THE BRINK - OPERATION DEEP FLIGHT Read online

  CHAPTER TEN

  - KENNEDY SPACE CENTER -

  “We’re at T minus 20 and holding,” the voice said calmly over the microphone.

  “What do you think?”

  “I think that if this goes as planned our lives

  will be changed forever.”

  “That’s for sure. This is just the first step.

  Peter, let’s just hope this thing works as we said it would.”

  “It will. It will. You know what you’re doing.”

  “Unless something goes wrong with the rocket.”

  “Luke, you’re always borrowing trouble,” Peter said to his friend and fellow designer of the Pioneer 10 probe.

  “Beginning count down,” the voice said. “T minus 20...19...18...17...16...15...14...13...12...11...10. T minus 10 and holding.”

  “What?”

  “Oh hell Luke, you’re the one who works for NASA. You know they always hold at T-minus 10 for one last look. Just relax. Everything is going to be fine.”

  “T minus 10...9...8...7...6...T minus 5...4...3”

  “We have primary ignition,” another voice said.

  “2...1...lift off.”

  “Lift off,” Luke muttered.

  “We have lift off,” a voice confirmed.

  “Looking good. T-limn on, starting auto rotation,” a voice drifted across the room.

  People were excited to see the rocket launch successfully completed but it was not the same as when it was a manned launch. Nevertheless, a successful launch was good for NASA.

  “Down range 20 miles. Looking good.”

  “All systems green. All systems go.”

  “Go you bastard,” Luke said under his breath.

  “Well my friend, it is on its way. I guess you can breathe a little easier now.”

  “Yeah. Now if the doggone thing doesn’t work there is no one to blame but us.”

  “Luke, give it a rest, okay?”

  “Sorry. It’s just what I do.”

  “What a combination. My ‘go at any cost’ and your anal retentiveness. What a pair. Anyway, we seem to get the job done, somehow.”

  “I’m not anal retentive. I just happen to think every detail is important. That's called detail oriented.”

  “Call it what you want.”

  “Down range 80 miles, all systems are go.”

  “My friend, it looks like your dream is off to a good

  start. Look, there isn’t anything else for us to do here. Let’s go have a beer and celebrate.”

  “Now that’s a plan.”

  They left the launch site and headed to Luke’s car.

  Peter Ferris and Luther Hall had been friends for most of their lives. They had both graduated from Central High School in Muncie, Indiana. Luther was the more serious of the two and they seemed to make a rather odd pair. Luke was slightly better at some subjects, especially the boring ones that were nothing more than memory work and details. Peter was the free thinker. He was always working on some scheme. He would think them up, talk Luke into going along, and let him work out the details.

  Peter would be the slave driver to make sure it got done. That, he could do with a flourish. He could sell a Ford to a Chevrolet dealer if given the inclination to do so. After graduation they applied to the University of California at Berkeley. They were both immensely interested in space and the possibility of space travel. Peter had considered trying to be an astronaut at one time until he learned of the rigorous requirements. He wanted to travel into space without all the strings attached. Both had done well and had graduated with honors.

  While in College, Peter became friends with Dr. Langton in the astrophysics department. Dr. Langton spent a great deal of time at the cyclotron at Berkeley and Peter would go along whenever he had the chance.

  Over the years the relationship solidified and Peter was able to learn far more than a normal student in a classroom environment. Peter would spend as much time as he could at the atom smasher. It was something that he could really apply himself to. Luke and Peter remained friends even though their academic paths took them down different roads.

  * * *

  “Well, Doctor Hall.”

  “Yes, Doctor Ferris?” Luke said in return.

  “I always knew you would make it,” Peter said holding his hand out in congratulations.

  Luke shook his hand and said, “And I never thought you would.”

  “Gee thanks.”

  “No problem.”

  “Shall we get out of this garb and on with our lives?” Peter said indicating the robes they had on for graduation.

  “There are things to do and worlds to conquer,” Luke replied.

  After they had changed and found their way to a local hot spot pub in Peter's car they settled in for a long night of self-indulgence.

  “Well, did you accept the job from DigiLabs?”

  “You bet your ass. How could I not? They offer everything I ever wanted,” Peter answered,

  “Everything?”

  “Well, not everything,” Peter said eyeing a long legged blond sitting a couple of tables away, “What about you?”

  “I’m going to take the offer with NASA. It certainly doesn’t pay as much as the offer you got, but it sounds the most interesting.”

  “You’re crazy. Why would you take fifteen thousand dollars less, just to work at NASA?”

  “Peter, it’s not just all about money. It’s what I want to do. Besides why would I need all that money anyway?”

  Peter just pointed at the blond sitting at the table.

  “You don’t need money for one of those.”

  “The hell you don’t. Anyway, it never hurts to have a pocket full of jack handy.”

  They proceeded to get rip-roaring drunk. At some point Peter had tried to pick up the blond but her date didn’t take kindly to the act and let Peter know it. Peter was ready to settle the thing right then and there but Luke intervened as always and saved his friend a good thumping.

  “I could have taken 'em both,” Peter said in a slurred voice.

  “Sure you could have Pete. I was just saving that guy's ass. I didn’t want you to humiliate him in front of his date.”

  “Him?”

  “Yeah, the guy you were going to fight.”

  “There was just one of them?”

  “You are drunk Pete.”

  “What about her. I could take her, right?”

  “Time to go,” he said steering his friend out the door,

  “I’ll drive.”

  “Good, I’ll just throw up.”

  “Excellent. We came in your car,” Luke said, laughing.

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  - DigiLabs Inc. -

  The next several years found both men immersed in their professional careers. Every time one of them would get some notoriety, or a promotion, they would get in touch with each other. For two men of such different personalities and temperament, it was hard to understand why they were such good friends.

  Peter went to work for DigiLabs and made great headway in the corporate structure. Wheeling and dealing, his impact was immediately felt within the company. Many fell under his spell but just as many were leery. All sizzle and no steak, was how some felt. While his corporate life was progressing nicely, Peter’s personal life was on hold.

  He drifted in and out of relationships but could never find the right woman. The problem was usually Peter. His attention span was short and he seldom upheld his end of the deal. It wasn’t that he didn’t care, it was just the way he viewed the world. There was never enough excitement to satisfy his adventurous nature. He had the constant urge to go further and further, to continually test the limits. Once he arrived at a stopping point, the glow of accomplishment would be short lived, and within a few months, it was time to reach out again.

  Luke was much more stable and was ready to settle down and accomplish his goals in a logical and rational manner. Within a year of receiving his Ph.D. he was married. Peter was, o
f course, his best man. Luke was the consummate detail man and his reputation within NASA was well respected.

  Luke’s major problem was that he just wasn't assertive enough to get what he really deserved. This was especially true when it came to getting additional funding or the approval for a project that he wanted to initiate.

  “Doctor Ferris, it’s Doctor Hall on the line.”

  “Great. Put him through.”

  “Hi Pete, how they hangin’?” Luke's familiar voice came through the phone.

  “Low and outside. So what’s up with you?”

  “Two things. First, Liz and I are going to have a baby,” he said excitedly.

  “What? You finally figured how to screw? It’s about time.”

  “Asshole.”

  “No, really. That’s great. I’ll bet Liz is in seventh heaven.”

  “Floating like a cloud.”

  “Fantastic. When is she due?”

  “Seven months. She just found out yesterday.”

  “Far out. Give her my love,” Peter said.

  “Thanks. You know I will. Listen Peter, I have something else to ask you.”

  “Sure, ask away. What gives?”

  “Peter, I’m working on getting NASA to send a probe to Saturn. Actually to Titan, one of Saturn’s moons.”

  “So?”

  “Well, I need someone with your talents to drive the project. I can get the ball rolling but I need someone who can really ramrod this project to completion. It’s been started two or three times but always stalls.”

  “You mean quit DigiLabs and come to work for NASA?”

  “Sort of.”

  “Sort of?”

  “Well, a colleague of mine has pull with Arthur Anderson, the founder of DigiLabs. He could get you loaned to us as a consultant. They would supplement your pay considerably,” Luke said, knowing that would spark his interest.

  “Luke, we’re working on a breakthrough in super cooled conductors here. It’s my project. I don’t think I could just shelve it. It potentially means billions of dollars to this company.”

  “You wouldn’t have to give up your work at DigiLabs. Just do what you do best. Knee someone in the groin until they listen, then push this thing through.”

  “It’s that important to you?”

  “Pete, you know it is. It’s what I’ve been working for ever since we left college.”

  “Look Luke, I want to help, okay? I just don’t see how I can leave at this stage in our project. We are so damn close. This is my project, just like that one is yours. I want to be here when my team brings this baby home. I’ll have to think about this. I just don’t think I can commit to NASA at this point. Once this conductor is finished I would be glad to help if it can be arranged,” he told his friend.

  “What kind of timeframe are you talking about?”

  “Hell, I don’t have the faintest idea. It could be weeks or months. It could happen later today. We’re just so damn close it’s frustrating.”

  “What’s the main hang up?” Luke asked.

  Peter went into a long explanation on what they were running into as a stumbling block. They had talked several times in the past about his project so Luke had a reasonable grasp of the problem.

  “Have you tried cooling the conductor with trimix as soon as it's formed?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Well, it might just add the necessary oxygen molecule you need to make the conductor more stable when it’s submerged.”

  “You mean to embed an oxygen molecule into the conductor so the resistance would be lowered.”

  “It might work.”

  “Gee Luke, that’s a workable idea. We’ll give it a try.”

  “I don’t know if that will really work, but it makes sense to me. How would you go about actually getting it to bond?”

  “Hey, don’t worry about the small stuff. I have a first rate team. We'll figure that part out. Listen Luke, thanks. That’s a hell of an idea you came up with. I’ll let you know how it works out. Give my best to Liz.”

  “The best of you ran down your mother’s leg,” Luke said, as he had done hundreds of times before, to his friend.

  “See you buddy.”

  * * *

  - DigiLabs Banquet -

  “We are all here tonight to honor one of our best and brightest young stars,” Arthur Anderson said, to the elegantly dressed dinner crowd.

  “DigiLabs has had a remarkable run of good fortune, but it is more than that. Having good people is closer to the truth. Of course, a little luck never hurt anyone,” he said.

  The crowd chuckled appropriately, as when any speaker makes a well-worn remark like that.

  “Since we began, with a modest sales of three million our first fiscal year, we have grown to a company that has just passed the one billion dollar mark,” he said, and the people seated around the tables applauded loudly.

  When it died down, he continued, “of course all of this has been possible, because of all of you seated out there. As CEO, one of my greatest pleasures is recognizing an extraordinary performer, from among a totally exceptional staff of employees. As most of you know, DigiLabs has been the lead story in most of the trade journals, leading periodicals, and almost every other form of media. We are the first company to develop a super cooled conductor in such a way that it is both practical and affordable. Many larger companies have been hammering away at this for years but our little company beat them to the punch. How could we have accomplished such a giant step in such a short time? By having the very brightest and best men and women in the field today. Tonight we are here to honor the head of the team that reached the pinnacle of success so few even aspire to. I have to admit, even I felt discouraged at times, but one man just would not let it die. Tenacious, resilient, and frankly, a pain in the rear at times,” he said as the audience laughed, “That alone tells you who we are here to honor, doesn’t it?” he asked jokingly as the audience applauded.

  “Ladies and gentlemen, honored guests, I would like to present you with DigiLabs’s Man of the Year, Doctor Peter Ferris.”

  The room erupted with applause. Peter stood and walked to the podium. The people in the room stood as well and continued to clap supportively.

  “Whoa...ah...wow...thank you. Thank you all very much,” he said into the microphone as they started to take their seats again.

  “Gosh, make a few billion and suddenly everyone loves you,” he said and the crowd laughed.

  “I am overwhelmed. This is a great honor, and I am very proud to be presented with such a distinguished award. Where to begin? First and foremost, I would like to thank Arthur Anderson for his support and encouragement,” he said and the guests applauded again.

  “Second, I would like to recognize the absolute best team of dedicated professionals in any field of endeavor, Doctors James Arnold, Mike Pearson, Angela Kingman, Linda Matters, and Jerry Wind.”

  The audience applauded and stood again.

  After it subsided, Peter continued, “Without those brilliant minds, we would not have been able to conquer the rest of the field. Their hard work, long hours, and total dedication are the real reason I am standing here tonight.”

  Polite applause again filled the room.

  “Are you sure that’s really Peter?” Liz whispered into Luke’s ear.

  “I think they are working on cloning here as well,” he kidded back.

  Peter went on to express his thanks to the many people who had contributed to the success of DigiLabs's latest triumph.

  “Last and certainly not least, I would like to say a special thanks to a great friend whom I was able to discuss some of our detailed problems with. Without him, I doubt if I would even be standing in this room, let alone receiving this award. To my very good friend, Doctor Luther Hall of NASA, a heartfelt, thank you.”

  People applauded as Peter acknowledged his lifelong friend.

  “You’re sure that’s Peter?” Liz said when Luke sat back down.
r />   “Couldn’t be. Someone’s got the real Pete locked away someplace,” Luke joked back.

  The speeches continued and at last, the event was winding down. Peter came over to the table to join Liz and Luke.

  “Liz what do you have under that dress? Could that be a bun in the oven? Whose is it? I swear I won’t tell Luke. My God, it isn’t mine is it?” he asked in mock horror.

  “Pete you jerk. It’s good to see you again. Luke has been beside himself. You would have thought he was the one getting the award,” Liz said, kissing Peter on the cheek.

  “Luke,” he said, grabbing his hand and shaking it, “You’re one of a kind. You deserve the award as much as I do. It was your suggestion that I followed up on, and I’ll be damned if it didn’t work.”

  “Knock it off Pete. You did the work. You deserve the glory. I’m proud as hell of you.”

  “Me too,” Liz added beaming.

  “So?” Luke asked.

  “So? So what?” Peter said.

  “Don’t do this you creep. Are you going to help me or not? You owe me pal.”

  “But you just said I deserved the credit,” Pete joked.

  “I lied. Are you coming?”

  “You bet your sweet bippy. I talked to Anderson last week and he was in such a congenial mood that he gave me his blessing. I can take up to six months without further negations.”

  “Outstanding. Man, this makes it all worthwhile.”

  “Maybe for you, but it scares the heck out of me. You two back together again. Peter Ferris, you had just better not get Luke into more trouble,” Liz said, only half kidding.

  “Oh Liz. It will be great. This will give you time to go to work on him and maybe even get him to settle down some,” Luke said to Liz.

  “In a pig’s eye,” she said.

  “When are you coming?” Luke asked.”

  “I’ll need a couple of days to tie up loose

  ends here and then I’ll be out. I have reservations at the Melbourne Hilton starting next Tuesday.”

  “Why? You know darn good and well you can stay with us,” Luke said.

  “Yeah, I know. But really Liz,” he said turning to her, “you don’t really want a loose cannon like me coming and going at all hours do you? Honestly?”