'Right,' Humphreys addressed him. 'We think a super powerful laser could be fashioned which could siphon off some of the mass of the hole. Even more,' he paused, 'there are hints from Krone's notes that such a process could be even more efficient than the basic first order theory would indicate. We haven't worked it all out yet, but certain of his data suggest the existence of non-linear effects which could improve the efficiency of the stimulated emission dramatically.'
'Just how dramatic is that?' asked Runyan. 'You don't want to liberate too much energy too fast — Me' for that hole is a lot of E.'
'There is no way to eliminate the hole in one step with any foreseeable technology, and, indeed, we would not want to if we could, as you rightly point out,' replied Humphreys. 'If what I'm suggesting works at all, the best we can hope for is to peel a little bit of mass off at a time and to repeat the process many, many times.
'Viktor has also devised an interesting variation on that theme. A properly shaped initiating blast may cause the bulk of the energy to be liberated in one direction. We might be able to guide the impulse in such a way as to offset the drag and keep the hole from settling prematurely completely into the earth. Our hope is to boost the orbit so that it is totally outside the earth. Then little by little we could widen the orbit and eventually set it adrift into interstellar space.
'If the process must be repeated a thousand times to gain control, we have hope. A million times? Well, we should begin looking for a new home.'
'Do you have any idea how effective the process will be?' inquired Phillips, maintaining his quiet demeanour.
'It depends on the relative efficiency for the production of photons and particles with mass: electrons, protons, neutrons. There will also be neutrinos. The particles are the most efficient repository for mass and momentum, from our point of view. The neutrinos can in principle carry off a large amount of energy. If the process works at all, there should be a large explosion.
'To answer your question, Wayne,' Humphreys continued, 'our current estimates are that the hole could be nudged out of the earth with about a hundred thousand repetitions, each releasing about the explosive energy of a ten megaton bomb. Those numbers are very tentative. They could be off by a factor of a hundred either way.'
'Your recommendation then?' Phillips wanted to know.
'Put every talented scientist available on the analysis of Krone's notes, and begin the design and engineering of the necessary laser. The first goal is to run a field test to see whether it works. Then go into full scale mass production. The lasers will be immense and expensive, and, if the process works, you'll destroy them every time.'
'We must also worry about the others,' rumbled Korolev, 'the three he made first.'
'As I understand it,' Runyan said, 'our government and yours are analysing every scrap of seismic and sonar data available. I think one of them has been found.'
Phillips swirled his drink and took a reflective sip of it.
'Viktor,' he said, 'I think there's no question that you and Clarence are to be congratulated for coming up with such a clever and positive sounding approach. What about the practical problems, though? It strikes me that what you have suggested is going to be fiendishly difficult to accomplish in reality.'
Korolev gave Phillips a long frank look devoid of the self— effacing geniality he had been displaying.
'This frightens me,' he said. 'I can think of no other way to proceed, but what we ask, to hit a rapidly moving, vanishingly small particle in just the right way — this is very difficult. By comparison, the moon is huge, your Apollo programme a trivial exercise.'
The Russian paused to rub his chin. 'The stakes are very much higher now,' he said in a ruminative tone. 'If we fail, it is not just the prestige of a country that is at risk, but the future of all life.' His head sunk on his chest, and he lost himself for a moment in the flicker from the grate. 'We must try,' he continued, 'but some projects are too-complex, too difficult, to be solved by any number of talented people, any amount of resources.'
He was silent again for a while. Then his head came up, and he leaned forward with a more earnest air. He gestured with an extended forefinger.
'Here are some of the problems we face. How do we make a laser which works at the energies most destructive to the black hole? The lasers must be huge, but they must swivel rapidly while maintaining infinitesimal accuracy. How do we do that? The operation must be computer controlled, but the task is monumental. I fear a new generation of computers must be invented just for that purpose alone.'
The four men talked late into the night, analysing the strengths and weaknesses of the plan and solutions to unprecedented engineering problems. The next morning they caught an early shuttle to Washington.
Four months later on a Saturday afternoon. Pat Danielson shouldered her way through the door other new condominium, kicked the door shut with her foot, and set the bulky box of kitchen utensils down in the middle of the disarray. The room was piled with cardboard boxes pilfered from liquor and grocery stores. The only piece of furniture was a sofa bed which would have to do double duty until she could buy more furniture. She walked down the hallway to the left, sniffing the acrid, clashing odours of new carpet and paint, past the small bedroom she would use as a study and the bathroom opposite, and into the larger bedroom with its own bath and dressing area. She walked the length of the room to the curtainless window which faced the front of the complex and opened it to the fresh spring air. Looking straight down six storeys, she could see the security guard structure at the front gate. Craning her neck to the right she could see, just past the small balcony jutting from her front room, the swimming pool sauna complex, and the tennis courts beyond. What a swinger, she kidded herself.
'Coffee's on!' she heard Janine shout from the kitchen.
Coffee? 'How are you making coffee?' she called back as she retraced her steps down the hallway. Her old coffee pot was in the box she had just carried in. As she entered the front room she inhaled the delicious aroma and followed it into the kitchen. The cabinets were bare except for a new automatic drip coffee maker and a bag of freshly ground mocha java.
'Where did that come from?' Pat marvelled.
'House present,' Janine said. 'From Alex Runyan. He stopped by while you were gone. He tried to call the apartment, but I guess you weren't there yet, or had left. Did you know he was in town?'
'I'm not too surprised. There's a meeting next week that I thought he'd be involved in, but he's not a great one for advance notice.'
'He said he had some business this afternoon, but would call you later.'
'Great, and I'm supposed to hold my Saturday open until the last minute in case he shows up.'
Janine was embarrassed by her friend's predicament and covered up by grabbing a couple of glasses off the counter.
'Well, at least we can drink his coffee. I couldn't find the cups. Can we make do with these?' She brandished the tumblers.
'Sure,' Pat conceded. 'It smells marvellous.'
Janine filled the glasses three-quarters of the way to the top. 'Watch out,' she warned, 'they'll.be hot with no handles. Hold the top.' She banded one to Danielson, and they moved through the tableless dining area into the living room.
Pat looked around at the piles of boxes, the sofa heaped with clothes, laughed and sat on the floor, leaning against the wall, crossing her legs in front of her. Janine perched on the edge of a box. She lifted her glass, held gingerly by the upper rim.
'Here's to your promotion and new home, ex-roomie; may it become the den of iniquity you've always wanted.' Pat chuckled, 'Fat chance of that.'
They sat quietly, sipping the rich coffee, each lost in her own thoughts.
'Pat?'
'Um?'
'What's the matter between you and Alex? He's always seemed so charming to me.'
Pat was silent for a moment.
'Would you go out with him?'
'Sure, I guess so.'
'That's the problem. He'd take you up on it. Roommate or not. The truth is, of course, that I still find him fascinating. He knows so much about so many dungs. He's warm and engaging and can focus some sort of personal
