Bud gave an awed whistle. “Boy, a thing like that might make even a powerful missile look like a toy!”
Even if the brain energy proved too small to be harnessed for destructive purposes, Tom went on, it might turn out to possess superintelligence. Gifted with all the scientific know-how of the space people, it might be made to reveal those secrets to the Brungarians.
“They might learn from it how to construct weapons or space craft powerful enough to conquer the free world!” Tom ended.
His listeners were grim-faced at the thought.
“I’d say that’s a far worse danger than any chance of their coming up with a robot monster,” Ames said.
“Ditto!” Hanson agreed.
“I think so too,” Tom replied. “In any case,
32 THE VISITOR FROM PLANET X
it’s up to us to make sure the Brungarians don’t switch that energy off course before it lands here.”
“Think their scientists are capable of such a stunt?” George Billing inquired.
Tom shrugged. “They’re certainly far advanced in the fields of rocket guidance and telemetry. But actually we just don’t know.”
Hank Sterling glanced hopefully at the young inventor. “Got any ideas, skipper?” he asked.
Tom drummed a pencil on the table thoughtfully before replying. “Maybe our best bet is first to find out all we can about the lines of research on which they’re concentrating. That might be the tip-off.”
After a thorough discussion, it was decided that Ames and Billing would fly to Washington at once and talk to the FBI and Central Intelligence. Their job would be to garner and piece together every scrap of information on Brungarian scientists’ accomplishments.