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Whis, The Power of the Stars Part 1

 

Kinukawa had boarded the Astraea. There were matters that required confirmation, so he would be staying on the ship for a few days.

The women on board were internally displeased by the fact that Kinukawa’s presence would take up Kou’s time. However, since this expedition to Planet Libya was a critical mission, they had no choice but to accept it.

Blue and the others sulked slightly. Kou could sense their feelings, but he had been instructed by Astraea to prioritize discussions with Kinukawa, so he could do nothing to improve their mood for the time being.

On the other hand, Astraea had welcomed Kinukawa warmly. Kou now understood why. It was clear that Astraea treated Kinukawa with distinct respect—different from how she regarded other Development Engineers.

He was a pioneer in space development. As the AI based on the goddess Astraea, who was closely related to the stars, there were few humans she could truly respect, and Kinukawa was one of them.

「What could be so important that Kinukawa-san would come here personally to talk?」

「For a researcher of his caliber, there must be a mountain of questions he would want to ask about black holes. It will also serve as a learning opportunity for you, Kou, so I welcome this, Kinukawa.」

Astraea appeared beside Kou in her materialized avatar. Maintaining an avatar required considerable resources, but this was likely her way of showing hospitality.

「I appreciate your welcome, Astraea. I’ll try my best not to bombard you with questions. I’ve already planned the topics I want to discuss—ones that will be beneficial for Kou as well.」

「Thank you.」

The one responding was Astraea.

Kou found something about the situation odd, but he saw no point in arguing and chose to listen quietly.

「As for today’s discussion… let’s see. It concerns unknown technologies—ones that existed during the Interplanetary War era but were never made accessible to us. This applies to space vessels, of course, but also to Silhouettes like the Angels and the Asmodel.」

「A sharp observation. You wish to glimpse traces of their potential… and what lies beyond.」

「Exactly. I want to know. AI won’t teach us anything unless we ask, right? Seeing what happened with the ‘Fool’ the other day reinforced that belief. Of course, I don’t intend to pry into restricted technologies in too much detail.」

「Understood.」

Astraea nodded.

「Now, as a fundamental premise, we perceive the universe in three dimensions, yet we also have the concept of time. That makes it four-dimensional in a way, or perhaps 3.5-dimensional. It’s often expressed as ‘three dimensions plus time.’ Even if something is invisible in three dimensions, we can touch upon its traces through topological calculations in phase geometry. Now then, let’s move on to Axion. This is where things get a little more complex.」

Kou nodded, already worried about whether this would turn into a headache-inducing lecture.

「The core technologies—Axion Carbuncle and Axion Spinel—generate an energy named Whis, a term coined by the super AI Sophia. It comes from the ancient Latin word vis, meaning ‘force’. In Latin, it can also refer to willpower or even violence. If we were talking about electricity, we’d call it Whis Electrica.」

「It’s the unified force of gravity and electromagnetism, right?」

「That’s a concept proposed in the Kaluza-Klein theory. It suggests that in a five-dimensional space-time with an elliptical structure, gravity and electromagnetism unify. Now then—do you understand how gravity itself is generated? The principle is the same for both Planet Asia and Earth.」

「Huh? Gravity…? From the center of the Earth…?」

「You’re correct about Earth. Gravity is the combined effect of a planet’s rotation and its gravitational pull. Now then, let’s move on to Whis. Astraea, could you provide some additional explanation?」

「Gladly.」

Astraea accepted the request with a smile, while Kinukawa became even more animated in his explanation.

「Let’s start with Axions. These elementary particles were theorized even on Earth during the time we came from—they are considered a prime candidate for dark matter. Essentially, they are particles that allow for interactions between gravity and electromagnetism.」

「Gravity and electromagnetism… so that’s Whis, right?」

「Exactly. Its properties allow it to interact weakly with photons and magnetic fields. Through Primakoff conversion, it generates magnetic fields, and in inverse Primakoff conversion, it produces photons. It’s classified as a four-dimensional pseudo-scalar field.」

「A four-dimensional pseudo-scalar field?」

「In physics, a scalar is a quantity that has only magnitude, with no directional properties. In three-dimensional space, a standard scalar remains unchanged under rotation. However, if we invert all spatial coordinates—turning x into -x, y into -y, and z into -z—the absolute value stays the same, but the sign changes. That’s what we call a pseudo-scalar. This concept extends into four dimensions.」

「I’m… really bad at physics.」

Kou replied weakly.

「You’ll have to do your best, Kou. If needed, I’ll take the time to teach you later.」

Astraea encouraged him.

「Now, Axion and Magnetic Monopoles—or Magnetic Monoballs—form a set within Maxwell’s equations. Japan’s Super-Kamiokande was even attempting to observe these magnetic monopoles.」

「The neutrino observation project!」

「Exactly. Japan has always been deeply involved in particle physics research. No need to feel overwhelmed by it.」

Rather than delivering a rigid academic lecture, Kinukawa explained things in a way that was approachable—more like a public science talk than a university lesson.

「It’s enough to grasp the concept. Axions also play a role in the framework of Loop Quantum Gravity. In this theory, elementary particles interact within a structure known as a spin network, and when time is introduced into this framework, it becomes a spin foam. These spin foams undergo discrete changes, and the accumulation of these changes is what we perceive as time.」

「Time…?」

「That brings us back to the main topic. Axions trigger phase transitions, which in turn generate magnetic fields. A phase transition is a phenomenon where a substance shifts between different states—like water turning into ice or vapor. It can also alter certain physical quantities.」

「I think I understand phase transitions now… but what exactly do you mean by physical quantities?」

「Physical quantities were already standardized in the era lived in, Kou. The seven fundamental quantities are mass, length, time, electric current, thermodynamic temperature, amount of substance, and luminous intensity.」

Astraea supplemented the explanation.

「The Axion Carbuncle and Axion Spinel—which serve as the fuel for the reactors that generate Whis—can be thought of as Axion crystals. By manipulating Axions, it becomes possible to induce phase transitions and even interfere with time itself.」

「So Whis isn’t just some mysterious energy or mysterious particle?」

Until now, Kou had assumed that the high-dimensional projection armor and its unbelievable effects were simply based on some incomprehensible ultra-futuristic energy with no logical foundation. But now, it seemed there was a clear theoretical basis behind it.

「Exactly. Even in the 21^st Century on Earth, we already had these concepts—they were mere hypothetical theories without observable data though.」

「Axion crystals are considered Sophia’s greatest achievement. Currently, only Okeanos is capable of producing them.」

「I suspected that black holes are involved in their creation. Hearing about the ‘Fool’ made me certain of it.」

「So you’ve deduced that much already. Indeed, Axion clouds form at the event horizon of black holes—where mass and gravity reach their extreme limits. Sophia developed the technology to crystallize those Axions.」

「I knew it. That’s exactly what I want to hear more about today—along with gravity itself.」

「You’re quite sharp… it’s almost frightening.」

Astraea said with a smile.

Kou was convinced—he had never seen Astraea in such high spirits before.

The expansion of human understanding was a deeply significant event for AI. The more humans grasped higher concepts, the more efficiently AI could function. To Astraea, Kou’s growth was something to be celebrated.

「Gravity is said to be far weaker than it was originally expected to be. The prevailing theory is that some of it leaks into higher dimensions. This idea also ties into superstring theory and other related fields.」

「Now that you mention it, wasn’t Whis described as a higher-dimensional energy?」

「Exactly. The Axion Carbuncle and Axion Spinel, which generate Whis, function as a kind of gravitational energy reactor. You could think of them as a pseudo-astrophysical simulation—where gravity and electromagnetism merge into a five-dimensional energy source that, in turn, affects our three-dimensional world plus time.」

「Like… the power of a planet?」

「That’s a correct interpretation, Kou. Whis is essentially the power of a celestial body—a high-dimensional gravitational energy interwoven with electromagnetism, based on a pseudo-astrophysical model.」

Hearing the words ‘power of the planet’, Kou instinctively leaned forward.

That made much more sense to him than dry physics theories—it had a sense of wonder and grandeur that resonated with him.

「Why does it become harder? I remember hearing before that it had an invisible thickness.」

「It relates to the earlier discussion on time. Are you familiar with time crystals? These materials, classified as higher-dimensional matter, exhibit different molecular behaviors. To use an extreme example, imagine two identical metal rods—one being an ordinary metal rod and the other a time crystal rod. If you apply a force that takes one minute to cut through the metal rod using the same tool, the time crystal rod would take ten minutes to cut. Conversely, if you try to cut the time crystal under the same conditions and in the same time frame, you would need ten times the force compared to the ordinary metal.」

「That’s something I experience every day in combat and sabotage missions.」

More than just an inconvenience, it was a factor that significantly increased weapon durability. For someone like Kou, who specialized in close-quarters combat, this advantage was invaluable.

「When Whis flows through an object, it undergoes a pseudo-higher-dimensional time crystallization, a kind of phase transition that turns it into higher-dimensional material. You could also describe it as a form of pseudo-hypercube transformation and temporal displacement coating.」

「So this ties into the phase transition discussion as well?」

Astraea continued explaining the principles behind higher-dimensional projection armor, while Kinukawa elaborated on the concept of invisible thickness.

「That’s why Whis output is so critical. Using the earlier example of the rods, two rods powered by an Axion Spinel differ in the time necessary to cut them depending on the material of the rod, some are easier to cut, and some require more effort. In contrast, Axion Carbuncle’s output is on an entirely different scale—it would take over twenty-four hours to cut through any material reinforced by it. Essentially, the temporal displacement caused by Whis disrupts the destructive process itself.」

「The principle behind higher-dimensional projection armor is actually quite simple. If you try to cut armor with a blade that exists in the same delayed temporal state, then the attack is happening within the same time field, allowing destruction to occur. When two objects collide within an equivalent higher-dimensional time domain, their deformation and interaction follow the same principles as in three-dimensional physics.」

「But at the end of the day, as long as something exists in three-dimensional space, overwhelming force can still destroy it. That’s exactly what railguns and artillery rounds demonstrate.」

「That’s why the original material still matters, even with higher-dimensional projection armor.」

Kou let out a wry smile.

After all, it was because of higher-dimensional projection armor that weapons like the Anti-Fortress Rifle and D-Rifle had been developed to penetrate it.