Free STAR TREK - TOS by Volume 2 The Eugenics Wars

earth.
    [62]“Behold Morning Star,” he declared, gesturing boldly at the futuristic image on the screen. “Named after Lucifer, the bringer of light, for it is light itselfthat is my ultimate weapon. Ultraviolet light.”
    Another press of a switch and the satellite’s image was supplanted by a graphic depicting Earth’s atmospheric layers. “Many of you are no doubt familiar with the hazardous effects of ultraviolet light, including skin cancer, cataracts, blindness, even genetic damage. Earth’s primary defense against UV

    radiation from the sun is the ozone layer existing in the stratosphere, roughly ten to forty kilometers above the surface of the planet. Sadly, that layer has seen better days.”
    Live footage of swirling clouds and wind currents, taken from a much higher altitude, appeared on the screen. Much of the photo was colored green, indicating the presence of atmospheric ozone, but there was a much darker region at the center of the image, like a yawning void or cavity. “This is the infamous ozone hole above the Antarctic. First discovered in 1985 by, among others, myself, it is proof of the gradual erosion of the ozone layer caused by rampant use of chlorofluorocarbons.”
    Khan saw heads nodding throughout his audience. “You may wonder why I am telling you this. After all, the world has been aware of the damaged state of the ozone layer since the eighties, and has even made some small progress toward addressing the problem by legislating against the manufacture and use of CFCs. An admirable example of international cooperation, really, but one that I can undo in a heartbeat.
    “The top-secret technology at the heart of my[63]Morning Star satellite was originally developed by a singular genius who preferred to be anonymous, to repair any holes in the ozone layer. That same technology can also be deployed, however, to tear open new gaps in the ozone layer, of whatever size I desire, wherever I desire—as I shall now demonstrate.”
    Keying in a password known only to him and no other, Khan initiated a preprogrammed sequence that sent a command to Morning Star, now in orbit above the Antarctic. High above the Earth, and miles away from Chandigarh, the satellite’s unique apparatus subtly manipulated the Van Allen radiation belt to create a severe electrical disruption in the stratosphere above the South Pole. A controlled burst of artificial lightning broke apart millions of ozone molecules, causing the pollution-generated ozone hole to expand at an unnaturally accelerated rate. Thank you, Dr. Evergreen, Khan thought smugly, recalling the ageless scientist who had created the first ozone-destroying satellite nearly eight years ago. Ever cautious where potentially dangerous technology was concerned, Gary Seven had persuaded Evergreen to destroy that earlier satellite; thankfully, Evergreen’s diagrams and data had found their way into Seven’s copious computer files, from which Khan had later extracted them. And to think, Khan thought, that Seven would have let this revolutionary weapon molder forgotten in his files, when he could have used it to change the world! Khan shook his head in disbelief. Seven always did lack vision.
    On the screen, the yawning gap in the ozone layer grew in size, its amorphous borders spreading outward to consume yet more of the protective vapors.[64]The sudden surge looked like time-lapse photography, yet Khan knew that the hole’s rapid expansion was actually occurring in real time, right before the eyes of the awestruck assembly. “Sim sala bim!” exclaimed the courageous emissary from Calcutta. His fellow delegates looked just as horrified.
    As programmed, Morning Star ceased its assault on the ozone layer after exactly five minutes had transpired. A collective sigh of relief rose from the assembled delegates as the hole’s growth slowed to a stop.
    Khan did not let his guests enjoy any momentary release from anxiety. “At this very moment,” he informed them,