"All right," said Catherine. "Now tell us how to repair the situation."
Her tone was light--after all, the answer was obvious--but it didn't
escape Gilchrist that she _had_ asked him to speak. Or was he thinking
wishfully?
"We turn off the pile, empty the pipes, and go into the room in
spacesuits," he said. "Probably the simplest thing would be to drill
an outlet for the nitrogen vein and drop a thermite bomb down
there ... that should flush it out in a hurry. Or maybe we can lay an
impermeable floor. In any event, it shouldn't take more than a few
days, which the batteries will see us through. Then we can go back to
operation as usual."
Vesey nodded. "I'll put Jahangir on it right away." He stood up and
extended his hand. "As for you, Dr. Gilchrist, you've saved all our
lives and--"
"Shucks." His cheeks felt hot. "It was my own neck too."
Before his self-confidence could evaporate, he turned to Catherine.
"Since we can't get back to work for a few days, how about going down
to the bar for a drink? I believe it'll soon be functioning again.
And, uh, there'll doubtless be a dance to celebrate later--"
"I didn't know you could dance," she said.
"I can't," he blurted.
They went out together. It is not merely inorganic reactions which
require a catalyst.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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