danbrown.deceptionpoint-第60部分

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　〃Rock　structure？〃
　〃Yeah。　She　said　the　only　people　who　would　notice　the　mistake　were　a　few　other　geologists。　It　sounds　like　whatever　error　I　made　was　related　to　the　position　of　the　meteorite　itself。〃
　Rachel　drew　a　quick　breath；　understanding　now。　〃Chondrules？〃
　〃I　don't　know；　but　it　seems　pretty　coincidental。〃
　Rachel　agreed。　The　chondrules　were　the　one　remaining　shred　of　evidence　that　categorically　supported　NASA's　claim　that　this　was　indeed　a　meteorite。
　Corky　came　over；　rubbing　his　eyes。　〃What's　going　on？〃
　Tolland　filled　him　in。
　Corky　scowled；　shaking　his　head。　〃It's　not　a　problem　with　the　chondrules；　Mike。　No　way。　All　of　your　data　came　from　NASA。　And　from　me。　It　was　flawless。〃
　〃What　other　petrologic　error　could　I　have　made？〃
　〃Who　the　hell　knows？　Besides；　what　do　marine　geologists　know　about　chondrules？〃
　〃I　have　no　idea；　but　she's　damned　sharp。〃
　〃Considering　the　circumstances；〃　Rachel　said；　〃I　think　we　should　talk　to　this　woman　before　we　talk　to　Director　Pickering。〃
　Tolland　shrugged。　〃I　called　her　four　times　and　got　the　machine。　She's　probably　in　the　hydrolab　and　can't　hear　a　damn　thing　anyway。　She　won't　get　my　messages　until　morning　at　the　earliest。〃　Tolland　paused；　checking　his　watch。　〃Although。。。　〃
　〃Although　what？〃
　Tolland　eyed　her　intensely。　〃How　important　do　you　think　it　is　that　we　talk　to　Xavia　before　we　talk　to　your　boss？〃
　〃If　she　has　something　to　say　about　chondrules？　I'd　say　it's　critical。　Mike；〃　Rachel　said；　〃at　the　moment；　we've　got　all　kinds　of　contradictory　data。　William　Pickering　is　a　man　accustomed　to　having　clear　answers。　When　we　meet　him；　I'd　love　to　have　something　substantial　for　him　to　act　on。〃
　〃Then　we　should　make　a　stop。〃
　Rachel　did　a　double　take。　〃On　your　ship？〃
　〃It's　off　the　coast　of　New　Jersey。　Almost　directly　on　our　way　to　Washington。　We　can　talk　to　Xavia；　find　out　what　she　knows。　Corky　still　has　the　meteorite　sample；　and　if　Xavia　wants　to　run　some　geologic　tests　on　it；　the　ship　has　a　fairly　well…equipped　lab。　I　can't　imagine　it　would　take　us　more　than　an　hour　to　get　some　conclusive　answers。〃
　Rachel　felt　a　pulse　of　anxiety。　The　thought　of　having　to　face　the　ocean　again　so　soon　was　unnerving。　Conclusive　answers；　she　told　herself；　tempted　by　the　possibility。　Pickering　will　definitely　want　answers。
　
　　
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　Delta…One　was　glad　to　be　back　on　solid　ground。
　The　Aurora　aircraft；　despite　running　at　only　one…half　power　and　taking　a　circuitous　ocean　route；　had　pleted　its　journey　in　under　two　hours　and　afforded　the　Delta　Force　a　healthy　head　start　to　take　up　position　and　prepare　themselves　for　the　additional　kill　the　controller　had　requested。
　Now；　on　a　private　military　runway　outside　D。C。；　the　Delta　Force　left　the　Aurora　behind　and　boarded　their　new　transport…a　waiting　OH…58D　Kiowa　Warrior　helicopter。
　Yet　again；　the　controller　has　arranged　for　the　best；　Delta…One　thought。
　The　Kiowa　Warrior；　originally　designed　as　a　light　observation　helicopter；　had　been　〃expanded　and　improved〃　to　create　the　military's　newest　breed　of　attack　helicopter。　The　Kiowa　boasted　infrared　thermal　imaging　capability　enabling　its　designator/laser　range　finder　to　provide　autonomous　designation　for　laser…guided　precision　weapons　like　Air…to…Air　Stinger　missiles　and　the　AGM…1148　Hellfire　Missile　System。　A　high…speed　digital　signal　processor　provided　simultaneous　multitarget　tracking　of　up　to　six　targets。　Few　enemies　had　ever　seen　a　Kiowa　up　close　and　survived　to　tell　the　tale。
　Delta…One　felt　a　familiar　rush　of　power　as　he　climbed　into　the　Kiowa　pilot's　seat　and　strapped　himself　in。　He　had　trained　on　this　craft　and　flown　it　in　covert　ops　three　times。　Of　course；　never　before　had　he　been　gunning　for　a　prominent　American　official。　The　Kiowa；　he　had　to　admit；　was　the　perfect　aircraft　for　the　job。　Its　Rolls…Royce　Allison　engine　and　twin　semirigid　blades　were　〃silent　running；〃　which　essentially　meant　targets　on　the　ground　could　not　hear　the　chopper　until　it　was　directly　over　them。　And　because　the　aircraft　was　capable　of　flying　blind　without　lights　and　was　painted　flat　black　with　no　reflective　tail　numbers；　it　was　essentially　invisible　unless　the　target　had　radar。
　Silent　black　helicopters。
　The　conspiracy　theorists　were　going　nuts　over　these。　Some　claimed　the　invasion　of　silent　black　helicopters　was　proof　of　〃New　World　Order　storm　troopers〃　under　the　authority　of　the　United　Nations。　Others　claimed　the　choppers　were　silent　alien　probes。　Still　others　who　saw　the　Kiowas　in　tight　formation　at　night　were　deceived　into　thinking　they　were　looking　at　fixed　running　lights　on　a　much　larger　craft…a　single　flying　saucer　that　was　apparently　capable　of　vertical　flight。
　Wrong　again。　But　the　military　loved　the　diversion。
　During　a　recent　covert　mission；　Delta…One　had　flown　a　Kiowa　armed　with　the　most　secretive　new　U。S。　military　technology…an　ingenious　holographic　weapon　nicknamed　S&M。　Despite　conjuring　associations　with　sadomasochism；　S&M　stood　for　〃smoke　and　mirrors〃…holographic　images　〃projected〃　into　the　sky　over　enemy　territory。　The　Kiowa　had　used　S&M　technology　to　project　holograms　of　U。S。　aircraft　over　an　enemy　anti…aircraft　installation。　The　panicked　anti…aircraft　gunners　fired　maniacally　at　the　circling　ghosts。　When　all　of　their　ammunition　was　gone；　the　United　States　sent　in　the　real　thing。
　As　Delta…One　and　his　men　lifted　off　the　runway；　Delta…One　could　still　hear　the　words　of　his　controller。　You　have　another　mark。　It　seemed　an　egregious　under…statement　considering　their　new　target's　identity。　Delta…One　reminded　himself；　however；　that　it　was　not　his　place　to　question。　His　team　had　been　given　an　order；　and　they　would　carry　it　out　in　the　exact　method　instructed…as　shocking　as　that　method　was。
　I　hope　to　hell　the　controller　is　certain　this　is　the　right　move。
　As　the　Kiowa　lifted　off　the　runway；　Delta…One　headed　southwest。　He　had　seen　the　FDR　Memorial　twice；　but　tonight　would　be　his　first　time　from　the　air。
　
　　
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　〃This　meteorite　was　originally　discovered　by　a　Canadian　geologist？〃　Gabrielle　Ashe　stared　in　astonishment　at　the　young　programmer；　Chris　Harper。　〃And　this　Canadian　is　now　dead？〃
　Harper　gave　a　grim　nod。
　〃How　long　have　you　known　this？〃　she　demanded。
　〃A　couple　of　weeks。　After　the　administrator　and　Marjorie　Tench　forced　me　to　perjure　myself　in　the　press　conference；　they　knew　I　couldn't　go　back　on　my　word。　They　told　me　the　truth　about　how　the　meteorite　was　really　discovered。〃
　PODS　is　not　responsible　for　finding　the　meteorite！　Gabrielle　had　no　idea　where　all　of　this　information　would　lead；　but　clearly　it　was　scandalous。　Bad　news　for　Tench。　Great　news　for　the　senator。
　〃As　I　mentioned；〃　Harper　said；　looking　somber　now；　〃the　true　way　the　meteorite　was　discovered　was　through　an　intercepted　radio　transmission。　Are　you　familiar　with　a　program　called　INSPIRE？　The　Interactive　NASA　Space　Physics　Ionosphere　Radio　Experiment。〃
　Gabrielle　had　heard　of　it　only　vaguely。
　〃Essentially；〃　Harper　said；　〃it's　a　series　of　very　low　frequency　radio　receivers　near　the　North　Pole　that　listen　to　the　sounds　of　the　earth…plasma　wave　emissions　from　the　northern　lights；　broadband　pulses　from　lightning　storms；　that　sort　of　thing。〃
　〃Okay。〃
　〃A　few　weeks　ago；　one　of　INSPIRE's　radio　receivers　picked　up　a　stray　transmission　from　Ellesmere　Island。　A　Canadian　geologist　was　calling　for　help　at　an　exceptionally　low　frequency。〃　Harper　paused。　〃In　fact；　the　frequency　was　so　low　that　nobody　other　than　NASA's　VLF　receivers　could　possibly　have　heard　it。　We　assumed　the　Canadian　was　long…waving。〃
　〃I'm　sorry？〃
　〃Broadcasting　at　the　lowest　possible　frequency　to　get　maximum　distance　on　his　transmission。　He　was　in　the　middle　of　nowhere；　remember；　a　standard　frequency　transmission　probably　would　not　have　made　it　far　enough　to　be　heard。〃
　〃What　did　his　message　say？〃
　〃The　transmission　was　short。　The　Canadian　said　he　had　been　out　doing　ice　soundings　on　the　Milne　Ice　Shelf；　had　detected　an　ultradense　anomaly　buried　in　the　ice；　suspected　it　was　a　giant　meteorite；　and　while　taking　measurements　had　bee　trapped　in　a　storm。　He　gave　his　coordinates；　asked　for　rescue　from　the　storm；　and　signed　off。　The　NASA　listening　post　sent　a　plane　from　Thule　to　rescue　him。　They　searched　for　hours　and　finally　discovered　him；　miles　off　course；　dead　at　the　bottom　of　a　crevasse　with　his　sled　and　dogs。　Apparently　he　tried　to　outrun　the　storm；　got　blinded；　went　off　course；　and　fell　into　a　crevasse。〃
　Gabrielle　considered　the　information；　intrigued。　〃So　suddenly　NASA　knew　about　a　meteorite　that　nobody　else　knew　about？〃
　〃Exactly。　And　ironically；　if　my　software　had　been　working　properly；　the　PODS　satellite　would　have　spotted　that　same　meteorite…a　week　before　the　Canadian　did。〃
　The　coincidence　gave　Gabrielle　pause。　〃A　meteorite　buried　for　three　hundred　years　was　almost　discovered　twice　in　the　same　week？〃
　〃I　know。　A　little　bizarre；　but　science　can　be　like　that。　Feast　or　famine。　The　point　is　that　the　administrator　felt　like　the　meteorite　should　have　been　our　discovery　anyway…if　I　had　done　my　job　correctly。　He　told　me　that　because　the　Canadian　was　dead；　nobody　would　be　the　wiser　if　I　simply　redirected　PODS　to　the　coordinates　the　Canadian　had　transmitted　in　his　SOS。　Then　I　could　pretend　to　discover　the　meteorite　from　scratch；　and　we　could　salvage　some　respect　from　an　embarrassing　failure。〃
　〃And　that's　what　you　did。〃
　〃As　I　said；　I　had　no　choice。　I　had　let　down　the　mission。〃　He　paused。　〃Tonight；　though；　when　I　heard　the　President's　press　conference　and　found　out　the　meteorite　I'd　pretended　to　discover　contained　fossils。。。　〃
　〃You　were　stunned。〃
　〃Bloody　well　floored；　I'd　say！〃
　〃Do　you　think　the　administrator　knew　the　meteorite　contained　fossils　before　he　asked　you　to　pretend　PODS　found　it？〃
　〃I　can't　imagine　how。　That　meteorite　was　buried　and　untouched　until　the　first　NASA　team　got　there。　My　best　guess　is　that　NASA　had　no　idea　what　they'd　really　found　until　they　got　a　team　up　there　to　drill　cores　and　x…ray。　They　asked　me　to　lie　about　PODS；　thinking　they'd　have　a　moderate　victory　with　a　big　meteorite。　Then　when　they　got　there；　they　realized　just　how　big　a　find　it　really　was。〃
　Gabrielle's　breath　was　shallow　with　excitement。　〃Dr。　Harper；　will　you　testify　that　NASA　and　the　White　House　forced　you　to