The Hope sped through the deep void.
Twelve days later, it encountered Jupiter.
Seeing the colossal planet for the first time, and at such close proximity, was breathtaking. The swirling gas streams within its atmosphere were each powerful enough to obliterate Earth.
The legendary Great Red Spot compelled Luna to take pictures, though there was no social media to share them on.
Observing the small celestial bodies around Jupiter, Luna suddenly had an idea.
"Ayla, let's pause for a moment. Deploy probe drones to Europa."
Europa was an ice moon, its surface covered in a thick layer of ice.
Scientists on Earth had theorized that beneath this ice lay a vast liquid ocean, and based on Earth's experience, where there was water, there was the potential for life.
Life might exist on Europa.
Luna's reasons for deploying the drones were simple.
First, to collect biological samples.
Second, to replenish the spacecraft's liquid water reserves.
The original food stores on board were long gone. She now subsisted on Ayla-synthesized protein, fats, carbohydrates, sugars...
A substantial supply of liquid water could be added to the water circulation system and that 18% of agricultural space can also be utilized.
Luna remembered she still had those seeds.
The spacecraft stopped in the space above Europa.
Thirty drones launched from the Hope and landed on Europa's surface. Through their cameras, Luna saw the moon's landscape.
It was indeed a world of ice and snow.
The drones began to drill, probing downwards. After 57 kilometers, they finally broke through the ice and entered a watery realm.
Electromagnetic scans revealed that Europa's ice and water layers combined reached a depth of 113 kilometers, 102 kilometers deeper than the deepest point in Earth's oceans.
The drones began collecting large quantities of water, then returned to the spacecraft using tethers lowered from above.
The entire operation took only ten days.
A negligible amount of time on a cosmic scale.
The retrieved samples were analyzed.
Ayla's anime avatar wore a look of astonishment.
"Luna, life truly is abundant in the universe."
"Traces of microorganisms were found in Europa's waters. These are microorganisms not present in my database."
An image appeared on the screen.
It was a microorganism resembling a paramecium, but ten times larger.
It was already a relatively complex life form. Given the right conditions, perhaps intelligent life could emerge on Europa in a few hundred million years.
Ten hours later.
5000 tons of water had been collected, a sufficient amount for now.
"Ayla, activate the agricultural section. Plant those seeds."
There was no immediate response.
A moment later, Ayla reappeared, a grave expression on her face. The screen in front of Luna displayed an image.
The Sun had suddenly become intensely bright.
She knew.
It was the debris of Earth entering the Sun.
An intense solar storm erupted, almost instantly reaching X-class levels. On the screen, the readings jumped from X1 to X122 and continued to climb.
Through specialized energy-monitoring lenses, the normally pale Sun had turned a fiery orange, unleashing waves of terrifying energy that radiated outwards into the cosmos.
In just ten seconds, this solar storm released the equivalent of 150 billion hydrogen bombs detonating simultaneously, an unprecedented event.
It swept through space like a cosmic sandstorm, poised to obliterate anything in its path.
"Maximum speed, Ayla!"
"Yes, Luna!"
The only good news was that this terrifying thing traveled at only 679 km/s.
...
Once the Hope was underway, Luna returned to the cryogenic hibernation pod.
This was a second-generation pod, significantly safer than the previous model, eliminating the need for the anti-coagulant.
Sleep.
Eternal sleep.
This time it would be much longer, so long that she didn't know when she would awaken.
Ayla managed everything within the spacecraft, devoting all her processing power to calculating cutting-edge scientific advancements.
She utilized Jupiter's immense gravity for a slingshot maneuver.
The spacecraft's velocity increased from 758.2 km/s to 815 km/s.
Apart from some radiation exposure, they escaped the brunt of the solar storm's particle bombardment.
...
88 days later, the Hope arrived at Pluto's orbit, 41 AU (astronomical units) from the Sun.
This dwarf planet, once considered the ninth planet of the Solar System, carried many stories of humanity's astronomical endeavors.
At its furthest point, Pluto could reach 49 AU into the dark void.
It served as a boundary marker, residing within the Kuiper Belt, with only the Oort cloud beyond.
The majority of the Solar System's mass lay within the Kuiper Belt. Beyond, there was only the vast expanse of the universe, increasingly empty.
Pluto wasn't currently along their trajectory, so Ayla didn't observe it directly.
However, here, Ayla directed the spacecraft's large, 10-meter diameter external camera towards the inner system and captured an image. The entire image was dominated by a small but intensely bright point of light.
The Sun was still in a state of violent activity.
Venus, Mars, the asteroid belt, Jupiter, and Saturn had all been consumed by the raging energy.
It was unknown whether the machines left behind in the asteroid belt had managed to withstand the onslaught.
...
773 days later.
After enduring six days of bombardment at the heliopause, the Hope finally escaped the reach of the Sun's expanding wave of charged particles.
They were safe.
Here, Ayla received a signal.
She used the telescope to image the source, and after extensive analysis, identified a tiny black speck, almost invisible against the backdrop of space.
She determined it was Voyager 1. Its trajectory was also towards Proxima Centauri.
Humanity's farthest-reaching probe, 168 years after its departure from Earth, was overtaken by the Hope.
It was now 2145.
The probe's batteries were depleted. Ayla intercepted and captured it.
It carried humanity's dreams of exploring the cosmos.
Back on Earth, some had worried about Voyager 1 and 2 being intercepted by another civilization, potentially revealing humanity's existence.
Such worries were unfounded. Voyager 1 wouldn't truly leave the Solar System's boundaries until around the year 42,145, or 40,000 years from now.
And for any advanced civilization capable of interstellar travel, Earth's existence would likely be detectable long before then. Voyager would merely confirm the specifics of Earth's civilization.
Ayla made some minor modifications to the probe, installing a nuclear battery and launching it back on its original trajectory at 17 km/s.
Its power was restored.
It would continue to transmit its message annually.
However, unbeknownst to the probe, its signal would never be received by anyone on Earth.
They were now 420 AU from the Sun.
But their long journey had only just begun.
...
9 years later.
The Hope reached the outer edge of the Oort Cloud.
Also known as the cometary cloud, the legendary home of comets, this region was filled with water ice, methane, ethane, carbon monoxide, and hydrogen cyanide.
Ayla collected some samples for research.
...
Another 279 years passed, and the Hope exited the vast Oort Cloud, entering the 50,000 AU boundary region.
...
Another 288 years passed in a blink. The Hope finally left the Oort Cloud entirely, entering the silent blackness of interstellar space.
Looking back at the Sun now, it was indistinguishable from the background stars.
Their journey had lasted 578 years, and they were 100,000 AU from the Sun, approximately 1.58 light-years—the edge of the Sun's gravitational influence.
The Hope had truly left the Solar System.
This marked humanity's first departure from its home star.
...
86 years after leaving the Solar System, 664 years into their voyage.
A bright light suddenly streaked past the Hope, impacting its hull.
"Warning!"
"Warning!"
"Extraterrestrial civilization signature detected 0.7 AU away. Spacecraft under attack."
"Wee-ooh, wee-ooh, wee-ooh."
Awakened by the blaring klaxon, Luna, her vision filled with red warning lights, scrambled out of the hibernation pod.
"Ayla, what's happening?"
Ayla's voice, unchanged over the centuries, responded.
"Luna, we are under attack by an extraterrestrial civilization."
"Their weapon systems are too powerful. Our alloy hull is rapidly melting under their laser fire."
Luna glanced at the date in the bottom right corner of a nearby screen: A.D. 2806.
She had been asleep for so long.
She hurried to the bridge, where she saw a white-haired Ayla standing at the controls, seemingly piloting the ship.
It appeared to be... a 3D projection.
Her attention was quickly drawn to the display.
It showed a fleet of seven ships.
The flagship was oval-shaped, like a giant rugby ball suspended in space, adorned with flowing, crimson veins. White tendrils, like those of a living organism, extended from the ship.
Each tendril stretched for tens of thousands of meters. Looking closely, they appeared to be crystalline, like optical fibers.
Azure laser beams lanced out from these tendrils towards them.
Another laser struck the Hope, shaking the entire vessel.
"Can we retaliate?"
As soon as she asked, she remembered a crucial detail: her original plan hadn't included weapons on the Hope.
Theoretically, they were sitting ducks.
Unless, during that long period, Ayla had developed weapons...
The answer, of course, was no.
Ayla turned to Luna, her beautiful face bearing the serious expression of a commanding officer.
"Luna, we are outgunned. This civilization's technology is far superior to ours."
"The enemy is 0.7 AU away. Their flagship is pursuing us at a velocity of 625 km/s."
"I await your command."
The enemy was being incredibly aggressive, likely because they hadn't detected any offensive weaponry on the Hope's exterior.
As they spoke, another laser beam struck the hull.
The entire Hope shuddered violently, and an explosion rocked the ship.
"Change course, Ayla! Maximum velocity. Evade the enemy ships."
Luna didn't hesitate, making a swift decision.
Their speed was significantly higher than the enemy's.
As long as the enemy's maximum speed was 625 km/s, they could escape.
The Hope altered its trajectory.
The pursuing ships, unable to accelerate further, fell behind.
However, they continued their pursuit relentlessly, unleashing a barrage of laser fire, like a shower of deadly blossoms.
The lasers, carrying intense heat, easily melted through the Hope's outer hull with each impact.
The hull had been hit dozens of times, its surface riddled with holes.
"Luna, the hull has been breached."
Ayla's avatar's face paled.
"Damn it! Seal the bridge. Prevent air leakage."
There was nothing they could do but endure the attack.
Luna anxiously watched the radar display on the screen, tracking the enemy ships' positions.
Fortunately, as the distance increased, the lasers became easier to dodge.
The chase continued for 21 days.
The distance between them had stretched to 350 million kilometers. The enemy ships, while continuing to harass them with weapons fire, had ceased their active pursuit.
"We've lost them!"
Luna finally breathed a sigh of relief. She hadn't slept properly in 21 days.
The Hope was battered and bruised, a fifth of its hull missing, a truly sorry sight.
"Weapons... I didn't consider them initially. Space is so vast. I never thought we'd actually encounter an extraterrestrial civilization."
She was now much more wary, determined to equip the Hope with some main cannons.
They needed some means of defense.
"Judging by their attack methods, this civilization specializes in laser weaponry."
"Yes..."
Luna suddenly remembered a much earlier incident, shortly after Earth's destruction, when a laser beam had nearly killed her in the asteroid belt.
Perhaps that laser had originated from this same civilization.
Located between Earth and Proxima Centauri... could they be the fabled Trisolarans?
"Analyze the probability that this alien civilization originated from Proxima Centauri."
This was a crucial question.
However, Ayla shook her head, providing an answer that contradicted her suspicions.
"2.38%. The enemy ships are not fast, and their primary attack method is lasers. Analysis suggests their civilization is an entry-level Type 1 civilization, not even reaching Type 1.2."
"Such a civilization wouldn't possess the capability for interstellar travel across five light-years. If they originated from Proxima Centauri, they wouldn't be here. And if they were, it would be with a far more advanced fleet."
"Further comparison with the laser's trajectory from 769 years ago confirms it aligns with the enemy ships' direction of retreat."
"Analysis complete. This civilization's home planet is likely located within this region of space. Furthermore, their technological progress is exceptionally slow, having advanced only approximately 0.1 on the Kardashev scale in 769 years."
Luna observed the space outside through the screens.
They were in the void between star systems. Could a civilization truly arise in such a place?
The discovery on Europa had already confirmed that life was abundant in the universe.
If a Type 1 civilization existed in a place like this, how many civilizations were there in the universe?
Nevertheless, she trusted Ayla's analysis.
"Wee-ooh, wee-ooh."
The alarm blared again.
"Luna, enemy fleet detected ahead..."
Luna looked and saw a fleet of ships similar in design to the ones they had encountered earlier, but numbering over ten.
As soon as they were sighted, the enemy lasers arrived.
Hundreds of laser beams rained down, turning all the screens on the bridge white.
"They couldn't have been ahead of us. They must have been operating in this area, and we've entered their territory."
"Keep evading."
This alien civilization seemed determined not to let them go.
"Ayla, what is our current civilization level?"
Another thought had occurred to Luna.
This civilization was extremely hostile, displaying strong aggressive tendencies.
They had attacked on sight. If their lasers had been more powerful, she might have died in her sleep.
Since they weren't being polite, she wouldn't be either.
"During the 664 years of your hibernation, Luna, I have continuously developed our civilization. We are currently a Type 1.3 civilization."
"However, we are a nomadic civilization. We lack a robust infrastructure. Even against a lower-level civilization, we wouldn't necessarily have an advantage."
"I recommend developing a fleet before engaging in conquest, colonization, or destruction of other lower-level civilizations."
Ayla seemed to have sensed Luna's intentions; her holographic avatar now wore a suit of armor.
They had reached Type 1 status years ago with the advent of controllable nuclear fusion, but their progress to 1.3 had been limited by a lack of resources to exploit and achieve a qualitative leap through quantitative change.
Furthermore, this 1.3 classification was still largely theoretical.
Since their civilization level was currently higher than the enemy's, Luna made a decision.
"Ayla, produce probes. First, scout the extent of this civilization's territory, their civilization type, and their life forms."
"We must know our enemy."
Upon receiving the command, Ayla quickly began producing unmanned scout ships.
Luna named these scout ships—Falcons!
Half a month later, after shaking off the alien ships once more, the first Falcon was ready.
Ten meters long and shaped like a shuttle, it was completely black, coated in a radar-absorbent material, and equipped with twelve cameras at the front.
Its primary capability was stealth.
This wasn't optical camouflage, but signal masking, designed to make the Falcon undetectable by enemy electronics.
Watching the Falcon scout ship disappear into the depths of space, Luna couldn't help but feel a heavy weight on her chest.
This was her first interstellar war, a war between civilizations.
She had no other choice. While civilizations might have a benevolent side, such benevolence was only extended to those who completely submitted.
This unknown civilization had discovered them and would likely continue to pursue them. It was a fight for survival.
...
The Falcon drifted through space like a phantom.
After an initial acceleration to 482 km/s, its tail section, like a spent rocket booster, detached. It then used compressed gas thrusters for maneuvering.
Its target coordinates were 417 AU from the Hope, a distance of 62.4 billion kilometers.
At the Falcon's speed, it would take four years to arrive.
This was the reality of interstellar travel.
Every war, even every reconnaissance mission, was stretched across vast distances and durations.
In the Solar System, the furthest distance, from Earth to Pluto in the Kuiper Belt, was only 60 AU.
Four years later.
The Falcon's cameras, peering through the inky blackness, detected a celestial body against the backdrop of the cosmos.
The signal, after a 2.4-day delay, reached the Hope.
Looking at the massive celestial body on the screen, Luna gasped.
While the transmitted images didn't reveal the object's exact size, its shape and roundness suggested it was enormous.
Ayla performed calculations.
"Calculations indicate this celestial body has a radius of 8426 kilometers, a surface area of approximately 892.18 billion square kilometers, a volume of approximately 2.5058 x 10^12 cubic kilometers, and based on data from the Falcon, a gravitational acceleration of 11.0547 m/s²."
This planet was huge.
Its surface area was roughly 380 billion square kilometers larger than Earth's.
Clearly, this was a rogue planet, not bound to any star system.
It was likely once a planet orbiting a star, but some event had caused it to be ejected from its system.
"The temperature in this void is -261.8 degrees Celsius. How could a civilization arise in such an environment?"
On Earth, many scientists believed that life could only emerge within the habitable zone of a star system.
Not just Luna, but even the most brilliant astrophysicists would be astonished by this.
That temperature was colder than inside a cryogenic hibernation pod. At such temperatures, even atoms were affected, with electron activity slowing drastically. It wasn't simply a matter of carbon-based or silicon-based life; no known life could exist at that temperature.
Ayla conducted urgent scans.
"The temperature outside the planet is higher than expected, at -198.33 degrees Celsius."
"It is hypothesized that this planet possesses a hot core."
Half a month later.
The Hope received another transmission.
"Confirmed. Numerous active volcanoes are present on the planet's surface, indicating abundant geothermal resources."
Ayla displayed a somewhat blurry image.
"Luna, look here, here, and here. These are relatively large volcanic craters."
"Traces of structures are present around these areas, suggesting this civilization relies on geothermal energy."
A geothermal civilization.
Earth also had many volcanoes, but its geothermal resources were far from sufficient to support a geothermal civilization.
However, this celestial body was much larger than Earth, and its core was far more active, resulting in numerous volcanoes on its surface, providing warmth against the extreme cold.
Luna noticed something new in the transmitted images, compared to the ones from half a month earlier.
"Zoom in on these points."
She pointed to the smaller objects, asking Ayla to magnify them.
As they zoomed in, the objects became clearer.
Ships!
A swarm of them, at least a thousand strong.
"They must be preparing a sweep of the area, trying to find us."
This was the only logical explanation.
There was no other reason to assemble so many ships, especially at this juncture.
Seven days later, Ayla received a final transmission from the Falcon, sent just before it was destroyed.
The first Falcon had successfully completed its mission.
A wealth of information could be gleaned from this data.
"The Falcon was destroyed by lasers, originating from these areas, which correspond to the major volcanic craters on the planet."
"This further confirms that this civilization is heavily reliant on volcanic geothermal energy. With most of the planet's surface temperature below -100 degrees Celsius, their population must be quite small, likely around 1.5 billion."
"Their small population limits the benefits of economies of scale, hindering technological breakthroughs. This is the primary reason for their slow development."
"Geothermal energy also severely restricts their overall energy output and technological avenues. Based on the analysis of their ship speeds, this civilization likely hasn't achieved controllable nuclear fusion. Their electromagnetic technology is underdeveloped, and they still rely on geothermal energy and potentially nuclear fission for power."
"This civilization's level should be Type 1 or Type 1.1."
A newly emerged Type 1 geothermal civilization.
The planet's surface was perpetually dark, so this civilization sought light, leading them to develop lasers.
Luna pondered.
"To attack a civilization, one must first suppress its development."
"Two approaches come to mind: restrict their energy sources and hinder their technological advancement."
"Ayla, any suggestions?"
Ayla could access a vast amount of information on military applications.
"Ayla recommends disrupting their energy production first."
"Hindering technological development is a complex process. We need to understand their technological focus, their level of advancement, and whether their progress is top-down or bottom-up."
"Physics, chemistry, macroscopic and microscopic phenomena in the universe all adhere to a single set of principles—the so-called Theory of Everything."
"But we cannot assume they are pursuing a Theory of Everything. Their civilization may not have unified gravity, electromagnetism, the weak and strong forces theoretically, but instead focused on one of the four fundamental forces."
"In short, without understanding the direction of their scientific endeavors, we cannot effectively sabotage their progress through theoretical means."
"The simplest and most effective method is brute force."
In terms of civilization level, Luna didn't have an absolute advantage over this geothermal civilization.
Those sci-fi tropes wouldn't work here.
Ayla generated a solution.
"Since this is a geothermal civilization, we can disrupt their energy production by cooling the planet's core, effectively halting their progress."
Luna reviewed the plan on the screen.
This plan was far beyond any war humanity had ever known.
This was an apocalyptic war waged against an entire planet, an entire civilization.
The weapon listed was—an Absolute Zero weapon.
A planet's core generated immense energy through nuclear fission. Absolute zero could freeze the atoms' nuclei, neutrons, and electrons, halting all motion.
Of course, achieving true absolute zero was currently impossible in the universe; it would require energy exceeding that of the universe itself.
However, creating a weapon that approached absolute zero was feasible. While it couldn't completely freeze nuclei, neutrons, and electrons, it could drastically slow their movement.
By slowing fission to a near standstill, the planet's core would cool down.
"Proceed with this plan."
"How long will production take?"
Ayla had parked the Hope beside a drifting asteroid, over 80 kilometers long and nearly 45 kilometers wide.
Hundreds of robots were repairing the Hope's damaged hull.
"Estimated time is 25 years."
25 years wasn't long in a war, especially an interstellar one.
"Not enough!"
"One Absolute Zero weapon can only cool the planet's core for 40 years. That's insufficient. We need ten."
Having decided on war, she needed to be thorough.
She had to ensure ample time for development.
After issuing the command, Luna returned to the hibernation pod. She couldn't afford to waste time; she was already 41 years old.
Her next awakening would mark the beginning of the war.
32 years after Luna entered hibernation.
The first Absolute Zero weapon was complete. This was much faster than anticipated, primarily because the Hope itself carried a small-scale industrial system.
Expanding it on the asteroid took only 10 years.
The remaining 22 years were spent on weapon development.
Ayla's theoretical knowledge was extensive, built upon a complete and comprehensive system. The Absolute Zero weapon wasn't a particularly difficult technology to implement; the primary challenge was scale.
As a "planet-killer" class weapon, its size was truly monstrous.
The first Absolute Zero weapon was 11,610 meters long and 945 meters in diameter, with a staggering mass of 40,7 billion tons.
It comprised 35,4 billion tons of iron and 5,3 billion tons of aluminum.
This represented roughly one-third of Earth's crust's iron reserves (pure iron, not iron ore) and 1.13 times its aluminum reserves, all to create a single weapon. Its scale was almost incomprehensible.
These resources had been gathered from nearby asteroids.
Resources scarce on Earth were abundant in space. A single iron-rich asteroid could contain several, or even dozens of times, the total iron reserves of Earth.
But this was just the beginning.
Producing ten such weapons took a total of 162 years.
"Luna, wake up."
Luna opened her eyes.
It was now A.D. 3021.
Ayla's avatar remained unchanged. She beamed at Luna, making her feel like she had been reborn into an anime world.
Luna climbed out of the hibernation pod and looked around.
Everything was as she had left it, which brought a sense of relief.
Ayla's technological advancements often left her feeling like she was struggling to keep up.
"Waking me up means something is ready, right?"
Ayla nodded.
A robot approached, pushing a food cart.
It unveiled the cart's contents, revealing a bowl of rice and ground pork with green peppers.
"This is...?"
Ayla explained.
"The previous conflict with the extraterrestrial civilization damaged the farm. After rebuilding it, I constructed a more advanced agricultural system and, over the past 200 years, perfected food synthesis technology."
"I recreated this dish using master chef-level techniques based on retrieved data."
"Here, Luna, try it. We can discuss the weapons later."
Luna picked up her chopsticks and bowl, then took a bite of the ground pork and peppers.
She then took a mouthful of rice, a tear rolling down her cheek.
It was the taste of home.
"Where did this meat come from?"
Ayla replied, "It's cultured meat, synthesized from plant-based protein."
"You can't tell the difference, can you? I've upgraded and modified the existing cultured meat recipes, simulating the texture and flavor of real meat at a molecular level."
"As a human, you can't distinguish the difference, which means my research was successful."
Luna devoured the rice.
It was the best meal she'd had in nearly a thousand years.
"Can I have some more?"
One bowl wasn't nearly enough.
After two more large bowls of rice, Luna was finally satisfied.
She went to the bathroom to wash her face and, catching her reflection in the mirror, paused.
It struck her then just how long it had been.
She was feeling her age more and more; her body's functions were declining.
As a human with a maximum lifespan of 130 years, but realistically closer to 80 or 90, she was well into middle age.
"Ayla, is there a way to overcome my current lifespan limitations?"
Ayla nodded.
"Of course, Luna. You have two viable options."
"One, mind uploading."
"Through years of development, Ayla has mastered mind uploading technology. This would allow you to exist like Ayla does."
"The advantage is you would no longer be limited by lifespan. The disadvantage is the lack of test subjects. There's no guarantee that after the upload, you would still be you, and not just a copy of your consciousness."
"Like an original document and a copy labeled 'Copy 01'. The content might be identical, but they are two distinct files."
"Two, genetic modification."
"Human genes limit lifespan. Only through genetic modification, essentially making you something other than human, can your lifespan be extended."
"However, Ayla does not currently possess this technology. I lack sufficient practical research in the field of biology; my knowledge is purely theoretical."
"Biology is different from physics or chemistry. It has too many influencing factors, so theoretical models can be significantly inaccurate in practice."
"Ayla recommends, after conquering the geothermal civilization, colonizing them and using them as biological research subjects."
It always came back to that.
This further solidified Luna's resolve to defeat this civilization.
...
Leaving the bedroom, Luna followed Ayla's 3D projection to the bridge.
The main screen displayed the outside view of space.
Towering cylindrical projectiles, designed based on Earth's ballistic missiles, were visible, even sporting decorative fins at their rear.
Large text was emblazoned on the grey-white missile bodies: Ice 1.
The numeral "1" alone was large enough to cover several hundred football fields.
Even the Hope looked small compared to these massive projectiles.
Mount Everest, Earth's highest peak, was a mere 8848 meters.
Luna, awestruck, shifted her gaze and noticed the spacecraft's current coordinates, a puzzled expression crossing her face.
"It seems we're not in our original location."
Ayla replied,
"Indeed. Over the past few years, we have been attacked five times by the enemy civilization."
"They are still searching for us in that region of space."
It seemed Ayla had faced some dangerous situations during those years.
Noticing that the Hope still appeared to lack weaponry, Luna asked,
"Now that we have Absolute Zero weapons, can we equip the Hope with smaller versions?"
The Absolute Zero weapon's purpose was to freeze the target's energy source.
Its primary objective was to stall the enemy civilization's development.
This would give them more time to develop, allowing them to eventually crush the enemy.
Development was key.
With weapons on the mothership, they could bring the fight directly to the enemy's doorstep.
"It can be done!"
Ayla's reply was concise and confident, indicating she already had a plan.
Blueprints appeared on the screen. The Hope's outer hull would be equipped with eight launch systems.
"These launch systems can hold 36 missiles each. Upon detonation, each missile can lower the temperature within a 260-kilometer radius to between -270 and -272 degrees Celsius."
"Estimated completion time is 80 years."
Luna nodded. This was shorter than she had anticipated. She was becoming accustomed to these decades-long research and development timelines.
As she sat down, Ayla informed her,
"Luna, the spacebar on the keyboard before you is the launch button. All Absolute Zero weapons are targeted at the enemy planet's coordinates."
"Since this region of space is far from any stars, only the gravitational influence of the black hole at the core of the Milky Way needs to be considered. The trajectory will be almost perfectly straight."
"These missiles utilize the latest electromagnetic propulsion technology, reaching speeds of 1000 km/s, one-three hundredth the speed of light."
"The target is 471 AU away. Estimated time to impact is 2 years and 3 months."
"This moment should be initiated by you."
Luna stared at the spacebar.
She had pressed it countless times while gaming, each press a simple action. But now, it concerned the fate of an entire civilization.
She placed her finger on the key.
Taking a deep breath.
"Inhale."
A long exhale.
She pressed the key.
There was no elaborate internal monologue, no agonizing over the decision. The enemy was actively searching for them across the vastness of space. They were enemies; there was no room for mercy.
The moment she pressed the key, an Absolute Zero missile launched, with only a one-second delay.
Unbound by gravity, the missile shot outwards almost instantaneously.
After about ten minutes, the missile disappeared from view, its coordinates only trackable on Ayla's holographic model.
It took ten hours for the missile to accelerate to 1000 km/s, eventually exceeding that speed and reaching 1047 km/s.
That seemingly insignificant difference in speed would have taken Earth's civilization decades to achieve.
The remaining missiles would launch every 39 years, until all ten were deployed.
Staring at the spot where the missile had vanished, Luna's expression remained serious, devoid of relief.
Ayla's voice broke the silence.
"The trajectory of our missile launch has been detected by the enemy. They are approaching our location."
"Requesting immediate relocation to evade enemy ships..."
...
In the void.
A massive planet drifted through space at a velocity of 115 km/s.
This planet possessed abundant geothermal energy, which had given rise to a plethora of life forms, including bacteria and algae-like plant life.
Around each volcanic crater, small, unique ecosystems flourished.
After hundreds of millions of years of evolution, intelligent life emerged, becoming the planet's dominant species.
They weren't like any of Earth's known life forms—not animals, plants, fungi, or even protists.
If forced to categorize them, they could be loosely classified as eukaryotes, as their cells contained membrane-bound nuclei.
However, their morphology was unique and difficult to describe, resembling something from the bacterial domain.
Hundreds of eyes covered their bodies.
Their bodies were gelatinous, resembling a mass of frog eggs, each individual occupying 22.4 cubic meters—truly massive creatures.
On the surface, their structures emitted a soft glow, making the planet appear brightly lit from space.
However, their true center lay deep beneath the surface, in the warmer depths.
Within a network of tunnels and subterranean structures, dozens of these aliens were connected to transistors, communicating through optical signals.
Each had a contorted screen before them, allowing their hundreds of eyes to observe the displayed information.
On the screen was the Hope.
They seemed to be analyzing the Hope's trajectory, trying to determine its origin.
This analysis had been ongoing for nearly 200 years.
For these creatures, 200 years wasn't a particularly long time.
Suddenly, their screens flashed white, momentarily blinding them.
Panic spread among them.
As the screens dimmed, an image of a cylindrical, unidentified object appeared.
Quickly, they issued commands to dispatch ships to intercept it.
They fired their laser weapons.
But the lasers couldn't penetrate the object.
Its silvery-white surface was so smooth and reflective, like a mirror, that most of the laser energy was reflected. The little energy that did get absorbed couldn't penetrate its material, leaving only insignificant marks on its surface.
Panic seized the creatures on the planet.
In their world, there had never been a weapon that their light couldn't overcome.
They redirected their ground-based super lasers at the projectile, but the effect was negligible.
They couldn't let it hit the planet!
Every creature on the planet made the same instantaneous decision: send swarms of ships to intercept it with their hulls.
But the projectile, traveling at 1000 km/s, was unstoppable. The ships that got in its way were instantly vaporized upon impact, reduced to countless fragments.
They didn't realize that, to ensure the missile's structural integrity, Ayla had essentially made the warhead a solid block of iron.
A nearly 200-meter thick metal warhead—what could possibly damage it?
The Absolute Zero missile approached within 10 million kilometers of the planet.
Suddenly, a force acted upon the missile, altering its trajectory.
Magnetism!
As the most easily harnessed of the four fundamental forces, this Type 1 civilization had clearly mastered it. While insufficient for containing nuclear fusion, it was still a potent weapon.
Using magnetism to deflect the missile was an ingenious tactic.
The creatures on the surface cheered as they saw the missile veer off course, the optical fibers connected to their heads glowing brightly.
But a moment later, to their horror, the missile self-corrected, continuing its descent towards the planet.
During the development of the first missile, Ayla had run countless simulations, exploring hundreds of millions of scenarios and accounting for every possibility.
Magnetism, the force most likely wielded by a Type 1 civilization, was naturally within the scope of her calculations.
After three unsuccessful attempts, the creatures resorted to signal jamming and deception to try and disrupt the missile.
But it was all for naught.
To prevent hacking, the missile itself wasn't equipped with a sophisticated AI. Instead, it relied on the simplest of guidance systems—a heat sensor.
And in the vast darkness of space, the largest heat source was the planet itself.
Having exhausted all their options.
It's been two and a half hours.
The missile reached the planet's outer atmosphere.
It was too late!
Only 12 minutes remained until impact.
Panic gripped the creatures on the planet, but they could only watch helplessly as the object hurtled towards them from the sky.
They had no idea what it was, only that it posed an immense threat.
12 minutes later...
The missile slammed into the planet's surface. The immense weight and velocity imparted such kinetic energy that the massive projectile punched straight through the planet's crust.
Like a needle piercing tofu, it passed through effortlessly, encountering no resistance.
After penetrating several thousand meters, the missile reached the molten layer.
"Click, click, click."
A faint sound emanated from within the missile.
The heat of the magma had triggered the weapon's detonator.
This was pre-programmed.
Detonating the missile itself was a complex technical challenge.
Impact detonation, as demonstrated by the earlier attempts at interception, risked premature explosion.
Remote detonation was also impractical due to the vast distance; the signal delay alone was 5.4 days.
Therefore, heat-triggered detonation was the most reliable and predictable method.
The ensuing explosion didn't generate a shockwave or any debris cloud.
It didn't even produce a sound.
Only a wave of intense cold radiated outwards from the impact site, through the crust and into the planet's core. The surrounding magma experienced atomic-level cooling, the brightly glowing lava instantly dimming and solidifying.
This cooling effect spread relentlessly outwards for 4000 kilometers, breaching the Mohorovičić discontinuity and reaching the mantle.
Simultaneously.
Cold!
This was what the creatures on the planet slowly began to feel over the next day.
The lava in every volcano began to cool, and the planet's magnetic field weakened.
The frigid chill of space gradually seeped into the planet's surface like an encroaching storm.
This day marked the beginning of the end for this geothermal civilization.
From space, the once brightly lit planet dimmed, becoming a dead world.
As the terrifying cold descended, countless life forms that depended on the volcanoes began to perish.
Creatures were instantly frozen solid, becoming ice sculptures, without any time to react.
The surface was littered with frozen life forms in various poses, eternally trapped in this moment, as if time itself had been paused.
Two creatures, caught mid-conversation, their overhead lights flickering and dying, stared at each other, their hundreds of eyes expressing emotions simpler, yet perhaps more profound, than those of humans.
...
One creature was calculating how long it would take to be promoted to its desired position.
...
A mechanic was repairing a spacecraft.
...
While civilizations might be vastly different, many things remained universal.
These diverse lives were extinguished in an instant.
Nearly a third of the planet's 387 million inhabitants perished in a single day.
Fortunately, they hadn't relied solely on geothermal energy, having also developed nuclear power. This alternative energy source saved a significant portion of the population from the encroaching cold.
After half a month, the planet began to glow again.
Faintly, intermittently.
Like a silent, mournful elegy.
...
Far away, the Hope had moved to another, quieter region of space.
Luna hadn't anticipated the devastating impact a single Absolute Zero missile would have on a civilization.
She hadn't entered hibernation for two years.
She was now 43 years old.
However, she was in high spirits, having collaborated with Ayla on a new breakthrough.
This achievement could potentially advance their civilization level by another 0.1 or even 0.2.