—Is the train powerful enough to pull the pieces out of the trench?
—No, it’s not. With enough buoys, it could probably handle the smaller pieces on its own, the hands or the feet, but not the thighs or torso. When it’s done laying track, we’ll put a cable on the train and help it up. We have a winch the size of a four-story building.
I…I know you’re keeping things from me, and there’s probably a good reason for that, but I’m assuming you wouldn’t k…keep this to yourself. Why is it taking so long to find the propulsion system? You found the rest of the pieces in a relatively short period, and you must have covered most of the Earth’s surface by now.
—We have not found the propulsion system, as you call it, because we have not been searching for one. In fact, all search efforts were abandoned once we recovered the head. What makes you think there is such a thing?
—Well, I’m sure there’s a lot I don’t know, but…
—This is the second time you allude to the notion that crucial information is being withheld from you. I assure you it is not.
—It doesn’t matter. I knew that when…when I signed on.
—I…
—Just let me finish. As I understand, this device, this robot, it was built by advanced beings from…outer space, in the hopes of defending our planet against some other aliens, is that correct?
—Yes.
—I mean, are you certain it was designed for p…planetary defense?
—That is my understanding.
—Then how could there not be? This thing, the way you describe it, is extremely powerful, and I’m certain it could defend a neighborhood really well, perhaps a city, against just about anything. But what’s it gonna do if the enemy attacks in another country, let alone another…continent? Is it just gonna walk there? It’s not like it can hail a cab.
Without a propulsion system, its mobility would be so limited, it would be com…completely useless. All the enemy would have to do is land more than a few miles away. By the time this thing gets there walking, it would already be over. This would be the s…stupidest planetary defense system ever—not that I know of another one—if it can’t cross an ocean.
—That is a sound argument. One I am surprised no one, including myself, has made in the past. I will endeavor to resume our search efforts as soon as possible. However, as you pointed out, we have covered a significant percentage of all the continents except Antarctica. If such a propulsion system does exist, and we do not find it there, it would most likely be submerged.
The surface we will need to cover is much larger than what we have searched to date, and we currently do not have a reliable underwater-delivery mechanism for the compound Dr. Franklin developed.
—We’ll need to hire someone. I’m a geneticist, not a chemist or an engineer.
—Neither was Dr. Franklin.
—Well, maybe she was a bit of a Renaissance woman…but she’s dead. Your pilots killed her. So we’re gonna have to d…deal with that as best we can. Like I said, I’m a geneticist. I’m already managing…steelworkers and engineers, and I don’t understand half of what they’re saying. With the money we’re s…spending building this place, I don’t think one more salary will make much of a difference. If we need a chemist, we’ll hire a chemist. If the engineers who thought this place up can’t come up with a delivery system for that compound, we’ll hire one more.
Speaking of genetics, that’s another reason I’d like to get the pilots here as soon as possible. If I’m gonna figure out what it is about these two that makes this machine tick, I’ll need access to their…to their bodies. I’ll need samples.
—I can have them send blood samples here by courier.
—I might need a lot of samples, and not just blood. Please just get them here as soon as possible.
—They might object to a lot of physical probing.
—It’ll be real difficult for me to do my job if they don’t co…coo…perate. They’re an uncontrollable variable in this equation. It makes the board real uneasy that a project this big is at the mercy of two people. You and I have already had this conversation. Let’s not have it again. I’d like to get these tests started as fast as we can.
—All I am asking is for you to make these tests as nonintrusive and painless as you can without sacrificing the results. As for the board of directors, you let me worry about them. Your job is to get us back on track, as soon as possible. When we are fully operational, we can work on a contingency plan, should anything happen to either of our pilots. But for now, we have pilots. You should focus on what we do not have, and as of this moment, we do not have a robot, nor do we have a viable work environment to continue training.
—I understand. But I can’t just ignore the b…board of directors. They’re the ones who named me CEO. I understand your implication in this project, but there is an administrative structure in place here, and as far as I know, you’re not p…you’re not a part of it. I have all the respect in the world for what you did for this project, but my obligation is to the board.
—I admire your loyalty and your desire to fulfill your duties as CEO as best you can.
—Thank you.
—If I may offer a suggestion. It would be wise, for a woman in your position, to take some time to get a better understanding of your surroundings, perhaps to revisit some assumptions you may have made early on. Understanding the true nature of the power structure in such a complex enterprise is not something one can achieve instantly.
—Thank you for your concern. It’s very nice of you.
FILE NO. 249
INTERVIEW WITH VINCENT COUTURE, CONSULTANT, BVI COMPANY NUMBER 462753 INC.
Location: Undisclosed location, near San Juan, Puerto Rico
—I hope you are enjoying yourself in this new setting.
—How could I not? I live on the beach! I don’t know where you’re from, but for someone who’s lived in Quebec all his life, this is pretty awesome.
—I am happy that the beach house is to your liking. I was actually referring to this facility.
—I’ve only been here twice. I met with Alyssa—did you know they brought her back?—the day I arrived, and I met her again when I came in for a physical a few days later.
—You have been here for nearly two weeks if I am not mistaken. What have you been doing with your time if you do not spend it here?
—I’m learning to surf! Well, I’m trying to learn to surf. I’m horrible at it, but it’s so…much…fun! I know I can’t, but I keep thinking it might be a lot easier with my knees flipped. You should come! I’m easy to spot, I’m the glowing white guy with really bad sunburns.
—I…Is it really necessary for me to state that I do not surf? Can we talk about work?
—Sure!
—What do you think of the new base?
—I’m sure you know a lot more about this place than I do. Like I said, I’ve only been here twice. I thought our room in Denver was impressive, but this thing is completely insane. Do you know we’re almost a mile deep underground?
The door behind us leads to a large room roughly the size of the one we trained in, back in Denver. There are also half a dozen laboratories on this floor, and a huge bay—I mean gigantic—that leads into the Atlantic. I’ve only been on this floor, though, I don’t know what else there is.
—There is only one floor. There is also a twenty-thousand-square-foot machine shop, medical facilities, crew quarters, and a power plant.
—Can I ask a stupid question?
—No. You cannot.
—Then, can I ask a really smart question?
—As you wish.
—How do we get the robot out of here? The only door I’ve seen that might be large enough leads straight into the ocean.
—Once assembled, the device cannot leave this facility on the ground. She must be disassembled and hoisted to the surface near the shore. There, we can load the pieces onto cargo ships. She does, however, fit into the sea-lock chamber, so, in theory, she could simply walk her way out of the ocean along the more moderate slopes of the coastline.