Free A Simple Truth by Albert Ball Page B

demanded "Why waste time with this game?  Earth must be informed immediately.  As many people as possible must be told as quickly as possible."
    "Oh yes and start a mass panic ," replied a seco nd voice.  "Doc Winter is right; we have to think carefully about this."
    Arguments came thick and fast.  People were frightened, and fear invariably provokes emotional reactions.
    Eventually Jean reasserted herself after the initial shock had passed.  She walked over to the platform and held up her hands for silence.
    "This is getting us nowhere.  Has anyone any considered ideas to put forward rather than knee-jerk reactions?"
    The uproar started again as fiercely as ever, but in the midst Jean noticed Sergio Baldoni sitting quietly, a hand raised to indicate his wish to speak.
    "Quiet please ," she implored, "Sergio, what have you to say?"
    Heads turned in surprise, but Sergio was given his chance to speak.  Although the youngest member of staff he was respected as a sensible lad, maybe he could offer something.
    "We're out of t ouch with earth," he began self- consciously, "so are not in a position to judge accurately the effects on people back home, or who is the best person to receive this news.  So why not single out someone who can be counted on not to act rashly, who is in a position of influence, and who is stone deaf."  He sat down feeling a little embarrassed.
    The silence lasted only a couple of seconds until the sheer simplicity of this suggestion sank in.
    "Well done Sergio ," encouraged Dag Fransson who had now recovered completely, "the only one here with any brains."
    "Who else but Jay Ruala ?" put in Toby Fletcher, "Senior Materials Consultant in the Robotics Division, he was born deaf."
    Within a few minutes the meeting was concluded, the solution endorsed by all.  Sergio coloured up as back patting and praise from all sides proclaimed him hero of the hour.
    Geoff undertook to convey the message.  He didn't have Ruala's personal communication code so his first task was to fabricate some excuse for the contact in case it was intercepted before Ruala could be located.  So he set about thinking up something plausible that would not cause too much interest while Jean resumed her work at the console.  The last transmission had allowed the source co-ordinates to be measured so she began to compute its position.
    Fortunately the contact turned out to be straightforward.  Ruala was at work in his office so there was no need to leave a message or a callback code.  Ruala took the news very well.  He considered that the effects were certainly accidental and probably less severe than Geoff had feared, but promised to take the necessary action.  He explained that three telescopes were receiving the transmissions for twenty - four hour coverage and then relaying them to all parts of the w orld; t he Helsinki University telescope, Parkes Radio Observatory in New South Wales, and the Texas State Observatory near San Antonio.  He was sure that a discreet call to the directors would set the wheels in motion to filter out the harmful pulses and leave the rest so that the world in general would not notice the difference.
     
    Geoff was surprised at how easy it had been to tal k to Ruala.  He knew about real time transcription systems of course but had not experienced their use before.  If he hadn't known otherwise he would have thought that Ruala could hear perfectly well.   He was also very reassured by Ruala's reaction.  Who knew what sort of panic could have been triggered if he had obeyed his first impulse to broadcast the news as far and as wide as possible?  This way if all worked out as planned there would be no chance of any unnecessary alarm.  Then when people were back to normal Dent could be told and the Procyon Group decide on further action if any.
    Things were not to work out quite as planned however.  In only ten day's time he would bitterly regret not having obeyed that very first