The Ring of the Dwarves

Far beneath the Swiss Alps Mankind's most ambitious, most expensive, arguably his greatest achievement throbs in preternatural gloom, served by unpaid minions and yielding its masters endless riches in gold. But one of those master has doubts. He is troubled about his treatment of the wailing minions, concerned about the nobility of the cause, haunted by questions regarding the magical Ring he serves. He unlocks his mind to a counselor and the Ring's spell is broken: he begins to act independently but his world falls to pieces as the Ring exerts its power to destroy him. Roberto-Carlos, Particle Physicist, has reached the pinnacle of his academic career. He's looked up to by legions of interns and researchers, who obey him unquestioningly. But his reign over CERN's data-processing facility is disturbed by his doubts about the Standard Model and the Higgs Boson. He cannot escape certain conclusions that render his allegiance to CERN moot, leaving him in a precarious position.