Steersman mandated a security organization to provide protection over the following month, but they worked rather strangely. There were no guards that anyone could detect, there was a rumor that the equipment they had was being used to screen out potential dangers and allow them to step in if required. The majority of their responsibilities were to carry out preliminary investigations and continuous analysis of incoming security data. They considered prevention to be the backbone of their work, which did not of course mean that they had no idea what to do in unexpected situations. Karen was happy to know that they were finally in place. The idea to put more weight on strengthening security had been bugging her for some time. Before their arrival, there had only been a couple of old security guards wandering around the building. She'd never before met anyone who treated the issue of protection as casually as Steersman did. It was things like that which drove her mad. She even began to consider him a little irresponsible, well from that aspect anyway.
The one thing that seemed strangest to her though, was Steersman's conviction that in one month time there would be no need for these people.
It is not a long time. If it were decided that he had to be removed from the picture, then one month is just about enough time to prepare something pretty nasty …. Perhaps he'll grow armor, thought Karen wryly.
“Idiot!” she muttered under her breath.
***
Chapter 3
A new technology
Six weeks passed in a fuming state of agitation and ever growing ambition. The city construction project offices and real estate agents were groaning under the pressure, as the town continued to grow in every possible sense. The population was rising with breathtaking speed and the already high immigration doubled within only a few weeks. Lush suburban areas, with hills, fairy tale lakes and green belt residential areas, magically appeared on what had been empty desert, constructed by companies dealing exclusively with city urban development. They had struck the jackpot when they were awarded the contract, but were paying amply in pressure cooked blood and sweat. It had been almost three years since the first landscaping project had begun, and since then the staff and machinery had been changed so often, it had begun to feel like a factory production line. Men and machines were spent like cheap currency just to keep the work on schedule.
The most important areas of operation were controlled by single companies. Supply & Trust Inc. had sole charge of all logistics in the city, including food distribution. Commercial units bought only from those producers and food supplier chains that were registered on S&T lists. There were many who wanted to get onto the list, to supply the town with their products, but the quality requirements were high. Although daily delivery had to be ensured, the majority of distributors were not local. There were South African and Southeast Asian companies who provided a wide choice of exotic foods.
Energy was the only resource that was supplied locally and the demand was huge. The incredible growth in both public and commercial energy usage demanded an ever increasing surplus from local suppliers, who were struggling to keep up, and so far energy was supplied by five different power generation plants.
The work of Supply & Trust Inc. was essential to the city, which meant that they worked under constant scrutiny.
The rules were incredibly strict and the company was kept close, occupying the first ten floors of Steersman's tower. Karen was constantly meeting with S&T reps; the meetings basically consisting of informing the company of the increases in city growth rates and how the city's logistics requirements needed to be developed to cope. In return, the company systematically reported to Karen on their own development progress. There was always an emergency to deal with.
“I have no idea what's causing such big drains in the power supply, but in the last couple of weeks we've been under the critical level several times, and we've had to call on the reserve grid,” said Forest Elmer, looking worried. Forest Elmer was the much harassed operating director of S&T. “We need to commission two more distribution depots into the system, otherwise we are facing some serious trouble.”
“I've noticed problems a couple of times myself, as well as power surges at home in the evenings. Is that what you're talking about?” asked Karen.
“Yep. Looking at the reports I have a sneaking suspicion that electricity is leaking from here.”
“What?! From here?!”
“From this very tower!”
“What could be causing it?” Karen asked carefully.
“Well, I have no real idea. As far as I know, apart from the offices, there's nothing else here that requires any great amount of electricity,” Forest answered, shrugging. Karen looked thoughtful.
Forest Elmer nodded towards the ceiling. “Perhaps Mr Steersman could tell you more about it. It's not really my job to ask questions, you know?”
Karen was just about to respond, when Forest's secretary appeared. The two stopped their discussion as she approached.
“No one has seen him sleeping! It's gotta be him using all that power to stay alive!” Judy butted in sarcastically. She was the office gossip, always weaving horror stories and nosing out the latest scandals. Her colleagues found her amusing, but her constant babbling wore Karen down.
“Really Judy? Up there on the top floor?” Karen sometimes liked to stoke the fires. Getting these people to spill their stupid stories was the only weapon Karen considered using against those whom, she felt, had yet to develop a filter between their brains and their mouths. She noticed that if she encouraged them, even more bullshit tended to fly and eventually they ended up shooting themselves in the foot. They never even seemed to realize it either.
“You didn't hear this from me,” said Judy, covering her ass, and she started to whisper, as if sharing a state secret, “but there is a rumor that Steersman may not even be human!”
“Really?” Karen asked, wide eyed. “What is he then?”
“Well, I don't really know for sure. But, if you ask me, it's not normal that someone never sleeps, just works day and night.”
Karen let out big sigh. Even for Judy, this was pushing it a bit too far.
“Judy, get out!” snapped Forest. “Go and do some work … and mind your own business for once!”
“She asked, and I told her what I heard!” Judy said sulkily over her shoulder as she flounced out of the room.
Forest shook his head.
“Sorry about that, Karen.” Forest turned to face her.
“Don't worry about it. Just please don't let her be here tomorrow,” Karen told him, surprising even herself with her vehemence.
“Pardon?” Forest started.
“Get rid of her, Forest!” Karen stood up from her seat. She had suddenly realized that she didn't have to put up with any nonsense from these people.
They have to learn to get their jobs done without the surplus crap. They are here to serve the city, not the other way round and anyway, that kind of gossip is pretty inappropriate from the employees of a company with the kind of responsibilities that S&T held.
Forest Elmer watched Karen leaving. His face betrayed the difficulties of his situation. He took a deep breath, waited and then breathed slowly out. He knew damn well that it wasn't worth taking up the battle on behalf of his secretary. Besides, Judy was a pain to work with.
“Judy, come in here!” he shouted.
The presentation
Almost two months went by, and it soon became clear that Natalie Garner had been wrong. In her last interview she had supposed that Sean Steersman had no knowledge of any field other than business. The skepticism surrounding the airy tower structures of the city and the molecular waste neutralization plant site was beginning to fade. It seemed that Steersman had more up his sleeve than just slick a business presentation when he gave a demonstration during the opening of the newly completed industrial site. Many national and international TV stations were invited. This gave Natalie Garner a fit of hysteria that spilled over and even threatened her broadcast
for that day when she didn't show up on time. Eventually, and somewhat miraculously, Natalie calmed down and, her anger still simmering, managed to get through the show. Everyone agreed that she had been uncharacteristically quiet though. Karen knew that Steersman would make it up to Natalie later, but for the time being he had other things on his mind and certainly didn't care about the reporter.
Karen felt sorry for her.
It often seemed that Steersman's communication with the world at large consisted mostly of shocking the general public every time he or the city was mentioned in the press. People became so accustomed to it that they began to expect nothing else from him. And this time was no different. Shots showing the plant demonstration were disappointed neither the huge audience hungry for sensation and scandal, nor the scientific community.
Steersman presented his latest brainchild in the company of media representatives and a small army of security guards. At first, the spectacle impressed no one. It basically looked like just an ordinary bowling ball resting on a table. Its surface was dotted with panels placed in a seemingly random order, suggesting that it was some kind of mechanism. The most striking thing about it was its color, a dark gray with an intriguing array of subordinate colors that appear to move and change.
Steersman stepped back so that everyone could have a good look at it.
He held a palm sized console in his hand. He waited patiently and, as the sound of voices subsided to a murmur, he began.
“What I am about to show you all will open a new age in travel! Since the invention of the wheel, we have traveled in many ways by many different means, yet the basic form and concept of the wheel has always been essentially the same. Admittedly, its development was spectacularly remarkable, but the principle has remained the same for each forward step in the wheel's development: movement supported by one wheel rotating around a single axis. Ladies and Gentlemen, remember this moment … because what you are just about to witness will astonish you. This will replace one of mankind's greatest and most ancient inventions. It will do so by breaking with tradition, discarding a primitive principle and increasing the rotational axes to an infinite number!” Steersman looked about and observed a ripple of interest move through the audience. He looked down at the device in his hand. “Let the show begin,” he whispered under his breath.
He activated the mechanism with the console and the crowd collectively gasped. Panels popped out from surface of the sphere and the gray was replaced by an incandescent orange that vibrated and rose from the core to the surface. A quiet hum began to emanate from the device, yet it seemed much louder in the frozen silence. The sphere then lifted up off the surface on which it had sat, and began to move slowly back and forth across the table.
The crowd appeared to suddenly wake from their tranquil and somewhat hypnotic silence, and the murmur quickly became a roar as cameras started flashing and eager reporters began to talk amongst themselves. Steersman picked the sphere up off the table, as if to assure the audience that the little mechanical creature meant no harm.
That was all that was needed for the storm to break.
“Mr Steersman, tell us what we are seeing right now!” Shouted one of the reporters over the babble.
Steersman waited as the questions continued to rain down upon him. Held up one hand and waited. When calm had descended he continued, “this mechanism is based on Dark Core Gravity technology. It works in a similar manner to a planet's gravitation, the only difference being that it works in reverse and is much simpler of course. There is a specialized form of liquid in the device that rotates at very high speeds in a complete vacuum. This helps keep the substance in a liquid state.”
“Mr Steersman, what do you mean when you say that the inside of the device rotates? What makes it rotate?”
A childish question perhaps, but germane. “Well, the liquid is continually trying to escape,” he responded.
“Can you tell us more about the substance?”
“For the time being, let's just say that it is a new, as yet widely unknown substance that, in an inactive state, is a very dark material,” he said, shrugging the question off.
“How is it possible to control this substance?”
“This is achieved with the help of these panels, or lamellas, that initiate motion. They control the device's distance from a surface depending on the planet's gravitation strength. It is imperceptible to us, but gravity is not uniform. Secondly, the lamellas control lateral and vertical surface movement, in any direction.”
“What do you mean by ‘it works in reverse’?”
“Well, in practical terms, the goal is to create a force that is equally opposed to the gravitational force. That only becomes possible in an active and reverse rotational mode.”
A voice from further back in the crowd called out, “what applications do you see for this device?”
“Basically, this is a drive unit. It is capable of moving a larger object or vehicle. I will soon demonstrate,” Steersman replied.
“You have stated that it is completely safe, but what would happen in the case of an accident … if the sphere broke, so to say?” Steersman peered across the crowd to a South African reporter.
“If the mechanism breaks down then the vacuum ceases, the liquid solidifies and disintegrates into tiny pieces almost immediately. It would take an incredible amount of force for that to happen, however.”
“Has it been patented yet?” shouted a Chinese reporter from the back row.
“No. The mechanism is not under any patent license.” Steersman smiled.
“And what do you intend to do with the drive?” A well known voice asked. Natalie Garner stepped forward from the crowd.
Steersman paused momentarily.
“I will be putting it on the market!”
“You mean to say that the drive could be a substitute for the energy sources we now use?” she asked.
“That's exactly what I mean, Natalie. Watch!”
Steersman put four of the DCG spheres into sockets in the ground and then, with the help of a mechanized hoist, he placed the modified chassis of an everyday family car, onto the spheres. The car rose slowly and began to levitate back and forth. When the reporters finally realized what they were seeing, the effect of the sight was electric.
“The anti gravitational force of the DCG balls can be controlled and directed so that the vehicle could be controlled by a driver,” Steersman explained. “Of course, much development is still needed,” he added.
“Mr Steersman, your invention is more than just a reworking of the wheel. If I understand it correctly, this mechanism could replace all of our current energy supplies. What you think the automotive industry might have to say about that?” Natalie asked.
Steersman grinned, rather like a shark approaching its prey. “We shall find that out soon enough, Natalie.”
*
There was a certain amount of restless activity on televisions and in newspapers all over the world that evening. Interest towards the invention suddenly skyrocketed and within days many communications systems were paralyzed. Soon enough, the leaders of the world's largest car manufacturers had crowded into the top of Steersman's tower, where the helicopters changed places in endless streams. Steersman welcomed each visitor personally, fully aware that they needed him as much as he needed them despite the fact that he was being hailed as the next tech revolutionary.
The battle trained businessmen came with only one purpose: to get their hands on the manufacturing rights for the DCG spheres. Steersman had no desire to sell the rights, however. Instead, he would deliver the ready made product.
The most stubborn, and perhaps the most arrogant of them all proved to be the rather worried CEO of BMW. He got straight to the point, almost as soon as he had stepped out of his helicopter.
“Sean! I will double whatever Chrysler has offered you! If you wish, I will have the entire amount on your table, in cash, by first thing tomorrow morning,” Solberg shouted over the roar of
helicopter rotors.
“I can do better than that,” said Steersman, brushing off the offer nonchalantly.
A look of irritation passed over Daniel Solberg's face and it quickly became obvious that he was trying as hard as he could to suppress it.
He'd managed to calm down somewhat by the time they reached Steersman's office, where they bumped into Karen.
“This is my deputy, Karen Colella,” said Steersman, introducing her.
“Deputy, huh? Greetings. Perhaps you also took part in the development of the DCG?” He asked bluntly.
“Nice to meet you Mr Solberg. Mr Steersman is your man with the DCG. Would you like anything to drink? I'm just making some Yirgacheffe coffee. Straight from Ethiopia,” Karen fended off his question adroitly.
“No, I thank you.” He turned back to Steersman.
Karen smiled. She exactly knew how disturbing polite questions that were out of context could be. These sorts of people came here for big business, not coffee and apple pie. Without exception, it was clear that they had all came here to grab a strategic advantage over their competitors, which always tended to bring out the hardest survival tactics. At times like this it was so obvious why these people lead multinational corporations. If needed, they were entirely willing to cut the throats of their enemies, their friends, even that of their own grandmother should it be advantageous to do so.
“Daniel, sit down, relax,” said Steersman, leaning back on the sofa. “I will not sell these plans to anyone. Only we will be manufacturing the new drive!” Steersman told him straight, as the DCG technology could never be given to a single producer because, from that point onwards, newer force would emerge that would mutate the world economy to an unacceptable degree! Steersman didn't wish for that to happen.
When Steersman said ‘we’, he was referring to the anonymous production unit at the industrial site where nothing was working, as yet. Of course, somebody should have guessed that such a huge territory was going to be more than a simple waste disposal facility.
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