“So what does that mean? Nicole asked.
“If you know your current frequency, you can extrapolate the frequency of the dark energy any distance from your location,” the computer answered.
“Just why is this important?” Charles asked.
“Because if you enter the frequency of a place ten light years from your current location into the new stardrive field, the ship will instantly go there.”
Gregory smiled, “The same would be true if you entered the frequency a billion light years away.”
“What do you mean by instantly?” Merry asked.
“The moment you enter the frequency into the field, this ship will appear at that location.”
“Are you suggesting that the ship would move that distance in no time?!”
Gregory turned to Charles, “Well, for all intents and purposes, the time it would take would be too small to measure. So it’s not no time but very close to it.”
“And just how would you return to Earth if you used this stardrive to jump a billion light years?”
Gregory turned to Nicole, “You have the frequency you jumped from. All you would need to do is use that frequency in the field and you’d return to where you started. The point is that every place in the universe has a frequency and the patterns between those locations are consistent.”
“And the good thing about that is our navigation system has billions of coordinates in it and it tells exactly how far away the ship is from those coordinates. Simply translate that distance into the appropriate frequency for that distance and the ship could instantly go there,” the computer interjected. “If we use our current location as the zero point, I can translate all those coordinates into frequencies that would allow us to go wherever we choose.”
The link was silent again and Charles finally said, “This is a remarkable achievement, however, all I see here is a way for us to run away faster from the Revel. I don’t see how it could stop an attack on Earth. Besides, is it even possible to produce this field you’re talking about?”
Gregory looked up, “Computer, perhaps you should answer this one.”
“This new field is tightly compressed dark energy. It will also extend about forty feet from the ship’s hull. Theoretically, you can charge the inner layer of the field with one frequency and the outer layer with another and they won’t interfere with each other. The compressed dark energy will keep the charges from touching each other.”
“What do you mean by ‘theoretically’?”
“The science says it can be done. We won’t know for certain until we produce the field to trial it.” Charles was silent thinking about what was said, and the computer asked, “Is it an absolute necessity for a ship to be inside a stardrive field to be affected by it.”
“Yes,” Merry answered.
“Why?” the computer asked.
“If all of the ship isn’t moved out of normal space, it won’t work.”
“You’re talking about the current stardrive,” the computer responded. “What if the outer layer of a stardrive field has the frequency of another location?”
The link was silent again and Charles’ eyes widened, “Are you saying anything that touched the outer layer would be jumped to that frequency?”
“The science says it would Charles, and what if that outer layer is charged with the frequency of the space in the center of the sun? What would happen to a missile that hit it if that’s true?”
“HOLY CRAP! YOU’D HAVE THE PERFECT MISSILE DEFENSE SYSTEM!!” Merry answered loudly.
Gregory smiled, “But there’s more. Remember that this system doesn’t require a huge amount of power to make it function. We discovered that the power to compress dark energy around the ship in a tight enough field only requires minimal power. Too much power and it would be possible to compress it so tightly it would damage the hull.”
“How much power does it need to produce the field?” Charles asked.
Gregory smiled, “About the same amount as you’d need to power a two-hundred-watt light bulb for each projector.”
Charles’ eyes widened and the computer added, “And with the small amount of power needed to form the field, it would be possible to have the field put around Earth.” Charles sat back and shook his head as the computer added, “So any missile or starship couldn’t break through that field without being transported into the heart of the sun or any other location you choose.”
Gregory sat back, “Now do you see the real benefit of being able to use two different frequencies in the field?”
“What about blasters?” Dit asked.
Gregory blew out a breath, “Most of the energy would be spread out over the entire field and about fifty percent of it would be transferred to the frequency of the outer layer. The remainder can be absorbed into collectors to power the field. However, if enough of them are fired over an extended period, it’s possible the field would fail.”
“How long of a period?” Charles asked.
“We won’t know that answer until we make the field.”
“Don’t you mean if you can make the field?” Merry stated.
“That’s why we need to start working on it immediately,” the computer stated. “First we must see if we can produce the projectors to install the field and make sure it handles two frequencies. If we can do that, then the field to protect the planet comes next.”
Charles shook his head, “But if you’re right about the field around the planet possibly failing, you’d only be delaying the inevitable.”
“But we won’t know how long the field will hold out until we build it,” Gregory replied.
Charles saw Gregory’s expression and he knew he wasn’t saying something. He decided not to press it and said, “Merry, it’s going to be up you to get the projectors constructed for the ship.”
“I’ll get the blueprints to her immediately,” the computer replied. “I’ll also start changing the coordinates in the navigation system to corresponding frequencies.”
“You sound pretty certain this new drive is going to work,” Nicole remarked.
“The science says it should. I’m moving forward until reality shows it doesn’t.”
Charles stood up and Gregory said, “I need to go and see Allison. I have a wedding to attend.”
“Do you mind making it a double?” Merry said with a chuckle.
Dit turned to her, “REALLY!!” Merry nodded.
“Charles, we never got married.”
“That’s because you refused to do it Nicole.”
“Perhaps we should make it a triple.”
“That’s up to Gregory and Allison,” Charles replied.
Gregory looked at Charles, “It will have to be a small wedding no matter what we decide.”
“I’m glad you recognize that. Let us know what you decide. Computer, get a small ship powered up for Gregory to go down to Earth.”
“The ship is ready to leave when he’s ready.”
“I’m taking a bath first and changing clothes! I’ve not bathed in a week.
Charles smiled, “I think that’s a good idea.”
Chapter Fourteen
Allison stood up from supper and cleaned all the dishes off the table. She turned and headed toward the stairs to go to her room and Martha said, “Honey, would you like to watch TV with us?”
“No, Mom. I’m tired.”
Martha shook her head and Dan nodded, “She just can’t get over losing Gregory.” The doorbell rang and Dan got up. Allison heard the bell and stopped halfway up the stairs. Dan opened the door and said, “WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE! YOU’RE NOT WELCOME!”
“I’ve come to see Allison.”
Allison heard the voice and instantly ran down the stairs, rushed past her father, and threw herself into Gregory’s arms. Martha walked up and said, “Allison! What are you doing after he walked out on you?!”
Allison was kissing Gregory and she broke the kiss and turned in his arms, “He didn’t walk out on me; he ju
st walked away.”
“What in the hell are you talking about!?” Dan asked harshly.
Gregory tried to lower Allison, but she refused to let go of his neck. He smiled and held her up in one arm as she turned sideways. “I was forced to go and leave Allison behind. I’ve been working on a secret project and this is the first moment I’ve had to come back.”
Martha turned to Allison, “And you knew about this and didn’t say anything?!”
“I made her promise not to tell you,” Gregory responded. “Why don’t we go inside and discuss it?”
Dan stepped aside and Gregory lowered Allison; she reluctantly took her arms from around his neck. Martha led them to the dining room table and sat down. Dan sat down beside her as they glared at Gregory. Gregory turned to them and said, “I’ve been involved in a project that involves the safety of mankind. There is a real possibility of an aggressive civilization coming in the near future and attacking Earth. I’ve been working on a way to prevent that from happening.”
“There’s been no mention of that at any level of government and if it had, I would have heard about it!” Dan stated.
“I’ve not been working with the government, Mr. Silver.”
“If not them, then who?” Martha asked.
“I’ve been working with the Watcher.” Dan and Martha’s expressions showed their shock. “I did something that caused the Watcher to confront me and Allison was there when the meeting took place a little over seven months ago. He confronted me with the intention of possibly killing me for what I did but I got him to see that humanity is in danger and it was unavoidable. Once he saw the threat, he put off taking any action against me.”
“What exactly did you do?” Dan asked.
“I solved an equation that would allow a faster than light stardrive to be constructed.”
Martha leaned forward, “The Watcher told us years ago that we would be quarantined to Earth.”
“And my discovering the means of building a stardrive threatened his quarantine. He decided to do something to prevent my discovery from getting out. However, he was unaware that Earth was probably in danger and he realized that if Earth were attacked, there was nothing he could do to prevent it.”
“Why not?”
Gregory turned to Dan, “It would take too much time to explain it in detail but basically, his civilization forbids stopping it and if he tried, he would die along with his family. I convinced him that he should defend Earth and there was a way to do it. It’s taken this long to prove to him that it could possibly be done.”
“You say possibly?”
Gregory raised a shoulder, “The science seems to support it, Martha. But we won’t know for certain until we build the things needed to test the technology. We’re now at the point where we’re going to start construction on what’s needed. The Watcher has agreed to stay and defend Earth but only if the technology can stop the attacker. If it doesn’t work, then staying to defend us would be useless. His ship would be destroyed, and this alien civilization would conquer Earth anyway.”
“He should fight for us regardless,” Dan interjected.
“He would be just throwing his life away and it would serve no point. This coming attacker’s technology is just as advanced as the Watcher’s and he would be outnumbered hundreds to one.” Gregory paused and said, “I hope both of you understand that this must remain a secret.”
Dan shook his head, “Why! We’ve got to do something about this!”
“There’s nothing we can do. The Watcher’s single ship defeated all the defenses Earth had and there was nothing we could do to prevent him. Allowing this to become known would only lead to a panic and who knows how many would die as a result. I really didn’t want to tell you about it, but I knew you wouldn’t allow me to just leave with Allison if I didn’t?”
“What do you mean you’re going to leave with my daughter?!”
“I’ve come here to ask your permission to marry her, Sir.”
Dan’s brow furrowed and Martha turned to Allison, “You knew about this, didn’t you?”
“Yes.”
“And you’ve already decided to marry him no matter what we say, right?”
“I’d prefer to have your blessings…but I will marry him!”
Martha turned to Dan, “I suppose saving mankind is a good enough reason to go missing.” Dan smiled slightly and Martha turned to them, “You have our permission to marry our daughter. I’m already starting to look forward to the wedding; it will be amazing.” Gregory blew out a breath and Martha said, “What?”
Gregory glanced at Allison and said, “We cannot have a grand wedding.”
“Why the hell not?!” Dan responded.
“Mr. Silver, you’re a well-known politician and I suspect there will be a large number of powerful people attending the wedding, correct?”
“Certainly. Allison is our only child and she deserves a huge wedding.”
“And what happens after the wedding when Allison and I disappear. We’re going back to the Watcher’s ship and start working on building the new technology. And do you think there won’t be huge numbers of paparazzi trying to get the first photos and interview with the happy couple? What happens when none of them can find us? And don’t you think some of those powerful attendee’s will be questioning you on her whereabouts? Do you lie to them? I suspect that you won’t be able to pull that off for very long. They’ll know something’s up.”
“Why?”
“Because they will research me and discover that I skipped undergraduate school to attend MIT graduate school and I had a perfect 4.0 grade point average before I disappeared. You not telling them our whereabouts will lead to extreme pressure for you to tell them what’s going on. If you do, it will lead to world wide panic. That information would leak out; there’s no way to prevent it. And there are some that if they learn your daughter is working with the Watcher, they will see it as a betrayal to humanity and possibly choose to do you harm. Many still see the Watcher as an alien imposing his will on us and long for the days when humans controlled our own destiny.”
Martha turned to Allison, “You’ve always dreamed about a grand wedding.”
Allison shrugged, “That was because I didn’t know who I was marrying. Now that I have the man, that’s enough to suit me no matter the size of the wedding.” Allison turned to Gregory, “He’s all I want, and a huge wedding doesn’t really seem so important now.”
Martha shook her head, “I hate this; I’ve also dreamed about your wedding.” She turned to Gregory, “Just how small of a wedding are you thinking about?”
Gregory raised his shoulders, “Just you and us.” Martha’s head fell and Dan put his arm on her shoulders. “However, I have had a request that I’ve been asked to deliver.”
Martha looked up, “What is that?”
Gregory turned to Allison, “The Watcher and his daughter have asked if they can be married at the same ceremony with us.”
“He’s not marrying his daughter I hope?!” Dan responded.
Gregory raised his hands, “No, no; nothing like that. His daughter wants to get married and the Watcher also want’s to marry his wife; they’ve never had a formal ceremony.” He turned to Allison, “They won’t do it with us if you don’t want it.”
Allison smiled, “A triple wedding is something I’ll always remember; of course it’s ok.”
“You say the Watcher will be there?”
“Yes Sir.”
Dan turned to Martha, “I’d give up a giant wedding just to meet him! No one has ever seen him.”
Martha sighed, “I guess I’ll just have to get over it.”
Gregory smiled, “Good. The wedding is scheduled to take place in Plymouth in three weeks. I’ll give you the details on the time and place. Allison will meet you the day of the wedding.”
Dan’s head tilted, “And just where is she going to be in the mean time?”
Gregory turned to him, “I plan to take her to the ship w
ith me tonight.”
“That’s not going to happen!”
“DAD!”
“You are not going to start living with him until after you’re married! You’ve waited seven months; you can wait another three weeks!”
Allison’s expression turned angry and Gregory put his hand on her arm, “He’s right.”
“But…”
“It’s the right thing to do Allison.”
“But I’ve been missing you so much it hurts.”
Gregory smiled, “And you’ll be missing me even more in three weeks, as I will you. It will make the wedding special.”
“You have things to do.” Allison turned to her mother, “You have to pick out a wedding dress.”
Gregory turned to her, “Mrs. Silver that could cause some issues.”
Martha waved a hand, “I’ll tell the dressmaker that Allison needs the dress for a photo opportunity for one of the glamour magazines and they should keep it quiet until the article is published. Allison is pretty enough that they won’t question it. Once the wedding is done, I’ll just return it and tell them the opportunity fell through.”
“Mom, I want to keep my wedding dress!”
“Then I’ll tell them the dress was damaged during the photo-shoot and pay them for it. I’ll still tell them the shoot fell through.”
Gregory shrugged, “That should work.”
“I trust you will be married in a church,” Dan remarked.
“The wedding is scheduled in three weeks on Saturday at eleven in the morning in the First Parish Church. That church was the first church established by the original colonists of Plymouth.”
“Why did you choose Plymouth?” Martha asked.
“Actually, the Watcher requested it; Plymouth is where he first met his wife.” Gregory turned to Allison, “I must go. I’ll see you in three weeks.”
Allison stood up and said, “I’ll walk you out.”
• • •
Dan and Martha stood at the living room window and watched Alison kissing Gregory. Martha shook her head and smiled, “Better get used to seeing that.”
“Do you think all he told us is true?” Martha shrugged. They watched Gregory step away and then disappear. Martha chuckled, “If it isn’t, then he’s one hell of a magician!”
The Watcher II: The Time of Suppression Page 18
