Age of Cosmic Exploration Chapter 17

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 resources, 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 twelve million 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 ten million 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!

Chapter end