Star People

Side Story 10

Prototypes Part 2

July 7^th, 13 AE…

A barren stretch of land near the southeast coast of the Alder continent…

A sleek and extremely powerful form streaked across the skies, leaving a huge sonic boom in its wake as it easily broke the sound barrier. At an altitude of more than 40,000 feet, the Valiant Prototype was put through its paces. In its cockpit was the test pilot, Captain Samuel Yeager; a descendant of the first man to break the sound barrier in level flight on Earth, Chuck Yeager.

“How’s the Valiant handling so far, Captain Yeager?” Warren Hikes asked through the communicator from the observation booth on the ground. He and a group of Battle-Mech and Starfighter engineers were monitoring the progress of their creation.

“She’s doing fine.” Yeager answered as he scanned the readouts through his Heads-Up Display or HUD. “I’m super-cruising at Mach 2.4 without a hitch. She’s a little bigger than my Star Hawk but she handles just about the same.”

“Good. Now put the Valiant through some basic maneuvers and tell us how she feels.”

“Roger that.”

Sam cut back on the throttle a bit, and then put the Valiant into a tight turn. Normally, a pilot would be close to blacking out under the G-forces of such a fast turn, but the G-Force nullifiers and inertial compensators did their jobs and the pilot felt nothing more than a slight bit of pressure.

The Valiant was then put through a few loops, dives and reversals. After fifteen minutes of aerial acrobatics, Yeager was satisfied by the performance of the fighter mode.

“She’s a fine fighter and I wouldn’t mind taking her on an assault run or dogfight.”

“Good.” The Catian engineer named Sureka remarked. “Now let’s get to main event. You’re going to attempt a Battle-Mech transformation and landing. Five miles north of your position is the landing test strip. It’s the same strip you took off in Fighter Mode. Now you’re going to land in Battle-Mech Mode, understood?”

“Understood.” Yeager replied as he made the Valiant head toward the landing strip.

Two months prior, Sam had been selected as the test pilot for the new machine and had been taken off flying status. He then underwent specialized training in order to qualify for a Vertical Model Special Vehicle License, which was required for all Battle-Mech and Mech-Frame pilots. He was the first to be trained for both Starfighters and Battle-Mechs. If the testing proved successful, then all Starfighter and Battle-Mech pilots would be cross-trained to handle both types of combat.

As he saw the landing strip appear over the horizon, Sam took a deep breath and looked over to his left console panel. There were three buttons on the touchpad. One was lit and marked with a letter F, indicating that the Valiant was in Fighter Mode. Next to that was a button that was marked with a letter I. The last button was marked with a letter B. As he began to descend towards the strip and reduce speed, he started to reach out toward the B button. When he was about 1,500 feet above the ground, he pressed the button.

“Initiating Battle-Mech transformation!”

The entire machine vibrated as components started moving to new positions. The rear of the fuselage extended out, along with the main engines, becoming the legs as the thrusters split to form feet. The wings flipped around and retracted, as the central part of the fuselage split and moved on cams to form the arms. Inside his cockpit, Sam and his pilot seat was moved back into the central body as the nose of the fighter folded up and backwards. The head module emerged on top of the body as hands slid out the sockets at the ends of the arms.

The cockpit took on a new configuration as Sam now saw the approaching runway on a holographic viewscreen. Taking hold of the Battle-Mech controls, he activated the foot thrusters while using the G-Force nullifiers to keep the body of the Battle-Mech upright. When the feet came close enough to the ground, he activated the inertial dampeners and braking thrusters, making the Battle-Mech do a running landing, like a parachutist. Finally, the machine came to a complete stop and stood in the middle of the runway.

In the observation booth, the engineers cheered as they beheld a 42-foot tall Battle-Mech standing 300 meters from their position.

The first transformation of the Valiant was a success.

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September 4^th, 13 AE…

Polaris City, Energy and Research Development Facility #4…

“Are you ready, Dr. Minovsko?” Jeremy asked as they were about to test the Teleportation Portal System for a distance of more than one kilometer.

After a long series of trial and error, the technicians believed that they had finally figured out how to extend the range of their teleportation system. Initially based on the short-ranged Magic Gate portals of the dwarves, the revised apparatus now made use of the updated Neo-Psion Reactor, the newly-developed Dwarf Rune Circuits or DRCs and a more powerful Warp-Field Generator. The generator would provide the power needed to warp space between the portals and the DRCs would guide the object through the inter-dimensional pathway. The reactor would convert the fuel energy into psions, which were required for the DRCs to operate. In addition to the reactor, DRCs were also inscribed on the portal apparatus as well.

“Everything is all green on our end.” Peter Minovsko stated as he and Angela stood near a console. “Start the experiment.”

Jeremy nodded as he turned on the switch to his portal. He then spoke into a communications pin on his lab coat. “Hey, Clurke! Are you and Vulkar ready?”

More than 1,100 meters away, outside of the main building, both dwarf father and son nodded as they stood near a second portal apparatus.

“We’re ready.” Clurke replied as he spoke into his own communicator pin and nodded to his son. Vulkar turned on their portal.

Back at the first portal, Minovsko nodded as he looked at the readouts on his console. “Both portals have synchronized on the same dimensional quantum-wavelengths. Dwarf Rune Circuits are active. Psion levels are stable.”

 “All right Jeremy… throw it in!” Angela said.

Jeremy nodded as he held out a rubber ball. Ironically it was the same rubber ball that had beaned him in the head during the first trial of the teleporter. This time, he simply used a lazy, underhanded toss and the ball disappeared into the circle of light. A moment later, he heard Clurke’s voice on the communicator pin.

“I got it! It worked!”

“DRCs have remained stable!” Peter confirmed as he looked at the readouts. “I detect no degradation in the rune patterns and the psion levels have not changed.”

“All right! Let’s see just how far we can take it!” Jeremy said with a smile.

They would make four more trials that day with a maximum distance of 3,200 meters before the DRCs on the portals burned out. Clurke and Vulkar would later revise the rune patterns for more efficiency and durability.

The dream of a practical teleportion system was getting closer to reality.

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October 4^th, 13 AE...

Kingdom of Atlans, Metallurgy Facility #2…

“So, how does it look?” Lenns asked as he approached a worktable.

The metallurgist named Demot Lacrane nodded as he turned in his seat toward his superior. “I think we’ve finally determined the ratio of aluminum to manganese to recreate the alloy. If it works, then the new jet engine should be able to take the strain, no issues.”

“What about the turbine blades? Have you determined the composition of the alloy needed to withstand those temperatures?”

“That’s a bit trickier. Apparently this nickel ore isn’t very abundant on Bisra or Excra. We have neither figured out the ratio nor the correct processing method.”

 “The Naran engineers were able to do it.”

“They had help from Free Land.”

“So why don’t we ask Free Land about how to… oh… right, we can’t.”

“Exactly. If we ask for the process to combine nickel and aluminum for turbine blades, then the chances are that Naran will find out that we have one of their Sky Blade II engines.”

“That could be a messy political affair, considering that we… uh, borrowed one of their jet engines.”

“You know we stole that engine.”

“Okay, okay… we didn’t give it back to them! We’re going to need to come up with a more roundabout way to ask Free Land about how to combine aluminum and nickel together without revealing that we need it to make our jet engine turbine blades. What can we use as an excuse?”

“Well… I heard that there are ideas on how to improve on our diesel locomotives, and they need lightweight components that can withstand high temperatures. Maybe we can use that as an excuse?”

“That’ll work. We’ll put in the petition to Free Land tomorrow.”

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October 5^th, 13 AE…

The Council of Prime Directors…

“Well, that’s interesting.” Nerto commented as he read the petition.

“What is it?” Anida asked.

“The Kingdom of Atlans is asking about the best method to combine aluminum and nickel together to withstand high pressures and temperatures. They intend to use the alloy in their new diesel locomotive plans.”

“What’s so strange about that? We did give them the plans for improved diesel locomotives a few months ago.”

“Well, yes they can use the alloy for that purpose. However, a much better application would be for jet engine turbine blades. They were very excited when we gave them the plans for the F-86 Sabre. I would think they would use the alloy for that project.”

“So they decided to focus on the civilian aspect rather than the military. Rather commendable I’d say.”

“And again, I find that a bit unusual. As you know, most nations on Istaria are quite aggressive and warlike. Yes, I’ll agree that Atlans is more amicable towards us and have cooperated well enough, but they’re quite technology-hungry, especially in terms of military applications. I’m just surprised that they didn’t ask us for the formula for aluminum-nickel alloys sooner for their jet engine.”

“Perhaps they’ve already found a workable substitute? In any case, the formula for aluminum-nickel alloy isn’t much. It’s not like they’re asking for the formula for hyper-durlenium or one of our other hyper-alloys. We can just give them the general formula and let them work it out.”

“Very well then.” Nerto then applied his signature to the petition. “Approved.”

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October 30^th, 13 AE...

The ocean waters between the Alder and Merdov continents…

“All right then, here we are at 100 kilometers.” Gerald announced and he and his co-workers were about to test the Teleportation Portal System for its longest distance ever. If it could safely transport objects and people at this distance, then it would be considered as practical enough for military and general usage.

What was even more unique about this event was that they were going to try to teleport between two moving portals. The ship they were on was the carrier Yorktown while the other portal was located on its sister carrier, the Lexington. Admiral Tarhesse and several senior officers watched from the observation booth as the scientists and engineers finished setting up the portal apparatus on the main flight deck. On the Lexington, her sister and her senior staff were doing the same thing.

Ship to ship teleportation would be a boon for moving cargo and transferring personnel, without the need for vessels to come within contact with each other, or stopping to load and unload. It would also be useful as an emergency exit should the crew be forced to abandon ship. If the test proved to be successful, all major vessels would be equipped with teleportation portals. At the top of the list were the Missouri, Yorktown, Lexington and Johnston, as well as the Victory-Class transports like the Steel Will and Steel Heart.

Requests for land-based teleportation portals also began appearing as word got out. Being able to travel more than 50 miles in an instant was seen as quite a godsend for transportation companies and tourism.

Everyone on the Lexington and the Yorktown held their breath as Gerald took out an Instant Ration Packet and tossed it into the portal.

On the Lexington, the packet emerged out of the exit portal, where Jeremy caught it. He opened up the packet, added some water, and was soon indulging in a meal of spaghetti and meatballs.

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November 25^th, 13 AE…

Mark Delan and his wife Reelan were quite impressed at how little time it took to go from their home in Andromeda City to the Missouri in New Pearl Harbor. All they had to do was enter the Inter-City Teleportation Portal Station near their home, take the portal to Polaris City, and then take a portal at the Star Alliance Military Station to the Missouri itself.

“It didn’t take us more than 2 minutes to get here.” Mark commented as he and his First Officer exited the Missouri’s Teleporter Room #4. The ship had recently been refurbished to carry four TPS rooms. Two would be used by the personnel while the two larger ones were meant for cargo and supplies.

“Ever since they managed to increase the teleportation distance to 200 kilometers, travel between the major cities is about as easy as walking down the street.” Reelan remarked as they walked towards the nearest hyper-lift to the bridge.

“I’ve heard that local transport and shipping have also taken a huge leap forward. A pity we can’t use the TPS constantly.”

“Well, it was discovered that anything or anyone passing through the portals will build up an amount of residual psion energy around them. Too many continuous times through the system will cause interference within the portals and prevent teleportation. We either have to filter the psions out or let them disperse naturally. The further you go, the greater the amount of psion buildup. Our little trip from our home to the Missouri will take at least 30 minutes for the psions to dissipate.”

“So it’s best to use these portals sparingly. Still, to be able to move from place to place, even out into orbit within a few seconds is quite the achievement. I heard that the Dwarf Nations have replaced their Gate Magic portals with TPS and have extended their use to beyond the mines.”

“Yes, their Gate Magic and their contribution to creating the TPS have caused the Council to look upon their petition for Star Alliance membership more favorably.”

“Yes, I believe that the Council is about to reach a decision and it seems that the Star Alliance is about to get bigger.”

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December 14^th, 13 AE…

“What did you just say?” King Verso Crede asked as he leaned forward on his throne. In front of him was a holographic projector with communicator which depicted the Council of Prime Directors.

“I’m saying that the new teleportation portals have greatly increased cargo and personal transportation.” Benjamin stated.

“Military logistics and civilian shipping have taken a quantum leap forward.” Nasaak added. “We’re only regretful that you didn’t tell us about these Gate Magic portals sooner.”

Anida nodded. “By combining Free Land technology with the Gate Magic, Dwarf Runes, and the Neo-Psion reactor, we are now able to teleport objects and people up to 200 kilometers or just under 125 miles. That’s still considered short-range overall, but the system is now more practical with a greater range of uses. It can even be used in orbit.”

“As Director Rodera had stated before, a member race must greatly contribute something to the advancement and well-being of the Star Alliance as a whole.” Nerto continued. “The dwarf kingdoms have now achieved this by developing Free Land’s Teleportation Portal System or TPS. It’s thanks to your Gate Magic, runes and the Neo-Psion reactor that has made it all possible.”

“As a result,” Viska said, “after much deliberation and discussion, the Council of Prime Directors, with the overall consent of Free Land’s population, have approved the petition for membership by the Dwarf Nations. In other words, welcome to the Star Alliance!”

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Kingdom of Atlans…

“Did you hear the news?” Jans asked as he and Lenns headed towards Metallurgy Facility #2.

Lenns nodded. “I have. I just can’t believe that those dwarves actually did it! They’re now part of the Star Alliance!”

“I’ve seen the Teleportation Portal System in Grevel. It’s really amazing that the dwarves had the means for such a system! I don’t think the Divine Gate of Naran even compares!”

“From what I heard, the Divine Gate was actually created by the dwarves and Naran just took the credit for its construction.”

Both men entered the facility and came across Demot Lacrane and some other scientists working with a sheet of metal and applying blowtorches to it. The metal withstood the heat of the flames for a while before finally melting down and catching fire. Extinguishers were deployed to put out the flames.

“So how are things going with the new alloy?” Lenns asked.

Demot saluted to the two officers before replying. “Actually quite well. We’ve been experimenting with the ratio between aluminum and nickel, and we think we’re getting close to the proportions needed to create the turbine blades for the Sabre’s engine.”

“Excellent. Keep us informed.” Lenns said as he motioned for his subordinate to join him in the main office.

After closing the door and sitting down, both men resumed their discussion about the recent events.

“The political and scientific stage of Istaria has shifted dramatically with this event.” Lenns declared. “With Star Alliance membership, the dwarves now have greater access to Free Land technology; more advanced levels I might add.”

“I concur.” Akar stated. “The Gate Magic portal of the dwarves laid down the foundations for the teleportation process. Adding in Free Land technology caused it to evolve into the Teleporation Portal System they have now. Who knows what else they can come up with; now that they have Free Land’s backing?”

 “Perhaps we should use the dwarves’ success as inspiration for our own bid for Star Alliance membership?”

“How?”

“In addition to the projects we have now, we need to start pooling our resources into research and development. We need to come up with something that Free Land would want.”

“What would they want? They have practically everything that we want.”

“They didn’t have teleportation. That’s what the dwarves had and that was what ultimately led to the decision to accept their petition for membership. I heard about some other things like a Neo-Psion Reactor and Dwarf Rune Circuits, but teleportation was the clincher. So now, we have to come up with something that can be worthwhile to Free Land. I’m pretty certain that other nations wish to join the Star Alliance and are thinking the same thing. And it’s a sure bet that the Kingdom of Naran won’t sit still after seeing the dwarves succeed.”

“What makes you say that?”

“Remember, Naran still claims that the Divine Gate was built by them. I wouldn’t be surprised if they start accusing Free Land and the dwarves of some kind of patent infringement.”

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December 17^th, 13 AE…

The Council of Prime Directors Conference Chamber…

“The Kingdom of Naran hereby lodges an official protest! We take great offense over Free Land and the Dwarf Nations of stealing the technology of the First Ones!”

Benjamin and the other Directors frowned as they conversed with the Emperor of Naran and his advisors on the main conference holo-viewer.

“I beg your pardon?” The Terran Director replied. “Of what are we accused of stealing?”

Prime Minister Haykin of Naran, an elderly elf of 910 years, unrolled a scroll and began reading the charges. “Your Teleportation Portal System or TPS is obviously a copy of the Divine Gate and we of Naran hereby demand Free Land and the Dwarf Nations to pay the royalties owed to our kingdom! We hold the patent on Gate Magic technology! Furthermore, you are to hand over all plans and designs of the TPS as part of the restitutions owed to our country! Additionally, any new innovations such as the Neo-Psion Reactor and Dwarf Rune Circuits are to be handed over as well!”

There was a long stretch of silence as the Council considered the words of Emperor’s Prime Minister. Then Nasaak spoke in an annoyed tone.

“So now you’re taking a page out of Euracon’s book?”

“What?”

“What Director Nasaak is saying is that your accusation of Free Land and the Dwarf Nations stealing Naran teleportation technology is completely false.” Anida stated.

“Additionally, Naran never owned the patent or trademark of Gate Magic technology to begin with.” Nerto added.

“How dare you! Naran does own the rights! The existence of the Divine Gate proves that!”

“Oh, you mean that oversized stone arch that you had the Dwarf Nations build for you?” Viska asked.

This caused the Emperor and his advisors to become silent as the Prime Minister stuttered.

“W-What are you saying?! T-The dwarves only built the D-Divine Gate using the plans and technology of the First Ones! We still…”

“We already checked the history of the Divine Gate at the Merin Hall of Records.” Nasaak growled, silencing the Prime Minister. “The dwarves have provided irrefutable, documentary evidence and authenticated blueprints, which prove that the Divine Gate was designed and created using dwarf Gate Magic portal technology.”

“The Kingdom of Naran had nothing to do with the Divine Gate’s creation.” Benjamin said. “And then your nation broke the trust of the dwarves by trying to decipher their runes and ruined the Divine Gate in the process. We also know about those substituted elf and imp runes.”

“The Teleportation Portal System uses no magical technology from Naran in the first place, so your accusation of trademark infringement is invalid in any case.” The Kyteeri Director stated.

“And as for your demands for restitution,” The Catian Director snarled, “you will get nothing, and like it.”

Benjamin then ended the conference. “The Council of Prime Directors do hereby reject the demands of the Kingdom of Naran and therefore, this conversation is over. Goodbye Emperor Vigar.”

As the holo-viewer ceased its projector, all five Prime Directors let off tired sighs of relief. However, they knew that this was not over.

To be continued…