Lieutenant Rick Caulker experiences a fleeting thought on whether his first assignment aboard the newly commissioned spacecraft called the Searcher will become eventful or one long mundane trip. The voyage seems to have been dull so far now that the crew is in an orbit of the deep space colony known as Zetoria. Caulker is one of three space personnel investigating a crashed alien vessel on the human colony some years earlier.  

Captain Tom Weller smiles affectionately over to his wife as they watch the adjacent placid nebula on the viewscreen of the ship’s bridge. Caulker simpers a smile of satisfaction as he was the catalyst who instigated the happy couple’s meeting up three years earlier. It was in university where he found himself with a scientific problem. He was trying to disprove some of the well-established theories of quantum physics, such as the ones dealing with quantum field theory. He purported the theory concerning the “standard model” where outside forces could manipulate such a highly sophisticated alien race, especially if they had gained knowledge from far more developed minds and research on methods that humanity cannot achieve because of their physical and scientific limitations.  

Caulker can jump way above these theories and interpret them in an opaque sense of vision that nobody else could see a problem through such a rare angle viewpoint. One afternoon he chaired a debate, and the only participants who didn’t find his findings gibberish were Tom Weller and Selena Arden, two young former students. Caulker’s ideas intrigued them but quickly discovered they had become more and more intrigued with each other. It was not so long after when Caulker had no accommodation because of his parents’ bankruptcy. The young couple offered to put him up in their house. Since then, he views the Wellers as family. 

“Beautiful, isn’t it?” Doctor Selena Weller says to her husband. 

“It sure is, darling. Didn’t I promise I’d take you out to the most exotic farthest reaches of space when we’re on our honeymoon?” 

“You keep your promises. After our honeymoon on the Moon, I’ve learned that they are nice promises.” 

“It’s our second anniversary tomorrow night. Can you think of anywhere more romantic to celebrate it? I also promise you, Selena, that your life would never be boring with me. I hope I’m living up to my pledge.” 

“You are keeping it so far.” 

He reaches out and embraces his love, and they share an affectionate kiss. This confirms to Caulker that his mentor’s marriage became sealed by fate. The oval-shaped ship that is the Searcher had taken three years to arrive at Zetoria from Earth and straight away has assumed orbit of humanity’s first colonial deep space settlement. The tiny ship is the size of two jumbo jets in mass and is like a glowing diamond set against an effulgent green nebula on one side as it assumes its orbit around Zetoria, a planet four times the mass of Earth. 

“The radiation from the adjacent nebula to the Zetorian colony must have concealed planetary scans by the local scientific field studies teams,” reports Caulker as he wipes the cold sweat from his brow. He is busy studying the scans on the Zetorian surface over the last four hours. “Zetoria is also obviously a ‘Super Earth’ planet. Combined with its sheer size and the distance to the capital city. Scans this far out would be very difficult for the local scientists.” 

“Can you determine how long this wreckage has been located there?” asks Weller. 

“The readings estimate about twenty Earth years ago when they crashed. Should I send the findings to the surface, Captain?” 

“Not so fast. We need to investigate further in case there aren’t any surviving hostile aliens down there. I know this is your first assignment, Rick. You don’t want to allow yourself to become overeager without first weighing out the risks involved with the situation.” 

“It’s not so much that, Captain. It’s just I never really brought myself deep down to believe in extraterrestrials even though I used them as subjects in my theories all those years ago.”  

“Well, Rick, centuries ago on Earth they never believed that there were planets capable of sustaining human life out there, but here we are.” 

“You’re right, Tom. I mean Captain Weller. Forgive me, sir; I momentarily forgot we weren’t on a first name basis unlike before we got assigned here.” 

“I’ll forgive you because of your age.” 

“It’s twenty-seven again, sir.” 

“Wait ’till you’re thirty-two.” 

Caulker laughs with ease. Over the years, he had developed a comfortable, safe rapport with him. He watches Tom stepping over to the holo-monitor to see the wreckage for himself and witnesses him becoming enthused, like a child receiving a birthday gift. “I can see this ship comprises organic matter with only its propulsion and interior composed of some metal alloy that is unknown to us. Were they on their way to this world or Earth?” 

Caulker becomes just as exhilarated as Tom over such a notion. 

“Perhaps they were on a mission to start the first contact with humanity?” asked Selena. 

“It’s possible, but it also could have been a malevolent intent that was their mission. We should go d the three of us.” 

Selena turns to her husband and whispers, “Are you sure that is wise? We do not know who or what we’re dealing with down there.” 

“You’re right, but we have to do it my way. The Zetorian colonial government’s relationship with Earth’s central government is under strain. It’s fractious, especially over the last two decades.” 

“I just hope we know what we’re doing.” 

“So do I. Prepare to land the Searcher just a couple of hundred meters away from the wreckage.” 

“Aye, sir,” replies Lt. Caulker. 

As the Searcher makes its descent into Zetoria’s upper atmosphere, it is subject to a little turbulence. The crew is in awe at the unpolluted atmosphere. Selena gazes out on the beautiful terrain filled with extraordinary plants and wildlife. “Look at those trees. They must be ten miles tall!” she says in awe. 

“Try to find a clear patch, Lieutenant. We don’t want to land the ship on a rough surface.” 

“I’ve just discovered the spot,” he replies. 

The ship switches into a lower-powered state so it can enable manual control. Lieutenant Caulker steers the Searcher with sheer skill and ease. Tom goes over to him and places his arm on Caulker’s shoulder. “Nice work, Rick.” 

“Tom, will the Zetorian patrol detect our landing?” asks Selena. 

“Highly unlikely. This ship, even though visible to the naked eye, is blind to sensors, and they have no settlements out this far. Well, what are we waiting for? Let’s get out there and find out what that wreckage is!” 

No sooner had Tom uttered those words then followed with equal eagerness and verve from his wife and Lt. Caulker, and they prepared to leave the ship and step out on an uninhabited continent of Zetoria. The ship’s door opens slowly, revealing the exotic landscape outside. They discover quickly that they were near the coastline, but this is not a beach and they can hear sounds coming from alien wildlife from an adjacent massive jungle. They are now near the crash site of the alien wreck, and the smell of the decomposing organic matter that comprised its hull is repugnant to the investigating human crew members.  

Tom ignores the complaints from his wife and Caulker, and his eyes are immediately drawn to the visible internal workings of the alien craft. “Some kind of propulsion system?” 

Caulker walks over to look for himself. “I guess so. It looks like the power source is still active.” 

A deluge of ideas flood into Tom’s mind. “Captain, I’d say I can recreate this propulsion system on a smaller scale. Just think of the possibilities if we can discover how to replicate this technology.” 

“Tom, are you nuts?” asks his wife. “We don’t know the first thing about this ship, let alone the science behind it.” 

“I don’t know, Rick. We still are at a disadvantage here,” replies Tom. 

“Captain, I must implore you. If I ever had a purpose to come all the way out to this far in deep space, then this is it. I can safely verify that this system uses the same principles as any transport mechanism. The laws of physics are universal. It’s worth the risk.” 

Two days later, Caulker reassembles the alien ship’s systems. He takes everything out and closely studies and maps out how to put them back together again. He also discovers how their system of interstellar travel worked. When they are all back on board, they reconstruct the schematics of the alien vessel on the bridge and on the monitor display aboard the Searcher. 

“These aliens created a synthetic inverse gravitational wave at such a smaller level to enable them to engage in faster-than-light travel. I believe this transported the ship out of phase at the subatomic level with normal space to their desired destination. Only something must have gone wrong because they fell out of this phased state and crash landed here on Zetoria,” Lt. Caulker explains, rather pleased with himself to Tom and his wife, who listened with a sense of wonder. 

“Nice work, Rick. It’s astounding. Nothing short of amazing on how they could harness something like gravitational waves on such a minuscule scale in this way,” replies Captain Weller.  

He then turns to his wife, and before he has the chance to say something next, she injects, “We can still detect natural gravitational waves formed after the Big Bang since then. I remember that when I first went to university before I switched my studies from quantum physics to medicine. This alien race must be so advanced and superior in every way. We must tread with caution.” 

“They may be still unaware of the crash, or it could have been a rogue ship on an unofficial mission, or they could have been the last of their kind.” 

“Lt. Caulker, can we integrate this propulsion system into that of the Searcher’s?” 

“It’s more than possible, but is it wise? Even though integrating wouldn’t take long. My worry would be the effects of an inverse synthetic gravitational wave on us, Captain?” 

“You let me worry about that. The sooner we get back to Earth with our findings and the greatest prize of all mankind, the better.” 

Later that evening, Caulker quickly and skillfully connects the alien FTL propulsion mechanism into the Searcher’s engines. He finds the basic universal mechanical principles enabling him to undertake this task rather easily. The Searcher remains on Zetoria’s uninhabited continent. Tom, who only had a rudimentary knowledge of quantum physics, tries to help where he can. His specialty is having a command pilot in the central Earth command’s space program. 

Tom witnesses the smile on Caulker’s face as nightfall comes in. It is a smile of self-satisfaction at a job well done and humble self-pride. Tom allows Caulker to have his moment in the stars and walks over to congratulate him. “Nice work, Rick. You’ve certainly surpassed yourself yet again.” 

“You wanted it up and running, sir. I believe we can perform a test sequence at your leisure.” 

“What does this test sequence involve exactly?” 

“I will recreate the gravitational wave at such a tiny scale to see if it generates so I can get an idea on how to create one at a more increased frequency.” 

“How soon can you do it?” 

“Anytime now, I guess.” 

“Well, there’s no time like the present. That’s what they say, anyway.” 

“I’ll begin the initiation sequence at once, sir.” 

“This won’t make much noise, will it? Selena needs her sleep.” 

“It shouldn’t wake her up, sir. I’ll begin right away.” 

He methodically begins activating the initiation sequence while his captain watches in amazement at his dexterity, as if he is assembling something as simple as a seesaw.  

“There, ready to go in five seconds, four, three, two, one. And go!” 

They hear a whine and light emanates from the center of the propulsion mechanism where the gravitational wave generator is located. The whining noise grows more intense and becomes louder until it overloads, resulting in a massive energy wave radiating outward. Caulker runs to the other side of the Searcher, steering clear of this energy wave’s initial impact. However, Tom is not so lucky. He withstands the impact of the energy wave, and it knocks him unconscious. Fearing the impact was fatal to his captain, Caulker quickly deactivates the generator and yells out, “Doctor Weller! It’s Tom. He’s—” 

Selena hastily dresses herself in her robe and rushes toward the scene of her fallen husband. “Get my med-kit!” she yells to Caulker.  

He obeys her request without hesitation, and luckily enough, knows where she has kept it. He offers the med-kit to her, and she grabs it, but to her and Caulker’s astonishment, Tom regains consciousness and begins laughing. 

“What’s so funny? Damn you, Tom. You scared me!” 

He gets up. “It’s just, I thought I was somewhere else, someone else. I’m glad to be back.” 

Selena rolls her eyes. To this day, her husband never fails to pique her interest with his offbeat remarks. She turns to Caulker. “Rick, help me bring him inside to the ship’s sick bay.” 

Caulker hurries over to Selena’s location and puts his arms under Tom’s, carrying him back to the Searcher. There, she performs thorough scans of her husband’s physiology right down to the cellular level. She will not take any chances unlike earlier. “What were you thinking, Tom?” she asks as he tries to get up from the bed. 

“I’m fine, apart from a few cosmetic scratches. Tell Lt. Caulker to test again.” 

“What, are you crazy?!” she says, alarmed. “You’re both not to touch that thing until I deem it safe.” 

“I think you’ll find that I outrank you, dear.” 

“I’m being serious. No more. Now get some rest.” 

He laid back on the bed and smiled to himself. “Sure thing, Doc.” 

While Tom and Selena are in sick bay, Lt. Caulker is busy assessing the readings from the ship’s sensors. “That’s strange and not supposed to happen.” He rushes over to the main computer console. What he sees makes him shiver down his spine. This can’t be!”  

Caulker checks and double checks the anomalous readings displayed on the screen. He gets up abruptly and leaves the bridge to head for sick bay. He knows he needs to report the readings right away to his captain. As he makes his way there, thoughts of how precarious this mission is becoming entertain his mind. He discovers it did not accustom him to things in science going a little crazy like they are now and makes a self-discovery of how irrational of a man he is. A pointed-out fact targeted to him all his life, only he often discarded this in disbelief. He now thinks that the other people in his life obviously know him better than himself. He finds this a little disconcerting because he believed himself to be as sure as he thought he was. 

He arrives at the doors of the sick bay and opens them up without a thought, only to witness the captain and his wife celebrating their wedding anniversary in the biblical sense. As the Weller couple is nearly in the midst of their violent throes of passion, something strange occurs. Tom, for a second, appears different and is then back to himself. Caulker doesn’t dare point out anything because he is too shocked and embarrassed and feels voyeuristic. He speaks softly, “My deepest apologies, Captain. Doctor Weller, please forgive me.” 

As the naked couple put their clothes back on and, feeling more embarrassed than Caulker who has now returned to the bridge, mortified, they giggle at one another. 

“I hope he can look at us in the same way as before. We never did that before,” Selena says to her husband. 

“He’ll be fine. I wonder what all the fuss was about to make him barge in on us. We’d better ask him.” 

About ten minutes pass and the Weller couple is decent again, back in their uniforms, as they walk toward the bridge. They find Caulker is not one bit in any way more put out by the recent embarrassing encounter with their marital habits. He is much too consumed and mesmerized by the readings on screen.