to offer Earth Defense and the Angels a prize to gather information for her and Peter. It made a big difference in their ability to make good forecasts.
The idea had been born in her mind as Peter listened dreamily to the sapphire rods clatter into the blast shield recesses. He was smiling as he listened. "So pure and clean, I can hear for kilometers," he said with a sense of rapture.
Since learning of Peter's gift, Selpha had studied acoustics intently. And when he said that, she suddenly put several different little facts together.
Sapphire was not only an exceptionally hard material, harder even than ceramic armor, it was also one of the most acoustically perfect materials known to man. Float a cylinder of sapphire in a vacuum, tap it gently, and it will ring for days. Selpha could not have designed a more ideal sensing device for her son.
And Shiva's alabaster armor, while not as acoustically pure as a sapphire crystal, was nonetheless a "clean" material. Quite possibly, Peter was not exaggerating when he said he could hear for kilometers. So if they threw one of the rods against the last alabaster wall, producing a sharp sound, Peter might be able to figure out what lay beyond. And since the Angels consistently met the first enemy resistance there, the information could be tremendously valuable.
* * *
CJ held her breath as Morgan spoke, though the pause hurt her bicycling rhythm; she wanted to make sure she missed no part of the order. "Lars, grab one of your spare rods. When I say 'throw,'
The idea had been born in her mind as Peter listened dreamily to the sapphire rods clatter into the blast shield recesses. He was smiling as he listened. "So pure and clean, I can hear for kilometers," he said with a sense of rapture.
Since learning of Peter's gift, Selpha had studied acoustics intently. And when he said that, she suddenly put several different little facts together.
Sapphire was not only an exceptionally hard material, harder even than ceramic armor, it was also one of the most acoustically perfect materials known to man. Float a cylinder of sapphire in a vacuum, tap it gently, and it will ring for days. Selpha could not have designed a more ideal sensing device for her son.
And Shiva's alabaster armor, while not as acoustically pure as a sapphire crystal, was nonetheless a "clean" material. Quite possibly, Peter was not exaggerating when he said he could hear for kilometers. So if they threw one of the rods against the last alabaster wall, producing a sharp sound, Peter might be able to figure out what lay beyond. And since the Angels consistently met the first enemy resistance there, the information could be tremendously valuable.
* * *
CJ held her breath as Morgan spoke, though the pause hurt her bicycling rhythm; she wanted to make sure she missed no part of the order. "Lars, grab one of your spare rods. When I say 'throw,'