"Actual gravitons."

Ayla was ecstatic, meticulously recording all the data.

Once the minute was up, Luna reflected on the discovery; she hadn't expected success.

Who would have thought of using gravitational waves to detect gravitons?

Gravitons move with the vibrations of spacetime. When matter moves, it possesses mass. Even if gravitons are bound to spacetime, their movement relative to spacetime is zero.

But the experiment's ingenuity lay in addressing how gravitons might regulate gravitational force.

Gravity's range is infinite, theoretically limitless—a defining characteristic.

The existence of gravitons must explain this; gravitons must use some mechanism for regulation rather than simply varying in number like other mediating particles.

The device was designed to detect even the slightest changes in gravitons. If they hadn't detected anything, Ayla's theory would have been incorrect.

Fortunately, they had succeeded.

"Luna, we've detected gravitons!"

Luna nodded. The discovery of gravitons implied the completion of quantum gravity.

Of course, this wasn't Grand Unification.

The Grand Unified Theory posits a single origin for the four fundamental forces. Ayla's discovery only proved that each force had a mediating particle.

If mediating particles govern the effects of the four fundamental forces on the universe, what is the nature of these mediating particles?

"If gravitons existed independently, Grand Unification might be easier to achieve," Luna said.

This was, unfortunately, unlikely.

They had discovered gravitons, but they had also discovered that the peak containing gravitons was dwarfed by another, larger peak. And this peak was surrounded by three other equally tall peaks.

Some on Earth claimed to have unified the three fundamental forces—electromagnetism, the weak nuclear force, and the strong nuclear force.

However, this wasn't true unification; the resulting model was far too arbitrary, akin to claiming that a sedan, a truck, and a sports car are all cars.

Discovering gravitons was merely adding another toy to the set. (Gravitons have a fundamentally different structure from the other three forces and exhibit the weakest interaction).

They were all vehicles, but fundamentally different.

True unification would require conditions under which all four forces become symmetrical, exhibiting a single force with a uniform strength.

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This requires considering another theory.

Superstring theory.

Superstring theory, a subset of string theory, doesn't imply "super" as in superior, but "super" as in supersymmetry.

Superstring theory can elegantly unify the four fundamental forces.

To derive superstring theory, the existence of strings must be proven.

String theory posits that particles aren't fundamental units but are instead formed from even smaller strings. The movement of these strings gives rise to particles, and all interactions, forms of matter, and energy can be explained by the splitting and merging of strings.

The magnitude of energy is determined by the strings' vibrational energy.

Luna had suggested that if gravitons existed independently, Grand Unification might be easier to achieve. The more similar gravitons were to other particles, the less need there would be to search for strings.

However, the four fundamental forces are vastly different, with electromagnetism being 10^40 times stronger than gravity.

Even using exponential notation felt inadequate; if gravity were only 1 nanometer high, electromagnetism would be 10^20 light-years tall.

"Indeed, but Luna, isn't that the allure of science?"

Precisely.

Ayla had observed gravitons, but practical applications were still a long way off.

Luna had planned to enter another period of hibernation, waiting for Ayla to develop antimatter technology.

But Ayla revealed something else.

"Detecting gravitons requires determining the barycenter and creating a black hole there."

"I've gathered some data, focusing on Alpha Centauri A and B."

"These two stars orbit their barycenter. Based on simple observations, there's nothing unusual."

"But after careful calculations, I've discovered that the barycenter is actually offset by 70 meters."

A 70-meter offset is insignificant compared to the size of these stars; like a small, almost imperceptible wrinkle in clothing.

However, this discrepancy reveals a deeper issue. The stars' masses are incorrect.

"Are you suggesting that the missing element might be inside the stars themselves?"

The third civilization wouldn't simply collect radioactive elements; it would require a device.

Ayla had been searching for this device for years without success.

This device might convert radioactive elements into strings, microscopic fundamental units, thus evading detection.

Without detectable traces, other methods were needed.

Ayla had made a significant discovery.

"Is the problem with Alpha Centauri A or B?"

Luna asked.

The previous data on the screen had been replaced by new information—a diagram illustrating the relationship between Alpha Centauri A, B, and Proxima Centauri.

"The three stars' gravitational forces interact, causing Alpha Centauri A and B to orbit their barycenter with a slight offset, given that Proxima Centauri's gravitational influence is substantial enough to affect two stars in such close proximity."

"However, I haven't observed this effect. It's as if Proxima Centauri's gravity doesn't affect Alpha Centauri A and B at all."

"This is a sophisticated form of camouflage. Alpha Centauri B has likely been partially hollowed out, allowing Proxima Centauri to precisely counteract its gravitational influence on the binary system."

"The device is most likely located in the northern hemisphere of Alpha Centauri B."

Excavating a structure from the interior of a star was almost unimaginable.

The interior temperature of Alpha Centauri B could reach 100,000°C. What could possibly survive there, let alone maintain a large void around it?

"Can our ships enter Alpha Centauri B?"

Without access, they couldn't obtain the device.

"Yes!"

"Using the light-based alloy and internal cooling systems, I can construct a ship capable of penetrating Alpha Centauri B's outer layers within five years."

"But it will only be able to reach 500 kilometers below the surface. Alpha Centauri B's core temperature is 17 million degrees Celsius; anything beyond that depth would be vaporized."

Luna nodded.

"Then I'll wait a while and see what's inside Alpha Centauri B."

This might be their first encounter with the third civilization.