Ross herself had complained about it. “But this image is real,” she insisted, pointing to the screen.
“Look,” Travis said, “last week Harry did fill-in-the-blanks on the Karakorum Mountains and he got back a lunar landing game. You’re supposed to land next to the McDonald's stand, all very amusing.” He walked off. “You’d better meet the others in my office. We’re setting advance times to get back in.”
“I’m leading the next team.”
Travis shook his head. “Out of the question.”
“But what about this?” she said, pointing to the screen.
“I’m not buying that image,” Travis said. “Gorillas don’t behave that way. It’s got to be an artifact.” He glanced at his watch. “Right now, the only question I have is how fast we can put a team back in the Congo.”
4. Return Expedition
TRAVIS HAD NEVER HAD ANY DOUBTS IN HIS MIND
about going back in; from the first time he saw the videotapes from the Congo, the only question was how best to do it. He called in all the section heads: Accounts, Diplo, Remote, Geo, Logistics, Legal. They were all yawning and rubbing their eyes. Travis began by saying, “I want us back in the Congo in ninety-six hours.”
Then he leaned back in his chair and let them tell him why it couldn’t be done. There were plenty of reasons.
“We can’t assemble the air cargo units for shipment in less than a hundred and sixty hours,” Cameron, the logistics man said.
“We can postpone the Himalaya team, and use their units,” Travis said.
“But that’s a mountain expedition.”
“You can modify the units in nine hours,” Travis said.
“But we can’t get equipment to fly it out,” Lewis, the transport master, said.
“Korean Airlines has a 747 cargo jet available at SFX. They tell me it can be down here in nine hours.”
“They have a plane just sitting there?” Lewis said, incredulous.