Age of Cosmic Exploration, 1

by Zhttty

  Sighing, Guang Zhen replied, "That's a relief I suppose… Are you feeling alright? You have been in coma for more than seven hours. Xiao Bai has been checking up on you, but he said he found no incriminating wounds…"

  Without hesitation, Yao Yuan confessed, "It was due to something else; something I thought was mere coincidence, but now I can confirm that it has to do with man's heightened state, or rather, evolution… After we leave earth, I'll explain the rest in detail, but if this turns out to be true, then the issue of military deficiency that has been troubling us will be solved."

  The spaceship will end up accommodating 120000 residents and so, with only one thousand and five hundred military men, the issue of military deficiency was troublingly real.

  Furthermore, they needed a greater military power to ward against dangerous contingencies that could happen in space. Yao Yuan's encryption expert had said it himself; it was foolish to envision outer space to be a peaceful place. If the military was to fall, who would defend the ship? The citizens? The scientists? They wouldn't be of much help, and that would be a giant waste of their expertise.

  The obvious solution was military expansion, and Yao Yuan had indeed given it some thought. However, power corrupts. During the initial riot, the first to turn against the civilians were mostly armed forces. To have found a troop of one thousand and five hundred was already an impressive feat to begin with. Try as he might, Yao Yuan couldn't find any extra eligible candidates to be recruited.

  However, if Chou's hypothesis was true and there was a chance that elongated habituation in space would incite man's evolution, if provided with necessary training, their lack of numbers could easily be compensated by an increase in skill.

  The rest of the journey continued in silence. As the hovercraft neared the base, they veered towards a secluded entrance by the valley’s side and directly proceeded into the underground base. Inside, three thousand technical workers, nine hundred academics, and the families of the one thousand and five hundred military men and women had already boarded Noah Two. They had set up residences according to previously allocated districts. These were the workshops for technicians, academies for scientists, and barracks for the military and their families.

  The military had quarantined the area around Noah Two. Armed to the teeth with siege weaponry, they looked ready to defend the ship to their deaths.

  As Yao Yuan and his team entered the base, orders were issued to allow passage for the remaining civilians to board. Arrangements had already been made according to nationalities, languages, and so on to enable a smooth and systematic boarding.

  Even though the most spacious trucks were being used to facilitate transport, the emigration of 120000 people still took up to almost a full hour.

  Most of the citizens were seeing Noah Two for the first time. The initial shock was hard to suppress. There were even some outbreaks of excitement, but those were quickly stamped out by attending officers. Twelve lanes were opened to expedite overall movement. To prevent misidentification, everyone was required to swipe their keycards on the designated panels to gain entry.

  With all these measures in place, it still took them until 8 P.M, two hours past the intended 6 P.M, to have everyone onboard.

  With a size of 120000, there was expected chaos. The originally spacious spaceship appeared even slightly cramped. Furthermore, since Noah Two was originally intended for 100000 people, there weren’t enough sleeping bunkers. Technicians, soldiers, and scientists were given their own sleeping chambers, but it was impossible to provide similar privilege to the remaining civilians. The issue was that after the specialized districts had been cordoned off, there still remained quite a number of sleeping chambers but not enough to fit everyone. A difference in access to privileges between specialized members of the community and the normal public was manageable and even encouraged because it inspired self-improvement among the public. However, a difference in treatment among the same echelon of normal civilians would prove to be tumultuous.

  Hence, Yao Yuan made the decision to break down the partitions outside of the previously mentioned designated districts. Living arrangements would still be assigned according to tents and camps like how it was in the valley.

  As everyone settled into place, Yao Yuan and the rest of the Black Star Unit were congregating at central command.

  "Open the exit chute!"

  "Captain's order, open the exit chute!"

  "Opening the exit chute!"

  Gradually, the metal layer above Noah Two started to open itself. This had been given multiple test runs, so this part of the operation proceeded without a hitch. After a few minutes, an aperture large enough to allow passage of Noah Two opened above the base.

  "Initiate Noah Two's anti-gravitational system. Going into ten-second countdown!"

  "Captain's order, Initiate Noah Two's anti-gravitational system. Going into ten-second countdown!"

  "Ten, Nine, Eight, Seven…"

  As the seconds ticked down, the three sites of gravity manipulators around the base started to charge, and after an initial jolt, Noah Two began to achieve levitation. Within these few seconds, even though they couldn't see outside the ship, everyone onboard collectively held their breaths because this was the moment that would decide their fate.

  Noah Two's levitation started to accelerate and it began to float into the sky. Before long, it had pushed itself beyond the clouds. It wasn’t until they reached the ozone layer that Noah Two began to slow against the resisting pressure.

  "Initiate energy pulse system. Accelerate speed!"

  "Captain's order, initiate energy pulse system. Accelerate speed!"

  "Initiating energy pulse system. Total discharge increase by point zero two three. Energy discharge is on standard operation!"

  As Noah Two lifted beyond the ozone layer, everyone in central command was gifted with a grand view of Earth through the reinforced glass windshield. Amidst the engulfing darkness of space, the azure planet shone like a sapphire in the dark, its glittering beauty taking everyone's breaths away…

  Behind the feeling of amazement, there was an undercurrent of deep melancholy. Zhang Heng was caught wiping a few stray tears with his sleeve.

  "Initiate preparation for space warp. Thirty seconds for energy calibration. Check load output for standard value!"

  "Captain's orders, initiate preparation for space warp, thirty seconds for energy calibration, check load output for standard value!"

  "Initiating preparations for space warp. Calibrating energy. Load output confirmed at standard value, peaked at 93.23 percent of total output. All energy channels working as intended, slight discharge variation at third energy pool…"

  Yao Yuan turned to take one good last look at that swath of blue. His heart was roiling with mixed emotions…

  Adieu! Our home sweet home!

  "Initiate… Space warp…"

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  Chapter17 The First Warp

  Man's understanding of space warp technology was currently still minimal, or to be exact, approaching nil.

  The capability to move from one physical location to the next without traversing the distance in between nor the passage of time bordered on science fiction for human technology of the time. And yet, it had come into reality in the year 2027.

  Nevertheless, it was not only the technology of space warping that man of the time was unfamiliar with; outer space itself was a grand mystery to man. In the year 2027, man was just beginning to explore the worlds beyond their world. Everything about the mysterious expanse beyond Earth itself was stuff of speculation and myths. With the scientific advancement of the time, man had only managed to step foot upon the moon; we had not even reached Mars. For every thing man knew about space travel, there was much more that was still unknown.

  However, it was supremely clear that space travel was where technology was headed. Due to low mortality rate and dwindling natural re
sources, space emigration was the next logical step.

  That was why when the technology of space warping landed in human hands, immediate efforts were taken to understanding it and essentially making it work. The creation of Noah One and Two was a result of technological paroxysm that came with that discovery.

  Yet… it has to be said that in the year 2027 there still existed some distance between man and actual space habituation. Even though man could put space warping into application, the theories behind it were still a source of befuddlement to man's brightest minds. It was akin to how man's ancestral hominidae would handle a gun. He could somehow figure out it that launches fatal projectiles, but the actual science involved would be lost upon him.

  According to scientists' understanding at the time, the most possible way to displace an object across space would be through the usage of wormholes. It was speculated that through the creation of stargates, items could be transported through a wormhole from one of its ends to appear out of its other in no time. Of course, this was mere hypothesis; man didn't have the technology at the time to put this into experimentation or practice.

  However, the technology of space warp was principally unique; it was closer to direct teleportation than talks of wormholes. It completely undermined man's understanding of basic physics, because essentially you are traveling faster than light, and that was a physical impossibility.

  It should have been a huge honor for Yao Yuan's crew and the 120000 people onboard Noah Two, because just like the ape with a gun, they were the first ones to have used a technology that was billions of years ahead of their time… but most impressively, they all survived the ordeal.

  For such a historically momentous moment though, most of the people onboard couldn't feel anything that was particularly different during the warp. Other than those who could see outside the spaceship, most had no idea warping had begun and finished. In fact, after it was over, many were still in pre-warp anxiety. The fact was that space warping was an affair that elapsed in no time; it was not uncommon for most to not have noticed it, because the whole process had taken literally no time.

  Looking outside the windshield, Yao Yuan could no longer spot earth's blue and green. It was obvious that they were no longer within the solar system. The warp was a huge success with minimal complications.

  After Yao Yuan breathed a sigh of relief, he communicated, through the ship's intercom, "Attention all ship crew: begin check up on all ship parts. Law enforcers, begin patrol; check for possible casualties encountered in the warp and spread the news of warp’s success… Remove the ship's protective carapace; we need the people to see for themselves the success of the warp to calm their fears."

  Due to his previous training on the space station, Yao Yuan was highly tuned to man's needs for stability in space. On earth, that would come from the feeling of solid ground under one's feet. However, now that they were in space, the difference between life and death was separated by a metallic carapace. It would be much harder to muster the same feeling of stability. To prevent fits of a nervous breakdown, Yao Yuan knew that he had to give the people onboard any and all assurance he could. They were all essentially trapped in an enclosed space, so even a small mutiny could be highly problematic.

  This was also the reason why Yao Yuan was adamant to bring more than the recommended 100000 people. There was a physical comfort to being in crowds. The bigger the crowd, the stronger the support one could feel. One could see this reflected in places of mass disasters. People usually thronged together after they had reached safety to seek communal support and comfort. This was also why he had condemned the powerful officials that had left in small-sized spacecrafts, because with such a small size, their morale and consequently their chances of survival would be greatly compromised.

  Noah Two bustled with activity after Yao Yuan issued his orders. Of the one thousand five hundred soldiers, six hundred of them had been previously assigned to sixty patrol units. They started patrolling according to their designated routes on electromobiles that were fitted alongside the ship's inner rails. The civilians too had heard Yao Yuan's announcement through the ship's communication system, so the patrols went smoothly.

  "Captain, the different departments are sending back their initial reports."

  After a beep, a blueprint of Noah Two appeared on the screen before them. The ship's body was overlaid with about fifteen red-colored lines.

  "Captain, on screen are the energy channels that suffered damages during warp. Of them, channels six, twelve, and thirty-one have received the most damage. Beyond that, the department of energy reported that everything else appears to be working as normal."

  "Reports from the patrols stated that other than a few fainting spells that occurred due to overexcitement, there were no serious cases of injury. Everyone's accounted for."

  "Reports from the quartermasters stated that all of the stockpiles are accounted for. No further complications…"

  The string of reports continued for about ten minutes. Only after every department had reported a lack of incidents did Yao Yuan breathe a sigh of relief. He then ordered, "Dispatch the maintenance crew to begin repairs and maintenance. If there is a need to conduct repairs on the outer part of the spaceship, follow the necessary protocol. Liaise with the security committee before attempting to leave the spaceship."

  "Central communication, connect me to the surveillance committee. Find out our exact location. Triangulate that using our surrounding constellations and star locations. Check for whether we're still in the Milky Way and whether there's a planet nearby."

  "Then connect me back to the department of energy. I want a detailed report on the energy expenditure during warp, and calculate from that how many warps we could still attempt. Also, I need a report on our daily energy expenditure as well."

  As Yao Yuan concluded, he turned to realize that the rest of Black Stars had their heads turned towards the room's left side window. Their attention seemed to be heavily attracted to what was beyond it.

  Yao Yuan followed their line of sight and saw that against the pitch blackness of space was a softly glistening star. Through the distance, it shone in a twinkling luminescence.

  What was truly attention-grabbing though was not the star itself but rather an interstellar entity that was a bit further away. Close enough to be visible to the naked eye, it glowed in an earthy yellow.

  A planet!

  Needless to say, it was to everyone's astonishment that the warp's randomized drop would place the spaceship in a location where a planet was temptingly within reach!

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  Chapter18 Planet Ho!

  The cosmos, as per its definition, is an infinite expanse. To equate it with the Milky Way, which quite a number of people aboard Noah Two still did, once again showcased how little the general public at the time knew about space travel. Because the Milky Way, no matter how incomprehensibly big it is, is still infinitely small when taken in comparison with the boundless cosmos.

  Therefore, to have the Noah Two's first warp land near a galaxy that housed a planet had such a low probability that it was numerically impossible to explicate!

  This simple observation was clear to Yao Yuan's crew, the many scientists, and even most of the citizens onboard. Even without a deep understanding of space-warping technology and space traveling, the straightforward fact that space warping was a dangerous ordeal was lost on no one.

  Unbeknownst to everyone outside of the close circle of Black Star members as well as the scientists that did the calculations, the department of energy's initial calibration allowed Noah Two three chances at warping before they ran out of energy. This was a closely guarded piece of information. Not even Zhang Heng knew of this, because they were afraid of the news sending waves of dissent and despair across the masses.

  How else would the public react to knowing they only had three chances, three chances that were each infinitesimall
y small to succeed?! They knew it was dangerous, but they didn't need to realize that it was actually also hopeless.

  Nevertheless, perhaps it was the collective prayers of everyone aboard Noah Two that had touched the gods, because somehow, inexplicably, luck had smiled upon them!

  Even Yao Yuan couldn't remain his usual collected self as he double and triple checked the russet-colored planet before his eyes. He could feel his heart leaping out of his chest.

  He might’ve even allowed himself to cheer aloud in joy, but before he could do so, the rest of Black Stars, including Zhang Heng, had him beaten to the task. After that, through the intercom, they could hear similar outbursts of glee reverberating across Noah Two. It sounded as if the 120000 people aboard were simultaneously cheering for their good fortune, and that might not even have been that far away from the truth.

  A planet meant a chance at landing and subsequently a chance of it being conducive to human survival. Admittedly, the chance was still low overall, but it was already much higher than what they were initially willing to give themselves.

  What was supportive of this optimistic diagnosis was the lack of an asteroid belt around the planet. This signified that the gravity of the planet was stable enough to be free from falling meteor strikes and could sustain an atmosphere. This also allowed the expeditionary crew a better chance at landing. Secondly, even if the surface turned out to be inhospitable for man, what lay at its core could prove invaluable to Noah Two. Based on its size, shape, and color, the planet was most likely a type of terrestrial planet1. The chances of it having radioactive materials like uranium underneath its core were statistically high.

  Noah Two's store of energy would allow three warps for a number of 120000 passengers. That, however, was a number calculated with Noah Two having three nuclear energy generators. If they could increase the number of generators and replace most of the inner partitions from their current steel to a lighter aluminum, the amount of warps they could do would dramatically increase. A safe prediction would increase the number of warps to the range of hundreds!