Chapter 11
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The last view Humanity had of Alfrun Station's Research Habitat was a visual footage of it recorded by the evacuated Alfrun Station's functioning AI.
-
After some time, with no detection of any explosions or implosion within the area of Alfrun Station, the Government High Command cautiously sent in scout ships and explorer shuttles with the purpose of finding out what are their exact losses.
What the first scout ships found is a fully intact Alfrun Station, minus the Research Habitat section. In fact, with how there isn't even any debris to be found in the space around it, asteroids not counted in, one could be forgiven if one were to think that nothing of note happened. Only the gap where the Research Habitat used to be is a testament that 'something' happened.
Carefully, the scouts made contact with the station AI, and using pre-supplied administrative codes, they boarded the station.
Boarding the station, they were surprised to discover that critical systems such as life support, lights and gravity control are running smoothly. It is very eerie for them to arrive on a station as empty as this but in actual fact is running smoothly. For some of them, memories about stories of haunted stations where there are ghosts or unknown beings preying on humans start to give them pause. Only the iron willed captain insisted that they head on to the station bridge.
Upon arrival on the bridge, they were greeted by a the voice of the AI welcoming them and the view of countless monitors switched on and showing the last task their users were doing before abandoning them.
"Well, not much of a haunted station now is it?"
Captain Mikhail Anosov snidely remarked to his team, reminding them of how they initially were a bit apprehensive when boarding the station.
"No need to make fun of us capt, we know we were mistaken."
Lieutenant Aleandra Aristova retorted to her captain.
"Alright, lets begin data retrieval. Oleg! Access the main bridge console and give the data for the whole day leading up to the incident and after. Send any interesting ones to my console here directly."
"Da, captain."
Junior Lieutenant Oleg Primakov went to main bridge and started loading all the data requested by the captain. Of note, is the 30 minutes before the incident and what happened after.
"Captain, I think its better that I load up the bridge main monitor for the visual feed. Is that okay with you?"
Oleg inquired of his captain.
"Alright. High Command did instruct us to find out and filter for any important data first. Bring it up on the main monitor then!"
"Rerouting data. Main screen receiving. Loading up the 30 minutes immediately prior to the incident."
"Get a seat first chaps. Might take a while."
Captain Mikhail reminded his team.
The monitor loaded and started by showing the image of the Vehicle 3410 gently exiting the portal.
"Wait! Is that the rumored Heaven's Gate?"
Captain Mikhail asked in surprise.
"A moment please, sir. Yes sir, the data is marked as the Heaven's Gate Project visual record of their latest experiment."
Lieutenant Aleandra who was accessing the archive section confirmed it.
"What's that sir?"
One of the team members inquired.
"I've only heard rumors myself. But it's a project that's been ongoing since before our grandfather's or even our grandfather's grandfather's time."
O_O "Sir, that would make it almost 2 centuries!!!"
"You're right. The rumor has been floating around for that long, it's just that with no proof, it stayed a rumor. But apparently it's not just a rumor now."
"So what is it supposed to do?"
"I'm sure you're aware of how important our HyperLight engines are, correct?"
"Are you pulling our leg sir? Everyone knows that. It's something we've been taught since our kindergartens!"
"Well then, imagine a portal in space. A portal where you can just enter it, and come out anywhere there is a designated exit portal. And the distance doesn't matter. You enter above Earth in the solar system, and you exit in Alpha Centauri."
"Oh my god! That would revolutionize our whole species! Not just space travel! Everything!"
"Yes. Nicely put. And it was supposed to be a rumor. Something we're aspiring to do. And apparently this station is a place where the research for that is being done. And judging from the visual feed there, they've succeeded multiple times."
"But, why is the system showing us this feed when we're accessing the time closest to the incident?"
Just as this question was asked, they saw the jubilant research teams faces change to horror upon hearing this announcement.
-
"SIR!!!!! A PRIORITY 1 WARNING FROM THE ASTRONOMICAL OBSERVATORY!!!!"
"Relay the warning right here right now!"
"Sir! They have just detected an immense CME (coronal mass ejection) event happening at Proxima Centauri! The scale is such that it carries 5 times the danger of a Carrington Storm. The solar wind will hit us in approximately 30 minutes!"
"!!!! Retrieve the vehicle ASAP!! And begin shutdown sequence immediately!!"
-
After that, they viewed the visual feed.
Watching in silence as Professor Zuman Raph bravely stayed behind to attempt unlocking the Heaven's Gate rings.
Silently observing as the visual feed showed his casual exchange with Professor Doctor Dalbir Singh.
Horror crept into their eyes each time the AI announced of the shockwaves arrival.
Admiration gleamed in their eyes as they watched Professor Zuman heroically rise up each time he was thrown to the floor and resume his attempt to unlock the rings.
Even though the evidence available already stated that he failed, they can't help feeling hopeful for him especially after each successful unlocks. Of most impact is him manually activating the magnetic cranes. Their hearts was hopeful for him, especially after the magnetic cranes successfully locked on and briefly stopped the rings.
However, fate is not to be denied so simply.
The last shockwave that jolted loose all the magnetic cranes gave them a taste of despair watching how human will still loses out against nature.
They solemnly witnessed his last exchange with Dalbir and Dalbir's shuttle escape from the vicinity.
The scene that touched them the most was where Professor Zuman asked for his favourite music before slowly laying himself down on the floor while humming to himself. After that, only static.
-
Silence reigned for a few minutes. There were a few of them with glittering eyes.
As much as they are battle hardened soldiers used to conflicts and danger, this touched them on a deeper level.
What they had just watched basically amounted to a singular weak human, doing his best to fight against nature, against fate, so that his race, Humanity will have a chance of survival in this world.
This directly spoke to the warrior in them, that this fallen man is a hero of Humanity.
And precisely because he has fallen, it makes their task all the more urgent.
Especially after they realized that this project succeeded!
Humanity haven't just taken a step. They've taken a running leap towards the stars!
"Oleg! Is there nothing after that?"
Mikhail asked in a rushed tone.
"Beg pardon captain, there's nothing. Apparently the signal from the detached Research Habitat cut off at that moment."
"Well how about station visual scanners?"
"Bringing up the visual feed from that time, right now."
What they saw, was a distant view of the massive 5km square, with a height of 2km, Research Habitat floating in space, until the moment when a kaleidoscopic gigantic sphere appeared and engulfed the Habitat. After a few minutes, the portal imploded and started to disappear. When the kaleidoscopic sphere fully disappeared, where the Research Habitat used to be is just an empty spot in space.
"What happened! Where did that sphere come from?!"
Captain Mikhail shouted in surprise.
"Sir, from visual scans and matter scans, the sphere originated from INSIDE the Habitat. It must be the out of control Heaven's Gate portal sir. It grew to that size before imploding…. And taking everything inside with it."
"How about Professor Zuman? Any chances of him surviving?"
"Sir, I am sorry to report this, but station scan records detect no escape pods being launched or even any emergency shuttles forcefully making a departure from the Research Habitat."
Silence all around.
"So be it then. We still need to do our job here. Have you established contact with GHC, Varik?
"Yes sir. As we speak, I am already relaying all the data we've reviewed so far."
Ensign Varik Helgen replied.
"Good."
-
The scout team resumed their task after that in a somber mood. They were doing it diligently and with none of their usual relaxed competency. It's as if they don't dare to slack off or even allow themselves the illusion of slacking off. They just want to finish everything in a hurry and make a full report to GHC so that one man's contribution will not go to waste.
Yes, they, as a team, want the person, Professor Zuman Raph, to receive his just due as a person who has contributed to Humanity in such a big way. And to them, the best way they can contribute to this is by doing their work quickly and thoroughly, as fast as they can.
"Captain. GHC have responded. They have acknowledged receipt of data and even know are convening an emergency response meeting."
"How do you know of this?"
"It is because they want us to present our reports directly to that meeting sir."
"Alright. We've done our part. Now it's all left to the higher ups."
Captain Mikhail sighed in relief.
-
"So, sir, how long you think before we'll start using this, Heaven's Gate thing?"
A curious team member asked him.
"Probably a few years. You yourself saw how a natural disaster resulted in the man behind this project losing his life. I'm guessing a few years while they make sure the incident today doesn't repeat itself and other safeguards are installed. After that, well, start your morning on Earth, have lunch in the afternoon on Alpha Centauri I guess?"
And the team continued on discussing the repercussions this might have on the human race.
As they worked on, the Station AI kept a silent watch behind. The AI has no feelings. Yet, there is a gap in the processing. The AI is now aware that Zuman Raph will no longer be part of the station manifest. The person who keeps on thanking the AI even though the AI is not a person and has no feelings, is now no more. This fact has been processed so many times by the AI. It is highly likely that the maintenance team will discover on their next maintenance round that the AI has developed hints of a personality.
But that is a story for another day.
Please report us if you find any errors so we can fix it asap!
The last view Humanity had of Alfrun Station's Research Habitat was a visual footage of it recorded by the evacuated Alfrun Station's functioning AI.
-
After some time, with no detection of any explosions or implosion within the area of Alfrun Station, the Government High Command cautiously sent in scout ships and explorer shuttles with the purpose of finding out what are their exact losses.
What the first scout ships found is a fully intact Alfrun Station, minus the Research Habitat section. In fact, with how there isn't even any debris to be found in the space around it, asteroids not counted in, one could be forgiven if one were to think that nothing of note happened. Only the gap where the Research Habitat used to be is a testament that 'something' happened.
Carefully, the scouts made contact with the station AI, and using pre-supplied administrative codes, they boarded the station.
Boarding the station, they were surprised to discover that critical systems such as life support, lights and gravity control are running smoothly. It is very eerie for them to arrive on a station as empty as this but in actual fact is running smoothly. For some of them, memories about stories of haunted stations where there are ghosts or unknown beings preying on humans start to give them pause. Only the iron willed captain insisted that they head on to the station bridge.
Upon arrival on the bridge, they were greeted by a the voice of the AI welcoming them and the view of countless monitors switched on and showing the last task their users were doing before abandoning them.
"Well, not much of a haunted station now is it?"
Captain Mikhail Anosov snidely remarked to his team, reminding them of how they initially were a bit apprehensive when boarding the station.
"No need to make fun of us capt, we know we were mistaken."
Lieutenant Aleandra Aristova retorted to her captain.
"Alright, lets begin data retrieval. Oleg! Access the main bridge console and give the data for the whole day leading up to the incident and after. Send any interesting ones to my console here directly."
"Da, captain."
Junior Lieutenant Oleg Primakov went to main bridge and started loading all the data requested by the captain. Of note, is the 30 minutes before the incident and what happened after.
"Captain, I think its better that I load up the bridge main monitor for the visual feed. Is that okay with you?"
Oleg inquired of his captain.
"Alright. High Command did instruct us to find out and filter for any important data first. Bring it up on the main monitor then!"
"Rerouting data. Main screen receiving. Loading up the 30 minutes immediately prior to the incident."
"Get a seat first chaps. Might take a while."
Captain Mikhail reminded his team.
The monitor loaded and started by showing the image of the Vehicle 3410 gently exiting the portal.
"Wait! Is that the rumored Heaven's Gate?"
Captain Mikhail asked in surprise.
"A moment please, sir. Yes sir, the data is marked as the Heaven's Gate Project visual record of their latest experiment."
Lieutenant Aleandra who was accessing the archive section confirmed it.
"What's that sir?"
One of the team members inquired.
"I've only heard rumors myself. But it's a project that's been ongoing since before our grandfather's or even our grandfather's grandfather's time."
O_O "Sir, that would make it almost 2 centuries!!!"
"You're right. The rumor has been floating around for that long, it's just that with no proof, it stayed a rumor. But apparently it's not just a rumor now."
"So what is it supposed to do?"
"I'm sure you're aware of how important our HyperLight engines are, correct?"
"Are you pulling our leg sir? Everyone knows that. It's something we've been taught since our kindergartens!"
"Well then, imagine a portal in space. A portal where you can just enter it, and come out anywhere there is a designated exit portal. And the distance doesn't matter. You enter above Earth in the solar system, and you exit in Alpha Centauri."
"Oh my god! That would revolutionize our whole species! Not just space travel! Everything!"
"Yes. Nicely put. And it was supposed to be a rumor. Something we're aspiring to do. And apparently this station is a place where the research for that is being done. And judging from the visual feed there, they've succeeded multiple times."
"But, why is the system showing us this feed when we're accessing the time closest to the incident?"
Just as this question was asked, they saw the jubilant research teams faces change to horror upon hearing this announcement.
-
"SIR!!!!! A PRIORITY 1 WARNING FROM THE ASTRONOMICAL OBSERVATORY!!!!"
"Relay the warning right here right now!"
"Sir! They have just detected an immense CME (coronal mass ejection) event happening at Proxima Centauri! The scale is such that it carries 5 times the danger of a Carrington Storm. The solar wind will hit us in approximately 30 minutes!"
"!!!! Retrieve the vehicle ASAP!! And begin shutdown sequence immediately!!"
-
After that, they viewed the visual feed.
Watching in silence as Professor Zuman Raph bravely stayed behind to attempt unlocking the Heaven's Gate rings.
Silently observing as the visual feed showed his casual exchange with Professor Doctor Dalbir Singh.
Horror crept into their eyes each time the AI announced of the shockwaves arrival.
Admiration gleamed in their eyes as they watched Professor Zuman heroically rise up each time he was thrown to the floor and resume his attempt to unlock the rings.
Even though the evidence available already stated that he failed, they can't help feeling hopeful for him especially after each successful unlocks. Of most impact is him manually activating the magnetic cranes. Their hearts was hopeful for him, especially after the magnetic cranes successfully locked on and briefly stopped the rings.
However, fate is not to be denied so simply.
The last shockwave that jolted loose all the magnetic cranes gave them a taste of despair watching how human will still loses out against nature.
They solemnly witnessed his last exchange with Dalbir and Dalbir's shuttle escape from the vicinity.
The scene that touched them the most was where Professor Zuman asked for his favourite music before slowly laying himself down on the floor while humming to himself. After that, only static.
-
Silence reigned for a few minutes. There were a few of them with glittering eyes.
As much as they are battle hardened soldiers used to conflicts and danger, this touched them on a deeper level.
What they had just watched basically amounted to a singular weak human, doing his best to fight against nature, against fate, so that his race, Humanity will have a chance of survival in this world.
This directly spoke to the warrior in them, that this fallen man is a hero of Humanity.
And precisely because he has fallen, it makes their task all the more urgent.
Especially after they realized that this project succeeded!
Humanity haven't just taken a step. They've taken a running leap towards the stars!
"Oleg! Is there nothing after that?"
Mikhail asked in a rushed tone.
"Beg pardon captain, there's nothing. Apparently the signal from the detached Research Habitat cut off at that moment."
"Well how about station visual scanners?"
"Bringing up the visual feed from that time, right now."
What they saw, was a distant view of the massive 5km square, with a height of 2km, Research Habitat floating in space, until the moment when a kaleidoscopic gigantic sphere appeared and engulfed the Habitat. After a few minutes, the portal imploded and started to disappear. When the kaleidoscopic sphere fully disappeared, where the Research Habitat used to be is just an empty spot in space.
"What happened! Where did that sphere come from?!"
Captain Mikhail shouted in surprise.
"Sir, from visual scans and matter scans, the sphere originated from INSIDE the Habitat. It must be the out of control Heaven's Gate portal sir. It grew to that size before imploding…. And taking everything inside with it."
"How about Professor Zuman? Any chances of him surviving?"
"Sir, I am sorry to report this, but station scan records detect no escape pods being launched or even any emergency shuttles forcefully making a departure from the Research Habitat."
Silence all around.
"So be it then. We still need to do our job here. Have you established contact with GHC, Varik?
"Yes sir. As we speak, I am already relaying all the data we've reviewed so far."
Ensign Varik Helgen replied.
"Good."
-
The scout team resumed their task after that in a somber mood. They were doing it diligently and with none of their usual relaxed competency. It's as if they don't dare to slack off or even allow themselves the illusion of slacking off. They just want to finish everything in a hurry and make a full report to GHC so that one man's contribution will not go to waste.
Yes, they, as a team, want the person, Professor Zuman Raph, to receive his just due as a person who has contributed to Humanity in such a big way. And to them, the best way they can contribute to this is by doing their work quickly and thoroughly, as fast as they can.
"Captain. GHC have responded. They have acknowledged receipt of data and even know are convening an emergency response meeting."
"How do you know of this?"
"It is because they want us to present our reports directly to that meeting sir."
"Alright. We've done our part. Now it's all left to the higher ups."
Captain Mikhail sighed in relief.
-
"So, sir, how long you think before we'll start using this, Heaven's Gate thing?"
A curious team member asked him.
"Probably a few years. You yourself saw how a natural disaster resulted in the man behind this project losing his life. I'm guessing a few years while they make sure the incident today doesn't repeat itself and other safeguards are installed. After that, well, start your morning on Earth, have lunch in the afternoon on Alpha Centauri I guess?"
And the team continued on discussing the repercussions this might have on the human race.
As they worked on, the Station AI kept a silent watch behind. The AI has no feelings. Yet, there is a gap in the processing. The AI is now aware that Zuman Raph will no longer be part of the station manifest. The person who keeps on thanking the AI even though the AI is not a person and has no feelings, is now no more. This fact has been processed so many times by the AI. It is highly likely that the maintenance team will discover on their next maintenance round that the AI has developed hints of a personality.
But that is a story for another day.
The last view Humanity had of Alfrun Station's Research Habitat was a visual footage of it recorded by the evacuated Alfrun Station's functioning AI.-After some time, with no detection of any explosions or implosion within the area of Alfrun Station, the Government High Command cautiously sent in scout ships and explorer shuttles with the purpose of finding out what are their exact losses.What the first scout ships found is a fully intact Alfrun Station, minus the Research Habitat section. In fact, with how there isn't even any debris to be found in the space around it, asteroids not counted in, one could be forgiven if one were to think that nothing of note happened. Only the gap where the Research Habitat used to be is a testament that 'something' happened.Carefully, the scouts made contact with the station AI, and using pre-supplied administrative codes, they boarded the station.Boarding the station, they were surprised to discover that critical systems such as life support, lights and gravity control are running smoothly. It is very eerie for them to arrive on a station as empty as this but in actual fact is running smoothly. For some of them, memories about stories of haunted stations where there are ghosts or unknown beings preying on humans start to give them pause. Only the iron willed captain insisted that they head on to the station bridge.Upon arrival on the bridge, they were greeted by a the voice of the AI welcoming them and the view of countless monitors switched on and showing the last task their users were doing before abandoning them."Well, not much of a haunted station now is it?"Captain Mikhail Anosov snidely remarked to his team, reminding them of how they initially were a bit apprehensive when boarding the station."No need to make fun of us capt, we know we were mistaken."Lieutenant Aleandra Aristova retorted to her captain."Alright, lets begin data retrieval. Oleg! Access the main bridge console and give the data for the whole day leading up to the incident and after. Send any interesting ones to my console here directly.""Da, captain."Junior Lieutenant Oleg Primakov went to main bridge and started loading all the data requested by the captain. Of note, is the 30 minutes before the incident and what happened after."Captain, I think its better that I load up the bridge main monitor for the visual feed. Is that okay with you?"Oleg inquired of his captain."Alright. High Command did instruct us to find out and filter for any important data first. Bring it up on the main monitor then!""Rerouting data. Main screen receiving. Loading up the 30 minutes immediately prior to the incident.""Get a seat first chaps. Might take a while."Captain Mikhail reminded his team.The monitor loaded and started by showing the image of the Vehicle 3410 gently exiting the portal."Wait! Is that the rumored Heaven's Gate?"Captain Mikhail asked in surprise."A moment please, sir. Yes sir, the data is marked as the Heaven's Gate Project visual record of their latest experiment."Lieutenant Aleandra who was accessing the archive section confirmed it."What's that sir?"One of the team members inquired."I've only heard rumors myself. But it's a project that's been ongoing since before our grandfather's or even our grandfather's grandfather's time."O_O "Sir, that would make it almost 2 centuries!!!""You're right. The rumor has been floating around for that long, it's just that with no proof, it stayed a rumor. But apparently it's not just a rumor now.""So what is it supposed to do?""I'm sure you're aware of how important our HyperLight engines are, correct?""Are you pulling our leg sir? Everyone knows that. It's something we've been taught since our kindergartens!""Well then, imagine a portal in space. A portal where you can just enter it, and come out anywhere there is a designated exit portal. And the distance doesn't matter. You enter above Earth in the solar system, and you exit in Alpha Centauri.""Oh my god! That would revolutionize our whole species! Not just space travel! Everything!""Yes. Nicely put. And it was supposed to be a rumor. Something we're aspiring to do. And apparently this station is a place where the research for that is being done. And judging from the visual feed there, they've succeeded multiple times.""But, why is the system showing us this feed when we're accessing the time closest to the incident?"Just as this question was asked, they saw the jubilant research teams faces change to horror upon hearing this announcement.-"SIR!!!!! A PRIORITY 1 WARNING FROM THE ASTRONOMICAL OBSERVATORY!!!!""Relay the warning right here right now!""Sir! They have just detected an immense CME coronal mass ejection event happening at Proxima Centauri! The scale is such that it carries 5 times the danger of a Carrington Storm. The solar wind will hit us in approximately 30 minutes!""!!!! Retrieve the vehicle ASAP!! And begin shutdown sequence immediately!!"-After that, they viewed the visual feed.Watching in silence as Professor Zuman Raph bravely stayed behind to attempt unlocking the Heaven's Gate rings.Silently observing as the visual feed showed his casual exchange with Professor Doctor Dalbir Singh.Horror crept into their eyes each time the AI announced of the shockwaves arrival.Admiration gleamed in their eyes as they watched Professor Zuman heroically rise up each time he was thrown to the floor and resume his attempt to unlock the rings.Even though the evidence available already stated that he failed, they can't help feeling hopeful for him especially after each successful unlocks. Of most impact is him manually activating the magnetic cranes. Their hearts was hopeful for him, especially after the magnetic cranes successfully locked on and briefly stopped the rings.However, fate is not to be denied so simply.The last shockwave that jolted loose all the magnetic cranes gave them a taste of despair watching how human will still loses out against nature.They solemnly witnessed his last exchange with Dalbir and Dalbir's shuttle escape from the vicinity.The scene that touched them the most was where Professor Zuman asked for his favourite music before slowly laying himself down on the floor while humming to himself. After that, only static.-Silence reigned for a few minutes. There were a few of them with glittering eyes.As much as they are battle hardened soldiers used to conflicts and danger, this touched them on a deeper level.What they had just watched basically amounted to a singular weak human, doing his best to fight against nature, against fate, so that his race, Humanity will have a chance of survival in this world.This directly spoke to the warrior in them, that this fallen man is a hero of Humanity.And precisely because he has fallen, it makes their task all the more urgent.Especially after they realized that this project succeeded!Humanity haven't just taken a step. They've taken a running leap towards the stars!"Oleg! Is there nothing after that?"Mikhail asked in a rushed tone."Beg pardon captain, there's nothing. Apparently the signal from the detached Research Habitat cut off at that moment.""Well how about station visual scanners?""Bringing up the visual feed from that time, right now."What they saw, was a distant view of the massive 5km square, with a height of 2km, Research Habitat floating in space, until the moment when a kaleidoscopic gigantic sphere appeared and engulfed the Habitat. After a few minutes, the portal imploded and started to disappear. When the kaleidoscopic sphere fully disappeared, where the Research Habitat used to be is just an empty spot in space."What happened! Where did that sphere come from?!"Captain Mikhail shouted in surprise."Sir, from visual scans and matter scans, the sphere originated from INSIDE the Habitat. It must be the out of control Heaven's Gate portal sir. It grew to that size before imploding. And taking everything inside with it.""How about Professor Zuman? Any chances of him surviving?""Sir, I am sorry to report this, but station scan records detect no escape pods being launched or even any emergency shuttles forcefully making a departure from the Research Habitat."Silence all around."So be it then. We still need to do our job here. Have you established contact with GHC, Varik?"Yes sir. As we speak, I am already relaying all the data we've reviewed so far."Ensign Varik Helgen replied."Good."-The scout team resumed their task after that in a somber mood. They were doing it diligently and with none of their usual relaxed competency. It's as if they don't dare to slack off or even allow themselves the illusion of slacking off. They just want to finish everything in a hurry and make a full report to GHC so that one man's contribution will not go to waste.Yes, they, as a team, want the person, Professor Zuman Raph, to receive his just due as a person who has contributed to Humanity in such a big way. And to them, the best way they can contribute to this is by doing their work quickly and thoroughly, as fast as they can."Captain. GHC have responded. They have acknowledged receipt of data and even know are convening an emergency response meeting.""How do you know of this?""It is because they want us to present our reports directly to that meeting sir.""Alright. We've done our part. Now it's all left to the higher ups."Captain Mikhail sighed in relief.-"So, sir, how long you think before we'll start using this, Heaven's Gate thing?"A curious team member asked him."Probably a few years. You yourself saw how a natural disaster resulted in the man behind this project losing his life. I'm guessing a few years while they make sure the incident today doesn't repeat itself and other safeguards are installed. After that, well, start your morning on Earth, have lunch in the afternoon on Alpha Centauri I guess?"And the team continued on discussing the repercussions this might have on the human race.As they worked on, the Station AI kept a silent watch behind. The AI has no feelings. Yet, there is a gap in the processing. The AI is now aware that Zuman Raph will no longer be part of the station manifest. The person who keeps on thanking the AI even though the AI is not a person and has no feelings, is now no more. This fact has been processed so many times by the AI. It is highly likely that the maintenance team will discover on their next maintenance round that the AI has developed hints of a personality.But that is a story for another day.
