were under control, PaulChernov turned to Mike. "That milling-laser," he said. "It's got afocus of about six inches maximum. How did you fix it so it could burnthe guard at that distance?"
"I didn't," said Mike briefly. "He already knows that lasers can reachfrom here to Earth. Why should I bother to tell him any different?"Turning to Tombu he handed him the Security man's radio. "See if youcan rig this," he said, "to broadcast everything they say over thegeneral intercom channel. It's about time we let people know what'shappening."
* * * * *
It took Tombu only minutes to hook in the radio. As he turned it on,Elbertson's voice came over the loud-speaker system. A roll call ofSecurity men was apparently being completed. The last three manresponded as called.
The Elbertson's voice, crisp but somewhat labored, came over theSecurity beam, booming throughout the ship. "It is obvious that therenegade scientists and engineer of the wheel have replaced the menguarding their sectors.
"As we were informed, the captain had put them in charge. Since theystruck the first blow, it is now up to Security to converge on themand eliminate them.
"Jones, Nackolai and Stanziale are detailed to the Dr. Chi mission.Nilson, Bernard and Cossairt are detailed to get the Indian. The restof you will take over where you are posted, and secure all personnelto their quarters.
"Clark. Drop your cover and take over control of the bridge.
"I expect to have Hot Rod operational within five minutes. And Clark.Instruct the computer to discontinue precession operations that havebeen initiated.
"Take whatever measures are necessary to carry out theseinstructions.
"This is no longer an undercover operation, gentlemen. Security istaking control.
"This is war."
* * * * *
As the last sentence came over the loud-speaker, Mike sprang to theintercom. He quickly keyed the direct line to engineering.
"Ishie," he said, "I gather you're safe?"
"Yes, Mike. Situation here very secure. I heard announcement ofconflict. You need not tell me to put the Cow under our control. It isdone. She will obey no one else until further instructed from here. Ididn't instruct her to obey only instructions by me, Mike, because weare all expendable now."
As he finished speaking, the intercom went dead. Obviously thecommunications officer, as his first act, had turned off the centralintercom power system under his control.
* * * * *
On the bridge, from the time that Mike and Ishie had left, the pictureof what was occurring had grown more ominous by the minute.
More than the vague, official messages had been flooding in fromEarth.
At the captain's command, the communications officer had opened up achannel for news broadcasts, and put it on the speaker so they couldall hear.
The news round-ups indicated that various elements and factions in theworld below had had their say--each more vicious than the last.
From an original rumor of a minor space disaster, it had become atremendous accident that had wiped out Thule Base and left a smokingruins of Greenland.
From this it had become--possible sabotage.
From this, a direct, unprovoked attack by the scientists on Earthitself.
Suddenly statesmen were standing forth in the U.N., condemning theactions of country after country that had made possible the greatwheel; and just as suddenly, word had been announced:
Earth would be protected. The U.N. would act.
The U.N., it suddenly was found, controlled the majority of allweapons on Earth; controlled the majority of all armies, navies, andall stockpiles of ships and planes and ammunition that it had soboastingly told everyone that it had scrapped.
The honeyed phrases of a few years before that there would always bepeace on Earth, and that the U.N. had taken the bite out of war,changed; and the individual nations were now forgotten.
Now the U.N. itself was the military power; and now it would be U.N.telling others what to do.
Mobilization would be declared. A war footing for the economy.Everyone must fight back against the insane scientists above withtheir inhuman weapon.
With appalling swiftness, where apparently nothing had been before, amilitary force stepped forth in full armor to grind man's hopes forfreedom under an iron heel while waving its fist at the stars.
At first there had been voices crying out against this monstrousaction, this unbelievable birth, in the U.N. Assembly. But the voiceshad become fewer and fewer, weaker and weaker, and in a matter ofhours had been drowned out.
Amazingly, even now, there were one or two who stood up in an attemptto stem the tide; but they were ignored, and a ninety-eight per centfavorable vote was cast.
The U.N. Security Forces had been granted dictatorial powers.
For the "duration of the emergency."
The die was cast, and the yoke fitted, ever so snugly but firmly,across mankind's back, while he cheered the fitting.
Captain Nails Andersen sat stunned at his console.
The communications officer sat back, paying little attention to theboard before him, a light smirk on his face.
But the smirk dropped from his face suddenly. Rising over thebackground chatter of the radio announcements from U.N. Headquarters,came loudly over the ship general intercom the voice of Major SteveElbertson, counting down through the list of Security personnel.
He, too, sat stunned until, as the voice ended "This is war," he cameto, stood up needle gun in hand, pointed at the captain.
"I don't know how your slipstick boys cracked our code and picked thatmessage up," he said, "and I don't really care. As you heard, themajor has ordered me to take command of the bridge. I hereby do so."
Coming through the bulkhead were two more Security men, each with aneedle gun. His gun unwaveringly pointed at the captain, Com OfficerClark reached down and flipped the red switch that turned off thepower to all of the ship intercoms.
* * * * *
On board Hot Rod, the Security crew was working against an acceleratedtime-schedule now. The aiming controls of Hot Rod's big mirror wereinfinitely precise--and correspondingly slow. As soon as the storagepower supply had been wired into the big weapon--a precise operation,requiring both skill and time--the factors had been keyed in thatwould bring the mirror in an arc, turning it to bear precisely on thatarea of space through which the passenger spokes of the wheel turned;but the motion of the mirror was infinitesimally slow.
As the crew of Hot Rod strove to get it into position to fire; and thecomputer on the wheel strove to precess the wheel to a position wherefiring would be fatal to the firer, it became a race between giantsnails.
But already the rim of the big wheel had inched slightly ahead in therace; and the main part of the hub was disappearing behind it. Inspite of Elbertson's orders, the big wheel continued to turn its rimdirectly towards the giant balloon with its bulbous nose.
It was a curious sensation, seeing the big wheel from this angle.Much the same sensation as that of an ant, staring at the oncomingwheel of a huge truck.
* * * * *
In the machine shop, Mike was rummaging around in one of the toollockers. "Any sort of a small telescope," he muttered, almost tohimself. Then "Paul, is there a theodolite or anything like that leftlying around in here?"
"Yes," said Paul, moving off to a cabinet in another part of the room."We needed them when we were putting the wheel together."
"O.K." Mike turned back to the laser milling machine. "Now can we takethe focusing lens off of this, and rig something to give me a focus atabout 4.5 miles? Or would it need focusing at all? Shooting at thatdistance?"
"Depends on what you shoot, Mike. The unfocused beam can make a blacksurface very hot very quick. But from a mirror surface, it would justbounce, unless it's carefully focused."
"It ought to take care of the plastic at least, then."
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"Go right through it. You gonna laser Hot Rod?"
"No. Just the anchor tubes that hold the mirror; and maybe a slashthrough the nitrogen tank at the back. Here, make me a bracket to fitthese two things together, so I can see what I'm aiming at." He handedthe theodolite telescope and the laser milling-head to Paul.
"How much of the machine do I have to take to power thatmilling-head?" he asked Tombu.
"Oh, most of it's just control circuits. This box on the back is thepower supply. Plugs right in to ship's power."
"Hey!" Mike called over to Paul now busy constructing a bracket. "Makethat bracket to hold this power supply, too. Oh, and round me up aboutsixty feet of extension cord, Tombu."
"But, Mike, how are you going to get out there?" Millie's voice wasconcerned. "They've probably got men all