Dark Matters_ Shadow of Heaven (Book 3) - Christie Golden [21]
Janeway had to smile to herself. Once, as an exercise, she'd had to write down just how long it would be until, by all estimates, the universe either Crunched or Chilled. She'd written down the numeral 1, followed by a hundred zeroes. It was quite a long time.
"You will observe that both of these theories hinge on the amount of matter present," said Telek. He had clasped his hands behind his back and was walking back and forth at the front of the gathering. Janeway realized what he was doing. He was turning this into a lecture at the Romulan Astrophysical Academy. He was in his element.
'Too much matter, and we have the Squeeze. Too little, we have the Freeze. Therefore, dark matter, which comprises ninety percent of the matter in this universe, has a significant role to play in either scenario."
So that's what this digression about the nature of the universe has to do with dark matter, Janeway realized. But how does it tie in ?
"But mere is a third option." His dark eyes caught and held the gaze of first one scientist, then another. "And when I say it, you will realize why I can call myself an imaginative romantic for even entertaining the idea. This is the concept mat our universe is neither open nor closed, but flat There is something called a critical density."
Janeway was familiar with the critical-density concept She tried to remember-ah, yes, one hydrogen atom per cubic meter, or about one ounce for every fifty billion cubic kilometers. It was amazing what you remembered from your Academy days sometimes.
"A flat universe," Telek was saying, "is one in which that density is exact. If our universe is indeed.flat, it would keep expanding, but slowly, never quite turning the corner. It would exist forever."
The scientists in the crowd were frowning now. Janeway wondered why Telek had even brought up this ludicrous theory. No one had ever truly entertained it for centuries. All it did was undermine his authority with his fellow scientists.
"Of course, such a thing could never naturally occur," said Telek, soothing the ruffled feathers of the scientists. "But what about-unnaturally?"
Janeway's heart skipped a beat The hairs along her arms and the back of her neck rose up. All of a sudden, she suspected she knew where Telek was going with this little lecture. And she didn't like it at all.
The room was utterly silent. "Suppose," said Telek, "for the last few billion years, the matter in the universe has been toyed with? A little taken here, a little put there, to keep it precisely at this critical density? Everything in balance, everything working out just perfectly?"
He whirled and slammed his hands on the table. "That is what the Shepherds have been doing!"
And it made perfect sense. Even the name made sense now-Shepherds, good tenders of their flocks. No wonder Tialin hadn't wanted to tell them this at the outset. She feared they'd be too frightened to do anything, paralyzed with the sheer horror of it all, as Janeway was paralyzed now.
There was nothing less than the fate of every single universe in existence at stake.
Her mind flew to what must be happening in the Alpha Quadrant. Eager Romulans, piling on cloak after cloak, creating more mutated dark matter, pulling more matter into this universe than there ought to be. The stuff expanded at an exponential rate. How close were they to oblivion? Years, months, days, moments?
She realized that she was cold, was trembling. She'd faced challenges before, even looked Death square in the eye, but this-her limited, human mind was having trouble wrapping itself around the concept of the end of everything.
"That perfect balance," Telek was saying, "which allows all of us to be here in this room right now, is what Lhiau is trying to tip. Lhiau