Shocking revelation

Cillian sat alone on a comfortable sofa, his disbelief palpable. The reality of his situation was far from what he had expected upon learning of his impending imprisonment in the notorious Tartarus prison. This facility was reserved exclusively for the confinement of dangerous pioneers – not the common criminals, but the ones with the power to wreak havoc on a grand scale.

Yet, Cillian's confinement was different. Rather than being confined to a cell or restrained, he found himself with a surprising degree of freedom to move about the shuttle. The thought crossed his mind: weren't they concerned that he might try something? But then again, with a B-grade pioneer board, where could he escape to in the vast expanse of space?

Despite this, an unsettling feeling gnawed at him. Deep down, Cillian sensed that something was amiss, but he suppressed his suspicions, knowing he couldn't alter the situation. However, as he dwelled on the circumstances, his suspicions only intensified.Gazing out through an observation window into the vast expanse of space he was reminded of the fact that they where yet to jump to hyperspace even after two days after thier departure

In the realm of space travel, humanity had harnessed three distinct methods with their current technology. The first was the tried-and-true conventional thrust-based travel, an avenue for interplanetary journeys. Ideal for traversing shorter distances, it possessed the capability for faster-than-light (FTL) travel, enabling swift movement without any preparations. The second avenue was the intricate network of warp gates, each intricately spatially locked to fixed coordinates. This innovation permitted instantaneous travel between two distant points, transcending the limitations of distance. However, the staggering expense of building and maintaining these gateways increased exponentially with both size and distance, limiting their reach to major planets and military strongholds across the galaxy.

Then, there was the third method – hyperspace travel, the most common of them all. Utilizing a specialized hyperspace engine, ships delved into a dimension layered atop the familiar fourth dimension. This dimension held the potential to drastically reduce travel times, contingent upon the prowess of the onboard hyperdrive. The average ship equipped with this technology could traverse vast expanses of light-years within a mere day of travel. And much like the warp gates, if a higher-dimensional anchor was firmly established, a vessel could seamlessly lock onto it in hyperspace just like ships locating a light house. Such anchors, dependent on their strength and proximity, allowed for instantaneous jumps, across vast distances .

However, the absence of such anchors posed a challenge. Without a designated point to lock onto, ships engaged in hyperspace travel had to make multiple strategic stops to realign their course. This meticulous process involved intricate calculations aimed at averting catastrophic mishaps during the transition between dimensions.

But hyperspace travel in an explored space shouldn't concern for vessels belonging to the United Frontier Fleet. Endowed with powerful hyperspace engines engines and state-of-the-art supercomputers, these ships were designed to navigate the complexities of hyperspace effortlessly, so for them to still be looking for a jump point should be impossible.

As Cillian was busy trying to figure out the situation , the cabin door opened, and Major Andrea entered. Dressed casually unlike their previous encounter, Cillian was surprised by her visit and stood up. "No need to stand up, Cillian. I am not on official business," Major Andrea reassured him taking a seat opposite to him .Suspiciously eyeing her, Cillian hesitated but eventually sat down. "Are you enjoying your stay so far?" the major casually asked. With the realization that he was conversing with a B-ranked pioneer, one that was supposed to keep him in line nonetheless Cillian struggled to respond. As he battled to find his words, Major Andrea spoke up again. "Don't be too tense, Cillian. As you may have already figured out, I have an ulterior motive in speaking to you."

After a few seconds of contemplation, Cillian mustered the courage to ask the question, "Wh... what ulterior motive?" The major just smiled and looked him squarely in the eye, "A proposal – one that will help you escape your current predicament." Cillian gulped down a mouthful of saliva as he realized where this was heading. "What proposal?"

"I have studied your case extensively, and it reeks of suspicion. The idiots at the police would chalk it up to coincidence, but an experienced pioneer like me can recognize foul play using pioneer powers when I see one," the major stated with a serious tone. Cillian was taken aback. His emotions were in turmoil, and he repeated the same words over and over in his mind: 'foul play,' 'pioneer powers.'

Abruptly, Andrea snapped her fingers, pulling Cillian back to reality. Cillian struggled to ask the question he wanted, suppressing his boiling emotions, "So it wasn't me who did it?"

"Most likely not, but don't get me wrong – you did physically murder your family. There is no denying it. But whether it was actually 'you' who was doing it is the actual question," Andrea clarified. Cillian felt something click, and it all made sense – the abnormal temper he felt that day, his blank memories, his possession of enhancers that were exceedingly rare for a civilian like him to acquire. It boggled his mind that the police hadn't seen these obvious signs.

Suddenly, Cillian had a shocking revelation: what if the police were involved too? Not just the police, but the government and the army as well? It made too much sense to dismiss his parents' and brother's abrupt visit as mere coincidence. As Cillian spun theories in his mind, Major Andrea interjected, "Intentional or not, in the public eye, you are the murderer, and your sentence has already been declared. You have no say in it anymore. But I'd like to offer you an alternative."

Cillian, now sober again, practically spat out his words, "Can you help me clear my name?" Andrea shook her head, "That ship has already sailed. You are an intergalactic criminal now. There's no way for you to live a normal life anymore." Cillian's disappointment was palpable, and he slumped back into his seat like a deflated balloon. "But I can offer you the next best option – one that may even help you catch the person who put you in this situation"