Star People

Side Story 3

Rocketmen

Sep 10^th, 12 AE…

Captain Lenns Hodder stood before the ruler of Atlans and all the members of Parliament. He and his subordinate, Lieutenant Akar Jans, had just returned from their trip into space aboard the Missouri, and were ecstatic over what they had seen and experienced.

“Your Majesty… Members of Parliament… since the first time that man had looked to the stars, we have wondered what lay in that infinite black void. And now, we have irrefutable proof of the infinite possibilities of traversing the heavens!”

“What do you mean exactly, Captain Hodder?” King Ottran Bismar asked.

“The fact that the people of Free Land are truly from the stars!” Hodder replied as he signaled for Jans to turn off the lights to the Conference Hall and began showing them video footage of their trip aboard the Missouri. Soon, everyone’s eyes, from the king, all the way down to the lowest noble, were wide open and in a state of shock. The scenes depicted the Missouri easily escaping the gravitational pull of Istaria, the view of the world itself from above, the display of acrobatics in zero gravity, the destruction of the Planet Ravager, a small view of the Star Alliance Fleet, a visit to a space colony, and even a short trip through hyperspace to the neighboring solar system.

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Sept 11^th, 12 AE…

After being shown the marvels of outer space and the possibilities it held, King Ottran had decreed that the Atlans Space Research Association, ASRA, be formed and the new motto of the nation would be, Let’s Catch Up to Free Land, Someday. Lenns Hodder was elected to become the head of the New Technologies department.

 And their first order of business was to master the new technology that Free Land had just given to them. On the large table in the center of the main laboratory, officers, technicians, engineers and scientists crowded around as Lenns unrolled a set of blueprints, all translated to the common language or Fundamental Dialect.

“What is this?” One of the head engineers named Girel asked as he excitedly gazed upon the schematics.

Lenns smiled proudly as he replied. “This, my friends and colleagues, is our pathway to the stars! Free Land will not give us any anti-gravity devices, plasma, ion or hyperdrive engines, but they have consented to give us the early technology that they used to fly into space and even to their moon! Gentlemen, I give you the V-2 rocket engine!”

“Rocket?” One of the scientists repeated. He was a young man named Vastak. “You mean, like those smaller High Velocity Air Rockets that the military is using as weapons?”

“It is similar in basic function, but this V-2 is far more powerful. In fact, if we’re able to successfully recreate the V-2, then we’ll have the means to not only launch objects past this planet’s gravitational pull, but also ourselves as well.”

“These plans… they’re a work of genius!” Another scientist stated as he pointed to a section. This was Vastak’s best friend Nigral. “Is that the fuel pump assembly?”

“What kind of fuel does this thing run on?” Girel asked. “Do we need to refine more fire gemstones?”

“No. This rocket doesn’t use any magic.” Lenns replied. This caused the entire gathering to gasp almost simultaneously. Even with the introduction of the Mustangs, Warhawks and HVARs, Atlans had still been incorporating some magical elements into them, such as using strengthening spells or magic gemstone fuel. Though they were a mechanical nation, they still used some aspects of psion manipulation. Building the V-2 with no magic involved would be a major step for them.

“So what does this V-2 run on?”

Lenns looked down at the blueprints again. “If I am reading this right… it’s mostly just… alcohol.”

“Alcohol?! That’s it?!”

“That’s… just about it. It seems to use a mixture of 75% alcohol and 25% water and liquid oxygen as an oxidizer.”

“An oxidizer? What does that mean?” Nigral inquired.

“If I remember what they told me on the Missouri, space is a vacuum. There’s no oxygen. Nothing for the fuel to ignite. So the rocket has to have its own oxygen supply in order for the fuel to combust.”

“It makes sense.” Girel nodded. “However, if that’s the case, wouldn’t using magic gemstone fuel be more efficient? I mean, it doesn’t need oxygen in order to ignite.”

“Well, that’s another problem.” Lenns pointed out. “Magic doesn’t work in space.”

“WHAT?!” Everyone exclaimed.

Hodder waited for everyone to calm down before explaining. “I spoke to the First Officer of the Missouri, Commander Reelan. She’s one of those blue-skinned elven women, the Kyteeri. She explained it to me.”

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Flashback…

“Look at this.” Reelan pointed to a nearby glass of water on a table in the mess hall. Due to the artificial gravity and environment of the Missouri, the water inside the glass remained in its natural liquid state, rather than floating about in zero gravity.

Reelan concentrated on the glass, but could only make it move slightly to the left. She then turned back to Lenns and Akar. “Normally on Istaria, I could easily make that glass levitate in the air. However, out in space, psions are so scarce, that even the most powerful of psion-phenomena, what you refer to as spells, are practically useless here.”

“So what you are saying is…?”Akar asked.

“Magic just doesn’t work in space.”

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End of flashback…

“No magic?” Nigral asked.

“According to what Commander Reelan told me, magic is possible through tiny particles called psions. The reason why magic exists on this world is due to the abundance of these pisons in our environment.”

“So how are these psions supposed to work?”

“She didn’t explain it completely but she did tell me that those who have a talent with magic are able to gather these psions together to generate magical energy that is used for spells. According to her, magical stones, ores, or items infused with magic are just concentrations of psions or naturally absorbing psions from the environment. And it would take a very large amount of psions needed for even simple spells like levitating a small object.”

“Really?” Girel remarked. “Interesting.”

“From what she told me, the Kyteeri are able to gather large amounts of psions purely through concentration. For others such as ourselves and the people of Naran, we need a kind of focal point, such as a wand or using our voices as a medium. That’s the reason why she’s able to levitate objects just by thinking about it, while we have to use chants, incantations or magical items. That also explains why there’s such a difference in lag time between our world’s methods of using magic and the Kyteeri simply thinking about it.”

‘That’s very interesting.” Vastak commented. “However, the bottom line right now is the fact that magic can’t be used in space, so any magic-based technology that we have is virtually useless up there.”

Lenns nodded. “This also explains why Free Land isn’t very interested in trading their technology for magical ones.  I can understand now why they weren’t very impressed with even Naran’s high-quality magic-technology products.”

“I’ve noticed that Naran’s exports have dropped considerably over the past few months and more nations are importing Free Land technology and methods. Not only are Free Land products are more powerful and efficient, but they can be used by anyone, even by those who have no magical talent whatsoever.” Nigral added.

“In any case, we have the means to build our own rocket into space.” Lenns pointed out. “So let’s get started!”

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The Kingdom of Naran…

“And that’s where we stand for this quarter, Your Majesty.” Prime Minister Crador Mins said after he had read the economic report.

Vilgar Senshirine IX frowned after hearing those numbers. Exports were down again. Imports from the Alder continent had steadily been rising as the quality and efficiency of their products was undeniable. Not to mention that foreign relations had also become strained. Instead of wanting to further their diplomatic ties with Naran, many of the foreign ambassadors instead desired more information about Free Land. 

Naran had enjoyed the status of being the top nation in the world, but now it seemed that title was being stripped away and given to an unexpected competitor. Free Land had existed for barely a year, and now it was being seen as the most powerful country. As a result, a sense of resentment and jealously had begun to grow.

The Emperor wasn’t the only one. Many members of Parliament and the Royal Court were also feeling that their prestige was waning. The fact that the common Naran citizens were more inclined to use Free Land products than Naran products was also galling. It looked as if the citizens no longer had any pride in their own country. It had already been humiliating to ask for help from Free Land on how to improve on their magical jets, especially since the people of the Star Alliance didn’t use magic much. And though they were grateful for the flight simulators and the turbine designs, it was still frustrating that they had not been able to come up with such devices on their own.

The Kingdom of Naran used to be the Empire of Naran and was said to be the most widespread and influential of all the nations some 5,000 years ago. Their ancestors were the First Ones and it was said that they possessed magical technology that made them on par with gods. They called it God-Tech. However, due to some cataclysmic event 3,000 years ago, the empire lost much of its territory and its fabled God-Tech. By the time Senshirine came to the throne, the Naran Empire had shrunken to a few dozens of squabbling states on the Vados continent. He had managed to unite those states as a whole, thereby forming the Kingdom of Naran. It had taken several centuries, but the kingdom began to flourish, using what little technology they had from the First Ones and reverse-engineering it.

Even though he was technically a king, rather than an emperor, Shenshirine still retained the title of emperor out of Naran tradition. And he still dreamed of returning Naran to its former glory. However, by this time, the other nations had grown stronger, especially in the continents of Bisra and Excra. Despite having lesser talent in terms of magic, the Kingdom of Atlans began to make up for it with their advancements in technology. They were still below Naran’s level but Atlans had become more powerful than the nations on the Merdov continent. And now they were getting even more technological aid from Free Land. Currently, the people of Atlans were planning on launching an object into space; a feat that had never been accomplished by anyone on Istaria before. Such a deed would gain even more fame for Atlans. That would mean that it was possible that Atlans might one day surpass Senshirine’s country.

That would never do. Naran needed to show the world that it was still the apex nation in the world. And what better way to showcase their mastery over magic and technology than by beating Atlans in this race to space.

Space race… that has a nice ring to it.

With this thought in mind, he began issuing new decrees.

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Sept 14^th, 12 AE…

Kingdom of Atlans Space Research, Facility Number 7…

“So how are the prototypes coming along?” Lenns asked.

Nigral nodded as he read the report in his hand. “We should have five prototypes ready to launch within the next week or so. The overall design is straight-forward. We hope to get a successful launch with the first one, but the others will be our backups if the first rocket fails.”

“There shouldn’t be any reason for it to fail. We’re following the blueprints exactly.”

“Yes, well we may be following the blueprints, but remember that we’ve never done this sort of thing before. And according to Free Land, these V-2 plans are more than 230 years old. We can’t be certain if the materials we’re using are equivalent to what they used more than two centuries ago. Remember all the trial and error we had with the Warhawk.”

Lenns had to nod in agreement. Despite having the blueprints for the Warhawk, there were a lot of setbacks and foul-ups before they finally got a working fighter. There was an old saying in Atlans. Just because you have the recipe, doesn’t mean you’ll be able to make bread right away. Very rarely do scientific breakthroughs occur on the first try.

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Kingdom of Naran, New Magic Engineering…

“The Emperor wants to shoot something into space?” Head Engineer Mage Vistokan Rago asked.

“Those are his orders.” Assistant Engineer Mage Sukoy Densti replied. “Apparently he wants to show the world that Free Land isn’t the only country that can travel through the heavens. He also got word that the Kingdom of Atlans had set up their own space research facility and are attempting to send something into space as well.”

Vistokan stroked his chin and pondered for a minute. He shrugged his shoulders and gave his assistant a whimsical expression. “It’s actually a very intriguing concept. I’ve always wondered what lay beyond our world, and ever since Free Land appeared, my curiosity about traversing outer space only grew. I’ve seen the footage of space from Atlans and Free Land. And I can see the possibilities with outer space. All right then, let’s do it!”

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Sept 15^th, 12 AE…

KABOOM!

After the explosion, firefighting vehicles and personnel rushed toward the testing area where the tanks of rocket fuel had violently ignited.

“Damn! I told you to follow the percentage of alcohol and liquid oxygen precisely! You put in far too much of both!” Lenns remarked as he, Akar and Girel watched from an observation post, as the firefighters worked hard to put out the flames.

“I can’t understand it.” Girel said as the fire was being extinguished. “There was no reason not to believe that a higher percentage of alcohol and liquid oxygen would yield a better thrust ratio.”

“A higher percentage also means a higher ignition rate. It also means a lower rate of control. The fuel pump won’t be able to keep up!”

“Not to mention that the increased temperature is too much for the fuel tanks to withstand.” Akar added.

“Whoops.”

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The Kingdom of Naran…

After five minutes of chanting by a dozen mages, the magical circle glowed intensely and released its mystic payload upwards, causing the 12-meter long, arrow-shaped device to shoot straight into the air. The object managed to reach an altitude of 3 kilometers before falling back down toward the ground. Another magical spell, this time on the ‘rocket’ itself, caused a parachute to deploy, enabling the test vehicle to float safely back down.

“Well, not a bad first try.” Vistokan commented the observation platform as the engineer mages rushed to recover their test vehicle.

“I still think we should use one of our new jet turbines.” Sukoy stated.

“Not a good idea. Remember that test flight performed by Captain Visteria? She reported that the new turbine engine began to lose power and performance when she approached an altitude of 18 kilometers. Apparently, the thinning air didn’t have enough oxygen for the fuel to properly ignite. Not to mention that the environment wasn’t enough for her to maintain control. I spoke to an engineer from Free Land and he said that the high-altitude atmosphere didn’t lend itself very well to basic aerodynamics. However… ”

“… magic doesn’t need to depend on oxygen or aerodynamics. I understand now.”

“Right. So we’ll just use magic in order to overcome the problems that science cannot overcome by itself, when flying through space.”

What they didn’t know as they joined the other mages in retrieving their test vehicle was that magic didn’t work at all in space.

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Sept 17^th, 12 AE…

“Five… four… three… two… one... launch!”

KABOOM!

“Damn!” Akar stated as firefighters rushed to contain the flames. Their first attempt to launch a full-sized replica of the V-2 rocket had ended in failure.

“It went so well with the smaller test models.” Nigrel stated. “I can’t understand why launching the full-sized V-2 is giving us so many problems!”

“We have to expect ourselves to stumble in the dark for a bit.” Lenns stated.

It was later learned that a faulty fuel line had been leaking and had caused the explosion when the ignition switch was activated.

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In the Kingdom of Naran…

After fifteen minutes of chanting, the test vehicle shot up into the air and managed to reach an altitude of 5 kilometers before plummeting back down. Again, its parachute deployed, allowing it to float gently towards the ground.

Vistokan nodded. This had been their fifth test run and things seemed to be going well. However, he was a bit concerned over how long it took for them to chant the spells needed to get them to that altitude. Furthermore, it also took double the amount of magic stones on the launch pad.

Oh well, I suppose you can’t expect greater returns unless you invest more.

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Sept 18^th, 12 AE…

“Five… four… three… two… one… launch! Liftoff… we have liftoff!” The operator announced over the radio as the third V-2 prototype actually managed to get into the air and started to climb. One kilometer… two… three… four… soon, it was reaching seven kilometers.

Observing with binoculars, Lenns nodded in satisfaction. “I guess third time’s the charm, eh?”

KABOOM!

The cheers and applause among the engineers immediately stopped when the rocket exploded in midair, causing a shower of flaming debris to rain down. Fortunately, the testing area was located in an isolated area with little to catch fire.

“Looks like it was a cursed charm” Akar remarked.

Lenns let off a sigh. “Well, at least this time we managed to get off the ground.”

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The Kingdom of Naran…

Vistokan was a bit concerned as the test vehicle was loaded with magical stones. In addition to the stones being used on the launch pad, the engineer mages decided to load up the ‘rocket’ with magical ore as well. The idea was that after the test vehicle used up the magical power of the launch, it could then use its own supply of magical gems to continue going up.

Now the initial chant took almost 40 minutes to complete and Vistokan knew they were taking a bit of a risk. The magic gems they were using came from the royal reserves and they were of the highest quality. He had begun to suspect that the Atlans method of using a liquid rocket propellant was more efficient and cost-effective, but the emperor insisted that the space race to be won by magical technology, rather than pure science.

With no other choice but to follow his ruler’s orders, he gave the order to begin the incantations.

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Sept 19^th, 12 AE…

“Five… four… three… two… one… launch!”

The two-story high rocket rumbled as its main thrusters fired off. It managed to lift off a few meters into the air, before the main fuel tanks burst open and the rocket toppled over and exploded. The entire thing came crashing down onto the launch pad. Various emergency and firefighting vehicles rushed over to quickly extinguish the flames.

“Damn!”

Captain Lenns Hodder made an expression of disappointment as he and several other people watched from a protected observation bunker. His subordinate Third Lieutenant Akar Jans shared his emotion at that point. This had been the fourth attempt to send an object into space. They had only been successful once with a rocket that managed to make it to an altitude of 8 kilometers, but that seemed to have been a fluke.

“I really wish Free Land would give us a little more help in perfecting this rocket technology.” Girel complained.

“According to Free Land, giving us the blueprints to the V-2 rocket already put us ahead of everyone else in this…?” Lenns turned to Ackar. “What did they call it again?”

“I think they called it a space race.” Jans replied. “I have heard that the Kingdom of Naran is also experimenting with getting into orbit. However, they’re using a more magical route to get there.”

“Last I heard, they managed to shoot an object up to an altitude of 10 kilometers. We’ve only managed to do 8 kilometers. Doesn’t that put them ahead of us?” Nigrel pointed out.

“Not really.” Lenns shook his head. “They had to use a massive amount of magic stones and the incantations took almost forever to complete. And like I told you before, psions don’t exist in space, so even if they manage to get something past the gravitational pull of this planet, they won’t be able to do much else. Getting into space is only part of the overall goal. Free Land has already shown us the applications of space technology in terms of surveillance, communication and exploration. Did you know that they already have 56 satellites orbiting this world? And each satellite is able to send back images and transmit messages from different parts of the planet! Think of how much our nation would advance, if we can get our own satellites in orbit! I know that it’s going to take us some considerable time, but it will all be worth it! Remember our new motto; Let’s Catch Up to Free Land Someday.”

After that impromptu speech, the technicians were all motivated again.

And two weeks later, the Kingdom of Atlans would succeed in getting an object into space, beating Naran in the space race.

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Sept 29^th, 12 AE…

“So… the people of Atlans did it before we could do so… what a pity.”

“I apologize, Your Majesty.” Vistokan bowed in front of his liege. “We tried our hardest and we’re just on the verge of accomplishing the task that you had given to us, but… “

“But what?”

“After more intensive research, we had discovered… an insurmountable problem.”

“A problem?”

“Magic is one of the supreme forces in existence and is able to perform many miracles. Unfortunately, space travel is not one of them.”

“What?!”

“In addition to the enormous cost of magic stones and lengthy incantation time in order to get to space, we discovered another issue after consulting with the Kyteeri.“

“The blue-skinned elven women of the Alder continent?”

“Yes, Your Majesty. The reason why Kyteeri do not use magic in space is because… magic doesn’t work in space.”

“Are you saying…?”

“I’m afraid so. Even if we do manage to achieve orbital status, there would be virtually nothing else we could do. And for that reason, it would not justify the huge cost in magical material and time spent. It was… a wasted effort.”

At that point, the walls of the emperor’s palace would tremble and shake for hours as Senshirine vented his anger and frustration after learning that the race to space was a fruitless endeavor.

Author’s Notes

Well, that takes care of the third side story as I continue to write chapter 26. Hope you enjoyed it.