing was in the annoyed fashion of
people who believe they have better things to do. However, they
knew that it had to be important, after all, for an emergency
meeting to be called.

President Louis Gates was in attendance and had asked that
many other heads of state be included in the meeting. He had
something important to share with the group that couldn’t wait.
Monitors were
set up all
around the room and served as the only means of communication among
the states on such short notice.

He stood up and waited patiently for the chattering to
stop. When it did
, he took a
look around the room. “I want to thank you all for meeting with me
today on such short notice. I know you are all very
busy.”

Gates faced the monitors and nodded toward each one of
them. On the monitors were the
heads of state from prominent countries. These were the
countries that were currently involved with the space program, and
he would need their support. There were also various political
members sitting around the conference table ready to offer their
opinions. Gates could tell that they weren’t all happy to be there,
even the ones there via video link. He had taken them away from
busy business matters, and everyone was curious about why he had
brought them all together. They would know soon enough. He couldn’t
imagine they would be any happier than they had been when they had
heard the most recent update on the space program.

Prime Minister Ben Cameron
of England spoke up. He was a descendant of David Cameron,
who had held the same position many years ago. “President Gates,
with all due respect, why have you called us all here? It’s the
break of dawn for a lot of us, and I am surprised that you have
called us all here when none of us have been briefed on the matter
beforehand. It’s highly irregular.”

Gates nodded. He knew that his methods of getting everyone
together that morning were a little unorthodox
, but time was of the essence. He had really just
found out about everything himself. He hadn’t had a moment to brief
anyone, much less give them time to consider the matter beforehand.
Even so, he was a respected president, and some things just needed
to be understood. He wasn’t foolhardy, and there should be a
certain amount of trust from his colleagues toward him. He had
everyone’s best interests at heart; in the end, that was all that
mattered. They should already know that and trust that he must have
an emergency to bring them together like this.

He took a controlled breath before
responding to Ben Cameron.

“
Yes, I understand the confusion
, and I apologize. The matter at hand here was brought
to my attention not long ago, and I had very little time to prepare
myself. However, the reason I have brought all you here today is
because I have news to discuss that could change the world
forever.”

The buzz in the air brought a whole
new sense of excitement to the room.

“
What is this news?” asked
Cameron.

Gates knew
he would probably have the most opposition from Cameron. His was a
very curious mind, and he didn’t take unsolicited advice from
anyone. He would want a lengthy explanation of everything before he
was on board. It was both an admirable quality and an annoying one.
Cameron had the habit of butting right into a conversation and
demanding answers before an idea was fully explained.

“
The reason I have brought you all together today in such a
manner is because I wanted to release some pertinent information
that I discovered. I didn’t personally make the
discovery
, of course, but the
matter has been brought to my attention. I wanted to be able to
tell you all at the same time so that I need not have to deal with
accusations of favoritism on my part. As you all know, I respect
you all equally,” he said with a smile on his face.

There were chuckles all around the room
, and the president was happy to lighten the
mood. Things were about to get interesting, and there was no need
to have angry heads of state in the room.

“
I want to introduce you all to Jim Iverson.” He motioned
toward Jim
, who sat to his
right. “Jim is one of my project chiefs here at NASA, and he will
also be the head of a project we will now refer to as Operation
47B. Mr. Iverson has been working really hard this year on the
space program and has come across some great
discoveries.”

The buzz began around the room once
again
, as no one had ever
heard about Operation 47B. That would all change today; soon
enough.

“
Jim Iverson is a well-respected and invaluable member of
the NASA team. I’m going to turn things over to him and let him
explain our new discovery
to
you. Please explain, Jim.”

Gates sat down
, and
all eyes turned to Iverson as he stood up. He was a tall man, over
six feet tall, with a shocking shade of blond hair that was almost
white. Anyone who didn’t know him well assumed offhand that he was
a surfer. He had the build of one, and his hair sure didn’t help
things. But he was incredibly sharp.

There
appeared to be sheen of sweat on his forehead. Gates knew how that
felt. Standing in front of a crowd wasn’t the easiest thing to do,
especially such as crowd as this. Iverson wasn’t used to speaking
in front of large groups of people, especially heads of state. He
much preferred to be in his lab working with his team of
scientists. He loved the quiet of the lab, and the bustle around
the room left him on edge.

“
Go ahead
, Jim, the
room is at your disposal. Wow them with your
discoveries.”

Iverson
cleared his
voice and started. “Thank you all for having me and giving me the
opportunity to speak with you today.” He looked around the room
until he was sure he had everyone’s attention.

“
The reason we are all gathered here today is due to a
discovery made several months ago. As you know
, the space program is designed for us to go out
into that vast universe and see if there is anything that can be
used to benefit our way of life on Earth. That and to search for
aliens, but you know how that’s been going.”

There were a few chuckles around the
room
, but for the most part
the international panel was waiting for him to get on with the
news. They hung on his every word.

“
We have spent a lot of time and money exploring space,
hoping to one day come across an advancement that would make a
differen
ce in our way of life.
Well, I believe we have found such a thing. One of our rovers was
put on Kepler-62e to explore the planet, and during its
investigation, it discovered a new particle. Our research team has
code-named it Particle B, as it will be known from now
on.”

Italy’s
head of state
piped up. “What does this mean, Jim? What is Particle
B?”

Iverson
looked up at
the monitor. “The full name of this particle is 47 Brahma Particle,
in which 47 is the name of the Rover that discovered this and
Brahma means unlimited energy. The particle is very special indeed.
We have reason to believe that this particular particle is capable
of generating long-term sustainable energy. Because of this
incredible discovery, we have the opportunity to solve the gravity
issues that have been plaguing our world.
We have to get the particle here before Earth’s
gravity disintegrates completely
.”

There was a shocked silence around the
room
, which then turned into a
round of applause. Iverson breathed a sigh of relief that the
reaction was good; he couldn’t imagine what it would be like to
have to appear before the heads of state with bad news. A grin
crossed Gates’s face. He knew that the news would be worthwhile in
the end, and they would all forgive him for not briefing them ahead
of time. They all had something to be proud of that day. The good
news would spread like wildfire, and they would have a new goal for
which to strive.

Cameron spoke up. “Can you tell us a
little more about this amazing new particle? What can we expect
from it?”

Iverson nodded before speaking. “
What makes this material special is that it can mix
with any energy-producing device such as batteries or fuel.
We
can use this particle to generate
unlimited energy to artificial gravity generators.

So
, why don’t we
already have this particle here? Why aren’t we using it
already?”

“
Well
, that’s where we
have a problem, I’m afraid. It’s also why you are all here. It’s my
job as project lead for Operation 47B to bring back to Earth large
amounts of the precious particle so that we can use it. But I can’t
do it alone. I am working with Bill Norcross, who is my assistant
project manager and second-in-command, to find a solution to
bringing the particle here. There is one drawback to the particle.
It’s very heavy. It’s not going to be easy to get it home, I’m
afraid.”

Gates believed in
Particle B more than any other discoveries of the past
several years. This wasn’t just about technology; this was the
discovery of a particle that, once extracted and shipped, would
allow them to generate artificial gravity. It was the perfect tool
to bring a better life to the people of the world.

G
etting the particle
back to earth appeared to be no easy task. The particle was on the
planet Kepler-62e and weighed a lot. The rockets they originally
had planned on using to bring back the particle would not suffice;
they weren’t strong enough to carry the particle back. That was the
issue that he had before him, and it would be the panel’s job to
figure out a way to get it back to Earth, to even figure out if
there was a way to get it back. They had the best possible energy
source at the tips of their fingers, and yet they had no idea how
to get it back to Earth. It meant saving the world, after all.
Gates had assembled the group in hopes of working out just such an
answer. He figured they could all put their heads together and come
up with a solution to their problem.

Gates stood up once again
, and Iverson took a bow and returned to his seat. He
looked relieved to be sitting back in his seat and letting someone
else rally the group, especially since he knew that this time the
news was not going to be good.

Gates cleared his throat
, but it took a couple of times before the group started
calming down.

“
Ladies and gentlem
en,
please, if we could calm down, we aren’t quite done here.” He stood
there and waited patiently until the room became silent.

“
Thank you.”

The
French president
sighed. “What exactly is the problem? We have a very sophisticated
space program. Just load up the particle and bring it back; it
should be as easy as that.”

“
You’re right
; we have
the best space program we could possibly ask for right now. But the
problem is a little more sophisticated than that. What we didn’t
expect when it came to transporting the particle is that it’s
heavy. Really heavy—too heavy to transport currently.”

“
Are you saying that we
can’t get the particle back to Earth?” Cameron asked.

“
Well
, that’s hard to
say. We are determining that as we speak. Right now the particle is
so heavy to transport back to Earth. We need to find another plan.
In fact, we have to find another plan because Particle B is the
answer to Earth’s gravity problem, the savior, so to speak. Without
it, we are doomed. Does the panel understand what I’m saying
here?”

There were nods around the room. “So
, what do you suggest, Iverson? How can we get
Particle B here to save the world?”

Iverson waited a beat before speaking
. “In order for us to get Particle B back to
Earth and in essence save it, the entire world must pitch in and
contribute resources to the project. That, respected panel, is why
we have asked you all here today.”

Chapter Three

The room was filled with nervous energy
, and Iverson wasn’t sure if that was a good
thing or a bad thing. People were definitely excited but were
probably wondering the same thing that he had been wondering for
some time now. It would be a laborious task, not to mention the
huge cost involved in making sure Particle B made it to
Earth.