Escape from Earth

Through the glass, Yan Xia saw the scene behind the spaceship: the surface of a planet had cracked, with endless lava spreading along the fissures, engulfing oceans and lands. Water evaporated under the intense heat, forming a massive mist that covered the surface of the planet.

Then, a burst of light exploded from within the planet, turning the entire planet as fragile as glass, starting to shatter. His heart felt heavy, and his eyes filled with tears because what was being destroyed was his home, the home of all humanity—the Earth.

One hour ago, humanity's habitat had been directly struck by a powerful gamma-ray burst triggered by a supernova explosion. Under the enormous energy shock, Earth's atmosphere was instantly destroyed, countless lives were lost, and the gamma-ray burst altered the magnetic fields of all the planets in the solar system, including the Sun.

The entire solar system fell into chaos, and Earth's orbit was pulled towards the Sun, torn apart by the immense gravity. Today is April 27th, a grand fireworks display that seems to announce the extinction of humanity.

Yan Xia found it difficult to breathe. He wasn't a top figure, nor a scientific doctor, just an ordinary employee at a new-era artificial intelligence company.

Their AI company had collaborated with a famous rocket company on Earth to design a giant liquid-fueled rocket with a payload exceeding 420 tons, close to the physical limit. Earlier, he was conducting the final round of AI adjustments for the rocket.

Because this rocket carried their company's most advanced AI mainframe, capable of achieving digital computing speeds close to those of a low-end quantum computer. As a core engineer, he had to ensure the stability of the computer software. And it was at this very moment that the apocalypse arrived.

There was no warning because humanity's observational methods couldn't exceed the speed of light. The gamma-ray burst was merely a beam of light! When the gamma-ray burst hit Earth, all electronic devices malfunctioned, inadvertently triggering the rocket's ignition, launching Yan Xia, who was still inside the rocket, away from Earth, narrowly escaping disaster.

"Does this mean I'm the only one left alive?" Yan Xia sat in the cramped cabin, panting. He hadn't undergone professional training, and the rocket's acceleration had caused some issues with his body.

At that moment, the entire cabin lit up, indicating that it had safely passed through the gamma-ray burst. "I hope the electronic instruments are still functioning." When the gamma-ray burst occurred, Yan Xia had urgently shut off the power, unsure if he could still restore it. He pressed the red start button.

All areas lit up, including the core display screen, which made him breathe a sigh of relief. He looked at the navigation display on the screen, showing that the destination was Mars. This spacecraft was originally designed for a manned mission to Mars.

"Hi, Ella." A response echoed in the silent cabin. "How can I assist you?" The AI was still functioning, which greatly uplifted Yan Xia. As the most advanced AI, Ella possessed incredibly powerful computational and information storage capabilities, comparable to an encyclopedia.

"Calculate if there are any survivors on Earth?" Yan Xia still held a glimmer of hope and did not feel alone.

"Unfortunately, after calculation, Ella determined that the probability of life still existing on Earth, apart from you, is 0.0000000000272%. This was not a simple gamma-ray burst but cosmic rays, with individual particles possibly exceeding 10,000 EeV."

"And even if there were life, you wouldn't have the capability to save them." The voice was cold, intensifying Yan Xia's anguish.

"What about the space station?" There must still be astronauts aboard the space station orbiting near Earth.

"Ella is sending out signals..."

"No response!"

"No satellites detected near the shattered Earth."

"Predictions show that after the gamma-ray burst passed through Earth, electronic failures would have caused satellites and space stations near Earth to crash to the ground." There was no more hope. The fact was, he was the only one still alive.

Yan Xia was stunned for a long, long time, memories of family and friends on Earth filling his mind. His gaze gradually lowered. More than an hour had passed, but he had nowhere to go.

He licked his dry lips, feeling helpless. "Ella, analyze the possibility of living on Mars." Mars, the ideal human colony, might become his second home. However, Ella's ruthless response shattered his hope.

"Based on data analysis, the Moon will collide with Earth in 28 years, causing further fragmentation of Earth and accelerating its fall into the Sun."

"When Earth's fragments collide with the Sun's surface, it will trigger a super solar storm."

"The solar storm will sweep through the entire heliosphere of the solar system, and solar flares will bring magnetic storms, damaging electronic devices again.

"Faced with a super solar storm, Mars's surface temperature will rise above 500 degrees Celsius in a short time. By then, the chaotic magnetic field and gravity system might pull Mars towards the Sun, repeating Earth's fate.

"The solar system will undergo an unprecedented reshuffle."

Ella integrated the most comprehensive and advanced human knowledge; its analysis was even referenced in the military field.

Yan Xia had to consider a new plan.

If the entire solar system would become uninhabitable next,

then the only option was to consider a place outside the solar system.

So...

Proxima Centauri?

"Generate a route to Proxima Centauri."

Proxima Centauri b, known as Earth's twin, might be a habitable planet.

"Route generated.

"Current spacecraft speed is 20.3 kilometers per second. The 4.22 light-year journey is estimated to take 62,365 years to reach Proxima Centauri."

More than sixty thousand years?

Yan Xia was stunned.

He knew that Proxima Centauri was already the closest star system to their solar system, but he didn't expect it would take so long to reach.

Originally, the speed of this spacecraft should have been 13 kilometers per second, but the impact of Earth's disintegration had boosted its speed to a new level. However, on the grand scale of the universe, it was still too slow.

By the time they arrived, he might not even have ashes left.

"Plot the optimal route, how much time can be saved?"

Such calculations were beyond human capabilities; it was best to ask Ella.

"Gravity assists can be performed twice, at Jupiter and Neptune, increasing the speed to 35.4 kilometers per second, reducing the estimated travel time to 35,764 years."

It seems that humanity has only taken about ten thousand years to develop from the Neolithic age to the present.

Yan Xia felt that even if he survived, it seemed meaningless; he could only wait for death.

At this moment, Ella continued: "Considering the human lifespan is not that long, it is recommended to modify the spacecraft using metal after reaching the asteroid belt."

Yan Xia asked: "What are your plans?"

"Ella is generating a plan. Plan generation complete..."