Age of Cosmic Exploration, 1 Read online

  The scientist’s words had an instant calming effect, making most of the people present sigh in relief. They searched for traces of burning sensations, but no one could find any. It was as if they were breathing in normal air.

  Only a few of the scientists held a worried pallor. This was because they knew that it was incorrect to apply Earth’s understanding of microbiological behavior on this alien planet due to the environments being utterly different. However, they knew that it was not the time to mention that and so they stood quietly watching this scientist who was currently working to reconstruct the makeshift laboratory.

  The man was about fifty years of age. With wet blood still dripping from his head wound, he was already fully focused on conducting analysis on the air sample in one of the test tubes. The people in the shuttle were as silent as mice as they awaited his result. After what felt like an eternity, the scientist released a breath that nobody realized he was holding before shifting into a surprised expression.

  “…About twenty percent of the atmosphere is made up of oxygen while its majority, sixty eight percent to be precise, is nitrogen. Eleven percent of it is composed of a unique gas while the remaining fraction is made up of carbon dioxide and noble gases. This unique gas is still unidentified, but what’s certain is that it is not corrosive and not a variation of the poisonous carbon monoxide group. It’s similar to inert gases in that it doesn’t appear to have an oxidation reaction with our blood…”

  He excitedly continued, “Do you know what this means? This means that the air’s breathable! We humans could very much survive in this atmosphere!”

  The scientist got increasingly animated through his elaboration. At one point, he started pointing at the salvaged lab, saying, “I can’t find any microbe traces through the microscope, granted you’ll need a more powerful microscope to detect the presence of viruses. That should be done once we return to the Hope’s main laboratory, but based on everything we have at the moment, I am willing to conclude that… the atmosphere of this planet with its complete lack of airborne water particles is unable to support the growth of any microbes and viruses. Everyone, we are so lucky!

  We’re standing on a planet that could very well sustain the hope for our future! It has a non-harmful atmosphere and the fact that it has oxygen means that it should also carry plants because of photosynthesis. To escape direct sun exposure, they are probably hidden somewhere, but the fact that there’s oxygen in the air confirms their existence. The most important part is that… we humans can survive on this planet!”

  At this juncture, the man broke into tears, the rest of his exclamations submerged in his sobbing.

  Ying stood up after a while, usurping all the attention the scientist previously held. He then addressed the group. “Listen up, everyone. Until we are one hundred percent certain that there are no harmful elements in the air, keep your space helmets on. We are not going to risk it… Okay, I admit the process wasn’t exactly smooth sailing, but we have indeed successfully landed, so proceed with your designated tasks. Each scientist will be issued two guardians when you venture outside the shuttle to complete your assignments. Zhang Heng, you remain to help with the communicator. Everyone else, get moving. We don’t have much time left; we must return to the ship before our supply of air runs out.”

  With that, everyone got into motion. The scientists went off to their respective areas to finish their work, each escorted by two soldiers. The remaining soldiers were led off by Liu Bai and Ebon who were the first ones to step outside of the shuttle to secure its perimeter. When there was only Ying and Zhang Heng in the shuttle, Ying said, “Zhang Heng… Unlock the communicator. I wish to gain contact with the Hope.”

  Zhang Heng went into action quickly. Seating himself before the shuttle’s control panel, he started hacking the communicator. After about five minutes, he breathed a sigh of relief and almost simultaneously, a voice reverberated through the shuttle,

  “Central command to expedition squad. Central command to expedition squad. Please respond if you hear this… Central command to expedition squad. Central command to expedition squad. Please respond if you hear this…”

  Ying hurried to the communicator, saying, “Central command, this is the expedition squad.”

  “…Ying, is everything alright? Is anyone injured? Is the shuttle still operational? What happened? The shuttle suddenly dropped out of the sky.” The communicator relayed Yao Yuan’s questions.

  In a serious tone, Ying answered, “When we were at fifty thousand meters above ground when the shuttle’s anti-gravitational system suddenly malfunctioned, and it has been non-operational since then. However, according to the shuttle’s self-diagnostics, the system had no issues. Its machinery and power source are all fine, and it’s showing on the screen that it’s operating, but the weirdest thing is that it doesn’t seem to have any effect!”

  “…Use the communicator to relay the anti-gravitational system’s data back to the Hope for analysis. How about others? Has there been fatalities? Could the shuttle still take flight? Anything out of the ordinary to report?” asked Yao Yuan.

  Ying replied, “The shuttle can still fly. Thanks to the shuttle’s water and sand-resistant carapace, we can still fly using the fuel-powered rockets. But without the anti-gravitational system, a rocket launch pad, or booster rockets, there’s little chance of the shuttle breaking through the ozone layer… People-wise, some suffered injuries from the fall, but none suffered injuries serious enough that Xiao Bai can’t handle. Also, we have the initial report on the planet’s atmospheric components. Other than an unidentified gas that makes up eleven percent of the atmosphere, the air is almost identical to Earth’s air. According to one scientist, this planet’s air is harmless for humans. We will know for sure after we make sure there’s no presence of harmful alien microbes and pathogens.

  Until now, we have received no contact with the planet’s organisms. The sandy surface also appears to be firm enough to not be a sea of quicksand. I’ll beam over a more detailed analysis after they are done with tests on the surface’s bearing capacity…”

  After a pregnant silence, Yao Yuan uttered, “Okay, then I’ll be waiting for the results and data… It must have been mighty inconvenient because we are still unable to understand and design anti-gravity schematics. It’s because of that that this disaster happened, but don’t worry, I promise I’ll get you men out of there.”

  As if talking with Yao Yuan in person, Ying nodded and replied, “Of course, I have full faith in Ol’ Cap’n’s words… Then the expedition party will stay on guard waiting for rescue. Ending transmission.”

  While contact was being made with the Hope inside the shuttle, outside of it, the platoon led by Ebon and Liu Bai took man’s first step unto this alien planet.

  Under their feet was a layer of golden-brown sand which gave a little with each of their steps. However, underneath that granular surface layer was a more compact sand layer. After the first soldier stood firmly on this ground, the rest of them followed closely behind, each carrying their weapons, with eyes trained on their surroundings. Under the glow of this galaxy’s sun, the ground shone in its glittering majesty. The waves of sand spread as far as they could see, empty of threat and interest.

  However, unbeknownst to everyone amidst the agitation and excitement was the fact that a number of beakers had been broken during the rocky tumble. Among them was a beaker containing distilled water which pooled around the shuttle’s exit. On their way out, the men had unnoticeably stepped on it. The water particles that adhered to the inner linings of their soles evaporated quickly after coming into contact with the burning sand…

  Carried by desert winds, these particles of water floated out to several hundred kilometers away, unwittingly signaling the arrival of Ying’s expedition group…

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  Chapter25 The rescue!

  "Someone ans
wer me! Why did the anti-gravitational system stop working?" thundered Yao Yuan before the rest of conference room. This was the first time Yao Yuan had been so forward with his anger outside of being with a Black Star member. Normally he would reserve a certain degree of deference before the Hope’s scientific community.

  Before the operation, he had considered all the risks it entailed and enacted contingency plans warding against the possibility of a corrosive atmosphere. He also carefully considered the loading limit of the shuttle and even dangerous encounters with aliens. However, he failed to foresee his plan being trounced by a malfunctioning future-tech system. He found it difficult to forgive himself for such a gross oversight!

  Yao Yuan knew the risk involved when he ordered the dispatch of the expedition party, so he had mentally prepared himself for reports of casualties similar to how he had accepted it when a few of his comrades fell in their initial search of the spaceship. The philosophy was that sometimes sacrifices needed to be made in order to achieve victory. This was heavily reflected in the Black Star Unit’s motto: for glory or for death!

  However, there was no glory in death caused by neglect and carelessness. It was due to his lapse as the commanding officer that his men would have to pay with their lives! This was no sacrifice, this was a waste!

  Standing at the podium, Yao Yuan enunciated his directive with force and clarity. "All the necessary data has been transmitted. People, I know that what I’m asking is difficult to fulfill, but we are running out of time. Down there we have eight scientists, twenty plus elite agents, and four lieutenants whose lives depend on the shuttle’s supply of oxygen which will run out in eight to ten hours. I can’t stress this enough: these are human lives waiting to be saved and we are running out of time."

  The room Yao Yuan was addressing was full to the brim with astronomers, physicists, biologists, meteorologists, and basically all people of sciences that were related to space travel. They stood ready to heed Yao Yuan’s orders. The same could be said about the team of technicians that had packed another conference room. Through the use of a video feed, they too were waiting on Yao Yuan’s commands.

  "I’ll keep things simple: there are only three questions that I need answered. One, how could the faulty mechanism pass through initial inspection? Two, what is the reason for its malfunction, and is there a way to fix it? Three, outside of repairing the anti-gravitational system, are there other ways available to rescue the expedition party?"

  After he said so, Yao Yuan planted himself on the stage, explaining, "I’ll be waiting here for updates. Go do whatever needs to be done to answer these three questions, especially the last one. People, down there are our kin and they need our help. These thirty-two lives are too precious to be lost, and they’re counting on you to save them!"

  Time on the Hope slowly trickled away. The 120000 people on board all knew about the fate of the expedition party. They were still alive but only for another eight to ten hours before their oxygen ran out. Within that time frame, the Hope had to figure out a way to reach and rescue them, or they might never return again…

  It was now one hour and twenty minutes since the crash-landing…

  In the biology lab…

  "...no, no, no. These are just pictures; if magnified under the microscope, what you’re getting are pixelated images. Damn it!" growled Saburo, punctuating his frustration with a punch on the metal desk. His disgruntlement was shared by his assistants as well as other biologists in the room.

  It was their assignment to confirm whether any dangerous pathogens existed in the planet’s air. It was a hard task because they literally had no idea what they were looking for; no one knew what alien microbes or viruses looked like. Were they bioseston[1] or tripton[2]… and if they were tripton, should they consider the possibility of them being non-carbon based existences, such as a type of silicon-based organism? The cosmos was so gigantic that there could be lifeforms with various biochemical make-ups, and they needn’t all necessarily be carbon-based.

  Mankind, along with most of the organisms on earth, is structured with a carbon-based biochemistry. That’s why we rely on digestion and absorption of carbohydrates, which are chemically organic compounds of oxygen, hydrogen, and carbon, for the energy to survive.

  However, it is not only carbon that can carry biological information. Like carbon, silicon can create molecules that are sufficiently large to sustain life. This is why silicon-based lifeforms are common features in science fictions, but who can affirmatively say that such organisms can’t be found in space? The silicon-based biochemical make-up doesn’t need water or oxygen to function, so even though the planet’s arid atmosphere is not conducive for the breeding of carbon-based viruses, who can be certain it doesn’t contain silicon-based microbes?

  This was the predicament facing Saburo and his team of biologists, pathologists, and epidemic prevention experts. Their knowledge of alien microbiology was too limited to form any worthwhile analyses. Furthermore, what they were given were air sample analysis results and a few pictures of the air particles; they had no access to an actual sample. How could they come up with any significant findings without conducting a full field analysis?

  Behind Saburo, a fair Caucasian sighed. "Let’s just own up to the major. With what we have now, it’s simply impossible to proffer a conclusive result."

  A dark-skinned pathologist added, "That’s true. We’re scientists, not psychics. How could we tell whether there are pathogens in the air based on a few pictures? This is a fool’s task. Let’s just go and explain our situation to the major, sir."

  This sentiment was picked up by a few other people in the room. They were in agreement that the assignment was simply too demanding… Yao Yuan’s show of unfettered fury today had shocked the scientific community, so they hedged their bet on being honest with their complications early rather than bear the brunt of his fury after much dallying and still coming up empty-handed by the end.

  Another slam on the table squelched the seed of disavowal. Saburo uttered, in a simmering growl, "No! This is thirty-two lives we are talking about… I will not have their blood on my hands because of our laziness! This is why I’ve studied to become a pathologist, to give people a chance at survival. I will not back down, not this time…"

  He turned around and regarded his subordinates with almost enmity in his eyes, saying, "Help me contact the major. Tell him I wish to access the central mainframe and I need him to initiate its root program, the one that was said to be connected to the anti-gravitational system, multi-frequency communicator, and space-warp system, the one that’s operating all the future-tech systems…"

  It was now one hour and fifty minutes since the crash-landing…

  In the physics and anti-gravity analytics laboratory…

  Ever since the physicists found out about the anti-gravity manipulators on the Hope, they had been conducting numerous experiments on them, trying to decipher their theoretical functionalities. Even though man could build these intricate machines, their theories, physical bases, and production mechanisms were still unknown. When it came to these machines, it wasn’t actually building but rather reconstructing them from schematics that were already there. Man’s understanding of these machines was so lacking that even a simple change in size could lead to a faulty product.

  The gravity manipulator wasn’t a blocky engine like many expected, it had the appearance of an electrical circuit. It snaked around the carapaces of the shuttle, hovercraft, and spaceship and was barely noticeable if one didn’t go purposely looking for it.

  The purpose of this special laboratory was to dissect the theories and applications behind this mechanism. If they could figure out how it operated, man’s understanding of physics would be improved by leaps and bounds!

  At this time, about ten physicists and numerous lab assistants were busy analyzing the data transferred over by the shuttle. A set of gravity manipulators was placed in the center of the room to offer a pra
ctical understanding of the data.

  It was a long but thin strand of complex mechanisms, barely fitting in between one’s fingers. It wrapped around the area cordoned off for gravitational experiments like an abstract, futuristic mural. Underneath its rubber wrapping was a series of conductors which would convert electricity into gravitational force… When viewed in the context of man’s technological progress, it was something akin to a miracle.

  Hanging his head in defeat, a wizened senior physicist sighed. "This is impossible… we can’t possibly conclude why the system broke down if we are given such a short amount of time. To do that we require many more simulations and much more time… We will have to inform the major. It can’t be helped…"

  As he made ready to leave the room, a female voice rang out beside him.

  "It’s electrical resistance…"

  The source was Bo Li, one of the women Zhang Heng had requested to save. Due to her background as a physics doctorate student, she was recommended a position in the lab by the employment committee. Since her time there, she milled about her work in a cocoon of silence, so no one had expected her to speak up then.

  Since she had uttered those three words though, everyone had their attention trained on her, many of them with open shock at her audacity to speak out of her place. A few other assistants were even walking over to escort her out of the room.

  The leading physicist, however, requested her to repeat herself. "What did you just say? Explain clearly. What is it about electrical resistance?"

  Bo Li was unused to having so many people’s focus on her and she could feel the initial shock of some of her colleagues turning into anxiety and even envy. She felt like shrugging them off with her usual silence, but right then, she felt a sudden burst of inspiration flow through her, charging her through her speedy elaboration,