Book V Preview

Long Road Home

Thren is content with his life. His five-year reign as the champion of the Hawwain Nationals has become legendary. His children, on the other hand, have grown up hearing numerous stories of the Odyssey exploits and have decided that they desire similar adventures for their resumes. They collaborate with the children of Sophia and Marcto, and with the support of Gor’Vath, they devise a scenario intended to entice Thren to return his homeworld under the pretext of checking on his wife and children.

Additionally, they express a wish to meet their half-siblings. Gor”Vath has already placed Thren in a difficult position, as his social campaign to “Reunite” Thren with his long-lost family has already amassed $50 billion and continues to grow.

However, even if he WANTED to go home, there are a couple of minor issues.

1. He believes that his home star system is located on the opposite side of the core of the Milky Way Galaxy, approximately 100,00 light-years away, although this remains uncertain.
2. Currently, there is no known method to traverse this distance in less than 10,000 years.
3. Achieving such travel would require the construction of a Phase 4 engine - an advancement that currently exists only as a theoretical concept.
4. Phase 4 engines necessitate Velurium, a resource that is not available in this section of the galaxy.
5. They do not possess an operational starship; the Odyssey II has been retired and is now displayed alongside the Odyssey I in a museum.

All the children are in agreement. If you don’t try, you will not know if it can be done.
General Harlan’s wife, Elena, was no help when Thren asked his about his chances of solving those minor issues. She said, “The impossible is not impossible; it just takes a little longer and requires some out-of-the-box thinking.” She paused and added, “Let me think about it."

Right then, he knew he was doomed.