"alpha transition completed" the computer chimed, the screen showed distance traveled. the ship was traveling along a hyperlane in the fourth dimension, no it did not show an image in four dimensions, it showed a 2D map slightly folded in what would be the third dimension, representing the fourth.
"we should arrive at the sigma gravity well in a little while, get some rest will ya" Sam told Etrius "you had a hard day already, relax"
"Im fine" Etris grumbled
"well, you came within an inch of death, i think that counts as a hard day"
"and you have had at least 20, the score isn't even"
Sam sighed "fine, stay on the bridge then, i might need some help with these standing waves". Etrius got into the navigators seat and sat down, issuing orders to the computer and its various AI helpers. Life went on, and Sam retired to the mess for a drink before they would hit the gravitational standing waves. The algorithms were already set but sometimes they required fine tuning due to the standing waves being anomalous in themselves, they were unpredictable.
"computer, give me an ETA on those standing waves" Etrius said absentmindedly. the computer replied back, changing its tone to match Etrius's mood "we will enter the wave sector in aproximatly 30 minutes, systems are in sufficient condition for me to do it myself if need be" it said. "hmm, no need, Sam should be here in a few minutes, run some diagnostics of the weapons and see if the reactor needs more fuel" He said, he leaned back and closed his eyes, they had planted a Delta bot on Sigma quite a while ago but had lost contact with it. He woundered what might have happened.
------------------------------------------------------------
[a few minutes later]
Sam walked in with a thermos full of coffee, and sat down in the captains chair. turning it to face the display, he took a sip and began tapping buttons on the command console. he and Etrius nodded their acknowledgement and continued working. "Entering gravitational standing waves" the computer chirped and the ship sped up slightly. the entire vessel began shaking like a leaf in a hurricane as the algorithm calculated and corrected course, dodging the crests of the waves so as to avoid being torn to pieces. if they had been using the tunnel drive than they would not have worried because the standing waves have almost no effect when tunneling through the lower bands of hyper.
unfortunately they were lane driving and even the inertial dampening systems were being pushed to the limit, but inertial dampeners were never ment to do this kind of stuff. red lights flashed all over the bridge and screens began to go blank as power was rerouted, to engines. the engines swiveled about like crazy, narrowly avoiding each energy spike, encouraging the sublight engines to attempt to help maneuvering.
Both sets of hands flew across the consoles and adjusted the algorithm, directed the AIs and kept monitor over the fusion reaction going on in the microstar. the reactor began redlining as it attempted to squeeze every last joule of energy from its slowly depleting deuterium supply, it still had about 50% more fuel to burn through but the number was dropping and they really did not want to switch to He3 for fusion. the stuff was expensive and it still took three days for the resulting Li6 to turn into helium.
the display finally blipped that they were approaching their destination and showed the blip nearing the end of the channel that was the hyper-lane. once they reached the gravity well, they would drop out instantly but they still had to get through this. despite everything going on, it was almost dead silent with the exception of the coffee thermos rolling around everywhere. communication was now being done via neural interface with the ship and with each other, power had been cut to the intercom and all but three nuke launchers, the laser broadsides were being fired to expel waste heat from the reactor which was going crazy. the heat sink was starting to get to the point where the carbon was starting to vaporize.
Sam whispered to Etrius through clenched teeth "just a little bit longer, we're almost there, hold on" he began sweating profusely and his fingers became a blur. typing a new algorithm he said "alright dude, computer, prepare to emerge from the hyper bands"
