Good Morning! The time now is 11 a.m., July 6, 2072, and this is WNN Plus news. I’m Daniel Karfarni, and this is the breaking news for this hour.
We are live at Cape Canaveral, as we all await the incredible launch of Gary Steinbeck’s Infinite Traveller One spaceship, a multi-billion project funded by the eccentric billionaire, who owns, operates and is the CEO of several tech companies that contributed to this engineering spectacle. As you can see behind me, the massive ship is docked at the launch pad, as thousands of workers make last minute inspections before they can step away and let the countdown commence.
It is truly impressive to look at, ladies and gentlemen, even as I sit here in this tower a mile away, looking out from the open air balcony, the sheer size and build of this extraordinary vessel overshadows everything surrounding the area. How and why this was made possible is only known to that of the man who dared dream it himself, that is—of course, Mr. Gary Steinbeck.
Now, early on today, we had the chance to talk with Mr. Steinbeck, before he boarded into his Infinite Traveller One, and put into cryogenic freeze for the first half of the journey.
Anna Delmond-Jevara, our on site correspondent, had the honour of speaking to Mr. Steinbeck, a few hours ago, and giving us some insight of why or what he hopes to accomplish with this mission that is, literally, a one way trip.
Take it away, Anna.
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Hello, I’m Anna Delmond-Jevara, and I’m here with the richest man on Earth, Gary Steinbeck, as he is about to make his way to the most incredible spaceship ever constructed in the history of this planet. Thank you for taking the time to do this, Mr. Steinbeck.
No trouble at all, Anna, and please, call me Gary…
Ah-ahah… okay, if you’d like. Gary, there’s a few questions on everyone’s mind, but I’ll start off on the first one, the most obvious question; why is the ship named, Infinite Traveller One?
Oh, that’s just something I thought up at the time. My journey will be rather infinite, time wise, and, of course, I’ll just be lone traveller aboard this vessel. So… yah, that’s pretty much it.
Uh, okay, so, that leads to my other questions, why on––pardon the expression––Earth, did you make this ship? And why exactly are you the one making this voyage?
Well, first off, Anna, I’m not the only richest man on Earth, you forget there’s still a few others that choose this planet as their base of operations. And to answer the other question, well, I guess you could say that I’m simply tired of humanity.
Tired of humanity? What do you mean by that?
I mean exactly what I say. I’m tired of it all. It’s no use sticking around and dealing with all of you people. I’m ready to join up with the future… whatever that might turn out to be.
Wow, um, okay… perhaps you might expand on that.
On what part, are you not understanding, exactly?
The part where you said that you’re tired of us, humanity, that is. I mean, people might find those words rather insulting or belittling of them.
Meh, they can take it however they want.
Seriously? Wait—are you just specifically saying this just to the people of Earth? Or does that exclude those living on the moon and Mars?
Anna, please… humanity is humanity, just because I didn’t directly state a world or colony, doesn’t mean it wasn’t for them as well.
Well, that’s a bold and, might I say, rather inflammatory statement to make about your own kind, Mr. Steinbeck. Sorry, I mean, Gary. Seeing how humanity helped to build, buy, and use your tech to make that wealth you so enjoy. They even helped fund this spaceship project of yours.
And I thank them for it. But, I won’t apologize for what I said. It’s just how I feel on the matter.
Seems more like a personal grudge than just some random feeling—Gary.
Well, let’s face it. All of you people here, in this time, are just a bunch of idiots. Morons perpetually breeding more morons, with only selfish tendencies, giving no allowance to help move the species forward.
I think we’ve done a lot together as a society to move forward into the future. There’s been many leaps in progression throughout our history.
Progression in history? Really? Those were minor in the grand scheme of things. I mean, come on, AI hasn’t budged for decades, medical science still won’t totally cure people because they’re making too much money off of selling their “medicines”. And we should be well into the stars, or beyond it, at this point. Progress? Moving forward into the future? That’s laughable…
Okay, sure, I’ll give you some of those. But, if it hadn’t been for some of those breakthroughs, in technology and medical, you wouldn’t have the success you have now. You literally wouldn’t be standing here, in this moment, with that ship!
Yeah-yeah, sure, like I said, there were some minor moments of brilliance. That doesn’t change the facts. It took our monkey brains millions of years to develop. To get the faintest of sparks to flash together. It was slow, painful, and sometimes even backwards. It took us so fucking long to get from point A to point B. And look, look how long it took. We’ve haven’t even scratched the surface on technological breakthroughs, colonizing, and artificial intelligence.
I’m guessing you weren’t a fan of the Global Artificial Intelligence Restriction Act.
Yep! That’s why I took it all off world. I created my orbital lab away from Earth’s moon just so I didn’t have to obey their stupid laws. That Act hindered creative expansion, to speed up the process of technological greatness. Shit! Artificial Intelligence would have spearheaded us to the next level. But, no… they wanted to dumb it down, and dumb us down in the process, back to those original monkey brains of yesteryear.
Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.
Progress can still be achieved. Don’t forget that we, with our evolved brains, created AI, not the other way around. Humanity continues to progress, Mr. Steinbeck, shit… I mean, Gary… despite your frustration with it.
Oh, come on now, Anna! That’s a load of crap if I ever heard it. There’s been no progress of significance of any kind. Not lately, right? We’re still bound to the same planet, same political nonsense, and keeping the public in the dark, as always. Human Progress? What good has it done for us? Huh? Nothing… zip… nada.
What about all those other millionaires and billionaires like you that have contributed to the space race? They invested a lot of money and devoted their companies to pioneer the age of interstellar travel.
My point exactly, Anna. Look at Elon, he spent all of his wealth in creating a bunch of rockets just so he could run from a government trying to tax him to death. Then, when he finally gets on Mars, does he use that newfound freedom to better society? Or create a new and better future with those that followed him? No... no he did not. He stuck himself in a chamber, unthaws every so many years, and still tries to evade paying taxes. They should have nailed him before he took office on Mars, now he’s totally immune as President. Well, former president, now, but you get what I’m saying.
But, aren’t you doing the same thing? I mean, you’re taking off into deep space in a rocket. You’ll be asleep for most of the journey, waking up occasionally to check on the state of your ship, and then popping back into the freezer. Some would accuse you of being just like Mr. Musk, attempting to prolong your life and become immortal. Do you not see the similarity there?
It’s not the same, Anna…
I dunno, I kind of think it is.
He did it to evade taxation, I’m not.
You sure about that?
Hey, I paid my taxes, despite what any county is trying to spin against me. I contributed a lot to this planet and Mars, and it still had zero impact on those living here or there. I asked myself time and time again––“why am I staying here? Why is humanity so afraid to do what’s necessary to propel us into the future we so long for?”
So fleeing our planet, jumping ahead into the distant future, is the answer you came up with? No offence, Mr. Steinbeck, but that seems like the act of a coward to me.
I beg your pardon?
You’re an incredibly smart, handsome man, that has so much wealth he could change this entire world for the better. But, much like those other rich assholes, you’re bailing on us all, just so you can go get what you want cause you can’t get it in the here and now. As far as I’m concerned, you’re no better, you’re a coward running away from all the problems instead of solving them. You and all the elite, are just egotistical pompous rich jerks.
Wow, that took balls for you to say that to me. Well done.
I’ll probably get fired for saying it. No doubt you’ll sue me for slander.
Naw, I’m actually impressed.
Well, uh, thanks, I guess.
You may have just actually convinced me to give this all up and pour all my resources into bettering humanity from this point on. Sue you? I should kiss you for telling me all this.
Oh, um… oh, my… gosh, really?
No, I’m fuckin’ with ya, Anna. My time is up, and I”m off to greet our future kind on the other side. For now, I’ll just say, goodbye, good luck, and don’t blow each other up before I return. Peace out, y’all!
Wait! Wait! Mr. Steinbeck! Mr. Steinbeck… shit, what an asshole. What? Oh, we’re still rolling. Uh, well… there you have it. Gary Steinbeck, the last of the super rich moguls of this world, is heading out to his ship and leaving us all to search for a better future. Personally, I think we’re better off without him. In fact, I’d say we’re all going to do better if only more overly wealthy cowards leave this planet for good. It might even make us all less reliant on douchebags like him.
No, Carl, don’t wave me down, just keep that camera on me. Gawd! That anal mother fucker… I won’t be silent about this anymore, I’m sick to death of reporting on self-centred spoiled lil’ brats like this. You shut up, Carl, don’t tell me to shut up! People have the right to know of what kind of world is being run by dicks like him, and another thing—
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Whoah! Okay! Thanks so much for that report Anna. I guess she forgot who owns this news outlet, as well as her crypto-salary. On behalf of everyone here at WNN Plus, we offer our apology to everyone watching, it seems our editing department kind of missed that last little bit there. And, we’d also like to issue the following statement, that was just handed to me.
“WNN Plus does not condone nor endorse Anna Delmond-Jevara’s actions, we regret that some of the questions were not properly screened by the news director at this station. We fully apologize to Mr. Steinbeck, Steinbeck Incorporated, and to the members of the board, who are associated with Stienbeck Inc.”
So… ah… yeah, there you have it. Anyway, those were the final words of Gary Steinbeck, as he leaves this planet, only to meet up with us again, in that future beyond. Godspeed, dear sir, godspeed… may you find what you’re looking for.
Uh… wait a second, getting a communication here, yes, yes… ah, it seems… I’m being told that… yes… it seems the ship is ready for the countdown. The staff just cleared the platform, and given the go for mission control to start. This is a truly an historic and remarkable sight, ladies and gentlemen, especially for all those that have come here to witness the event at Cape Canaveral.
This is where the former NASA launch pad use to reside before Steinbeck Incorporated acquired it, then transformed it into a new, and much better launching facility. Little did we know then, that this was where he would start to build his Infinite Traveller One ship, taking many years of construction, with billions of dollars going to resources, employment, and the like. Wait a moment, I think I see something going… yes… it looks like they’ve started the clock.
As you can see, on your holo-vids, the ship is firing its massive thrusters, that surround the entire megastructure like a bunch of birthday candles on a cake. The roar is utterly deafening, as even we, so far back and high up on this lookout tower, are just overwhelmed with the bombastic sound projecting from them all. The cloud is just massive as you can see, I’m not sure how anyone below can witness anything at this point.
Wait a moment, yes, we’ve just started to hear the final countdown…
T-minus from ten… nine… eight… seven… six… five… four… three… two… one, we have liftoff! Infinite Traveller One is a go!
Good god! That thing is so damn bright! Woo! Look at the speed! It’s leaving… it’s leaving! Holy crap, man! I’ve got to adjust my eyes and my ears from that. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, Gary Steinbeck is finally off and running into the unknown. The ship has just zipped off at record speeds, and already broken the sound barrier with in just a few seconds afterwards. A once in a lifetime event, indeed! A true testament to the brilliance and engineering skill of this multi-billion dollar madman, one we shall probably not see in our lifetime ever again.
The next and final time we will ever hear from him will be when he reaches the edge of the Oort Cloud, and then from there, who knows? Um, I guess many of us will be long gone, and who knows if there will even be a media-type reporting broadcast to receive transmission from him. He’s left all his fortune to his company, insuring that they continue in his mandate for new technology, medical breakthroughs, and even into something called… uh… let me see, I have a name on the tablet here… the Omega Group Project. Well, I’m sure whatever that’s about, it probably won’t get off the ground without their CEO and founder, Mr. Steinbeck, to ensure its progress.
This has been the live holographic broadcast of the Infinite Traveller One. I’m Daniel Karfarni, and from all of us here at WNN Plus, thank you for watching. Please stay tuned for the regular news at six o’clock, or if you’re on Mars, tomorrow at noon. See you then.