Violetta somehow found this handsome commander to no longer be boring. She really wondered what he was going to choose.
"What are the other theories?" The commander needed to know what the scientists knew. At least the jist of what they knew. Then he could make a decision.
"Well Einstein came up with Space-Time. Going on with some of the wild tangents that came from that theory, we could potentially jump in time. There are those who say a black hole is a gateway to the multiverse. Traveling through the black hole will make you jump from our universe into a potentially infinite number of universes. A little Christian girl I knew in college theorized that Einstein was correct in his idea of space-time and that a Black hole was a hole in both space and time. God created this universe to work within time, so going through a black hole would knock you out of time and into eternity. Meaning that you would both always and never exist at the same time.
The point is... We don't have a lot of time to make this decision. We are stuck in this black hole with no way out, and out rations won't last. We might not even live long enough to run out of them. I have no Idea how quickly we will start to spin like we are going down a drain pipe. At that point we will no longer have the option to use FTL."
Commander Yazzie drummed his fingers on his desk as he thought. "Go back to the lab," he said. "I'll make an announcement in 30 minutes,inform everyone to go to the mess hall."
As Violetta wondered why he wanted everyone to go to a messy hall, she heard the doctor mutter under her breath, "Go to the lab, or make an announcement? Can't he be more clear?"
Violetta watched as Commander Yazzie pulled up the fuel report. Then He pulled up the report that shows how much fuel is used to turn around, and another report that shows how much fuel is used during FTL.
Coming to a decision, he got up and walked out of his office.
Violetta quickly followed him. No wait! What did he decide? Why didn't this man have a habit of talking out loud? Did he have to walk so slowly? What was he keeping her in suspense for?
They turned a corner and walked into a doorway and arrived at a very clean cafeteria. Except it was full of people. Weren't they supposed to meet in a messy hallway?
Everyone was talking all at once when violetta walked in. She couldn't make out what any of them were saying.
"Attention!" The commander shouted.
Everyone suddenly stood still and faced the commander. Their backs were straight, legs together, and faces serious. Wow. It was like a play. Violetta watched the scene unfold.
The commander began his speech, "As you all know we are completely off course. Our instruments are not broken or malfunctioning according to the mechanical team. The IT team has also stated that there does not seem to be a problem with the software either. We are unsure how we got so far off course, but what we do know is that it should have taken us about four years longer than we have been traveling to reach this point."
The people remained at attention, but violetta could feel a shift in the air. A nervous energy took over the scene.
"We don't have enough fuel or supplies to get us back to Earth, or to get us to New Earth. There are no planets nearby that can hold human life. So we can't forage for any supplies either. The commander paused and then said, "I'd like everyone to sit at attention." The sound of everyone sitting down seemed loud in the quiet space. They all sat facing forward, feet flat on the ground.
Commander Yazzie sighed as he continued, "There is another problem in the midst of this that has been brought to my attention. We are caught in the pull of a black hole. This is why so many of the crew have been experiencing headaches.
"We are too far from headquarters, and our messages are not getting through to them. This is likely due to interference from the black hole. Even if we could get a message to them, we cannot wait four years and seven months for them to get here to save us.
"At this point we will be unable to get out of the black holes gravity. I've been informed that if we allow the ship to travel as it has been, there is a possibility we will starve. There is also the possibility that the pull will get very strong very soon. If this happens we will all die by being torn limb from limb as the ship breaks apart around us. Using FTL to try and escape could make our situation worse by causing the ship to break apart even sooner.
"I'm not in favor of either of those options. I have been given a third option by the scientific committee. There is a small chance for survival if we use our FTL and go directly into the heart of the black hole we might be able to punch through to the other side. There is also the possibility that if we use the FTL to try and punch through the black hole we will jump to a faster less gruesome death.
"In short, no matter what we choose, it will lead to death. Only one option gives us a slight chance for survival. So I've made the decision to choose the one option.
"Now is your one chance to voice your opinion. In ten minutes I will issue the order to turn us into the black hole. Until then, I will sit here." The commander dragged a chair over and sat in front of the group. "At ease."
No one moved at first. They were probably shocked.
"Sir," one of the people asked a little quietly with a raised hand.
"Speak up," the commander said.
The young man spoke louder, "Just to be clear, our only choices are a slightly longer time between death, or immediate death with a one in a million chance at life?"
"You don't have a choice," the commander said. "I made the choice for you. We have only one chance at living on in the future. I've chosen that one option. If there is any opposition to this plan, now is the time to voice it. You have seven more minutes."
"I object!" one of the young men cried out. "I don't like any of those options! We shouldn't even be out this far! Give me a reason I can accept!"
The commander issued the order to hold that man in place with his hands. Before the man was taken away he said for him to hear, "The report I read showed that we likely went through a wormhole in space. The wormhole messed up our controls, and then we were picked up by the black hole." Commander Yazzie looked at the man being held. "You will spend the rest of this time in your room."
The two men took the young man away.
Finally it seemed the ten minus was up. Commander Yazzie issued the order. The ship turned into the black hole.
Violetta felt her heart race as she heard the handsome commander issue the order for Faster than light travel into the black void in front of them. Everything happened so fast. She felt the pull of gravity in front of her. It pulled harder and harder. Then suddenly, she no longer felt the pull.
The ship had gone dark. Just as she thought everyone in the story had died, she heard the commander's voice, "Report."
One by one they reported. The engine needed to be restarted. Once everything was back online they saw that they had gotten a fuel leak. But other than that one thing everything else was working.
They scanned the nearby planets for a life holding atmosphere. Miraculously there was one nearby. They had just enough fuel to get there and land safely. Commander Yazzie issued the order to head that way in hope.
Violetta saw a bookmark appear in front of her. She could come back to this spot when she was ready.
Violetta closed her eyes for a minute. When she opened them she was once again sitting in that same position. She closed the book before it pulled her back in. She could hear heath sleeping on the bed, and she could see the light shining off of Araminty who had yet to wake up. It was really late. She touched her father's book. The story she just "read" took a long time to read. It was so full of details.
Each page told a story just as detailed.
Violetta gazed off into the darkness and thought about what she just experienced.