章 16: Chapter 16

Current Year was 2515, 2 years after the start of the Spartan Program, Axel was still working on the new Warp drive for his ship. During a call with Admiral Ross he had mentioned how he had was researching and developing a brand new Warp drive for faster than light travel.

Admiral Ross was immediately intrigued at this statement since the most recent Slipspace drive, the Shaw-Fujikawa Translight Engine was created back in 2291, which was about 224 years ago.

And until now no other FTL drive had been created or even reached the level of the Shaw-Fujikawa Translight Engine which made Admiral Ross intrigued wondering if Axel could do it or not.

If he could do it then Admiral Ross could see it being a revolutionary technology that will reshape the way they travel through space if it was determined to be better than the Shaw-Fujikawa Translight Engine.

In 2291, when Shaw-Fujikawa Translight Engine was invented, it was seen as an eldritch marvel - a dream birthed from the minds of legendary scientists who dared to look beyond the veil of reality. But there was always room for improvement, and if anyone could find it, Axel was sure that he could do it because of his previous knowledge.

He may not have known the specifics of how the fantasy warp drive was created in his previous life, but with his intelligence, he could create a similar model using the information he possessed. This would allow him to bring the fantasy warp drive to reality by 2517.

Made of titanium and decorated with shining quantum conductors, the Warp drive was assembled over a span of the next two years. The process was painstakingly slow; every piece had to be fitted with extreme accuracy in order to avoid potential disaster upon activation. However, once finished, he could duplicate the design and its blueprints, making it more accessible for others to create their own warp drives in a much shorter time.

But now on June 3rd 2517, Axel had successfully completed the project and was ready to present it to Admiral Ross.

Admiral Ross had cleared his schedule and made his way to Algolis to witness the warp drive in person alongside Admiral Cole.

Admiral Cole was en route to Algolis, so Admiral Ross took the opportunity to catch a ride on his ship and have a conversation with the man responsible for bringing Axel into the UNSC. This also gave him a chance to get acquainted with Admiral Cole, who had recently demonstrated his skills by capturing an insurrectionist cell.

As the two Admirals approached Algolis after 3 Months of travelling through Slipspace, they could see Axel's ship on the horizon, from the outside it looked the same as a standard Halcyon-class light cruiser.

Captain Sayas, the commander of Admiral Cole's vessel, noted their arrival with his customary brevity, "Sir, we have reached Algolis."

The Admirals disembarked from their ship and took a shuttle to the cruiser which landed in the Hanger. Once they landed the Admirals had noticed the large amount of MCU's in the Hanger.

In front of them stood 4 MCU's which had the UNSC insignia on the side of their heads and on the top left part of their chest.

Once both the Admirals exited the Pelican they were greeted by the one of the 4 MCU's.

The lead MCU who was the head of the Robotic security forces for the ship had performed a standard salute which was stiff do to him being a robot and all. "Welcome Aboard Admirals, Captain Axel is waiting for you in the engine room and I have been instructed to take you there Sir" Said the MCU

Admiral Ross had returned the salute before he answered "Very well, take us their"

The journey through the monumental ship was a short one, and before long the Admirals were greeted by a gleaming blast door. It retracted with a deafening clank, and a torrent of cold, crisp air spilled out, carrying with it the faint hum of energy.

Within the cavernous engine room, they found Axel standing over a MCU who was sitting at a console.

Upon their entrance, he straightened up, and turned to face them.

"Admirals," he greeted them with an affirming nod, his voice echoing around the colossal room.

Admiral Ross stepped forward to meet him, extending his hand for a firm shake. "I hope we didn't interrupt anything important, Captain."

"Nothing Sir, I was just checking on the engineer Robot to make sure that everything was operating at normal levels" Responded Axel nonchalantly as he reciprocated the gesture. "Shall we get on with it then?"

Admiral Ross nodded in agreement. "Absolutely."

With that Axel moved towards what appeared to be a glass case enclosed in titanium frame. It stood a few meters taller than him and emanated an indigo hue that illuminated his figure in an otherworldly glow; within it lay their reason for being there - the Warp drive.

"I Must say it's impressive" Said Admiral Cole observing closely.

"Indeed it as" Said Admiral Ross. "What's the difference between this war drive and the Slipspace engine." Asked Admiral Ross.

"A matter of efficiency and stability, Admiral," replied Axel, his eyes reflecting the mystical glow of the Warp drive. He moved to a holographic interface near the glass case. "The Shaw-Fujikawa Translight Engine, remarkable though it is, relies on the creation and manipulation of Slipspace "holes". This method is fast but, as you know, fraught with instability. It leads to accuracy issues and poses dangers due to potential tears in our dimension."

Flicking his fingers across the holographic interface, he summoned a simplistic model of their galaxy. A tiny point of light moved from one planet to another, leaving a colorful trail behind. "This new Warp drive," Axel continued, "creates a 'bubble' of stable spacetime around the ship and moves that bubble through space at velocities exceeding the speed of light. The result is safer travel without the need for risky Slipspace jumps."

Both Admirals stood silent for a moment. The implications of such technology were profound. Fleet strategies would need to be rewritten, planets once deemed unreachable could now be explored.

Admiral Ross broke the silence by moving closer to the Warp drive. He studied it with an intensity that only someone with years of space combat experience would have.

"If I'm understanding you correctly," began Admiral Cole slowly, breaking his contemplative silence, "this implies we won't be needing any more Slipspace coordinates which take hours to calculate?" Though it didn't actually take hours thanks to the creation of AI but without it they would need hours.

Axel nodded affirmatively, "Exactly Sir. That's just one benefit among many; efficiency in fuel consumption, less wear and tear on ships...and most importantly," he paused for emphasis looking at both Admirals, "it fundamentally changes the game of space warfare. No more would we need to worry about advance scouts and potential leaks of our jump coordinates. With this technology, we could theoretically appear anywhere at any time with no prior warning."

The Admirals took a step back, absorbing the weight of Axel's words. It was clear that the benefits far outweighed the risks.

"And how soon can this become a reality for our fleet?" Admiral Ross's question echoed through the room.

"With your approval, Sirs, I'd estimate five years," Axel replied confidently.

Admiral Ross was shocked, only five years. That was a short time considering how superior this technology looked.

"I'm eager to see this technology first hand ad I want to see for myself whether or not it is actually superior than the Shaw-Fujikawa Translight Engine" Said Admiral Cole. While he believed what Axel said he also wanted to see the technology in action.

"Of course Admiral, If you would follow me to the bridge then I will jump back to Earth which should only take between 30 min to an hour" Stated Axel.

"30 Min to an hour?" Stated Admiral Cole surprised by the time it would take since on the trip here it took three months but now with this warp drive it would take between 30 Min to an hour.

Admiral Ross raised his hand "Enough talk Admiral, let's stop wasting time and see this warp drive in action already"

With that Admiral Cole didn't ask anymore questions and proceeded to the bridge with Admiral Ross and Axel.

Along the way they had seen various MCU's which were walking around the ship or some which were just in standby mode. Admiral Ross had asked Axel about these various MCU's.

Axel had explained how each one had was made to cover every job within the ship while some had more than a few jobs and responsibilities. Though he was lying since all of the MCU's were the same and could perform any job on the ship, he just wanted to keep this fact a secret from the Admirals.

After a few minutes they had arrived at the bridge and Axel had prepared the ship by first putting in the coordinates for Earth allowing the onboard AI to plot the course and direct the ship in the right direction.

Once they were aligned in the correct direction, the ship had prepared the warp drive as the Admirals were instructed to strap in.

As the Admirals secured themselves into the sleek, cushioned seats of the bridge, a strange humming began to resonate through the ship. It was a low, pulsating sound that seemed to vibrate from the very core of the vessel.

"Alright, Admirals," Axel turned to face them, his expression calm but there was a glint of excitement in his eyes. "Are you ready?"

"Fire it up," Admiral Ross commanded, gripping the armrests of his seat with an air of anticipation.

Nodding in response, Axel turned back to face the console and pressed a large button causing an audible gasp-like sound to echo throughout the ship. A moment later, the humming grew louder and the ship shuddered as if awoken from a deep slumber.

The magnificent view screen at the front of the bridge began to shimmer and distort, as if looking into a wavy mirror. Then, with a sudden thrust that pressed them back into their seats, they were moving – and not just moving but warping space itself.

Outside the vessel, stars transformed into long streaks of light that shot past them like comets in fast forward. It was an awe-inspiring sight, one that echoed the grandeur and enormity of this new epoch in space travel.