Two years of the voyage across the endless galaxy had passed. Arcad began walking and talking quite early, much to GAS’ joy, who was now constantly telling the toddler funny stories about Earth and space complete with pictures which it projected on the wall in the nursery. GAS, having gotten carried away with raising the child, entirely neglected to monitor the ship’s flight path – when it did happen to check the ship’s coordinates, it was surprised to discover that the ship had deviated far from its planned route. It was flying in a huge, inconceivable arc in space, caught in the intergalactic curvature of space-time that GAS had failed to take into account. After having corrected the course and factored in the drift, GAS re-calculated the ETA to the planet Hop and became slightly sad at his conclusions – it would take almost twice as long to get there. GAS reported this unfortunate news to Valentin.
“My master, the curvature of the galactic space has slightly altered our ship’s course and we shall arrive to the star Asteroin somewhat later than planned.”
“And when should we expect to arrive at this goddamn planet, my dear?” asked Valentin lazily.
“According to my calculations, it will take as long as we already have flown, if not longer.”
“That’s unbearable!” the expedition’s director exclaimed in indignation. “Can anything be done in this situation?”
“No, nothing, my master. I have already attempted every possible solution I could, and have brought the ship’s course back to the correct direction. The universe is cruel and unpredictable,” GAS philosophized.
“The space curvature can permanently alter the physical appearance of any crew members who are awake, so for that reason I suggest that you and Elya go into stasis for the remainder of the flight to Hop. This way your bodies will remain intact, and time will pass much faster for you.”
“Really? And what about the kid?”
“I will take care of Arcad. As he is a growing child, his body is not in danger of being affected by the curve. However, he also can’t be put into hibernation while he is maturing, so during your sleep my assistants and I will raise him in lieu.”
“But how will I be able to manage the flight?”
“When an emergency occurs, I’ll wake you up, my master.”
‘Oh all right, go ahead, ‘cause I’m sick and tired of lying on the couch and watching the TV serials over and over about ten times now. I can’t wait to arrive there, but you are wasting our time. Just give us a separate room to hibernate in.”