Frederick was oversized. About seventy, he had dark hair and the look of a guy who’d wandered into the wrong studio. He shifted his position and assumed what he must have thought a professorial attitude. “No question,” he said. “As I see it, what we need to do…”
She killed the volume. Watched the big man waggling his finger and lecturing the audience. There’d been a lot of that lately. “Marla,” she said, “do a sweep for me, please. Last six hours. I’d like to see any commentaries taking the same position: The moonriders are a threat, and we need to build a fleet to deal with them.”
“Very good,” said Marla. “It’ll take a minute.”
“Meanwhile, you can shut down Blanche and Frederick.”
The picture went off.
She got two calls on administrative issues, then Marla was back. “Ready to go.”
First up was Red Dowding warning the viewers in his flat, matter-of-fact style that time might be running out “for the human race.” Judith Henry, a regular on The Capital Crowd, advised that we may not have the luxury of guessing wrong. And Omar Rollinger, on Sunrise with Omar, commented that there will be weak-kneed people who say we shouldn’t rush into anything, but it might already be too late. A dozen more shows were queued up.
There were plenty of pictures. The asteroid sweeping the hotel aside, the Salvator collecting survivors from the shuttle, preparations going forward to send a pair of cargo ships to turn aside the Terranova Rock. Several commentators thought the mission shouldn’t be launched until an armed escort could be provided.
ASQUITH WAS BACK that afternoon, looking flustered. “Don’t have time to talk,” he told her.
“What’s going on, Michael?”
“Another hearing.”
“The appropriations committee again?”
“No.”
“Who?”
He was dragging a change of clothes out of his closet. “Defense. They’re trying to decide whether the moonriders are a threat. The truth is it’s probably politics. People are excited, so they have to do something. They called a committee meeting with no advance warning.” He disappeared into his inner sanctum, then popped right out again. “People are worried about what they’re hearing.”
“The media have gone berserk.”
“The media always go berserk. A kid falls off a bike in Montana, they’re all over it. Until something else happens. This time, though, the fears may be real.”
“Michael,” she said, “don’t you think this is all a bit over the top?”
“Who knows?” His expression seemed frozen. “Whatever the moonriders are, they’re obviously not friendly. If we get attacked, what do we fight with? We’d be helpless.”
“If they have the capability to divert anything as massive as the Galactic asteroid, and aim it dead on at the hotel, we’re going to be helpless no matter what.”
Asquith smiled. “I can just see the Congress saying something like that to the voters.”
“I’m not concerned about the voters. I’m not a politician.”
“You better be concerned, Hutch. The voters pay your salary.”
“That’s not significant at the moment. I was trying to make a point.”
“As was I. If it gets around that we can’t compete with these lunatics after all the money that’s been put into the program over more than sixty years, longer than that really, then when this is over, you and I will be out on the street. And deservedly so.”
It was a beautiful spring day. A bit on the warm side, maybe. Bright sun in a cloudless sky. “What are you going to tell the committee, Michael?”
“I’ll ask that they increase our funding so we can beef up the surveillance program we’ve just initiated. Track these things down. Find out what they are. What they want.”
“We’ll need ships. New ones.”
“Right. That’s what I’m going to request. And I’m going to ask for some armament. We have to confront the problem head-on.” He actually looked pained. “We need to get the Council on board. If they’re not willing, then the NAU should go it alone with our allies. Whatever it takes. It’s what they want to hear. So they’ll buy into it.”
“Okay.”
“We need to think about what kind of armament should be placed on Academy ships. I’ll want a proposal on my desk in the morning.”
“Michael, I don’t know anything about weaponry.”
“Ask somebody. Particle beams, lasers, and nukes. That’s what we’ll want. And anything else you can think of.”
ATTACK IMMINENT FROM OUTER SPACE?
Amid Laughter, World Council to Debate Options
LANBERG TAKES AMERICUS
Black Hole Physics Wins for Winnipeg Native
CHILD ABDUCTIONS UP ACROSS COUNTRY
Experts Advocate Tracking Devices
CAVALIER NEARS SURVEYOR MUSEUM
Galactic Engineers to Start Home Tomorrow
Orion Will Rebuild “Won’t Be Scared
Off by Crazies,” Says CEO
SUPERLUMINALS TO DIVERT TERRANOVA ROCK
Corporate Giants Cooperate to Save First Living World
Kosmik, MicroTech, Orion, Monogram Combine Resources
HURRICANE SEASON: MORE STORMS, MORE INTENSE
Population Decline in Hurricane Alley Continues
Dakotas, Saskatchewan, Manitoba Booming
CONGRESS: TERM LIMITS WILL NOT GET OUT OF
COMMITTEE
PROPOSAL TO BAN SMOKING IN HOMES WHEN
CHILDREN PRESENT
Iowa Bill Promises Major Clash
What Are the Limits of Government?
TREATMENT OF LIVESTOCK BECOMES ISSUE IN
WYOMING
Do Steers Have Rights?
Energy Relay Collapses
City in Dark for Six Hours
LOOKING BACK: LAST NUCLEAR PLANT CLOSED 100
YEARS AGO TODAY
HELLFIRE TRIAL TO GET NATIONAL COVERAGE
Starts Thursday
chapter 33
Truth, beaten down, may well rise again. But there’s a reason it gets beaten down. Usually, we don’t like it very much.
— Gregory MacAllister, “Why We All Love Sweden”
When the Salvator docked at Union, officials, journalists, and well-wishers were waiting. Valya and her passengers strode out of the exit tube and were greeted by shouts and applause. Amy spotted her father in the crowd. With Hutch beside him. He waved and pushed through. “Good to see you, Hon,” he said, wrapping his arms around her. Everybody was taking pictures. “Glad you’re home. I was worried.”
“I’m fine, Dad,” she said. “It was a good flight.” That sounded dumb, but she didn’t know what else to say.
People began tossing questions at her. There was confusion; some of them thought she’d been with Valya during the rescue at the Galactic. When they discovered she’d stayed behind in the museum, they went elsewhere.
Eventually Hutch worked her way to her side. “Hey, Champ,” she said, “welcome home. You guys had quite a time out there.”
She moved to embrace the girl, but Amy stiffened. Allowed it to happen but didn’t respond. Hutch was too much like the woman on the bridge.