Chapter 27 Chapter Twenty Six

Without binoculars, the naked eye can see how we hit them hard. I was stunned and said softly, "That's great!" Twelve bright and dazzling white lights formed a perfect rectangular array, slowly expanding, fading, and then gradually turning red, as if it had passed for a long time.There were other explosion points, but I was so obsessed with that perfect rectangle that I barely noticed. "Yes." Mike narcissistically said, "Damn it. Man, you can talk now. I'm not busy right now. I just need to control a few spare missiles." "I have nothing to say. Is everything going well?"

"There was a catapult pod that strayed off Lake Michigan, missed the target, and it's going to land in Michigan -- I can't control it, its transponder is disabled. Long Island Sound got a direct hit. They tried to intercept it, but Failed for some reason. Man, I was able to stop the impending explosion, send the rocky missile into the Atlantic, and avoid the ship. But it took eleven seconds—should I stop it?" "Uh--ok, if you can avoid the boats." "I said I could. It's been done. But have to tell them we have back-up missiles and why we're aborting the process and make them think about it."

"Mike, maybe we shouldn't have aborted the program. We were meant to consume their interceptor missiles." "Our main goal is to let them know we're not giving it our all, and we're going to show them that in Colorado Springs." "What's going on there?" I turned my head and looked down through the binoculars, all I could see was a strip of cities stretching for hundreds of kilometers—the Denver-Pueverbro metropolitan area. "Call it up. But I bet we'll launch again tomorrow, chances are the defense command. You may not see the smoke from the first attack, but every twenty minutes after that, you still have Chances. I've given the job to my 'dumb son', he's got it right, just a little bit stupid, but he'll do whatever you ask him to do.

"Ok?" "Oh, Man, he won't. He's a fool, and he'll never learn to talk, but he'll carry out the procedure, because he'll probably have business to attend to on Sunday. They'll hit us hard that day." "What do you mean? Mike, you didn't say something." "I was about to tell you. I just got a scan. It's a counterattack - just like we hit them, there's a blip on the radar screen that's out of orbit. I don't think it's accelerating, check it out Just some other info. We're too far from that blip to read the info, but we can tell it's the peacekeeping cruiser, and it's heading for the moon. The Doppler signal shows it's entering a new orbit around the moon. Unless called Go, otherwise it will reach perilunar point at 9:03 on Sunday, which is an approximate number, and more accurate data will be available in a little while. Man, it is difficult to get accurate data, it uses radar countermeasures, noise The disruption was severe."

"are you sure?" He snickered. "Man, it's not easy to fool me. I have added identification marks to all my signals, so the precise time when it reaches the perilunary point should be: 9:02:43." "When did it come within range of you?" "It won't, unless it changes course. But it will put me in its range on Saturday night, depending on what range missile it chooses. At that point, the situation is very interesting. He may target a District - I think Lower Tycho has to be evacuated, all districts should have level 1 contingency activated in case of a sudden drop in air pressure. But it's more likely to attack the catapult. But then it has to be stabilized, as possible Staying on track for a long time while trying to fire multiple batches of missiles, each tracking a radar beam, to destroy all my radars."

Mike giggled, "Fun, isn't it? If I turn off the radar, it's impossible for its missiles to hit my radar. But if I do, our laser gunners don't know where to shoot at once, so that's There's nothing stopping it from bombing the catapult. It's a lot of fun." I took a deep breath and wished I had never been the Secretary of Defense. "What can we do, give up? Mike! No! We will never give up as long as we can fight." "Who said to give up? I'm planning to fight back against this plan and various other possible situations, Man. The latest data-a second small warship of the same type has just left orbit around the earth. We must fight back firmly, absolutely Don't give up. Man, we're going to beat 'em up."

"how to spell?" "Just wait and see what your old friend does. There are six ballistic radars here, and one more at the new site. I've turned off the radar at the new site, and put my 'silly son' in charge of the second ballistic radar here... …We don't use new radars to monitor their ships, and we don't want them to know we have new radars. I monitor the ships through ballistic radar number three, and check every three seconds for new targets to leave orbit. I want to close Other radar watch, don't activate them until attacking China and India. Even then the ships won't spot them because I will avoid the path of the ships, it's a big angle. We will enable radar alerts systems, and if I use them, I'll turn the radar off and on at irregular intervals until the ship fires a missile. Missiles are no brains, Man, and I'm going to play them around."

"Where's the fire control computer on the ship?" "I'm going to fool them. I can make the two radars here look like one, and the signal positions are far from where they actually are. I can do it, do you dare to bet on me? As for now- sorry , I used your voice again." "It's okay, what did I do?" "If the commander of the battleship is smart enough, he will use all available weapons to hit the old catapult that launches the catapult pod as soon as the limit range is reached. At such a long distance, our drill laser gun crew can't reach it Him. That puts us at a disadvantage. Whether he knows what our so-called secret weapon is or not, he will do everything in his power to knock out the catapult and ignore the radar for now. So, 'You' order the catapult to be ready Get ready, send out all the rock missiles we have ready. I'm designing a new trajectory for each missile with a long run time, and we'll launch after the design is complete, let the catapult pod Into space as soon as possible."

"blindly?" "Man, as you know, I never use radar when launching catapult pods. I used to monitor them with radar, but it wasn't necessary. Radar has nothing to do with launch. Launch just requires upfront calculations and precise control of the catapult. So, We'll just send all the old catapult ammunition into the slow trajectory. That way the battleship commander has to track the radar instead of the catapult - or both. We keep him busy. In the end, he's just desperate , take the risk of lowering the altitude, come down and shoot at close range, and our gunners can take the opportunity to knock out his eyes."

"Brody's men are cool, they're going to do a great job." I changed the subject. "Did you watch TV today?" "I monitor the TV, but I can't say I watched it, what's the matter?" "Go and see!" "Okay, I saw it. What?" "The people on TV use telescopes to shoot the earth, so the TV has a good picture. Why do people on earth have to use radar on the spaceship? Unless they want Brody's men to burn it?" Mike was silent for at least two seconds. "Man, my best friend, have you ever thought about getting a job -- being a computer?"

"Sarcasm me?" "Man, not at all, I'm ashamed. The tools of the Richardson Observatory - telescopes and other things - I never included them in my calculations. I admit that I am stupid. Yes! Can't use radar, Instead, use a telescope to monitor the ship, unless it changes orbit. There are other possibilities - I don't know what to say, Man, why didn't I think of using a telescope? I always thought of using radar surveillance, and it never occurred to me... " "Man, I'm really sorry." "Did I ever apologize when you thought of something first?" Mike said slowly, "It's my job to—" "Stop rambling, as long as you have a good idea, just use it, maybe it will lead to more things. I'll come down right away after the call is over." Not long after being with Mike, the professor called: "Commander? Is there any news about Commander Davis?" "Professor, I'm here, controlling the computer room." "Can you come to the Warden's office? We have a lot of work and decisions to study." — and Wright was chosen because he was the leader of a parliamentary group that was good at speeches but rarely acted on it.The purpose of the professor is to keep him under control with the ministerial position.But professors can be naive sometimes.With some big talkers, it's best to throw them out of the tunnel and let them talk in a vacuum. The professor asked me to briefly report the situation to the cabinet, and of course I acted in my own way. "I see Fern's here. Let him tell us how we are in the districts." Wright said: "General Nelson has already said it, and I don't see the need to repeat it. I want to hear your opinion." I blinked and said, "Professor—I'm sorry, Mr. President. Did the Department of Defense brief the Cabinet while I was away?" "Of course, we couldn't reach you," Wright said. The professor picked up the file.He saw that I was exhausted. I had never been so tired since leaving Earth. I hadn't slept in three days. "Please pay attention to the order." He said gently, "Mr. Minister of Liaison, please state your opinion to me. Mr. Minister of Defense, let me correct my explanation. The Ministry of Defense has not submitted a report to the cabinet before you arrive. The cabinet meeting didn't start officially either. General Nelson just answered a few questions informally, maybe we shouldn't have done this, and if you're upset, we'll try to make it up." "I don't think it's a big deal. I just spoke to you half an hour ago, Fern. Anything new?" "No, Manny." "Okay, I think you want to know the situation beyond the moon. You have been paying attention to the earth, you should know that the first bombing has been successful. Currently we are continuing to bomb their space defense headquarters at intervals of 20 minutes, Until one o'clock in the afternoon. At nine o'clock in the evening, we will attack China and India, and some small targets. At four o'clock in the morning, we will bomb Africa and Europe. Three hours later, Brazil and its surrounding areas will be attacked. Wait In three hours, a new round of attacks will start again. Unless there is something unexpected, we will proceed as planned. But we still have some troubles here. Fin, we must evacuate the residents of Lower Tycho." "Wait a minute," Wright said, holding up his hand to the professor instead of me, "I have a question." "Wait a minute! Is the Secretary of Defense finished?" Wyoh sat in the back and we just smiled at each other and that was it - our relationship was kept secret in Cabinet and Parliament because no two people from the same family were allowed in Cabinet.She shook her head, warning me something. I said, "That's all about the bombing, any questions?" "Mr. Wright, does your question have anything to do with the bombing?" "Of course, Mr. President!" said Wright, standing up and looking at me. "You know, I'm a representative of the intellectuals of the Liberal Moon government. It's fair to say that their views matter most in public affairs, and I think that's the only way... ..." "Wait a minute," I said, "I assume you represent the Eighth New Lyon?" "Mr. President! May I finish my question?" "He's not asking questions, he's giving a speech. I'm tired and really want to go to sleep." The professor said gently, "Manuel, we are all tired, but we accept your point of view. Mr. Congressman, you only represent your district. It's just that as a member of the government, you have been given certain responsibilities." "It's the same for everything." "Not quite the same. Please continue with your questions!" "Hmmm... very good! I wonder if Commander Davis realizes that his bombing plan was a complete mistake? Thousands of lives were killed aimlessly. I wonder if he realizes that the Moon Intellectuals are making this point." Serious point? Can he explain this reckless action? Non-negotiable bombing? Is he going to revise his plan now, or continue to kill innocent people? Are our missiles really nuclear as they say? Civilized nations are forbidden. What will those civilized nations think of our free moon after this operation?" I check my watch - it's been an hour and a half since the first attack. "Professor," I said, "can you tell me what's going on here?" "Manuel, I'm sorry," he said softly, "I was going to, no, I should start with the latest news I've received. You seem to have felt ignored, but I didn't. The minister was referring to It was a message from Reuters in Toronto just before you came. I don't know if it is correct. According to this message, many people ignored our warnings and gathered in the target area to watch the scene. There may be casualties. We are currently Don’t know the exact number yet.” "I see. What should I do? Take everyone's hand and lead them away? We warned them!" Wright interrupted me: "We intellectuals believe that basic humanitarianism should be performed" I said, "Stop babbling on me. You can hear me clearly. The president said the news just arrived. How did you know everyone's thoughts so quickly?" His face was red: “Mr. President, he insulted me!” "Manuel, don't insult the Minister." "I just fought back, he used the most outrageous words he could, what nuclear bombs, bullshit! You all know we don't have nukes at all." The professor looked confused: "I was also confused. Although this news has not been confirmed, we have seen the scene of the explosion on TV. It really looks like an atomic bomb explosion." "Oh," I turned to Wright, "didn't your intellectual friends tell you what happens when you unleash millions of calories all at once? How hot it gets? How much radiation?" "So you admit that you used nuclear weapons!" "Oh, my God!" My head hurts, "What the hell are you talking about? A violent impact, and then a huge spark from the object, the most basic common sense of physics, everyone knows, don't intellectuals know ?We just knocked out the biggest fire of mankind. I said loudly: "Professor, you know the answer very well! Don't force me to say it!" "Manuel, I might know...but I'm too tired and lost to remember." Wright said suddenly, "Manuel, explain. I need your explanation, too." I pull myself together. "It's a gravitational problem. It takes a computer to come up with an accurate solution. The next batch of catapult pods have already been launched, and all we can do is push them away from the target, but this may hit some we didn't warn about. Towns. Besides, it is impossible to throw them into the ocean now, it is too late. Cheyenne Mountain is 1,400 meters above sea level, and it is an inland mountain. It should not be a big problem to bomb Cheyenne Mountain. There is no life there. Anywhere else will kill people. As for extending the launch interval to once an hour, that's stupid. This is not an iron pod that you can turn on and off at will. These are missiles, missiles that bomb somewhere every twenty minutes Delaying the attack on China is just as stupid. We can suspend the launch to China, but the rate of launch cannot be slowed down. And if the launch is suspended, the missile is wasted. You don't think we have enough steel covering-- You better get on the catapult and see for yourself." The professor wiped his forehead: "I think he has answered all the questions, at least I am satisfied." "Sir, I'm not satisfied!" "Sit down, Mr. Wright. I have to remind you that you are not members of the War Cabinet. If there are no further questions - and I hope there are no other questions - I will adjourn. We all need rest, let us-" "professor!" "Manuel, what's the matter?" "I haven't reported it yet. We'll be punished tomorrow evening or Sunday morning." "Manuel, what's going on?" "Bombing. Possibly an invasion bombing. Two ships have come." People's attention was suddenly concentrated. The professor said wearily: "The government cabinet is adjourned; the military cabinet continues." I said, "Professor, wait a minute. We all sent you undated resignations when we accepted appointments." "Yes, but I don't expect us to use them." "You have to use it once." "Manuel, are you threatening?" "You can say what you want." I pointed at Wright. "Either that chatterer goes—or I go." "Manuel, you need to rest." I blinked hard to hold back the tears. "Of course I need it! Right now, now! Get a makeshift sleep at any place in the government complex. About ten hours. After that if I'm Secretary of Defense, you wake me up. Otherwise, let me Been sleeping well." Everyone looks shocked.Wyoh walked up to me.Without saying a word, he just gently took my arm with his hand. The professor said firmly: "The War Cabinet and Mr. Wright please stay, and everyone else please go back." He waited for a while, and most of them filed out.He said: "Manuel, I cannot accept your resignation. But I also don't want you to force me to take action against Mr. Wright when I am tired and nervous. It would be better if you both apologized to each other, each understanding that the other is just Too nervous." "Humph—" I turned to Fern. "Has he been fighting?" I asked, pointing at Wright. "Fuck him, no. At least not in my unit. What do you say, Wright? Did you fight when the Earthlings invaded?" Wright said gruffly: "I had no chance, and when I knew the war was over, it was over. But now that my courage and loyalty are being accused, I insist—" "Oh, shut up," I said, "if it's a duel you want, we'll have one as soon as I'm free. Professor, since his behavior was not caused by the tension of war, I'm not going to challenge someone who already Apologize to those who babble and still babble. You don't seem to understand that you put this guy on top of me - and don't stop him! Fire him! Or just fire me!" Fern said suddenly, loudly, "Professor, I support the proposal. Fire the bastard—or both of us!" He looked at Wright. "As for the duel, I think you'd better come to me first. You have two Arms—Manny doesn't have one." "You don't need two arms against him, Fern, but thank you anyway." Wyoh was crying - I could feel it, though I didn't hear it. The professor asked her sadly, "Wyoming?" "Professor, yes, sorry, me too." The only ones left here are "Clayton," Judge Brody, Wolfgang, Stu, and Heane, a handful -- forming the War Cabinet.The professor looked at them.I could see they were on my side.Wolfgang was really struggling.He has been working with the professor, not me. The professor looked back at me and said softly, "Manuel, you are forcing me to resign." He looked around. "Good night, comrades. Maybe it should be 'good morning,' I desperately need some sleep." Then he walked away without looking back. Wright is gone too. Fern said, "Manny, what do we do with those battleships?" I took a deep breath: "We'll be fine until Saturday afternoon, but you should evacuate Lower Tycho as soon as possible, we can't waste any more time." I made an appointment with Fern at the Warden's office at nine o'clock at night, and Wyoh took me away, and she seemed to be putting me to sleep, I can't remember.