"But there is," he said. "There is at least one great race very near to us.”
"There is?" asked Caroline. "Where?”
"On the other universe," said Gary. "A race that is fully as great, as capable as the Engineers. A race that should be glad to help us in this fight.”
"Great suffering snakes," yelped Herb, "why didn't we think of that before?”
"I do not understand," said the Engineer. "I agree they are a great race and very close to us. Much too close, in fact. But they might as well be a billion light years away. They can do us no good. How would you get them here?”
"Yes," rumbled Kingsley, "how would you get them here?”
Gary turned to the Engineer. "You have talked to them," he said. "Have you any idea of what kind of people they might be?”
"A great people," said the Engineer. "Greater than we in certain sciences.
They are the ones who notified us of the danger of the approaching universes. They knew they were nearing our universe when we didn't even know there was another universe other than our own. Such very clever people.”
"Talk to them again," said Gary. "Give them the information that will enable them to make a miniature universe… one of Caroline's hyperspheres.”