Prospero turned to greet them as a group. “To the Caleb Research Facility welcome. I Prospero, the only inhabitant am. I every aspect of this facility a quanta-nanocode being with control.”
“A young daughter still here with I thought,” said the Admiral.
“My daughter with the ship The Beyonder where most of the parts I from need came departed.”
Admiral Mull thought he had probably destroyed The Beyonder before that moment. “You me that it The Beyonder that most of your components are telling was delivered?”
Prospero didn’t know why that surprised the Admiral. “Yes. The Beyonder Captain Mynervood commanded by.”
“Captain Mynervood?”
It had not been long after that when Admiral Mull decided to not stay even a night at the planet Caleb. He suddenly didn’t want to waste any time in getting to Doldoria as fast as he could. The crew became noticeably disappointed by the sudden hurry from the orbit of one of these rare visits to a planet on the endless journeys through empty space.
Admiral Mull did find time to show Beatarkameed’s physical form to Prospero. Prospero had been amazed by all the quanta-nanocoded physical forms that were arriving for him to gather precious data on. The quanta-nanocode breakthroughs made by Pripican scientists were the main subject of most Nephrican espionage at this time of the Hyper-acceleration Age of Nephapricus.
Beatariel once again had been sent into a device to examine it for Prospero and the Admiral. It didn’t take Beatariel long at all to track down Beatarkameed. It tried to stop Beatarkameed from fleeing. “Don’t run away. I will not betray your presence to my masters in the greater dimension beyond.” Now that Beatariel had a personal agenda to save the Calebites it began to think for itself outside of the orders of Prospero. Beatariel, the cloned quanta-nanocode being had been growing up.
“Thanks for not being hostile. I am Beatarkameed, and this domain you explore is my physical form that was stolen by the Admiral.”
Beatariel had just been thrilled to have met another quanta-nanocoded friend. “Let me show you some of my inventions that were inspired by a previous visitor and friend named Begalius. It is made of something called quanta-optic-nanocode.”
On this level of reality Beatarkameed had been able to appreciate the difference in the manipulation of molecular quantum states in the quanta-optic-nanocode creations that Beatariel produced.
Beatarkameed wanted to show Beatariel an invention of its own. “Here, let me show you a communication device that I only recently discovered actually works. After the ship decreased its speed to arrive here in this star system I was able to contact a friend of mine who is living on a planet orbiting the star Ea. Beatarkameed started speaking into its small communication device in its nanobot hand. “Hagan? Hagan, it’s me Beatarkameed again. Are you there?”
A quanta-nanocoded screen appeared above them before the two quanta-nanocode beings to display the one-eyed Nephrican face of Hagan Hiedalli. “Beatarkameed again hello. I this communicator with me at all times am keeping. This an amazing discovery is.”
Beatariel became impressed with the first demonstrable quanta-communication across more than 3 light years with only a slight 10-second delay in transmissions. It had been like watching an impossible magic trick.
Beatarkameed made Beatariel another quanta-synchronized communication device, and told it to wait until it made contact from the Dol star system that had also been almost 3 light-years away. After that Beatariel waited patiently to hear from its newfound friend. Before this Beatarkameed had technically been in two locations, there and with Hagan on the planet Nephrica, but now after leaving a quanta-synchronized part of itself on Caleb the quanta-nanocode being would now be in three places at the same time.
Beatariel had been able to compile some interesting data on the surrounding quanta-nanocoded physical form for its master Prospero that excluded any trace of its new friend Beatarkameed who lived there after all. While Beatariel waited to hear from its friend it continued to use the extra surplus of equipment to continue working on the structure to save the Calebites. All kinds of new ideas were filling its compiler along with the implications of the exotic elements that it now possessed from all the leftover cargo.
Chapter 11
The Beyonder eventually began slowing down on its way to the star Dol with its propulsion section now swung around the center of the ship to the front. Ferdinand and Randa stood at a view portal to admire the glory of the 2nd Age of Magphoreus. The Beyonder had several view portal stations where viewers could work controls that swung the view outside the ship in any desired direction. They had worked the image on the screen towards the front of the ship to watch the star Dol, which began to grow with the ship’s approach.
The star Dol had been the largest and brightest star in the view portal. It grew from a star into a sun as The Beyonder drew closer. It took several ship cycles for Ferdinand to really begin to understand Randa’s Nephrican dialect, but now he had been much better at piecing her sentences together. It seemed Randa had always been better at understanding the Pripican way of speech. All Nephricans still spoke the way they did with no more interest in learning to speak like Pripicans than Pripicans had for Nephrican grammar.
Randa and Ferdinand were enjoying this moment on The Beyonder as they sped through the dimension of hyper-acceleration. The beauty of the stars as they reflected upon Randa’s baldhead had been enough to make the Pripican in Ferdinand spontaneously sing a song. Randa enjoyed this about Ferdinand and his kind, but she would never join in. That had been because Randa inherited the tone-deafness of the Nephricans, and Randa preferred to just be mesmerized by this Pripican behavior.
“For us I rejoice
since the pain that has been.
This love now my choice
for you I have seen.
I may drown in you
in this wonderful dream.
Never cure this dream will I do
as long as we are a team.
This moment forever a precious treat
for us to rejoice
as long as I am with you Randa my sweet,
this love now my choice.”
Ferdinand’s eyes mesmerized Randa as she enjoyed the song, and the moment called for another kiss. Ferdinand began to embrace his way to Randa’s waiting lips when suddenly Randa pulled away. She let out a scream as if a sudden stabbing pain had just struck her. She bent over with her hands on her abdomen to indicate the source of the stabbing pain.
Ferdinand looked around in a panic. “Somebody help! We need the ship’s doctor! Something has happened to Randa! Help!”
Dr. Thelem, Ferdinand, and Randa.
The crew of The Beyonder is no stranger to sudden emergencies in deep space. Within seconds several Nephrican and humanoid Eagolim crewmembers were on the scene to assist. They were beginning to conclude that they could move her, and were starting to pick Randa up to take her to the sick bay when Dr. Thelem arrived on the scene with a virtual particle anti-gravity stretcher.
“Wait! Me her here examine let. You her on this stretcher carefully place can.”
They put Randa on the stretcher, which the doctor raised up to examine Randa while standing. Ferdinand only then noticed that Randa’s ribs showed beneath her skin, and her arms and legs seemed thinner than just moments ago. The only area of her body not getting thinner had been her stomach, which seemed to be growing. Most of Randa’s body however, withered before Ferdinand’s eyes.
Dr. Thelem had already suspected what this could be, and it only took a few seconds for the Dr. to conclude that it had been what she had feared.
“I yet to how determine have, but this young female pregnant is. We not much time before she dies have! She already a lot of weight lost has. Quick! We to her to the infirmary get need!”
*
This happened around the same time that Lockfreedow finally decided to show the Captain the quanta-optic-nanocode project he had been working on. For many cycles Lockfr
eedow worked tirelessly cloning and compiling a quanta-optic-nanocode project of his own.
The Captain had actually been looking forward to finally seeing what his first mate had been working on. Captain Mynervood already knew of Lockfreedow’s expertise with quanta-nanocode programming for a long time. It happened to be Lockfreedow’s second passion next to deep space travel. Both cutting edge technologies were altering reality as they knew it at this time.
“I forward to this for a long time now seeing looking have been. I the opportunity appreciate.”
Lockfreedow felt nervous about this unveiling. “I Captain that you impressed be will think.”
They entered the quarters of Lockfreedow where there stood a life-sized mirror in the middle of the room. The mirror displayed reflections of the Captain and the first mate as they walked through the door.
“That my invention right there is.”
The Captain examined himself in the mirror for a couple seconds. Then he looked over the carefully constructed quanta-nanocoded technology that made up the frame of this electronic mirror program. Then he just had to turn to Lockfreedow to say, “This like a lot of quanta-nanocoding to mirror technology we still with more primitive technology create can programming looks.”
“Ahh! This technology however, a quanta-optic-nanocoded mirror that every reflected photon a quanta-optic-nanocoded hologram projection into a warp dimension translates is. This portal between these two dimensions is. You actually places with your quanta-optic-nanocode hologram projection exchange can.”
Lockfreedow gestured to the Captain to test the portal. The Captain reluctantly approached the mirror again. First he tried a tentacle that poked right into the mirror as a quanta-optic-hologram projection of the Captain’s tentacle extended from the mirror into this reality. It had been 3-dimensional, but seemed to be an exact reflection of the Captain’s tentacle pointing back at him. The Captain withdrew the arm as the refection returned to the mirror dimension, and then he felt his tentacle with the other hand. It had been just fine, and seemed unaffected by the trip into warp space.
Lockfreedow had already tested this and concluded it to be safe. “This just a harmless 3-dimensional reflection that still just your reflected photon’s up made is. It only you just like a regular mirror reflection is imitate will. The implication that it you to this, extra warp space of quanta-optic-nanocode reality made enter allows is.”
The Captain summoned some more courage for the exploration into the unknown. He, carefully at first, started to enter the mirror portal. He overlapped the quanta-optic-nanocoded reflection of himself escaping the mirror dimension at the same time. Then the real Captain Mynervood stood inside the mirror while a quanta-optic-nanocoded imposter stood in the room still exactly imitating everything the real Captain Mynervood did in the reflected dimension. They both spoke simultaneously, and sounded like two voices. “You really something amazing Lockfreedow invented have.”
The Captain in the mirror dimension continued to walk around the room. Meanwhile the reflection continued to do exactly what the other Captain did, but this reflection had been more than just a reflection. It had the ability to also do anything that the Captain in the holographic dimension did. The reflection could imitate solidity.
*
Begalius flew outside its physical form that hung around the Captain’s neck when the Captain entered the quanta-optic-nanocoded dimension. Begalius had been in the room at the time, and had been even more cautious about exchanging places with a quanta-optic-nanocode replica of a quanta-nanocode being. Like Captain Mynervood, Begalius approached the mirror image to observe its reflection. The reflection seemed to have more complexity than Begalius because of the difference in base code at the microscopic level.
As Begalius observed Lockfreedow’s invention it became better able to notice these differences. The quanta-optic-nanocoded warp space dimension had been activated by reflected photons from reality, which were translated into quanta-optic-nanocode pixels in a warp dimension. Even the reflection of Captain Mynervood at this level of size, looked like a crude replica to Begalius. This had a lot to do with the crude methods Lockfreedow had to use for making this invention. Lockfreedow could have made a much more amazing mirror with assistance from Begalius who had been, after all, the inventor of quanta-optic-nanocode.
Begalius had never thought of using its invention in this way before. Begalius had always created quanta-optic-nanocode constructs that were imitations, and not reflections. It looked directly into the reflection of itself. It seemed to imitate Begalius, but there had been some differences as if the reflection only pretended to be a reflection. Begalius calculated that it had been a phenomenon similar to the quantum uncertainty principle at play between it and the program. Then it noticed the header on its reflection had also been flipped the way it appeared on Beatariel, the being it had met back on the planet Caleb.
Then suddenly its reflection lashed out at Begalius all on its own. Begalius moved away from the mirror as its reflection, all on its own, clawed through the mirror into reality. When Begalius moved away it had the effect of also pulling the quanta-optic-nanocode reflection away back into the programmed dimension. The reflection still had been at the mercy of the nature of the mirror program linking it to reflected photons. The reflection made a frustrated cry at that moment, also all by itself. Begalius realized that from this microscopic perspective there had been more to those shadow reflections than Lockfreedow realized.
*
Captain Mynervood still stood in the holographic reality being projected on a warp dimension made up of quanta-optic-nanocoded photon reflections. He approached the doorway within the reflected mirror dimension that led out of Lockfreedow’s room. His reflection out in the real dimension also reached for the door control in this reality.
Lockfreedow then decided to say, “The warp dimension limited to only the photon information into it sent is. You the limit to that dimension are approaching.”
Captain Mynervood reached for the reflected door control as his reflection also did the same in perfect unison. The door in both dimensions opened up. Captain Mynervood looked through the door where reality seemed to come apart into a gray haze. His refection, in perfect obedience, also looked through the door into the reflecting photons of reality beyond. Its quanta-optic-nanocoded eyes must have recorded reality’s image even though the actual Captain only saw the edge of a photon-activated program. The Captain’s reflection could only gaze upon the reality it could never reach beyond the limits to what it really was. It had just been a program from a mirror.
Captain Mynervood closed the door and returned to the mirror-portal. They both overlapped as the real Captain Mynervood returned from the mirror. “Again I your most amazing invention Lockfreedow may be say.”
“Sir, you thank.”
Then a message came on the Captain’s communicator that Randa had been dying from an unexpected pregnancy. Captain Mynervood excused himself, and ran out the door while his quanta-optic-nanocoded reflection also ran out of the reflected door in the mirror to the gray abyss of nothing beyond, which before had been recorded as something much different in reality by quanta-optic-nanocoded eyes.
Then Lockfreedow approached this amazing device in the middle of the room, which also generated an image of Lockfreedow. Then the image of Lockfreedow, along with the entire quanta-optic-nanocoded reality disappeared into gray as the real Lockfreedow turned a switch that shut the program down.
*
Dr. Thelem had rushed to get Randa to the intravenous nourishment equipment that females who become pregnant in hyper-acceleration space have to be quickly hooked up to. Tubes were forcing unbelievable amounts of food into her as it mostly nourished a rapidly growing fetus within. Randa became stable as Captain Mynervood entered the infirmary.
“Dr. Thelem status report.”
Dr. Thelem turned to the Captain to professionally report. “She stable becoming is, and as long as she this way for probably
5 or 6 more ship cycles nourished remains live will becoming is.”
The Captain, Dr. Thelem, and Ferdinand watched the sleeping Randa still upon the floating stretcher. Randa proceeded to rapidly grow a big round pregnant stomach as she slept.
* * *
On Doldoria everybody talked about the wedding of Simeonalli to Diallo on the flat mountaintop south of the city. It had been the first wedding of the new sky-god religion that grew more and more popular after the unfair conviction of Alldegallo. That didn’t stop the High Priest from exercising, as he interpreted it, his legal right to hunt down and kill Alldegallo along with his corrupted followers.
For the purpose of this the High Priest had converted a couple hundred students into an armed and dangerous regiment with swords and fighting sticks. The High Priest had gathered his army for the march into battle, and then he addressed them to do slaughter. “Truly the Lord Ei hath delivered Alldegallo and his appalling followers into our hands for they shall faint at the sight of us! And it shall be that their blood shall be upon their head, and we will be guiltless, and whosoever shall be amongst Alldegallo shall have blood spilt! Now get you all to the mountain sacred to Alldegallo for this battle, and thus afterwards may ye go your way.”
Then the army of students all said, more or less together, “We will be blameless for thou has made us swear the oath onto Ei the god of truth.”
*
On the mountaintop a wedding had been in progress, with Doldorians climbing up and down the mountainside to run errands as they were preparing for the big event. Simeonalli had been quite popular among residents of Trolluer, and this wedding had an unexpected promotional effect on Alldegallo’s religion.
Alldegallo wanted to see his aunt before the wedding started, and had entered the tent where Diallo prepared herself with wedding adornments. “Aunt Diallo, I wanted to see you once more before matrimony doth take you on this new path in life.”