John Victor Peterson

“ Slowly Allan removed his glasses and rubbed his eyes. "That would be the height of stupidity. We've a workable spaceship here. If we sent it back without awaiting the awakening of its occupants we'd be acting like congenital idiots!"
"Put your glasses back on!" Winthrop said irritably. His right forefinger stabbed at the schematics, drawings, translated math. "Add it up, Mister Computer!" ”

“ He had fought it while working on the bomb, and now he fought it again.
"Bert," he said, "this part of the ship wasn't designed for entrance during space flight. In a pressure suit, maybe, yes. Otherwise we can only assume that the crew doesn't require an atmosphere. Life may have evolved quite differently elsewhere."
"I don't believe it. I doubt that there's a thinking being of our equal anywhere that isn't human or humanoid. Take your own comments about the machinery. And what about the books?"
"Books?" Winthrop followed the general's gaze. ”

“ We can't try to be rescuers and wind up murderers by mistake!"
Three hours later Benton Allan came again from the computers.
"It's undoubtedly anti-gravity," he announced. "I've done considerable work on magnetic lines of force and theoretical work on possible creation of force fields for use as meteor screens. This math weaves in and out of mine like a pulse across a synchroscope. I'd been incredibly close to anti-gravity myself! That one blasted equation! Amazing!
"Lizio has been working with others on the autopilot computer. ”

“ One by one they tied the schematics and drawings to the instruments and equipment, at length realizing that nothing in the volume related to the ship forward of the bulkhead.
They'd been talking it over.
"If you were in a spaceship," Winthrop said, "you'd certainly keep on hand the mechanics of what keeps your living quarters livable. There'll be another book up forward."
They left it at that.
Winthrop realized that with men here to whom math was sustenance, the sought-after answers might well be attained more quickly if he did not try to help further. As he went out, his gaze swept Rabin. ”

“ It's pointless to try to open the door now, though. The occupants may be in suspended animation. It might be tricky to bring them out of it without harming them. We've thought of suspended animation as one solution to survival in the big jump once we've found a means of propulsion plus suspended animation."
"The propulsion's arrived, George. Maybe we'll find the other. We'll let the electronics men in here now. They should be able to shed some light on this equipment."
As General Hill assembled the electronics men, Winthrop walked away. ”

“ But fortunately we've found equipment very similar to ours. Simpler in some respects. Probably worked from transistors instead of to them.
"The electronics men may have a free hand except for the bulkhead instrument. We'd better not tinker there until we're reasonably sure we know what we're doing. It may spell life or death to the crew. Some may prefer to study the books which we found," he added thoughtfully. "If so, speak up!"
"I would," Winthrop cut in. "I'd like Rabin and Norris to join me."
"An electronics engineer should round out the group," General Hill said. "Okay, Lizio. ”

“ Rabin was studying the horribly graphic pictures as though each were a major work of art. Winthrop saw in the man's dark eyes something that had been in the little girl's eyes. He looked away.
The other men he felt more sure of. Norris—a top physicist at White Sands, thoroughly familiar with man's attempts at space flight. Lizio, an electronics engineer, with an alert, intelligent face, and excellent reputation. ”

“ We believe we've found the key to the door and that—"
The general laughed. "If you're that close, George, it can wait until morning."
"I disagree," Winthrop cut in sharply. "Time may be of the essence. How do we know whether the occupants are of the pastoral race or the other race depicted in that ghastly comic book? If they've anti-gravity and fission bombs, what else may they have up forward?"
"Let's not be pessimistic," General Hill said. "If they had come meaning harm, they'd have set their awakening apparatus properly. They'd not have erred if they'd come with evil intent. ”

“ His face grew somber. "It's a problem. The ship drifted down as if with a dead man's hand at the helm. It didn't come at that speed from origin. Someone or something cut its speed when it hit our atmosphere. Had it come in fast the hull would have heated, and the occupants would have been roasted alive.
"Let's not force the issue. If alive they'll come out eventually. Meanwhile we're learning."
But can we wait? Winthrop thought. Are we sensible in waiting?
IV
Night. Benton Allan beckoned Winthrop to his side.
"You're familiar with Einstein's math, George. ”

“ One circuit leading forward should be connected to a junction box on the main power dynamo. Instead, it's connected to one of the gyro assemblies. Its function was undoubtedly intended to transmit a pulse to activate some mechanism forward, probably to arouse the crew. It probably acted on the anti-gravity apparatus instead, slowing the ship practically to a standstill and letting it drift in with the crew unawakened.
"The circuit's forward connections are in the bulkhead instrument which is in part an autopilot/computer. ”

“ Winthrop was tempted to ask. Surely there was no imbalance there?
"Now," the general said, dismissing the tragedy of Rabin from his mind, "let's sum up. We've progressed beautifully. We have anti-gravity here, and proof that the speed of light can be exceeded. Standards fully verifies Allan's findings.
"Tomorrow, those most eminently qualified should try to determine how the bulkhead door may be opened. The General Staff has just ordered that it must be opened within forty-eight hours. All precautions will of course be taken to obviate damage to the ship." ”

“ Whether in science fiction or on the screen the starkly realistic documentary has become increasingly popular in recent months. When handled with deftness, and brilliant technical skill it is very likely to ring the bell at the apex of the entertainment meter. ”

“ Earth, and should also have led to activation of the awakening apparatus.
"Allan can work on the related math. I've identified it with the schematics. Then perhaps we'll be convinced that we must correct the wiring and arouse the crew."
General Hill snapped from the doorway, "Lizio, we can't be hasty. We must not only correlate everything you electronics men find and everything the computers reveal, but re-check our findings ten times over. Incidentally, copies of the book and details of our findings have been flown to the Bureau of Standards. They're busy on it, too. ”

“ We use fission bombs to detonate fusion bombs. The missile's warhead contains a fusion bomb which the math proves would have caused a spontaneous carbon chain reaction which would almost instantaneously have wiped out the Earth! ”

“ Lizio said, and left. Winthrop and Norris began listing the various symbols, noting their frequency of appearance and relative positions.
An hour later Lizio returned, and began comparing his measurements with symbols on the drawings.
"They're definitely drawn to different scales," he said. "The symbols and measurements are not alike. That means different identifiable numbers. Lads, we can crack the math!" ”

“ The blip was too bright, the trail behind it too long, too remarkably persistent.
Possibly the Air Force has some super-Globemaster that might account for the blip. But in that case a flight plan would have been filed on so huge a craft's trip into the metropolitan area. ”