Chapter 5 Chapter 2 Attack on NASA

Sexton pondered this.Obviously, anything that has anything to do with NASA can only be bad news.Otherwise, the president would have accused me of this to my face.NASA's recent string of failed operations and massive budget overruns has brought it a dubious reputation, which has become Sexton's unofficial campaign against massive government overruns and inefficiencies.Admittedly, attacking NASA—one of the most important symbols of American pride—isn’t how most politicians think of winning votes, but Sexton has a Weapons Without - Gabrielle Ash, and her unflappable instincts. Months earlier, the shrewd young woman had written Sexton a note while working as a dispatcher at his Washington campaign office, suggesting that he should attack NASA's massive budget overruns and the White House's ongoing , as a classic example of President Herney's recklessness and excessive spending.

Sexton scoffed at her childishness at first.But over the next few weeks, Gabrielle kept sending messages about NASA to the senator's desk.The more Sexton read the messages, the more he felt that the young Gabrielle Ash was right. One afternoon, Sexton was on a radio talk show about education, and the host pressed Sexton where he was going to get the money for his promised overhaul of public schools.Sexton wanted to test Gabrielle's narrative on NASA.He half-jokingly proposed cutting the space program in half, arguing that if NASA spends $15 billion a year in space, he should spend $7.5 billion on children on earth.

In the radio booth, Sexton's campaign clerks gasped when they heard his ramblings.But then, something unexpected happened.One after another, the people who called in continued to criticize the president's actions and expressed their desire to vote for Sexton. By the end of the show, it was clear: Sexton's campaign had accidentally discovered the "holy grail" of the campaign -- a new "hot key" -- an untouched rich controversial issue. In the weeks that followed, Sexton crushed his opponent in five decisive primary rounds.He announced Gabrielle Ashe as his new personal campaign assistant, applauding her for bringing the issue of NASA to the front of voters.Sexton turned a young African-American girl into a rising political star with a single wave of his hand, and his racist and sexist voting record problems were wiped out overnight.

At this point, Sexton and Gabrielle were sitting together in the car, and Sexton knew that Gabrielle had once again proven her worth.The new news she brings, and last week's secret meeting between NASA's chief and the president, clearly suggest that more trouble awaits NASA -- and maybe another country has pulled money from the International Space Station. As the limousine passed the Washington Monument, Senator Sexton couldn't help feeling that he had been chosen somewhere. President Zach Hurney is only of average height, with a thin build and thin shoulders.He has dark spots on his face, bifocals and thinning black hair.However, his unassuming appearance was in stark contrast to the kingly love he earned from his subordinates.People say that once you meet Zach Herney, you are willing to follow him for the rest of your life and go through fire and water for him.

As soon as President Herney saw Rachel, he showed a cordial smile, and his eyes showed sincerity and dignity. They exchanged pleasantries, and the president's candor and humor quickly eased Rachel's nervousness about being there.His sophistication with people more than makes up for what he lacks in size.Communication is the ability to deal with people, and Zach Hurney has this talent. The president had already ordered coffee for Rachel.Rachel followed the president toward the back of the plane.The president, who had just landed, chose to meet Rachel on Air Force One rather than return to the White House precisely to honor her and save her from embarrassment in front of her father.This decent arrangement won Rachel's favor.

The President led Rachel through a carved maple door into his office. The president sat Rachel in one of three office chairs facing his desk.She sat down.Rachel expected him to sit behind the desk, but instead he pulled a chair and sat beside her. "Uh, Rachel," Herney sat down on the chair and sighed wearily, "I think you must be confused why you're sitting here now, am I right?" Rachel's wariness gradually dissipated with the bluntness in the man's voice, "Indeed, sir, I am very confused." Herney laughed out loud. "Great, I don't get to confuse NRO people every day."

"It's not every day that someone from the NRO gets a ride on Air Force One by a president in hiking boots." The president smiled again. At this time, there was a light knock on the office door, and the coffee came. The President himself poured a cup of coffee with milk for Rachel, and then sat down while pouring himself a cup of coffee, while talking about the topic. "I suppose William Pickering must have warned you that the only reason I want to see you is to use you to my political advantage?" "Indeed, sir, that's exactly what he said." The president laughed. "He's always so cynical."

"So he was wrong?" "Are you kidding?" the President laughed. "Pickering can't be wrong. He's right, as usual." Gabrielle Ash stared absently out the window of Senator Sexton's limousine weaving through early morning traffic toward his office building.She wondered how on earth she had become Senator Sedgwick Sexton's personal assistant.That's what she's always wanted, isn't it? Three years ago, Gabrielle could only admire Sexton from afar, but now, she couldn't get any closer. Gabrielle recalled the night she spent with Sexton in his plush office, curling up and trying to get the awkward image out of her mind.

The limousine jolted, startling her and bringing her back to reality. The gossip from last time still upset Gabrielle, but Sexton dismissed it. About a month ago, the president's campaign, so unnerved by declining votes, decided to go on the offensive, revealing something they thought would happen -- Senator Sexton and his personal assistant Gabe Rielle Ash had an affair.Unfortunately, the White House does not have tenable evidence.Senator Sexton, a firm believer that the best defense is a strong offense, seized the moment and countered.He called a national press conference, proclaiming his innocence and righteous indignation, with a look of pain in his eyes, and berated the president for using these vicious lies to dishonor his memory of his wife.

Senator Sexton was so convincing on television that even Gabrielle herself was almost convinced she hadn't slept with him. Working closely with Sexton has been eye-opening lately.Although Gabrielle is unwavering in her belief in Sexton's views, she begins to doubt the man who holds them. "Rachel, what I want to tell you is," said the President, "is that the classified 'Shadow' has gone well beyond what your current fidelity review allows." Hearing this, Rachel suddenly felt that Air Force One became cramped.No matter how amiable Zach Hurney appears on the surface, Rachel Sexton has realized that there is something important about Zach Herney.The man took control of the situation in the blink of an eye.

What the president wanted to tell Rachel was that two weeks ago, NASA made a big discovery, but before telling her about the discovery, the president had a discussion with her on Rachel's attitude towards space exploration. Probing dialogue. From Rachel's point of view, even though her father was an opportunistic politician, that was an opportunity created by NASA itself.NASA's recent string of mistakes has been so egregious it's hard to laugh at -- satellites blown to pieces in orbit, space probes lost contact with the ground, and the International Space Station's budget escalated tenfold to the point that member states pulled out. Like rats fleeing from a sinking ship.Billions in bills were down the drain, so Senator Sexton took the opportunity to ride the wave—a wave that seemed destined to take him ashore at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. In this regard, President Herney expressed his acquiescence, and frankly admitted that he is a loyal admirer of NASA, and never hesitated to express his appreciation and national pride for his country's space program. "Today," Herney said, emphatically, "I'm going to completely change the way you think about NASA." Rachel eyed him suspiciously. "You've won my vote, sir. You might want to focus on others in this country." "That's exactly what I mean." He took a sip of his coffee and said with a smile, "I have to ask you for a favor." He hesitated for a moment, and moved closer to her, "To help in an unusual way. " The president then mentioned one of NASA's most controversial and costly investments, the Earth Observation Program.Unfortunately, the Earth Observing System program failed.Instead of contributing to global Earth science, it quickly became embroiled in a costly nightmare—launch failures, computer failures, and gloomy press conferences held by NASA.Only Senator Sexton has been smiling these days, smugly reminding voters how much of their money the president is spending on Earth observation systems, and how little in return. Hearing the President say that the Earth Observation System was responsible for NASA's discovery, Rachel suddenly felt in a fog.She hadn't heard anything from NASA recently.In her view, no news is usually bad news for NASA.The enduring NRO joke says that every time a NASA scientist farts, NASA holds a press conference. The President told Rachel that NASA was silent because he ordered them to do so, and that NASA had just made a scientifically significant discovery...of such global significance... It proves that Americans are worth every penny spent on aerospace research. Rachel followed President Herney out onto the gleaming gangway of Air Force One.As they came down the gangway, Rachel felt the cold March air clear her head.Unfortunately, this sobriety only made her feel that the President's words seemed even weirder than before. NASA has made a scientifically significant discovery that proves Americans are worth every penny spent on space research? It occurred to Rachel that a discovery of this magnitude could only be related to one thing—contact with extraterrestrial life.Sadly, she knew it was totally unconscionable. Everyone in the intelligence community knows that sightings of UFOs and alien abductions are mostly just people's imaginations or money-making hoaxes.When real photos of UFOs do come out as proof, it's odd that UFOs keep appearing near U.S. Air Force bases where advanced classified aircraft are being inspected. Rachel was relieved to learn that NASA hadn't taken the risk of trying to fool the president with an alien story.However, his words only made the mystery even more mysterious.NASA is now in a life-and-death battle to prove its worth, and the president is under attack for continuing to fund it.At this very moment, a major breakthrough for NASA would be good medicine for itself and the presidential campaign.Critics of the president would obviously find this timing highly suspicious. Herney had already anticipated this situation and took the lead in making plans.In order to protect NASA, he kept the discovery from being made public, and obtained confirmation through channels outside the government. He formed an outside confirmation team—four unofficial scientists—non-NASA members, all of whom were well-known and well-established to ensure their authority.Their observations confirmed NASA's findings, which are no longer shrouded in doubt.And by hiring the most skeptical people, Herney shielded himself from doubt. "At eight o'clock tonight," Herney said, "I'm going to hold a press conference at the White House to announce this discovery to the world." Rachel felt deflated.Herney still hadn't told her what the discovery was. The President smiled and asked Rachel to see the discovery for herself, and told her that the Administrator of NASA would tell her everything she needed to know.After that, the president will discuss her responsibilities further with her. Rachel sensed that a dramatic event was about to happen from the president's gaze, and she remembered Pickering's premonition that the White House had already prepared a trick.It appears that Pickering was right again, as usual. Herney took Rachel to a nearby hangar and stopped.He took Rachel's cell phone, denied her any contact with the outside world, and told her that after NASA briefed her on the discovery, the director would let her contact him through a secure channel. With these words, the President strode toward the Pave Hawk helicopter that had brought Rachel.After he boarded the plane, the plane took off.He never looked back. Rachel Sexton stood alone on the threshold of this lonely Wallops hangar, looking with difficulty into the dark interior.She called out with a trembling voice, but no one answered, and then stepped across the threshold in even more panic. She was startled by the sudden appearance of a young man in a NASA flight suit. He was Commander Wayne Lusgen, who had been ordered to be Rachel's pilot and send her to the chief. It took a little while for Rachel to realize that she felt cheated.Apparently, her travels aren't over yet.Moreover, even the pilot does not know where the director is. The pilot strode toward the wall and pressed a button.In the center of the hangar appeared a terrifying looking black fighter jet.It was the most streamlined plane Rachel had ever seen. The pilot led Rachel toward his plane, an F-14 Tomcat split-tail fighter, and pointed to the two-person cockpit for her to sit in the back.Rachel put on a thermal flight suit over her clothes, climbed into the cockpit, and sat down awkwardly in the cramped seat. The pilot helped Rachel fasten the buckle, buckled a helmet on her head, and then pulled out an oxygen mask from the side panel to buckle it on her helmet so that she would not lose her breath when flying at high altitude. oxygen. "I can do it," Rachel said, reaching out to take the oxygen mask. Rachel fumbled for the mouth of the mask and finally snapped it onto the helmet.The mask did not fit well and was very uncomfortable. The pilot stared at her for a long moment, as if amused. He seemed to hide a smug smile, and told her there were puke bags under the chair. "Any questions before we go?" Rachel hesitated for a moment, then patted the mouthpiece stuck on her chin. "It's stuck in my vein. How do you wear these things on a long flight?" The pilot smiled patiently, "Oh ma'am, we don't usually wear these things upside down." As the plane went straight into the sky, Rachel couldn't help closing her eyes.She didn't know where she had gone wrong this morning.She was supposed to be sitting at her desk writing intelligence briefs.At this moment, however, she was riding a testosterone-burning torpedo, breathing through an oxygen mask. The pilot quickly got the coordinates of the secret location where Rachel met the chief: straight north, almost three thousand miles. Rachel jumped up from the seat and sat up straight, "What!" She tried to draw a map in her mind, but she couldn't figure out what was so far north, "That's four hours voyage!" "That's true at our speed," said the pilot. "Please sit still." Before Rachel could react, the man swept back the wings of the F-14 to a position where the air resistance was minimal.In less than a minute, they were flying at an economical cruising speed of about fifteen hundred miles an hour. Now, Rachel just feels dizzy.As they flew through the air, their speed was so fast that she couldn't see anything clearly, and she felt that it was hard to stop.The president's words echoed vaguely in her ears: I promise you, Rachel, you won't regret helping me in this matter. Rachel groaned and reached for the vomit bag.Never trust a politician. Despite his dislike for these unseemly, dirty public cabs, Senator Sedgwick Sexton has learned to live with the occasional demeaning moment on his way to success.The dingy Mayflower cab that had just put Sexton in the low-grade parking garage of the Beech Hotel gave him one thing...something his stretch limousine couldn't. his. 11:15 a.m., exactly. Sexton saw the white Ford Winder parked exactly where they always met—in the east corner of the garage, behind a row of trash cans.Such precautions are necessary. Sexton gave the man a cheerful wave and climbed into the passenger seat.The dark-haired gentleman in the driver's seat didn't show a smile.He was almost seventy years old, and there was a kind of indifference on his old and rough face. Sexton understood that these meetings were essentially a reminder to senators to appreciate these patrons.These people expect great returns on their investments. This time the old man raised another sum of money and persuaded six people to meet Sexton tonight.For these six deep-pocketed men, the old man asked Sexton to meet secretly with them at his home, and told him that, if all went well, these alone could provide everything he needed to push his campaign to the top. Sexton liked to hear that.He smiled confidently at the old man, "My friend, if the election goes well, we will all cheer for victory." "Victory?" The old man frowned, leaned over and looked at Sexton with an ominous look, "Getting you into the White House is only the first step to victory, Mr. Senator, I don't think you have forgotten Bar." Despite living in the White House for three and a half years, President Zach Hurney has always felt uncomfortable in front of these dazzling chandeliers, antiques, and fully armed Marines.However, at this moment, he was walking towards the West Hall of the White House, feeling refreshed and inexplicably comfortable, walking on the velvet carpet with light and vigorous steps. He felt sorry for keeping his staff in the dark for so long, but secrecy was paramount. Herney walked to the foyer outside the Oval Office, beckoned to his secretary cheerfully, and asked the secretary to arrange a meeting for him that all White House staff would attend.The meeting will take place at the President's Office, and the time is set for four o'clock in the afternoon.He also told the secretary that he was going to fight bravely and that he had an important announcement to make to the American people tonight, but he wanted the staff to hear it first. Herney has always been convinced that the Oval Office is dominated by the colorful American Eagle on the oval carpet.The eagle clutches an olive branch in its left talons, and a bundle of arrows in its right talons.Few outsiders know that in peacetime the eagle's head is turned to the left - facing the olive branch - but in times of war it is mysteriously turned to the right - facing the bundle of arrows.The agency behind this office trick is known only to the President and the White House chief.The truth behind the enigmatic eagle, Herney discovers, is disappointingly simple.It turned out that there was another oval carpet in the basement storage room, and the manager just changed them in the dead of night. Now Herney, gazing down at the serene, left-facing hawk, thought with a smile that perhaps he should switch the rugs to commemorate his impending vile attack on Senator Sedgwick Sexton. little war. The U.S. Delta Force is the only combat force that is completely under the command of the President and not bound by laws.The members of the Delta Force are all selected from the actual combat group of the Special Forces. They are both well-trained killers and experts in counter-terrorism SWAT operations, hostage rescues, raids on robbers, and destruction of underground hostile forces. Due to the high level of secrecy required to operate Delta Force, only one high-ranking commander, usually a military or government power broker, of high enough rank or or influence to manipulate the performance of tasks. Their duty is to fly, to fight, to forget. But now the Delta squad stationed at 82 degrees north latitude neither flew nor fought, they were just monitoring something. Now, after a ten-day surveillance mission in this tent, Delta One was ready to wrap up its mission. Continue to hide. Monitor activity in and out of that house. Report any abnormal situation to the commander immediately. Delta One was preparing dehydrated protein food when his and his companion's watches rang at the same time.After a while, the encrypted intercom beside him flashed a warning signal.The commander informed them over the encrypted walkie-talkie that the schedule had been updated. The news would be released at eight o'clock Eastern time tonight, and another person was involved.The commander asked them to keep a close watch on her, and follow the original instructions in case of accident. Rachel had been flying due north for over an hour.Except for the fleeting Newfoundland, the only thing visible during the trip was the ocean below the F-14. When Rachel was seven, the harrowing experience of skating and falling into an icy pond made her terrified at the sight of water.Today, facing the endless North Atlantic Ocean, her old fears crept back into her heart. Before the pilots had checked their flight direction with Thule Air Force Base in North Greenland, Rachel realized how far they had flown.Before long she saw thousands of white spots dotted on the blue-gray sea below. iceberg. Before this, Rachel had only seen an iceberg once.Six years ago, her mother convinced her to join a mother-and-daughter cruise in Alaska.That sea trip was the last for Rachel and her mother. Catherine Wentworth Sexton.Rachel felt a faint sense of loneliness.Memories are like the wind howling outside the plane, pulling her back to the past as usual.Their last conversation was on the phone, on Thanksgiving morning. Rachel, who was unable to return home because O'Hare Airport was closed by heavy snow, called home sadly, complaining about not being able to spend Thanksgiving with her family.Mom, however, was just as upset because Rachel's dad was planning to spend the long weekend in his Washington suite, citing his busy schedule.Although she knew that this was just a convincing excuse put forward by Senator Sexton, Mrs. Sexton, who kept her promise, refused to expose it.Lonely Mrs. Sexton was driving to Aunt Ann's house for Thanksgiving when she was involved in a car accident and died instantly. The father rushed back immediately after learning the news, held a small press conference in the living room of his home like a show, suppressed his grief, and told the world that his wife had finished Thanksgiving dinner with her family Died in a car accident on the way home. Since then, Rachel has had a complete break with her father, but Mr. Senator has ignored it.He's using his late wife's fortune to fight for his party's presidential nomination, and he has his hands full. Cruelly, now, three years later, Mr. Senator can make Rachel's life lonely even if they are far away from each other.Her father's race for the White House puts Rachel's dreams of meeting a man and starting a family out of reach.It was easier for Rachel to get out of the game than it was to deal with the steady stream of power-hungry suitors looking to take the still bereaved woman to the next level while her status was evenly matched. In the future, the "first daughter" is caught up. Outside the F-14, the day was fading away.It was late winter in the Arctic—the long dark days.Rachel realizes she is flying to a place where there is only night forever. Finally, Rachel made out the vague outlines of the terrain, but not as she had expected.A large snow-covered mountain range looms on the sea in front of the plane. As they flew below three thousand feet, Rachel saw a sight she had never seen anywhere on Earth. The plateau below them was streaked... as if someone had drawn three thick silvery lines in the snow, and these shimmering parallel lines stretched down to the seaside cliffs.The optical illusion didn't disappear until the plane descended below five hundred feet.It turned out that the three silver stripes were three deep ravines, each at least thirty yards wide.The gullies that were originally filled with water had frozen over due to the severe cold, and turned into three parallel, wide silver grooves that traversed the plateau.The white raised area between the two grooves is a cliff path made of snow accumulation. At this moment, the pilot tried his best to control the plane, and unexpectedly landed on the solid ice between the cliffs.As soon as the plane touched down, Rachel saw a huge multi-pedal snow tractor approaching them from the other side of the ice chute.The tractor just stopped next to the F-14 aircraft, and a person went down the ladder from above to the ice.He was wrapped from head to toe in a puffy white onesie that looked as if he was inflated. Mad Max meets Pillsbury's Dough Babies.Rachel thought, relieved that there were still people on this strange planet. The man had come to meet Rachel on behalf of NASA. Marjorie Tench—the president's top adviser—had a sagging frame of bones.Her scrawny six-foot frame resembles a construction toy made of joints and limbs.The sallow face hung on the frail body like a piece of parchment with two holes pierced by a pair of dull eyes.At fifty-one she looked seventy. Tench is revered as a goddess in Washington political circles.She is said to have extraordinary analytical skills, and a decade of running the State Department's Bureau of Intelligence and Research has trained her to have an extremely sharp and judgmental mind.It is a pity that despite Tench's outstanding political talents, Hua, but also has a cold temper, few people can bear it for a few minutes.Marjorie Tench has been gifted with a supercomputer-like brain -- and passion.But President Zach Hurney tolerated the woman's tricky tendencies, and it was her intelligence and hard work that got Hurney into the presidency in the first place. That's when Marjorie came to Herney with a bold proposal: She was going to participate in this afternoon's CNN debate in person.While Sexton's campaign would surely have taken the move as evidence of panic in the White House, the president could only stare at her in amazement after Tench finished speaking. Once again, Marjorie Tench proved herself to be a political prodigy. The Milne Ice Shelf is the largest ice pack in the northern hemisphere, located at 82 degrees north latitude, on the northernmost shore of Ellesmere Island in the high Arctic latitudes, four miles wide and more than three hundred feet thick. At this moment, Rachel climbed into the plexiglass cabin on top of the ice tractor, and joined the pilot who had come to greet her to meet the administrator of NASA.After the driver's introduction, Rachel learned that the place they were going to was the Milne Glacier, about two miles away, an area only accessible to scientists and direct members of the NASA assistance team. After a few minutes, Rachel began to see a vague silhouette in the distance ahead of them—the outline of a huge white dome emerging from the ice.Rachel rubbed her eyes, it looked like a small Houston astronomical observatory.