Theo didn't feel anything till the stratosphere. But after that the pressure of gravity was intense. It was not enough for an average modified man, but to Theo, it was at more than enough to make him faint. Of course, he didn't faint. He didn't go through so much rigorous simulation for nothing, now did he?
When they finally escaped the planet's gravity, he relaxed and looked out. The planet, the stars, and the space stations. Everything looked marvelous. Theo couldn't believe his eyes. Naturally, he'd come up here hundreds of times, and yet he was still marveled. He really loved space.
But he also loved his home. 'It looks blue from here.'
This planet, Planet V-77 (Codenamed Aura), was his home all his life and he really liked this place. And the oceans of this planet were green, but due to the wastes, they looked blue.
He liked the color.
Theo loved his home, but it was time he left this place, after all, he had his goals, his dreams, and his ideals.
***
Theo arrived at the Ainmester a few minutes later. The magnificent ship was probably bigger than any ship Theo had seen up close. From the outside, it looked bigger than his mother's mansion.
A streamlined ship- not many creases or anything extravagant. Just a long, big ship.
"This is actually better than I had envisioned." Theo looked around in amazement. They still hadn't entered the ship. Theo was patient, but this was probably the first time in his life, he couldn't control his emotions.
The ship was massive and it was supposedly one of the best ships of the human empire.
A hatch opened up and the small ship entered the Ainmester. The hatch closed and air filled the room. And then artificial gravity kicked in.
Both of them were at the rear end of the ship. They hadn't yet seen much of the ship but still, Theo couldn't help but glare around in amazement.
He felt like a little boy again.
Someone or rather, an R.I approached the duo seemingly out of nowhere. "Welcome, Mr. Theodore and Ms. Sizzilien4ienV9$@4. I am Veine, this ship's head R.I." Veine took a quick glance over Sizzy and stared back at Theo; a rather calm voice. Pristine white suit and facial fair? "Please follow me. I will lead you to your dorms. Captain Barslain will meet you soon." A sturdy-looking R.I. greeted them. He had bountiful caramel skin and a toned, tanned body that was covered under his white suit. He definitely looked much more capable than Theo.
"Lead on." Theo had only one immediate goal in mind: see more of the ship.
"Just Sizzy is fine."
There was no response from Veine. He just walked on.
They both followed a narrow pathway. Patterns of light streamlined on the sides of the road like the runway of an airport. The path was wide enough to fit three Theos side by side. Theo meanwhile just continued glaring around in excitement.
***
"These are your bedchambers. I am told that you two are to be reporting at the bridge by 0800 tomorrow. Till then please make yourselves comfortable," Veine said.
They had already arrived at the entrance to their room. It was rather close it seemed.
"What about the tour of the ship?"
"I have not been instructed to do so. But if it should please you, I'll send in someone who will be able to meet your needs," The R.I nodded once with a smile to show courtesy.
The passage was a bit wider here, but still not enough for a group to move about freely. But this wasn't shocking, as this ship didn't have a large crew in the first place. But then there was the question. 'Why are they using such a large ship?'
"That won't be necessary. I already have the maps of the whole ship downloaded. We will be fine," Sizzy reassured.
"Cool." Theo smiled. 'Maybe I can find out more with her.'
He turned around and entered the room with Sizzy.
The R.I just stood by the door, staring vacantly, almost as though he was seeing something, something that wasn't there.
***
"This room is quite spacious."
The room had two beds, two wardrobes, one sofa, and one bathroom. Not the best of rooms but enough to live by. It was more spacious than Theo's living room. Hence his surprise.
To him this was a luxury, but to the rest of the crew, this wouldn't have been anything more than just a spare room.
"Yes, it is."
"Then let's get everything sorted and go on a tour." Theo was restless. He wanted to see more of the ship. He couldn't wait.
He felt like a little kid who just had too much candy.
"Please calm down. If you should go out like that, the crew might deem you unfit and might even leave you behind. After all, no one would go on a mission with someone who can't control their emotions."
"Ri-right." Theo didn't argue. The chances were low but they were there. 'Looks like she isn't for show after all.'
Though at first glance Theo had dismissed Sizzy as just another high spec R.I with limited capabilities, he was forced to reevaluate his judgment.
But it went without saying, Sizzy took her job of protecting Theo very seriously.
The two of them sorted their things and got dressed in proper gear for the ship. A black and white skin-tight uniform. With red and blue streaks here and there.
Unlike Theo, Sizzy opted for a miniskirt instead of pants, showing off her thighs.
'What is wrong with her?'
More importantly, what did Rogers put into this R.I?
"Attention crew. This is your captain speaking. We will shortly depart for the unknown quadrant." A stout and clear voice came from the speaker strips above the room. "We will warp to Delta Monga, and then use its wormhole to slingshot us past the void nebula. Afterward we will warp again and we should arrive at our destination in two months and 17 days. Best of luck everyone."
After the announcement, safely belts surfaced on the walls. "We should get strapped," Sizzy said, with no particular emotion.
"Yeah." 'Wasn't the captain supposed to be a guy?' The voice was awfully feminine, but the name was masculine, at least that's what floated around Theo's mind. 'Maybe she's a Qmale?'
The two of them strapped on the belts and waited for the warp to initialize. Warp was the general term for moving at very high speeds. The speed barrier of light was not possible to reach even with the greatest of technologies. At least not in this universe. But when scientists discovered the multiverse and were able to interact with other universes, they finally discovered a way to bypass the speed barrier and use it to their advantage. Not only could one exceed the speed of light, one could do it far more efficiently than imaginable.
With warp, traveling long distances was no longer a pipe dream. It was very much a reality.
But it came at a cost. The initialization of warp had the greatest of risks. The mind could wander from the body to another universe if even one variable had a slight alternation. To prevent this, the quantum stabilizers were used. Even if someone's mind particles wandered off, their corresponding antiparticles would form themselves with excess energy and the mind would be revived.
But then the question remained, would that person really be the same?
The warp began. Theo's mind started to stretch. As though someone pulled on his soul. Unknown memories flooded in, tormented him. He groaned in pain and held his head in his hands. It wasn't painful and yet, excruciating at the same time…
But seconds later it all disappeared and he couldn't remember what just happened, almost as though nothing was wrong, to begin with.
"I never knew warp could be so devastating." Still groaning Theo tried to stand up but he was unable to do so. He hadn't even unstrapped himself yet.
He was lucky to have not fainted. After all, warp was developed with modified humans in mind.