Chapter One
"I hate black holes."
Those were the first words that came from Captain Dylan Hunt's mouth the moment the black hole appeared on the viewing screen in front of him. The swirling mass of matter and light being sucked down into an infinitesimal point looked beautiful, but it was only a mass for the destructive power the singularity held.
"Well," said Beka Valentine, his executive officer, "I think I'd hate them too if I had my entire life taken away from me and got sent three hundred years into the future." She glanced back at Dylan from the pilot's station, and cocked her blond head. "Come to think of it, maybe I wouldn't. I'm pretty sure that the future might be a hell of a lot better than what's happening right now."
"You said it," said a Seamus Harper, the ships number one engineer. "No offense boss," he said, also looking back up at Dylan, "but even with your new Commonwealth, the universe isn't exactly a happy shiny place, if you know what you mean. Besides, if you hadn't gotten stuck on the event horizon of a black hole for three hundred years, you never would have met us, your totally awesome and wonderful crew, after all."
Dylan smiled. "You're right, Mr. Harper," Dylan said. "I guess in some ways I'm glad that I was able to be here."
"See?" Harper said. "Now you're talking."
Dylan looked back at the screen. "Still," he said. "Leaping three-hundred years into the future in less than a second, having everyone you've ever known or loved suddenly gone, it's not a very pleasant experience." He tapped his fingers on the console in front of him as he stared at the black hole and mused. "Every time I lay eyes on one of those things, that's all I can think of. I'd hoped to never see one again."
"Well you can blame the Persiads for that," Harper said, looking at the black hole with a sad expression on his face. "I really wish that Hoon was still around."
"You really liked that old Perisad, didn't you, Harper?" Beka said, glancing at her friend.
"Yeah," Harper said. "Sure he was annoying, but, I mean, he was a genius, even more so than me. Some of the things he was working on… I really wish that I'd had more time to work with him."
"You know it's not your fault, Harper," Beka said. "You couldn't have known that your tessaract machine would effect space and time like that."
"I know Beka, but if I had only been able to hold onto his hand a little longer, he wouldn't have had to die like that."
"Not to mention that it made the Persiads very angry with us," Andromeda said as her visage appeared on the screen in front of them, replacing the black hole.
"Thanks Rommie," Harper said, rolling his eyes at her. "You really know how to make a guy feel good."
Andromeda smiled. "Just doing my part," she said. "In any case, the Perisads have a high opinion of you, Harper. That's why they requested that the Andromeda assist them on another scientific mission, instead of using one of the Commonwealth's science vessels. They wanted to work with you, Harper."
"Well," Harper said, "I am one of the greatest minds that this universe has ever seen, and I was able to send Dylan three hundred years into the past and get him back again last time we studied a black hole. Who knows what I could do this time."
Dylan let out a small laugh. "Yes," he said. "Perhaps you could make something that would make the Triumvirate stay a bit truer to the Commonwealth's values."
"Sorry Boss," Harper said. "I think that's a bit out of my league."
"Besides," Andromeda said, looking at Dylan, "as I said before, you did pass up the chance to govern the Commonwealth the way you saw fit."
Dylan rubbed his hand over his face in an exasperated manner. "Don't remind me," he said. "I just didn't want to have to hand over my ship to some other captain."
"I'm sure you would have been able to convince the members of the Commonwealth to let you keep me," Andromeda said.
"Alright, alright," Dylan said. "I know I should have accepted the nomination back then."
"Well you know," Beka said. "You could have Harper send you back into the past again, only this time you could accept."
"I don't think so," Dylan said, and then he turned to Harper. "Harper, what were my chances of surviving that trip?"
Harper shuffled his feet. "Um, well, you know. The entire thing was truly experimental and just developed, so there were no real assurances of exactly what the chances--"
"Harper?" Dylan said again.
Harper closed his mouth. "Fifty-fifty," he said.
"Exactly my point," Dylan said, leaning on the consol in front of him. "Seeing as how I've made the trip twice and survived, it would seem that I'm do for a rather unpleasant arrival if I try it again."
"Besides," Andromeda said, "I won't let you make a trip like that again, even if you do order me to."
"Thanks for your concern, Andromeda," Dylan said. "I think…"
Andromeda smiled.
"I am programmed to keep my captain safe, after all," Rommie said as she walked onto the bridge.
"Ah! Here comes the most awesome piece of machinery in the three galaxies," Harper said, throwing his arms out in a grand gesture, as if he was waiting for a hug.
Andromeda's humanoid avatar turned and looked at Harper. "Sorry Harper," she said. "You may have built me, but it's going to take more than flattery for a hug."
"Rats," Harper said, dropping his arms. "Even when I build a woman they still don't want me."
Beka tried to hold back a smile. "Don't worry Harper," she said. "You're day will come soon."
"Yeah right," Harper said. "The Commonwealth will be calling me Tri-Harper before that happens."
"Well Harper," Andromeda's Main AI on the screen said, "look on the bright side. If you did be come Tri-Harper you could have all the women you could--" Suddenly she cut off, a look of concentration coming over her face on the monitor.
"Dylan," she said. "I'm receiving a transmission… from the center of the black hole."
Everyone on the bridge looked at each other.
"Why do impossible things always happen when we go studying black holes?" Dylan asked.
"I dunno Boss," Harper said. "Maybe it's another message from the past, though I still don't know how we were able to get that first message in the first place."
Dylan shook his head, and then nodded to Andromeda. "Put it through."
Andromeda's visage immediately replaced with an image showing the bridge of a starship. There were sparks flying everywhere, and it looked as if the ship had been through a battle or something. However, the sparks and the damage were not what held the attention of the Andromeda bridge crew at the moment. All their eyes were focused on the little girl standing in the middle of the bridge.
"To whomever receives this transmission," the girl said. She looked to be about twelve years old, but her hair was already snow white, and her eyes were the color of crimson. There was a look of pleading on her face as she continued to speak. "This executive officer Ruri of the starship Ayanami. We were attacked by vessels of unknown origin. We managed to escape, but my captain has been badly injured. We do not have the ability to treat him on bored our ship, and I'm afraid that he doesn't have much time left."
Dylan looked at the Rommie, who just shrugged. Then he looked back to the transmission.
"The black hole is his only chance for survival. I am taking the ship into a low orbit around the black hole, in hopes that the time dilation effect will be strong enough to stop time until a vessel capable of treating my captain passes by. If you receive this transmission, please retrieve our ship from the black hole and help my captain. Ruri out."
The transmission winked out, and Andromeda once again appeared on the viewing screen.
"Holy crap. Boss, did I hear that right?" Harper asked. "That little girl is the executive officer?"
"Well they were in a battle. Perhaps the rest of the crew has been killed," he said. "And keep in mind that she may be much older than she looks. Just cause she looks human doesn't mean that she is. Andromeda?"
"I am detecting a vessel in orbit around the black hole, captain. The calculated time dilation effect is almost double that of ours when we were in orbit," she said.
"Can we retrieve the ship?" he asked.
"It shouldn't be any trouble," Andromeda said.
"Alright," Dylan said, standing up straight, and looked at Beka. "Beka, retrieve that ship."
"Yes sir," she said, readying the bucky cables for retrieval of the ship.
"Harper, Rommie," Dylan said, "I want you to get Trance and some medical supplies meet on the Maru. We won't have much time if the Ayanami's captain is injured."
"Yes sir," Rommie and Harper said.
Dylan nodded, and left the bridge.
"Nice ship," Harper said as he looked out the front window of the Eureka Maru. He turned and looked over his shoulder. "It's almost as fabulous as you, Rommie."
"Thank you Harper," Rommie said smiling.
"It is a beautiful ship though," Trance Gemini said as she looked over Harper's shoulder at the sleek, brilliantly blue star ship. "Even with all the battle damage."
"Yeah, well, that damage is what I'm worried about," Dylan said, looking away from the ship. "Rommie?"
"It seems that the hull is intact, but Dylan, I'm only reading one life sign, and it's fading rapidly," she said.
"We've got to hurry then," he said. "It must be that girl we saw on the transmission. It looks like we were too late to save her captain. I'm bringing us in."
They felt a slight jolt as the Maru set down in one of the Ayanami's landing bays. While it was less than a quarter of the size of Andromeda, it was still a fairly large ship.
As the doors opened to the interior of the ship, they were greeted by hallways made of some sort of bluish metal, marred here and there by loose wires and circuits, apparently jarred loose in the attack against the ship. The entire hallway was dimly lit. it seemed as though the power had been cut off.
"Dylan," Rommie said as she ran a hand over the wall, "these walls are made out of a material that I've never seen before."
"That's interesting Rommie," Dylan said, "but first we need to find our survivor. She doesn't have much time."
Suddenly the lights in the hallway came on, making everything clear.
"What the…" Harper said, trailing off.
"It seems that someone has realized we are here," Dylan said. "But who?"
"Have you come to help my captain?" a soft voice said behind them.
The four whipped around, force lances and guns extended towards the white-haired girl standing behind them.
Dylan lowered his force lance and gestured for the others to do the same, looking at the girl in confusion. "Yes, we are," he said, noting how the girl looked to be in perfect health. "I'm Captain Dylan Hunt of the starship Andromeda. This is Seamus Harper, Trance Gemini, and this is Rommie. We only detected one life sign on the ship. We assumed that it was too late for your captain and were coming to find you."
"The life sign you detected is my captain," the girl said, looking Dylan in the eyes. "I am the ship's AI, Ruri."
"You're an android?" Rommie said, looking at the girl in surprise.
She shook her head. "No, I am merely a hologram."
The four were surprised. The hologram standing right there looked as real as any of them did. Well this explains why she was the executive officer, Harper thought to himself.
"There is not much time," she said, walking past them. "Please hurry, my captain is this way."
Dylan and the rest of his crew followed Ruri as they walked down various hallways, turning left and right as she led them to her captain. Finale, they approached a doorway in the passages that looked as if it lead to a large, open room.
"My captain is in here." Her eyes widened. "Hurry, his life signs are fading!" she said, picking up the pace as she ran into the room. Dylan and his crew followed suit.
"Captain!" Ruri cried out when he came into view, and she ran to his side.
And the surprises keep coming, Dylan thought to himself as he laid eyes on the captain. The boy that Ruri called her captain was sitting on the ground, leaning his back against the wall. His eyes were closed, and he had long black hair reaching down to the middle of his back, contrasting his pale skin. He couldn't be more than fourteen or fifteen years old. He had on a black t-shirt, and some blue pants made out of a material that Dylan didn't recognize. Aside form all that, his right hand was covering a bloody wound on his left side, while he clutched some sort of weapon in his left.
"Captain!" Ruri shouted at him. "Captain!"
The boy gave no response.
"Please hurry!" She said, turning to Dylan. "Save him!"
Dylan nodded, and then gestured for Trance to treat him.
"Boss?" Harper said, sounding confused.
"What is it, Harper?" Dylan said, without taking his eyes of the boy on the floor.
"Look at the girl. She's crying."
Dylan moved his eyes to the incredibly realistic hologram of the girl that had brought them here, and indeed she was crying.
"Don't be so surprised," Rommie said, to them. "I'd cry if I thought Dylan was going to die."
Dylan and Harper turned to look at her, and she clamped her mouth shut. I can't believe I said that.
Their attention on Rommie was diverted when Trance stood up. "I'm sorry Ruri," she said to the hologram. "He's gone. I couldn't save him."
Ruri squeezed her eyes shut, clearly trying to hold back tears, and she nodded. Wiping her tears away with her sleeves, she turned to Dylan. "Thank you for at least trying, Captain Hunt." The she saluted him.
Dylan acknowledged her salute. "I am truly sorry that we couldn't save your captain."
"You did all you could."
"Is there anything else we can do to help?"
Ruri closed her eyes and shook her head. "No," she said. "Without my captain, I have no reason to continue operating."
Dylan looked at the girl in concern. She may be space ship, but she looked too much like a little girl for him not to be worried. "Are you sure about that?" he asked. "Do you think that your captain would have wanted that?"
Ruri smiled at him. "I thank you for your concern, captain, but this is what I want."
"Listen to the man, Ruri," a dry voice suddenly said. "I will not have you killing yourself over me."
"Colin!" Ruri cried out and ran past Dylan to her captain, who was now standing up, though he still clutched his right side and was leaning on the wall for support.
Dylan looked at Trance. "What did you do?"
Trance just stared at Ruri's captain with her mouth open. "Nothing Dylan. One minute he was dead, and the next…"
"Dylan," Rommie said, leaning in to speak with her captain. "There is only one person we've seen do something like this before." She looked at Trance.
Before Trance could say anything, Ruri's captain spoke up. "Thank you for saving my life," he said to them. "And thank your for worrying about Ruri as well."
Dylan smiled. "Just doing the right thing," he said, walking over and helping to support the boy.
The captain smiled. "My name is Colin Darkrite, Captain of the Ayanami."
Dylan smiled back. "I'm Dylan Hunt, Captain of the Andromeda. Come on, let's get you back to my ship.
"Thank you captain," Colin said again.
Suddenly Dylan's communicator beeped, signaling that Beka was trying to contact him. "Rommie," he said. "Help Captain Darkrite back to the Maru."
After handing Colin off to Rommie, Dylan pulled out his communicator. "Beka, good news. We're coming back with the captain--"
"I'm sorry Dylan but this is just too weird," Beka said, interrupting him.
"What is?" he asked.
"You remember that black hole?"
"How could I forget?"
"Well it's gone."
Dylan was silent for a couple seconds. "What do you mean it's gone?"
"Just what it sounds like, Dylan," she said. "One minute the black hole was there, and then next it was gone, releasing everything that it had been in the process of dragging in."
"Beka, black holes don't just up and disappear. Nothing can destroy a black hole."
"I know that as well as you Dylan, but that doesn't change the fact that the black hole is gone."
"Alright, well we're heading back to the Maru now. We should be back on board in a few minutes."
"Alright, see you when you get here."
Dylan put the communicator away and put it back in his pocket, hurrying to keep up with the rest of the party.
"Captain," Ruri said, falling into pace next to him,
"Yes?" he said, looking down at her.
"Thank you very much for saving my captain."
"Your welcome, but we aren't exactly sure that what we did helped. We don't know why he recovered," he told her.
"I see," she said. "Nevertheless, thank you for coming to help." She bowed slightly to him as she said this.
"Your welcome," Dylan said. "If there is anything else we can do to help, we'd be happy to."
"Well," Ruri said, tilting her head in though. "I do need help with repairs, but my biggest problem is that my super solenoid engine is offline. Do you have any engineers that would be willing to help me repair it?"
Dylan smiled. "I know just the guy."
"I still wanna know how that black whole seemingly phased out of existence," Harper said as he, Rommie, and Ruri walked through the ship, making small repairs along the way. "You got any ideas, Rom-doll?"
"Well, nothing is known for certain what happens when matter passes the event horizon of a black hole, and the intense gravity of such singularities has a profound effect on space in time. I suppose that it's entirely possible that the black hole was from another universe," she said.
"Yeah, but that still doesn't explain why it suddenly vanished like that," Harper said.
"It is an interesting phenomenon," Ruri said, speaking up. "To witness both the spontaneous creation and destruction of a black hole has been intriguing, to say the least."
"Exactly, and on top of that--wait, you saw it being created?" Harper said, cutting himself off once he had realized what Ruri said.
"Of course," she said. "Upon escaping from our attackers, we fled to this part of the universe. There was no black hole when we got here, and I was afraid that my captain was going to perish from his wound. The, suddenly, out of nothing, a black hole appeared, presenting me with the chance to save my captain. I know not why it appeared then, nor why it has disappeared now."
Harper shook his head. "This is all too weird. I mean, I can handle the Abyss, and alternate universes, but this thing with the black whole is giving me the creeps."
Suddenly Ruri stopped. "You know of the Abyss?" she asked.
Harper and Rommie stopped walking. "Of course," Rommie said. "After discovering the existence of the Magog worldship little over three years ago, my captain has been trying to bring the worlds of the three galaxies together in order to combat the threat of the Magog, who serve the Abyss."
"The Magog?" Ruri asked.
"Vicious evil bastards," Harper said. "They live for killing and ravaging, they don't even wait until your dead to start eating you, and that's if you're lucky. If you're unlucky, they keep you alive and infest you with evil Magog eggs, which then grow into evil baby Magog and feast on your insides, until they claw their way out of your stomach and start killing everything in site!" He rubbed his stomach nervously.
"I see," Ruri said, continuing walking.
"You talked of the Abyss as if you knew what it was," Rommie said, keeping stride with the little girl, who, despite her short stature, made very good time walking through the ship.
"I have theories," she said. "The Abyss is an entity that desires nothing but total annihilation of the this universe and all other universes."
"What else do you know?" Rommie asked.
"I'm sorry, but I that information is classified." When Rommie opened her mouth protest, Ruri said, "Don't worry. If you are truly against the Abyss, I'm sure my captain will give you all the data we have gathered on it."
"Well that's good," Harper said. "I mean, you seem to have some technology that's even more advanced that the Andromeda here."
"That is true," Ruri said, nodding. "However the Andromeda does have some features that I wish I did as well."
"Such as?" Rommie asked, interested in what another ship would envy of her.
Ruri pointed at Rommie.
"Me?" Rommie asked, surprised.
Ruri shook her head. "You have the ability to interact with your captain and your crew. As I am, I couldn't even support my captain when he couldn't stand on his own."
Rommie smiled. She didn't know why, but knowing that another ship wanted to be like her and not her Main AI made her feel a bit happy. Then she frowned.
"Wait," she said. "How did you know that I was the ship?"
Ruri looked down at the ground and began fidgeting. "Please don't be mad," she said. "I've been monitoring your connection with your ship. I wanted to make sure my captain was alright."
Both Rommie and Harper looked at the girl with mouths agape. "You mean you've been connected to Andromeda's mainframe this entire time?" Harper asked, incredulous.
Ruri kept looking at the ground. "Yes…" Then she looked up. "I didn't do anything, honest! I was just checking in on my captain."
Harper looked at Rommie. "Rommie?" he asked rasing his eyebrows.
"I don't understand, Harper," Rommie said as she looked slightly upwards, indicating that she was working on an entirely different level than the physical one. "I can find no evidence that she ever entered the myself or the Main AI, but it does appear that everything is normal and intact. I am now on alert for any other intrusions, however."
"I'm really sorry!" Ruri said again, bowing slightly once more.
"Just don't do it again," Rommie said.
"Yes, yes! I'm sorry!"
Jeeze, Harper thought to himself. She really does act just like a little kid. To be able to simulate all these different reactions… her program might be even more advanced than Rommie's. Oh, what I wouldn't give to talk to her creator.
"Please, let us continue with the repairs. I only have a limited amount of power without my super solenoid engine operating. We will be passing through the library now."
Ruri stood by a door that opened up as Rommie and Harper approached, and once they were inside, they gawked at the scene before them.
"Holy crap!" Harper yelled as he saw the extensive room with the high vaulted ceiling. Everything was made out of wood, and the entire room looked like some sort of royal library, something out of legends. "This place is huge."
"Yes," Ruri said. "It is indeed. This is where my captain stores his collection."
"Your captain collects books?"
Ruri tilted her head. "Yes, but they aren't the main source of his obsession." She gestured to one of the walls. "Have a look."
Rommie and Harper walked over to one of the shelves, and found that this particular one did not house books, but instead plastic cases which they assumed held some sort of data storage within them. Rommie reached out for one and pulled it out.
"Holy crap!" Harper said again, only this time much louder than the first. He grabbed the plastic case out of Rommies hand, and stared down at the image on the front. "You guys are from Earth?" he asked incredulously.
Ruri nodded. "Yes, of course."
"Harper," Rommie said. "How do you know that?"
"Just look at this, Rommie!" he said, showing her the plastic case once again. "I saw a few examples of it back on Earth, but most of it had been lost when the Drago Catsov conquered the planet." He pointed to the characters on front, who all had large eyes and small noses and mouths. "This is a style of art created by the Japanese on earth. The animated version of it was called anime, while the paper version was called manga. It had a pretty strong following way back when." He turned to Ruri. "Is there manga here too?" he asked.
She nodded. "Before we left, my captain gathered all the anime, manga, and related merchandise that he could find. Back on Earth, it was his one true passion in life."
"Oh this is my lucky day!" Harper said. "There wasn't much of this left on Earth, but what little I could find… I mean, Rommie, you have no idea. I mean, it made living on Earth bearable."
"I see," Rommie said, taking out another on of the discs. She looked at it, opened it up, and frowned. "Harper…" she said slowly.
"What is it, Rommie?"
"I've accessed my database in regards to this material. This particular anime, as you call them, was last released on 21st Century Earth."
"Yeah, so?" Harper said, sifting through the different collections.
"So, I've analyzed the material of this DVD, which is what the data was stored on, and it's less than a decade old." She turned to Ruri. "When did you leave Earth?"
Ruri looked back at Rommie. "In the year 2094."
Harper dropped the manga he had just picked up.
"That's not possible," Harper said, looking at Ruri. "Earth only began to create true AI's several years before that. You are way to advanced to have come from back then. Aside form that, there is this ship! Earth didn't have the power to travel this deep into space back then, not to mention that I can tell some of this ship is more advanced than the Andromeda just by looking at it. I mean, you'd have to be from over three thousand years ago!"
"Have we been trapped in that black hole for that long?" Ruri asked. "I see. This would explain your talk of the Earth being taken over."
"Look," Harper said. "There is no way that you can be three thousand years old. You wouldn't have even been able to make off of Earth in the first place."
Ruri rose an eyebrow. "I wonder," she said, and then turned to Rommie. "Have you tried searching your database for any mention of my captain?"
"No," Rommie admitted. "I am initiating a search right now." Rommie was silent for a few minutes, and then her search found a match.
When she saw it, her jaw dropped.
"He's what?" Dylan said, looking Andromeda's main AI on the screen.
"Just what I said, Dylan. He's been stuck in that black hole for over three thousand years, and he came from Earth."
Dylan shook his head. "No, Andromeda. That's not possible. Earth didn't have this sort of technology back then. I mean, he's got about the same chances of being from 21st century Earth as a black hole has of--"
"Spontaneously vanishing?" Andromeda finished for him, raising an eyebrow.
"Okay, bad example," he said. "But you know what I mean."
"Actually," Andromeda said, "Considering who he is, it might just be possible."
Dylan looked at Andromeda. "What do you mean, 'considering who he is'?"
Andromeda began to speak, taking on a lecturing tone as an image of Colin Darkrite appeared on the screen.
"The origins of true AI began in the Earth year of 2091, when 13 year old prodigy Colin Darkrite unveiled the first, albeit primitive, artificial intelligent computer to the world. It was from his original works that more advanced AI were created. In addition to his contributions to artificial intelligence, Colin Darkrite also made many advancements in various fields such as energy, propulsion, communications, theoretical physics, and put forward many ideas on space travel.
"Many historians argue that Darkrite was deliberately holding some of his discoveries from the world, seeing as many of his projects looked to have been deliberately left unfinished. It is often debated that Darkrite believed that the Earth, with it's unstable society at the time, was not ready for most of his discoveries. Historians do agree, however, that he was the smartest human to have ever existed, and that Earth was noticed by the Vedrans because of his achievements.
"However, three years after he made his first contribution to Earths scientific community, Darkrite mysteriously vanished, leaving no clue as to where he went. His last reported works were on space travel, and some believe that he had succeeded in creating a ship capable of creating a ship capable of traversing the stars, and had left Earth."
Dylan stared at Andromeda.
"You are saying that the kid in there is the father of all AI's?" he said.
"Yes," Andromeda said. "After all, his works were used by the Vedran's and other races to improve their own AI's. The fact that his primitive designs were able to improve the advanced technology of the Vedran's is one point that scholars refer to when they claim he knew more than he was giving people." Andromeda glanced towards the med deck. "If he is indeed Colin Darkrite, then it appears that the scholars were correct, and he had knowledge that was over three thousand years ahead of his time. Some of the systems aboard his ship are more advanced than my own."
Dylan put a hand to his forehead and rubbed his temple. "I am getting too old for this."
Suddenly the door opened beside him, and Trance walked out of the Med Deck.
"How is he?" Dylan asked her.
"He's going to be fine," Trance said. "But Dylan…"
"What is it Trance?" he asked when she trailed off.
"Back on the ship, he was dead."
"And so have you been, many times if I recall."
"It's not the same thing, Dylan," Trance said, looking around. "When my body dies, I can repair it and bring it back to life, because my being is still alive."
Dylan nodded, confirming he understood.
"Back on the ship," Trance continued, "he was completely dead. I could sense it. His being was gone. Then, suddenly, he was simply back."
Dylan shook his head. "This day keeps getting stranger and stranger. Trance, that kid in there is apparently the father of all AI's."
Trance glanced around again, nervously. "That's not all, Dylan," she said. "When I analyzed his DNA, although his base pairs and genetic structure was that of a human, I also found liberal amounts of each of the radical isotopes."
A stern expression came over Dylan's face as he took in Trance's words. "He's with the Abyss?" he asked.
Trance nodded. "It would seem so."
Dylan looked away for a second, and then back to Trance. "You know, this doesn't make any sense. How could someone who was responsible for some of the greatest scientific achievements for human kind be in league with something that wanted to destroy the universe?"
"I might also add," Rommie said, "that he apparently never developed any weaponry, though he certainly would have been able to. Even his starship out there appears to have no offensive capabilities."
Dylan looked at Trance, and then back at Andromeda. After a moment, he said, "Well, I guess there is only one way to get some answers." Then he turned and walked onto the Med Deck.
"My God," Harper said. "You're captain is a freaking genius!"
Ruri smiled. "I know."
Rommie, for her part, looked slightly stunned. "He is really the father of all AI's?"
Ruri nodded, still smiling. "Yup, so I suppose that'd make you his great granddaughter, give or take several thousand greats."
"Yeah, this is going to be great. I can't wait to talk to him about this ship. I mean, he developed AI's on 21st century Earth when he was only thirteen? Jesus, even I and my formerly unparalleled genius can't match that."
Ruri's smile turned into a full grin. "I think you'll be quite happy once you become familiar with some of my key components," she said to Harper, and then turned to Rommie. "Though I think you might enjoy them a bit more than he can."
"Wait," Rommie said, holding up her hands. "You mean that you'll just give us this technology?"
Ruri nodded. "Of course!" she said. "If you are truly against the abyss, which I believe you are, my captain will surely grant you his knowledge."
"You keep saying things like that," Rommie said, putting away some of the DVD's that she and Harper had taken out. "Are you telling me that your captain new of the Abyss over three thousand years ago?"
"Yes," Ruri said.
"How?"
"My captain will explain it in due time, but right now I would really appreciate it if you fixed my super solenoid engine. I am running kind of low on power. It took a lot out of me to make the jump all the way to this part of space, you know!" With that, Ruri began walking to the exit at the other end of the library, and Harper and Rommie followed suit, not before, however, Harper gave a last look of wonder at the library of anime and manga.
After several more minutes of walking their way through the ship, they finally wound up at a door that was a markedly darker shade of blue than the rest of the ship was.
"Alright," Ruri said, "we're here."
And with that, the door opened.
Rommie and Harper walked forward into the cylindrical room about 15 meters across, and it appeared devoid of all features except for a console panel on the wall opposite them. When Ruri began approaching the console, Rommie and Harper did the same.
"My access to the super solenoid engine has been cut off, but you should be able to restart it manually from here," she said, allowing Harper to step in front of the control panel.
"Alright, let's what the Harper-machine can do," he said as he started up the control panel. "So what does this super solenoid engine do?" he asked.
"It provides me with an unlimited source of power."
"Oh, is that all."
Harper was silent for several seconds.
"IT WHAT!" He yelled as he spun around to look at Ruri.
"It provides me with an unlimited source of power," Ruri repeated.
"No, no," Harper said. "You can't do that. You would be defying the laws of physics. You can't do that. It doesn't work."
Ruri shook her head. "I'm not defying the laws of physics, Harper," Ruri said. "I'm just sort of going around them."
"No," Rommie said. "I have to agree with Harper. Every planet in the universe has tried to create an unlimited source of power, and all have failed and agreed that it just isn't possible."
Ruri sighed. "I'm going to have to explain how it works then, aren't I?"
Rommie and Harper nodded.
Ruri sighed again, and then pointed to the console. "Harper," she said. "Please press the 'Viewport' button."
Harper turned to the console and pressed the button, and watched in shock as the floor below them suddenly became transparent, showing a cylindrical tube falling deep into the depths of the ship, so far that he couldn't see the end of it. It's walls seemed to be made of wire that was easily several humans thick, and it spiraled all the way down into the depths.
"Jesus," Harper said, latching onto the control panel.
Ruri let out a little laugh. "You don't have to worry," she said. "The ground is still there, it's just transparent now." She walked out into the middle of the room and gestured for Harper and Rommie to join her. They did so, though it took some coaxing before Harper finally came over.
"So, uh, how does this thing work?" Harper said, while looking every where at once, clearly freaked out by the fact that he was standing on nothing above a bottomless pit.
"You may recall that I referred to this area as my Super Solenoid engine, or S2 Engine, as my captain often called it."
Harper and Rommie nodded.
"Alright, what do you see below you?"
"A freakin' bottomless pit, that's what!" Harper said.
Rommie, however, had a more intelligent answer. "It's a solenoid," she said. "This entire area of the ship is a giant solenoid, coil of wire that produces a magnetic field when electricity is run through it."
"Yeah, thanks," Harper said. "I know what a solenoid is, Rommie."
"I was just trying to get you talking about the mechanics of this engine rather than having you concentrate your apparent fear of heights."
"Whatever," Harper said. "It still doesn't make sense. How could a solenoid create an unlimited source of power?"
Ruri smiled. "Andromeda," she said, looking at Rommie, "Harper won't be able to see this, but could you describe to him what you see when you look closely at the solenoid coil?"
Rommie nodded, and then looked at one of the thick wires that wrapped the area below them. "It appears that the coil itself is made up of another solenoid."
Ruri nodded. "And that solenoid is another solenoid, and that another, and that another, and so on and so forth. There are a total of 307 solenoids in this particular engine."
"Jesus," Harper said. "I don't think anyone has ever done that before. The electromagnetic field it creates would be… I don't know. I can't even think of what it might do."
"It creates and unlimited amount of energy, Harper," Ruri said.
"But how? You'd still be breaking the laws of physics, even with this super solenoid of doom you've got here."
"Not so," Ruri said. "Electrical power is defined by the movement of electrons, correct?"
"Yeah," Harper said.
"So if you had an unlimited source of moving electrons, you would have an unlimited source of electrical power."
"Yeah."
"And are you also aware that on a quantum level, the normal rules of physics do not apply?"
"Yeah."
"And you do know that electrons constantly vanish and appear from our universe at random?"
"Yeah--wait. Oh my god. You meant to tell me that this satan solenoid or whatever you called it can force electrons to appear en mass, thereby giving you unlimited power?"
Ruri smiled. "I knew you'd get it eventualy."
Harper stood there shocked for a second.
"OH MY GOD! I LOVE THIS SHIP!" he yelled out loud. Then he quickly turned to Rommie. "But she could never replace you, you know that, right Rommie?"
"Of course Harper. I'll admit that I am envious of this ships systems. Especially this engine here," Rommie said, looking around.
Ruri smiled again. "You haven't seen anything yet," she said."Now, can we please get my engine operational? I am running short on time here."
Harper literally skipped over the console. "You got it, Ruri-baby," he said. He began working on the console. "Your captain is a freaking genius," he said again.
Ruri smiled. "I know."
"Captain Hunt!" Colin said as he saw Dylan walk into the medical bay. "I can't tell you how thankful I am that you rescued me."
"Yeah, well" Dylan said. "Like I said, 'just doing the right thing.'"
Colin nodded. "Yes, and I'm glad for it."
Dylan nodded. "I was in a similar situation once. I was stuck on the even horizon of a black whole for three hundred years. When time resumed for me, I found that the universe had entered a sort of dark ages, and that everyone I ever knew was dead."
"I know how you feel," Colin said, and Dylan saw a hint of sadness touch his eyes.
"Yeah, well, I've got nothing on you," Dylan said. "You realize that you've been stuck in time for more than three thousand years?"
Colin blinked, and then sighed. "I had assumed that it would be this long, yes, judging from how advanced your starship is, but now I've got confirmation. I was hopping that I might have been wrong."
"I'm sorry," Dylan said. "My ship also found mention of you in out database. Apparently you were some kind of Prometheus back on Earth."
Colin shook his head. "Prometheus was a God who was punished for giving fire to humans, cursed to be chained to a rock for all eternity. I am not a God."
"Aren't you?" Dylan asked, raising his eyebrow. "Three thousand years can seem like an eternity."
Colin shook his head. "I am not a God, Captain. Nor do I wish to be. I am content to remain human."
"Yeah, about that," Dylan said, looking Colin straight in the eye. "My medical officer found something interesting when she examined you."
"And that is?" Colin asked, curious.
"It appears that your body contains all ten of the radical isotopes."
A small smile appeared on Colin's face. "So you know of the radical isotopes. I see. I assume thenthat you must also know of the Abyss?"
"Yes," Dylan said. "And in our experience, only beings in league with the Abyss contain radical isotopes. Tell me, are you an agent of the abyss, Captain Darkrite?"
Colin's smile seemed to harden. "Please," he said, "call me Colin. And never associate me with them ever again. I've spent the past year before I was attacked and frozen in time trying to fight against the Abyss. Why do you think I left Earth and everyone I knew? It was because the future of the planet depended on me finding away to destroy the Abyss."
Dylan leaned in close to Colin. "That still doesn't explain why your body contains the substance of the Abyss."
Colin leaned in even closer to Dylan. "And what makes you so sure that your body doesn't contain it as well?"
Author's Note:
So what do you think? Yes, I know I stole the name Super Solenoid from Eva, but I sort of stole all the characters here from Andromeda, you know, an no, it's no the same S2 Engine as you would find in Eva. But on that note, what did you think about the S2 Engine? That bit about electrons vanishing an reappearing in our universe at random is true, by the way.
Please review!