The Sum of All Fears.pdf - Delta Force

Jack walked to the corner to pour himself a cup of coffee. He smiled as he did
so. These games were fun, he admitted to himself. He really did enjoy them. They
were also realistic. He'd been swept away from a normal day's routine, dumped in
a stuffy room, given confused and fragmented information, and had no idea at all
what the hell was supposed to be going on. That was reality. The old joke: How
do crisis-managers resemble mush- rooms? They're kept in the dark and fed
horseshit.
'Sir, we have an incoming HOTLINE message . . .'
Okay, Ryan thought, it's that kind of game today. The Pentagon must have come up
with the scenario. Let's see if it's still possible to blow the world up . . .
***
'More concrete?' Qati asked.
'Much more concrete,' Fromm answered. 'The machines each weigh several tons, and
they must be totally stable. The room must, be totally stable, and totally
sealed. It must be clean like a hospital – no, much better than any hospital you
have ever seen.' Fromm looked down at his list. Not cleaner than a German
hospital, of course. 'Next, electrical power. We'll need three large backup
generators, and at least two UPSs – '
'What?' Qati asked.
'Un-interruptible power supplies,' Ghosn translated. 'We'll keep one of the
backup generators turning at all times, of course?'
'Correct,' Fromm answered. 'Since this is a primitive operation, we'll try not
to use more than one machine at a time. The real problem with electricity is
ensuring a secure circuit. So, we take the line current through the UPSs to
protect against spikes. The computer systems on the milling machines are highly
sensitive.
'Next!' Fromm said. 'Skilled operators.'
'That will be highly difficult,' Ghosn observed.
The German smiled, amazing everyone present. 'Not so. It will be easier than you
think.'
'Really?' Qati asked. Good news from this infideP
'We'll need perhaps five highly trained men, but you have them in the region, I
am sure.'
'Where? There is no machine shop in the region that – '
'Certainly there is. People here wear spectacles, do they not?'
'But – '
'Of course!' Ghosn said, rolling his eyes in amazement.
'The degree of precision, you see,' Fromm explained to Qati, 'is no different
from what is required for eyeglasses. The machines are very similar in design,
just larger, and what we are attempting to do is simply to produce precise and
predictable curves in a rigid material. Nuclear bombs are produced to exacting
specifications. So are spectacles. Our desired object is larger, but the
principle is the same, and with the proper machinery it is merely a matter of
scale, not of substance. So: can you obtain skilled lens-makers?'
'I don't see why not,' Qati replied, hiding his annoyance.
'They must be highly skilled,' Fromm said, like a schoolmaster. 'The best you
can find, people with long experience, probably with training in Germany or