Part 43 (1/2)
With the ghost of a smile, the President said, ”That's the thanks I get for nominating you to the International Court of Justice?”
”Come off it, Luce.”
”You backed me on the nanotech treaty when you were in the Senate.”
”Because I didn't want nanotechnology turned into a new arms race,” Jill said. ”I never thought the treaty'd be used against Moonbase. They can't exist without nanomachines and you know it.”
The President sighed. ”So I suppose you'll vote in favor of their independence if the question comes up before the World Court?”
”It's on our docket for November. I've tried to get an emergency session to hear the matter, but I was voted down.”
”It doesn't matter, Jill. By November the question will have been settled conclusively. In fact, it should be settled in about a week or so.”
”You're going to do it, then? Attack Moonbase?”
”The United Nations is doing it, not me.”
”But you're not raising a protest? If you hollered, Faure would have to have to listen.” listen.”
”I am not going to interfere with a U.N. operation,” said the President.
Jill fumed in silence for a moment, then grumbled, ”Well, I hope you don't expect to get re-elected.”
This time the President's smile showed teeth. ”The New Morality will re-elect me because because I backed the enforcement of the nanotech treaty.” I backed the enforcement of the nanotech treaty.”
”You think so?”
”All the polls show it conclusively.”
”So you're not going to let Killifer be extradited?”
”Under no circ.u.mstances.”
”d.a.m.n! If I were Doug Stavenger I'd come down there and hang the man myself.”
”Vigilante justice? From a judge of the World Court?”
”Justice,” Jill snapped. ”When your own government won't give you justice, you've got the right to make your own move. Jefferson wrote that into the Declaration of Independence, remember?”
”But Jill dear, Stavenger and the rest of his Lunatics don't regard us as their government anymore. Do they?”
Jill had no answer. Luce always was the better debater; she could score points off the devil himself whenever she chose to.
MOONBASE.
Jinny Anson's office was crowded. Doug sat at the foot of the table that b.u.t.ted against her desk, flanked by Zimmerman and Cardenas, the heads of Moonbase's major departments, and the physicist Wicksen. There was no room at the little table for Edith, so she sat slightly behind Doug and to his right.
Bam Gordette sat alone on the couch by the door, separated from all the others by a meter of empty floor s.p.a.ce and an uneasy distrust that was almost palpable. The others are treating Bam as if he's a leper, Doug thought.
”You're certain the Peacekeepers are gonna make their move so soon?” Jinny Anson was asking.
”We've got maybe a week, if we're lucky,” Doug replied grimly. ”What can we accomplish in that time?”
A gloomy silence filled the office. Even the normally perky Anson looked downcast.
”Wix?” Doug asked. ”We need the beam gun up and working in a week.”
The physicist shook his head slowly, his big soulful eyes staring straight at Doug. ”I told you it would take two lunar days... two months.”
”You've got seven Earth days,” Doug said. ”Maybe less.”
Wicksen started to shake his head.
”Put every man you've got onto it,” urged Doug. ”And every woman.”
”We're already working flat out.”
”How close are you?”
The physicist shrugged uncomfortably, more like a writhing.
”The beam collimator is finished. The aiming circuitry is ready to be tested. Then we've got to bring the kloodges out to the ma.s.s driver and mate them. Then we need to test the complete system.”
”Kloodges?” Edith asked. ”What are they?”
”Ramshackle collections of hardware,” Harry Clemens answered in his laconic tw.a.n.g before Wicksen could respond. ”Clinking, clanking, caliginous collections of junk.”
”Oh.”
”Makes.h.i.+ft hardware,” Wicksen said, grimacing slightly at Clemens. ”Slapped together quickly, without worrying about how it looks.”
”Kloodges,” Edith repeated.
Doug demanded, ”Can you put it all together by the end of this week?”
”We have to test-”
”We don't have time for testing!” Doug said sharply. ”Get the hardware together, make it functional. You can test it after it's completely a.s.sembled, if the Peacekeepers give us enough time.”
Wicksen's big eyes widened even further. ”You'd hang the survival of this base on untested equipment?”
”If it doesn't work, we're dead anyway,” Doug pointed out. ”Right?”
The physicist thought it over for a moment, his big tarsier's eyes staring at Doug. At last he admitted, ”Right.”
”Wait a minute,” Anson said, from behind her desk. ”Wix, will you have enough time to rig the control system so you can operate the beam gun from inside, here?”
”No. We'll have to run it manually, out there at the ma.s.s driver.”
”In suits,” said Vince Falcone.