“Well let’s start with the planet,” Nathym finally began the proposal properly. “It’s one that has already been scouted by astronomers before, so it has a long-winded scientific name. But for our purposes let’s just call it P2.”
“It is a planet that is somewhat similar to Rathe. However, it’s mostly land rather than ocean. There are small lakes, but the water doesn’t appear to be something we could use as sustenance. Similarly, the atmosphere is close to ours but not quite. While direct exposure to it wouldn’t kill anyone, it only has minimal breathable air, so a human would die within a minute or so.”
“It’s hard to say what it would do to Fiends, since it is somewhat tolerable to our lungs, but we won’t risk it either way. I’ve developed suits that will protect us from any conditions and with rebreathers that can sustain us for an unlimited amount of time. They’ve all been reinforced by Dura as well, so it would take an extreme force to rip through them.”
“The terrain, at least on the surface, is mostly flat and walkable. There is some fauna, similar to coral, but nothing green or leafy like we’re used to. Craters sprawl every so often, and are usually filled with the same water in the lakes. It’s definitely stagnant. P2 doesn’t seem to get much rain at all, and what it does is likely toxic to us.”
“One more important thing to note is that there are tunnels that seem to go through the entire planet. At least it appears so based on the seismographs we’ve been able to do. These tunnels however don’t appear to be natural. It’s likely that something made them.”
“Wait, do you mean there’s aliens?!” Kada jolted forward into the table, nearly climbing out of her seat from the implication.
“From our best guess, yes there are,” The Engineer confirmed. “But they don’t appear to come to the surface very often, nor do they seem to have any sort of advanced technology or society, at least from our very limited reconnaissance. It’s highly unlikely that we will encounter them during this mission, but it could be the subject of future scientific ventures. For now, it will have to take a back-seat on the expedition.”
“If we do encounter them for whatever reason, I’ve done my best to try and make a universal translator, but it would only work for something with human-level sentience. And in the event that they’re aggressive, well, our suits will have defenses and basic weapons. Ideally, they’ll never know we’re there.”
“The mineral we’re looking for is either on the surface or just barely inside one of the tunnels. They appear to mostly be dotting the entrances to the tunnel themselves. Since they’re luminescent and seem to give off a unique frequency, it’s quite possible any aliens use them as sort of a location waypoint so that they can find their way back.”
“They seem to mostly be placed in clusters and are generally in abundance, so it’s doubtful taking a few would cause any disturbance. However, they are embedded, so it will take a bit of mining to retrieve, but it shouldn’t be too difficult.”
“The general idea is to land and set-up basecamp and perform some more scans to ensure the location and our safety, along with the location of the locals if we can find them. I’ve designed the rocket and shuttle to be able to morph into a small shelter and research lab that can be lived in with relative comfort, though hopefully we won’t be there for long. And everything has manual overrides in the event of mechanical failure, but I doubt anything will happen.”
“Then, once we’ve determined the location of the mineral and a safe route to retrieving it, we’ll set out. I’ve also built small hoverpucks, similar to the ones that the Central Peace uses. At first, I wanted to send a full vehicle with us, but we just couldn’t justify the extra weight. When we have the mineral, we’ll bring it back to the base, refine it, and use the portal home.”
“At this point at least, the portal will be a one-way trip that will only stay open for a few minutes. For it to sustain permanently, I’d have to build a gate on the other end, and that’s not something feasible this time around. But we should be able to bring the rocket and all of our resources back with us if we decide we want to invest in another trip in the future. At that point, we could build the gate for permanent interstellar travel between the two planets using the power source to keep the portal open.”
“We definitely need to do that!” The Mermaid’s enthusiasm hadn’t waned in the slightest. “Fiends For Hire third compound but in space, when?! And we could make friends with the aliens and maybe recruit them too! Oh, and I could build another resort there! Mermaid’s Reef 2 if it has coral! Or whatever the equivalent of a space mermaid is.”
Phon sighed and smirked. “I’m starting to think that Kada shouldn’t be allowed near this planet at all.”
“Well, those are plans well down the road, once project Fiendless is complete,” Nathym insisted, refocusing them back to their current issue. “We need to worry about saving our world first before we can even think of expanding to another. So let’s discuss getting there in the first place.”
“Normally, a trip to P2 would take several years at light-speed. And with the best engines that even I can make, we’re not able to reach that level, so it would be honestly closer to a decade. But, through the revelations of Curses and Fiend blood, it’s possible to essentially warp there.”
The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
“Let me start by saying that this would not be possible without Xard and Ahvra. It takes their two Curses combined for this to be feasible in the slightest. And it further wasn’t even a consideration until Xard ascended into a Greater.”
“His storage of energy is the key to all of this. Right after he evolved, I asked him to keep his stored Kinets above a very specific number, and that’s the number we need to achieve warp travel. He’ll take all of that energy and release it at once into a specially modified drive-core, propelling us at speeds that’s essentially impossible to comprehend.”
“The drive-core itself is filled with a cocktail of various Fiend blood that’s also essential. Phon’s is one of the more important, because it serves as the core’s navigation, letting it hone in on specific coordinates. Without it, we’d never be able to exit warp exactly where we need to.”
“A mixture of Tize’s and my blood makes the core semi-sentient and able to process the energy. Roque’s and Feyjrusa’s keeps it from deteriorating and able to self-regenerate any damage, and Jaid’s and Pak’s actually serve as an endless supply of coolant.”
“Meanwhile Ahvra’s and Rishaki’s blood are weaved into the rocket’s shielding, to protect those aboard from excessive force and time-dilation. Egawo’s will save us from the sound of the burst and keep it from rupturing our skulls. There’s a few more drops here and there, but it’s everyone together that makes this work.”
“And Ahvra being there is just as important as Xard. Because if he tried to release all of that energy at once.. well, his entire body would explode, killing him, everyone aboard, and possibly destroying Rathe if we’re not far enough away.”
“So let me start by saying that we won’t be executing this until we’re already in space. The rocket works like any other, though the thrusters don’t detach like they usually would. That space is too valuable when it comes to converting it into the mobile living quarters, and they can be reused after we’ve landed on P2 if needed.”
“Once we’ve made it out of the atmosphere and have aimed the ship, Xard will begin the energy transfer. For it to reach warp, the energy has to be entirely passed in under a second. Like I said, normally that would be impossible, but Ahvra will be assisting. She’ll be focusing her Curse on his hand and aging it while the energy is flowing.”
“We’ve done several tests, and this allows the energy to be expelled at a safe rate, just sped up in time. It’ll be as if Xard took years to decades to release it all, but it’ll happen in the blink of an eye.”
“There is one major caveat, though. Since the amount we need is so precise, Xard has to be at that exact amount to begin with, meaning the jump will completely drain him. I don’t even want him thinking about how much to transfer, so he can’t have even one single Kinet more. Too much energy could cause the drive-core to rupture, killing us all, or mess with the navigation and send us way past our target, possibly even directly into P2, also killing us all.”
“Because of this, it means we won’t be able to return home immediately by the same method. In the event that we’re unable to obtain the power source or if the transfer portal fails in some way, we would be stuck until Xard would be able to recoup that same amount of energy.”
“By my calculations, using just his rings without any external stimulus, it would take just under a month to reach that amount. Which means, that’s how long we’d have to survive on P2. But I’ve planned for that as well. Thanks to Pak’s power, we’ll have a bag with enough rations to last years, and canteens with virtually an endless supply of water. And if absolutely needed, we were finally able to craft a filter using Niloy’s blood that could purify the liquid on P2. For power we’d have solar power, and could divert some of Xard’s energy to the generators. It’d be rough living, but we’d make it.”
Tize took the brief lull to raise a point. “Before we continue, I’d like to hear from Xard and Ahvra on the matter. It sounds like their participation is non-negotiable for the mission to happen, but they’ve both been fairly silent. Are you both okay with this? It sounds like the trip itself will be very stressful with a lot of strain put on both of you.”
“Not only that, but it’s possible you could be stuck there for a month, or even die from the dangers of space. Do you trust this mission to the point that you’re willing to lay down your lives for it? Please be honest. If any part of it makes you uncomfortable, we’ll make sure no one forces you to accept it.”
“No, I’m ready for this,” Xard was immediately certain. “Nathym and I have been discussing this idea for a long time now. After the tests we’ve run, and what he’s shown me of what he’s built, I’m ready to put my faith in him. We owe him that much from all the support he’s given us over the years.”
“That, and Project Fiendless is something I’d absolutely give my life for. Initially, I hated the idea of it. The very thought disgusted me. But I wasn’t in the best headspace at the time and refused to understand Drim’s point of view. That’s changed since then, and I’ve made sure he’s seen mine. Now the project is something I can be proud of and stand by with every ounce of my conviction. I’d do anything to see it through.”
In contrast to Xard’s rousing speech, Ahvra let out a yawn. “I’m not so noble or heartfelt about the whole thing, but as a scientist, I can’t miss the opportunity. Going to another planet, access to an entirely new environment and ecosystem, it’s mind-boggling. And even if we got stuck, I could use the time to capture an alien and dissect it. Would let me die happy, a life fulfilled.”
Nathym took the reins once more. “And obviously I’ll be going too. Since this mission is my idea, I need to take responsibility for it. If I didn’t trust myself going, then I couldn’t put anyone else at risk. Plus, if anything breaks, I’ll probably be the only one who could fix it.”
“However, that does raise another issue. The shuttle fits four, and we’ve allocated the supplies accordingly. It would be a waste for them to go unused. So we need to decide who will fulfill that remaining spot.”
“Well, I’ll of course volunteer myself,” Drim pounced on it right away. “As leader of this group and progenitor of this project, it’s only fitting that I’d put my life—”
“Absolutely not!” The Engineer slammed both fists to the table, raising him out of his seat yet again. “I refuse to let that happen!”