One of Jor-El's greatest ambitions was to create a way of compact transportation that would allow him to travel in and out of Krypton in seconds, thought it was forbidden Jor-El wanted to explore other planets and even galaxies.
The first prototype made by Jor-El had a space-compactor that allowed the ship to create holes in both space and time that allowed Jor-El to travel from one point of the universe to another one in matter of seconds that in regular trajectory would take eons, millennia of years to do. It was even able to move between dimensions coexisting in the same space.
As impressive as it was it was also a little unpredictable, he was only sixteen when he designed the first ship, it was not meant to be perfect.
Every end of journey he would return to what he called Krypton-1 (Jor-El suspected that there where infinite universes each one with their own version of Krypton, meaning there would be infinite Krypton's) to fix problems with the navigation and the course driving, just before he launched again his rocket to explore the universe around him.
Jor-El who had then just came back to Kandor after crashing the ship with a meteorite was fixing the machine he had made, the white-pearly ship was going to be a challenge to fix.
-Jor? - asked a voice behind him, a rugged deep voice for a guy actually a little bit younger than he was, Jor-El turned back to see a young man of almost sixteen, who was five feet and a half tall and muscular; a Friend he had met a while ago and had become inseparable and his closest friend; he had not seen him in months and his friend was now with what it seemed to be a failed attempt to grow a beard, displaying in the face of the young man a few patches of hair badly distributed, it was Jor-El's best friend, training-private Dru.
—You do know that you can afford a core-ship, don't you? Besides I heard that Gan-Em removed your license when you crashed his ship— Dru added in a mix of humor and true confusion
—Hello to you too, no it wasn't my mentor who removed my license, it was my father, and this is my little secret…Dru, nobody can know—, the amusement of his friend filled Jor with a deep relieve, Dru answered laughing –Well it is a good thing that you finally have something to hide, no woman can complain that you are boring now, don't worry, brother, your secret is safe with me— Jor turned to see his friend in relief, Dru was wearing his military outfit, the black suit among with his armor, Dru was still on training so his house crest would not be proudly on his chest, he was wearing thought a dark-red cape that made him look even more impressive and big than he really was
–still, thought, I take it that it will take you eons to finish that heavy thing of yours, no offence but you crashed it very hard…Look, I'm off duty, Gan-Em will be in Argo so we are both free tonight, What do you say if we get in trouble?— his friend suggested, the young scientist smiled, Dru was right it would probably take eons to finish the repairs on the ship, he had to admit it but he was better building and designing than driving, and that particular ship had elements no other in krypton had, no other ship would be ever be able to create wormholes as it traveled and naturally that amazing ability would be hard to maintain, he would have to repair most of the mother-box if not making another one and months would go there.
Right now he needed fun, he needed the friend he used to see so often and now saw too little, he needed fun, he needed Dru and he needed to empty that gifted brain that was such a curse so many times.
–Rao, Forgive me! Fine I'll go with you—said the brilliant and tired teen with false resignation, the smile in Dru's face said all –Great—
Kandor was full of life, busy and moved, the long Krystal buildings where hosts of the most incredible advances in science, culture and social evolution that the galaxy had ever seen, and yet trouble wasn't something strange for Krypton that in many ways was like any other planet, it had certain disasters and criminals but even those where uncommon, so young El and young Dru had all to play to really get good fun.
Jor-El had been working hard since he had been placed under the Science Council and to be the pupil of none other than Gan-Em, and the fun they had in their first years when they were just trainees, the fun they had pulling off dangerous and stupid stunts and playing pranks on the elders was almost a thing of the past.
They had been friends for three years now, Zor-El was now nine years old and four years far from being sorted in to a guild; both Jor-El and Dru had now certain patches of facial hair they both hoped; would become a beard in a few years from then.
Jor-El wasn't a just an apprentice now, he was a Lab assistant and a level four trainee; and Dru was now a corporeal; a rank far from earning a family name.
Still now they had other things to put themselves In trouble, so they decided to go to base zero and steal a proto-jet, with his training Dru had actually became good at driving them, and it would also provide him with revenge on a superior officer who wouldn't know it was him, Jor-El was himself a master of stealth due to his constant "scape travels" and illegal explorations no one else knew about, and this wasn't for training or science, it would satisfy any curiosity or make anyone stronger, it was just for fun… after this thrilling exercise they would go around and maybe flirt a little, boast and do something else that neither science or defense would find useful, behind the Dru and Jor where behind the energy panels that would create holograms for communication, mapping or showing the inner work of guns, ships and energy-shields. Hiding behind the panels was something both got better with experience but also more complicated since now both where taller they had to squeeze each other in order to fit and not being noticed, lucky for both neither where wearing then a cloak or a heavy outfit or it would have been impossible, they were getting closer to steal the proto-jet.
They were about to come out when they heard a voice –I still think that this is the moment to strike— it was a deep voice, rough and it had an odd accent –sub-commander Fa?— asked Dru to himself in a low voice –we need to wait, the time is not yet and we still don't have position—a second voice added –councilman Min-Dar?— this time it was Jor-El the one surprised, councilman Min-Dar wasn't only a member of the ruling council, the old man was also the greatest scientific mind of Krypton back when Gan-Em was a trainee, this was a man who had moved from science and discovery to politics –Valdyir hasn´t given us yet the signal, have faith my dear partners and Rao himself will light the signal— a third voice added, tired, mellow and slow, neither Dru or Jor could identify the man but judging for the red robes they knew he was a priest. The conversation between the three continued while Dru and Jor-El where hiding, scared, and unable to really understand the plot of the three men discussion, thinking they would be discovered, but Rao was big and so, they left without noticing the two young Kryptonian that where hiding just a few feet away from them.
As soon as both where sure that the sub-commander, councilman and priest where gone, they came out.
Shaken, speechless and unsure of what to do next.
