The Search for FTL

by Ted Iverson

  Orion pressed Lyet. “You’re kinda spooking me out here. Would you care to elaborate?”

  Lyet just headed out of the cafeteria, waving for Orion to follow. “Come. We’ll get to all of your answers quickly enough. It’s late and you need your rest. We have some time. We don’t need to rush.”

  “I don’t like this. You’re leading me on, hinting at things, things you say I need to hear, but then you won’t tell me. Sleep is overrated; just tell me.”

  After several minutes of walking they came to a hatch. It opened, and they entered a lift and shot up at a rapid pace. When the lift finally came to a stop they exited, and Lyet led Orion into his quarters. It wasn’t a large room, but it was decorated with a few well-placed photos of the known galaxy, a chair, a desk, and what looked to be a very comfortable rack. After going over and sitting on the rack Orion said, “Okay, Captain Lyet, you win. I’ll see you later. By the way...”

  “Yes?”

  “Thank you for your hospitality. I’m looking forward to viewing this station tomorrow and hearing what you have to say.”

  “You’re welcome, Orion. Sleep well.” Lyet left swiftly, and the hatch hissed closed behind him.

  Alone, Orion fell backward onto the rack and put his arms behind his head. He hadn’t noticed until now that there was a viewing port in the ceiling. It was protected by that same sort of force field he’d seen in the hangar bay. It was marvelous. He was looking at the stars as no one else had, well, with the exception of Lyet and his crew. His crew—now that was something he was anxious to learn more about. He wondered where they might have...

  His eyes became heavy and a deep sleep ensued.

  Orion’s eyes opened to the same sight that had lulled him to sleep. He had no idea how long he’d slept. It could be night, or it could be day. You couldn’t be sure when looking out into deep space. One thing he could be sure of: it beat sleeping in a chair while flying to unknown places. He sat up on the edge of the rack and decided that he was definitely well rested. He’d clean up and find out what was going on.

  In the head, he found a closet with uniforms, so he slipped one on. It fit surprisingly well. It was the same type as those found on the Orbital Lab. He took a moment to admire himself in the mirror, straightening up and throwing his shoulders back a little. Ty and Zach might look sharp in these, but not as good as me! He chuckled as he walked out of the head.

  Clean and refreshed, he headed out to begin his tour. His stomach told him he should begin in the cafeteria, and he was fairly certain he could remember how to get there.

  He could. He’d been there for maybe forty minutes when Captain Lyet appeared. “I see you’ve made yourself at home.”

  “Good morning, Captain. It is morning, isn’t it? Anyway, I’m sorry I didn’t wait for you, but honestly, this is a pretty large place and I could only remember how I got from here to my room. So I just backtracked. And, of course, I was starved.”

  Orion was enjoying a large bowl of fruit. “All this” Orion said, nodding at the meal in front of him. “Grown here? It’s all so juicy. Just awesome.” He wiped his face on his sleeve. “Sorry, couldn’t find anything to clean up with.” He turned a light shade of red.

  “I see we’re a bit talkative today. Okay. Answers to your questions: Yes, the fruit is all grown here in the hydroponics lab. As for whether it’s morning, I’m sorry to say it is not. You’ve been sleeping for about twenty hours. It’s very late on Thursday, according to Earth time.”

  “Earth time? You don’t use Earth time here?”

  “Yes, we do, but not being on the Earth, I refer to it as Earth time.”

  Orion picked up the protein drink he’d found, gulped the last of it down, then picked up his bowl and glass and proceeded to the kitchen to wash them. A few minutes later he returned to see Lyet finishing off a large apple. Orion nodded to give Lyet the go-ahead.

  Captain Lyet stood and led the way. Their first stop was Lyet’s office. Orion noted how ordinary it was: a few chairs, a desk, and some bookcases. That was all. Lyet seated himself in front of the desk.

  “I’ll not waste time. Please hold your questions until I finish. Are you ready for this, Orion?”

  “Ready? I’ve been ready for weeks! So, let’s have it.”

  “What I am about to tell you may shock you. I know a lot about your family. Your father and I were close. He saved my life and the lives of many others. We were so indebted to him and believed so deeply in what he was doing that we gave up our own lives and families to help him and your mother accomplish their goal.

  “For years your parents had been working on AI. I’m certain you’re aware of what that is. They actually achieved some success with it and had installed it in some computers at Space Tech. Most of the computers here have also been ‘converted.’ Your father’s shuttle probably was.

  “Anyway, in order to achieve your parents’ goals, regular computers wouldn’t have worked. We needed something with the ability to problem solve, to be able to think beyond normal problems and correct them faster.

  “Humans couldn’t begin to manage the calculations necessary. Actually, we would have eventually, but it would have taken years. You see where I’m going? We didn’t have years. Still, even with computers that had AI, human input and manpower were necessary. Ships had to be built.

  “Why way out here, twenty-two million miles from Earth? Simply put, your father didn’t trust a few people in power back on Earth. While the OEC provided grant money, it was agreed that Space Tech had the full responsibility for constructing a starship. It was agreed that after a successful prototype launch followed by a successful manned launch, then and only then, would everything—the what, where and when—be turned over to the OEC. Your father believed that even though the OEC had agreed to this, there were those who might go to extreme methods to prevent any of this from succeeding. Now it looks as though he was correct.” Lyet got up, moved to the porthole, and gazed out. “Orion, please come over here.”

  Orion moved beside him. “Yes?”

  “You never knew the depth of kindness and humanity in your father. There are a few things your brother Alec, the detective, must know.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “You see, your father, my dear friend, confided in me often. He always thought Alec may have felt that he and your mother were disappointed Alec had never been interested in Space Tech or what they were doing, but he was so proud of Alec, so proud that he’d made his own decisions and made his own way. So, even though Jeff never told Alec any of that, in his own way he backed your brother.”

  “In what way?”

  “As I mentioned, he saved lives, lives of individuals thought dead.”

  Holding out his arm, Lyet said, “Touch my arm. Go ahead.”

  Orion touched the arm of the captain, and said, “Okay. What should I be looking for?”

  “I was once a police officer in Dayton, Ohio. I was in a battle, as were two of my junior officers. I ended up on the receiving end of a grenade. We lost limbs, eyes. . . you get the picture. It made national news. Clinically, we should all be dead. Your father saw the report and flew to Dayton. He told the doctors that his personal medical staff might be able to save us, but he made no promises to the doctors or to our families. They all agreed, though, that we were practically dead anyway, so why not try what he was suggesting. Your father flew us to a private Space Tech facility.

  “It turns out AI wasn’t the only thing your father had been experimenting with. He was also working on cybernetics. My arms and legs, one eye and several organs have been replaced. When I was finally able to speak and think coherently, Jeff explained what had happened.

  “At first I refused to believe everything. Denial. Yet there I was alive when I should have been dead. During my rehab, your father and I became close friends. I asked that, while I was trying to cope with my new body, my family be told I was in a coma.

  “It was I who came up with the next idea. Your father had shared his
vision with me and I saw a need he hadn’t: he needed people to man this new secret outpost he was building. I told him that what he’d done for me and my two men, he could do for others. He hesitated. If he was able to bring us back, our families should share in that joy. But the fact is, we weren’t the same people. We came with baggage—artificial parts, implants in our brains, and even partial AI in some of us. I offered to die for my family and join your father, and I offered to recruit others like myself. It took a lot of convincing, but your parents finally agreed. Your father has been saving police and military personnel for many years now. I’ve been recruiting them for just as long. Here, before your parents’ deaths, we had a total of two hundred and thirty-seven dedicated men and women.”

  Shocked, Orion stood silent as the captain continued.

  “Please bear with me. I told you this explanation would take some time. There’s more you need to know. As your ship came through our second level, you got a look at our facility. I’m sure you’ve deduced this is more than a hotel for outcasts. It was here that we constructed the StarDancer, and it was from here she was launched.

  “How we built her? Again, your father’s genius. He was able to fabricate androids, all with AI. Two hundred were living here among us, bringing the total that lived and worked here to four hundred thirty-seven. We humans guided and the androids built. We were an amazing team. This may seem unethical to you, but the fact is we all volunteered. No one was forced to come here. There was only one who hasn’t joined our mission. As far as I know, he died from other complications. That’s why I am here. Ask your questions now. I’m ready to answer them.”

  Orion was still standing totally stunned. Eventually, he took a drink from the glass in his hand, paused, then spoke. “This is totally unbelievable. I’m having a hard time digesting it all. I mean how—no, why would they keep all this from us? Unanswerable, I know, but this is such a huge undertaking. I’m at a loss as to why they kept us out.” He shook his head and looked at Lyet. “My first real question then is who at Space Tech knows of this project?”

  “Absolutely no one.”

  “How could that possibly be? How could this get financed without my Uncle Nate knowing?”

  “The OEC has very deep pockets and your parents, and now you and your brothers, are wealthy beyond your dreams. They self-financed part of this.”

  “No way. I was at the reading of the will. I know we’ll want for nothing, but enough to build this and an FTL ship? Didn’t see that in the fine print. And Uncle Nate handled all their accounts. I’m telling you, he would’ve known.”

  “All accounts except for the one he never knew they had.”

  “Okay, so they have this account. Next question: where is your four-hundred plus crew? I want to know about that order you sort of gave.”

  “The order, yes. It was actually a directive given by your father before he and your mother embarked on the mission. It was simple: if they didn’t make it back, everyone was to abandon ship, so to speak. I was following orders. An order, by the way, that I disobeyed.”

  “An order you broke?”

  “Yes, the order was to launch everyone, including myself, and to destroy this station and everything in it. I’m sad to say I couldn’t do it. Too much is at stake. And I had a feeling your father would somehow find a way to send one or more of his sons to investigate if he himself didn’t return. I have a history of not following orders to a T. I think your father probably knew I wouldn’t destroy this outpost.” Lyet patted Orion on the back and continued, “My instinct was correct, as you can see. I was a little fearful of the possibility of an unfriendly visitor or visitors showing up before you. Happily, that didn’t happen.”

  “I thought you said that not even the OEC knew where this is.”

  “True. However, this is a big universe and even as trustworthy as everyone you employ may seem to be, there is the possibility of one or more less-than-honest employees. I know I said that no one knows about us here, but. . . well, you understand, there’s always that chance.”

  “Yes, I think I do. Just a few more questions and then I’d like a complete tour.”

  “As you wish.”

  “Was there more than one StarDancer?”

  “Yes, two actually. The first was a prototype. We sent it out with two androids as pilots. It also carried rather large cargo containers. I honestly couldn’t tell you what they contained. Only your parents knew. When the prototype returned, there were no containers. The flight was successful though, and after the androids returned, we analyzed all their stored data. Because we were still in high-security mode, we decided to have their memories wiped clean. We then built a new ship: the StarDancer. We launched and it was unsuccessful, as you know. We built other ships too, but none like the StarDancer.”

  “More ships?”

  “Mining and transport ships, like the one we launched to take the crew away from here.”

  “I wish to discuss that later, but I need to know,” Orion’s voice rose in excitement, “what did you do with the prototype and schematics?”

  “Honestly, Orion, I have no idea. Your parents took the prototype out one day and were gone for over a week. When they returned, they were flying an antiquated shuttle, one so old I honestly don’t know how it made the trip. If I know your father, though, the prototype was probably destroyed for security. But then, your father has also been known to do the opposite of what we might expect. As for the plans, only a select few saw them and those few were androids. We humans stayed and worked inside, keeping all this running. The ‘droids,’ as we called them, did all the constructing of the ship and its components. They were more like machines and better suited for that type of work. I can tell you that when the work was completed, more memories were wiped. Your parents did have one droid with them on the second flight. I believe that he may have been the one remaining droid with the plans. My guess is that it was also destroyed with the ship, so no data remained.”

  “No prototype, no schematics. That would have been a waste.”

  “To you, maybe, but what if they were to fall into the wrong hands? Think about that.”

  “I thought about it, and it still would be a waste. You don’t understand, Captain; we need the prototype and the schematics so we can correct whatever went wrong. Our grant money for this mission runs out in less than a month, and if we can’t prove that we can continue, we’ll lose it and then, quite frankly, we’ll be screwed.”

  “Continue? Orion, this mission is over. There’ll not be another FTL flight. You and your brothers are no doubt capable of running Space Tech, but to continue this? I’m afraid you have no idea what you’d be undertaking.”

  “Didn’t you just tell me that you directly disobeyed an order to destroy this station? You knew one of us would find you. Why, then, wouldn’t you believe we would continue this project?”

  “Orion, this station can be used for much more than just building FTL ships. Your parents are dead. Do you really believe it’s worth the risk to continue?”

  “We do. We’ve been working, and I mean everyone, round the clock looking for those schematics and trying to find any information that will put us back on track for this. I understand that you look at us and think we’re too young for all this. You, Captain, are mistaken.”

  Orion paused and looked Captain Lyet in the eye. “You worked for my parents, right?”

  “Yes, I’ve explained it all to you.”

  “Captain Lyet, my brothers and I are now in charge of Space Tech. Will you summon your crew back? Will you work for us?”

  Lyet saw the determination in Orion’s gaze, felt the desire. He wanted to say yes right then, but many years had seasoned him and reason took over. “May I take some time to think about this? I am responsible for every man, woman, and child on this station, and, yes, even for the droids. This is a decision that I must consider carefully.”

  “I respect that, but I can only give you two days. Then I must do what is right for Space Tech
and, sir, I think you staying on would be the right thing.

  “Now, how about that tour? I’d like to start tonight. I’m pretty sure it’ll take two days for you to give me the complete tour, right? Then, I can contact my brothers.” Orion gave the older man a wink, stood, and headed for the hatch.

  “Two days for the tour?” Laughing, Lyet answered as he followed, “Two days and an evening. That sounds just about right.”

  Chapter Twelve

  It was just over a week ago that his parents had died, and it was going on five days since Orion’s ship had mysteriously abducted him. Ty was sitting in his office at Space Tech thinking about all this when Joanne, his new assistant, piped in on the com, “Ty, your brother Alec is here to see you.”

  Joanne had been a welcome addition. Okay, so maybe not a new addition to the corporation as she had already been working there for years: part-time when in her teens and then full-time after college. For Ty it was a relief that an experienced person was able to step in and help right away. Emily had recommended her, and why not? After all, she was Emily’s daughter, and if she was half as dependable and hard working as her mother, she was bound to be an asset.

  Joanne was twenty-three, stood about 5’ 7”, and was slender in build. Her soft, brown eyes and reddish-brown hair were like her mother’s and complemented her round, lightly-freckled face. Ty had liked her jovial personality right away. He quickly realized that her abilities were far beyond what was required of an assistant, but if that was the job she wanted, who was he to say no? He’d had her transferred with no questions asked.

  Ty brought his attention back to the matter at hand. “Good. I was going to call him today anyway. Thanks, Joanne.”

  “I’ll let him in.” She pushed an unseen button under her desk and the door slid open.

  Alec made his way to the chair in front of Ty’s desk. “Hey, stranger. Haven’t seen you in a couple of days. Everything okay?”