Opet and the Tales of Heroes

"Nah.....I don't want to sit on my assigned seat," Raavi commented. "No need to do so. Plenty of other seats to choose from, and no one cares anyway."

He could see her. She was busy securing the hover capsule stroller to a special compartment by her seat. It was altered in its angle to correctly handle the G-forces that were going to be pressed onto everybody. She herself had a middle seat by the dual isles. He decided to find the window seat that was adjacent to her.

Row after row of empty seats. For Raavi, he couldn't argue with the scene.

"Hello everyone," the intercom called out. It was a male voice with a slight Japanese accent to it. "This is your pilot Kai Yuki speaking. I ask everyone to be seated and fasten yourselves in. We will be departing for New Olympia in about five minutes."

Raavi reached the row that he wanted to sit. Not far was a set of restrooms connected to a passageway that led to the aft engine room. Compartments for galleys, food preparation, and other accommodations were all available beyond him.

"Hello, Miss......" Raavi called out to her. "Mind if I have a seat near you?"

She had a polite smile on her face. "Of course. Go and have a seat. You must be curious about everything."

"Yeah...." Raavi reluctantly replied.

He found a nice seat. Not far was a closed, clear window. He could see briefly outside as he sat down on the seat that was closest to the isle. He could see the landing pad outline as he took the two seat belts and connected them, fastening himself down.

The seat itself was comfortable. He took a deep breath as he began to look around.

"Hmmm," the woman commented to him. "You don't have the look of a tourist."

"How would you know?" Raavi asked her.

"The way you are looking at everything. I have been on enough of these flights to see the different personalities. Most of the tourists have a look of boredom or excitement at going to New Olympia. You, on the other hand, you are looking at this spaceship a lot. Most people wouldn't look twice at it."

"That is true."

"You also seem nervous, as well. First time on the flight?" the woman asked as she checked her fastened seatbelts again.

"Yes, but it is more than that."

There was a pause as the woman pointed to herself. "My name is Dolly Yuki. What is your name?"

That name. Raavi momentarily paused as he thought about the name she just spoke. It was the same last name as the pilot. He kept note of that.

"Raavi.....Raavi Aarnikash. Nice to meet you Dolly."

"First time going to New Olympia?"

"Yes, it is, and no, I am not a tourist."

"Ah. Resident?"

"No. There is someone that I am going to meet."

Dolly smiled as she nodded her head. "I see. You are a UWAN dater."

Raavi nodded his head and smiled. "Yeah. I have a woman that I am going to meet. I will finally get a chance to meet her face to face."

Raavi and all UWA citizens knew that the United World Alliance Network was the evolution of the World Wide Web of former Earth. With the advent of folding space, the internet expanded outward. Using folding space technology, individuals from separate planets could communicate with one another. The UWAN was as sophisticated and remarkable as the ability to traverse to other systems.

"Attention, everyone," the male voice came over the intercom. "This is your pilot speaking. All preliminary checks have been complete. I have received the all-clear for launch. For first time riders, prepare for heavy g-forces as we launch from the platform. Do not unfasten your seatbelts. Our estimated arrival to the New Olympia system should be about forty minutes. We have a predestined stop with the UHN Opet prior to New Olympia itself. Thank you for traveling the New Olympian Transportation Flight."

The com went out as Raavi took a deep breath. He could hear the distant sounds of launch alarms being given off from the launch pad.

"Don't worry. It isn't that bad," Dolly told him. "I have done these flights hundreds of times."

Outside the pad, there was a massive elevator pad that connected to the gate jumper spacecraft. A series of red lights came on as it would turn off and back on in tandem with the next series of lights. It created a trail of flashing red lights that led down to the forward section of the craft. It served as an indication of all craft in the air that the gate jumper was about to take off. The ramps of the spacecraft closed in. A small arm lifted out of the pad and magnetized to the ship. It held it in place correctly as the entire pad began to lift to one side. It began to lift the whole vessel up, forming a launch ramp for the spaceship. Raavi could feel his body being pushed back to his seat more and more as the entire Flight 66613's nose was lifted up by at least 45 degrees. The red lights continued to flicker as the rear engines began to power up.

In the rear of the ship, the spacecraft's two large engine thrusters began to glow red. The sound of running engines began to emit from the entire port. It was low at first, but it slowly got louder and louder. There was no one else on the pad as the automated systems were being monitored from separate locations.

The ramp stopped forming the incline needed for the launch of the spacecraft. The entire spaceship was in perfect position. The small underside magnetized grappler continued to hold the ship in place as the thrusters began to glow brighter and brighter. A little red flame began to push from the rear as the landing struts of the craft retracted. The thrust pressed against the platform as the arm started to move forward. The engine exhaust turned from red to blue in less than a second as a smoke trail and exhaust bled out. Like a catapult, the entire craft moved upward more and more as the arm helped carry the ship to faster and faster speeds.

Raavi could feel the g-forces be pressed to his body as the entire spacecraft was propelled more and more. It was entirely under its own power now as the magnetic arm disengaged, releasing the vessel. The spacecraft's combined thrust, combined with its momentum, propelled it through the air, leaving two smoke trails from the large thrusters. Free from having to carry a vessel, the ramp lowered down back into place. The red lights began to shut down as the ship was moving to faster and faster speeds. Any resident could look up to see the distant blue flames of the transport as it flew higher and higher into the sky.

In reality, the g-forces seemed intense at first for Raavi, but it was declining more and more. The spacecraft needed to make sure that it could fly, that was for sure, but it was necessary to not reduce the individuals inside to red paint stains in the process from the sudden acceleration.

Slowly, the vessel began to turn up more and more. The ship's fusion drives guaranteed that the engines received more than enough power to help escape Aphadus's gravity.

There was very little turbulence inside the craft. There was little heavy wind outside, and the craft was so large that it could barely be jostled around. The ship's wings and vectoring thrusters allowed it to be entirely in line with its speed and direction.

"Attention, everyone," the captain called out politely. "We will be in space in about two minutes."

Inside, the craft was relatively quiet. While turbulence pushed on the individuals sitting down, it was a relatively relaxed experience.

"Are you alright?" Dolly asked Raavi.

"Yes, I am," he replied. "How about you?"

"More than fine."

A full minute had passed as the craft begun to hit the upper atmosphere. Finally, after all the moving, the ship had penetrated the atmosphere. It had entered into the vacuum of space. The engine glow had gone from blue to a calm red as the vessel began to slow down.

Raavi turned his head to look at the window. He could feel it as the weightlessness was obvious. Without gravity, only acceleration was pressing the passengers and staff to where the ship was going. He looked at his hand as he could see that his hand wasn't falling to the ground.

"First time being in space?" Dolly asked.

"Yeah," Raavi asked as he looked out the window. "I always heard of it, but I never felt it before."

"It never gets old. I always enjoy it too."

Raavi could see the darkness of space from his window. He could see the faint outline of the lit side of Aphadus as he could see the distant red star.

"Amazing.....," he remarked.

"Surprised to see that you never left your planet."

"I had the opportunities, but I liked Aphadus. I never felt the need to leave."

"Attention everybody," the pilot called out on the intercom. "We are currently en route to Fort Golconda. We will rendezvous with them in about five minutes. No delays are expected. They are currently powering up the gate for our jump to New Olympia. Everyone is expected to remain in their seats, fastened, to avoid getting injured when we alter course."

Outside in space, Flight 66613 was currently heading toward its destination. The white delta wing spaceship was heading straight towards a large tethered space station in orbit of Aphadus. Fort Golconda was the gate array of the colony world. Other ships were near it. The ample space station had a massive flexible elevator tether connected to it to allow individuals to get in and out of it regularly. The station itself was shaped like a giant ankh. It had a large ring on top that was connected to a large spinning centripetal ring where the crew and staff operated. Between the ring and living habitat was the large docking bar where spaceships could park to unload cargo or do necessary repairs. There were arrays of gun batteries in place around the docking area to help provide basic protection for the space station.

Inside Flight 66613, Raavi kept his attention towards Dolly. It would be the first time that he could really start to ask her questions.

"I apologize," Raavi said. "Yeah. It is the first time being out in space. I didn't mean to ignore you a lot."

"It is alright," Dolly replied, waving her hand at him. "Enjoy this opportunity."

"I was curious. I noticed your name Yuki was the same as the pilot's last name. Is he related?"

Dolly seemed to look away as she considered it. "Yes.....he is.....mostly. How much do you know about the history of New Olympia?"

"From what I know, not much. I admit that I never tried to ask my girlfriend about it. From what I know, it just seems to be a common name every time I hear the reference to New Olympia."

"Hmmm.....it is true. I admit I don't know much about the pilot, though. The name is referred to our great family that helped play a small role in humanity's move to Mars long, long ago."

"Wait...." Raavi commented as his brow lifted. "You mean thee Yuki family? I think I remember hearing something in my history books about it. I apologize. My history has never been good."

"That is alright. Yes, I do come from that family. We.....the people that I am related to, we lived on Luna for sometime before we vacated to the new system New Olympia."

"Ah, ok. I guess the name Yuki is to New Olympia as Lee, Smith, or Khatri is to everywhere else."

"Pretty much. Not all of us use last names, though," Dolly remarked.

"That surprises me honestly. I mean, how many people live on New Olympia?"

"About 30 million live on New Olympia."

"And how many have the last name Yuki?"

"About 75%."

"Wow," Raavi said as he shook his head.

Dolly shrugged. "It is what it is."

Raavi turned to look at the stroller capsule that was neatly secured. He had to ask her as it was bugging him.

"Are your children going to be alright from all this bumping around?"

Dolly looked at the capsule as she gave a gentle pat to it. "Don't worry about them. These are not my babies," she replied with a smile. "These are the adopted children that are to be transferred to New Olympia."

"Is it true then?" he asked her. "I heard the stories about New Olympia and the fact that they have a high adoption rate."

She nodded her head. "Yes. New Olympia goes out of its way to adopt as much as possible for the UWA. If there is an orphanage in some colony world, then we are not doing our job. New Olympia has made it its goal to ensure that no child is parentless."

"The rumors were true then.....I always heard crazy stories about New Olympia and what they did with adopting."

She tilted her head. "What stories?"

"There were these stories that New Olympia was adopting children and preventing agencies from investigating on the living environments of where the babies were brought. One media outlet outright believes that New Olympia was short of kidnapping babies."

Dolly shook her head. She was even in surprise to it. "I admit that it happened to me once when it came to the accusations. It isn't true. None of it is true. Our goal is to ensure that children under the age of sixteen that lose their immediate family to have a home. We never kidnap. We never coerce people into giving up children. To us, it is our way to return a debt to the UWA. We care. We truly do. I have made countless trips to various colonies. It is my job to ensure that these three babies here are brought to New Olympia. There are already three families that are ready to take them in."

Raavi seemed to nod his head. It seemed to make sense as she seemed sincere in her words. The media was known for its outrageous claims at times.

"I can promise you," Dolly continued. "We have always made the appropriate steps in allowing adoption agencies the room to investigate any outrageous claims as to the well being of the adopted children we gather. I myself helped such an agency. Nothing was found out of the ordinary."

Raavi nodded his head. For some reason, the last sentence seemed slightly off to him. When she said it, Dolly seemed a little shaken up.

"I am sorry," he told her. "I didn't mean to......I am not accusing you as some kidnapper. I know that the media group I got the information from likes doing that sort of crap. They make outrageous claims and broadcast it to make ratings."

She nodded her head. "It is alright. I know you don't mean it. Every trip, I make it my goal to remember their names. I must have thousands memorized." She turned her head to look at the capsule. "Samuel, Vihaan, and Fatima here all have a home waiting for them. New Olympia cares about those that don't have anything."

It was all that Raavi needed to hear as he gave a brief smile. He turned his head to look at the window. He felt a small shift as the transport made a short turn towards the gate array. He peered to gather as much as he could see. It was a sight to behold. He could see the gate array perched on top as its ring was glowing. A small vortex was swirling in the center. The extraordinary ability to fold space was the miracle technology. The ability to make a trip from one solar system to another was the saving grace for humankind. He could see an old JX-15 freighter who was busy moving cargo containers to the space station's docking bar. Its centripetal rotating bars were spinning in place. Its shuttles would grab the boxes and slowly disconnect it from the stern section to move it.

Among one of the other things he saw was one of the great United Human Naval warships. The UHN Polo was a battleship utilized by the UWA to safeguard the solar system. It was parked a distance from the ring and protecting the station. Like a guard standing at the gate, the ship stood in place. It was a long cylindrical hull with a spinning centripetal ring near the rear engines. The centripetal ring would help ensure that the crew inside had some sort of artificial means to generate gravity inside. Raavi could see the large railguns mounted on the middle top and bottom of the hull.

"First time seeing those warships up close," Raavi commented to Dolly. "Pretty....."

"Have much interest in space?" Dolly asked.

"Actually.....yeah, I do. I just never had a chance to leave my planet. At least until now."

Raavi could feel more jolting in the gate jumper. The ship was making its adjustments. Slowly, the vessel was positioning itself to the gate ring.

The spinning vortex of blue particles had formed a hole in space. With a simple flyby, the ship would be sent from one location to another instantly. Even Raavi knew that he was going several light-years in one single jump.

"Attention, everyone," the intercom called out. "We have made our adjustments and are in perfect alignment with the gate array. We will be making our jump into New Olympia shortly."

The intercom closed as Raavi turned to look at Dolly. "How are these jumps?"

"Oh," she waved her hand. "It is nothing to worry about. It is instant--one place to another. You feel more from the thrusters pushing you back as we fly into it than anything else. Perfectly harmless. I have done hundreds of these jumps without a hitch."

It seemed to calm him down a little bit. He felt a little bit anxious as he could see a little bit more of the vortex. It was getting beyond the visual range of the window. He could see the edge of the gate ring as the gate jumper was at a full stop. He gripped the soft vinyl of the seat with his hands. He closed his eyes. He knew it was going to be quick.

Outside, the spaceship was idle. Its engines were barely glowing. The vortex gate was as large as it could be in the center of the gate array. The center of the swirling particles had a large hole that looked like an event horizon. It was a tunnel in which the vessel could fly through. The gate jumper had a series of blue lights that flickered to let the other ships know of its impending jump.

The rear thrusters activated as the spacecraft pushed forward. It got closer and closer to the vortex until it finally flew through it. Watching it from the side, the folded space gate was almost flat. The vessel entered it as it seemed like it flying into a landscape painting.

Raavi only felt the nudge of the spacecraft as it flew into the vortex. Much as Dolly had mentioned before, there wasn't much to it. As it flew in, he felt an odd feeling to himself. He looked around and felt like everything momentarily slowed down before it sped up. He also had this feeling of being in two places at once.

In reality, the ship itself flew through a tunnel in less than a second. More time was taken, creating the gate than ever passing through it. As quickly as it happened for Raavi, he never went anywhere in his seat, but he had traveled farther than he ever had before.

Chapter 2: New Olympia

It happened so fast. The ship flew through an area of folded space and emerged in its new location. As it slowly dematerialized in one section, it reappeared at its new destination. The gate jumper had performed one of its many gate leaps. Its flickering blue lights ceased as it completed its objective.

For Raavi, he didn't feel much at all. He almost questioned if he ever leaped, to begin with. He turned to look his head out the window.

Outside the spacecraft was a new location and environment. Space was the same. The void of nothingness was broken up by the strands of things that were lit up. The gate jumper had exited a swirling mass of particles and energy. The vortex was powered by a gate array of almost pure white. The enormous ring had two large spheres attached to either side of the ring. In the great distance was the shining red dwarf that lit the surrounding area.

"I have to remind myself that New Olympia is in a red dwarf system," Raavi remarked to Dolly as he was looking out the window. It looks so much like Aphadus."

"You have seen nothing yet," Dolly replied.

"Attention, passengers of Flight 66613," the intercom announced. "We have arrived at the New Olympian system. Our next stop will be the UHN Opet to drop off a passenger before we continue our main flight to New Olympia itself."