“I don’t follow that,” said Brody.
“A matter of vectors, Judge. A guidance rocket can give a load so many meters per second of side vector. Longer that vector has to work, farther from original point of aim load will land. If we signal a guidance rocket three hours before impact, we displace impact three times as much as if we waited till one hour before impact. Not quite that simple but our computer can figure it–if you give it time enough.”
“How long is ‘time enough’?” asked Wolfgang.
I carefully misunderstood. “Computer can solve that sort of problem almost instantaneously once you program it. But such decisions are pre-programmed. Something like this: If, out of target group A, B, C, and D, you find that you have failed to hit three targets on first and second salvoes, you reposition all group-one second backups so that you will be able to choose those three targets while distributing other second backups of that group for possible use on group two while repositioning third backups of supergroup Alpha such that–”
“Slow up!” said Wolfgang. “I’m not a computer. I just want to know how long before we have to make up our minds.”
“Oh.” I studied watch showily. “You now have . . . three minutes fifty-eight seconds in which to abort leading load for Kansas City. Abort program is set up and I have my best assistant–fellow named Mike–standing by. Shall I phone him?”
Sheenie said, “For heaven’s sake, Man–abort!”
“Like hell!” said Finn. “What’s matter, Terence? No guts?”
Prof said, “Comrades! Please!”
I said, “Look, I take orders from head of state–Prof over there. If he wants opinions, he’ll ask. No use yelling at each other.” I looked at watch. “Call it two and a half minutes. More margin, of course, for other targets; Kansas City is farthest from deep water. But some Great Lake cities are already past ocean abort; Lake Superior is best we can do. Salt Lake City maybe an extra minute. Then they pile up.” I waited.
“Roll call,” said Prof. “To carry-out the program. General Nielsen?”
“Da!”
“Gospazha Davis?”
Wyoh caught breath. “Da.”
“Judge Brody?”
“Yes, of course. Necessary.”
“Wolfgang?”
“Yes.”
“Comte LaJoie?”
“Da.”
“Gospodin Sheehan?”
“You’re missing a bet. But I’ll go along. Unanimous.”
“One moment. Manuel?”
“Is up to you, Prof; always has been. Voting is silly.”
“I am aware that it is up to me, Gospodin Minister. Carry out bombardment to plan.”
Most targets we managed to hit by second salvo though all were defended except Mexico City. Seemed likely (98.3 percent by Mike’s later calculation) that interceptors were exploding by radar fusing with set distances that incorrectly estimated vulnerability of solid cylinders of rock. Only three rocks were destroyed; others were pushed off course and thereby did more harm than if not fired at.
New York was tough; Dallas turned out to be very tough. Perhaps difference lay in local control of interception, for it seemed unlikely that command post in Cheyenne Mountain was still effective. Perhaps we had not cracked their hole in the ground (don’t know how deep down it was) but I’ll bet that neither men nor computers were still tracking.
Dallas blew up or pushed aside first five rocks, so I told Mike to take everything he could from Cheyenne Mountain and award it to Dallas. . . which he was able to do two salvoes later; those two targets are less than a thousand kilometers apart.
Dallas’s defenses cracked on next salvo; Mike gave their spaceport three more (already committed) then shifted back to Cheyenne Mountain–later ones had never been nudged and were still earmarked “Cheyenne Mountain.” He was still giving that battered mountain cosmic love pats when America rolled down and under Terra’s eastern edge.
I stayed with Mike all during bombardment, knowing it would be our toughest. As he shut down till time to dust Great China, Mike said thoughtfully, “Man, I don’t think we had better hit that mountain again.”
“Why not, Mike?”
“It’s not there any longer.”
“You might divert its backups. When do you have to decide?”
“I would put them on Albuquerque and Omaha but had best start now; tomorrow will be busy. Man my best friend, you should leave.”