Forbidden The Stars

by Valmore Daniels

  “The fifth world…”

  George spoke in an aside to the VR. “Could this be a prediction of the discovery of the FTL element on Macklin’s Rock? Could it be that this ‘Fifth World’ is what lies beyond our solar system? Is it possible, as so many theologians and philosophers have toyed with, that the ancient gods were space travelers who visited Earth and bestowed great gifts upon our ancestors? How else do we explain the hieroglyphs found on Dis Pater if they were not put there by travelers from the stars a thousand years ago who visited the Mayan people?”

  *

  The interview went on for a few more minutes, but Michael cut the sound, and did not watch the DMR anymore. True, George’s speculations were wild…but no more ludicrous than other explanations than the so-called respected scientific community had brought forward.

  Could it be…?

  __________

  Luna Station :

  Luna :

  “Luna port control, this is Orcus 1, NASA BJN-1145 requesting final approach clearance to Luna Station, over.”

  *

  : Orcus 1, this is Luna port control. Please confirm approach vector trajectories, velocity and current payload, over. :

  *

  “Luna port control, approach vector at 92 degrees, 14 minutes, 42 point 556 seconds at separation of 92 point 348 thousand kilometers, mark. Payload at 14 thousand kilograms, over.”

  *

  : Orcus 1, vector confirmed. Your position is marked on approach radar, submitted to docking governor for calculation. Hold for calculations, over. :

  *

  “Luna port control, waiting, over.”

  *

  : Orcus 1, authorization granted, logged. Please turn over navcom control to docking governor computer on mark, three, two, one, now, over. :

  *

  “Luna port control, navcom control slaved to docking governor, check, over.”

  *

  : Orcus 1, slave confirmed. You will be docking at nub 43, station 12, one hour, twelve minutes, fourteen seconds, mark. Authorization number for refit and restock requested, over. :

  *

  “Luna port control, authorization number is as follows: NASA BJN-1145 AD-324-19-44-4, please confirm, over.”

  *

  : Orcus 1, authorization confirmed. Stopover of 15 days authorized. Departure time scheduled for 01-30-92 at 0923 hours, over. :

  *

  “Luna port control, departure time confirmed, over.”

  *

  : Orcus 1, please transmit manifest of any goods to be transferred from Orcus 1 through Luna port, over. :

  *

  “Luna port control, manifest is being transmitted. Also note an exchange of crew member Sakami Chin, PRC, for Soon Tek, PRC, over.”

  *

  : Orcus 1, crew roster change noted, over. Soon Tek confirmed presence on Luna Station, check. —Protocol completed, over. :

  *

  “Luna port control…Thank you, Luna port control, over.”

  *

  : Orcus 1, enjoy your stay, over. :

  __________

  Quantum Resources, Inc. :

  Toronto :

  Canada Corp.:

  The memo on his computer concerning the confirmation of the Orcus 2 mission was of cursory importance to the Director of Quantum Resources, Inc.

  Privately, he was glad Captain Turner was commissioned to lead the next mission to Pluto; she had been there before, and was more than competent enough to handle an extended duty in space. It would be good for her career, and after she had stuck her neck out to give him the information on Alex before it was completely safe for her to do so had put her in Michael’s good books.

  He had EPSed a message to her through her office at the Lowell Observatory thanking her for her effort, and offering his future help whenever she felt the need to call on him.

  He was far more occupied, however, with the news Calbert Loche had brought to him a few minutes after he stepped into his office that morning. Although Michael had ordered the bulk of his staff to look into the Alex Manez kidnapping, the small detail that had remained on the search for Element X had worked steadily towards a resolution of the problem. Calbert divided his time between the two teams.

  “Michael, I think we’re on to something,” Calbert had said to him.

  “What?” he asked, standing. “Alex?”

  “No. Element X. There is an anomaly in the preliminary survey report. Our new man, George Markowitz, thinks he can extrapolate something that might give us a clue how to find Element X.”

  “George! He just started a couple days ago!”

  “Yeah!”

  Michael was pleased that his recommendation to Calbert had led to the hiring of George. He had hoped he would not be sorry hiring the man. Retaining the master researcher might have just paid off.

  “Let’s hear it.”

  Calbert Loche held up a forestalling hand. “His presentation isn’t completely finished yet. He has some back-reports coming in from NASA that he has to verify and compare, and he’s also set out feelers to the Europeans, and is hoping for a few replies this morning. I just wanted to know if you could set aside an hour this afternoon to hear the team out.”

  “Absolutely!”

  “Great, say, about 1:30.”

  “Perfect.”

  *

  In the conference room, Michael sat at the head of the table facing a large DMR screen set into the back wall. On the left, Calbert Loche leaned back into his chair with a confidence that served to increase Michael’s anticipation.

  On the other side of the table, Walter Johnson, Peter Cloud, and Gary McNally sat with folders arranged on the surface, pens at the ready, making notes as George Markowitz made his presentation to the Director.

  He brought up a display Michael recognized as the preliminary geological survey of Macklin’s Rock performed by the Manez’s.

  To begin, George came right to the point, “I’m not really scientifically literate, but I can check and compare facts. At first glance, this survey in and of itself says nothing. Until now, we had been staring at it for months before we realized that instead of looking at it, we had to look through it.”

  Michael silently applauded the man’s use of “we,” even though George had just come on board. It showed he was willing to be a team player. His personal problems with his previous supervisor obviously did not interfere with his professionalism or his passion for his work.

  George and his wife, Elizabeth, had joined Michael at the Calbert’s for cards over the weekend. Michael was instantly taken by the couple, who was open and fun loving. George was not at all shy about explaining to Michael that Elizabeth had been pursuing a teaching career in university before they got married, and gave up her schooling in favor of having children. She showed no regrets, though Michael could imagine Elizabeth’s brother being upset at the situation.

  George brought up a display on the DMR.

  *

  Mineral Content: Aluminum, Calcium, Carbon, Cobalt, Copper, Helium, Iron, Magnesium, Nickel, Silicon, Sodium, Sulfur, Titanium

  — Percentages Unknown

  *

  “What’s important is the Mineral Content. At a casual glance, there is nothing out of the ordinary. All of these elements have been discovered on other asteroids; some rocks have additional elements, and some are not as inclusive as this one. We decided to go element by element, and compare it with other asteroids in the SMD mine catalog, checking against anomalies, but although we were on the right track, we were on the wrong train, if you take my meaning.”

  He brought up another display.

  *

  Site 1: Aluminum, Carbon, Cobalt, Copper, Iron, Magnesium, Nickel, Silicon, Titanium

  — Percentages Unknown

  *

  Site 6: Aluminum, Calcium, Copper, Helium, Iron, Magnesium, Nickel, Silicon, Sodium, Sulfur, Titanium

  — Percentages Unknown

  *

  Site 14: Aluminum, Cal
cium, Carbon, Cobalt, Copper, Helium, Iron, Magnesium, Nickel, Silicon, Titanium

  — Percentages Unknown

  *

  “This is representative of all thirty-eight sites conducted by the Manez’s on Macklin’s Rock. The differences between the different sites showed us nothing. There was nothing at site 14 that was not found at any other site.

  “We were left with nothing, until Paul noticed an anomaly in site 14 itself. Not a variance between it and another site, but between its own reports. I want to show you the following three time-sensitive reports.”

  *

  Site 14: 13:12:23 GMT

  Aluminum, Calcium, Carbon, Cobalt, Copper, Iron, Magnesium, Nickel, Silicon, Titanium

  — Percentages Unknown

  *

  Site 14: 13:12:24 GMT

  Aluminum, Calcium, Carbon, Cobalt, Copper, Helium, Iron, Magnesium, Nickel, Silicon, Titanium

  — Percentages Unknown

  *

  Site 14: 13:12:25 GMT

  Aluminum, Calcium, Carbon, Cobalt, Copper, Iron, Magnesium, Nickel, Silicon, Titanium

  — Percentages Unknown

  *

  “Each of these reports was generated one second after the other. The final report was generated an instant before detonation. Do you notice a difference between the three?”

  Michael blinked. “Helium, of course. But—”

  “Helium is not an uncommon element in all celestial bodies, although not as readily found in asteroidal forms. The sun itself is composed of 25% helium. The thermonuclear reactions in the sun that provide us with light and energy turn the 75% hydrogen content into helium. Now, helium has the atomic number of ‘2’, and a weight of about ‘4.’ That means there are four protons and/or neutrons in the nucleus—in this case, two of each—and two electrons in the K-shell. Specific gravity of 0.00018—”

  “Yes, yes,” Michael said impatiently. “I know it’s been a few years since high school chemistry, but I do recall my periodic table.”

  “Actually, this is all new to me. Peter was kind enough to give me a crash course late last night.” He nodded to his colleague. “But you’ll soon realize that the second report was, in fact, in error in determining helium as one of the elements found in the drill site.”

  “What?”

  “Even I know that elements are usually identified by mass spectrometer, the instruments are so common that every geologist and physicist here has a small pocket spectrometer alongside their calculators. Going back over the reports, the large spectrometer at the Nelson II site initially identified the substance as helium not because it detected a color that indicated helium, but because it identified two electrons in a questionable element, and temporarily assumed it to be helium rather than an isotope of hydrogen or lithium. The spectrometers we employ on surveys use a free electron count to bolster our identification process to help determine isotopes as well as basic elements.

  “Then, in the third sampling, the spectrometer did not find a color to match helium, or any isotope of hydrogen or lithium, discounted the electron count, and dismissed the element as unidentifiable.”

  “Unidentifiable? Hydrogen usually is found in pairs—” Michael suggested.

  “No, the spectrometer showed nothing even remotely in that spectrum.”

  “What about two lithium atoms sharing an L-shell electron?” “No.” George smiled knowingly. “The spectrometer reading is completely out of that range.”

  “Then what good is this information?” Michael demanded.

  “First of all, we know that whatever this element is, it has two electrons, so obviously we thought it is an isotope of helium, say, a heavy helium to some degree. At first, we dismissed these findings because of the impossibilities of it. First, with a mass of .002 per cent of 10,000 teratons, give or take, would mean about 200 billion tons of helium. At a specific gravity of .000018, that would mean a volume of about 360,000 cubic meters. Initial drill samples indicate the pocket to be no more than 10 cubic meters.”

  “What does all that mean?”

  “Well, a rough estimate would be an isotope of helium with a nucleus, or atomic weight, of about 271, a specific gravity of about 210 grams per cubic centimeter.”

  There was a stunned silence in the room, until Michael said, “Impossible!”

  “Certainly…but then, so is luminous or super-luminous speeds.”

  Michael rubbed the palm of his hand across his mouth and chin. “All right, for the sake of argument, say this is possible. Either this is a super-heavy helium—”

  “Which is beyond the laws of physics,” added Paul, “even more than the impossibilities that we’re discussing now.”

  “This, in turn, would mean that we had a super-radioactive helium isotope on our hands. About a thousand times more radioactive than uranium.”

  “—Or,” the director prompted.

  George nodded. “Or, we have an element that is supposed to have upwards of 271 electrons floating around it. Something with anywhere from 110 to 271 protons in the nucleus, missing its electrons. A super-positively-charged ion.”

  “That would be…”

  “Anti-radioactive. Although not so far-fetched. It could be compared to solid-state technology that currently exists; like semiconductors and superconductors; though this would be the most pure form found naturally; a supraconductor, if you will. The core temperature of the asteroid is probably what keeps this super-superconducting material so pure. The elemental atoms would want to absorb as many electrons as it could from any source.”

  “Or neutrinos, or even photons from gamma rays,” Paul added. “Any available particle. We won’t know until we have a sample.”

  “Right, and, Newton’s Law of Physics states, every action has an equal and opposite reaction.”

  “Absolutely. So if this new Element absorbs the photon, the energy of that traveling photon is translated as…”

  Michael finished for him. “Electricity, heat, light…or…motion.”

  “In those amounts, translated at just under the speed of light. There would be a time delay, such as the thirteen seconds between detonation and launch of Macklin’s Rock, while the atoms fill to capacity. Once that has been achieved, the only thing left is, as in any radioactive reaction, for the massive energy to be released. Perhaps through the natural valve created by the Nelson II site drill, or, we think more likely instead of the propellant theory, these photon-charged atoms travel on an anti-magnetic propulsion basis, perhaps even in relation to the sun. A kind of super quantum reaction. We won’t know for certain until we have some of this element for tests.”

  “But that kind of sudden acceleration! Wouldn’t that have crushed Alex?” Michael supposed.

  Paul spoke up. “Normally, yes. The most-pressure a person could sustain for any length of time is about 8 G’s of force. At 8 G’s, it would take a thousand hours—five weeks or so—to achieve luminous speeds. There is an old theory about light: that it, in and of itself, has no weight. We’ve played with the physics of the Macklin’s Rock phenomenon, and all we can surmise is that, in some way, Element X operates in such a way that everything that piggybacks on it assumes a kind of superluminosity. It would, therefore, feel no effects of the acceleration, even at the supposed five million G’s of force the asteroid would have had to sustain over the course of the first minute. That would have pulverized even diamonds into fine dust.

  “The Rock, the TAHU, even Alex, would have taken on an accelerated molecular condition, which could have left the cells of his body in a semi-charged state. This would prove the unofficial theory you presented last week that he is somehow able to manipulate electrical pulses in his immediate area—this phenomenon is not uncommon to people who have been struck by lightning. They, themselves, have become living ions.”

  “This all sounds impossible.”

  “Rationally, it seems so, but we’ve half a dozen theories that prove it on paper.”

  Rocking back and forth in his chair, Micha
el thought about it. “For the time being, forgetting about the theories… How do we go about finding more samples, and if so, how to we keep it from reacting? What you’re saying is that this thing was in a pocket of minerals, surrounded by…” He looked to Gary, who held up a sheet of paper.

  “It was a titanium pocket, if the Nelson II depth indicators were accurate. Our present Nelson II’s allow a small gap of open space between the core of the drill hole and the surface of the asteroid…more than enough room for photons to breach.”

  “Then, when the drill pierced through, photons from the sun entered, and—”

  “Reaction—or, should I say, anti-reaction.”

  “Like the hypothetical tachyon, on this side of the speed of light.”

  Michael raised an eyebrow at the possibilities.

  “Right. We’ve discussed this with the engineers at CSE, and they think they could easily rig a Nelson II with a vacuum drill. We use a similar drill in the clean rooms when we don’t want samples contaminated.”

  Michael knew that, but his mind was buzzing with the new information and theories. “How do we go about determining the location of this…what shall we call it besides Element X? That sounds so mysterious, and we’re already on the road to solving this particular mystery.”

  George Markowitz cleared his throat, already prepared for the question.

  “Well, unofficially, we’ve been calling it the light-heavy element, as a kind of joke, but I’ve discussed this with a few of the others on the team, and when the time was right, we were going to put forward either the name, Manezum—” He waited for Michael’s reaction. “—or ‘Kinemet.’ “

  “Kinemet?”

  “Kinetic metal.”