Page 74 - Psychoceramics and the Test of Fire

Ark Two

whose own ideas are far from immune to dismantling by the sort of
logic you champion. And I am with you one hundred percent on that.
I also think your next suggestion, a fleet of massive airships to
preserve terrestrial flora and fauna in the increasingly likely event of
an ecological disaster—Atropos again—shows an imaginative leap, a
bold vision of what is possible in the face of that catastrophe. That is
what I am here to discuss with you, Kile: action. The clock is ticking
on the time remaining to act decisively ahead of profound and
irreversible breakdown.”
Vosky smiled wanly. He knew an aficionado when he saw one,
and had probably heard comparable professions of absolute devotion
and commitment. Of course, I was both more and less than that; but
without acting credibly as a true believer I could not move on to the
next phase.
“Yes, certainly, Robin. I can take your name and address and let
you know if I make any further breakthroughs in this area. It certainly
is gratifying to me that others share my views. Now, do you have any
specific questions about Ark Two I can answer?”
He looked at his watch, rather a simple model for an astronomer,
I noted. The higher-status soup-to-nuts wrist-astrolabe was a big-
ticket item, beyond his means. We had arrived at the moment when I
needed to be sold on his product before I could sell him mine.
“I do have one, but it isn’t very specific: how practical is your
proposal? Pardon my asking; I’m a guy who believes the devil is in
the details. I’m not trying to be funny when I wonder if your design
would get off the ground.”
Vosky frowned, but only for a moment. I continued to broadcast
good feelings at him. I hoped Jupiter was taking its sweet time
hoisting its massive self over the horizon and mooning this
earthbound voyeur.
“Okay, Robin.” He went over to a nearby desk and brought back a
large mailing tube that had been leaning against it. “Here are the
specs. They are not based on any hoped-for technologies or
vaporware. Ark Two can be built today.”
He opened the tube and took out a sheaf of scaled schematics and
crudely-shaded three-dimensional pencil renderings. “Our
assumption,” he began professorially with royalty’s possessive
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