Unbroken Curiosity

Chapter 13: The Hop

Persicla Burke

It is gone. Truly gone. The bridge was silent. Everyone looked at the destruction the artifact caused. Hen-Sal Waystation was nothing more than small pieces of debris, forever floating in the dark abyss.

"Are you satisfied?" Captain Cox spat. He stepped forward towards his old seat. This time, nobody tried to stop him. The mutineers' gaze were fixed on the destruction, their expressions one of horrific awe. While the others on the Bridge looked at the destruction, Burke looked towards the captain. Please do not do anything stupid. She thought. "Hundreds dead, and for what?" Cox continued.

Natalya Reece stepped in front of the captain. She seemed unfazed by the destruction, unlike her soldiers. "Stand down, Cox." Her voice sounded demanding.

But Cox did not stand down. The veteran soldier did not see it coming. The captain punched her in the gut. She fell to her knees, struggling to breathe. The mutineers now looked towards Cox. "Is this what you want? Is this what you stand for? Look at what you did!" he gestured towards the debris. "Look at it." The mutineers looked at their leaders. Lord Cobalt said nothing. Reece struggled to her feet. She unholstered her weapon.

"No." Cobalt's voice was soft. He moved towards the artifact. "Do not harm the captain. I want him to see..." The lord stepped over the elf's body and placed the glass shield over the artifact. "Hen-Sal Waystation was only a taste of the Whirlpool's power. Now we make for Sanctuary. High Lord Garland will know of my power before he dies." He cannot mean to use the Whirlpool on Sanctuary? Burke eyed Lady Lillias. He said he only had two shots... Nobody moved. Everyone stood frozen in silence. Everyone except Cobalt. "I said, we make for Sanctuary!" He shouted. "Navigator Burke, A.E.U. Set a course. Captain Cox, please remain silent. Next time, I will let Reece beat you to an inch of your life before I tell her to stop. And somebody get rid of the elf!" Some of the soldiers jumped at the command of Lord Cobalt, while others remained still. Some mutineers moved towards the elf's body, while another forced the Captain back into his corner.

"The Elf. Was right." A.E.U. then said.

"What do you mean?" Cobalt rolled his eyes, carefully placing the artifact back on the holotable.

"There. Was. An Alert. The. Mass. Acceleration. Gates. Has been. Locked. Down."

Cobalt looked at the elf's body as his soldiers dragged it out of the Bridge. "Donny said we must Hop... What does that mean?"

"A Hop is very risky, my lord. More so than a Slingshot manoeuvre." Burke answered, surprising herself. She did not mean to answer.

"Why? What is it?"

"Where a Slingshot uses the gravity of a star to increase a ship's speed in FTL, a Hop uses a Black Hole. The gravity of a Black Hole is far stronger than a star's. When a ship launches into FTL around a Black Hole, it enters a kind of in-between space..."

Cox interrupted: "A Hop can allow a ship to travel great distances. Smugglers use it to travel from one end of Laniakea to the other. The only problem is, if you fuck up, you can either cross the Event Horizon and be torn to shreds, or you can miss your mark and end up in Dark Space, between galaxies... Forever..."

"Only. The Math. Matters." A.E.U. said. "I. Can. Calculate the Hop within. A. 10% margin of error. I cannot. Account. For. Time Dilation.

Cobalt had more questions than answers. "Time Dilation?" He sighed. "Just do it, A.E.U. Get us to Sanctuary by any means necessary."

Burke expected the captain to protest, but this time he remained silent. Something changed in his eyes. Burke realised then what the captain thought... If this ship reaches Sanctuary, Millions will die. But if we fly into a Black Hole... If we make a mistake... We can save them all... Burke glanced around the room. The mutineers were not sure of themselves anymore. The destruction of the Waystation had shaken them to their core.