folded. He looked over at Debbie. She had a dreamy expression on her face, the same look she got whenever she was envisioning herself as the airplane pilot, astronaut, president. No one else was talking now, so Ryder asked, “What’s next?”
Chapter 6: Faster Than a Speeding Bullet
Ryder argued with Mr. Small about their speed of travel when he informed them that Demeter was over one hundred light years from Earth.
“That’s impossible!” Ryder began. “We cannot travel faster than the speed of light, or we would be instantly converted to energy.”
“That is one theory,” Mr. Small responded.
“Wait, I know. We’re going to dive through a wormhole,” Joel interjected.
“That’s going to be cool,” added his brother Randy.
“That’s another theory. I’d rather not try,” Mr. Small said and then smiled.
“So we’re going to pass through a gate built by an ancient, unidentified starfaring culture?” Cynthia asked.
Ryder smiled. He’d seen that movie too.
“Afraid not,” Mr. Small said with a sigh, “but it would be interesting to find one of those.”
“So how are we going to do it?” Ryder asked.
“We’re just going to keep accelerating,” Mr. Small replied.
“Then we can’t go faster than the speed of light.”
Mr. Small pulled out a toy car. It appeared that he was just waiting to put it on the table. “How many of you have ever ridden in a car like this?” he asked.
Debbie quickly responded, “Not me. I’m way too big to get inside that.”
Everyone laughed.
“I’m using the model as a visual aid,” Mr. Small began. “I will presume that you all have ridden in automobiles. When the car is driving at a regular speed, do you feel like you’re moving?”
Ryder remembered driving in the family van and playing card games with Debbie. “No, I don’t feel any motion except when Dad brakes or swerves.”
“Mom’s usually the one swerving,” Debbie laughed.
“If you can, imagine traveling in a car as being inside a bubble. The vehicle can accelerate, and you feel the pressure of the acceleration. If the car swerves, you feel the pressure from side to side. But in reality you’re in a sort of bubble that protects you. The inside remains constant. We can accelerate beyond the speed of light because of the nature of the exterior of our ship. That is our magic , if you will. There is nothing mysterious about the fact that we are not suddenly turned to energy, as we reside inside the protective bubble of the ship. On the other hand, I would prefer that the ship not make a sudden left turn. Imagine our cells smashed against the far wall if we were to turn at our current speed, which is?” He turned to Miss Li.
“We just passed three hundred thousand miles per second,” she responded. “We will continue to accelerate for the next thirty-six hours.”
Ryder looked out the window expecting to see long flashes of light or total darkness. The stars were still there, and still seemed motionless, except for one reddish colored splash of light to the left. “Is that a comet?” Ryder asked.
Mr. Small walked around the table and looked out Ryder’s window. “That,” exclaimed Mr. Small, “is Mars. It is close enough that the distortion of light is clear. It does sort of look like a comet, doesn’t it?”
Mr. Small and Miss Li continued leading discussions with the group. They covered mathematics, science, reading, and writing. It felt like regular school days. But they also discussed Demeter and the lifestyles, conditions, and cultures they would be facing.
“Demeter is one of three way stations between the Saggitarius and Perseus arms of the Milky Way. Control of the way stations has shifted back and forth over the past ten thousand years. Demeter is relatively small, approximately one thousand miles in diameter. One of its best defensive features is that it is located between three star systems, but nearly a light year away from each of them.”
“It sounds
Chapter 6: Faster Than a Speeding Bullet
Ryder argued with Mr. Small about their speed of travel when he informed them that Demeter was over one hundred light years from Earth.
“That’s impossible!” Ryder began. “We cannot travel faster than the speed of light, or we would be instantly converted to energy.”
“That is one theory,” Mr. Small responded.
“Wait, I know. We’re going to dive through a wormhole,” Joel interjected.
“That’s going to be cool,” added his brother Randy.
“That’s another theory. I’d rather not try,” Mr. Small said and then smiled.
“So we’re going to pass through a gate built by an ancient, unidentified starfaring culture?” Cynthia asked.
Ryder smiled. He’d seen that movie too.
“Afraid not,” Mr. Small said with a sigh, “but it would be interesting to find one of those.”
“So how are we going to do it?” Ryder asked.
“We’re just going to keep accelerating,” Mr. Small replied.
“Then we can’t go faster than the speed of light.”
Mr. Small pulled out a toy car. It appeared that he was just waiting to put it on the table. “How many of you have ever ridden in a car like this?” he asked.
Debbie quickly responded, “Not me. I’m way too big to get inside that.”
Everyone laughed.
“I’m using the model as a visual aid,” Mr. Small began. “I will presume that you all have ridden in automobiles. When the car is driving at a regular speed, do you feel like you’re moving?”
Ryder remembered driving in the family van and playing card games with Debbie. “No, I don’t feel any motion except when Dad brakes or swerves.”
“Mom’s usually the one swerving,” Debbie laughed.
“If you can, imagine traveling in a car as being inside a bubble. The vehicle can accelerate, and you feel the pressure of the acceleration. If the car swerves, you feel the pressure from side to side. But in reality you’re in a sort of bubble that protects you. The inside remains constant. We can accelerate beyond the speed of light because of the nature of the exterior of our ship. That is our magic , if you will. There is nothing mysterious about the fact that we are not suddenly turned to energy, as we reside inside the protective bubble of the ship. On the other hand, I would prefer that the ship not make a sudden left turn. Imagine our cells smashed against the far wall if we were to turn at our current speed, which is?” He turned to Miss Li.
“We just passed three hundred thousand miles per second,” she responded. “We will continue to accelerate for the next thirty-six hours.”
Ryder looked out the window expecting to see long flashes of light or total darkness. The stars were still there, and still seemed motionless, except for one reddish colored splash of light to the left. “Is that a comet?” Ryder asked.
Mr. Small walked around the table and looked out Ryder’s window. “That,” exclaimed Mr. Small, “is Mars. It is close enough that the distortion of light is clear. It does sort of look like a comet, doesn’t it?”
Mr. Small and Miss Li continued leading discussions with the group. They covered mathematics, science, reading, and writing. It felt like regular school days. But they also discussed Demeter and the lifestyles, conditions, and cultures they would be facing.
“Demeter is one of three way stations between the Saggitarius and Perseus arms of the Milky Way. Control of the way stations has shifted back and forth over the past ten thousand years. Demeter is relatively small, approximately one thousand miles in diameter. One of its best defensive features is that it is located between three star systems, but nearly a light year away from each of them.”
“It sounds
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