Chapter 4

Every time I thought about retiring, something interesting always came up to change my mind. This time was no different. Personally, I had all but written Earth off as a lost cause. I honestly believed that they would find a way to destroy themselves before they grew out of the urge to do so. Others obviously held out some hope for our old home, though.

I thought the Bards might help, but not enough. I didn't know about the contingency plans until Dina French asked for a meeting with me. I knew Gail and George's youngest daughter was a scientist, but not what her current project was. I was a bit amazed at her ingenuity.

In one short hour, she outlined a complete plan to terraform Mars. She almost lost me at first. Crashing ammonia laden asteroids into the surface seemed an odd way to help a planet. It made more sense after she explained that this would greatly increase the water on the surface. It would also provide the initial boost to the greenhouse gasses needed to maintain an atmosphere.

The next step was to unfurl large solar reflectors in orbit around the planet. This would increase the temperature to a level high enough to sustain life. Almost simultaneously, Greenhouse gas factories would be constructed on the surface. In her estimation, in fifty years, plant and animal life could be introduced.

I probably should have thought it over a little, but I signed off on the idea right away. Even if it failed, it would serve a purpose. We were scaling back our exploration, at least for a while. There had been so many new worlds discovered, that we needed to make some plans on what we were going to do with them.

At first, we considered the idea of offering one or two to the inhabitants of Earth. In the end, it was decided that they were better off where they were, at least from our standpoint. We wanted them where we could keep an eye on them. It would be easier to avoid trouble, that way. Mars was close, so maybe we could give that to them.

The next surprise came from Gunnar. I hadn't seen much of him lately, and as he explained, I understood why. People seem to think I'm smart, but next to my descendants, I'm an idiot.

He invited me to his lab, and I didn't even make it to my chair, before he began. "Dad, you ain't gonna believe this shit! You've heard of Dark Matter, right?"

I confessed that I had, but didn't know all that much about it. "That's OK", he said, "Not many people do. It's strange how something that makes up most of the universe, is so hard to isolate. We've done it, though."

I knew scientists had been wrestling with the concept for decades, and my curiosity rose quickly. I asked him to explain, and he started a slide presentation.

Five minutes later, my head was spinning. After I asked him to go easy on the math, it got better. The main point was that his team had found a way to tap this dark matter as an energy source.

"More than three quarters of the universe is dark matter", he explained. "And, with this technology, we can power anything we want to. We're already developed an engine that makes anything the coalition has look like a two-cycle gas motor. The power capabilities are off the scale!"

I asked him for a typical application, and he blew me away.

"Remember what the Gods said about the orbit of Earth's moon deteriorating? Well, with some of these engines spaced around it, and an AI to control them, that would never happen. I know Dina didn't tell you, but we plan to strap one of these on each of the asteroids she plans to use for Mars. The engines won't even need to be very large. With your permission, I'd like to construct a couple of prototype ships equipped with them, too. Maybe one of each class, in fact."

I signed off on that, too. Maybe it WAS time for me to retire. I thought we were innovative, before. These kids were something else! I had a feeling that Tina would share the feeling. This made fusion look like steam power, if I understood correctly.

Faith and Jackie must have been listening, as usual. They spent a few minutes trying to convince me I wasn't ancient, before Jackie got to the point.

"Matt", she said sternly, "you can't retire, especially now. You must keep a close eye on this dark matter research. Think of the power this represents! The weapons possible from this research will be capable of destroying an entire planet! Compared to this, the atomic bomb is a fucking firecracker! This must be the most closely guarded secret in the Federation."

That little detail hadn't occurred to me, but Faith reinforced it. "Babe", she said, "used for good, this is a monumental achievement. Used for evil, it could destroy entire civilizations. Think genocide, at the snap of a finger. That is what this could represent. We know the weapons will be designed. All we're asking is that safeguards be put in place. This technology must not fall into the hands of those who would misuse it."

I was easy to convince. As soon as they left, I scheduled a staff meeting for the next day. Dina and Gunnar gave their presentations for the group, and they were just as impressed as I had been. Unlike me, Tina caught on to the implications immediately. Gunnar had thought ahead, however. Each device that employed dark matter had a self-destruct included in the design. When triggered, it would render the inside to nothing but molten slag.

The engines would actually be smaller than the ones we used at present. If the tests were successful, the fleet could be easily converted. Little thought had been given to implementing the new technology in the weapons area. The research might not have begun, but when I related the concerns of Jackie and Faith, everyone accepted them. Goddesses were seldom wrong.

The research had actually been directed more towards communications, at first. Gunnar had decided that our present system was too slow. Compared to what he had come up with, it was. His team had reduced the time lag by two-thirds.

Before everyone disbursed, we also went over the security arrangements for our Bards. There were plenty of individuals who were not going to like the effects their performances had on the audience. The actual concerts shouldn't present a problem, as the stage would be shielded. Contact with fans, was another matter.

The safety of Melody, Harmony, and Lyric concerned me greatly. I loved all my children dearly. To complicate matters further, Joan would be going with them. She was their mother, and there was no way she was going to stay behind, if they were in harm's way. In fact, she was going to be their opening act!

I tried several times to get my family to let me go along, but the idea always met with heated resistance. The consensus was that my presence would just draw more danger. They were probably right, but it still pissed me off. I did talk my way into sneaking in for a couple of surprise appearances. The Flying Fluffernutters would have me fronting for them a time or two. I got this concession by the simple explanation that I wanted to assess the effect on the crowd in person.

It took a lot of talking, but I even managed to be included in the first performance. It was to be held at the Royal Albert Hall, in London. I thought the technique I employed for that one was kind of slick. The Bards were totally unknown on Earth. If we wanted a sold-out crowd, there had to be other groups on the bill that people knew. "The Flying Fluffernutters" were still highly regarded, even though we hadn't made an album in years. Joan Jett was still able to draw big crowds, too. With both of us, it should be standing room only. Before the meeting, a lot of people still objected to me going. This new development changed that. I was going to have to visit Earth, anyway. The strange occurrences on Mars, and the Moon, would require some advance warning. I needed to visit a few heads of state, to explain. We didn't need to have people thinking we were bombarding Mars.

The colonization of the red planet was going to be interesting. Originally, I had thought we would just hand it over to Earth. Rhonda had a much better idea, of course.

"We're looking for a unified world government, right?", she explained. "How about making that a requirement for immigration to Mars? We can set up the initial government, with our representative. Once the culture is established and stabilized, elections can be held, and we'll turn it over. Mars can join the Federation, that way. Those idiots on Earth need a wake-up call. I think once they see the advantages for themselves, it will help change their outlook on the idea."

It might take a century or two, but we thought she was on to something. People on Earth knew only a fraction of the things we had developed. Exposure to them, along with the realization that they weren't going to be shared with any planet not a member of the Federation, couldn't hurt.

Our main concern was the quality of people left on our old planet to choose from. The pool of colonists would be shallow, that's for sure. Most of the people who agreed with us, had already moved to a Federation planet. The largest group of individuals left to choose from, were the ones daunted by distance. Since Mars was only a two hour trip from Earth, that obstacle should be overcome.