Chapter 3 third chapter

The taxi drove to the boarding gate and stopped.As soon as the car door opened, a young woman came out quickly. It was the beautiful beauty Carlos saw outside.I saw her wearing the uniform of the astronauts, a green bodysuit, looking neat and tidy.She turned around and hugged the little girl from the car, but the little boy jumped out of another door by himself.The little girl holds a toy giant panda tightly in her arms. "Is it Dr. Verili?" The guard asked with a smile after carefully checking her passport, "Come over here, please." "Rima Virilli, the head of the biological team."

The guard went back and checked the credentials with the computer, then turned around and questioned the children: "This is Kip Verilli, right?" "Kip," replied the little boy, "just call me Kip." "This is Di Verilli?" "Yes. This is Mimi." The little girl held up the toy giant panda and said, "Don't forget my Mimi." The guard looked at the toy, frowned, and looked at the child's mother questioningly. "I'm sorry, baby," Rima said, leaning over the baby and her toy in her arms. "I told you, there's no room for Mimi on the spaceship."

"But the spaceship is so big..." Dai was so angry that she was too anxious to speak, and hugged the giant panda in her arms tightly.At this time, the taxi driver took out three luggage bags from the car, and the guard took them, put them on the platform scale, and weighed them one by one. "Oh, what a coincidence." After the weighing, the guard turned around and said to Dai as gently as possible, "The spaceship looks really big, but it has to accommodate another 99 people. Children carry the most luggage." It can’t exceed 5 kilograms, but your luggage already weighs 4.9 kilograms, that is to say, your good partner can only wait and can’t catch this spaceship.”

The little girl turned around, blinked, and looked at her mother, looking helpless, which was unbearable.Lima's tears were about to flow down, but she was ruthless and restrained herself, without saying a word. "Please, sir." The little girl reluctantly kissed the panda's nose, then handed it to the driver, and begged, "Take care of Mimi for me, okay? Until we come back?" "Don't you know?" The driver wanted to tell her that it was impossible for the spaceship to return, but the words stopped when he reached the point of his mouth.He put the toy by the seat and said, "No problem, little sister. I have a little girl named Belda, and she will take care of Mimi for you."

The guards put the bags on the conveyor belt.Lima wiped away the tears from her eyes, paid the driver's fare, took the children by the hand, stepped on the boarding escalator, and came to the launch base. There they paused, looking back one last time at the land that was about to be left behind forever.As far as the eye can see, the ground is scorched black, a desert, and there are scars left by the raging fire everywhere. "Look around," Rima said excitedly to the children, "don't miss any place." "What's so nice about it?" Kip muttered nonchalantly. "It's dark and ugly."

"The ground nearby is scorched. It's really nothing to see. But look at the mountains over there that day, how white and bright they are. It's the snow and ice accumulated on the mountains. What a beautiful snow! Look at the sky, it's deep and blue. Blue as washed. This is our earth, our beautiful home! Children, we are leaving it now, see it enough, and take it to heart." Kip shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly, and Dai also ignored her mother, just looked at the taxi carrying her beloved Mimi away, and kept waving.Rima was about to turn around and lead the children aboard, when she suddenly met the captain Alter walking down from the boat.Alter is a veteran in the aerospace industry, with high morals and high prestige. Although his temples are gray, he is still strong and energetic. Compared with the young and strong members of the action team, he is not inferior to others.He had just returned from a mission on the Moon to be the captain of the "Operation Space Seed" flight.

"Rima!" Art yelled, very excited.He grabbed Rima's arms, pushed them away, looked her in the face, and asked, "Have you made up your mind?" "It's settled." "I'm so happy that you can participate in this operation with us, but your child..." Art looked down at the child, stared at Rima, and asked again, "Have you really made up your mind?" "It was not easy to make this decision, and it took me countless sleepless nights." Rima smiled helplessly, "But I have no choice. You know my situation, the 'Space Seeding Operation' is over, and my work is gone." Then I was buried, but I still have children to take care of.

After thinking about many ways, I finally felt that it was a good idea to bring the children to participate in this action.I talked about it with Kip the older boy, and he thought it was a great adventure. " "That would be great." Art was very happy, and grabbed Lima's arm, refusing to let go.After a while, he let go of his hand, got off the escalator, and walked towards a temporary press conference platform.The place was surrounded by a group of journalists. "Mr. Captain, what's your comment on 'Equal Branch' and its claims?" A voice sounded from the back row of the press box and asked the first question.

"I have already met their representatives." Altero raised his head and motioned everyone to look at the entrance of the base, where a protest team from the "Equilibrium Society" was gathering, "Operation 'Space Seeding' has indeed caused certain harm to the earth's environment , but the impact on the entire universe is negligible. 'Equilibrium' is sincerely concerned about the impact of 'Operation Space Seeding' on the Earth's environment. But they have no basis for thinking that 'Operation' will endanger the entire universe. .I admit that the spaceship will fly into dangerous unknown worlds, but it will never bring the kind of 'harm' to the universe that the 'Equal Part' fears. The difference between us is the difference of basic assumptions and philosophical views.' The Equilibrium Society' postulates that the entire cosmic galaxy is full of earth-like planets inhabited by primitive spiritual animals like humans. It also believes that human intrusion will cause them to be tortured and slaughtered, just like the Native American Aztecs. Cortes (1485-1547, a Spanish colonist, led an expedition to the American continent to open up new colonies in 1518, and conquered Mexico in 1523. Brutal massacre. - Translator's Note) and Pizarro (1475-1541, Spanish adventurer, led an expedition to conquer Peru in 1531, captured and executed the Inca Emperor, brutally killed the Incas. - Translator's Note) abuse Same as massacre.

"However, we are not the Spanish conquistadors of the past. We swear that we must respect the right to life of any life form we may find. However, it can be said frankly that until now, humans have not found any evidence that can prove that the 'Shared Society' The existence of the hypothetical kind of friendly universe. The reason why we plan to launch 100 quantum spaceships instead of three or five is that we cannot guarantee that we will be able to discover and reach any planet where human beings may live. This is a completely unknown It is a terrible risk-taking behavior against odds, but the reason why we risk our lives in this way is to find a new habitat for the permanent survival of human beings in the universe.

"If primitive life-forms were to be said, they might be quite common, although most of them might hardly count as life. However, all the evidence suggests that spiritual life is rare. We humans may be the only ones. We can be quite sure Say, so far, apart from human beings, no life form has mastered quantum wave technology. If so, they have come to the earth. If we can finally prove that there is no other spiritual life in the universe except us humans, then, The universe naturally belongs to us humans.” "Captain, uh..." A tall, thin man in the front row stood up hesitantly, "If you don't mind, I would like to ask a personal question. Since the possibility of success is so slim, what is the force that motivates you to participate in this What about an adventure?" "In order to achieve our established goals and for the ultimate benefit of mankind, I have put my personal safety aside and willingly accepted any risks." Alter looked solemn, "Our goal is to break free from the shackles of the earth's gravity. Before the appearance of quantum aircraft, We can only be fettered on this small planet earth, doomed to experience the fate of ups and downs, and finally become extinct like trilobites and dinosaurs. The mission of "Space Seeding Operation" is to On the planet, sow the seeds of human beings. It can be said that every spaceship is a pod full of human seeds, ready to be scattered into space at any time. If a person can realize this point, that is, the problem of the eternal existence of human beings, then , What risk is he afraid of?" "You don't feel any regret?" the reporter asked. "Family, wife, and friends, and for this world you'll never see again?" "I feel sorry for this." Arter nodded, looking at the distant mountains and the snow on the top of the mountain reluctantly, "but I am willing to make my choice. My wife is dead and I don't have any children. As for All my personal fortune has been spent on this last space voyage. "Please take a look, that is our No. 99 Quantum Spaceship!" Alter turned around and pointed at the quantum vehicle in the launch pit.I saw it standing tall, like a cannonball, waiting to be fired.For a moment, his weather-beaten face was filled with an eager smile, which was extremely vivid. "My trip to the moon has just ended. I planned to go on vacation, then write a history of lunar exploration, and then play golf. In this way, the rest of my life will be wasted. However, for this space trip, all of this I gave up. It can be said that this mission gave me a new life, and it made me very excited. If you want to know how I feel at this time, just think of Magellan who led the Spanish fleet to sail around the world for the first time. , think of the Apollo astronauts who were the first to walk on the moon." "I'm Jenny Black, a reporter from the International Agency." A stocky woman sitting in the penultimate row stood up and said loudly. This person had mottled hair and a holographic camera on her shoulder. The voice was like a bullfrog, hoarse and unpleasant, "You have launched the so-called 'seeding spacecraft' for almost 20 years. It has cost countless resources and caused our planet to lose many elite talents for no reason. Now, are you ready to admit that those who took the spacecraft Personnel, most of them dead?" Art nodded solemnly. "Your 'Space Seeding Operation'," the female reporter continued to ask, "in my opinion and many others, it's nothing more than a crazy and absurd game. Now, can you give us an explanation in a language that laymen can understand? Can you explain the game, and the rules and risks of playing it?" "Let me try to talk about it." Art shrugged helplessly, not knowing where to start.He thought for a while, and then said: "In terms of risks, we have no way of estimating them. As for the rules, there are no laws, and everything has to be explored. In short, every step we take is based on the foundation of modern physics theory. These theoretical foundations include: Relativity, Fragmentation, Chaos, Quantum Physics, etc.” Hearing this, the female reporter became impatient and panned the camera lens to the shining silver spaceship hull beside her.Art had to stop and wait for her to pull back the camera. "Thank you, there's no need to stop." Someone said eccentrically, "Let's continue with your story." "The quantum spacecraft disappeared with a flash of light at the moment of launch. Why? The reason is that the moment of launch, the spacecraft turned into a virtual wave and flew away from the earth at the speed of light." "Then what is a 'virtual wave'?" "Science is always abstract and difficult to explain, but I try to use simple language so that everyone can understand." Alter shrugged helplessly, "Simply put, quantum mechanics believes that the motion of the basic particles of matter has waves. Some characteristics of the launched quantum spaceship, due to the great increase in speed, the volume shrinks rapidly until it is invisible. It can be considered that its material particles have been converted into a beam of quantum waves. As a beam of quantum waves, It has lost its original normal state of matter, and its mass, velocity and orientation are difficult to measure. After arriving at the destination, the wave state matter returns to the particle state matter, and regains the material properties such as momentum and position. "That's how everyone understands." "I don't understand. Does anyone understand?" The female reporter swept the camera all the way to the audience, and saw faces frowning. "This plausible theory may be a bit confusing." Arte smiled to himself, nodded in understanding, "However, every launch we have proved the correctness of this theory. Although it is contrary Common sense, but from the point of view of the theory of relativity, this kind of wave state flight is completely possible. According to the theory of relativity, time slows down as the speed increases; when the speed reaches the speed of light, time freezes. Compared with the For humans, the space travel of the wave state quantum spacecraft may last thousands of years, or even millions of years, but compared to the quantum spacecraft itself, it is just a moment.” "How do you know?" Someone asked sharply, "If the people who fly out never come back, who will verify your words?" "It's impossible for them to return." Alter smiled again, and that smile made people feel a little helpless, "Because, only at a certain point in the future, the spaceship in the wave state may return to normal. But that moment may be in a billion years After. If you take into account all kinds of uncertainties, it may even be tens of billions of years later. In short, we have no way of knowing. Because the movement of time is one-way, what has happened cannot be reversed." "Thank you, Captain." The female reporter replied sarcastically, while panning the camera from Alter to the spaceship, "Your words remind me of another question. If time stands still, the people on the spaceship They can’t move anymore, so how can they drive the spaceship?” "It's impossible for them to drive it, let alone stop it." Alter replied, "They don't even know where they are. Please connect with the theory of relativity I just mentioned, and think about it carefully, and you will understand. According to the definition of people in the normal sense, they no longer exist, let alone where they are. The entire spaceship moves forward in the form of waves, endlessly. Only when the wave state spaceship encounters another strong gravitational force The attraction of the field offsets its own energy, and when it returns to the normal state of matter, the flight in the wave state ends." "When you say 'gravitational field', do you mean a certain planet?" "Not necessarily. Stars are more likely. Because other celestial bodies don't have enough density and mass, they can't have enough gravitational force to bring the spacecraft back to normal." "So they're going to land on a star? A star like the sun?" "Of course I hope that's not the case." Facing the mocking tone of the female reporter, Art shrugged disapprovingly, and continued, "The spaceship itself carries a nuclear rocket propulsion. The spacecraft is pushed into the orbit of a nearby planet. If they are lucky, they will encounter an Earth-like planet, land safely, and survive." "Assuming that they have no chance to encounter stars or other larger celestial bodies, what will happen?" The female reporter lowered the camera, squinting, and asked. "That could happen. I think that's why we plan to launch 100 ships instead of one." "What will happen to the spaceship that has no chance to stop?" "It's not good." Art made a grimace and said, "I think the final result is roughly like this: Due to the continuous interference from cosmic dust, the energy of the wave state spacecraft is gradually consumed, and finally a gamma ray burst occurs and the collapse." "Congratulations on your participation in the 'Space Seeding Operation' flight, Mr. Captain. As for me, it is better to stay on the ground." These two words popped out from the female reporter's tightly closed lips, shaking her head while busy Put away the lens. A jet came and landed on a nearby tarmac.Then, a jeep honked its horn and sped towards the launch platform, with bursts of yellow dust rising into the sky behind the car.It turned out that Herman Steck, the president of the "Space Seeding Operation" organization, came.When he and an entourage hurried out of the car and rushed to this side, reporters swarmed around him.All the cameras were pointed at them, and Art also went to greet them. Compared with Captain Alter, Steck is much younger.He was dressed in scarlet fashion, like a model, and with his long golden curly hair, he was very beautiful.But his entourage was in a state of embarrassment, not only dressed sloppily, but also behaved strangely.With a boat hat on his head and sunglasses on his nose, the man darted back and forth beside the crowd.Then he spotted a vacant seat, slipped in, sat down, bared his lips, and stared mockingly at Sterke. Steck dismissed Alter's greetings, jumped onto the rostrum, and walked to the rostrum.Art's outstretched hand stopped halfway awkwardly.Steck, like a model facing countless spotlights, first put on a dignified appearance posture, then signaled everyone to be quiet, and then began to talk incessantly.Once again his provocative voice sounded on the wasteland. "Citizens of the universe..." When a reporter heard this, he laughed, Steck hurriedly held out his finger to stop him, "That's us, we who participated in the 'Space Seeding Operation'! We are no longer Americans or Asians, No longer Latins or Russians, we are the vanguard of the human species, fighting to save it from destruction!" He paused, waiting for the enthusiastic response from the audience, but there was no response from the audience.Art walked down the stage alone, tripped his foot on the steps, tilted his body, and almost fell.Stirk shrugged his shoulders with an exaggerated panic, and then, with an artificial sigh, raised his voice again and shouted.That sound overwhelmed the rumble of a passing truck. "At this moment, on this launch site, we kneel before the altar of a great dream, what a grand plan! We will sow the seeds of humanity on other planets, and even in distant galaxies! Once we Success, our species will survive and multiply forever, and eventually rule the entire universe! For this, we have paid a huge price, including the consumption of resources, the investment of manpower, and even the sacrifice of precious lives! In the past twenty years, it is For this sacred cause, we have contributed nearly a hundred quantum spacecraft and tens of thousands of brave and fearless volunteers. "If we fail..." Suddenly, a roar came, drowning Steck's voice.A convoy of trucks laden with old cranes and launch derricks is leaving the base.Steck's words were interrupted. He was furious, but there was nothing he could do but wait for the truck to drive by. At this time, Jenny Black, a reporter in the audience, whispered to the others: "Hasn't Art said these things just now? People can explain them more clearly than him." Steck probably heard the muttering from the audience.In short, he showed his embarrassment and ended his speech hastily.Then, he boarded the launch pad, followed Alt, and got into the Ninety-Nine spacecraft. On the tarmac, the plane stopped quietly, waiting for the crew to return; in front of the launch pad, the jeep driver was sweating, waiting to pick up the crew.However, President Steck never stepped out of the spaceship. Finally, someone came out, but it was not Steck, but the captain Alt.I saw him with his lips tightly closed, his expression blank, and a crumpled envelope in his trembling hands.Without saying a word, he walked straight to the jeep, and the driver escorted him to the plane. The journalists had dispersed.The security personnel closed the gates and began to clear the field, and broadcast the precautions before the launch, reminding everyone to wear goggles to avoid being burned by the strong light generated by the launch of the spacecraft. The "Equal Branch" protesters have also taken down their tents, rolled up their bedding, drove away, and dispersed in a swarm.On-site launch personnel report the situation to various command stations in the underground bunker from time to time.For a while, the machine roared, the alarm sounded for a long time, and the spacecraft slowly sank down the silo. Just a few hours before the planned launch of the spacecraft, the launch center suddenly received an anonymous call, claiming to be looking for Captain Alter.It turned out that the call was from Mort Nanning.Due to the mystery of the incident, he dared not announce his name.The operator told him Alter was out and transferred the call to Glen Gersh, who was driving. "I'm a supporter of 'Space Seeding Operation'." Nanin said on the phone, "I have received news that the spies of the 'Equilibrium Society' have infiltrated your No. 99 spaceship and are waiting for an opportunity to carry out sabotage activities." "Do you know who the spy is?" Glengersh asked eagerly. "The name is not yet clear, but I only know that this person is employed by Aaron Qilan. In addition, I also learned that Qilan is planning a terrorist operation, which aims to cause a social sensation and end the 'Space Seeding Operation' once and for all." Nanin hung up the phone after speaking.Glenn Gersh immediately connected to the captain's room to report the situation, but no one answered his call.He waited for half a minute before he heard a hoarse voice ringing on the other end of the phone.The man's name was Jack Hinch, the mysterious man who had boarded the ship with Steck.He didn't ask or answer, just listened, making Glengersh anxious.At the end, the man responded, "So what?" "This is a problem that Steck, as the captain, must solve." On the phone, Glenn Gersh sternly stated, and further stated his interests, "You tell him that we have been under the threat of sabotage from various hostile elements. .Although some precautions have been taken, we must not let our guard down and take it lightly. There are still a few hours before the launch of the spacecraft, and we still have time to conduct a comprehensive search and safety inspection of the spacecraft. If necessary, the launch time can also be postponed , until the hidden dangers are eliminated. Of course, you can also ignore the anonymous threat and enter the countdown to launch on time. How to deal with it, I will wait for the order." Another long wait.Finally, the hoarse voice rang again on the phone. "Strike said it's up to you. God damn it, he doesn't care!" said Hinch gruffly.