"Why?"
"Destruction of anything the size of the earth takes time," explained Blaine. "I've read stories in which the earth crashed into another planet, and it took place in a matter of minutes. Forgetting that at planetary velocities—earth is about seventeen miles per second orbital, if I remember correctly—it takes the earth over a minute to cover one diameter of motion. Also the chances of a real crash, like a couple of golf balls colliding is impossible."
"Roche's Limit?" asked Ackerman. "They'd start to come apart by mutual gravitational attraction before they hit, and the resulting crash would be more like two spoonsful of baking powder hitting one another."
"Sounds messy," said Laurie.
Ackerman looked cheerfully sour. "It would be," he told her.
"This affair is not to be that simple," stated Blaine. "No collision. Just beamed energy. Equally messy, though."
"The 'time' speed-up is obvious, isn't it?" asked Les, looking at the distant earth through the telescope. "I can definitely perceive the turning."
"We're running free at about twenty to one," said Blaine. "Earth will turn once in about an hour and twelve minutes."
"When does the big show start?"
"Any moment now."