Capítulo 130: Chapter 130: Space Era - Orbital Journey
The space elevator is a large transportation facility designed to facilitate the exchange of goods and people between space and the Earth's surface more conveniently.
As early as the 1970s, Atlas had already initiated research projects on high-strength materials, including "carbon nanotubes," "high-strength steel," and "titanium-tantalum alloys." The primary purpose was to support space activities, such as providing metal materials for the keel, hull, deck, and outer structure of space vessels, as well as the "cable" of the space elevator.
The "titanium-tantalum alloy" had already been used on the Selene-class transport vessels. The space elevator that Reyoya was gazing at through the sealed window utilized "carbon nanotubes" and "high-strength steel."
Before her journey began, she had reviewed information related to the space elevator that the company had published on its official website. Atlas had chosen Gabon as the construction site because space elevators must be located near the equator, given that their design depends on geosynchronous orbit.
The space station where the space elevator is located, which is also Reyoya's destination—the space city—was approximately 37,000 kilometers above the Earth's surface. This distance was far beyond the range of low Earth orbit, representing true outer space.
To put it into perspective, the average distance between the Earth and the Moon is "only" 380,000 kilometers. At 37,000 kilometers, the space city could orbit the Earth with the same period and with a zero-degree orbital inclination, making it almost stationary relative to the Earth's surface.
The operating principle of the space elevator is similar to that of a bola, with the space city acting as a massive weight at the end of a long tether, pulled by the Earth's rotation. At the equator, the forces on the counterweight are minimized, while at other locations, the forces increase, making stable operation extremely difficult.
While the construction materials remained classified, most of the working principles of the space elevator were public knowledge, and the company had even produced many short animated films to help inspire children's understanding of physics. Atlas placed great emphasis on the development of the educational system and would not tolerate any corrupt elements infiltrating it. Children represented hope and the future.
If students were constantly living in fear of bullying by their teachers or schoolmates, Atlas and humanity as a whole could lose a potential physicist or mathematician. Unresolved, such problems could directly affect social harmony and stability. Therefore, Atlas maintained a firm stance on education, using its immense economic power to encourage reforms in partner countries' educational systems and enforce strict penalties for infractions.
However, Reyoya was not thinking about the deeper motives behind the company's production of educational films. Like everyone else in the dining car, she was captivated by the sight of the towering space elevator.
It was truly awe-inspiring.
Since the passing of her parents, she had been navigating the human world alone for thirty years. During this time, while avoiding those who served Julian Bellafila and hunted her, Reyoya also witnessed the rapid development of the human world.
Thirty years ago, humanity dreamt of space exploration, yet believed such feats were distant, almost unattainable in the short term. Some pessimistic thinkers even suggested that humanity might destroy itself before ever reaching the stars, becoming just another chapter in the long history of the universe.
Yet thirty years later, maglev trains had become the main mode of transportation, holographic technology was widely used, and healthcare had vastly improved. Most significantly, humanity had quietly entered the space age, with the help of Atlas.
...
In the blink of an eye, ten minutes had passed.
As the space elevator grew larger and the scenery outside became clearer, Reyoya realized the train was nearing its destination, gradually slowing down. She stood up, grabbed her only backpack, and walked to the rear of the dining car, waiting at the door.
At this point, the train's speed had stabilized at 80 kilometers per hour, and even while decelerating, the ride remained smooth. Through the door's sealed window, Reyoya could see the city of Libreville, Gabon's capital, which was no less impressive than New Akra.
The modern buildings, the well-developed infrastructure—these were the hallmarks of cities invested in by Atlas. With her extraordinary vision, Reyoya also noticed that the police patrolling the streets wore dark blue uniforms, each bearing the prominent Atlas logo on their armbands.
Although her time with the company had not been long, Reyoya knew that Libreville's urban planning was entirely managed by Atlas. Most citizens were aware that such cities or regions were essentially Atlas "assets," but few found this surprising. In fact, local community forum posts explained it well:
"Just realized that in the last three years, Atlas seems to have done more than the government did in the past twelve years!"
"Haha, this year's income hit a new high! I can finally afford to have a second child!"
"Hey, have you guys noticed that robberies and shootings are way down? And at night, the streets are filled with food stalls!"
Atlas's gradual integration into local communities, improving quality of life without exploiting or deceiving the residents, had earned genuine understanding and support. As for local and external capital groups unwilling to relinquish their interests, their attempts to use media and commercial pressure to maintain their stranglehold on the population had failed.
The outcome was clear.
Atlas never played around in commercial battles, opting for the most "direct and effective" methods to force those capital groups to "see reason."
Soon, Reyoya felt the train decelerate further and saw the platform approaching through the window.
It wasn't long before the train came to a complete stop.
Attendants at both ends of the train ensured that no passengers were leaning against the doors, which were about to open.
Beep-beep!
A short, sharp warning sound rang out.
Whoosh!
As air flowed into the train, the pressurized doors fully opened, allowing passengers to disembark.
"Sigh…"
The first thing Reyoya did after leaving the window was to close her eyes and take a deep breath, easing the fatigue from the long journey.
Instead of following the crowd to the escalators leading out of the platform, she headed to the lower level. Downstairs, she found more maglev tracks and sturdier, block-shaped maglev trains.
Reyoya pulled out her civilian version of the Garen smartphone. After unlocking it with facial recognition, she checked her transfer ticket and murmured to herself, "C platform, Train 1... C platform, Train 1... Ah! There it is."
Her eyes lit up as she scanned the QR code on her transfer ticket and headed toward platform C. After a quick ticket check, she entered the train, whose interior was completely different from a standard maglev carriage. The seats were equipped with seatbelts and harnesses, giving Reyoya the feeling she was about to ride a roller coaster.
She placed her backpack in the storage compartment, sat down, and followed the holographic screen's instructions to buckle her seatbelt.
Once all the passengers were seated, the time on the holographic screen showed 14:16.
A female attendant in a black uniform, wearing a red-and-white scarf, stood at the front, smiling as she reminded everyone:
"Welcome aboard this train. Our destination is the space city, located 37,000 kilometers away."
"Please note that this train does not need to reach escape velocity to enter outer space. For your safety, please ensure that your seatbelt remains fastened until we reach space."
The train would depart in two minutes, offering passengers a new perspective on their familiar yet strangely distant home planet, Earth.
After performing one last safety check, the attendants also took their seats at the front and back of the train.
At 14:20, the safety harnesses automatically locked into place, and the train departed on time, carrying its passengers away from the platform.
The tunnels outside the station, the suburban scenery, the blue ocean reflecting shimmering waves—all of it passed in a blur. Soon, the train entered a semi-open tunnel constructed from carbon nanotubes, high-strength steel, room-temperature superconducting materials, and stable condensates. These were powered by a fusion power plant on the surface, providing the tunnel with stable electromagnetic levitation and thrust.
Reyoya noticed that the view outside the windows began to tilt… and tilt… until they were looking at the world from a 90-degree angle. She was now reclining, pressed firmly against her seat.
Whoosh!
Reyoya felt a powerful sense of acceleration and a sharp ringing in her ears, much like the sensation of a maglev train speeding up or a traditional airplane taking off.
"Ah… save me… I regret buying this ticket… Mom, help me..." muttered a young man seated next to her, eyes tightly shut, whispering his regrets. With the passengers now sitting at a vertical angle, it was difficult to see what was happening outside the side and top windows.
Such conditions could trigger acrophobia or a fear of losing control, and it was no wonder the young man beside her was having such a reaction.
Reyoya turned slightly and glanced at the screen on her right. The train's speed had stabilized at 930 kilometers per hour, and their altitude had reached 100 kilometers. The right side of the screen displayed percentages, ticking upward: "60%… 61%... 62%."
When the screen finally showed "100%," the pressure and ear-ringing vanished. Their hair no longer hung down but floated, as did their limbs, as if they were drifting in water.
"Dear passengers," an attendant's voice came over the loudspeaker, "we have just passed the Kármán line, 160 kilometers above the surface, and have entered outer space, where air resistance is nearly nonexistent."
One of the attendants unfastened her seat
belt and harness, skillfully floating up to the ceiling. Leaning against the window, she smiled and continued:
"Now, my colleague and I will help you witness the most important and thrilling moment of this journey."
With that, Reyoya noticed her seat slowly rotating until she and everyone else were facing the ceiling, now turned into a skylight. For the first time, they could see the "ground" beneath them—planet Earth.
"Wow!"
"That's… stunning!"
"Hahaha! I spent an extra six hundred and thought it wasn't worth it at first, but now I see it totally is!"
The carriage filled with gasps of amazement.
"Wow…" Reyoya was just as awestruck.
Everyone knew what Earth was, but no one had ever seen it from this perspective.
"Heh." The attendant smiled softly at the passengers' reactions and explained:
"Now that we are beyond the atmosphere, with no air resistance, the train can accelerate freely. We will reach our destination, the space city, in about forty-five minutes. During this time, the train will reach a top speed of 17 kilometers per second, which is fast enough to escape the solar system."
"And this is a civilian train. The unmanned freight trains in the tunnels opposite us travel even faster."
The attendant floated back down as she continued:
"As for our destination, the space city is still under construction. According to Atlas's plans, the city will eventually be a fully integrated hub for entertainment, living, and construction. However, even though only parts of it are currently open, you'll still get to experience the fun of low-gravity environments."
"I'll leave you to enjoy the view. If anyone needs assistance, please raise your hand, and I'll explain how to move around safely."
With that, the attendant floated back to the lower part of the carriage.
Reyoya, seeing that no one was obstructing the skylight anymore, took out her phone, adjusted the angle, and snapped a picture of the Earth.
She started typing out a caption on the screen, instinctively writing "Thanks to the Master," but quickly erased it and changed it to: "Thanks to Atlas for showing me a new perspective of Earth."
Then, she uploaded the photo and caption to the short video platform her colleagues in the network department had helped set up for her.
As for the Master Reyoya had wanted to thank—Samuel Young—he was currently in an underground base in Akra, observing a live combat test.
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