Chapter 2

Seeing Sandy (with a similar look of surprise on her face), I told her, “These government guys are all right. They must have worked through the night, to get this running.”

“The new cluster is up and running, boss. They had their programmers alter our simulation software, to handle the new processing power.”

“Really? I expected to spend most of today, doing that. Did they make any other changes?”

“We can now do several simulations, at once,” said Captain Jones, interrupting.

“That’s right, Dr. Calin. I want you to head simulation team, Alpha. Your assistant is to head simulation team Beta, and Captain Jones is going to head Gamma Team.”

“General, I didn’t know you were behind me,” I said after jumping at the sound of his voice. “Do you have a team constructing the Vortex Engine, yet?”

“Construction is scheduled to begin, tomorrow,” the General said.

“Dr. Calin, I have an idea about that heat problem you’re having. Can we talk for a bit?” asked Captain Jones.

“Of course. If you’ll excuse us, General?”

I stepped toward the simulator, as did Captain Jones.

We both sat down, and he pulled up the simulator on the computer screen.

“I had an idea about where the heat was coming from. It seems to be (from your original simulations), that more energy was produced in traveling through the Vortex than it took to create, and send, something through.”

He was right about this, though I had never thought of it quite that way. In the original simulations we could put anything through, and get swirling hot plasma jetting out the other side.

“We never figured out where the energy was coming from, but we’ve been able to slowly damp it down, to nearly reasonable levels.” I said.

“Well I think I figured it out. Your vehicle (in the simulation), always travels from a vacuum, to a planetary surface.”

“What would that have to do with it? The vacuum is needed to stabilize the field, when it first forms.”

“In my simulations, a vacuum is not necessary for the actual transmittal. Just for the forming of the first space/time Vortex.” Jones said.

“Really? But how does that affect temperature.”

“I think that it’s not a one way transmission. An equal volume of air must come through the Vortex. But I think it actually comes ‘through’ the solid matter of what you’re sending. The front is always the hottest, because air passes through it faster.”

“Wait, you’ve got a good idea, but I think you haven’t got it completely right. Let’s simulate, from air to air.”

I changed the environmental settings, wondering why I’d never done that before. The simulation ran, and the transmitted object went from room temperature, to just a dozen degrees hotter. I took the simulation, and sliced it up, and took heat readings from it. As I had thought the temperature increase was not constant throughout the object.

“See, it was the vacuum.” Captain Jones exclaimed.

“Yes, and no. The vacuum on one side caused a large amount of air to be pulled in, by the negative pressure. As the molecules of air passed the molecules of the probe they transmitted their energy as friction. As each one crossed the event horizon of the Vortex, at the same time. Setting up the transmission of the vehicle, in normal air pressure, limited the amount of cross movement of the mass. This greatly reduced the friction, and the heat effect.

“Watch what happens now. I’m increasing the air pressure, on the sending side.” I said.

I made the changes quickly, and excitedly. If this is what had been causing our heat problem, then we were really close to having a theoretical model completed.

I cursed the budget constraints that had kept us from building a miniature, to work with. It would have probably worked the first time we allowed it to operate at normal pressure!

The simulation showed our probe vehicle move toward the space/time Vortex, and come out the other side, virtually unscathed. No change in temperature, only the slightest scarring from Vortex passage, along the outermost edges.

“Son of a bitch! It works!” I excitedly shouted. “Captain Jones, I’m going to buy you some of my favorite tequila.”

“Make it some of that fakeuila Jose Cuervo shit! And you’ve got to drink it, alone!” he shouted back at me, very excited.

“You’ve got a deal!” I exclaimed, and began jumping up and down, hooting like a child.

“What’s the meaning of this?” came the gruff voice of Major General James West Copper (AKA: party pooper).

“We’re throwing a party!” I replied, excitedly.

Captain Jones came stiffly to attention, trying to conceal his glee.

“Sir,” he said, “I think we just cracked the big hurdle, in making the system operational.”